7-18-14

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Wunderdog Sports

Complimentary MLB Pick for July 18th, 2014

Game: Seattle Mariners @ Los Angeles Angels
Time: Friday 07/18 10:05 PM Eastern
Pick: Los Angeles -125 (moneyline) at WagerWeb

The Angels have finally taken their talent on paper and put it in the standings, staying within striking distance of the Oakland A's They will have their ace on the mound for this one in Jered Weaver. Weaver has been close to automatic at home with dazzling starts and great backup from the bullpen. Weaver ranks #1 in the AL in runs allowed per game with pitchers that have over 100 decisions, including the bullpen, at 3.6 a contest. He has not disappointed vs. Seattle where he is 14-9 lifetime with a 3.30 ERA. With closer Joe Smith having retired 26 of the last 27 hitters he has faced, this is a one-two punch with significant line value. Make the play on the Angels.

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Sean Michaels

Winning Day # 101 of 164
50 DIMER # 7 OF 11

Boston Red Sox

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Topshelfpicks

Raider

Pittsburgh ML (-154) vs Colorado This is admittedly a high price for a pitcher in Liriano has not been very good, but I start off the second half of the season truly believing that the Pirates are in this for the long haul in the NL Central. Jorge DeLaRosa (10-6, 4.56 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, .242 BAA) goes for Colorado tonight and I cannot figure out how he is 10-6. The numbers just do not justify that record and he obviously receives a lot of run support. I do not think he gets it tonight. The Rockies really limped into the All Star Break and now find themselves 13 games out of first place in the NL West. While they do have impressive offensive numbers, they only hit .244 on the road and average just 3.7 runs per game in road contest. Meanwhile, DeLaRosa has a road ERA of 5.87 this season, and an ERA of 5.00 at PNC Park over the past 3 seasons. Pittsburgh averages 4.4 runs per game at home (4.1 overall), and their roster has a career .321 average vs DeLaRosa. Pittsburgh overall is one of baseball's better hitting teams, and their very little (.006) drop-off vs. lefties. I see this being a relatively high scoring game tonight, and I believe Pittsburgh is the team that gets their second half started off right.

Leans

Philadelphia ML (+140) at Atlanta

Milwaukee +1.5 (-155) at Washington

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Goodfella

Friday Night MLB Team Total

SEATTLE MARINERS OVER 3.5 RUNS (@BOL)

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Primetime Insiders

3* Plays

LAD +110 **Haren is gravely underrated while Lynn is quite overrated. Our system believes that the wrong team is favored in this contest**

NYM and SDG Under 6.5 **We have two very underrated pitchers against two poor hitting teams in San Diego. The winds are blowing in today in SDG as well so this is screaming under**

KC and Boston Under 8.5 **Two aces per our system taking the mound. Both teams are also below average hitting teams.**

2* Plays

TB -132
Cincy -105
NYM +110
Cincy and NYY Under 8.5

1* Plays

Seattle +125
CHC +120
Texas -110
KC +113

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HM Sports

Red Sox/KC over 8
- Shields 8-1 over L9 on road

Cleveland/Det over 8 -115
- L7 games bet det/clev have been overs, why fight the trend?

Miami +117
Bumgarner 0-4 vs Miami in his career -

LAA under 7.5
LA ANGELS are 15-1 UNDER in home games when playing against a marginal winning team (Win Pct. 51% to 54%) in the second half of the season over the last 3 seasons. The average score was LA ANGELS 2.8, OPPONENT 2.9.

Arizona/Chicago under 8.5

LAD + 116

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EAGLE EYE---SPORTS HANDICAPPER RANDY ROSE
Your Pick: San Diego Padres (-120)
Your Pick: Toronto Blue Jays (+105)

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Indian Cowboy

3* - LA Angels -141

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Paul Leiner

100* - Texas Rangers -115
50* - Boston Red Sox -120

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EZWINNERS

2* Philadelphia Phillies (+1.5) -165
2* Toronto Blue Jays +100
2* Cleveland Indians +1.5 -160
2* Cincy Reds +105

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Tony Stoffo

NY Yankees

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MLB Weekend Betting Cheat Sheet

Down Dickey

R.A. Dickey will be hoping things after the All-Star break are better for him as the highly paid Blue Jays ace has continued to fail to live up to expectations. Dickey is 7-9 with a 3.82 ERA and has lost five of his last six games.

Boston Blues

The defending World Series champions Boston Red Sox are nine games under .500 after the All-Star break and look like they are a longshot to make the playoffs, but with Clay Bucholz getting the Friday start at a lifetime 4-1 against the Royals there is a good chance that the 2013 World Series champs can get back on the right track after the break against Royals starter James Shields who is 9-13 with a 4.36 ERA against Boston.

Jeter's Farewell

Derek Jeter will continue his farewell tour with a interleague stop in Cincy taking on the Reds this weekend. Jeter is hitting .275 on the season and will be trying to help the Yankees deal with serious pitching injuries to C.C. Sabathia and Masahiro Tanaka to get back in the AL East and Wild Card race with their 47-47 record.

Pitching Notes

Oakland A's pitcher Jeff Samardzija has been adjusting to life in the American League after his trade with the Chicago Cubs before the break, pitching two games beforehand. Having to pitch to a DH has resulted in varied success in the W/L column as he is 1-1, but not with his totals as both of his AL appearances have gone Under the total with the ace on the mound. The total is 7 on Friday when the A's host the Orioles.

Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez has been red hot and the 3-0 record in his last five starts with two No Decisions speaks to why many consider him to be the best pitcher in the American League. Unders are also 7-2-1 in King Felix's last ten starts as the Mariners ace continues to frustrate batters, something that the high powered Angels lineup hopes won't happen to them in a highly anticipated Saturday affair.

Los Angeles Dodgers Sunday starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw was snubbed by NL manager Mike Matheny at the All-Star Game as the Cardinals manager started Adam Wainwright instead of the red hot Kershaw for the NL on Tuesday. Kershaw hasn't needed motivation to win eight straight games for the Dodgers on the mound, but expect the best pitcher in baseball to bring his heat in a 2013 NL Playoffs rematch.

Hitting Notes

All-Star MVP Mike Trout leads the Angels in most every offensive category, including batting average (.310), home runs (22) and RBIs (73). The young AL MVP hopeful will look to build on those numbers against the Mariners this weekend.

New York Yankees outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, who is 6-for-14 in his career versus the Reds, has hit safely in 19 of his last 24 games as the former Red Sox outfielder gets more and more comfortable in pinstripes.

Atlanta Braves 3B Chris Johnson busted out of a 3-for-28 slump with five hits, including three homers and seven RBIs in his final two games against the Chicago Cubs before the All-Star break.

Totals Streak

Felix Hernandez: King Felix has found his groove as of late and has seen six of his last seven games go under the total, including his last three starts for the Mariners as Hernandez has been throwing his best stuff entering mid-July.

Prop of the Day

Overs has cashed in four of Nationals pitcher's Stephen Strasburg's last five starts with one push. Facing the strong Milwaukee Brewers lineup the total is set at a low 7 on Friday.

Injury Notes

Boston Red Sox outfielder Shane Victorino suffered a back injury during his rehab assignment and will remain on the disabled list with no timetable set on his return.

Cubs player Emilio Bonifacio is out of the lineup recovering from a rib cage injury that has him on the DL until late July.

Atlanta Braves Dan Uggla is set to return from his pre-All-Star break suspension for conduct detrimental to the team and is eligible to return on Friday and if the Braves insert him back in the lineup or not should be one of the early talking points in their series against Philadelphia.

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MLB Betting News and Notes

Blue Jays start second half with struggling Dickey

The first half of the season was a roller coaster ride for the Toronto Blue Jays. They were a force in May and the early days of June, but struggled mightily into the All-Star Break.

The Jays are now four games back of the first-place Baltimore Orioles and kick the post All-Star schedule against the Texas Rangers.

R.A. Dickey will be on the bump for the Jays and has struggled in his own right. The Blue Jays are just 1-5 in his last six starts.

Jays are small -103 home faves and posted a total of 8.


Giants struggle versus Marlins in Bumgarner's starts

The San Francisco Giants are 0-4 in pitcher Madison Bumgarner's last four starts versus the Miami Marlins. The Marlins and Giants begin a three-game series in Miami Friday.

Bumgarner's last outing versus the N.L. East club was the final meeting of the 2013 season, which the Giants lost 6-5.

The southpaw will be on the mound for the Giants in the series opener Friday. Marlins are +118 home dogs and a total of 7.5.


This team is streaking on the road

The Tampa Bay Rays have been road warriors as of late, posting an 8-1 record in the last nine games away from home. Tampa faces off against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field Friday.The Rays are presently -130 favorites with a total of eight.


Shields, Royals lights out on the Over on the road

In Kansas City Royals pitcher James Shields' last nine starts on the road, the Over is a scorching hot 8-1. Shields will be on the mound for KC when they take on the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park Friday. Sox are -122 faves with a total of 8.5.


Indians-Tigers meetings a boon for Over bettors

The Over is cashing in for bettors when the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers square off. In the last seven meetings, the Over is a perfect 7-0.

The two teams have played eight games against one another, starting with a 4-0 score resulting Under. Since then, it's been all Overs.

The two renew acquaintances Friday and the total is 8.5 on the game.


Tyler Chatwood out for Rockies rest of season, will have Tommy John surgery

The Rockies' reeling rotation has taken another major hit. Right-hander Tyler Chatwood will miss the rest of the season and will undergo Tommy John elbow surgery next week, a major-league source said Thursday. That means he'll miss most, if not all, of the 2015 season.

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MLB Odds and Picks
By: Micah Roberts
Sportingnews

LAS VEGAS -- The Pittsburgh Pirates had an opportunity to take a giant step forward the week before the All-Star break while the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers were begging someone to overtake them, but they proceeded to lose five of seven at St. Louis and Cincinnati and still remained only 3.5 games back. As the MLB season resumes Friday, they’ll play the Colorado Rockies at home, beginning a stretch of five of seven series against losing teams.

This stretch is almost a do-or-die situation for the Pirates – they have to take advantage of getting Colorado for seven games, Arizona for four, Miami and San Diego for three each, intertwined with three-game series against the Dodgers and Giants. If they don’t gain some serious ground, which means taking over the NL Central within this time frame, their chances at a division title may be seriously hampered, as they won’t play another losing team until a three-game set at Wrigley Field begins on September 5.

As much as I feel the Bucs will have success over this stretch, I’m not too confident behind Francisco Liriano (1-7, 4.72 ERA) tonight. It’s not just Liriano’s lack of success – before and after his recent stint on the disabled list – it’s also because Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa (10-6, 4.56 ERA) has been on a major tear, at least in Rockies’ terms.

The Pirates have won nine of their past 11 games at PNC Park and 21 of their last 31, but Liriano hasn’t contributed to any of those wins. They’ve lost Liriano’s last three starts and five of his past six. It‘s fair to note that run support hasn’t been there for him, with an average of only 2.3 runs scored over his last six starts.

He went only four innings in his last start on Sunday, his first since coming off the DL. He gave up three runs in that outing, and most of the damage came via six walks. That’s bad news the Pirates, but the perfect recipe for an OVER tonight in Pittsburgh. Liriano goes OVER at home (8-1-2 in last 11) even when he‘s good. Right now, when they need him more than ever, he’s not very good.

Also, Pittsburgh has gone OVER in its last four games.

This will be the first meeting between the two teams this season, but tonight’s starters met last year at Coors Field. De La Rosa got the 10-1 win, which of course went OVER the total of 9 runs. De La Rosa was getting +127 in that contest against a version of Liriano that might have been his best ever. Tonight, Liriano is a massive -148 favorite with the total set at 7.5.

De La Rosa has won his past four starts, boosted by an average of 8.5 runs of support. While the break may have cooled De La Rosa off a bit, there is still way more upside supporting him as a big dog tonight than hoping Liriano miraculously returns to his 2013 form that helped the Bucs to their first postseason since 1992.

If Liriano does fail tonight, it should be a sign that new blood in the rotation is required to take advantage of the soft upcoming schedule. The Bucs have plenty of prime prospects in their organization to make a deal for Boston’s Jon Lester.

The plays tonight are Colorado and the OVER.

Friday Selections:

Rockies (De La Rosa) +138 at Pirates, 7:05 p.m. ET

Rockies/Pirates OVER 7.5 (-110)

Cardinals (Lynn) -125 vs. Dodgers , 8:15 p.m. ET

Orioles (Tillman) +150 at A’s, 10:05 p.m. ET

Orioles/A’s UNDER 7.5 (-120)

Mets/Padres UNDER 6.5 (-120), 10:10 p.m. ET

Here’s a look at some of baseball’s best from the first-half of the season in the betting world:

Best Money Teams: Oakland (+14 units), Angels (+13.6), Baltimore (+12.8), Seattle (+7), Cincinnati (+5.8), Minnesota (+5.7), White Sox (+5.6)

Best Starting Pitcher Earners: Alfredo Simon (+13.2 units), Phil Hughes (+10.3), Garrett Richards (+10.1), Scott Kazmir (+9.5), Adam Wainwright (+9.2), Rick Purcell (+8.3), Danny Keuchel (+8)

Best Teams vs. Lefties: Oakland (18-8), Detroit (20-10), Seattle 21-12

Best OVER Teams: Miami (54-34-6), Colorado (49-38-8), Angels (50-39-5), Detroit (48-38-5), Texas (49-40-6)

Best UNDER Teams: San Diego (29-62-4), Boston (38-54-3), Atlanta (38-53-4), Seattle (39-52-4)

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Anthony Redd

50 Dime Mets