MLB Picks: August 21st 2011
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MLB Pick: Oakland Athletics -120
The Oakland A’s are showing excellent value today as a marginal home favorite against the Toronto Blue Jays. Jose Bautista’s absence from the Toronto Blue Jays lineup could be a brief one. It’s not immediately known if the same can be said for Adam Lind. Toronto (64-62) scratched Bautista, the major leagues’ home run leader, with tightness in his neck just minutes before Saturday’s 5-1 loss. Lind, batting cleanup, was hit by a pitch near the right wrist in the first inning and came out of the game for pinch-hitter Mark Teahen in the third. Both Lind and Bautista are likely to be out of the line-up today. The A’s will go with Guillermo Moscoso (6-6, 3.48 ERA) as he tries to win his third straight start. Moscoso is 4-1 with a 3.15 ERA in seven home starts this year. The A’s have won four of their last five coming in. Moscoso is 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA and 0.833 WHIP in his lone career starts against Toronto. He allowed just one earned run and five base runners in six innings to get the win in a 10-3 victory at Toronto on 8/11/2011. Take the A’s on the Money Line. -Black Widow

MLB Pick: San Diego Padres -131
San Diego has had Florida’s number. The Padres are a perfect 6-0 against the Marlins this season and these wins have come by an average of 5.5 runs. Looking back, the Padres have won 12 of the last 14 meetings, including 4 in a row at home in the series. Marlins are just 5-16 in their last 21 overall, and they are 0-3 in Sanchez’s 3 career starts against the Padres. The Marlins have lost 3 of his last 4 starts overall. San Diego, meanwhile, has won each of Luebke’s last 3 starts, during which he has posted an ERA of 2.00. We’ll take the Padres.

MLB Pick: Los Angeles Angels -146
The Angels Williams will be making his first start of the season on Sunday, and this is a tough spot for the Angels starter as every game is critically important to his club from this point on if they want to keep up with the Rangers in the AL West. Matusz has been getting shelled lately as the Orioles starter is 0-3 in his last three outings with an incredibly high ERA of 12.27 in those starts. Matusz is lasting an average of five innings, and giving up an average of 6.7 runs per outing over his last three starts. TAKE THE ANGELS MINUS -Bob Wingerter (Handicapperspicks.com)

MLB Picks: July 29th 2011
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Pick: Cleveland Indians -134
I’ll side with the Cleveland Indians Friday in Game 1 of this series with the Kansas City Royals. The Indians come into this series rested after having Thursday off, while the Royals travel from Boston after finishing off their 4-game set with the Red Sox yesterday. I’ll back the Indians because of the rest factor, having the better starter on the mound, and the fact that they are actually playing for something as they are squarely in the middle of the AL Central race. Carlos Carrasco is 8-8 with a 4.25 ERA and 1.295 WHIP in 19 starts this season for Cleveland, while Jeff Francis is 3-11 with a 4.44 ERA and 1.371 WHIP in 21 starts this year for Kansas City. Francis is 1-6 with a 6.11 ERA and 1.572 WHIP in 10 road starts as well. The lefty is 1-2 with a 7.98 ERA and 1.704 WHIP in three career starts against Cleveland. In his lone start against the Indians this season, Francis gave up 5 earned runs in 3 innings of a 2-7 loss. The Royals are 1-9 in Francis’ 10 road starts in 2011. The Royals are 0-6 in their last 6 meetings in Cleveland. Bet the Indians Friday. -Jack Jones

Pick: Chicago White Sox +100
White Sox RH Gavin Floyd (8-9, 4.11 ERA) vs. Red Sox RH Tim Wakefield (6-3, 5.15 ERA). Floyd has been sharp over his last two outings, allowing a total of one earned run in 15 2/3 innings while striking out 10 and issuing one walk. The former first-round draft pick earned a win at Boston on June 1 and has never lost to the Red Sox, owning a 5-0 record with a 3.83 ERA in seven games. Wakefield will be searching for his 200th career win on Friday. The ageless knuckleballer has been getting knocked around quite a bit of late but has been bailed out by the Boston offense, which is averaging 10 runs in Wakefield’s last four starts. He is 7-12 with a 4.97 ERA in his career against Chicago. TAKE THE WHITE SOX HERE -Bob Wingerter

Pick: Oakland Athletics -145
The A’s, who are 5-0 in their last 5 games following a loss, hold the edge tonight with Gio Gonzalez stepping to the mound. The southpaw is 7-2 at home with an ERA of 1.87. The Athletics are 19-7 in his last 26 home starts, 25-6 in his last 31 starts as a favorite and 20-6 in his last 26 starts as a home favorite. The A’s are 15-3 in his last 18 starts as a favorite of -110 to -150. It is also worth noting that the Twins are 1-5 in their last 6 road games vs. a left-handed starter. Francisco Liriano is carrying an ERA of 4.82 on the season and is coming off a terrible start in which he gave up 4 runs in just 2 1-3 innings. The Twins are 3-7 in Lirianos last 10 starts when he takes the mound with just 4 days’ of rest. They are also 1-5 in his last 6 starts as a road underdog of +110 to +150. Also, the Athletics are 4-1 in their last 5 home games vs. a left-handed starter. -Jimmy Boyd (Handicapperspicks.com)

Free MLB Baseball Betting Picks: July 28th 2011
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Pick: Boston Red Sox -1.5 -140
We’ll side with the Boston Red Sox Thursday on the Run Line as they send Ace Josh Beckett to the bump. The Red Sox are 19-4 in their last 23 games overall, winning 16 times by two runs or more. Kansas City send Luke Hochevar to the mound, who is 6-8 with a 5.29 ERA and 1.366 WHIP in 21 starts this season. Beckett is 9-3 with a 2.07 ERA and 0.905 WHIP in 19 starts, and 4-0 with a 1.61 ERA and 0.933 WHIP in eight home outings. He is the frontrunner to win the AL Cy Young award with what he has done this season. Kansas City is 1-9 against the run line (-11.3 Units) after allowing 12 runs or more over the last 2 seasons, losing by 5.3 runs/game in this spot. The Red Sox are 20-11 against the run line (+12.4 Units) in day games this season. Beckett is 10-1 against the run line (+9.0 Units) when playing against a bad team (Win Pct. 38% to 46%) in the second half of the season over the last 3 seasons. Take the Red Sox on the Run Line. -Black Widow

Pick: Oakland Athletics -122
Tampa Bay seems to have lost their motivation to come to ballpark. A lot of that probably has to do with the fact that they are coming to terms with the fact that they aren’t going to make the playoffs. Not only are they not hitting the ball, but they aren’t pitching worth a crap either. While the A’s are also pretty much out of the playoff race, they are still playing hard and doing whatever it takes to bring home a win. Oakland is 7-3 in their last 10 games, and I think this team will be excited for the chance to sweep the Rays today. The A’s will start Rich Harden, who is coming off back-to-back strong starts. He allowed just 3 runs over 7 innings in a 4-3 win (no decision) over the Angels on July, 16 and held the Yankees to just 2 runs in his last start. Tampa Bay is just 2-16 in their last 18 games after losing the first 3 games of a series, while the A’s are 6-2 in their last 8 during game 4 of a series. -Steve Janus

Pick: Toronto Blue Jays -155
Toronto has won 20 of its last 23 home games against Baltimore and will have an excellent chance to build on this run with Baltimore’s Bergesen stepping to the hill. That’s because the Orioles have lost 11 of his last 13 starts. Plus, the Blue Jays are 4-0 in Villanueva’s last 4 starts versus a team with a losing record. Take the Jays. -Dave Price

Pick: Texas Rangers -152
After back-to-back losses to the Twins, expect the Rangers to come storming back to earn a split in the series. One thing you don’t want to do is make a habit out of fading the Rangers at home off 2 or more losses. That’s because they are 17-2 the last 2 seasons in home games after 2 or more consecutive losses, winning by an average of 3.3 runs/game in this situation. Baker hasn’t been quite as good on the road this year and the Rangers have won each of Harrison’s last 4 starts. We’ll take Texas on the money line. -Jeff Alexander (Handicapperspicks.com)

MLB Picks: June 30th 2011
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Pick: Chicago White Sox -107
Chicago White Sox are 34-15 the past 3 years in inter-league games. Colorado has lost 4 of their last 5 games overall. Chicago White Sox bullpen has a 3.71 ERA overall this year and a 3.82 ERA on the road this season. Jake Peavy is 4-1 in all games this year, 3-1 in all starts this year, 1-0 on the road and 2-1 his last 3 starts. Aaron Cook is 0-3 with a 5.48 ERA overall this year, 0-2 with a 4.63 ERA at home and 0-3 with a 5.71 ERA his last 3 starts. Peavy has a 3.81 ERA overall vs Colorado since 1997. We’ll recommend a small play on the Chicago White Sox today! Thanks and good luck, Rocky Atkinson

Pick: St. Louis Cardinals -127
The Cardinals offense has came alive in the first two games of this series, and we see no reason why they won’t put up another big number on Thursday. St Louis will go up against Brian Matsuz, who is 1-3 with a 6.85 ERA in five starts this season. Matsux is just 1-2 with a 9.53 ERA and 2.471 WHIP in three home starts. The Cardinals will counter with Jaime Garcia, who is 6-3 with a 3.06 ERA this season and has really looked sharp of late with a 2.45 ERA over his last three starts. -Info Plays

Pick: Oakland Athletics -154
Florida has really bottomed out, going 16-36 in their last 52 overall. This offense is a long way from home and slumping badly, 25th in runs scored and 23rd in on base percentage. They won’t score many in a huge park like this, especially against Oakland righty Trevor Cahill (8-5, 3.09 ERA). And the Marlins have never faced him before. The Athletics are 76-36 in their last 112 interleague home games and the Marlins are 6-21 in their last 27 games vs. a right-handed starter. Play the Oakland A’s! -Jim Feist (Handicapperspicks.com)

Baseball Predictions: June 22nd 2011
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Pick: St. Louis Cardinals +143
While the initial reaction for most people will be to jump on the Phillies with Pujols out of the lineup for St Louis, we actually believe there is a ton of value on the Cardinals at +143. Phillies starter Cliff Lee has been a completely different pitcher on the road this season. He is 1-4 with a 5.35 ERA. Cardinals starter Kyle Lohse has went through a rough stretch of late, but is 7-3 with a 2.88 ERA this season, and we look for him to bounce back with a big time performance tonight, as he will be motivated by the fact that he is facing one of the best in the NL in Lee. -Info Plays

Pick: Cleveland Indians -126
Colorado is scoring 3.7 runs per game on the road this year. Cleveland bullpen has a 3.07 ERA overall this year and a 2.98 ERA at home this season. Josh Tomlin is 8-4 with a 3.93 ERA overall this year and 5-1 with a 3.22 ERA at home this season. Hammel is 0-2 with an 8.71 ERA overall vs Cleveland since 1997. Cleveland is 23-14 at home this year and 6-2 in inter-league play this season. We’ll recommend a small play on Cleveland tonight! Thanks and good luck, Rocky Atkinson

Pick: Arizona Diamondbacks -118
The D-backs have won 4 straight on the road and 5 of their last 6 in Kansas City. They are also are 5-1 in Kennedy’s last 6 road starts. The Royals have lost 5 of their last 6 overall and 7 of their last 9 at home. They are just 4-10 in Francis’ last 14 starts. Take the Snakes. -Dave Price

Pick: Oakland Athletics +107
The A’s have rattled off six straight wins and are showing no signs of slowing down Wednesday. Wins haven’t come as easy for knuckleballer R.A. Dickey this year and they have never come easy against the A’s. Dickey is just 1-3 (1-6 on the ML) with an ERA of 6.75 in seven career starts against Oakland. In addition, the Mets are 1-8 in his last 9 home starts and 0-7 in his last 7 starts as a favorite. The A’s are in much better hands with Gio Gonzalez, who has a tidy 2.69 ERA on the season. Dickey is a fool’s gold favorite tonight. Take the A’s. -Jimmy Boyd (Handicapperspicks.com)

MLB Picks: June 9th 2011
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Pick: Arizona Diamondbacks -115
Arizona Diamondbacks starter Josh Collmenter is one of the most underrated starters in the big leagues. Collmenter is 4-1 with a ridiculous 1.25 ERA and a miniscule 0.670 WHIP in five starts and seven relief appearances this season. He has allowed only 24 hits, 5 walks and 6 earned runs in 43 1/3 innings in 2011. Look for Collmenter to rise to the occasion Thursday as the Diamondbacks avoid getting swept by the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates. Pittsburgh is only hitting .219 and scoring 3.4 runs/game at home this year, so Collmenter should have no problem mowing down this lineup. The Diamondbacks are 6-0 in their last 6 during game 3 of a series. The Pirates are 29-63 in their last 92 during game 3 of a series. Pittsburgh is 3-13 in Karstens’ last 16 starts during game 3 of a series. Take the Diamondbacks on the Money Line. -Black Widow

Pick: Oakland Athletics +103
I believe this is where Oakland’s 9-game losing streak comes to an end. Buehrle is still a quality pitcher but his stuff isn’t as good as Cahill’s at this stage of his career. The Oakland ace is 6-3 with an ERA of 2.65 while the Chicago southpaw is 5-4 with an ERA of 3.95. It is worth noting that the Athletics are an impressive 11-2 in Cahill’s last 13 starts versus teams with a losing record and 7-1 in his last 8 road starts versus sub-.500 clubs. Oakland hasn’t hit the ball all that well but has been at its best against lefty starters, batting .254 and scoring 4.2 runs/game against them. In fact, the Athletics are 9-4 in their last 13 road games versus a left-handed starter. There’s a good chance they’ll have Buehrle’s number when you consider that the White Sox are 6-18 in his last 24 starts versus the A’s. Recently, the Sox are 0-4 in his last 4 home starts versus Oakland. We’ll take the A’s. -Jimmy Boyd

Pick: San Diego Padres -119
Washington actually has a winning record at home, but is terrible on the road. Livan Hernandez is 0-5 on the road with a 5.10 ERA and the team has lost 7 straight starts made by him. The Nationals are 2-9 in their last 11 games vs. a right-handed starter and face a very good one in Aaron Harang (6-2, 3.77 ERA). The Padres are 5-1 in Harang’s last 6 starts and the Nationals are 6-22 in the last 28 meetings in San Diego. Play the Padres. -Jim Feist (Handicapperspicks.com)