[Ganchrow]

Philadelphia 62% - Hamels has been promising so far and he is likely to do well here vs a weak lineup at RFK. A short outing will not hurt Philadelphia with their deep and effective pen. Hill is still an unknown quantity, although his 2 big league starts have been good vs 2 very capable offenses. Philadelphia rates a significant edge though with likely a better starter, lineup, and pen.

Cincinnati 61% - Marmol is a huge question mark. He was very sharp both in the minors this year and in his brief stint in the majors as a reliever. How he will respond as a starter in Cincinnati is difficult to say. In the minors he had command issues at times which will cause him big problems if he experiences that in this game. Milton has been generally sharp so far this year. If he is on his game he will completely shut down the weak Cubs offense. If he's not, he will get hit hard despite their weakness.

Yankees 52% - There are many competing factors and uncertainties for this game. Oakland's thin pen will not be at full strength here, which will not matter nearly as much if Zito goes most of the game. However, he has not been good at all vs the Yankees in his career. Chacon is coming off the DL, and he may or may not need a start to get back to his normal level of effectiveness. The Yankees' lineup is very banged up right now, with Jeter and Damon both playing injured, and Giambi also likely to be out or playing injured as well.

Detroit 51% - Robertson has had problems in the daytime his whole career. It's not clear why that would be so pronounced of an issue for him, but it seems to be a real one. Taubenheim hasn't been ready for the majors in his few appearances so far, and he will be very vulnerable vs Detroit here.


Milwaukee 53% - Both starters today have had very similar results this year, inconsistent and generally mediocre with a few excellent outings thrown in. Bush in likely to return to mediocrity today, but Milwaukee has a significant lineup edge. Suppan has been terrific vs Milwaukee in his career, but that is likely anomalous.

Houston 53% - This is a dangerous spot for Ramirez. Houston's so-so lineup, which was missing their 2 best hitters yesterday, should be strong enough to take advantage. Rodriguez, however, is also very likely to get hit, and possibly hard. Atlanta's offense has been underachieving and they will go on an explosive run in the near future.

Minnesota 68% - Bedard has been having serious problems all year and they are likely to continue here. Liriano has been excellent, and even if he only goes 5 innings, Minnesota has capable relievers to finish the game. The lineup edge of Baltimore is rendered irrelevant by the pitching situation for this game.

Tampa Bay 64% - Shields was superb in AAA, and he has been very sharp in the majors so far. Even his less stellar outing was better than his stat line indicates, and he should do well here against the weak Kansas City lineup. Elarton has been consistently sub-par, and that should continue again here, giving Tampa Bay a significant edge.

Los Angeles 57% - It's hard to say what's going on at Coors field nowadays, with some games going way under and some going way over. But this game figures to be low-scoring, which benefits Colorado. Lowe continues to be consistent and excellent, while Cook has been less effective recently. Both of those trends should continue here. The Colorado offense is still weak vs top level pitching.

San Diego 61% - Peavey is still having health and strength issues and his likely performance here is below his usual standard. Moehler is sub-par but has a modest chance of keeping Florida in the game. Florida's lineup has slowly gotten better and is now roughly even with San Diego's.

Mets 74% - Martinez hasn't won in a while but he has pitched well except for his last start. Ortiz has been awful for a while and vs the strong Mets' lineup he is very likely to have another bad outing. Unless an unexpected reversal of form happens somewhere in this game, the Mets have strong edges in all areas.

[bigboydan]

i like the yankees myself ganchrow. but, i just can't lay the wood with them. espeically with chacon's first start off the DL.