MLB Game Picks - Thursday: August 28, 2014

Holy cow am I on a losing streak! Wednesday was the fourth straight negative day and this one was really negative. At one point, I was 0-6 and then 1-8. How can you be that wrong that often? What the heck happened in Philadelphia to the Nationals? The Yankees....the Yankees got nine straight hits off of David Price. Whuh!? The Brewers' bullpen blows a lead and then loses in extras. Liam Hendriks only gives up four base runners in seven innings!? Adam Wainwright lost again!? Man. What a tough day.

This gig isn't fun when you have days (and a week) like this.

Thursday's picks:

• The Cubs over the Reds: Dylan Axelrod had a good first outing after getting recalled by the Reds. That makes this pick more challenging. Jake Arrieta gentille arrieta is a better pick if he can get some offense behind him.
• The Yankees over the Tigers: This pick all depends on how well Hiroki Kuroda pitches. The Yankees' bullpen should be in good shape for this one so if the team from the Bronx can do some damage on Kyle Lobstein, they should win.
• The Giants over the Rockies: Yusmeiro Petit has not allowed a hit or a walk in his last 12.1 innings of work covering five relief outings. Can that translate to a start? Time will tell. Jordan Lyles has pitched decently for the struggling Rockies.
• The Orioles over the Rays: The Rays are better now that they have Wil Myers back. That deepens their lineup. I think, though, that the Orioles will hit Jeremy Hellickson more than the Rays will hit Bud Norris.
• The Indians over the White Sox: Adam Eaton changes how the White Sox look. That said, Carlos Carrasco has filled in very nicely for the Indians in the rotation and should give them a chance to win over John Danks.
• The Royals over the Twins: Tommy Milone has gotten his shoes shined in his last three outings. I mean, he hasn't been able to get anyone out. I will take Jeremy Guthrie instead, though with reservations.
• The Astros over the Rangers: Nick Tepesch had been doing much better until he ran into the Royals. So now I'm not sure about him. Collin McHugh is a strikeout machine that doesn't go deep enough often enough in games. The Astros' bullpen is messy if that happens today.
• The Angels over the Athletics: Sonny Gray was as much of a lock as there was earlier in the season. Now he is a big question mark. Has he hit a wall? Is his arm tired? Have batters found something on him? In order for this pick to work, C.J. Wilson has to have a good day.

And the Game of the Day:

• That Braves over the Mets: Mike Minor has been a different pitcher in his last two outings and should be a lot more challenging for the Mets than the last time they saw him on July 1. Jon Niese is a good pitcher, so this game will be close.

Yesterday: 5-10, August: 201-166, Games of the Day: 81-58 (+2), Season: 1095-915

MLB Game Picks - Wednesday: August 27, 2014

My home network decided not to work this morning so I am late and flustered. Not to mention the fact that I cannot seem to get over the .500 hump lately. I suppose I should look at the bigger picture in that at one point I was 3-8 and finished at 7-8. But still. Come on now. The A's are really struggling. The Reds are awful. The Cubs and Padres keep making noise. And, of course, both extra-inning games went against me. What else is new.

I need to turn this around! Wednesday's picks:

• The Cardinals over the Pirates: I haven't been helped by picking Adam Wainwright lately. At the same time, it feels so dangerous to pick against him. Jeff Locke could give the Cards problems. But if Wainwright is Wainwright, the Cards win.
• The Mariners over the Rangers: I figured this pick should be easy until I saw that Erasmo Ramirez was pitching for the Mariners. Oh. Okay. Hmm. Oh what the heck, Colby Lewis isn't that great shakes either.
• The Orioles over the Rays: The Orioles have clearly showed their superiority over every other team in the AL East and that includes the Rays. If Kevin Gausman keeps pitching the way he has, he is going to be a star. The Emoticon, Drew Smyly, will always be (IMHO) a middle-to-bottom of the rotation guy.
• The Nationals over the Phillies: I have been wrong with this pick for two straight days, but I am nothing if not stubborn. Doug Fister should always beat Kyle Kendrick. But baseball will always be baseball.
• The Red Sox over the Blue Jays: The Red Sox can enjoy being spoilers now and with Allen Craig back, can do some damage. I like Joe Kelly better than the erratic youth of Marcus Stroman. The undeniable truth though is that Stroman can kill it when he is on his game.
• The Tigers over the Yankees: David Price with each start is getting himself closer and closer to a paycheck that will change his name to T. Rowe Price. He prevents the Yankees from getting to the Tigers' weak bullpen by throwing strikes. Shane Greene will try to keep it close.
• The Mets over the Braves: Weak Mets' offense or not, Zack Wheeler has arrived and he has been phenomenal. Julio Teheran can force it to the bullpens and if so, the Braves have the advantage.
• The Reds over the Cubs: On paper, Mat Latos is better than Jacob Turner. But Turner was a wise pickup by the Cubs along the same lines as Arrieta was and the Cubs can turn him into a good pitcher. But that takes a little time. The Reds shouldn't get a ringing endorsement, but they are the pick.
• The Indians over the White Sox: I like that Adam Eaton is back for the White Sox. That said, I like Corey Kluber over Hector Noesi too much to fool around with this pick.
• The Twins over the Royals: That was quite exciting for the Royals last night and I like that they have a chance for the division. That city deserves it. But I don't like Royals starting Liam Hendriks.Yeesh. Phil Hughes has become a stud.
• The Athletics over the Astros: Brad Peacock has three problems. The first is his high ERA. The second is his 1.68 WHIP and the third is that he almost never goes more than five innings in his starts. He has pitched beyond the sixth inning only once in his last ten starts. That is too much exposure for those last twelve outs. Drew Pomeranz goes for the A's.
• The Brewers over the Padres: This pick hasn't gone well this week, but I'm feeling pretty good about this one. Yovani Gallardo will start for the Brewers, so that is reason one. The second is that Odrisamer Despaigne hasn't exactly been stingy in giving up runs in recent starts.
• The Angels over the Marlins: I hate to pick against Henderson Alvarez. He certainly has had a very good year. And the Marlins are no pushovers. But the Angels are home and Hector Santiago has been pitching well enough that I think they have the advantage.
• The Giants over the Rockies: For years I have thought that Hector Santiago and Franklin Morales were the same exact guy. But while Santiago plays for a great team like the Angels, Morales plays for a challenged team like the Rockies. Tim Hudson isn't a solid pick, but he is the pick tonight.

And the Game of the Day:

• The Dodgers over the Diamondbacks: Wade Miley has been better than earlier in the season, but he runs up against Clayton Kershaw. Sorry about that, Wade.

Yesterday: 7-8, August: 196-156, Games of the Day: 80-58 (+1), Season: 1090-905

MLB Game Picks - Tuesday: August 26, 2014

Here in the late stages of August, things are falling apart for my game picking like a Nicki Minaj outfit and I have had three malfunctions in the last four days. The Game of the Day feature is on a losing streak of three days and the schedule only gets tougher from here.

I need to get this ship turned around. Tuesday's picks:

• The Cardinals over the Pirates: Lance Lynn has been a big-time pitcher for the Cardinals this year. Whenever they needed a win, he has come through. His performance tonight will go a long way on deciding which team wins this game. Gerrit Cole is no slouch either.
• The Orioles over the Rays: Alex Cobb has been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. Wei Yin Chen just keeps winning. Buck Showalter is one of the few managers not intimidated by Joe Maddon and often out-schools him. I have the Orioles here.
• The Nationals over the Phillies: Gio Gonzalez is hard to figure out this season. But if he is on, he will shut down the Phillies. Cole Hamels has been outstanding. But still never gets the support he needs.
• The Blue Jays over the Red Sox: Rubby De La Rosa has not been reliable and I just get the feeling that the Jays will clean his clock tonight. That said, R.A. Dickey never gives me confidence from start to start.
• The Tigers over the Yankees: Rick Porcello is a good match-up against the Yankees because they are easily induced into pounding the ball into the ground with their pull-hitting. Brandon McCarthy still makes me pinch myself because of the great run he is on. This should be another close game.
• The Braves over the Mets: Two guys named Alex pitch tonight and two guys named Wood pitch too. So it is the Alex Alex Wood Wood Night. Dillon Gee has been a disappointment since coming off the DL.
• The Reds over the Cubs: Johnny Cueto versus Travis Wood really sounds like a mismatch. That really bothers me.
• The White Sox over the Indians: Jose Quintana deserves a win. He really does. And with T.J. House as his opponent, he has a chance. If that bullpen can only hold on for once...
• The Athletics over the Astros: There are still deep concerns about the A's without their closer and with a banged up offense. But if Jason Hammel has a reasonably good night, they should beat the Astros and Dallas Keuchel.
• The Dodgers over the Diamondbacks: Trevor Cahill has been significantly better in his last four starts. He's been a totally different guy. That said, the Dodgers should muster up enough offense and win behind Ramon Hernandez and the bullpen.
• The Angels over the Marlins: Nathan Eovaldi totally messes me up. He and Stults of the Padres are my least favorite picks because they always do the opposite of what I expect. The Angels should win this game and Matt Shoemaker has been their stud all season. With Mike Trout and Giancarlo Stanton on the same field, you have the best in baseball in one ballpark.
• The Brewers over the Padres: The Brewers are not folding. That is the first thought. The second is that Jimmy Nelson should enjoy Petco and do much better than his last start in Toronto. Tyson Ross is a good pitcher though.
• The Mariners over the Rangers: For years, the Rangers got fat on the Mariners in the division. The tide has turned and the Rangers are the team looking way up from the bottom of the standings. James Paxton should be dominant and Nick Martinez should yield at least a three-spot.
• The Giants over the Rockies: The Giants are about as unpredictable as a team gets these days. Their offense is so hit or miss that you never know what to expect. The same goes for Madison Bumgarner who never seems to string his dominance over successive games. Jorge De La Rosa is the best of the Rockies' pitchers.

And the Game of the Day

• The Royals over the Twins: The loss to the Yankees last night should just be a momentary blip for the Royals and they get back to their winning ways tonight against the Twins. They should enjoy batting against Ricky Nolasco and Danny Duffy has gotten better and better.

Yesterday: 4-6, August: 189-148, Games of the Day: 78-58 (-3), Season: 1083-897

Five tool players

I admit it. I brought you here under false pretenses. Here you thought you were going to read about players or prospects that had the proverbial five tools like running, throwing, power, high batting average and character. But that is not what this post is about. I'll leave such tool worship to the scouts and prospect writers who are good at what they do. Instead this post is about players whose names come from tools. There are five of them.

The first is named after a garden instrument. You have all heard of the common garden hoe. They are great for taking care of weeds that always seem to grow better than your vegetables or flowers do. If you have more than one hoe, you have hoes. That's where L.J. Hoes comes in. He was drafted by the Orioles in the third round of the 2008 draft and was part of the deal that sent Bud Norris to the Orioles from Houston in 2013. Hoes has seen limited duty in parts of three seasons and is currently in the minors. His real first name is Jerome.

With the terrible fashion statement today of men having scruffy faces and beards, it's doubtful that many are going to barbers these days to get a shave. But if they did, they would see the barber with a piece of leather hanging near his equipment. That leather thing is called a strop and helps him/her keep the blade sharp.

Pedro Strop currently pitches for the Chicago Cubs. Strop also has ties to the Baltimore Orioles as he pitched there for a few seasons. He was originally signed by the Colorado Rockies in 2002 out of the Dominican Republic and has also pitched for the Rangers. He has had two very fine seasons for the Cubs in 2013 and 2014.

A thatcher is also called a de-thatcher, which makes little sense. Both are correct, but that's kind of like flammable and inflammable. Why do we need two words that mean the same thing? Anyway, the tool is designed to thin out your lawn so that the plants that make up your lawn have more room to breathe and grow freely. I want to buy one for my lawnmower, but you have to get cinder blocks to put on top of it to keep it thatching. Why wouldn't they design a product that could stay down in the first place?

Joe Thatcher is a relief pitcher that you cannot keep down either. He has pitched parts of eight seasons with significant relief appearances since 2010. He was recently acquired by the Angels from the Diamondbacks so Joe must not be one of those rah-rah types. He hasn't pitched well for the Angels so far, but he is a good relief pitcher with a proven track record. He currently makes $3.75 million which means that he could afford a lot of cinder blocks.

The fourth one is my least favorite examples because it is kind of a blah tool. But we all need them to run our cars, lawnmowers and engines of all sorts. They also keep our pants up. I am talking of the belt.

Brandon Belt was drafted by the Giants so he is a home grown guy. He had sort of a break out season a year ago as he took over first base. But things haven't worked out this year and it's been pretty much a lost year for him. He still seems to have a bright future and can keep the Giants' offensive motor running for years to come.

The fifth is my favorite. It is the peavy. A peavy is a logging tool and has a broom like handle with a metal spike on the end and a metal hook. It was invented to help move logs that were stuck in log drives that jammed up in rivers. They are simply useful in maneuvering logs. The reason I like it so much is that it was invented right here in Maine by Joseph Peavy of Upper Stillwater, Maine and the Peavy Manufacturing Company is still making variations today.

Jake Peavy is in the business of trying to separate wood from batters. As a pitcher, he tries to out-maneuver them so they either strikeout or hit the ball weakly for an out. Peavy is a former star who lost favor in Boston and was traded to the Giants. He is doing better for that team and seems to have a big of his swagger back.

I apologize that you did not find any information about five-tool players. But I hope you enjoyed this little bit of nonsense in the midst of a overly-serious baseball world.

MLB Game Picks - Monday: August 25, 2014

Sunday ended up a game below .500 with the game picks. Some picks were really good like the Cubs finishing off the Orioles to sweep the series and the Mets beating the Dodgers. But others such as the Angels pouncing on Scott Kazmir and the Rays squeezing out a game against the Blue Jays threw me. I never expected the White Sox to lose with Chris Sale on the mound. And I was wrong about the Reds as they beat Aaron Harang behind the not-so-dead Alfredo Simon.

And it is official. The Cardinals trading for Justin Masterson was the worst deadline deal in recent memory.

The Game of the Day pick was wrong for the second day in a row. That trend has to stop. And it will be harder today because there are only ten games on the schedule.

Oh, and fantasy baseball is frustrating. This is my first year playing and my team put up unbelievable numbers yesterday both pitching and batting and the result was a zero point day. What!?

Monday's picks:

• The Pirates over the Cardinals: The Cardinals traditionally have trouble with lefties and Francisco Liriano pitches for the Pirates. IF he is on, he can beat anyone. John Lackey against Andrew McCutchen will be interesting to watch.
• The Orioles over the Rays: Baseball is a funny game. The Orioles just got shut down over the weekend by the Cubs, of all teams. But that is all meaningless on a Monday after it's over. Chris Tillman over Jake Odorizzi.
• The Nationals over the Phillies: The Phillies are a proud bunch and can still play spoilers. Look at what they did to the Cardinals yesterday. Tanner Roark is pretty special though and I don't think A.J. Burnett has much left in the tank.
• The Red Sox over the Blue Jays: Which streak will end tonight, the Red Sox' eight-game losing streak or J.A. Happ's three-game losing streak. I'm feeling Boston even if David Ortiz cannot play. Clay Buchholz is a mess right now though.
• The Yankees over the Royals: This is a make-up game from earlier in the season. I like Michael Pineda in this one over James Shields. The weekend for the Yankees with two walk-offs might be a jump starter.
• The Athletics over the Astros: The Astros swing and miss a lot and Jeff Samardzija should benefit from that. Scott Feldman has been decent for the Astros, but only the Lord knows how. I can't figure it out.
• The Angels over the Marlins: I am pretty darned skeptical about the Angels starting Wade LeBlanc. The Angels, however, can mash and Pujols, Trout and Hamilton are firing well right now. Jarred Cosart should not survive the onslaught.
• The Padres over the Brewers: Eric Stults has won his last three decisions and has pitched well in his last four outings. Kyle Lohse has lost his last three decisions and got pummeled in two of those. Of course, baseball being baseball, since I picked it this way, both of those streaks will reverse.
• The Mariners over the Rangers: Hopefully, Robinson Cano is okay and just needed fluids or something. Roenis Elias is the biggest Mariner wild card. But I do believe the Mariners were beat Miles Mikolas and the Rangers handily.

And the Game of the Day

• The Giants over the Rockies: The starting pitchers in this game are a combined 5-21. The difference is that one of them is Jake Peavy and he has won his last two. Tyler Matzek is not Jake Peavy and the Rockies are on the road.

Yesterday: 7-8, August: 185-142, Games of the Day: 79-57 (-2), Season: 1079-891

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