Saturday, July 12, 2014

MLB Game Picks - Saturday: July 12, 2014

The end of vacation curse is over. When the picks stood at 4-3 yesterday, I wondered if they were heading for another bad night. But they went on a 7-1 run thereafter and it was a very good day. The Yankees were as bad as expected. King Felix beat the A's. Tim Lincecum won. Dan Haren lost to my man, Jesse Hahn. Everything fell into place nicely.
I have a golf tournament today, so here I am bright and early to bring you the picks. They are as follows:
  • The Indians over the White Sox: The last three times Zach McAllister pitched in the Majors this year, he was raked over the coals (cliche alert). But then he went down to the minors, went 5-0 and seems to be straightened out. I'll take him over Scott Carroll.
  • The Giants over the Diamondbacks: This is a tough one. Wade Miley has been very good lately. But the Giants prefer left-handed pitching. Ryan Vogelsong has had an off year, but has been better lately. If the two pitchers even each other out, the Giants will find a way to win.
  • The Braves over the Cubs: The trouble here is that you can never predict what Edwin Jackson you are going to get. It's very possible the very good one will come out today. Mike Minor has been somewhat disappointing. I'm still going with the Braves.
  • The Orioles over the Yankees: The only chance the Yankees have is to bust out on offense.....bwahahaha....like that will ever happen. Chris Tillman over Shane Greene.
  • The Red Sox over the Astros: The Astros are banged up. Jake Peavy is probably auditioning for another team. Brett Oberholtzer is still trying to prove he is a Major League pitcher. The Red Sox go 4-0 in the  post-Pierzynski era.
  • The Marlins over the Mets: The Mets are playing well, but I like Tom Koehler in this one over Daisuke Matsuzaka in this one. If Dice-K is off on his game, the big bats in the middle of the Marlins' lineup will kill him.
  • The Rockies over the TwinsKevin Correia is already a bad pitcher. Put him at Coors and it could get ugly quickly. Tyler Matzek. Look over the pitchers I've mentioned thus far in this post and see all the "Zs" I've used so far. And I haven't gotten to Odorizzi yet.
  • The Cardinals over the BrewersJimmy Nelson has a nice debut his last time out. He should cherish that and then step aside and watch Adam Wainwright do his thing. I don't think Nelson can keep up with that.
  • The Blue Jays over the Rays: The Jays are without some of that great lineup, but they have enough left to win this game with Drew Hutchison having a good game. The aforementioned Jake Odorizzi goes for the Rays.
  • The Angels over the Rangers: This could be a slugfest. The Tolkien elf, Miles Mikolas was creamed his last time out. Jered Weaver couldn't even go his last time out because something hurt, so I am doubtful about his health. If it is a slugfest, the Angels can out-slug the Rangers.
  • The Reds over the PiratesMike Leake has to be good in this game and the exciting Billy Hamilton continues to spirit the Reds beyond their injuries. Charlie Morton, as you know, is not my favorite pitcher to pick to win.
  • The Phillies over the Nationals: The Phillies refuse to be dead so they can be scrapped for parts. They are, in reality, dead. But continue to win games anyway like the walk of the zombies. Stephen Strasburg never wins for me, so I'll go with Cole Hamels.
  • The Mariners over the Athletics: His back is ever a concern, but if he is on his game, Hisashi Iwakuma is fun to watch.  Jesse Chavez predictably threw a great game his last time out after I dropped him from my fantasy team. I think he will get hit today.
  • The Padres over the DodgersPaul Maholm? Ah. No. I don't think so. Ian Kennedy might be auditioning in front of a bunch of scouts. I think he'll do better than Maholm, but that won't take much.
And the Game of the Day:
  • The Tigers over the Royals: :::SWAT::: Watch the Tigers swat the Royals away like some kind of pesky mosquito. Big Game James Shields never has a Big Game against the Tigers. Rick Porcello has been the bomb (as I predicted before the season by the way).
Yesterday: 11-4, July: 89-67, Games of the Day: 53-44, Season: 772-642

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