ALDS Game 5 Rangers at Rays
Cliff Lee will once again be a slight MLB odds underdog in a rematch with David Price at Tropicana Field on Tuesday when the Rangers and Rays end their ALDS.
This is it, one game to decide whose baseball season continues and who goes home for the winter. The Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays will meet for a fifth and deciding game in their NLDS Tuesday night at St. Pete's Tropicana Field with the winner advancing to the ALCS to face the New York Yankees.
5Dimes' 5-cent line Monday afternoon listed the Rays as 113 home faves with Texas priced at plus 108. Tuesday's total opened at 6½ across the board and has stayed there, with 5Dimes juicing the 'over' at minus 110 while offering an even wager on the low side.
The Rangers left the Trop last Thursday with a 2-0 lead in the series following dominating pitching performances by lefties Cliff Lee and C.J. Wilson. Texas took Game 1 by a 5-1 score as 111 MLB odds underdogs. Game 2 resulted in a 6-0 win for the Rangers as 108 'dogs.
Tampa Bay returned the favor by swiping the next two contests from the Rangers on their home field over the weekend. Four outs away from elimination in Game 3 on Saturday, the Rays clawed back for a 6-3 win as the underdog prevailed once again. Tampa then leveled the match at two games apiece with a 5-2 win in Game 4 as the ever-so-slight 'dog.
Depending when you bought your total's tickets, the series is 3-1 to the 'under' or possibly 3-0-1 with Game 3's number shifting from an opening nine to a closing 8½.
Tuesday's series finale will be a sequel to the Game 1 pitching matchup with Lee (7-9, 3.81) going for Texas against Tampa Bay's David Price (23-9, 2.80).
The difference in Game 1 was Lee working out of early trouble while Rangers hitters got to Price early for five runs (four earned) in the first five frames. Nelson Cruz and Bengie Molina took Price deep in the game, both solo shots.
Neither offense has done a lot of damage, with the 'under' trend in the final scores providing some of that evidence. Tampa Bay is batting just .223 in the four games while Texas is hitting .241. The Rangers have popped seven homers to the Rays' four, but six of the Texas blasts have been with nobody on base.
Unless there is a change in the umpire rotation, something crew chief Tim Welke could invoke, Jeff Kellogg should don the mask for plate duty in Game 5. None of his season-long stats trend one way or another. He had a very slight 17-15-2 'over' mark during the regular season, 5-3-2 when the total was eight or less. He did end the season on a 3-0-1 run to the high side.
Weather obviously won't be a factor inside Tropicana Field, and it will be important for the Rangers to get an early lead in order to take some of the crowd noise out indoors. As much as I like the Rays in this game, my inner wuss won't allow me to bet against Cliff Lee. I'll take the 'over' 6½ instead.
Whoever does win will have a couple of days off before entertaining the Yankees in Game 1 of the ALCS that is set for Friday. No exact start time had been set, but look for something in the 8:07-8:37 p.m. ET timeframe with TBS providing the pictures.
NOTE: W-L records displayed for starting pitchers are team records in games the pitchers start, including the postseason.
Cliff Lee will once again be a slight MLB odds underdog in a rematch with David Price at Tropicana Field on Tuesday when the Rangers and Rays end their ALDS.
This is it, one game to decide whose baseball season continues and who goes home for the winter. The Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Rays will meet for a fifth and deciding game in their NLDS Tuesday night at St. Pete's Tropicana Field with the winner advancing to the ALCS to face the New York Yankees.
5Dimes' 5-cent line Monday afternoon listed the Rays as 113 home faves with Texas priced at plus 108. Tuesday's total opened at 6½ across the board and has stayed there, with 5Dimes juicing the 'over' at minus 110 while offering an even wager on the low side.
The Rangers left the Trop last Thursday with a 2-0 lead in the series following dominating pitching performances by lefties Cliff Lee and C.J. Wilson. Texas took Game 1 by a 5-1 score as 111 MLB odds underdogs. Game 2 resulted in a 6-0 win for the Rangers as 108 'dogs.
Tampa Bay returned the favor by swiping the next two contests from the Rangers on their home field over the weekend. Four outs away from elimination in Game 3 on Saturday, the Rays clawed back for a 6-3 win as the underdog prevailed once again. Tampa then leveled the match at two games apiece with a 5-2 win in Game 4 as the ever-so-slight 'dog.
Depending when you bought your total's tickets, the series is 3-1 to the 'under' or possibly 3-0-1 with Game 3's number shifting from an opening nine to a closing 8½.
Tuesday's series finale will be a sequel to the Game 1 pitching matchup with Lee (7-9, 3.81) going for Texas against Tampa Bay's David Price (23-9, 2.80).
The difference in Game 1 was Lee working out of early trouble while Rangers hitters got to Price early for five runs (four earned) in the first five frames. Nelson Cruz and Bengie Molina took Price deep in the game, both solo shots.
Neither offense has done a lot of damage, with the 'under' trend in the final scores providing some of that evidence. Tampa Bay is batting just .223 in the four games while Texas is hitting .241. The Rangers have popped seven homers to the Rays' four, but six of the Texas blasts have been with nobody on base.
Unless there is a change in the umpire rotation, something crew chief Tim Welke could invoke, Jeff Kellogg should don the mask for plate duty in Game 5. None of his season-long stats trend one way or another. He had a very slight 17-15-2 'over' mark during the regular season, 5-3-2 when the total was eight or less. He did end the season on a 3-0-1 run to the high side.
Weather obviously won't be a factor inside Tropicana Field, and it will be important for the Rangers to get an early lead in order to take some of the crowd noise out indoors. As much as I like the Rays in this game, my inner wuss won't allow me to bet against Cliff Lee. I'll take the 'over' 6½ instead.
Whoever does win will have a couple of days off before entertaining the Yankees in Game 1 of the ALCS that is set for Friday. No exact start time had been set, but look for something in the 8:07-8:37 p.m. ET timeframe with TBS providing the pictures.
NOTE: W-L records displayed for starting pitchers are team records in games the pitchers start, including the postseason.
Boy was I wrong about Neither guy going deep!!! Lee is unreal. Sick performance!!!
Ron Darling, Cal Ripken Jr, Dennis Eckersley, David Wells..... ALL agreed that Price was going to have "better stuff" and that the Rays would prevail. 
