The Dodgers and Giants renew their rivalry at AT&T Park, where Jonathan Sanchez (5-9, 4.49 ERA) is slated to take the mound for the home team opposite L.A.’s Hiroki Kuroda (5-9, 4.44).
The Dodgers wrapped up a seven-game homestand with Sunday’s 8-2 loss to the Braves, losing the final three games of a four-game series against Atlanta. Los Angeles has dropped 10 of its last 16 games (3-4 on the road) and is looking to avoid just its second four-game losing skid of the season tonight. On the bright side, Joe Torre’s club is on positive runs of 46-19 in N.L. West action, 9-4 in series openers and 4-0 with Kuroda on the hill.
San Francisco capped a three-game series against the Reds on Sunday with a 5-2 loss. The Giants lost two of three to Cincinnati but they’ve still won nine of their last 13 games overall, going 7-3 at home during this stretch. San Francisco is on additional surges of 37-17 at home, 6-2 against right-handed starters and 20-7 against teams with a winning record.
These clubs haven’t met since early May, when San Francisco took two of three in Los Angeles. The Dodgers won the first three clashes this season, but the Giants have won four of the last six, including two of three at AT&T Park in April. L.A. is 2-6 in its last eight games in San Francisco.
Kuroda is coming off three straight quality starts, pitching six innings in all three games while posting a 3.50 ERA and a 21-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The right-hander, who beat Milwaukee 17-4 at home on Tuesday, has surrendered three runs or fewer in each of his last four trips to the mound. He’s 3-2 with a 4.66 ERA on the road, and he faced the Giants four times as a rookie in 2008, going 0-1 with a 4.79 ERA as the Dodgers dropped three of the four contests.
Sanchez dominated the Astros on Tuesday, yielding four hits and three walks in seven scoreless innings en route to an 8-1 road win. Sanchez has won consecutive starts (two runs and seven hits allowed with 15 strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings), but the Giants are still in slumps behind Sanchez of 8-22 overall, 1-5 on Monday and 1-5 versus the N.L. West.
Sanchez is 4-1 with a 3.26 ERA in nine home outings (eight starts), but he’s 0-2 with a 5.02 ERA in eight career appearances (five starts) against the Dodgers. Two of those starts have come this year, with the southpaw pitching five innings in each contest while giving up a total of seven runs (five earned) as San Francisco lost 5-3 at home and 8-0 at Dodger Stadium.
For the Dodgers, the “under” is on streaks of 4-1 on the road, 9-4 with Kuroda on the mound, 15-6-1 when Kuroda works on the road and 7-1 when Kuroda faces a winning team. Also, the under is 19-9-3 in the Giants’ last 31 N.L. West contests. However, with Sanchez on the hill, San Francisco is on “over” streaks of 4-0 overall, 10-2-2 at home and 5-0-1 versus winning opponents.
ATS ADVANTAGE: NONE
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Tampa Bay (61-50) at L.A. Angels (65-44)
The Rays’ West Coast road trip continues with a three-game set in Southern California as they send right-hander Matt Garza (7-8, 3.63 ERA) to the hill opposite Angels rookie Sean O’Sullivan (3-1, 4.24) in Anaheim.
Tampa Bay lost its series in Seattle with Sunday’s 11-2 setback. The Rays are just 2-7 in their last nine against A.L. West teams and just 56-146 in their last 202 games on the road against teams with a winning percentage of .600 or better.
The Angels dropped two of three to the second-place Rangers over the weekend, including Sunday’s 7-0 defeat. Los Angeles is still on positive runs of 36-16 overall, 9-4 at home, 65-33 at home against teams with a winning record, 14-4 in series openers and 5-0 against A.L. East squads. The Angels have also dominated Tampa lately, winning 50 of the last 74 meetings overall and going 26-5 in the last 31 matchups played in California.
With Garza pitching, the Rays are in funks of 5-11 on the highway and 1-4 against A.L. West teams. The right-hander faced the Red Sox in Tampa on Tuesday and allowed two runs on three hits over seven innings, getting a no-decision as the Rays eventually won 4-2 in 13 innings. With that victory, Tampa Bay improved to 3-1 in Garza’s four starts since the All-Star break, including 2-0 on the road.
Garza has made 10 starts as a visitor this season, going 3-4 with a 4.09 ERA, but his most recent road outing was a 4-2 complete-game win in Toronto on July 24. In his lone start against the Angels last season, Garza allowed four runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings of a 5-4 loss, making him 0-1 with a 5.25 ERA in his career against the Halos.
O’Sullivan has made two starts since the All-Star break, including Wednesday in Chicago when the White Sox got to him for four runs on six hits in five innings and handed him a 6-2 loss. It was the first time in six games this season that the Angels lost a game O’Sullivan started. O’Sullivan’s two home starts resulted in no-decisions, as he allowed a combined seven runs in 10 2/3 innings (5.91 ERA), but the Angels beat Colorado 4-3 and Baltimore 11-4.
With Garza on the hill, the Rays are on “under” runs of 36-16-2 overall, 20-6-1 on the road, 17-9 against winning teams and 7-2 in series openers. As a team, Tampa is on “under” streaks of 19-8 on the road, 14-7 against winning teams and 7-3-1 in series openers. It’s been all “overs” for the Angels lately, including 38-14-3 overall, 22-7-1 at home, 23-7-2 against right-handers, 6-1 on Mondays, 5-0-1 in series openers and 5-0 against the A.L. East. Finally, in this series, the under has been the play in four of the last five meetings in Anaheim.
Mark this game down, because the Red Sox are almost never underdogs at Fenway Park.
It has happened just twice this season. On June 11, the Red Sox were +136 against the New York Yankees and CC Sabathia and came away with a 4-3 win. On May 8, they were +105 against James Shields and the Tampa Bay Rays and took a 7-3 victory.
In both games, Boston's starting pitcher was Brad Penny, who faces Detroit's Edwin Jackson on Monday. Penny is 5-2 at Fenway Park, where his ERA is more than a run lower than his road ERA.
The Red Sox will be opening a homestand and are 5-3 in those contests. They are 35-17 at home this season and swept three games from the Tigers in Detroit in June.
Pick: Boston
Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees (-142, 10.5)
Since the All-Star break, the Yankees have been practically unbeatable at home.
They are 12-1 at Yankee Stadium in the second half, with the only loss at 6-4 setback to Oakland on July 25. And while the bats have made some noise from time to time, the Yankees have been doing it primarily with pitching.
The Yankees are allowing less than three runs per game at home since the All-Star break, holding foes to one run or less five times. They have allowed more than four runs just three times.
Overall since the All-Star break, the Yankees are second in the American League with a 3.72 ERA, third in opponents' batting average at .245 and first in strikeouts with 183 and saves with 10.
The craziness continues inside Major League Baseball, as we approach the second week of August. The AL East race is slowly getting away from Boston's grasp, while the Tigers are trying to sneak away with the Central title. The Monday card supplies bettors with plenty of entertaining matchups, including Detroit heading to Beantown.
Tigers at Red Sox (7:05 PM EST)
The Red Sox are coming off a humbling weekend, dropping a series to the Yankees in the Bronx, while losing valuable ground in the division. The Tigers, meanwhile, are fresh off taking two of three from the Twins.
Edwin Jackson (8-5, 2.62 ERA) has been an 'under' machine all season, hitting it in 15 of 20 starts. Jackson's road numbers are decent, owning an ERA of 2.47, despite Detroit going 4-8 in the righty's 12 road outings. The 'under' has been nailed in 10 of 12 away contests, mainly due to a lack of run support, as the Tigers average a shade over three runs a game in this span.
Jackson didn't face the Red Sox when Boston swept Detroit earlier this season at Comerica Park. As a member of the Rays last season, Tampa Bay lost three of Jackson's four starts against Boston, while Jackson is 0-5 his last five starts at Fenway.
Brad Penny (7-6, 5.20 ERA) has not been especially sharp of late, allowing 18 earned runs in his last four starts. The Red Sox have cashed for Penny in his home outings, winning seven of his 11 starts at Fenway. Penny has been listed as a huge favorite in his last few home outings, but the Sox are 4-0 this season as home 'chalk' when Penny is $1.30 favorite or less.
Las Vegas Sports Consultants has installed the Red Sox as a $1.15 home favorite, with the total listed at 9.
Blue Jays at Yankees (7:05 PM EST)
The Yankees look to continue their ownership of the Blue Jays this season, already taking seven of nine meetings. The last time these teams met up at Rogers Centre, the Yankees topped Toronto, 8-4, less than a week ago. The two starting pitchers in that contest take the mound tonight in the Bronx.
Sergio Mitre (1-0, 7.50 ERA) has been less than stellar in his four starts with the Yankees. The former Cubs and Marlins right-hander has not compiled a quality start yet in pinstripes, while allowing at least seven hits and three earned runs in each outing. Against Toronto, Mitre gave up eight hits and three earned runs in 4.1 innings of work, but the Yanks still came out on top.
Mark Rzepczynski (1-3, 3.74 ERA) has strung together several decent outings despite picking up only one victory. The Toronto lefty has seen the 'under' hit in four of six starts, with the lone 'over' getting nailed in the loss to New York. Rzepczynski's two best starts have come against the Red Sox and Rays, allowing two earned runs in 12 innings.
The Yankees are a healthy $1.80 home 'chalk,' with the total listed at 10 ˝, according to LVSC.
Astros at Marlins (7:05 PM EST)
It's amazing how things turn around in the span of a couple of days. Take the Florida Marlins, for example. The Fish were swept at Washington in a three-game set, possibly sealing their fate in the NL Wild Card and NL East races. However, the Marlins rebounded with a three-game sweep of the East-leading Phillies, slicing a seven-game deficit to a four-game deficit in a matter of 72 hours.
The Astros, meanwhile, are coming off an important home series victory over the Brewers. Houston sends out former Marlin Brian Moehler (7-7, 5.31 ERA) to the mound. Moehler's road numbers are impressive this season, winning five of six decisions, while compiling an ERA of 3.91 away from Minute Maid Park. Moehler has struggled lately, allowing 13 earned runs in his last three starts, all Houston losses. This will be Moehler's first career start against his old team.
Rick VandenHurk (1-1, 4.29 ERA) is coming off his worst start of the season, a 5-4 setback at Washington. The Marlins righty allowed seven hits and five earned runs in only four innings of work. It didn't help that the Nats tagged VandenHurk for three home runs. Prior to that loss, VandenHurk put together three nice starts in a row, allowing five earned runs in 17 innings.
This is the first meeting between these two teams this season, as the Marlins went 4-2 against the Astros in 2008, including a three-game September sweep in South Florida.
LVSC has installed the Marlins as a $1.60 home favorite, while the total is set 9.
Floyd has been in an excellent rhythm recently, giving the White Sox huge chunks of innings and strikeouts.
In his last four starts, the righty is 2-0 with two no-decisions and the White Sox won three of the four games. He has faced some of the AL's best teams, working against the Los Angeles Angels, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays and impressing them with his toughness.
"He never gives in, even when he's behind in the count," Angels catcher Mike Napoli told the team's web site.
In his hot stretch, Floyd has pitched at least 6 2-3 innings each time out, compiling a 1.84 ERA. His WHIP (walks + hits per inning) is an outstanding 0.89 and he has 30 strikeouts in 29 1-3 innings. The under has also paid each time.
Doug Davis (Arizona Diamondbacks)
Since his worst start of the season, the left-hander has been at his best.
Davis gave up a season-high eight runs while getting a season-low seven outs at Colorado on July 20. But Arizona has won each of his last three starts with Davis going 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA in the process.
Davis may also be getting a grip on the control problems that have been an issue all season. He walked just two in seven innings last time out, the first time in a dozen starts he has walked less than three. As a result, his 11.67 pitches per inning was his best of the season.
Under bettors have cashed in Davis' last three outings.
Hideki Kuroda (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Just what the Dodgers need – another hot pitcher. They have not lost in four starts since the All-Star break with Kuroda on the mound.
Kuroda's fortunes haven't been as good; he endured three straight no-decisions before claiming a 17-4 laugher against Milwaukee in his last outing. But his numbers have been very strong.
The right-hander has a 3.91 ERA since the break, collecting 22 strikeouts against just four walks in 23 innings. He has not pitched more than six innings in any of those outings, so he likely will need some help from the bullpen.
Slumping
Johnny Cueto (Cincinnati Reds)
Cueto isn't entirely to blame for Cincinnati's troubles over the last six weeks, but he is a big reason.
The righty allowed one hit in six scoreless innings of a 1-0 win over Arizona on July 1 that allowed Cincinnati to improve to 38-38. Since then, the Reds are 9-24, and Cueto has been awful.
Among the National League ERA leaders through the first three months of the season, Cueto is 0-5 with a 9.85 ERA in his last six starts and has worked five innings or less three times. His WHIP is an astronomical 2.15 and he has given up seven homers.
As a rookie last year, Cueto had a longer slump starting in July that saw the Reds lose eight of his 10 starts.
Kyle Lohse (St. Louis Cardinals)
The big hurler hasn't pitched terribly since returning from a forearm injury last month. But he hasn't won, either.
Lohse is 0-3 with a 5.84 ERA in five starts, lasting five innings or less three times. He has just 12 strikeouts and 11 walks in that span.
Overall, the Cardinals have lost 10 of his last 11 starts, with the only win over punchless interleague rival Kansas City.
Inside The Lines 8/10
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