MLB Game Picks - Saturday: August 30, 2014

There we go! Two good nights in a row have nearly washed from memory the four straight losing nights that came before. The picks came through for eleven correct out of fifteen and are now 17-7 for the last two days.

Of the four incorrect picks, the Nationals hitting four homers off of Felix Hernandez was the biggest surprise. King Felix has not been king-like the last three outings. I did not expect the Yankees to win, but it took a whole lot of sloppiness by the Blue Jays to do so. I should have picked the Indians and not have given the Royals so much credit. And picking Miami to beat the Braves was just dumb.

But that was only four and thus, my coffee tastes that much richer this morning. And I better drink it fast because with two double-headers today, there are seventeen games to march through!

Saturday's picks:

• The Blue Jays over the Yankees: As always, it all depends on Drew Hutchison and which version of him will show up. He has been really good the last two outings. I have a feeling that the Blue Jays will hit a couple of bombs off of Michael Pineda.
• The White Sox over the Tigers: The first of a pair between these two teams today is a really tough choice between Max Scherzer and Chris Sale. Even if they cancel each other out, the two teams have awful bullpens. I like Sale against the Tigers' lineup moer than the other way around and feel like Jose Abreu will hit one out.
• The Cubs over the Cardinals: These two teams also play two games today. Justin Masterson was a huge mistake for the Cardinals in their stretch run. Bad trade. Felix Doubront gets the start for the Cubs and at least he has had some MLB success before.
• The Reds over the Pirates: Will Alfredo Simon's comeback game his last time out be the new norm or a one game reprieve? Can Vance Worley stop his losing streak at two? Tune in today to find out!
• The Orioles over the Twins: It sure seems like these Orioles have the division in the bag. They are just amazing, especially now that Chris Davis is back to being Chris Davis. I'll take Chris Tillman over Kyle Gibson.
• The Bay Rays over the Red Sox: Allen Webster had a big bump in his road his last time out. The Rays are frothing at the mouth for a win. Jake Odorizzi has a good day and the Red Sox stay in the cellar.
• The Royals over the Indians: Let's try this again. Why? Because James Shields is better than Vargas and Trevor Bauer is not as good as Salazar. Hey, that works for me.
• The Tigers over the White Sox: The second game of the double-header features two Major League debuts on the mound. Kyle Ryan and Chris Bassitt were both high round draft picks so have already beaten the odds. Ryan is a lefty with great control and a high contact rate. Bassitt is more of a power pitcher. I think I will go with the control/contact guy.
• The Braves over the Marlins: I am not making this mistake again. Aaron Harang has had a bad August and isn't the ideal pick. And Jarred Cosart has a chance to be dominating. But this may be a knee-jerk reaction to yesterday.
• The Phillies over the Mets: Jerome Williams just might be saving his career. He's had two big starts in a row for the Phillies since joining them. And, yeah, even Ryan Howard can hit a Bartolo Colon fastball.
• The Astros over the Rangers: Robbie Ross Jr. scares me to death with his ERA over six and some of the beat downs he has received. And Scott Feldman is probably a better bet at home than on the road.
• The Diamondbacks over the Rockies: The two starters here are a combined 5-17. What do you do with that? I feel like the D-backs are the better team so we'll go with that. The two pitchers are Tyler Matzek and Vidal Nuno.
• The Cubs over the Cardinals: Wait, the Cards can't lose two games of a double-header, can they? They can if they start Marco Gonzales in the second game. He has walked all kinds of people and has no idea. Tsuyoshi Wada on the other hand has been pro for the Cubbies.
• The Dodgers over the Padres: The Dodgers are playing pretty shabby these days. And the Padres are getting some nice pitching. Did you know, for example, that Ian Kennedy has more strikeouts than innings pitched this season? Blew me away when I saw that. But he is going to lose today anyway to Zack Greinke.
• The Athletics over the Angels: I'm not sure why the Angels would start reliever, Cory Rasmus, in this big game where they could get some distance from the A's. Drew Rucinski from the Arkansas Travelers might have been a better option. But there you go. The default is to go with Jeff Samardzija here.
• The Nationals over the Mariners: Oh, man. I have to pick Stephen Strasburg again. I hate that. I should love it, but he frustrates me every time. The pick is this way because the Nats' hitters are on fire and Roenis Elias won't slow them down much.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Brewers over the Giants: My man, Mike Fiers is on the hill today. I have to ride him like a pony to beat Jake Peavy today.

Yesterday: 11-4, August: 218-173, Games of the Day: 83-58 (+4), Season: 1112-922

MLB Game Picks - Sunday: August 24, 2014

To quote the Beatles, yesterday was a long and winding road that ended up semi-positive at 9-7. I was 5-2 at one point, so the rest of the day did not go so well. And my six-day correct streak on the Game of the Day feature ended with a Rays loss, disputed though it may have been.

Some trends to note: The Pirates are fighting back with with Andrew McCutchen back in the lineup. He makes everyone around him better. The Oakland A's continue to defeat the Angels in their home ballpark stunting the Angels attempts to take over the division. The Red Sox are mired in their worst slump of the season. The Baltimore Orioles are stumbling a bit with Manny Machado out for the season. And Seattle is going to be tough to beat the rest of the season.

Let's keep these trends in mind as we deal with Sunday's picks:

• The White Sox over the Yankees: It seems that the Yankees have fared better against aces in the last month than against mediocre pitchers. But if Chris Sale is on, nobody hits him. If you compare him to Chris Capuano, I don't know how you can pick the Yankees.
• The Indians over the Astros: The Astros have been hanging tough in most of their games. And I worry a bit about Trevor Bauer pitching. Bauer does have a chance at least of pitching better than Brett Oberholtzer.
• The Blue Jays over the Rays: Drew Hutchison is so hard to predict. His one good game in the last four outings was spectacular against the Orioles. But he was hit hard since. He has the stuff to shut down the Rays. Chris Archer ran into a wall his last start. Tired arm, maybe.
• The Braves over the Reds: I should have gone with Mike Leake yesterday. Oh well. I don't have the same qualms about not picking Alfredo Simon who has not been good at all in the last month. Aaron Harang has to pitch well in that small ballpark though.
• The Mariners over the Red Sox: Hisashi Iwakuma has been every bit the ace that Felix Hernandez has been. Allen Webster has been holding his own, but the Red Sox are in a downward spiral these days.
• The Nationals over the Giants: Has Stephen Strasburg at last found some consistency? Perhaps. He is great at home even when inconsistent. So he is the pick over Ryan Vogelsong.
• The Cardinals over the Phillies: I'm not thrilled at picking Justin Masterson. I think that trade was questionable for the Cards. If you have looked at Jerome Williams in his three stops this year, his first start was always good and then he pooched to the point of getting released. He's already had his good start for the Phillies.
• The Tigers over the Twins: The Tigers really need Max Scherzer to be himself today and go deep into the game. The Twins have been beating them up regularly. Kyle Gibson likes to play with my mind.
• The Brewers over the Pirates: Yes, this pick has not gone well the last two days. But gosh, it is Mike Fiers Day in Milwaukee. That has to be the pick over Vance Worley and the Pirates.
• The Cubs over the Orioles: Why not go for the sweep here? The Cubs! Tsuyoshi Wada has not given up more than two runs in his last five starts. If he does so today, the Cubs have a chance with Miguel Gonzalez.
• The Marlins over the Rockies: While I'm not a big proponent of Brad Hand, I cannot trust Christian Bergman either. Coors Field crap shoot once again.
• The Mets over the Dodgers: Putting aside the differences in the Mets and Dodgers' offenses for a second, compare Bartolo Colon and Kevin Correia. Uh, yeah. I'll go with Colon. Colon versus Puig should be entertaining television.
• The Diamondbacks over the Padres: Yes, Ian Kennedy would like to do well in Arizona, the site of his best year. But I'm going with Chase Anderson instead.
• The Athletics over the Angels: The A's did weaken their offense in their quest for pitching, but they still hold a bamboozling effect on the Angels at the Coliseum. Scott Kazmir over Jeff Weaver.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Royals over the Rangers: Picking the Rangers yesterday was pretty dumb. I don't want to be dumb today. I'll take Jason Vargas over Scott Baker. Baker has been fine out of the bullpen but hasn't started since mid-July. That means five innings and way too much exposure of the Rangers' bad bullpen.

Yesterday: 9-7, August: 178-134, Games of the Day: 79-56 (-1), Season: 1072-883

MLB Game Picks - Monday: July 28, 2014

Ten plus hours of driving and an eleven hour day on Sunday and we have our puppy, "Jeter." He is cuter than a button but boy, do we have our work cut out for us. He is only two months old and needs constant supervision. Wow, at my age, I don't know if I am up to this! But I have to be as he is ours now.

While I was busy all day, the picks were busy as well. They started the day at 2-5 after the Yankees, Rays and White Sox lost. But they came roaring back and went 7-1 the rest of the day. I need to watch the puppy, so I better get to the picks:

• The Braves over the Padres: Ah, if only you could pick games completely with your heart and not your head. Jason Lane's story is so compelling, that if it had a Hollywood ending, he would win this game just because that is what we would all want. Instead, the Braves will spoil the party and Ervin Santana will win instead.
• The Reds over the Diamondbacks: Chase Anderson hasn't won a game in a while. So he might be due. Homer Bailey seems like he should never lose and yet he does. I guess I'll go with Bailey even if I do not have a lot of confidence in the pick.
• The Rays over the Brewers: If Kyle Lohse was pitching at home, I would pick that way. But instead, he is in St. Pete pitching in that horrible dome. I have paid dearly for picking against Jake Odorizzi his last five starts. It is time to acknowledge that he has been schooling me.
• The Phillies over the Mets: A.J. Burnett and Bartolo Colon might be the two most difficult pitchers to pick in baseball. Both have games at times where they remind you of past glory and thrilling highs. And then they crash and burn in the worst way. So how do you ever know when which will be which? And when they face each other, what do you do? Both were great their last outings. I'm going to go with Burnett because Ryan Howard is mad.
• The Red Sox over the Blue Jays: R.A. Dickey will probably have a couple of his pitches end up in the Green Monster seats. So the game, then, hinges on which Clay Buchholz shows up. The one that did last time shouldn't have bothered. The good one should show up at home.
• The Nationals over the Marlins: I cannot remember the last time Nathan Eovaldi won a ballgame. I had to look it up to go way back until the June 23. That was his only win in his last ten starts. Needless to say, I am picking Jordan Zimmermann to win tonight, or at least the Nationals anyway.
• The Cubs over the Rockies: Yohan Flande and Tsuyoshi Wada have pitched a combined 29 innings in the Major Leagues. What in the world do you do with that? Perhaps look at other things like the Rockies not hitting well away from Coors and the Cubs not hitting pretty well anywhere. I'm still stuck. Wada at least had years pitching in Japan. I'll go with that.
• The Rangers over the Yankees: Yu Darvish has had some of his most dominating games against the Yankees. And he is pitching at home. I don't think David Phelps can keep up with him...not in Texas.
• The Athletics over the Astros: The Astros got swept over the weekend by the Marlins. They have really fallen on hard times. Brett Oberholtzer is not going to turn it around against the A's. My only concern in this one is Jesse Chavez.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Giants over the Pirates: Madison Bumgarner is great and has already won twelve games. When he doesn't pitch great, that's a surprise. But it does happen occasionally. Vance Worley has won three of his four decisions for the Pirates. But I think he will be dwarfed by Bumgarner here.

Last two days: 17-13, July: 186-144, Games of the Day: 61-48 (2-0), Season: 869-719

MLB Game Picks - Wednesday: July 23, 2014

Despite both extra-inning games going fourteen innings and still going my way, it was not a good picking day for the old guy here. A lot of underdogs won including the Cubs and Astros. But mostly I just got them wrong by underestimating the Orioles, Rays and Brewers.

The big one that hurt was the Astros game. I had the A's as the Game of the Day behind Scott Kazmir. That should have worked, right? But Brett Oberholtzer matched him despite not striking out anybody and the Astros' bullpen actually performed better than the A's.

Wednesday's picks:

• The Indians over the Twins: Trevor Bauer seems to be getting better all the time and the Indians are playing well. The Twins are falling back hard and Anthony Swarzak is not going to help.
• The Brewers over the Reds: The woes continue for the Reds who are beset with injuries. Kyle Lohse is good at home and even though Mike Leake is on my fantasy team, I have to pick against him here.
• The Royals over the White Sox: James Shields should be traded, but seeing as he won't be, he might as well go out and beat the White Sox. I have been pushing Jose Quintana all season, but despite great outing after great outing, he never wins.
• The Rockies over the Nationals: I have become so disenchanted picking Stephen Strasburg that I use any excuse not to pick him now. How about Coors Field? Okay, that will work. Jorge De La Rosa is a guy being mentioned in trade talks.
• The Tigers over the Diamondbacks: The D-backs surprised me by beating the Tigers yesterday. Can they do it again? I doubt it. Anibal Sanchez should be fine and Trevor Cahill is unlikely to survive here.
• The Mariners over the Mets: Taijuan Walker hasn't been all that impressive thus far since coming back this season. But tonight, he'll put it together. Bartolo Colon cannot even be given away by the Mets as they try and try to trade him for something...anything...
• The Pirates over the Dodgers: I am assuming that Francisco Liriano is healthier than he was earlier in the season. His five innings in his first start back from the DL was pretty impressive. So let's go with that. Dan Haren faces a hot Pirates lineup.
• The Rangers over the Yankees: There are two stories going on here. First, Yu Darvish has pitched three times in his career against the Yankees and has yet to have a bad outing. Secondly, he is averaging 6.77 innings per start, very important after a 14-inning game. David Phelps can be efficient and go long too. But will the Rangers' bats stay quiet?
• The Red Sox over the Blue Jays: The bad Clay Buchholz showed up last time. But perhaps that was just a blip. I cannot imagine R.A. Dickey having a good day against the Red Sox, but I could be wrong.
• The Braves over the Marlins: Ervin Santana has had a good enough season for the Braves that it seems safe to pick him most times. Nathan Eovaldi, on the other hand, hasn't been safe to pick in a while.
• The Cardinals over the Rays: Now come on, the Rays can't win every game they play, right? Even though it seems they can. Alex Cobb is tough, but Lance Lynn is probably tougher. Lynn should at least fare better than Wainwright did. Grrr.
• The Cubs over the Padres: I picked the Padres yesterday, but that was before I knew Headley would get traded. Today, the Cubs pitch 33-year-old Tsuyoshi Wada against the Padres who do not like lefties. They neutralize guys like Seth Smith and others. Ian Kennedy will have a good night in a losing effort.
• The Orioles over the Angels: Alright, alright already, you win. The Orioles are a good team and I should take them seriously. Chris Tillman over Jered Weaver who might give up three homers tonight.
• The Athletics over the Astros: Yes, Brad Peacock was good his last time out. Yes, Jesse Chavez has not been good since the early part of the year. But the A's should win this thing.

And the Game of the Day is:

• The Giants over the Phillies: It's funny watching all the baseball shows on television talking about A.J. Burnett being traded. Imagine all the fans in each suggested city going, "No! No! Not here!" Yeah. Madison Bumgarner with the win.

Yesterday: 6-9, July: 146-113, Games of the Day: 58-46, Season: 829-688