6-6-14

[Can'tPickAWinner]

[Can'tPickAWinner]

MLB roundup: Yankees' Beltran returns from DL
By THE SPORTS XCHANGE

Carlos Beltran was back in the New York Yankees' lineup Thursday, activated from the disabled list before the matinee with the Oakland Athletics.

Beltran returned from an elbow injury that landed him on the 15-day disabled list. To create room on the roster, the Yankees designated utility man Scott Sizemore for assignment.

Beltran is not 100 percent. He is still experiencing some soreness in his elbow and bone chips are likely to be a problem all season, he said Thursday morning. Beltran, 36, signed a three-year, $45 million contract with the Yankees as a free agent on Dec. 6.

---Angels designated hitter Mike Trout returned to the lineup after sitting out Wednesday night with back inflammation.

Trout missed two games last weekend and departed in the second inning Tuesday night with mid-back discomfort, but after a rigorous workout Thursday was declared fit to play. A determination on when Trout returns to the field was to be made based upon a postgame evaluation.

---Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Edwin Encarnacion missed Thursday's game against Detroit with back stiffness.

Encarnacion, who is second in the American League with 19 home runs, felt tightness during the late innings of the Blue Jays' 8-2 victory over Detroit on Wednesday night. Manager John Gibbons is hopeful Encarnacion can return on Friday against St. Louis.

---Detroit Tigers rookie shortstop Eugenio Suarez had his first major league start delayed by a sore left knee.

Suarez, 22, was promoted from Triple A Toledo on Wednesday and expected to be in the lineup Thursday. He injured himself sliding into second base while playing the final three innings Wednesday. Suarez underwent an MRI which showed no structural damage.

---Cincinnati Reds right-hander Mat Latos left his third Triple-A rehab start in the fifth inning on Wednesday with cramping in his calf.

Reds manager Bryan Price said it wasn't deemed serious and Latos was to be evaluated further in Cincinnati on Thursday.

---The Texas Rangers activated right-hander Tanner Scheppers from the disabled list before the game and announced that right-hander Alexi Ogando will not pitch for three weeks. An MRI showed "acute inflammation" and "existing wear and tear" in Ogando's right elbow.

---The New York Mets officially recalled outfielder Andrew Brown from Triple-A Las Vegas on Thursday. He hit .359 with 12 doubles, 13 home runs and 36 games in the minors. In turn, New York designated right-hander Buddy Carlyle for assignment.

---The Chicago Cubs officially announced a seven-year agreement that moves radio broadcasts from longtime home WGN-AM to WBBM-AM beginning in 2015. The deal also includes promotional initiatives across seven CBS stations in Chicago.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

MLB

Hot pitchers
-- Hammel is 2-1, 1.96 in his last three starts. Eovaldi is 2-0, 3.10 in his last three outings.
-- Hamels is 1-1, 2.83 in his last five starts.
-- Lohse is 3-0, 2.35 in his last four starts.
-- Ryu is 3-0, 3.26 in his last three starts.
-- Teheran is 3-0, 0.81 in his last three starts.
-- Ross is 3-1, 2.81 in his last five starts. Roark has a 2.48 RA in his last five.
-- Mets won last three Niese starts (1-0, 3.05).

-- Milone is 3-0, 1.67 in his last five starts. Chen is 3-0, 4.30 in his last five.
-- de la Rosa won his first '14 start, throwing seven shutout innings.
-- Young is 2-0, 2.19 in his last two starts.
-- Darvish is 4-1, 1.66 in his last five starts.
-- Whitley is 0-0, 2.37 in four starts. Guthrie has a 1.80 RA in his last three starts; Royals were shut out in three of his last four starts.
-- Minnesota won last eight Hughes starts (6-0, 2.31). Keuchel is 4-1, 1.79 in his last five starts.

-- Stroman won his first MLB start, allowing one run in six IP.

Cold pitchers
-- Cumpton is 0-2, 7.66 in four starts this season.
-- Cueto is 1-2, 5.68 in his last three starts.
-- Butler is making first MLB start; he was 4-4, 2.49 in 11 AAA starts.
-- McCarthy is 0-2, 5.97 in his last five starts.
-- Cain had a 5.40 RA in his last four starts before going on DL.

-- Smyly is 0-2, 7.71 in his last three starts.
-- Bedard is 0-3, 9.00 in his last three starts.
-- Bauer is 1-2, 4.03 in four starts this season.
-- Weaver is 1-1, 6.75 in his last two starts. Rienzo is 0-2, 8.64 in his last two.

-- Lynn is 2-2, 4.31 in his last five starts.


Pitchers allowing runs in first inning:
-- Eovaldi 4-12; Hammel 1-11
-- Lohse 5-12; Cumpton 1-4
-- Hamels 2-8; Cueto 1-12
-- Ryu 1-10; Butler 0-0
-- Teheran 3-12; McCarthy 2-12
-- Roark 3-11; Ross 3-12
-- Niese 4-11; Cain 4-8

-- Milone 4-10; Chen 3-11
-- de la Rosa 0-1; Smyly 3-8
-- Young 2-10; Bedard 2-9
-- Bauer 2-4; Darvish 1-10
-- Whitley 1-4; Guthrie 3-12
-- Keuchel 2-11; Hughes 2-11
-- Rienzo 2-8; Weaver 2-12

-- Lynn 4-12; Stroman 0-1

Totals
-- Five of last six Cub games went over total.
-- Over is 4-1-1 in last six Milwaukee road games.
-- Under is 5-2-1 in last eight Cincinnati games.
-- Seven of last nine Colorado games went over.
-- Under is 17-7 in Arizona's last 24 games.
-- Five of last six San Diego games stayed under.
-- Five of Mets' last seven games went over total.

-- 13 of last 17 Baltimore games went over total.
-- Seven of last eight Boston games stayed under; six of last seven Detroit home games went over.
-- Last four Tampa Bay home games went over.
-- Last four Cleveland road games stayed under. Six of last seven Texas games went over the total.
-- Under is 14-6-1 in last 21 Bronx games.
-- Three of last four Houston games went over total.
-- Eight of last nine White Sox games stayed under; six of last seven Angel tilts went over.

-- Over is 10-5-1 in last sixteen St Louis games.


Hot teams
-- Miami won six of its last seven road games; Cubs won six of their last seven home games.
-- Pirates won four of last five home games. Milwaukee won six of its last nine games overall.
-- Arizona won its last three games, scoring 32 runs.
-- Washington won five of its last six games.
-- Giants won seven of their last nine games.

-- Orioles won four of their last five games.
-- Mariners won five of their last six games.
-- Cleveland won its last six games, but lost five of last six on road.
-- Astros won their last five road games.
-- White Sox won six of their last nine games.

-- Toronto won 17 of its last 20 games.


Cold teams
-- Phillies lost six in a row. Cincinnati lost four of its last five home games.
-- Colorado lost its last seven games. Dodgers lost five of last seven.
-- Braves lost six of their last nine games.
-- San Diego is 6-10 in its last sixteen games.
-- Mets lost their last three games.

-- Detroit lost six of last eight at home. Red Sox lost their last three games.
-- Tampa Bay lost its last ten games.
-- Kansas City lost four of its last five home games. Bronx lost four of its last five games.
-- Minnesota lost nine of its last thirteen games.
-- Angels lost five of their last six games.

-- Cardinals lost seven of their last nine games.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

MLB

St Louis at Toronto Series

The AL East-leading Blue Jays off a series sweep of Detroit Tigers improved to 37-24 (+$1349) having won five straight (+$578) and 14 of 16 (+$1306) platting a whopping 6 runs/game with the pitching staff giving up just 3.2 per/contest. The Cardinals dropping 3-of-4 vs Royals head north of the border ridding a 2-7 slump which brings the record to 31-30 (-$789) crossing 3.8 per/game with the pitching staff giving up 3.7 per/contest.

Friday, Blue Jays start things off handing the ball to Marcus Stroman who earned a win in his first Major League start tossing six innings allowing one run on five hits with six strikeouts against the Royals last Saturday. Cardinals counter with Lance Lynn (6-3, 3.48) off his shortest outting of the season getting smacked for 8 hits, 7 runs over 3.1 innings in a loss to the Giants.

Saturday, left-hander Mark Buehrle (10-1, 2.10) gets the nod for John Gibbons' troops and will trade pitches with Shelby Miller (6-5, 4.06). Buehrle tossing a quality start in all but two of his 12 outings hits the rubber with a smart 14-4 team start stretch at the Rogers Center. Shelby hitting a rough spot has lost three consecutive starts allowing 15 runs over 17.0 innings of work.

Sunday's finale features Jays Drew Hutchison (4-3, 3.50) and Cardinals Jaime Garcia (1-0, 5.47). Hutchison is coming off a gem of a performance against the Tigers, allowing three hits in seven scoreless innings while striking out seven, walking none. He earned a no-decision, but hasn't lost a start in four trips to the mound with Jays a perfect 4-0 over the span. Garcia ran into trouble last start allowing six runs on 8 hits over five frames pegged with a ND in Cardinals loss to the Royals. Cardinals have lost Garcia's last two starts and three of his last four starts.

Betting trends of interest

Blue Jays swept last series in St Louis (2-1 O/U) - 2011
Series 1-5 O/U L6 in Toronto

Blue Jays 5-2 vs the Senior League this season
Blue Jays 6-1 O/U in interleague
Cardinals 2-5 vs the Junior Circuit on the campaign

(Fri) Jays 13-7 opening a series, Cardinals 9-11 opening a series
(Fri) Cardinals 1-4 w/Lynn following a game in which he allowed => 6 runs.
(Sat) Cardinals 3-8 last 11 on the road vs a southpaw starter
(Sat-Sun) Jays 6-4 at home in day games (4-6 O/U)
(Sat-Sun) Cardinals 3-6 on the road in day games (2-6-1 O/U)

[Can'tPickAWinner]

O's cashing in as home dogs with Chen on mound
By STEPHEN CAMPBELL

The Oakland A's and the Baltimore Oriole's renew acquaintances at Oriole Park at Camden Yards Friday, and early odds are suggesting the opening game is a tossup.

With both teams playing great baseball as of late, the moneyline for the matchup is currently a pick 'em at -104. Tommy Milone gets the ball for the A's while the O's will counter with Wei-Yin Chen.

If the line moves The Birds to underdog status, keep this in mind: Baltimore is 7-0 in Chen's last seven starts as home dogs.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Trends say Tigers losing streak likely to continue
By STEPHEN CAMPBELL

What has happened to the Detroit Tigers? Losers of five straight, Detroit begins their three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at Comerica Park Thursday but recent trends are pointing to the headaches to continue for Tigers bettors.

Drew Smyly takes the mound for Detroit, which doesn't bode well for their chances: the Tigs are just 2-8 in his last 10 outings. Rubby De La Rosa gets his second start of the season for the Sox.

The Tigers are currently -121 faves for the matchup.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

WNBA Basketball Picks

Phoenix at Tulsa

The Mercury (4-1) head to Tulsa tonight to face a Shock team that is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games against a team with a winning record. Tulsa is the pick (+4 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the Mercury favored by only 1 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Tulsa (+4 1/2). Here are all of today's WNBA picks.

FRIDAY, JUNE 6 Time Posted: 7:00 a.m. EST

Game 601-602: Indiana at Washington (7:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Indiana 104.930; Washington 113.394 Dunkel Line & Total: Washington by 8 1/2; 146 Vegas Line & Total: Washington by 3 1/2; 142 Dunkel Pick: Washington (-3 1/2); Over

Game 603-604: Phoenix at Tulsa (8:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Phoenix 112.943; Tulsa 111.443 Dunkel Line & Total: Phoenix by 1 1/2; 157 Vegas Line & Total: Phoenix by 4 1/2; 162 Dunkel Pick: Tulsa (+4 1/2); Under

Game 605-606: Los Angeles at Chicago (8:30 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Los Angeles 115.603; Chicago 111.894 Dunkel Line & Total: Los Angeles by 3 1/2; 150 Vegas Line & Total: Chicago by 4; 153 Dunkel Pick: Los Angeles (+4); Under

Game 607-608: Minnesota at Seattle (10:00 p.m. EST) Dunkel Ratings: Minnesota 118.451; Seattle 109.929 Dunkel Line & Total: Minnesota by 8 1/2; 156 Vegas Line & Total: Minnesota by 5; 149 Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (-5); Over

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Gamblers Data

Free Plays Friday

Nationals +101

Brewers -120

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Free Selection from Arthur Ralph Sports

Free Play FRI Brewers -118

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Mighty Quinn

Mighty missed with the Tigers on Thursday and likes the Marlins on Friday.

The deficit is 375 sirignanos.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

ACCUSCORE - MLB

OU-Betting Line of 8 TO 8.5 STREAK 18-7, 72%
BOS 967 vs DET 968 -- Under 8
CLE 971 vs TEX 972 -- Under 8
NYY 973 vs KC 974 -- Under 8.5
ATL 959 vs ARI 960 -- Under 8
CHW 977 vs LAA 978 -- Under 8

INTERLEAGUE GAME O/U STREAK 13-8, 61.9%
STL 979 vs TOR 980 -- Under 9.5

3 STAR MONEY LINE STREAK 7-3, 70%
LAD 957 vs COL 958 -- Over 50% on Colorado Rockies +124
NYM 963 vs SF 964 -- Over 50% on San Francisco Giants -143

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Baseball Crusher
Oakland Athletics -105 over Baltimore Orioles
(System Record: 36-0, won last game)
Overall Record: 36-30


Baseball
Seattle Mariners +128 over Tampa Bay Rays
Los Angeles Dodgers -134 over Colorado Rockies
Arizona Diamondbacks +110 over Atlanta Braves


Soccer Crusher
Parana + Luverdense UNDER 2.5
This match is happening in Brazil
(System Record: 585-21, won last game)
Overall Record: 585-488-85

[Can'tPickAWinner]

River City Sharps

3 Units Braves -120

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Chase Diamond

10* Cubs -115

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Game of the Day: Cardinals at Blue Jays

St. Louis Cardinals at Toronto Blue Jays (-130)

The surprising Toronto Blue Jays attempt to extend their winning streak to six when they begin a three-game interleague series against the visiting St. Louis Cardinals on Friday. Toronto, which sits atop the American League East, has been an offensive force as it leads the major leagues with 311 runs scored. The Blue Jays have crossed the plate 36 times during their winning streak and outscored Detroit 20-8 in their three-game sweep.

Toronto, which hopes to have Edwin Encarnacion back in the lineup after he sat out Thursday with a back injury, belted three home runs in Thursday's 7-3 triumph as Juan Francisco launched a two-run blast while Brett Lawrie and Melky Cabrera hit solo shots. St. Louis went 1-3 in its four-game, home-and-home series against Kansas City, squandering a two-run lead in Thursday's 3-2 road loss. The Cardinals have dropped seven of their last nine contests, scoring fewer than three runs four times in that span.

TV: 7:07 p.m. ET, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), SNET (Toronto)

LINE HISTORY: The Blue Jays opened as -130 home faves.

INJURY REPORT: Cardinals - 1B Matt Adams (15-day DL, calf). Blue Jays - 1B Edwin Encarnacion (Out Thursday, back), CF Colby Rasmus (15-day DL, hamstring).

WHAT THE CAPPERS SAY: "Toronto's Marcus Stroman was awful in the bullpen this season with a 12.86 ERA in five relief appearances, allowing 10 runs in just 6 1/3 innings, but he was excellent as a starter last weekend with a 1.50 ERA, allowing just 1 run in six innings. The Blue Jays continue their red-hot play with three straight road underdog wins at Detroit. Normally, there might be a letdown for an interleague opponent, but since it is a quality team like the Cardinals, the Blue Jays should remain focused for this series." Covers Expert Steve Merril.

WHAT THE BOOKS SAY: "Expect the Cardinals to be a popular play with bettors, as Lance Lynn has a lower ERA (3.48 vs 7.30 ERA) than Marcus Stroman, who was impressive versus Kansas City (6 innings, 1 ER) in his first start of season." Mike Perry, Sportsbook.com.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Lance Lynn (6-3, 3.48 ERA) vs. Blue Jays RH Marcus Stroman (2-0, 7.30)

Lynn is coming off his shortest outing of the season, a 3 1/3-inning performance during which he allowed seven runs - four earned - on eight hits and four walks while also hyperextending his knee covering first base. The disappointing effort marked only the third time the 27-year-old yielded more than three earned runs in 12 starts this year. Lynn has made one career appearance against Toronto, giving up one hit in three scoreless frames of relief.

Stroman was impressive in his first major-league start on Saturday, allowing just one run and five hits while striking out six in six innings of a triumph over Kansas City. The 23-year-old had a strong start to his career, going 1-0 while yielding one run and two hits over 3 1/3 frames in his first three relief appearances. But he was tagged for nine runs - eight earned - and 11 hits over three innings in his next two games before making his debut in the rotation.

TRENDS:

* Cardinals are 0-4 in the last four meetings.
* Blue Jays are 9-2 in their last 11 home games.
* Cardinals are 2-7 in their last nine interleague games.
* Over is 5-0 in Blue Jays last five interleague home games.

COVERS CONSENSUS: Sixty-four percent of wagers on Covers Consensus are on the Blue Jays.