Friday 5-25-18 Free Plays / Trends / Betting Info / Etc

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Houston Astros vs. Cleveland Indians Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
two-time cy young award winner corey kluber will try to cool off houston's offense when his cleveland indians host the astros on friday for the second contest of the four-game series between the american league division leaders. houston has won four straight and seven of eight contests after recording 12 hits and going 5-for-9 with runners in scoring position in an 8-2 victory over the indians on thursday.

alex bregman belted a three-run homer and finished with four rbis for the al west-leading astros as he extended his hitting streak to eight games (11-for-29), while jake marisnick launched a three-run shot in his first game back from the minors. kluber seeks his 11th consecutive quality start to open the season - following one last week against houston - while dallas keuchel attempts to avoid his seventh loss of the year for the astros after producing six quality outings in his first 10 turns. the al central-leading indians, who lost two of three at houston from may 18-20, could not get it done on the mound thursday after allowing just one run in a two-game road sweep of the chicago cubs to start the week. cleveland's michael brantley brings a 13-game hitting streak - during which he is 20-for-56 with four homers and 15 rbis - into friday's contest after registering a two-run single in the series opener.
tv: 7:10 p.m. et, mlb network, at&t sportsnet-southwest (houston), sportstime ohio (cleveland)
pitching matchup: astros lh dallas keuchel (3-6, 3.43 era) vs. indians rh corey kluber (7-2, 2.36)
keuchel gave up four runs on six hits and two walks with three strikeouts over five innings last time out versus cleveland after recording his best two starts of the season. the 30-year-old native of oklahoma allowed one run and eight hits across 15 frames in his previous two outings and registered a quality start in his first of four turns this month as well. jose ramirez is 4-for-9 with a pair of doubles against kuechel, who is 4-1 with a 2.76 era in seven career games (six starts) versus the indians.
kluber permitted two runs and six hits while striking out 10 over seven innings to defeat houston on saturday and record his 10th straight quality start. the 32-year-old from alabama has issued just one walk in his last four appearances and reached double digits in strikeouts for the third time in 2018 on saturday to push his total to 71 in 72 1/3 frames. marwin gonzalez is 8-for-17 with two homers and six rbis versus kluber, who is 6-3 with a 3.17 era in nine career outings (eight starts) against the astros.
walk-offs

1. indians ss francisco lindor is 5-for-12 with three doubles, three runs scored and two walks in his last three games.

2. houston ss carlos correa has gone 59 contests without an error, tying the franchise record for his position set in 1976 by roger metzger.

3. cleveland of lonnie chisenhall (calf) is on a minor-league rehab assignment and could return before the end of the month.

prediction: indians 5, astros 2

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Baltimore Orioles vs. Tampa Bay Rays Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
the tampa bay rays are expected to start relief pitchers in all three games of their series with the visiting baltimore orioles, beginning with sergio romo in friday's opener. the rays have utilized relief pitchers in starting roles multiple times this year and will rely heavily on their strategy over the weekend, with romo starting twice and ryne stanek opening saturday's tilt.

they were able to get through a 6-3 win over the boston red sox on thursday while utilizing three pitchers, as blake snell coasted through six scoreless innings and wilson ramos had three hits and two rbis. the orioles did not immediately name a starter for friday but they have a rested staff after dylan bundy tossed a complete game in thursday's 9-3 win over the chicago white sox. david hess, who won his major league debut against the rays earlier this month, is a candidate to make the start. adam jones homered among three hits and scored three times on thursday for baltimore, which matched their runs total from the previous five games combined.
tv: 7:10 p.m. et, masn (baltimore), fs sun (tampa bay)
pitching matchup: orioles rh david hess (1-1, 6.75 era) vs. rays rh sergio romo (1-0, 4.34 era)

hess gave up three runs in six innings to defeat the rays on may 12 at home, striking out three and walking none. he was unable to carry over the momentum and gave up five runs in 4 2/3 frames at boston on sunday for his first career loss. matt duffy took hess deep for all three runs in the first encounter at baltimore.
romo made 18 relief appearances to begin the year before starting back-to-back games last weekend at the los angeles angels. he totaled 2 1/3 scoreless innings and recorded six strikeouts in those two outings and has 26 strikeouts in 18 2/3 frames on the year. the current baltimore roster is 5-for-34 with 11 strikeouts against the 35-year-old romo.

walk-offs

1. orioles of/dh mark trumbo (knee) has missed two straight games and may have an mri.

2. ramos is batting .471 with six rbis during a five-game hitting streak.
3. baltimore ss manny machado has 10 rbis in six games against tampa bay this year.

prediction: rays 6, orioles 5

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Atlanta Braves vs. Boston Red Sox Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
a pair of first-place teams looking to bounce back from series-ending losses meet friday when the boston red sox host the atlanta braves in the opener of a three-game interleague series. the red sox won four straight before falling 6-3 at tampa bay on thursday, as the top third of their order went 1-for-12 with five strikeouts.

mookie betts had that one hit and returns home sporting a .417 average at fenway park this year. boston gets a boost in the opener with the return of star second baseman dustin pedroia, who makes his season debut after recovering from offseason knee surgery. the braves were shut out twice in a three-game set at philadelphia to begin the week, sandwiching in a 3-1 victory. julio teheran, who gave up six runs and 13 hits in 6 1/3 innings in his only prior start at fenway park, gets the nod in the opener for the braves opposite red sox left-hander eduardo rodriguez.
tv: 7:10 p.m. et, fs southeast (atlanta), nesn (boston)

pitching matchup: braves rh julio teheran (4-1, 4.17 era) vs. red sox lh eduardo rodriguez (4-1, 4.13)
teheran had his first home start in nearly a month sunday against miami, giving up six runs over five innings without getting a decision. the braves are 8-2 in his 10 starts and they've managed to win each of the last four, despite some inconsistent results. the 27-year-old lost his first two starts against the red sox and is 6-9 with a 5.08 era in 19 career interleague outings.

rodriguez has a 1.72 era over his last three starts but he has failed to get through six innings each time and allowed nine hits in his most recent outing - a win over baltimore on sunday. the venezuelan has 11 strikeouts and no walks over his last two appearances and 58 punchouts in 48 innings on the year. he has never faced the braves and owns a 3.93 era in nine career interleague starts.
walk-offs

1. braves rf nick markakis is batting .417 during a six-game hitting streak.

2. red sox ss xander bogaerts is 1-for-13 with six strikeouts over a four-game span.

3. boston won 11 of the last 14 meetings.

prediction: red sox 6, braves 4

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Kansas City Royals vs. Texas Rangers Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

25th May 2018 by Gracenote
the kansas city royals look to extend their season-high winning streak to four games when they visit the texas rangers on friday for the second contest of their four-game series. kansas city rolled to an 8-2 victory in thursday's opener and has outscored its opponents 18-5 during its season-best stretch.

salvador perez matched his season high by driving in four runs in the series-opening win and is enjoying a solid month with seven homers and 23 rbis. the five-time all-star didn't make his season debut until april 24 after tearing the medial collateral ligament in his left knee in late march while carrying a suitcase up the stairs at his home. texas was limited to five hits in the opener after it slugged seven homers and scored 23 runs while taking two of three from the new york yankees. the rangers continue to struggle at home with a substandard 9-18 record.
tv: 8:05 p.m. et, fs kansas city, fs southwest (texas)

pitching matchup: royals lh eric skoglund (1-4, 6.15 era) vs. rangers lh mike minor (3-3, 5.59)
skoglund has dropped both of his last two starts and is winless in four outings. the 25-year-old was torched for six runs and eight hits in five innings of a loss to new york in his last turn. skoglund has struggled on the road in six major-league appearances (five starts), going 0-2 with a 9.82 era and 2.05 whip while allowing opponents to bat .548.

minor is 0-2 with an 8.22 era over his last three starts and has served up five homers in 15 1/3 innings during that stretch. the 30-year-old won three straight decisions before falling into the current rut and gave up just three blasts over his first six turns. minor is 0-1 with a 3.00 era in two career starts against kansas city, a team for which he made 65 relief appearances last season while posting a career-best 2.55 era.
walk-offs

1. the rangers optioned lhp brandon mann to triple-a round rock and recalled rhp austin bibens-dirkx, who started thursday and suffered the loss.

2. kansas city lf alex gordon (hip/neck) was a late scratch thursday, one day after making a spectacular diving catch against st. louis.
3. texas of ryan rua was hitless in four at-bats in the opener and is 0-for-20 in his last nine contests.

prediction: rangers 5, royals 4

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New York Mets vs. Milwaukee Brewers Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

25th May 2018 by Gracenote
after soaring to a three-game sweep over arizona to begin their homestand, the milwaukee brewers landed with a thud in their series opener against the new york mets. milwaukee looks to bounce back friday as it continues the four-game set a day after managing only five singles in a 5-0 loss to new york.

ryan braun recorded one of those hits in his first game following a stint on the disabled list due to a back ailment, but zach davies' return from a shoulder injury was far from successful as he yielded four runs and six hits in four innings. the mets pounded out 13 hits as they began their eight-game road trip in strong fashion, with brandon nimmo falling a home run shy of the cycle as he went 4-for-4 with a walk and scored twice. the 25-year-old nimmo is 6-for-7 over his last two contests after going 0-for-7 in his previous two games. new york had lost two straight prior to thursday, scoring one run in each defeat, and dropped three of its previous four on the road.
tv: 8:10 p.m. et, sny (new york), fs wisconsin (milwaukee)
pitching matchup: mets rh noah syndergaard (4-1, 2.91 era) vs. brewers rh junior guerra (3-3, 2.98)

syndergaard has allowed three runs or fewer in each of his last nine starts after yielding four in his season debut. the 25-year-old texan, who hasn't started on the road since april 26 in st. louis, limited arizona to one run over seven innings in a victory on sunday. syndergaard has been dominant against milwaukee in his career, going 2-0 with a 0.49 era and 0.71 whip in three starts.
guerra appears to have overcome a pair of rough starts to start the month, allowing three runs over 10 1/3 innings while going 1-0 in his last two turns. the 33-year-old venezuelan has struggled at home, however, surrendering nine runs over 10 frames in back-to-back losses after giving up one unearned run across 10 2/3 innings in his first two outings of 2018 at miller park. guerra has permitted one run over 12 2/3 frames while going 1-0 in two career starts against new york.
walk-offs

1. nimmo enters friday having reached safely in eight consecutive plate appearances.

2. to make room on the roster for braun and davies, the brewers optioned rhp brandon woodruff and 1b ji-man choi to triple-a colorado springs.

3. milwaukee has been shut out a major league-high nine times this season.

prediction: mets 6, brewers 3

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Cincinnati Reds vs. Colorado Rockies Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
the colorado rockies watched the bats go cold at the end of a nine-game road trip and will hope for a change in temperature when they return home friday to host the cincinnati reds. the rockies dropped four of the final five games on the trek, capped by a 3-0 shutout at the los angeles dodgers on wednesday.

colorado dropped five of nine on its road trip and is concerned about the hitting heading back home. "you want to do better, obviously," rockies manager bud black told reporters of the trip. "we didn't play our best baseball every time. i thought we pitched really well. we strung together some innings, offensively, to win us some games. we played solid defense throughout the road trip. we just didn't hit well in certain games. ... we need to swing the bats better, for sure." the reds capped a seven-game homestand with a series win over the pittsburgh pirates, taking thursday's finale 5-4 behind eugenio suarez's grand slam. suarez is 1-for-4 in his career against colorado right-hander jon gray, who opposes cincinnati's sal romano on friday.

tv: 8:40 p.m. et, fs ohio (cincinnati), at&t sportsnet rocky mountain (colorado)
pitching matchup: reds rh sal romano (2-5, 5.62 era) vs. rockies rh jon gray (4-6, 5.34)
romano put together a string of five straight starts allowing two or fewer earned runs bridging april and may but was not quite as strong in his last two turns. the 24-year-old was ripped for a total of 13 runs on 14 hits and eight walks over 7 1/3 innings in those two outings - both losses. romano won his lone start against colorado in his 2017 rookie campaign, earning his victory as a big-leaguer after allowing two runs and six hits in five frames.
gray ran into similar trouble in his last two starts, surrendering a total of 11 runs and 19 hits over nine innings in losses to milwaukee and san francisco. the oklahoma native did manage to strike out 14 in those nine frames and owns 63 strikeouts in 55 2/3 total innings. gray saw cincinnati once in 2017 and earned a win while yielding three runs - two earned - across 5 2/3 innings.
walk-offs

1. rockies 3b nolan arenado is 1-for-10 with six strikeouts in his last three games.

2. cincinnati 1b joey votto is 5-for-27 over his last nine games.

3. colorado cf charlie blackmon leads the team with 12 home runs but managed just one in the last 17 games.

prediction: rockies 5, reds 3

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Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Oakland Athletics Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
the arizona diamondbacks' nine-game road trip has been nothing short of a disaster thus far, but they look to turn things around friday as they visit the oakland athletics for the opener of a three-game interleague series. arizona began its trek by being swept in three-game sets at the new york mets and milwaukee brewers, and it arrives in oakland having lost seven straight overall and 13 of its last 14 contests.

the diamondbacks suffered a 9-2 loss on wednesday, with paul goldschmidt and john ryan murphy belting solo homers, to finish with four runs and 10 hits in the three-game series against the brewers. oakland salvaged the finale of its three-game set against seattle on thursday, scoring four runs in the first inning and holding on for a 4-3 triumph. marcus semien singled and scored a run for the athletics to avoid going hitless in back-to-back games for the first time this season.
tv: 9:35 p.m. et, fs arizona, nbcs california (oakland)

pitching matchup: diamondbacks lh patrick corbin (4-1, 2.60 era) vs. athletics lh sean manaea (5-4, 2.71)
corbin's winless streak reached five starts on saturday as he came away without a decision in his home state after allowing two runs on four hits and four walks over 5 1/3 innings against the host new york mets. the 28-year-old has issued nine free passes in his last three turns after giving out the same amount over his first seven outings this season. corbin, who hasn't recorded a decision in four road starts this year, will be facing oakland for the first time in his career.
manaea's season has taken a turn since the calendar turned to may, as he has gone 1-2 with a 5.96 era in four starts while surrendering four runs in each outing. the 26-year-old native of indiana allowed a total of five runs while posting a 4-2 record in six turns prior to this month. manaea has yet to face arizona but is 2-4 with a 3.63 era in eight career interleague starts.

walk-offs

1. semien has hit safely in 11 of his last 13 games, registering seven two-hit performances in that span.
2. goldschmidt, who has hit .297 or better each of the last five seasons, is batting just .200 in 2018 and has not recorded a multi-hit performance since going 3-for-5 at philadelphia on april 26.

3. oakland turned five double plays on thursday, its highest total since aug. 2, 2010 versus kansas city and one shy of the team record.

prediction: athletics 4, diamondbacks 2

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San Diego Padres vs. Los Angeles Dodgers Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
the los angeles dodgers are starting to turn things around after a disastrous start to the season and it appears that facing better teams has elevated their play. the dodgers will look to make it three series wins in a row for the first time this season when they host the san diego padres on friday night in the opener of a three-game set.

since losing six in a row against last-place teams cincinnati and miami, los angeles has won six of its last seven, following a three-game sweep at washington by taking two of three from national league west-leading colorado. "you can see the energy in the clubhouse," said dodgers closer kenley jansen. "everybody's like, we're going to get out of this. things are finally starting to go our way." san diego, which lost seven in a row to los angeles before winning two straight earlier this month, avoided a sweep by taking the finale in washington to improve to 4-3 on its 10-game road trip. "you look back at this road trip, and i know we continue in (los angeles) but we're heading back to the west coast with an off day," padres manager andy green said. "it's a good 4-3 east coast swing for us."
tv: 10:10 p.m. et, fs san diego, sportsnet la (los angeles)
pitching matchup: padres lh clayton richard (3-5, 4.87 era) vs. dodgers rh ross stripling (1-1, 2.08)

richard answered a five-start winless drought (0-4) by winning his last two trips to the mound, allowing two runs over 7 1/3 innings at pittsburgh after limiting st. louis to two runs and five hits over eight frames. the 34-year-old became the first san diego pitcher to work into the eighth inning in three straight starts since 2005. matt kemp (13-for-35), justin turner (9-for-19) and yasiel puig (7-for-19) have lit up richard.
making his fourth start of the season at washington on saturday, stripling gave an injury-ravaged rotation a boost by striking out a season-high nine batters while allowing one run on four hits over six innings. he faced san diego in mexico on may 6, yielding four hits and fanning five over four scoreless innings. in his last three starts, stripling has allowed three runs with 21 strikeouts and two walks in 15 1/3 innings.
walk-offs

1. turner is 10-for-33 in nine games since making his season debut.

2. padres 1b eric hosmer has hit safely in 10 of his last 12 games.

3. puig has hit all his five homers in his last nine games and recorded five rbis in his last three.

prediction: dodgers 4, padres 2

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Minnesota Twins vs. Seattle Mariners Preview and Predictions 05-25-2018

24th May 2018 by Gracenote
james paxton has overcome a slow start to the season and looks to produce another solid performance when the seattle mariners host the minnesota twins on friday in the opener of their three-game series. paxton has posted a 1.70 era over his last five starts, a stretch that includes a no-hitter in addition to a career-best 16-strikeout effort.

paxton allowed two runs and three hits in a complete-game victory over detroit in his last turn. the left-hander will look to help seattle get back on track after the club's five-game winning streak was halted with thursday's 4-3 loss at oakland. twins slugger miguel sano, who will be back for the series opener after missing 24 games with a hamstring injury, is 4-for-8 with a homer against paxton. minnesota is kicking off a six-game road trip after having its three-game winning streak snapped with wednesday's 4-1 loss to the tigers.
tv: 10:10 p.m. et, fs north (minnesota), root northwest (seattle)

pitching matchup: twins rh fernando romero (2-0, 1.66 era) vs. mariners lh james paxton (3-1, 3.30)
romero is coming off the worst of his four major-league starts as he allowed four runs - three earned - and three hits in five innings of a no-decision against milwaukee. the promising 23-year-old didn't allow a run over his first 15 2/3 frames and has yet to give up more than four hits in a game. romero, who was ranked as minnesota's no. 2 prospect entering the season, has struck out 22 while issuing 11 walks in 21 2/3 innings.

paxton has gone 2-1 with a 3.04 era while holding opponents to a .179 batting average in four home starts. the 29-year-old canadian has fanned 10 or more batters on three occasions this season and has registered a total of 79 strikeouts in just 62 2/3 innings. paxton is 2-1 with a 2.91 era in four career starts versus the twins, giving up two runs and four hits over five frames in a no-decision on april 5 - a day remembered more for having a huge eagle land on his shoulder prior to the game in minneapolis while he was standing for the national anthem.
walk-offs
1. mariners dh nelson cruz is 2-for-22 over his last seven contests and has gone 15 games without a homer.

2. minnesota optioned of jake cave to triple-a rochester to open the roster spot for sano.

3. seattle rf mitch haniger (wrist) went 0-for-3 with a walk on thursday after missing one contest.

prediction: mariners 4, twins 1

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Mike Wynn

Free Play: Free Atlanta w/Teheran +170 Over Boston

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Free Selection from Jim Feist

Jim Feist's Comp Pick, Friday, May 25, 2018

05/25 04:10 PM PT / 7:10 PM ET

MLB (969) HOUSTON ASTROS VS (970) CLEVELAND INDIANS

Take: HOUSTON ASTROS

Reason: Your free play for Friday, May 25, 2018 is in the MLB scheduled contest between the Houston Astros and the Cleveland Indians. Your free play is on the INDIANS.

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Jeff Allen Sports

Friday's Free Selection is on the BoSox

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Razor Sharp

YOUR RAZOR SHARP FREE PICK FOR FRIDAY: Take CLEVELAND (Kluber) -140 over Houston

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Totals4U

Friday's Free Selection: Arizona/Oakland over 7

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John Anthony Sports

Friday's Free Selection: Los Angeles Dodgers - 195