Cleveland Indians (26-19) vs Boston Red Sox (28-19)
Cleveland has to be the biggest surprise team on the positive side in the American League so far this season, leading the A.L Central heading into Wednesday.
Cleveland has to be the biggest surprise team on the positive side in the American League so far this season, leading the A.L Central heading into Wednesday.
The Los Angeles Angels are on their best run of the season having won their last 4 games against the Chicago White Sox and Seattle.
The Cincinnati Reds were on a fantastic roll heading into last night’s game against Philadelphia. The Reds had won 6 in a row and 8 of 10 to put some pressure on the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central.
The Tampa Rays are looking to catch the Orioles this weekend and are off to a good start with a rare barn burner win over them on Friday night 12-10.
The Detroit Tigers find themselves in first place in the American League Central heading into this one, but just barely after losing the final game of their series against the Houston Astros. Now they travel to Texas to take on the division leading Rangers.
With the Braves struggling the Nationals have closed some of the gap in the National League East. They are now down down just a game in the division despite the fact they have struggled over the last five against Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs.
The falloff that everyone was expecting from Baltimore hasn’t happened…yet. Right now they are being sustained by a fantastic start from slugging first baseman Chris Davis, who is in the top 3 in the Majors in homers, RBI and average.
The Angels are struggling to get going in April. They let some key players go over the offseason and the replacements aren’t doing much.
Thursday April 25
Safeco Field – Seattle, WA
10:10
Probable Starters:
LAA: Garrett Richards (R)
SEA: Brandon Maurer (R)
Moneyline: Los Angeles -135, Seattle +125 at Bovada
O/U: 8
ATS Matchup Stats | Gambling Insight!
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They focused on offense in bringing in Josh Hamilton from Texas and that move hasn’t really borne much fruit.
They also elected to go with a new cast of starting pitchers at the back end of the rotation and even though it is not all their fault the team ERA is the second worst in the league. Slow start or long term indicator? We will have to wait to see.
L.A. starter Garrett Richards has been kicking around as a prospect with the Angels for a while but it looks like he might be finally getting a chance. He started the season in the pen but he has made two starts now, including a very sharp outing in shutting out Detroit in which he yielded just 2 hits over 7 innings.
The Angels have a pretty good track record grooming Major League pitching so it may finally be his time.
The American League West is going to be a tough division. But it is going to be especially tough if the Mariners don’t figure out a way to beat the Astros. After yesterday’s loss they are 2-4 against Houston, contributing to their 6-11 record against division foes so far.
They can try and improve on that this weekend as they host the Angels, a team that is having some struggles of their own as well. [dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
Mariners starter Brandon Maurer is getting his first taste of the Majors this season. His first two outings were forgettable as the A’s and Astros feasted on him but he has dealt quality starts his last two times out, both against Texas.
He is not great but don’t be completely fooled by that 7+ ERA. Giving up 6ER in 2/3 of an inning will kill your numbers this early in the season.. He is not as highly touted as Richards though.
L.A. is the better value play as a medium favourite in this one. They are the better team on the whole with the better arm on the mound. Seattle is one of the more frustrating teams to try and figure out and when King Felix is not on the mound it is probably best to stay away.
If you win early maybe put a small play on the Angels.
O/U Pick: Over
Score Prediction: Los Angeles 6 – Seattle 5
After the Toronto Blue Jays, the Los Angeles Dodgers are right up there in terms of disappointments this season.
The Diamondbacks are hanging in there pretty well considering they are dealing with some injuries after pretty low expectations coming into the season.
I am not really sure how they are doing it but the New York Yankees are hanging in there despite missing several key members of their everyday lineup.
The Nationals fashion themsleves an elite team but after losing the series opener to the Mets are closer to the middle than the top of the National League East. They opened the series with Stephen Strasburg on the hill but the Mets weren’t shy in welcoming him to the Big Apple.
This is a big series for the Diamondbacks as they look to close ground on the surprising Rockies at the top of the division.
Detroit is sitting at the top of a bunchy American League Central right now.
They won the opener of their series against Seattle last night pushing their road record to over .500 for the season.
The Padres may have won yesterday to break their losing streak but they are still struggling greatly this season. They are already 6 games back in the standing of the N.L. West standings and will need more than just fire in their bellies to overcome.
The Phillies should be encouraged by the fact that they got a solid pitching performance from Roy Halladay yesterday. After taking two of three against the Marlins they are at .500 but still looking way up at the Braves in the National League East standings.