SPORTS ADVISORS
N.Y. Giants (4-0, 3-1 ATS) at Cleveland (1-3, 2-2 ATS)
The defending Super Bowl champion Giants will try to stay perfect on the season when they head to Cleveland Stadium to take on the struggling Browns.
New York leads the NFL in total offense, gaining 431 yards per game, including 181.2 ypg on the ground led by running back Brandon Jacobs, who ran for 136 yards and two TDs a week ago during a 44-6 home route of Seattle as seven-point favorites. The Giants? defense hasn?t been too bad this season either, ranking third in the NFL in yards allowed at 236 per game, including just 82 rushing ypg.
Cleveland had last week off after earning its first win of the season, a 20-12 victory at Cincinnati as a one-point ?dog. The Browns have the NFL?s worst offense this season, mustering just 210.8 total ypg (87.8 on the ground, 123 through the air). ClevelandQB Derek Anderson has been much less than spectacular with his 49.9 passer rating, as he has thrown for just 543 yards with three TDs and six INTs.
These two teams haven?t met in the regular season since 2004 when the Giants scored a 27-10 win at home and cashed as 3?-point favorites. On Monday night, New York is just 11-22-1 SU and 12-21-1 ATS on the road, while Cleveland is 10-8 SU and 11-7 ATS at home in the Monday night spotlight.
Tom Coughlin?s squad has won 12 consecutive road games, going 11-1 ATS during this run, including nine consecutive covers on the highway. The Giants are on additional ATS runs of 19-7 overall, 14-3-1 in October, 7-1 following a spread-cover and 9-4 against teams with a losing record. Meanwhile, the Browns are 8-1 ATS in their last nine home games and 14-5 ATS in their last 19 overall, but just 2-6 ATS in their last eight at home against teams with a winning road mark.
The under is 9-3 in New York?s last 12 road games and is 4-1 the last five times the Giants have played on Monday night. For Cleveland, the under is on runs of 9-1 overall, 5-0 at home and 4-0 after a straight-up win, but the over is 7-2-1 the last 10 times the Browns have faced a team with a winning record.
The over is a perfect 6-0 in Monday Night Football games this season.
ATS ADVANTAGE: OVER
ALCS
Tampa Bay (4-2) at Boston (4-2)
After splitting the opening two games in Tampa Bay, this best-of-7 series know shifts to Fenway Park in Boston as the Red Sox have southpaw Jon Lester (17-6, 3.01 ERA) on the mound opposite the Rays? Matt Garza (11-10, 3.82) for a pivotal Game 3.
After being shut down in the opener 2-0 by Daisuke Matsuzaka, Tampa came back and won Saturday?s Game 2 slugfest 9-8 in 11 innings. The Rays? B.J. Upton hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 11th off Mike Timlin to even the series.
At Fenway, the Red Sox have won 12 of their last 15 playoff games and they have beaten the Rays 32 of the last 39 meetings in Boston. After losing seven straight at Fenway this season, Tampa took two of three there in September, getting a 14-inning win and scoring two in the ninth to get the other victory. Overall, the Rays have won eight of the last 11 meetings.
Garza did not perform well in the A.L. Divisional Series against Chicago last Sunday, giving up five runs on seven hits in six innings and losing the game 5-3. The Rays are just 1-5 in his last six outings and they have dropped his last four starts on the highway. On the road this season, Garza was just 4-6 in 15 starts with a 4.53 ERA. In six career starts against Boston, he is 3-1 with a 3.86 ERA in 32 2/3 innings.
On the opposite side, Lester was brilliant in two starts against the Angels in the divisional series, allowing just one unearned run in 14 innings of work as the Red Sox won the opening game 4-1 and won the clincher 3-2. Boston has won six of his last seven starts and allowed either one or no runs in the six victories, including a 3-0 shutout of the Rays back on Sept. 8 when he allowed six hits in 7 2/3 innings. Lester is 4-0 with a 3.38 ERA in seven career starts against Tampa Bay.
The Red Sox are 37-15 in Lester?s last 52 starts, 17-5 in his last 22 against the A.L. East and an amazing 23-4 in his last 27 at Fenway. They are on further runs of 23-8 in playoff games, 64-27 at Fenway and a perfect 5-0 against right-handed starters. The Rays are just 2-6 in their last eight games against a left-handed starter and 33-67 in their last 100 roadies against a southpaw starter, but they are 7-1 in their last eight games against teams from the A.L. East.
For Tampa, the under is on runs of 4-1 in Garza?s last five on the road, 5-0 when they face a left-handed starter, 6-2 on Mondays and 4-1 overall. It?s a plethora of unders for the Red Sox, including 5-1 in Lester?s last six starts, 4-0 when he pitches at Fenway, 5-1 when they face a right-handed starter, 5-1-1 at Fenway and 5-1-1 overall. In this rivalry, the under is 4-1 in the last five meetings in Boston and 4-1 when Lester faces Tampa at Fenway.
ATS ADVANTAGE: BOSTON and UNDER
NLCS
Philadelphia (5-2) at L.A. Dodgers (4-2)
The Dodgers got themselves back in this series with a win Sunday and now send Derek Lowe (14-11, 3.24) to the mound to face the Phillies? Joe Blanton (5-0, 3.99) in Game 4 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
The Dodgers scored five runs in the first inning and cruised to a 7-2 win in Game 3 to cut Philadelphia?s lead to 2-1 in the series. Hiroki Kuroda gave up two runs in six innings to get the win and the Los Angeles bullpen pitched three scoreless innings.
The loss snapped a six-game winning streak the Phillies had on Los Angeles and keeps the home team a perfect 11-0 between these two teams this season. Philadelphia is on a 21-8 run in its last 29 games, 6-3 in its last nine on the road and 7-1 in its last eight against the N.L. West. The Dodgers are just 1-9 in their last 10 against the N.L. East, but on runs of 23-10 overall, 26-9 in Hollywood, 9-2 against teams with a winning record and 7-2 in their last nine against right-handed starters.
Blanton pitched a week ago in Milwaukee when the Phillies wrapped up the divisional series, allowing one run on five hits in six innings of a 6-2 win. The Phillies have won his last five outings and he hasn?t allowed more than three earned runs in a game since Sept. 8. He faced the Dodgers back on August 24 and allowed one run on six hits in six innings of a 5-2 victory in Philadelphia. His is 1-0 with a 3.32 ERA in 19 career innings of work against Los Angeles.
Lowe was a tough-luck loser in the opening game of this series back on Thursday when he gave up a two-run homer to Chase Utley and a solo shot to Pat Burrell blowing a 2-0 lead and losing 3-2. In his two playoff outings, Lowe is 1-1 and has allowed four runs (five earned) in 11 1/3 innings of work. In his career against the Phillies he is 4-1 with two saves and a 3.02 ERA. At Dodger Stadium this season, Lowe went 9-5 in 17 starts with a 2.30 ERA.
The under is 5-3 in the last eight clashes between these teams, but the over is 9-1-2 in the last 12 battles at Dodger Stadium (3-1-1 this year). Additionally, for Los Angeles, the over is on runs of 8-3-2 at home, 8-3-1 against teams with a winning record and 24-11-1 on Mondays. But the Phillies are on under streaks of 4-1 on the road, 6-2 in the playoffs, 7-2 against winning teams and 7-3 versus right-handed starters.
ATS ADVANTAGE: L.A. DODGERS