MLB, July 30th picks

[kattis]

To be honest, it's been a very long time since I last posted anywhere in the forum and been meaning to do so lately but dodn't have the time; well, finally got some time available so here goes: Tampa Bay Devil Rays @ Seattle Mariners: Devil Rays win @ 2,05 (bet365)...6/10 Kind of an obvious play here I guess, especially when it comes to opposing the Seattle Mariners, them being as bad and poor as they've been lately. What does strike as a bit strange here is why Seattle have been set as favorites in this one, even if it's just a very slight favoritism. Tampa's starting pitcher Alex Cobb is on an incredible run, still undefeated and with really good performances overall (not to mention numbers) while the team has overall hit the ball pretty well the last couple of nights, unlike their opponents. I could understand the pitching matchup being a factor, with Seattle sending their All-star rookie to the mound, Michael Pineda, but he too is coming off back to back rough outings so can't see any advantage in that department too. There's little question regarding the AL East but the fact of the matter is they are still relatively close when it comes to the Wild Card race and there's still a lot of ball to be played. Them being one of the good road teams overall (their 31 wins are second best in the majors, behind the 33 wins the Mets have posted), I can see them carrying their momentum into today's game and with almost everything going for them, record another W at very decent prices. New York Mets @ Washington Nationals: Mets win @ 1,93 (bet365)...6/10 Speaking of the Mets (my beloved team by the way), it's kind of hard not to continue riding their...train lately. I've been backing them all week, watching them being as hot as they've been and see no reason why not continue to do so. After sweeping the 4-game series in Cincinnati for the first time in club history, they recorded their 5th straight W last night, with the bats remaining just as hot. Facing Marquis today may be some challenge (he's been quite good overall) but the Mets are opposing with their knuckleballer R.A. Dickey who is also coming off a strong start in hitter friendly Cinci, allowing just a couple of runs in 6 2/3 innings. Despite this been his first W in quite a while, interestingly enough the Mets have managed to win 6 of his last 7 starts. Elsewhere around the league, the Chicago Cubs are under consideration given they are sending Rodrigo Lopez to the mound; the guy has been terrific but the lace of firepower as far as the Cubbies offense is always a question. Prices though at 2,60+ are quite tempting... In what seemingly looks like an underish game, I'm thinking over 8,5 runs (1,77) in Detroit while I also like the over 7,5 (1,87) in Oakland (nothing special about any of the starters there and runs in Oakland lately have been scored like crazy, including yesterday's game; yup, was on the over again). Finally, a third over option the over 7,5 (2,00) in the Phillies game, them hosting Pittsburgh. Phillies bats remain hot, their starter though Cliff Lee coming off a rather mediocre outing and Pirates can certainly put some runs on the board. Good luck :cheers

[blackcrow]

Re: MLB, July 30th picks Tampa Bay -1.5 @ 2.67 centrebet Cobb is 3-0, with a 2.57 ERA in his 7 starts as he has allowed 12 runs in these starts, with just 2 runs in his 3 road starts. Pineda is 8-7, with a 3.64 ERA and has been hit in his last 3 starts, allowing at least 5 runs in each of them (total of 19 runs). While neither pitcher has played against the other team, hard to fault Cobb's form and like them to get some run support here, as TB have scored 18 runs in their last 2 starts. Seattle have won just 1 of their last 19 games and with their lack of hitting, while TB has hit, then like Cobb to lead them to a win here. Chicago Cubs @ 2.61 pinnacle Lopez is 2-2, with a 3.49 ERA and is 2-1 with a 1.85 ERA in his last 4 starts, allowing just 5 runs. Like him to continue his good form here. Lohse is 8-7, with a 3.46 ERA as he has allowed at least 4 runs in 6 of his last 10 starts (total of 34 runs), with 14 runs allowed in his last 3 home starts. He is 1-4 with a 6.51 ERA in 11 starts against the Cubs and allowe 4 runs on 11 hits in the 5-4 win over them last month. Like the Cubs to score enough runs here to win the game for Lopez. Atlanta -1.5 @ 2.55 pinnacle Hudson is 9-7, with a 3.42 ERA as he has allowed 3 runs or less in 9 of his last 10 starts (total of 21 runs), with 12 runs in his last 6 home starts, winning 4 of them. Like him to pitch much better than the 5 runs on 7 hits he gave up in the 5-1 loss to Florida in April this year. Sanchez is 6-3, with a 3.60 ERA as he has allowed 4 runs or more in 3 of his last 5 starts, with 10 runs in his last 3 road starts. He is 4-7 with a 4.47 ERA against Atlanta and has a 5.09 ERA in losing his last 3 starts to them. San Francisco -1.5 @ 2.66 pinnacle Bumgarner is 6-9, with a 3.56 ERA as he has allowed 2 runs or less in 7 of his last 10 starts (total of 24 runs) 4 runs in his last 3 road starts. He allowed 1 run in the 3-0 loss to Cincinnati last month, which was at home, where he has a 4.60 ERA compared to a 2.54 ERA on the road. Leake is 8-6, with a 4.04 ERA as he has allowed at least 3 runs in 5 of his last 10 starts (total of 24 runs), going 2-3 with 18 runs allowed in his last 6 home starts. He allowed 4 hits in the 10-2 win over SF last month which was on the road, where he has a 3.25 ERA compared to a 4.60 ERA at home. Not much between the two sides but Bumgarner has shown the better form and the Giants are good value to get the win here and tie this series, as they have alternated wins in their 5 meetings. July picks: 53-59 (+4.59) June picks: 53-72 (-2.95) May picks: 31-73 (-30.18) April picks: 45-56 (+2.52)