6-5-10

**spook** · 06-05-2010, 10:19 AM

Re: 6-5-10

Big Al 6.5

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Big Al McMordie 3 Play Package

Yankees, Rays and Reds.

At 1:05 pm..........New York Yankees . Take the Yanks.

At 4:10 pm.......... Tampa Bay Rays Take the Rays.

At 7:05 pm.......Cincinnati Reds Reds w/ Leake.

Al McMordie.

**spook** · 06-05-2010, 11:00 AM

Re: 6-5-10

Big Al McMordie 3 Play Package

Our 3 selections include the Yankees, Rays and Reds.

At 1:05 pm, our selection is on the New York Yankees over the Toronto Blue Jays. Andy Pettitte continued his brilliance in the month of May, as he only had one bad start that resulted in a loss (May 20th at home against the Rays) and he won all four of his other outings for the month to bring his record on the season to an incredible 7-1. Could Pettitte actually be on his way to his best season ever, at age 38? It certainly looks like that could be the case, although there is still 2/3 of the season to go. This is a critical series for both teams as Boston is playing the Orioles this weekend and that's almost an automatic 3-0 for the Red Sox. Toronto will start its own lefthander Ricky Romero and although Romero's overall numbers are very good (5-2; 3.14 ERA), he's been very inconsistent and will often sandwich an ugly start in between two good ones and vice-versa. He has also had his problems with the Yankees in his career, winning just one of three starts with an ERA of 5.94 and he's yet to face them this season, so there is an awful lot of pressure on this 25-year-old as Toronto tries to keep pace with the big guns in the AL East. Pressure seems to roll off of Pettitte pretty easily, however, and this will probably just be another day at the office for the veteran southpaw. Take the Yanks.

At 4:10 pm, our selection is on the Tampa Bay Rays over the Texas Rangers. Historically, Tampa Bay starter James Shields has pitched much better at home in Tropicana Field than he has on the road. In 2008, for example, the righthander had a 9-2 record at the Trop with a 2.59 ERA while he went 5-6 and 4.82 away from home. Last season the bias was less of a factor, but was still there as Shields went 6-6 and 3.75 at home vs. 5-6 and 4.62 on the road -- still almost a full run higher ERA. This season, Shields has all but erased the bias, and in fact he is now a more effective starter away from central Florida than he is in front of the home faithful. Through his first 11 starts, Shields is 1-2 with a 3.86 ERA at home, but 4-1 with a 3.34 ERA on the road. So you might see the Rays trying to schedule more road games for Shields for a change. Tonight is a great opportunity to get win #5 as righthander Tommy Hunter will get his first start of the season for the Rangers. Hunter was 9-6 with a 4.10 ERA in 15 starts for Texas last year and was supposed to be in its rotation to start the season but he landed on the DL in Spring Training with a ribcage injury. He was only 1-2 with a 4.05 ERA in six starts at Triple A Oklahoma City so facing a tough team like TB in his first start back in the Majors may be a bit too much. Take the Rays.

At 7:05 pm, our selection is on the Cincinnati Reds over the Washington Nationals. There's a San Diego-area kid pitcher in his early twenties who is about to make his next start in Washington, DC. No, it's not Stephen Strasburg. Wanna make another guess? It's perhaps the finest rookie Major Leaguer out there right now and most people wouldn't recognize him if they ran into him in the street. His name is Mike Leake and he is a 22-year-old righthander and if Strasburg is taking the fast track to the Majors, then Leake was on the Space Shuttle. Leake is the first rookie starter in 21 years to jump straight from College ball to the Majors without playing a single game at any Minor League level. He is also the first rookie pitcher in Reds history to be undefeated (4-0) after his first 10 starts. Strasburg (who was Leake's teammate when they were 11 years old) can only hope to be this good when he makes his long-awaited debut with the Nats next Tuesday. Tonight's Nationals' starter won't be Strasburg, but instead another rookie named Luis Atilano. The righthander has been pretty good in his own right, going 5-1 so far in his first six starts with the Nats. But he's done almost all of his damage on the road, and his home record of 1-1 with an ugly 7.47 ERA leaves a lot to be desired. Take the Reds behind Leake. As always, good luck...Al McMordie.

6-5-10

6-5-10

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