4-14-13

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MLB weather report: Windy at Wrigley, rain in Minny

Here is Sunday's MLB weather report:

Milwaukee Brewers vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Site: Busch Stadium

Winds will blow out to left field at 22 mph. Temperatures in the mid-70s with mostly sunny skies.

San Francisco Giants vs. Chicago Cubs
Site: Wrigley Field

Temperatures in the low-60s at game time. Partly cloudy skies and wind blowing from right to left at 19 mph.

Colorado Rockies vs. San Diego Padres
Site: Petco Park

Winds will blow out to right field at 11 mph. Partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the low-60s.

Tampa Bay Rays vs. Boton Red Sox
Site: Fenway Park

Partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the low-50s. Winds will blow out to Pesky's Pole at 13 mph.

Toronto Blue Jays vs. Kansas City Royals
Site: Kauffman Stadium

Strong winds will blow out to left field at 21 mph. A 30 percent chance of isolated thunderstorms and temperatures in the high-60s.

Detroit Tigers vs. Oakland Athletics
Site: Oakland Coliseum

Sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60s. Wind will blow out to right field at 15 mph.

New York Mets vs. Minnesota Twins
Site: Target Field

Temperatures in the low-40s and an 80 percent chance of rain. Winds will blow in from left field at 16 mph.

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Sunday Night Baseball: Orioles at Yankees
By STEVE MERRIL

The Orioles are on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball for the first time since 2008. They take on the Yankees in a battle of AL East foes.

Baltimore Orioles at New York Yankees (-135, 8.5)

AS THE INJURIES TURN

The Yankees were scheduled to have Andy Pettitte go on Sunday, but he was pushed back to Tuesday or Wednesday as he's dealing with back spasms. Manager Joe Girardi said it was a precautionary move and hopes that it won't be an issue in the future. Hiroki Kuroda will start in his Pettitte’s place on Sunday night. Kuroda has not been at his best so far early on, giving up five runs and nine hits in just over six innings of work. He walked four in a win over the Indians. The righty faced Baltimore three times last season, going 1-1 with a no-decision. He allowed seven runs and 17 hits in those contests.

SOLID SOUTHPAW FOR BALTIMORE

Wei-Yin Chen has not picked up a win yet this season despite pitching two fantastic ballgames. He has given up just five runs and 12 hits in road games against the Red Sox and Rays. The second year starter faced New York five times last season winning twice, while losing two times as well. Chen was a spectacular find for Baltimore going 12-11 with a 4.02 ERA in 32 starts for the Orioles last campaign. He showed good control walking only 57 in 192 2/3 innings, while striking out 154. Chen's one issue was that he gave up 29 homers which could become a problem with all the power hitters in the AL East.

INJURY REPORT

It's a tale of two different teams in this respect. Baltimore is without Brian Roberts and Wilson Betemit in the lineup. The Yankees, however, have a longer list of guys dealing with ailments. They are without Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Curtis Granderson, and Alex Rodriguez. Jeter, Teixeira, and Granderson all hope to return by May, while A-Rod is looking at a July return. The rotation is without Michael Pineda who has not thrown a regular season pitch for the Bronx Bombers after undergoing Tommy John surgery last year. Pineda is expected to be out until June.

TRENDS

* The over is 5-2-1 in the Oriole’s last eight Sunday games.
* Orioles are 1-4 in Chen's last five road starts
* Yankees are 37-17 in their last 54 Sunday games
* The under is 4-1 in the Yankees’ last five games vs. a left-handed starter.

HITTERS TO WATCH

J.J. Hardy 1-for-10 vs. Kuroda
Nate McLouth 2-for-16 vs. Kuroda

Robinson Cano 3-for-11 vs. Chen
Kevin Youkilis 2-for-6 vs. Chen

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Five NHL teams fighting for their playoff lives

Action is heating up in the NHL and every game is likely to have playoff intensity in the final two weeks of the season.

Here are a few teams fighting for their playoff lives down the stretch:

Winnipeg Jets (21-19-2 SU, 21-21 ATS, 16-25-1 over/under, ninth in East)

Remaining schedule: vs. Tampa Bay, vs. Carolina, vs. Islanders, at Buffalo, at Washington, vs. Montreal

The Jets and Rangers both have 44 points heading into action Saturday, but New York holds the tiebreaker. Winnipeg also trails Washington by two points for the Southeast Division lead. The Jets have a favorable schedule down the stretch and the division title could up for grabs when they square off with the Capitals on April 23.

New Jersey Devils (15-16-10 SU, 19-22 ATS, 16-18-7 over/under, 10th in East)

Remaining schedule: at Toronto, at Philadelphia, vs. Florida, at Rangers, vs. Montreal, vs. Pittsburgh, at Rangers

The Devils have dropped nine straight games to fall out of playoff contention, but it’s not too late for New Jersey to turn things around. The Devils trail the Jets and Rangers by four points for the eighth and final playoff spot heading into action Saturday. New Jersey plays New York (Rangers) twice down the stretch and will need victories in both affairs to have a shot at the playoffs.

Dallas Stars (20-17-3, SU, 24-16 ATS, 21-15-4 over/under, ninth in West)

Remaining schedule: vs. San Jose, at Chicago, vs. Vancouver, at St. Louis, at Los Angeles, at San Jose, vs. Columbus, vs. Detroit

The Stars have won four straight games to catapult them into a three-way tie for ninth in the West. Dallas has found the back of the net 18 times during the win streak and is one of the best puckline bets in the league (24-16 ATS). But bettors beware: The Stars have an incredibly tough schedule down the stretch against quality opponents.

Phoenix Coyotes (18-16-7 SU, 20-21 ATS, 18-18-5 over/under, ninth in West)

Remaining schedule: vs. San Jose, at St. Louis, at Chicago, at Detroit, vs. San Jose, vs. Colorado, at Avalanche

The Coyotes are only 5-9-6 on the road to date and they’ll have to find a way to earn points away from the desert in order to make a push for the playoffs.

Columbus Blue Jackets (18-16-7 SU, 30-11 ATS, 15-24-2 over/under, ninth in West)

Remaining schedule: at Minnesota, at Colorado, at Anaheim, at Los Angeles, at San Jose, at Dallas vs. Nashville

The Blue Jackets play six of their final seven contests on the road where they have been a great under play (6-12 O/U) to date. Bettors have been cashing on Columbus’ league-best 30-11 ATS record all season long.

All stats and schedules prior to action Saturday.

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Spurs at Lakers: What bettors need to know

San Antonio Spurs at Los Angeles Lakers (+6, 204)

After carrying the Los Angeles Lakers all season, Kobe Bryant will have to watch his team make its final playoff push without him. Bryant will miss the rest of the season after suffering a torn left Achilles’ tendon in the final minutes of Friday’s win over Golden State, and the Lakers will need to regroup quickly in order to hold onto the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They have two regular-season games remaining, starting with Sunday’s matchup against the visiting San Antonio Spurs.

The game could be a first-round playoff preview if San Antonio grabs the first seed and Los Angeles maintains its one-game lead over ninth-place Utah. The Lakers, who finish the regular season on Wednesday at home against Houston, have no margin for error since the Jazz own the tiebreaker. The Lakers have lost four straight to the Spurs, who clinched at least the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference on Friday. San Antonio has struggled recently, losing four of their last seven games.

TV: 9:30 p.m. ET, KENS (San Antonio), TWC SportsNet (Los Angeles)

ABOUT THE SPURS (58-21): San Antonio made a surprising move on Friday, waiving veteran small forward Stephen Jackson just six days before the end of the regular season. “We’re getting ready for playoffs and putting our team together, what we want to do and who we want to do it with,” coach Gregg Popovich told reporters. Jackson, 35, averaged 6.2 points in 55 games this season. His release was prompted by several factors, including the emergence of Kawhi Leonard, who leads the team in steals.

ABOUT THE LAKERS (43-37): Los Angeles controls its playoff destiny, but hardly anyone was thinking about that after Bryant’s injury. “It’s a tough blow for everyone,” forward Pau Gasol told reporters in a quiet locker room after Friday’s 118-116 victory over the Warriors. “It’s difficult to digest what happened.” Gasol registered his sixth career triple-double in the win, and the Lakers will need a repeat performance against the Spurs. Reserve guard Jodie Meeks is expected to start in place of Bryant.

TRENDS:

* Spurs are 0-4 ATS in their last four games overall.
* Under is 7-0 in Spurs’ last seven road games.
* Over is 4-0 in Lakers’ last four overall.
* Road team is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Spurs F Boris Diaw will miss three to four weeks after having back surgery on Friday.

2. Lakers PG Steve Nash has missed the last six games with lingering right hip and hamstring issues.

3. The Lakers are 3-7 in their last 10 games against San Antonio.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Masters odds: Tiger falls after penalty; Snedeker new fave

Tiger Woods shot a 2-under 70 in the third round at Augusta National on Saturday and sits four strokes off the lead heading into the final round of the Masters Sunday.

Rumors Woods would be disqualified for a faulty drop on the 15th hole during his second round Friday had oddsmakers scrambling early Saturday morning to adjust their lines.

The LVH SuperBook had Tiger at 9/4 Friday overnight into Saturday and put him down to 5/1 after news broke he would be assessed a two-stroke penalty for the mishap.

Woods now has 13/2 odds to don his fifth green jacket after lowering his overall score to 3-under for the tourney. He would have sat at -5 overall – two strokes off the pace if he had not been penalized.

Eldrick has overcome a larger deficit en route to victory at Augusta, trailing by six shots after 36 holes in 2005. It was the only time he's won the Masters after trailing by more than four shots at the midway point.

Tiger will be chasing co-leaders Brandt Snedeker (7/4) and 2009 Masters champion Angel Cabrera (11/2) who are deadlocked at 7-under par after 54 holes.

The co-leaders will be looking over their shoulders at three Aussies – Adam Scott (7/2), Jason Day (9/1) and Marc Leishman (25/1). Scott sits one stroke off the pace after firing a 3-under 69. Day and Leishman sit in a tie for fourth at 5-under heading into the final round.

An Australian has never won the Masters.

The weather forecast looks favorable for Sunday’s finale. Temperatures are expected to rise into the high-70s under mostly cloudy conditions. Winds will blow from the ESE at 13 mph.

Here are the complete Masters outright odds courtesy of the LVH:

ODDS TO WIN (updated after 3rd round):
BRANDT SNEDEKER 7/4
ADAM SCOTT 7/2
ANGEL CABRERA 11/2
TIGER WOODS 13/2
JASON DAY 9/1
MATT KUCHAR 12/1
MARC LEISHMAN 25/1
LEE WESTWOOD 30/1
TIM CLARK 60/1
JIM FURYK 60/1
RICKIE FOWLER 60/1
STEVE STRICKER 60/1
SERGIO GARCIA 125/1
GONZALO FERNANDEZ-CASTANO 150/1
NICK WATNEY 150/1
BO VAN PELT 150/1
JUSTIN ROSE 150/1
JASON DUFNER 200/1
BERNHARD LANGER 200/1
FIELD (all others) 40/1

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Mighty Quinn

Mighty hit with the Mets Saturday.

Sunday it’s the Knicks. The deficit is 331 sirignanos.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Kevin
MLBPredictions

2 UNIT = Philadelphia Phillies @ Miami Marlins - UNDER 8 RUNS (-105)
Listed Pitchers: Halladay vs Slowey
(Note: I'm risking 2.00 units to win 1.90 units)

2 UNIT = Atlanta Braves @ Washington Nationals - UNDER 7 RUNS (+102)
Listed Pitchers: Maholm vs Gonzalez
(Note: I'm risking 2.00 units to win 2.04 units)

2 UNIT = Detroit Tigers @ Oakland Athletics - TIGERS TO WIN (-115)
Listed Pitchers: Sanchez vs Parker
(Note: I'm risking 2.00 units to win 1.74 units)

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TD Pucks & Dunks

2* LA Lakers +5 or more
2* Braves
2* Royals

[Can'tPickAWinner]

VegasBookiePlays

Six (6) Plays for Sunday 04/14/2013:

NBA: Den Nuggets // N.O. Hornets // Sac Kings

MLB: Cinc Reds UNDER // Chi Cubs OVER // Det Tigers OVER

[Can'tPickAWinner]

MLB

Hot pitchers
-- Maholm is 3-1, 1.09 in his last five starts. GGonzalez is 3-0, 2.91 in his last six starts.
-- JGarcia is 3-0, 2.25 in his last five starts. Estrada is 2-0, 2.70 in his last three starts.

-- Correia is 1-1, 2.57 in his last three starts.

-- Cobb is 3-0, 0.93 in his last three starts. Buchholz is 2-0, 0.64 in his two starts this season.
-- Morrow is 2-1, 2.55 in his last four starts.
-- Humber has 3.09 RA in two '13 starts, but Astros didn't score either game.
-- ASanchez is 3-2, 1.32 in his last seven starts.
-- Tepesch allowed one run in 7.1 IP in winning his MLB debut.

Cold pitchers
-- Slowey is first MLB pitcher in 25 years to lose 10 consecutive starts, but he is 0-2, 2.19 this year; Marlins didn't score in either start. Halladay is 1-3, 14.79 in his last four starts.
-- Latos is 0-1, 6.88 in his last three starts. Irwin is making MLB debut for Pirates; he was a combined 8-7, 2.83 in the minor leagues LY.
-- Lincecum is 1-2, 8.42 in his last five starts. EJackson is 0-3, 6.19 in his last three starts.
-- de la Rosa is 0-3, 9.00 in his last five starts. Richard is 0-3, 9.45 in his last four outings.
-- Beckett is 1-2, 4.50 in his last five starts. Cahill is 1-3, 4.21 in his last four.

-- Gee is 2-6, 4.81 in his last eight starts.

-- Peavy is 1-2, 5.12 in his last five starts. Myers is 0-1, 12.19 in his two appearances this season.
-- ESantana is 1-2, 5.94 in his last three starts.
-- Wilson is 1-1, 6.03 in his last six starts.
-- Parker is 0-3, 5.57 in his last four starts.
-- Maurer is 0-2, 16.20 in two starts this season.
-- WChen is 1-3, 4.80 in his last five starts. Kuroda is 1-2, 3.97 in his last four starts.

Totals
-- Last five Lincecum starts went over the total.
-- Eight of last ten Cincinnati games went over the total.
-- Five of last seven Washington games went over the total.
-- Last six Halladay starts went over the total.
-- Eight of ten Milwaukee games went over the total.
-- Five of last seven Arizona games went over the total.
-- Four of last five Richard starts went over the total.

-- Eight of eleven Met games went over the total.

-- Four of last five Cleveland games went over the total.
-- Over is 6-3-1 in first ten Bronx games.
-- Six of last seven Tampa Bay games stayed under total.
-- Five of last seven Toronto games went over the total.
-- Ten of last eleven Oakland games went over the total.
-- Six of last eight Houston games went over the total.
-- Under is 8-2-1 in last eleven Texas games.

Hot teams
-- Giants won eight of their last eleven games.
-- Braves won 10 of their first 11 games. Washington won six of its first eight home games, but lost last two.
-- Pirates won four of their last five games.
-- Phillies won three of their last four games.
-- Cardinals won six of their last seven games.
-- Colorado won seven of its last ten games.
-- Arizona won six of its last nine games. Dodgers won six of their last eight.

-- Mets won five of their last seven games.

-- Indians won their last two games, allowing four runs.
-- Bronx won four of its last five games. Orioles won three of last four.
-- Royals won four of their last six games. Toronto won three of last four.
-- Rangers won eight of their last eleven games.
-- Houston won three of its last four games.
-- Oakland won nine of its last ten games.

Cold teams
-- Cubs lost seven of their last eight games.
-- Reds lost last four games by combined score of 24-7.
-- Miami lost nine of its first eleven games.
-- Brewers lost eight of their last nine games.
-- Padres lost nine of their first eleven games.

-- Minnesota lost last five games, outscored 33-12.

-- White Sox lost seven of their last nine games.
-- Rays lost four of their last five games.
-- Angels lost eight of their last ten games.
-- Detroit is 1-4 in game following a win.
-- Mariners lost eight of their last eleven games.

Umpires
-- SF-Chi-- Underdogs won nine of last eleven Nelson games.
-- Atl-Wsh-- 11 of last 16 BWelke games went over the total.
-- Mil-StL-- Favorites won nine of last twelve Tichenor games.
-- Cin-Pitt-- Underdogs won seven of last eleven Wendelstedt games.
-- Phil-Mia-- Road team won eight of last nine Hallion games.
-- LA-Az-- Six of last seven Hoye games went over the total.
-- Col-SD-- Home side won nine of last eleven Knight games.

-- NY-Min-- Visiting team won seven of last nine Barry games.

-- Chi-Cle-- Seven of last nine Blaser games went over the total.
-- TB-Bos-- Last five Timpane games went over the total.
-- Det-A's-- Over is 5-0-1 in last six Holbrook games.
-- Balt-NY-- Home side won 12 of last 14 Gonzalez games.
-- Tor-KC-- Five of last six Hudson games went over the total.
-- Hst-LAA-- Over is 10-3-1 in last fourteen Wegner games.
-- Tex-Sea-- Under is 9-4 in last thirteen Darling games.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

NBA

Hot Teams
-- Miami won its last five games (4-1 vs spread).
-- New York won 14 of its last 15 games (14-2 vs spread in last 16).
-- Nets won last four games, all by 8+ points; they're 9-4 vs spread in last thirteen road games. Toronto won/covered four of last five.
-- Denver won 20 of last 23 games, covered five of last seven.
-- Dallas won 13 of last 19 games, covered four of last five.
-- Lakers won seven of last eight games; this is their first game without Kobe Bryant, who tore his achilles tendon Friday.

Cold Teams
-- Bulls lost three of their last four games (8-1 vs spread last nine as an underdog).
-- Cavaliers lost 13 of last 15 games, covered four of last five on road. 76ers lost four of last six games (1-4-1 vs spread last six F).
-- Pacers lost three of last four games, are 0-6 vs spread in last six.
-- Trailblazers lost their last ten games (1-9 vs spread).
-- New Orleans lost seven of last nine games (4-2 last six HU).
-- Rockets covered once in their last six home games. Sacramento lost five of its last six games (6-2 last eight A).
-- Spurs are 3-4 in last seven games, losing last five on road.

Totals
-- Five of last seven Chicago games stayed under the total.
-- Eight of last twelve Cleveland games stayed under total.
-- Five of last six Indiana games went over the total.
-- 12 of last 16 Brooklyn games went over the total; four of Toronto's last five stayed under.
-- Six of last nine Portland games went over the total; seven of last ten Nugget games stayed under.
-- Three of last four New Orleans home games went over the total.
-- Under is 11-3-1 in last fifteen Houston games.
-- Seven of last ten San Antonio games stayed under the total.

Back-to-backs
-- Sacramento is 5-8 vs spread if it played night before.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

NHL

Hot teams
-- Canucks won four in row, 10 of last 12 games.
-- Islanders won eight of their last ten games.
-- Bruins won five of their last seven games.
-- Canadiens won six of their last eight games. Toronto won five of last seven.
-- Washington won its last six games, allowing 12 goals.
-- Pittsburgh won 18 of last 20 games. Panthers won three of their last four home games.
-- Blue Jackets won five of their last seven games.
-- San Jose won eight of its last ten games. Dallas Stars won their last four games, scoring 18 goals.
-- Kings won last three home games, outscoring foes 10-3. Anaheim won four of its last six games.

Cold teams
-- Avalanche lost ten of its last twelve games.
-- Philly lost its last three games, outscored 11-3. Sabres lost six of their last nine games.
-- Rangers lost four of their last five road games.
-- Carolina lost seven in row, 14 of last 15 games.
-- Lightning lost three of their last four games.
-- Minnesota lost five of its last six games.
-- Edmonton lost its last four games, scoring three goals. Flames lost seven of their last nine games.

Totals
-- Under is 10-1-2 in last thirteen Vancouver games.
-- Over is 5-1-1 in last seven Buffalo games.
-- Seven of last ten Islander games stayed under the total.
-- Under is 12-3-2 in Boston's last seventeen games.
-- Under is 9-4 in last thirteen Montreal games.
-- Last four Tampa Bay-Washington games went over the total.
-- Under is 7-3-1 in last eleven Florida games.
-- Under is 5-0-1 in last six Columbus games.
-- Over is 10-3-1 in last fourteen Dallas games.
-- Under is 5-1-1 in last seven Edmonton games.
-- Seven of last nine Anaheim games stayed under the total.

Series records
-- Canucks won 18 of last 20 games with Colorado.
-- Flyers won seven of their last eight games with Buffalo.
-- Rangers won six of last eight games against the Islanders.
-- Bruins are 2-0 vs Carolina this year, winning 5-3/6-2.
-- Canadiens won four of last five visits to Toronto.
-- Home side won ten of last eleven Tampa Bay-Washington games.
-- Penguins won eight of last ten games against Florida.
-- Minnesota is 2-0 vs Columbus this year, 3-2/3-0.
-- Sharks won seven of their last ten games with Dallas.
-- Oilers won four of their last five games with Calgary.
-- Kings won six of last nine games with Anaheim.

Back-to-backs
-- Columbus is 2-5 on the road if they played the night before.
-- Dallas Stars are 2-5 if they played the night before.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Ultra Sports MLB selections

San Francisco -115
Arizona -115
Tampa Bay +130
Kansas City -110

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Goldsheet Key Release.....New York by 15 over Indiana