Players of America
-PoA still staying hot. 1-1 yesterday +21 units. 24-8 last 32.
Today's Selections
CIN vs. CHC
Sport: Major League Baseball
Game: Cincinnati Reds vs. Chicago Cubs
The Play: Cincinnati Reds +175.0
Play Description:
Star Value: 1* (10 Units)
Writeup: Sticking in the NL for some midweek action, we're going to ride the Reds train again as they continue there series with the Cubs at Wrigley Field.and this is why.
The Reds are valued here, and big time. This squad stunk it up in the opener last night with Harang on the rubber, but if any of you watched the game the Cubs were less than impressive from an all around standpoint. Cincinnati is just a few games under .500 so far this year and you can bet you're behind that Dusty Baker and staff is convincing this team that they are capable of making a late push towards the post season. Is he right? Who knows.only time will tell us that? However, this line up of the Reds can be potent and when their all clicking, watch out. I remember a few weeks back when the Reds marched into Cleveland (who at the time was playing some pretty decent ball) and swept the Tribe right off their feet. This team is young and we see them meshing together each step of the way.
The Cubs come in at -180 favorites Wednesday night and expect all the sharps to be licking their chops with a "Guaranteed Win" on this match up. Think again. Cincinnati is 11-4 in their last 15 Wednesday games and this one sets the stage perfectly.
The young righty Johnny Cueto was the hype of the media early in the year as he dropped jaws with his performances night in and night out. He has leveled off a bit and snapped back to reality with a 7-8 total record, 2-1 in his last three. He has a WHIP of 1.34 and an ERA of right around 4.60. To date, the Reds have proven to the world they can play with the best in the NL this year. They rocked Chicago 9-0 earlier in the season and Cueto has already defeated these guys himself in a 5-3 head nod in May. The series has sort of been back and forth in the six times these two teams have met this year and they stand at 3-3 a piece.
Carlos Zambrano toes the dirt for the Cubbies in a late pitching change (Dempster forecasted). We all know that name, and we know what he is capable of doing night in and night out. However, this guy lacks consistency in my opinion. He is 9-3 on the year and 1-1 his last three starts. Last season Carlos pitched against virtually this same Reds team and went 0-3. This Cubs team knows how to play some ball, don't get me wrong, but they have not been the same since losing all-star left fielder Alfonso Soriano to a broken left hand. It seems a little chemistry or leadership was lost after that point, and Cinci is the one team capable of exploiting that weakness. Jim Edmonds is also doubtful for the Cubs as he is dealing with a sprained left thumb. Two dents on the offensive end which are capable of haunting this team for days to come.
The value on this team is too good to pass up, setting up a nice situational play. The Cubs are no one to be laying such a large number at this standing point in the season, so give us the Reds and all the plus money for a 1* wager on Wednesday night in the Windy City.
TREND OF THE GAME: The Reds are 11-4 in their last 15 Wednesday games.
Cincinnati 5, Chicago 2
FL vs. SD
Sport: Major League Baseball
Game: Florida Marlins vs. San Diego Padres
The Play: Florida Marlins +105.0
Play Description:
Star Value: 1* (10 Units)
Writeup: Heading across the country now we're going to settle in on the shores of the Pacific for this cross-country showdown. The Marlins face the Padres again leveling out their series at Petco Park.
It has been a pretty entertaining outing thus far between these two. Both seem to have an opposite approach as Florida is notorious for throwing up runs and San Diego loves to play defense in that giant ball park of theirs. The odds makers might have been confused when making this line, because it really stands out to researchers like us.
Scott Olsen is in the spotlight at 3:35PM EST in an attempt to keep a good thing going for the fish. Scott is 0-0 without a decision his last three starts, and something tells me this guy has got to be hungry to finally get another win. He's just 4-4 on the season pitching over 111 innings with a WHIP of 1.30. Also, his ERA is under 3.95 all season. On the opposite side of the ball, Florida might see the return of second baseman Dan Uggla as his status is upgraded to questionable for Wednesday's game. Uggla sprained his ankle but is a vital part of this Florida squad. This Marlins team knows how to score. Over numbers favor this game, but a victory looks even better. The fish haven't missed a beat offensively losing Dan and Brett Carrol (separated shoulder) and have flown over the total 38 of the last 50 road games.
The Marlins will be seeing the stuff of right-hander Cha Seung Baek on Wednesday. Baek is 1-2 his last three starts and 2-3 on the year. In just 35 short innings, Cha has given up 36 hits and has an ERA of nearly 5.00. Florida has practically owned the series between these two this year going 4-1, but neither of these heavers has seen a start against each other. Offensively, the Padres aren't exactly healthy either, which probably leads to their meager 35-55 record. Brian Giles is dealing with a sore hamstring and is questionable for Wednesday's game with Florida and catcher Michael Barrett is out indefinitely. Tadahito Iguchi is also on the 15-day disabled list with a separated shoulder and the pitching staff has more dilemmas on their hands than one can imagine. The Pads bullpen is soft right now, leaving the flood gates wide open to a shoot out tonight which without a doubt favors the Marlins.
With the above being said, we're going to take Olsen and the fish in this one for a 1* selection.
TREND OF THE GAME: The Padres are 1-9 in their last ten home games.
Florida 8, San Diego 3
AZ vs. WAS
Sport: Major League Baseball
Game: Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Washington Nationals
The Play: Washington Nationals +105.0
Play Description:
Star Value: 1* (10 Units)
Writeup: The Diamondbacks continue their set with the Nationals in the newly constructed National's Park in Washington. A low scoring offensive struggle Tuesday night should have these two ready to box come Wednesday.
Micah Owings will have the leather in hand on Wednesday for the Dbacks as he takes the mound with a 6-7 record in 2008, and a lousy 0-3 in his last three outings. Owings faced the Nats on May 5th this season and was routed in a 7-4 loss. Micah went 6.1 innings and gave up eight hits and six earned runs along with a long ball. When on the road, Owings trembles. He is 3-4 away from Arizona and has pitched about 48 innings giving up 49 hits, 30 runs and walking 19.
The Backs will be keying in on the material from lefty John Lannan. Don't get me wrong, this guy is nothing to write home about with his 4-9 overall record.so we won't sit here and try to convince you to play them because of this guy. His ERA is respectable at 3.55 and he has a WHIP of 1.31. The Diamondbacks have a 2-1 lead in this year's series versus the Nationals and have faced about every big name pitcher on the squad including Brandon Webb and Dan Haren. This is a perfect opportunity for them to sneak in a win and even things up.
A pretty decent price here on the home underdogs. Let's grab the Nats and watch them squeak out a win in a midday showdown against the foes of Arizona.
TREND OF THE GAME: The Diamondbacks are 8-21 in their last 29 road games.
Washington 5, Arizona 3
SEA vs. OAK
Sport: Major League Baseball
Game: Seattle Mariners vs. Oakland Athletics
The Play: Over 8.0
Play Description:
Star Value: 1* (10 Units)
Writeup: Our final selection of the evening on Wednesday takes place at 10:05PM EST on the west coast. The Seattle Mariners hop on the highway and head to the west coast rival Oakland A's. Like a few other games, both of these teams struggled to put up runs in a match that was a real pitcher's dual on Tuesday night. However, both are capable of taking part in a shootout and Wednesday we plan to see that.
The Mariners are atrocious. At 35-54 they are deemed the leagues worst team, slightly ahead of the Cleveland Indians. Seattle doesn't really have a choice because you can't play the game without a pitcher, but if you could, they might be better off. The right hander Miguel Batista is scheduled to throw the balls and strikes (likely more balls than strikes) in Oakland. Batista is 4-10 on the year and batter's love seeing this guy in the dugout warming up pregame. He is 0-2 in his last three starts and has a combined ERA of 6.28 this season. Miguel has flaunted his stuff in 74+ innings this season and given up 91 hits. Pretty remarkable.really. The problem isn't just the pitching for this squad, no; no.it goes far beyond that. The team is in disarray. Some nights they look like an average team, other they look like they should be playing Little League. Needless to say, we're going with the over because of their pitching woes alone.
Oakland has elected to start heaver Joe Blanton who is equally terrible at 5-11 this season. He has an ERA approaching 5.00 and teams just happen to love to tee off on this guy too. So, with the pitching match up as it stands, you may ask yourself "Why is this total so low at only eight runs?" Well, you not be thinking that because you know more than us.but that's what we're thinking. Last season, these teams played each other 14 times. We realize that rosters change, but in those 14 games the total soared over eight 11 times. This season is looking to be the same with the few meetings already being half over the stated totals.
After last nights bore-fest.expect these two teams to get the crowd back into it. Look for an all out shoot out in Oakland on Wednesday as these two teams exchange blows back and forth all night.
TREND OF THE GAME: The OVER is 8-1 in Batista's last 9 overall starts.
Oakland 9, Seattle 5
