Braves @ New York Met
Atlanta Braves @ New York Mets Sep 18, 2010 4:10PM SPORT: Major League Baseball Picks PICK: under
REASON FOR PICK: At 4:10 pm, our complimentary selection is on the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets 'under' the total. A team can be in first place for 100 straight days or a great majority of the regular season, but if they're not in front come the beginning of October, it really doesn't mean much. The Braves are finding this out the hard way as on May 31st, they took over the lead in the NL Eastern division and pretty much held it for 100 straight days. But on September 7, the Phillies caught them and now the defending NL Champs appear not to be looking in their rear-view mirror as they've opened up a three-game lead heading into this weekend's schedule of games. Nobody knows the harsh reality of this more than starter Tim Hudson, who only about a month ago looked like a Cy Young candidate, and a strong one at that. Now Hudson is mired in a terrible funk, having gone 1-3 with a 5.17 ERA in his last five starts, and to make matters worse, his team isn't showing up when he pitches lately, as the Braves have only scored a total of five runs in Hudson's three September starts. He has to face a red-hot rookie righthander in 24-year-old Dillon Gee and he has to do it on the road this afternoon. Gee has pitched gems against the Nats and Pirates and the Mets have won both of his starts, although both games have been low-scoring affairs. Gee has absolutely nothing to lose, while fewer starts in Hudson's career have been as big for him as this one. He will have to keep the game close because he almost certainly won't see many runs scored on either side. The under is 14-3 in the last 17 meetings and 8-0 in the last eight in New York. Take the 'under.' As always, good luck...
REASON FOR PICK: At 4:10 pm, our complimentary selection is on the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets 'under' the total. A team can be in first place for 100 straight days or a great majority of the regular season, but if they're not in front come the beginning of October, it really doesn't mean much. The Braves are finding this out the hard way as on May 31st, they took over the lead in the NL Eastern division and pretty much held it for 100 straight days. But on September 7, the Phillies caught them and now the defending NL Champs appear not to be looking in their rear-view mirror as they've opened up a three-game lead heading into this weekend's schedule of games. Nobody knows the harsh reality of this more than starter Tim Hudson, who only about a month ago looked like a Cy Young candidate, and a strong one at that. Now Hudson is mired in a terrible funk, having gone 1-3 with a 5.17 ERA in his last five starts, and to make matters worse, his team isn't showing up when he pitches lately, as the Braves have only scored a total of five runs in Hudson's three September starts. He has to face a red-hot rookie righthander in 24-year-old Dillon Gee and he has to do it on the road this afternoon. Gee has pitched gems against the Nats and Pirates and the Mets have won both of his starts, although both games have been low-scoring affairs. Gee has absolutely nothing to lose, while fewer starts in Hudson's career have been as big for him as this one. He will have to keep the game close because he almost certainly won't see many runs scored on either side. The under is 14-3 in the last 17 meetings and 8-0 in the last eight in New York. Take the 'under.' As always, good luck...
