Afternoon Tip Sheet
Bettors won?t have to wait long to get their fix on Wednesday with four games going off before they hit their local pub for happy hour. Houston takes on the red-hot Cubs at Wrigley Field to get the action underway. And the Mariners will close out the early slate with a home tilt with Toronto.
Astros at Cubs ? 2:20 p.m. EDT
A week ago, the Astros found themselves within a game of the lead in the National League Central. A recent three-game slide has brought them back to reality for the most part. As bad as the losing skid seems, they?re still just four games behind Colorado for the NL Wild Card.
Houston will look to stay relevant with Mike Hampton (6-7, 474 ERA) on the mound. The southpaw has been somewhat spotty this year on the road, going 3-4 with a 4.40 earned run average. Also, the ?Stros have lost Hampton?s last three outings away from Minute Maid Park this season. Hampton didn?t get much love from his offense in those road starts, scoring a combined six runs.
You have to go back to April 21 for the last time that Chicago was atop the NL Central before this week. That?s what happens when you win five straight contests, but the streak was broken last night in a 11-6 setback to the 'Stros. The Cubbies? offense has definitely come to play now. In their last four tests, they?re hitting .306 and have crossed the plate 23 times. They could have scored more than that considering that they left just over 19 runners on base each time.
Randy Wells (6-4, 3.10 ERA) hopes he?ll get that type of run support for his start. It?s not like he really needs it though. Wells has six of his last seven decisions, with five of those being quality starts. Wrigley has truly been friendly to him as well, as evidenced by a 3-1 record with an ERA of 3.92 in his last four home starts.
Las Vegas Sports Consultants have listed the Cubs as $1.70 home favorites (risk $170 to win $100). Chicago is now listed as $1.77 home faves at most sportsbooks with the total coming in at 8 ?.
This series has been dominated by Chicago this season as they hold a 7-5 advantage. The ?under? has gone 7-4-1 in the 12 head-to-head meetings as well.
The Cubs haven?t been dominating against lefties this season, as evidenced by an 11-10 mark in 2009. However, they are a solid 5-1 in six daytime fixtures at home against left-handers this year.
If you fancy playing totals, then you should expect a low scoring affair for this tilt. Chicago has seen the ?under? go 26-22 at home this season, while the Astros have gone 28-20.
Blue Jays at Mariners ? 4:40 p.m. EDT
Alright, so will this be Roy Halladay?s (11-3, 2.62 ERA) last start for the Blue Jays? I just feel like I should say that because everyone on ESPN keeps wondering the same thing.
Odds are pretty good he?ll be staying put in Toronto. I?m not sure Halladay wants to stay with them since he?s lost five of his last six starts this season. It?s not like he?s having bad outings either, lasting into the seventh inning in his last four starts with a 2.81 ERA.
The Blue Jays? bullpen has had a hellish go of it when their staff ace is starting. In his last four starts, he?s had the lead in three of those games when he left. The ?pen blew two of those contests. The only win that Halladay did get out of that stretch is because he tossed a complete game.
Seattle?s dream of getting back into the AL West race is fading almost as fast as the team. The Mariners have dropped four straight games, getting outscored 42-10 in the process. This slump includes a three-game sweep to the Indians. I?m pretty sure that would get most any other team eliminated from playoff contention.
The M?s will send out their Australian connection, Ryan Rowland-Smith (0-1, 3.48 ERA), to help stop the bleeding. The southpaw is coming off of a pretty good start on July 24 against the Tribe in which he gave up four earned runs on five hits in seven innings. As good as the outing was, the offense was the exact opposite in a 9-0 shellacking.
Most betting shops have installed Toronto as a $1.65 road ?chalk? with the total coming in low at 7 ?. As of Wednesday morning, the Jays are now $1.70 road favorites with the total holding steady.
Left-handed pitching has been a kryptonite of sorts against the Jays this season. After all, they?re only 15-19 against lefties in 2009. That is surprising when you consider that Toronto is hitting .270 for the season, but .279 against southpaws. One trend to keep mind of is that the Blue Jays are 4-2 when taking on a left-hander in daytime road games.
As bad as Toronto has been against lefties, they have one hell of a weapon in Halladay. The Blue Jays' ace is 56-21 with a 3.39 ERA in 99 career daytime starts.
When you see a total as low as that, you can guess that runs will be coming at a premium. The numbers don?t suggest that to be the case here as Toronto has seen the ?over? go 12-6 in daytime road matches.
Bettors won?t have to wait long to get their fix on Wednesday with four games going off before they hit their local pub for happy hour. Houston takes on the red-hot Cubs at Wrigley Field to get the action underway. And the Mariners will close out the early slate with a home tilt with Toronto.
Astros at Cubs ? 2:20 p.m. EDT
A week ago, the Astros found themselves within a game of the lead in the National League Central. A recent three-game slide has brought them back to reality for the most part. As bad as the losing skid seems, they?re still just four games behind Colorado for the NL Wild Card.
Houston will look to stay relevant with Mike Hampton (6-7, 474 ERA) on the mound. The southpaw has been somewhat spotty this year on the road, going 3-4 with a 4.40 earned run average. Also, the ?Stros have lost Hampton?s last three outings away from Minute Maid Park this season. Hampton didn?t get much love from his offense in those road starts, scoring a combined six runs.
You have to go back to April 21 for the last time that Chicago was atop the NL Central before this week. That?s what happens when you win five straight contests, but the streak was broken last night in a 11-6 setback to the 'Stros. The Cubbies? offense has definitely come to play now. In their last four tests, they?re hitting .306 and have crossed the plate 23 times. They could have scored more than that considering that they left just over 19 runners on base each time.
Randy Wells (6-4, 3.10 ERA) hopes he?ll get that type of run support for his start. It?s not like he really needs it though. Wells has six of his last seven decisions, with five of those being quality starts. Wrigley has truly been friendly to him as well, as evidenced by a 3-1 record with an ERA of 3.92 in his last four home starts.
Las Vegas Sports Consultants have listed the Cubs as $1.70 home favorites (risk $170 to win $100). Chicago is now listed as $1.77 home faves at most sportsbooks with the total coming in at 8 ?.
This series has been dominated by Chicago this season as they hold a 7-5 advantage. The ?under? has gone 7-4-1 in the 12 head-to-head meetings as well.
The Cubs haven?t been dominating against lefties this season, as evidenced by an 11-10 mark in 2009. However, they are a solid 5-1 in six daytime fixtures at home against left-handers this year.
If you fancy playing totals, then you should expect a low scoring affair for this tilt. Chicago has seen the ?under? go 26-22 at home this season, while the Astros have gone 28-20.
Blue Jays at Mariners ? 4:40 p.m. EDT
Alright, so will this be Roy Halladay?s (11-3, 2.62 ERA) last start for the Blue Jays? I just feel like I should say that because everyone on ESPN keeps wondering the same thing.
Odds are pretty good he?ll be staying put in Toronto. I?m not sure Halladay wants to stay with them since he?s lost five of his last six starts this season. It?s not like he?s having bad outings either, lasting into the seventh inning in his last four starts with a 2.81 ERA.
The Blue Jays? bullpen has had a hellish go of it when their staff ace is starting. In his last four starts, he?s had the lead in three of those games when he left. The ?pen blew two of those contests. The only win that Halladay did get out of that stretch is because he tossed a complete game.
Seattle?s dream of getting back into the AL West race is fading almost as fast as the team. The Mariners have dropped four straight games, getting outscored 42-10 in the process. This slump includes a three-game sweep to the Indians. I?m pretty sure that would get most any other team eliminated from playoff contention.
The M?s will send out their Australian connection, Ryan Rowland-Smith (0-1, 3.48 ERA), to help stop the bleeding. The southpaw is coming off of a pretty good start on July 24 against the Tribe in which he gave up four earned runs on five hits in seven innings. As good as the outing was, the offense was the exact opposite in a 9-0 shellacking.
Most betting shops have installed Toronto as a $1.65 road ?chalk? with the total coming in low at 7 ?. As of Wednesday morning, the Jays are now $1.70 road favorites with the total holding steady.
Left-handed pitching has been a kryptonite of sorts against the Jays this season. After all, they?re only 15-19 against lefties in 2009. That is surprising when you consider that Toronto is hitting .270 for the season, but .279 against southpaws. One trend to keep mind of is that the Blue Jays are 4-2 when taking on a left-hander in daytime road games.
As bad as Toronto has been against lefties, they have one hell of a weapon in Halladay. The Blue Jays' ace is 56-21 with a 3.39 ERA in 99 career daytime starts.
When you see a total as low as that, you can guess that runs will be coming at a premium. The numbers don?t suggest that to be the case here as Toronto has seen the ?over? go 12-6 in daytime road matches.
