Yes, Chris Young has looked more like Cy Young this year. However, this is his first start back from his injury, and he may have had his worst start of the year vs. St. Louis. Also do not forget that the Cardinals have dominated the head-to-head series at Busch Stadium, going 26-9 in the last 35 meetings, so look for an upset.
The San Diego Padres have the obvious pitching advantage tonight when Chris Young makes his return against Joel Pineiro and the St. Louis Cardinals. Still, the Cardinals still offer some value at this price at home.
For starters, St. Louis has dominated the head-to-head series between these clubs at both the old and new Busch Stadiums. The Cards are now an amazing 26-9 in the last 35 home meetings after taking two of the first three games of this four-game series. Secondly, the Cardinals look to have a huge offensive edge in this battle of right-handers, as St. Louis is hitting .273 vs. right-handed pitching this season while the Padres are batting a pathetic .239 against them.
Also, as great as Young has been this year while going 9-3 with a 1.82 ERA, he does have a more human-like 3.02 ERA on the road. Moreover, perhaps his worst outing this season came against these Cardinals, when he allowed five runs in 5.1 innings in San Diego back in May.
Now Pineiro has certainly had a swift decline, but remember that he was almost unhittable as a rookie with Seattle before inexplicably falling apart the next few years, so maybe he could have some success his first time through the National League. Besides, Pineiro has not been embarrassed in four career starts vs. the Padres in interleague play, posting Quality Starts in his first two starts against them and then allowing four runs in each of his last two appearances.
Finally the Cardinals have really picked things up at home lately going 5-1 in their last six games here, putting them over .500 at home for the first time all year at 27-26. They have proven to be a very difficult team at home over the years, so we expect this improvement at Busch to continue for the rest of the season.
Game Time: 08/09/2007 07:05 PM -
By: Marc Lawrence | playbook.com
The Phillies continue to hang around the NL playoff race and are 16-9 since the All-Star Game. Back Philadelphia at home with Kyle Kendrick on the mound against the Marlins.
The Phillies close out a three-game set with the Marlins behind Kyle Kendrick who has been perfect (6-0) in his home team starts.
The Phillies have won three straight and would love to grab the sweep of Florida this evening just before the Atlanta Braves come into town for an important weekend series. In Kendrick's last three starts at home in Philly, he's allowed just five earned runs in 19.2 innings (2.28) and recording a 29-19 groundball to fly ball ratio which is key in this bandbox.
With Kendrick owning a 3.29 ERA at home (as opposed to a 4.81 road ERA), and Mitre sporting a 4.25 ERA away from home (as opposed a 2.93 home ERA), we'll stay at home with Philadelphia here tonight.
Game Time: 08/09/2007 09:40 PM -
By: Al McMordie | bigal.com
Despite leading the NL West, the Diamondbacks remain an underrated team this season. Win with Arizona this evening when they host the Pirates to close out a 3-game set.
Our Thursday MLB selection is on the Arizona Diamondbacks over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Diamondbacks left-handed starter Doug Davis and Pirates right-handed starter Ian Snell are having opposite seasons right now. Snell looked like an All-Star early on, but his last five starts -- except for one that was ok -- have all been pretty horrendous. He has seen his ERA go from 2.63 in mid-June all the way up to 3.91 where it stands now going into this game. The Pirates won nine of Snell's first 14 outings but they are 2-6 in his last eight.
By contrast, the D-Backs went 6-8 in Davis' first 14 starts but have now won seven of his last nine. After having outings in June in which he gave up seven, five, and four earned runs (twice), Davis has not had a single start since the end of that month in which he has given up more than three runs. And Davis has a very impressive 2.49 ERA in his last three. Despite his overall record of 8-10, Davis is a winner at home (5-2). At 7-10, Snell does not have a winning record either, but he has lost six of those 10 games on the road where he has really struggled this season.
The D-Backs are red hot as a team, going 13-3 in their last 16 games. Despite the loss of Randy Johnson, who may be forced into retirement, they are poised to win their division, and with the overall good health of their team and their combination of good pitching and experienced hitting, there's no reason why they can't make a run deep into the playoffs. Take Arizona.
Barry, Barry, Barry. Enough already with the Bonds talk. The Washington Nationals are the better team this year and they'll show it when they win this afternoon in San Francisco.
Now that the hype has died down in San Francisco, the Giants may lack some of the positive energy from the big crowds and attention. Barry Bonds may have the record but the Nationals have been the team winning games.
Washington is 18-9 in their last 27 games and the team is scoring runs, averaging nearly six runs per game in the last 10 contests. Washington starter Joel Hanrahan has made just two starts but they have been successful, allowing just four runs with 10 strikeouts leading to two victories.
Converted reliever Patrick Misch makes his second start for the Giants and although he had eight strikeouts in his first start, he also allowed seven hits in just five innings. The Nationals have the advantage in the bullpen which will likely come into play today. Look for Washington to maintain strong play and remember that despite the perceptions of the teams, the Nats have been the better team on the season.
Game Time: 08/09/2007 07:05 PM -
By: LT Profits Sports Group | who2beton.com
The Mariners look for the road sweep tonight, visiting an Orioles team that has struggled with winning teams. Back the Mariners as a dog vs. Daniel Cabrera tonight.
The Seattle Mariners have won the first two games of this road series vs. the Baltimore Orioles, and we look for the Mariners to complete the sweep as an underdog in this spot.
Yes, Baltimore is improved a bit this season because of a nice young pitching staff, but they still have trouble beating the better teams in the league. In fact, the Orioles are now just 78-148 vs. teams with winning records the last three years, including a woeful 38-82 after the All-Star break! Their starter Daniel Cabrera has been one of the few disappointments in the pitching staff for the most part, and he did not pitch well in his only other start against the Mariners this season, allowing five earned runs in five innings.
Now granted, Horacio Ramirez has been brutal on the road, but at least he has the support of an excellent Seattle bullpen that is ranked eighth in the Major Leagues with a 3.61 pen ERA, Conversely, Baltimore ranks 28th out of 30 teams with a dreadful 5.03 pen ERA.
Besides, Ramirez is a perfect three for three in Quality Starts in his career vs. the Orioles, so look for a mild upset here.
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