Brad Hand makes his ML debut for the Marlins tonight in Florida as the Braves come to town. The Braves will counter with Tommy Hanson. Hanson is 6-4 overall with a 2.82 ERA. Moreover, Hanson is 3-1 with a 2.51 ERA in 5 starts against the Marlins. Hanson also had one of his best games in April against Florida where he gave up 4 hits and struck out 5 in 7 innings. The Braves have been struggling with hitting as of late posting a team .237 batting average and Dan Uggla is one of the victims. However as a Marlin in 389 career games at Sun Life Stadium, Uggla is .261 with 77 homers 75 doubles and 228 RBI's. With the motivation of going against his old team plus his past success in Sun Life Stadium facing a pithcer making his ML debut, the conditions are right for Uggla and the Braves to have a good night with the bats and quite possilbe do enough damge early to never look back. The Braves winning road record and the Marlins losing home record only add to the mix. Braves ML should be secure. Source MLB Standing Yahoo and ESPN MLB Preview.
METS/BREW CREW..The Brewers have been hot and I see no reason for it to change this series. I don't see the Mets punch and Judy lineup hanging with the Brewer Bats.I will be chasing the brewers runline this series.
THE PLAYS
$100:
BREWERS RL +115
$50:
MILW/METS O 4 FIRST 5 -115
YANKS/RED SUX..Boston is back in town and the Yanks are looking for revenge from a sweep the last time boston came in. Gonzalez is hot and the sox have been picking up their offense. Swisher's offense is getting
better and Teixeira has been hot..even though Lester has cooled off, i prefer him over Garcia..i think some runs will be scored today and tomorrow..
the PLAYS:
$100:
BOSTON -129
BOSTON/NYY O 9.5 -120
$50:
BOST/NYY O 5 -120:toast:
THE PLAYS
$100:
BREWERS RL +115
$50:
MILW/METS O 4 FIRST 5 -115
YANKS/RED SUX..Boston is back in town and the Yanks are looking for revenge from a sweep the last time boston came in. Gonzalez is hot and the sox have been picking up their offense. Swisher's offense is getting
better and Teixeira has been hot..even though Lester has cooled off, i prefer him over Garcia..i think some runs will be scored today and tomorrow..
the PLAYS:
$100:
BOSTON -129
BOSTON/NYY O 9.5 -120
$50:
BOST/NYY O 5 -120:toast:
buddy from another site:
MIN-CLE
-Like I said yesterday, Cleveland can't hit and they can't pitch right now so why should they be favored like this? Liriano is a southpaw, and the Tribe have lost the last 5 games started by a lefty. They've lost 7 in a row at home, Carrasco sucks, and this new Twins lineup is perfect for small ball forcing the Indians defense to work (or self-destruct like they did today). Somehow Asdrubal owns Liriano just like Baker, hitting .588 against him, but he's handled the rest of the lineup pretty easily. Over his career he's been much better against lefties, not a surprise, but that limits a few of the better hitters the Tribe has (Sizemore/Choo) and forces Asdrubal/Martinez/Brantley to bat righty. Liriano's a guy that needs support to win, and Carlos Carrasco should give up plenty despite pitching well lately. He's 5-3 (3.51) vs. CLE, likes the night and he's 2-1 @CLE despite a 5.14 ERA. Home plate umpire is Adrian Johnson, who has a smaller K-zone than most and that means we should see a lot of runs. That hurts Liriano because he's really tough when he's getting the corners, but it should also mean we see more runs and more bullpen use where Minnesota has a huge rest advantage besides the closer position. Matt Capps got the save today and worked an unneeded inning on Sunday, but Gardenhire did use him in three back to back games in April so I doubt he's afraid. They may not need him, though, considering Carrasco got hit hard in an earlier start this year @MIN only lasting 3 innings. Carrasco has some good numbers vs. MIN in his career, but he's missing his best rest by a day and he's not good at Progressive Field. Oh and Minnesota has won 5 in a row while Cleveland's lost five straight...
add
Minnesota ML (+127) @ Cleveland
-Back to the well...
MIN-CLE
-Like I said yesterday, Cleveland can't hit and they can't pitch right now so why should they be favored like this? Liriano is a southpaw, and the Tribe have lost the last 5 games started by a lefty. They've lost 7 in a row at home, Carrasco sucks, and this new Twins lineup is perfect for small ball forcing the Indians defense to work (or self-destruct like they did today). Somehow Asdrubal owns Liriano just like Baker, hitting .588 against him, but he's handled the rest of the lineup pretty easily. Over his career he's been much better against lefties, not a surprise, but that limits a few of the better hitters the Tribe has (Sizemore/Choo) and forces Asdrubal/Martinez/Brantley to bat righty. Liriano's a guy that needs support to win, and Carlos Carrasco should give up plenty despite pitching well lately. He's 5-3 (3.51) vs. CLE, likes the night and he's 2-1 @CLE despite a 5.14 ERA. Home plate umpire is Adrian Johnson, who has a smaller K-zone than most and that means we should see a lot of runs. That hurts Liriano because he's really tough when he's getting the corners, but it should also mean we see more runs and more bullpen use where Minnesota has a huge rest advantage besides the closer position. Matt Capps got the save today and worked an unneeded inning on Sunday, but Gardenhire did use him in three back to back games in April so I doubt he's afraid. They may not need him, though, considering Carrasco got hit hard in an earlier start this year @MIN only lasting 3 innings. Carrasco has some good numbers vs. MIN in his career, but he's missing his best rest by a day and he's not good at Progressive Field. Oh and Minnesota has won 5 in a row while Cleveland's lost five straight...
add
Minnesota ML (+127) @ Cleveland
-Back to the well...
more from him:
TOR-KC
-Drabek's never been seen by the Royals, and he's off 5 days rest since only getting 2 outs at home against the Indians. He only threw 38 pitches, and he doesn't look like a guy who gets shaken easily considering he's so used to walking people as that's what has plagued him all year long. Toronto has hit Mazzaro pretty hard, actually at a .448 clip, but I think we'll see a good outing from Vin after getting shelled worse than any reliever in history in his last major league outing. Jim Wolf is behind the plate, with a 6.3 BB/gm rate which is pretty low. Lefties have hit Drabek a lot better, so Hosmer/Gordon/Melky/Pena would be a concern, but Drabek has the stuff and has loved extra rest. He should be very fresh, while Mazzaro is coming from the minors. The team should fight for the kid after taking his lumps in that last outing, and he's actually been good at Kaufmann besides that outing allowing only 4 ER in 13.2 career innings there. He won't go very deep, but he's not a guy that walks the other team and that will work with Wolf and a high total like the 9.5 we're seeing. Neither pitcher has had Wolf calling balls and strikes, but the weather is gonna be tough. The Royals aren't hitting, but it's going to be in the 90s at gametime and the wind is blowing 13 mph out to left. Both bullpens got work last night, but KC's should be in okay shape if they can regain the form from earlier this season and Toronto's is above-average, imo
TB-LAA
-Rays are dealing with the flu in the clubhouse, so that may limit the lineup tonight against Dan Haren. B.J. Upton has handled Haren well, unlike the rest of the team, but he was out of the lineup with the stomach issue so we'll have to keep watching for him. He's on extended rest, looking at 8 days now after a back injury had him scratched from last night's start, where he's 5-8 (4.68 ERA) when getting 6+ days. That can be tempered by his overwhelming success with HP umpire Laz Diaz's small K-zone considering his 0.48 career ERA with him in 19.1 innings. He's 5-2 with a 2.57 ERA against the Rays, while Cobb is a newbie with a good change-up. He's on 6 days rest here after being moved from yesterday to today, and he's walked 4 in each of his starts so if the Angels are patient he should issue some free passes as well. When the Angels get guys on, they can be really potent offensively, so I would think this game will see some runs from that side. I guess I'll wait on the Rays lineup to see who's in there because they'll make or break this total. Home and over isn't correlated, and I think the Angels win tonight, but maybe they get to Cobb and the two bad bullpens give us a run or three...
TOR-KC
-Drabek's never been seen by the Royals, and he's off 5 days rest since only getting 2 outs at home against the Indians. He only threw 38 pitches, and he doesn't look like a guy who gets shaken easily considering he's so used to walking people as that's what has plagued him all year long. Toronto has hit Mazzaro pretty hard, actually at a .448 clip, but I think we'll see a good outing from Vin after getting shelled worse than any reliever in history in his last major league outing. Jim Wolf is behind the plate, with a 6.3 BB/gm rate which is pretty low. Lefties have hit Drabek a lot better, so Hosmer/Gordon/Melky/Pena would be a concern, but Drabek has the stuff and has loved extra rest. He should be very fresh, while Mazzaro is coming from the minors. The team should fight for the kid after taking his lumps in that last outing, and he's actually been good at Kaufmann besides that outing allowing only 4 ER in 13.2 career innings there. He won't go very deep, but he's not a guy that walks the other team and that will work with Wolf and a high total like the 9.5 we're seeing. Neither pitcher has had Wolf calling balls and strikes, but the weather is gonna be tough. The Royals aren't hitting, but it's going to be in the 90s at gametime and the wind is blowing 13 mph out to left. Both bullpens got work last night, but KC's should be in okay shape if they can regain the form from earlier this season and Toronto's is above-average, imo
TB-LAA
-Rays are dealing with the flu in the clubhouse, so that may limit the lineup tonight against Dan Haren. B.J. Upton has handled Haren well, unlike the rest of the team, but he was out of the lineup with the stomach issue so we'll have to keep watching for him. He's on extended rest, looking at 8 days now after a back injury had him scratched from last night's start, where he's 5-8 (4.68 ERA) when getting 6+ days. That can be tempered by his overwhelming success with HP umpire Laz Diaz's small K-zone considering his 0.48 career ERA with him in 19.1 innings. He's 5-2 with a 2.57 ERA against the Rays, while Cobb is a newbie with a good change-up. He's on 6 days rest here after being moved from yesterday to today, and he's walked 4 in each of his starts so if the Angels are patient he should issue some free passes as well. When the Angels get guys on, they can be really potent offensively, so I would think this game will see some runs from that side. I guess I'll wait on the Rays lineup to see who's in there because they'll make or break this total. Home and over isn't correlated, and I think the Angels win tonight, but maybe they get to Cobb and the two bad bullpens give us a run or three...
Additions to Marlins Braves:Florida has lost 5 in a row and are 2-8 last 10. Braves lost 2 in a row and are 5-5 last 10. Atlanta has an even 15-15 road record this year but are 22- 23 in Florida since 2006. Two possible senarios with the rookie pitcher. #1 He is fairly efficent but has a few walks and Braves sacrifice the runners into scoring position and possibly convert a few runs early while Hanson has a typical performance holding the Marlins in check. #2 He is shaky from the outset and Braves jump on him headstrong early and Hanson holds serve. With either of the scenarios, a 5 inning play against the rookie pitcher might yield cash. The Atlanta RL might be too risky with Florida's record of success against Atlanta overall in 9 innings. With Flroida being 2-8 last 10 and losing 5 in a row with a rookie pitcher starting a game in Florida when temps will still be high adding to his stress level the ML or First 5 Innings seems to be the play if banking on the rookie having a rough debut.
Thoughts from another site:
CHC-CIN
-Day game helps the Cubs here because they're used to it and Dempster has been great in the day compared to the night over his long career. Eddings with a huge K-zone will probably make this a low-scoring game, which may end up helping the Cubs because they can't hit. Dempster has been good against the Reds only allowing a .222 average, specifically succeeding against Votto (.167), Phillips (.125), Rolen (.176) and struggling with Renteria (.308) and getting smacked around by Ramon Hernandez (.467). Hernandez caught the entire game tonight, it's a day game after a night game where catchers and veterans get rest, and the Reds already won the series so maybe just maybe we'll see one of Dempster's biggest nemeses resting (especially when Hanigan's caught each start by Arroyo this year, 1/4 career vs. Dempster) along with some of the other studs. Meanwhile, the Cubs should be fighting to avoid the sweep. Grabow and Simardizja are probably unavailable, but that's not much of a loss. Dempster was awful to start the year, but 5 of his last 7 starts were quality and Arroyo's been just as bad. Blake DeWitt's been the only guy with success against Arroyo, he's handled Ramirez and Castro sits 0/8. Both starters are on 4 days rest, Dempster good in the day versus Arroyo terrible in the day. Better team is definitely Cincinnati and they're at home, but I'm not sure the focus will be there for this one like it will be for the road trip that starts when they head to SF to take on the defending World Series champs. Arroyo is 3-2 in 5 starts with Eddings boasting a 5.74 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. Compare that to Dempster only 1 start (5ip 3er) with Eddings, and I'm not sold. Dempster is 0-7 with a 6.06 ERA at GAB, though he's had 8 of 13 runs unearned in his last 3 starts there (19 ip). He's 5-7 in his career vs. CIN, and he's best on the normal 4 days rest. He wins when he gets 3+ runs, 91-39 career with that support, but he's weaker against LH batters and we'll probably see a few of them tomorrow. Arroyo's ERA is over 2 runs higher with Hernandez, so I doubt we see him tomorrow and that's good for Dempster. Bronson's 28-34 career during the day with a higher ERA than in any other frame of time, plus he's a flyball pitcher in a small park where it's going to be over 90-degrees with the wind turning from right to left to out to left halfway through the game at 2pm. Arroyo is 9-7 with a 2.72 career ERA vs. CHC, he's actually been really good against them in the last couple of years. His worst record is on 4 days rest with his highest ERA and he's similar to Dempster when he gets 3+ runs of support he's 98-35.
StL-HOU
-Bud has owned the Cards in his career (5-2, 2.66), though I did lose the 1st5 under in his last start in Busch mainly because of some great placement not the ball getting hit hard. He's limited the Cards good hitters, only 9 XBH in 111 ABs for the team and only Theriot (4/10) and Craig (2/5) have great obscene against him. He hasn't been pitching as well lately, but he's got some momentum coming with him off the win in PetCo in his last start and he's got an extra day of rest. He hasn't loved 5 days rest, but the weather should be hot and he's 9-5 in the dome. Norris is 1-0 with a QS in his only start with Hoye behind the plate, a guy on a sick under run despite not having under stats, while Garcia hasn't allowed a run in 7 career innings with him. Garcia's struggled in domes in his career, but only had two starts. He's 0-1 (6.10) vs. HOU, and he had one start at Minute Maid going 5.1ip with 4r (3er) and a 1.50 WHIP. Surprisingly, he pitches his best when he doesn't get run support, 1.78 career ERA when he gets 0-2 runs, but he's been much worse on the road than at home. The Astros haven't seen him much, but they've hit him at a .375 clip in 40 ABs. Starting to want to avoid the under because of him, which is surprising, but the numbers make me like the home team a lot more and I should get a decent price.
DET-TEX
-Temperature in the 90s, wind in from right (southeast not southwest unfortunately) which means the wind tunnel should be in effect. Ogando is tough to handicap because he's been much better than expected, but he does rely on the longball and he's finally getting a team at home who can hit the ball. The Rangers should be pissed about losing the first two games of this series, so I expect them to be out for blood. Phil Coke is a LHP, which matches up well with all the righties the Rangers can throw out there in a lineup, and he's coming off the DL from an ankle injury so you can certainly wonder what kind of stuff he'll have. In his last rehab start he gave up 8 hits and walked two, which isn't a good indicator for tomorrow. Rapuano has settled into a solid over umpire lately, which should hurt Coke who has had good numbers against the Rangers as a reliever. Righties have hit him 36 points higher in BA and have a 60-point advantage in OBP against him, he's been worse on the road and he's only thrown 3.2 innings in Arlington. Only 2/3 of an inning with Rapuano in his career, while Ogando only has 1/3. Alexi outdueled Verlander early in the year thanks to a ton of flyball outs conveniently when he had a 17mph wind blowing in from right in Comerica. Ogando's been good on 4 days rest, which he has here and he's been absolutely filthy this year. The Tigers have been hitting and most of the play is based off of the angry Rangers getting to Coke.
add
Detroit-Texas OVER 9 (-103)
leans:
HOU +140
CHC +125
__________________
CHC-CIN
-Day game helps the Cubs here because they're used to it and Dempster has been great in the day compared to the night over his long career. Eddings with a huge K-zone will probably make this a low-scoring game, which may end up helping the Cubs because they can't hit. Dempster has been good against the Reds only allowing a .222 average, specifically succeeding against Votto (.167), Phillips (.125), Rolen (.176) and struggling with Renteria (.308) and getting smacked around by Ramon Hernandez (.467). Hernandez caught the entire game tonight, it's a day game after a night game where catchers and veterans get rest, and the Reds already won the series so maybe just maybe we'll see one of Dempster's biggest nemeses resting (especially when Hanigan's caught each start by Arroyo this year, 1/4 career vs. Dempster) along with some of the other studs. Meanwhile, the Cubs should be fighting to avoid the sweep. Grabow and Simardizja are probably unavailable, but that's not much of a loss. Dempster was awful to start the year, but 5 of his last 7 starts were quality and Arroyo's been just as bad. Blake DeWitt's been the only guy with success against Arroyo, he's handled Ramirez and Castro sits 0/8. Both starters are on 4 days rest, Dempster good in the day versus Arroyo terrible in the day. Better team is definitely Cincinnati and they're at home, but I'm not sure the focus will be there for this one like it will be for the road trip that starts when they head to SF to take on the defending World Series champs. Arroyo is 3-2 in 5 starts with Eddings boasting a 5.74 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. Compare that to Dempster only 1 start (5ip 3er) with Eddings, and I'm not sold. Dempster is 0-7 with a 6.06 ERA at GAB, though he's had 8 of 13 runs unearned in his last 3 starts there (19 ip). He's 5-7 in his career vs. CIN, and he's best on the normal 4 days rest. He wins when he gets 3+ runs, 91-39 career with that support, but he's weaker against LH batters and we'll probably see a few of them tomorrow. Arroyo's ERA is over 2 runs higher with Hernandez, so I doubt we see him tomorrow and that's good for Dempster. Bronson's 28-34 career during the day with a higher ERA than in any other frame of time, plus he's a flyball pitcher in a small park where it's going to be over 90-degrees with the wind turning from right to left to out to left halfway through the game at 2pm. Arroyo is 9-7 with a 2.72 career ERA vs. CHC, he's actually been really good against them in the last couple of years. His worst record is on 4 days rest with his highest ERA and he's similar to Dempster when he gets 3+ runs of support he's 98-35.
StL-HOU
-Bud has owned the Cards in his career (5-2, 2.66), though I did lose the 1st5 under in his last start in Busch mainly because of some great placement not the ball getting hit hard. He's limited the Cards good hitters, only 9 XBH in 111 ABs for the team and only Theriot (4/10) and Craig (2/5) have great obscene against him. He hasn't been pitching as well lately, but he's got some momentum coming with him off the win in PetCo in his last start and he's got an extra day of rest. He hasn't loved 5 days rest, but the weather should be hot and he's 9-5 in the dome. Norris is 1-0 with a QS in his only start with Hoye behind the plate, a guy on a sick under run despite not having under stats, while Garcia hasn't allowed a run in 7 career innings with him. Garcia's struggled in domes in his career, but only had two starts. He's 0-1 (6.10) vs. HOU, and he had one start at Minute Maid going 5.1ip with 4r (3er) and a 1.50 WHIP. Surprisingly, he pitches his best when he doesn't get run support, 1.78 career ERA when he gets 0-2 runs, but he's been much worse on the road than at home. The Astros haven't seen him much, but they've hit him at a .375 clip in 40 ABs. Starting to want to avoid the under because of him, which is surprising, but the numbers make me like the home team a lot more and I should get a decent price.
DET-TEX
-Temperature in the 90s, wind in from right (southeast not southwest unfortunately) which means the wind tunnel should be in effect. Ogando is tough to handicap because he's been much better than expected, but he does rely on the longball and he's finally getting a team at home who can hit the ball. The Rangers should be pissed about losing the first two games of this series, so I expect them to be out for blood. Phil Coke is a LHP, which matches up well with all the righties the Rangers can throw out there in a lineup, and he's coming off the DL from an ankle injury so you can certainly wonder what kind of stuff he'll have. In his last rehab start he gave up 8 hits and walked two, which isn't a good indicator for tomorrow. Rapuano has settled into a solid over umpire lately, which should hurt Coke who has had good numbers against the Rangers as a reliever. Righties have hit him 36 points higher in BA and have a 60-point advantage in OBP against him, he's been worse on the road and he's only thrown 3.2 innings in Arlington. Only 2/3 of an inning with Rapuano in his career, while Ogando only has 1/3. Alexi outdueled Verlander early in the year thanks to a ton of flyball outs conveniently when he had a 17mph wind blowing in from right in Comerica. Ogando's been good on 4 days rest, which he has here and he's been absolutely filthy this year. The Tigers have been hitting and most of the play is based off of the angry Rangers getting to Coke.
add
Detroit-Texas OVER 9 (-103)
leans:
HOU +140
CHC +125
__________________
I'm all over Cincinnati again. Game must stay way under for Cubs to win. Cubs fielding is horrible too. Dusty has owned the Cubs since coming to Cincinnati. Don't forget if Soto doesn't play for Chicago (day game after a night game in the heat), that takes a big stick out of Chicago's lineup too.
I'm taking Reds tomorrow, it's almost become a no brainer to fade the Cubs this season. Reading this write up has only helped me secure taking the Reds. I'm trying to figure out rather or not to take the Cardinals tomorrow, it's either Cardinals or no pick. I know Bud Norris has had his success against Cardinals. However how will he fare against Berkman, plus the other players Theriot, Craig, and Jay how will he far against them?
Mike Pelfrey, NYM (3-4, 5.56) at Randy Wolf, MIL (4-4, 3.43)
Pelfrey: its the Mets, on the road, against a good offense. -163 for MIL, a little high but I like it. I'm going to put it with Cole and the Phils for a NL parlay for +150.
Pelfrey: its the Mets, on the road, against a good offense. -163 for MIL, a little high but I like it. I'm going to put it with Cole and the Phils for a NL parlay for +150.
I PLATED REDS RL AND REDS ML IN A A PARLAY..CUBS ARE UNPLAYABLE AND I WILL FADE THEM EVERY DAY UNTIL PROVEN OTHERWISE
METS/MILW ONCE AGAIN I GOT THE YANKEE GAME RIGHT AND MET GAME WRONG...Will continue to play Brewers rl although Wolf is not my favorite pitcher on that staff, Also like the game to stay low
Reyes is super hot and have to have hm n his matchup with Rickie weeks ..although not as great batting righty
THE PLAYS:
$100:
REYES MORE BASES THAN WEEKS..LINE PENDING
MILW RL +125
METS/MILW U 9 -120
YANKS/BOSTON..WHO KNOWS WHAT TODAY BRINGS..wouldn't be surprised to see Burnett plug Youkilis or gonzo...Esp since Teixeira is out as of now..Will post status near game time.
Hard to see either pitcher giving up less than 3 runs esp with the super warm weather. May be a record high today.I think a rested Yankee pen will prove to be the difference
THE PLAYS:
$100:
YANKS-127
YANKS/SOX O 10 -110
$50:
FIRST 5 O 5.5 -110
GOOD LUCK
METS/MILW ONCE AGAIN I GOT THE YANKEE GAME RIGHT AND MET GAME WRONG...Will continue to play Brewers rl although Wolf is not my favorite pitcher on that staff, Also like the game to stay low
Reyes is super hot and have to have hm n his matchup with Rickie weeks ..although not as great batting righty
THE PLAYS:
$100:
REYES MORE BASES THAN WEEKS..LINE PENDING
MILW RL +125
METS/MILW U 9 -120
YANKS/BOSTON..WHO KNOWS WHAT TODAY BRINGS..wouldn't be surprised to see Burnett plug Youkilis or gonzo...Esp since Teixeira is out as of now..Will post status near game time.
Hard to see either pitcher giving up less than 3 runs esp with the super warm weather. May be a record high today.I think a rested Yankee pen will prove to be the difference
THE PLAYS:
$100:
YANKS-127
YANKS/SOX O 10 -110
$50:
FIRST 5 O 5.5 -110
GOOD LUCK
BLUE JAYS/KC
Duffy v Villanueva.....Living in Toronto and following the Jays closely forever this is a caution to those leaning Jays. They look like a play tonight but be careful. They always have problems against guys like Duffy. Duffy is a strong pitcher who left the team in '10 spring training for personal reasons and returned in June in dominant fashion. He possesses considerable upside due to impeccable command and control and high strikeout potential. He's able to hold his above average velocity (90-97 mph) deep into games and his deceptive delivery and arm slot keep hitters off-guard. He has nifty efficiency and can induce weak contact early in the count or garner the strikeout - particularly with his curveball. Villanueva is showing signs that a rough outing is forthcoming soon. He's 3-0 with an ERA of 2.72 but don't buy into it. A regression is coming. Personally, I'm not playing the Royals because they're favored but the Jays and specifically Villanueva could be in for a rough night.
Duffy v Villanueva.....Living in Toronto and following the Jays closely forever this is a caution to those leaning Jays. They look like a play tonight but be careful. They always have problems against guys like Duffy. Duffy is a strong pitcher who left the team in '10 spring training for personal reasons and returned in June in dominant fashion. He possesses considerable upside due to impeccable command and control and high strikeout potential. He's able to hold his above average velocity (90-97 mph) deep into games and his deceptive delivery and arm slot keep hitters off-guard. He has nifty efficiency and can induce weak contact early in the count or garner the strikeout - particularly with his curveball. Villanueva is showing signs that a rough outing is forthcoming soon. He's 3-0 with an ERA of 2.72 but don't buy into it. A regression is coming. Personally, I'm not playing the Royals because they're favored but the Jays and specifically Villanueva could be in for a rough night.
