Thursday, May 29, 2014

MLB Game Picks - Thursday: May 29, 2014

I feel like the Pirates this morning. I cannot get on any kind of roll. I have a bad night, then a good night, then another bad night. Clayton Kershaw is a pretty good lock for the Game of the Day, right? Apparently not. That feature is drowning being incorrect for five straight games.

Even if I was blindly picking the games at random, I think I would be more successful than this. Supposedly, I know what I'm doing. Supposedly, I've been watching fifty years of baseball and having some idea how what's what. I pour over the stats every day. And the picks make me look like a complete dope. Of all shticks to pick, why did I pick this one?

Thursday is a short schedule day. Here are the picks for the ten games to be played:
  • The Rangers over the Twins: Nick Martinez has made two starts now and did quite  well in both of them. My only concern is the lack of strikeouts. The BABIP bug has to snap up and bite him once in a while. But I think the Ranger will hit Sam Deduno.
  • The Athletics over the Tigers: The A's are a really good team and their comeback win yesterday really isn't that much of a surprise. The Tigers never seem to do it right when it comes to getting a closer. Joe Nathan's shelf life might be one year beyond fresh. Anyway, I think Jesse Chavez will be better than Rick Porcello.
  • The Phillies over the Mets: The Phillies are on a bit of a roll and they too had a dramatic finish to their game last night. David Buchanan throws strikes and you have to like that. Again, he is not a big strikeout guy though. Zack Wheeler seems to be lost in a sea of stuff.
  • The Blue Jays over the Royals: How can you pick against the Blue Jays these days? I did yesterday and got burned. The Royals, on the other hand, are in desperate need of new leadership. R.A. Dickey over James Shields.
  • The Red Sox over the Braves: Have the Braves looked terrible in this series or have the Red Sox looked good? Take your pick I suppose. The Red Sox complete the sweep with Jake Peavy over Mike Minor.
  • The Orioles over the Astros: Ubaldo Jimenez is 4-0 lifetime against the Astros with some of his best stats against any team. But these aren't the same Astros. This version has won ten of fifteen and has George Springer. I'd go with the Astros if Brad Peacock wasn't their starter tonight. The guy can't buy a win.
  • The Cardinals over the Giants: Ryan Vogelsong has been pitching well but is always vulnerable in my book. Jaime Garcia has looked good and is always tough at home. That is how I'm going then.
  • The Diamondbacks over the Reds: This is a tough one. Josh Collmenter has won his last two starts, but is not quite as good at home as on the road. The D-backs hit lefties better because all of their good hitters bat from the right side. Tony Cingrani is a lefty. I'm going Diamondbacks.
  • The Angels over the Mariners: Matt Shoemaker is 2-0 as a starter in three starts for the Angels. His stats look real too. Brandon Maurer will suffer in comparison to King Felix and his pitches will look like beach balls to the Angels after last night.
And the Game of the Day:
  • The Dodgers over the Pirates: Okay, this is my new tactic. If a team is the Game of the Day pick and loses instead, the odds are they will win the next night. Has it really come to this insanity? I pick against the Pirates because I am blindly angry that they have left Gregory Polanco rotting in the minors simply because of money when their offense ahs struggled all year. It's the worst thing in the world to me. YOU PUT THE BEST TEAM ON THE FIELD! Oh! Dan Haren over Gerrit Cole.
Yesterday: 6-9, May (is it over yet?): 203-183, Games of the Day: 25-29, Season: 436-355

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