Tuesday, April 25, 2017 Los Angeles Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants (MLB) - 10:15 PM EDT Premium Pick Pick: Money Line: -225 Los Angeles Dodgers Pick Title: Mike's Tuesday Lone Wolf Play (Win) The San Francisco Giants (just 6-12 vs. the NL West) are simply NOT hitting! They enter tonight's game with a 20th-best .235 batting average along with having 8 players on the disabled list (including LHP Madison Bumgarner who injured his pitching shoulder in a dirt bike accident). SF Manager Bruce Bochy can try every combination imaginable that includes Right Fielder Hunter Pence leading off, just called up 21-year old Christian Arroyo from AAA-Sacramento to play 3rd base or veteran Drew Stubbs to take over center-field. It's going to be tough for them to be effective against tonight's starter & three-time Cy Young Award winner southpaw Clayton Kershaw (103-38 with a major league-leading 2.06 ERA over the last 6+ seasons) with all this disrupted chemistry. Even though Giants' starter LHP Ty Blach pitched 8 scoreless innings in a 3-0 win over L.A. back on October 1st, he's now forced to come out of a familiar bullpen role to momentarily take Bumgarner's place in the rotation. I feel the Dodgers have much more offensive clout here with Justin Turner (.343 B.A., 9 doubles) playing solid & team-leader SS Corey Seager (.311 B.A., 6 doubles, 3 HR's & 15 RBI's) showing very productive numbers. Since both teams have struggled against LHP (S.F. @ 227 & L.A. @ .218), their bullpen may decide it late. My bottom line says you just can't trust the Giants' pen that has a high 3.91 E.R.A. with 4 blown saves in 7 tries. In comparison, the Dodgers' pen ranks 2nd in the NL with a 3.06 E.R.A.. Even before Blach took over for Bumgarner, S.F.'s overall pitching staff was ranked 28th of 30 overall with a 4.51 E.R.A.. I feel that Kershaw should dominate a struggling lineup & get the "W" here. Supporting us in the number we find Kershaw carrying a 40-11 record versus the NL West, a 13-5 record on the road & he's won 6 of his last 7 decisions versus SF. He knows how to NOT let the big men beat you (Buster Posey .340 B.A. & 1 HR) & Joe Panic (.339 B.A. & 1 HR) & will neutralize them with proper location. Even though the Giants have had L.A.'s number @ home (17-4 L21) & winners of 4 straight in the series, look for the Dodgers to wear them down by games end. Let's go to AT&T Park in San Francisco to play the LOS ANGELES DODGERS as my Tuesday Lone Wolf Play! Monday, April 24, 2017 San Diego Padres vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (MLB) - 9:40 PM EDT Premium Pick Pick: Money Line: -145 Arizona Diamondbacks Pick Title: 9 Star Monday Silencer (Win) The Diamondbacks have started the season talking loudly with their bats. Heading into this one, Arizona leads all MLB clubs in At Bats, Runs, Hits & 3-baggers. This type of monster stats have them yielding an 8-2 home record (best in NL). Tonight's starting pitchers (Jhoulys Chacin-5.09 overall E.R.A.& Zack Greinke-3.28 overall E.R.A.) faced each other back in San Diego on April 19th with Chacin winning a 1-0 pitchers' duel. However, the 29-year-old Venezuelan hasn't been as successful pitching on the road where he's sporting an 0-2 record with a ballooning 12.96 E.R.A.. On the flip side of the coin, the former Cy Young Award winning Greinke has had an excellent history on the mound versus these Padres recording an 8-2 record with a 1.96 E.R.A. in 17 career starts. Supporting us in the numbers finds San Diego just 4-9 versus RHP this season, hitting just .215 overall versus RHP & showing a weak traveling record losing 37 of their last 51 roadies. Let's not over-react to a possible Paul (Padres' Killer) Goldschmidt missing from the lineup. My bottom line says the D'Backs strong start @ home isn't a fluke. They are 8-2 @ Chase Field this season while also winning 16 of 21 there carrying back to 2016. I also feel that Arizona will look selective @ the plate which should force Chacin out before his time. At that point, he'll have to make way to a bullpen that's been bombarded thus far. The Padres' relievers rank 29th out of 30 with a 5.97 E.R.A. & are prone to the long game giving up 14 HR's this season which ranks them next to last (Phillies gave up 16). This bodes well for us since the Diamondbacks are scoring 7.4 runs per game @ this venue in comparison to San Diego averaging 3 runs per game (3-8 record) on the road. Arizona's batting average is .265 (4th in MLB) in all games but they're 2nd to none hitting a major league leading .315 overall (but .325 versus RHP) in home games. With Greinke & the D'Backs playing a revenge card, let's go to Chase Field in Arizona to watch them pull away late as we put some green backs on the ARIZONA DIAMONBACKS as my 9 Star Monday Silencer! Sunday, April 23, 2017 Houston Rockets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA) - 3:30 PM EDT Premium Pick Pick: Point Spread: 1.5/-115 Houston Rockets Pick Title: 9 Star Western Conference Cream Of The Cropper (Win) Whether anyone wants to admit it, I feel the Rockets have a legitimate shot @ making things uncomfortable for Golden State if they can "D" it up over the long haul. HC Billy Donovan designs his Oklahoma City offense to focus entirely too much on Russell Westbrook to take them to the next level. HC Mike D'Antonio is crafty & should come up with a game plan that can effectively give Westbrook some slack while shutting down the majority. No, this is not 1996-97 when Charles Barkley, Clyde Drexler & Hakeem Olajuwon reigned supreme. However, it is James Harden's team along with a very good supporting cast that can win on the road against tough competition. They can effectively steal the Thunders' momentum here & win it back in their town. Let's go to Chesapeake Energy Arena to play the HOUSTON ROCKETS (buying to +5 @ -205 or so) as my 9 Star Western Conference Cream Of The Cropper! Boston Celtics vs. Chicago Bulls (NBA) - 6:30 PM EDT Premium Pick Pick: Point Spread: -1.5/-110 Boston Celtics Pick Title: 9 Star Stealing Value For Clout Play (Win) The Boston Celtics still have their backs against the wall in Game 4 when they try to steal back home court advantage. Yes, not having their 6'1" guard in Rajon Rondo does hurt. This remains big since the Celtics' "D" now has one less threat to concentrate on. However, If Boston can take shots in the higher percentage zones, then they should win this one going away. Some respect must be given to the Bulls for home court, but they will be putting a tremendous burden on Jimmy Butler to carry them here. We will be buying some insurance since the Celtics should be getting points. What number are we concentrating on? Let's go to the United Center in Chicago to play the visiting BOSTON CELTICS (buying to our line of +3 @ -200 or so) as my 9 Star Stealing Value For Clout Play! Saturday, April 22, 2017 Houston Astros vs. Tampa Bay Rays (MLB) - 6:10 PM EDT Premium Pick Pick: Money Line: -119 Houston Astros Pick Title: Mike's 1st MLB Game Of The Season (Loss) It's been a long 2 1/2 weeks of gauging which ML teams should been labeled as strong contenders in each division. My 1st play of the season reflects just that. I'll turn our attention to the AL West-leading Astros who should register their 9th win in 10 starts on the road in St. Petersburg. Last night Houston stole one coming from behind to win 6-3 as Carlos Beltran homered in his 2nd consecutive game. Manager A.J. Finch & his Stros' have found a liking away from Minute Maid Park thus far going 5-1. Outfielder George Springer has played a large role early on homering 7 times & driving in 13 runs for Houston. Also playing a key role in their hot streak is first baseman Yuli Gurriel whose batted .500 (13-for-26) with a HR & 4 RBI's in the past 8 games. Team numbers don't lie as the Astros reached 12 wins 17 days earlier than they did in 2016. LHP Blake Snell might be just what Houston ordered since he's been struggling with his control as he's given out 10 free passes in his last 16+ innings. Snell has also proven to struggle versus the AL West losing his last 4 starts. My bottom line says the Astros have a stingy bullpen (3.02 E.R.A. & have limited batters to a .180 B.A.) & lead the AL in strikeouts with 68 in comparison to the Rays (3.90 E.R.A., 39 strikeouts & 4 blown saves in 7 chances). I love Charlie Morton (played for Philadelphia last year) on the hill whose coming off a strong performance on Monday when he gave up just 5 hits to the Los Angeles Angels in 5 scoreless innings of pitching. Houston (who holds the 2nd-best run differential in the A.L. with 15) has shown the knack of winning the close ones as they've posted a perfect 3-0 record in 1-run affairs. Tampa Bay does have some clout being in the the Top 5 in B.A. in the A.L., but they also lead all 30 major league teams in striking out with 175 thus far. The Astros have been road-killers winning the last 5 as well going 4-1 versus southpaws when traveling. In night games, Charlie Morton is 1-0 with a 1.64 E.R.A. thus far while Blake Snell is 0-1 with a 5.40 E.R.A. & winless in his last 3 starts. Snell was pounded for 5 runs his last start versus Houston in just 3 complete innings. One key momentum killer had to be when Tampa Bay center fielder Kevin Kiermaier (11-for-23 his last 6 games) left last night's game with an illness & remains questionable for tonight. Let's make the trip down to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida to play the HOUSTON ASTROS as my 1st MLB Game Of The Season! Golden State Warriors vs. Portland Trail Blazers (NBA) - 10:30 PM EDT Premium Pick Pick: Money Line: -250 Golden State Warriors Pick Title: 9 Star Headliner Moneyliner (Win) The Warriors have shown time & time again why they deserve to billed as favorites to win the NBA. I feel that Golden State's knack @ consistently hitting from beyond the arc trumps anything Portland has to offer. Terry Stotts may have his Trailblazers stealing the early adrenalin pushing them to a lead (if they can knock down enough 3's) in the 1st half. Expect HC Steve Kerr & Co. to make halftime adjustments & outlast Portland in the end. Draymond Green & Andre Iguodala will rule the boards & guards Stephen Curry & Klay Thompson should post better numbers from the perimeter than they did in Game 2. Let's get ready to change venues to the Moda Center as we eagerly grab the GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS as my 9 Star Headliner Moneyliner! Records as Thursday morning, April 27th: NHL 2016-17 Overall Seasonal Record: 25-19 for----57%---- NBA 2016-17 Overall Seasonal Record: 10-1 for ----91%---- MLB 2017 Overall Seasonal Record: 2-1----67%---- Final 2016-17 CBB Overall Seasonal Record: 49-27-2----64%---- Final 2016-17 CFB Overall Seasonal Record: 43-28----60%---- Final 2016-17 NFL Overall Seasonal Record: 60-55 ----52%----
 

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