Free Picks - May 3rd - Service Plays

[Canuck Kid]

(979) CHICAGO WHITE SOX
(980) TEXAS RANGERS
Take "(979) CHICAGO WHITE SOX"

John Danks hasn't been quite as sharp as his numbers over his first few starts would indicate and he was drilled last time out. But the White Sox ace still owns a nice edge here over Matt Harrison, who may have the phoniest 10-5 career record I've ever seen. I'll spot the price with Danks and the White Sox.

Hawks
Mavericks
Cubs

[Canuck Kid]

(951) HOUSTON ASTROS
(952) ATLANTA BRAVES
Take "(951) HOUSTON ASTROS"

Astros occupy the cellar right now in their division. Part of the problem is their hitting where as a club they are batting .245 and have 20 home runs in 23 games. C Ivan Rodriquez came over in the off season but has yet to return to the form he once showed with the Tigers. Rodriquez is hitting just .236 with three homes runs and eight RBI. Carlos Lee leads the team in RBI (17) and is tied with Lance Berkman for HR's (5). The pitching staff has been good with a team ERA of .391 and WHIP of under 1.5. In fact, the relievers and starters both have been keeping the Astros in games and from having a worse record. Wandy Rodriquez gets the start today and he's 2-2, but could easily be 4-0 with his 1.69 ERA and 1.031 WHIP. Rodiquez has allowed just two earned runs in his last 20 innings while walking six and striking out 19 during that span. Jo-Jo Reyes gets the start for the Braves and he is 1-1 with a 4.26 ERA. Reyes has started two games with one very good start against the Cards and one poor start against the Pirates. Sense of urgency here for Reyes with lots of young prospects on this Atlanta club. Too many more poor outlings like that against the Pirates and he could find himself out of the plans of this Braves fanchise. Neither team is big hitting so don't expect a lot of runs here on Sunday, however, Rodriquez is by far the better starter and will keep the Astros in a position to win this game.

Dallas +6

Pittsburgh +117
Philadelphia +102
Florida +155
Angels +134
Cleveland +102
Toronto -126

Miami at ATLANTA (-5)

Play on the LOW.
2*

Dallas at DENVER (-6)

G-Man going HIGH in Game One.
1* OVER

Dallas at DENVER (-6)

Play this one low today.
1* UNDER MAVERICKS/NUGGETS

Dallas at DENVER (-6)

Scoring will be at a premium today as the Under comes through rather easily. Take the Under in this second-round matchup.

3* DALLAS-DENVER UNDER

St. Louis (-130) at WASHINGTON

Pretty easy call here. Lay the price with Pujols and the Redbirds.
5* ST. LOUIS

Houston (-115) at ATLANTA

Take Houston behind Rodriguez over Atlanta and Jo-Jo Reyes in this MLB match up.
3* HOUSTON