Monday 5/2/16 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Giants (12-13) at Reds (9-15)

Game: 1
Venue: Great American Ball Park
Date: May 02, 2016 7:10 PM EDT

Johnny Cueto had one of his strongest performances since joining the San Francisco Giants in his latest start, and he's also been at his best in his first two road outings for his new club.

Cueto will likely have a little extra adrenaline for his next start away from home Monday night as he faces his former team, the Cincinnati Reds, for the first time.

Cueto (4-1, 2.65 ERA) fanned 11 and scattered seven hits while going the distance in a 1-0 win against San Diego on Tuesday, his 100th career victory and seventh shutout.

"I'm not surprised by what he's doing because he's had that kind of career," manager Bruce Bochy said. "That's why we wanted him here. He kept his composure out there and just made some great pitches."

Cueto has allowed one run and pitched at least seven innings while winning each of his two road starts for the Giants (13-13). He'll try to become their first starter to win his first three for the club since Yusmeiro Petit in 2013 in his return to Cincinnati (10-15).

Cueto acknowledged that he was "a little excited" to face the Reds but also told MLB's official website that "it's just baseball." He spent his first eight-plus seasons in Cincinnati until a four-player deal sent him to Kansas City on July 26.

San Francisco signed him to a six-year deal this offseason valued at $130 million, and even he doesn't know what kind of reception he'll get from Reds fans.

"The shock of Cueto not being with the Reds anymore has kind of passed for me," Cincinnati manager Bryan Price told MLB's official website. "However, it will be unusual to see him pitching against our team in Cincinnati. ... I'm sure it will mean a lot to Cueto to come back."

The Giants are heading to Cincinnati after avoiding a three-game sweep to the New York Mets and earning just their second win in eight road games. Hunter Pence homered and drove in three runs in a 6-1 victory Sunday, giving him 11 RBIs in his last seven games.

Cincinnati persevered to end a six-game losing streak Sunday, topping Pittsburgh 6-5 in 11 innings. The Reds blew a two-run advantage and a pair of one-run leads, including one in the ninth, until Scott Schebler's go-ahead double.

Cincinnati dropped three of four to the Chicago Cubs in its most recent home series after winning seven of its first nine games there. The Reds have lost five of their last six home matchups against San Francisco and went 2-5 overall in last season's series.

Brandon Finnegan, acquired from Kansas City in the Cueto deal, will head to the mound to open a 10-game homestand. The left-hander didn't make it past the fourth inning in his most recent start at Great American Ball Park, a 16-0 loss to the Cubs that featured Jake Arrieta's no-hitter, but had a more respectable showing Tuesday against the Mets.

Finnegan (1-1, 3.86) pitched six scoreless innings before giving up Yoenis Cespedes' tying three-run homer in a 4-3 defeat. He will make his first start against San Francisco and his first appearance versus the Giants since facing them in two games in the 2014 World Series.

Angel Pagan's status is unknown for the Giants after he was forced to leave Sunday's win with a strained left hamstring. Joe Panik (groin) will likely sit out for a third straight contest.

Brandon Belt batted .467 with three homers, five other extra-base hits and 10 RBIs in the seven games against Cincinnati last season.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Braves (5-18) at Mets (15-7)

Game: 1
Venue: Citi Field
Date: May 02, 2016 7:10 PM EDT

The New York Mets had their eight-game win streak snapped while Michael Conforto was finally held in check.

The Mets and Conforto will try to start new streaks Monday night at home when Bartolo Colon faces the Atlanta Braves to open a three-game series.

New York (15-8) fell 6-1 to Madison Bumgarner and San Francisco at home Sunday to end its streak. The lefty-swinging Conforto went 0 for 5 with three at-bats against Bumgarner and another against a southpaw.

The outfielder had hit safely in every game of the streak, going 15 for 31 with 10 RBIs, but he is just 3 for 16 off lefties while batting .381 against right-handers. Manager Terry Collins isn't sure he wants to start him too many times versus southpaws.

"It all depends on what the situations are," Collins said. "If he shows us that he can start doing some damage against lefties, he'll get some playing time."

That won't be an issue in this series since Atlanta (6-18) is starting three right-handers.

One reason to like the Mets' chances of capturing the opener is Colon (1-1, 3.42 ERA), who went 4-0 with a 3.66 ERA in five starts against the Braves last year. He seeks his 220th victory to move past Pedro Martinez for second among Dominican-born pitchers.

A.J. Pierzynski has the fourth-most plate appearances in the majors against Colon, hitting .274 in 62 at-bats. Nick Markakis owns a .227 average in this matchup.

Colon has yielded three runs in each of his last two outings, lasting five innings before the bullpen cost him his second victory by blowing a three-run lead in Tuesday's 4-3 defeat to Cincinnati.

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said the team will likely call up Mike Foltynewicz to make his season debut in this contest. The right-hander has posted a 2.05 ERA in four starts at Triple-A Gwinnett.

Foltynewicz went 4-6 with a 5.71 ERA last year for the Braves in 18 appearances, including 15 starts. His lone start against the Mets was a 10-8 defeat June 14 in which he lasted 4 1/3 innings and was charged with six runs.

New York's Lucas Duda is 3 for 4 with a homer in this matchup.

The Mets have won 14 of 20 versus the Braves, sweeping three road games April 22-24. Curtis Granderson went 6 for 13 with two homers and six runs scored in that series.

Those contests are part of a dismal 1-12 home start for Atlanta, which has found solace in splitting four games to start a trip that's been shortened to seven due to a rainout in Chicago this weekend. The Braves beat the Cubs 4-3 in 10 innings Sunday.

Atlanta prevailed with a 24-man roster after the club called up Emilio Bonifacio and optioned reliever Chris Withrow to the minors. Bonifacio wasn't allowed on the 25-man roster due to a technicality.

"We're going to battle with what we've got," said Mallex Smith, who had three hits with a single in the 10th.

Braves shortstop Erick Aybar has baseball's worst OPS among qualifying players at .377. He's 4 for 38 on the road and hitless in nine at-bats versus the Mets this season.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Angels (11-13) at Brewers (8-15)

Game: 1
Venue: Miller Park
Date: May 02, 2016 7:20 PM EDT

The last time the Milwaukee Brewers reached the postseason, Ron Roenicke guided them to their first NL Championship Series appearance in 29 years.

One day shy of the one-year anniversary of his firing, Roenicke may have some mixed emotions when he returns to Miller Park for the first time Monday night.

Roenicke made an impression during his first season as Milwaukee's manager in 2011, leading the club to a franchise-best 96-66 record while becoming only the fourth Brewers skipper to have a winning mark in his first full season.

He finished second in NL Manager of the Year voting that year, but the Brewers were never able to capitalize on that success. Milwaukee (9-15) finished with 83, 74 and 82 victories over the following three seasons before he was let go last May 3 after the team had gotten off to a disappointing 7-18 start.

"I knew it was going to come sometime," Roenicke told the league's official website. "I wish it wasn't that quick. But I think part of managing, when you do it, is you know you're going to have some tough times in different years. I had some great years there, had a lot of fun, and then a couple tough ones."

Roenicke landed on his feet as the Los Angeles Dodgers' third base coach in August before leaving after the season to take over the same role with the crosstown Angels. He's hoping to wave more runners home following Sunday's big scoring effort.

Los Angeles had scored just four times while going 2 for 15 with runners in scoring position in back-to-back losses at Texas before Kole Calhoun and C.J. Cron had three hits apiece and Geovany Soto homered in his second straight game in a 9-6 win.

Calhoun is 5 for 8 in his last two games, while Cron is 8 for 15 in his past four.

Right-hander Jered Weaver (3-0, 3.86 ERA) will try to win his first four decisions for the first time since opening 5-0 four years ago and lead the Angels (12-13) to their first back-to-back road victories since sweeping Oakland from April 11-13.

In his only start at Miller Park, Weaver gave up three hits over six innings in a 5-0 win Aug. 30, 2013. He was 6-0 with a 1.96 ERA over 11 interleague road starts before allowing five runs over five innings in a 5-0 loss at San Francisco last May.

The veteran will face a Milwaukee team that broke out offensively in Sunday's 14-5 home win over Miami that ended a season-high four-game slide. Jonathan Villar, Ryan Braun, Chris Carter and Kirk Nieuwenhuis finished with three hits apiece.

Two of Carter's hits left the yard, giving him seven homers on the season. He has two in his last four games against the Angels dating to his time with Houston, but he's just 4 for 20 with one long ball and seven strikeouts all-time versus Weaver.

"It's pretty clear how he impacts a baseball when he hits it," said manager Craig Counsell, who replaced Roenicke the day after the former manager was fired.

Milwaukee will try to keep it going offensively for Jimmy Nelson (3-2, 3.16) as it looks to win back-to-back games for only the third time. The right-hander had his three-game winning streak end Tuesday when he allowed three runs - one earned - and two hits while walking four over 5 1/3 innings in a 4-3 loss at Wrigley Field.

The Brewers have dropped a franchise-worst eight straight home meetings.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Twins (7-17) at Astros (7-17)

Game: 1
Venue: Minute Maid Park
Date: May 02, 2016 8:10 PM EDT

Dallas Keuchel sorely needs a home start, and having it come against the worst team in the AL could certainly help.

After two trying road outings, the reigning Cy Young winner takes on the Minnesota Twins on Monday night with the Houston Astros needing a win to notch consecutive victories for the first time this season and avoid joining the Twins in the cellar.

Keuchel (2-3, 4.41 ERA) has won a franchise-record 17 straight regular-season decisions at home with a 1.47 ERA over 22 starts with the team going 20-2. He hasn't lost in Houston since Aug. 10, 2014, but even Minute Maid Park might not have saved him from his recent efforts.

After holding Detroit to five hits in eight innings of a 1-0 home win April 15, the left-hander has lost consecutive outings with 11 runs and 19 hits allowed in 12 innings. He gave up five runs and six hits in six innings of Tuesday's 11-1 loss in Seattle.

"Just can't do anything right. That's just the way it's going," Keuchel told MLB's official website. "It seems like I made a few pitches, a bloop single. When it's not going right, it's not going right. The tough thing about it is nobody's going to feel sorry for you."

Keuchel is 2-1 with a 2.30 ERA in three career starts against the Twins. Miguel Sano is 0 for 4 with four strikeouts and Kurt Suzuki is 1 for 9.

The Astros (8-17) set themselves up for their first back-to-back wins with Sunday's 2-1 win in Oakland to avoid a sweep, but offense still isn't coming. They managed two hits and are batting .167 over a 2-3 span with 2.80 runs per game.

One of the hits Sunday was Jose Altuve's fourth leadoff homer of the season, which has him halfway to Craig Biggio's 2001 franchise record.

But Carlos Correa is 2 for 15 with seven strikeouts in his last five, Colby Rasmus is 3 for 21 over six, Tyler White is 2 for 30 over eight, and Preston Tucker is 5 for 38 since opening the season with a five-game hitting streak.

It certainly doesn't help that Carlos Gomez, who has struggled while in the lineup, has missed the last two games because of a rib cage injury. He won't play Monday against his former club, and the disabled list remains an option.

"We're hoping to avoid the disabled list," manager A.J. Hinch said. "That will be determined in the Twins series. If it lingers, we'll need to look for reinforcements, whether that means going with 12 pitchers or making another move."

Regardless, the offense could come against Minnesota (7-18), which was swept in three games at home by Detroit over the weekend, including Sunday's 6-5 final despite three-hit games from Sano and Joe Mauer. The Twins have given up 6.25 runs per game on a four-game skid with opponents batting .327.

They're hoping for a 21-year-old rookie to change that. Jose Berrios is making his second career start after giving up five runs and six hits in four innings of Wednesday's 6-5 home loss to Cleveland.

Berrios (0-1, 11.25), considered one of the game's top prospects, had to deal with a rain delay and 44-degree weather in his debut, so he too might prefer Minute Maid Park even if it's against Keuchel.

He was 2-0 with a 1.06 ERA, .143 OBA and 20 strikeouts in 17 innings of three starts with Triple-A Rochester before the promotion.

"When I got on the mound and threw the first pitch, I was excited, but after that, I felt comfortable," Berrios said. "Today I didn't have very good command with my secondary pitches. But that happens. So I'll keep working hard on that for my next start."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Phillies (14-10) at Cardinals (12-12)

Game: 1
Venue: Busch Stadium
Date: May 02, 2016 8:15 PM EDT

The Philadelphia Phillies are in position to match their longest win streak since 2012, and facing a pitcher with one of baseball's worst ERAs could help their cause.

The struggling Adam Wainwright, however, has fared well against the Phillies in the past and will start Monday night for the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a four-game set at Busch Stadium.

Philadelphia (15-10) has won six straight and nine of 10 as it seeks to match a seven-game win streak from Sept. 5-12, 2012.

"We're having fun out there and everything is coming together," catcher Cameron Rupp said.

The Phillies have been one of baseball's biggest surprises while the Cardinals (12-13) have been inconsistent. St. Louis is one defeat shy of its first five-game slide since losing seven straight from July 26-31, 2013.

Wainwright (1-3, 7.16 ERA), ironically, was the last Cardinals pitcher to win after yielding four runs over 5 1/3 innings Wednesday in an 11-4 rout at Arizona. He added a three-run triple at the plate.

The right-hander has struggled since missing most of last season with an Achilles tendon injury. Wainwright, who has never had an ERA over 3.94 in a full season, failed to strike out more than three batters in four straight starts for the first time since 2007 before he struck out five Diamondbacks.

He is 5-2 with a 2.65 ERA in 10 career starts versus the Phillies. St. Louis native Ryan Howard has faced him the most among Philadelphia hitters, going 6 for 24.

The Phillies have a 1.61 ERA during their win streak, including nearly spotless relief work. Hector Neris allowed a solo homer in the ninth of Sunday's 2-1 victory over Cleveland to snap the bullpen's streak of 20 straight scoreless innings.

Pitching was the story in three weekend one-run victories over the Indians. Vince Velasquez tossed two-hit ball over six innings Sunday.

"Our offense isn't explosive by any means so for us to be successful, we have to win the close games and we understand that," reliever David Hernandez said.

The Phillies are hoping slugger Maikel Franco breaks out of a seven-game homerless drought in which he is 4 for 26. He has a team-high 14 RBIs.

Center fielder Odubel Herrera had his 11-game hit streak snapped Sunday by going 0 for 3. Herrera, second in the majors with 23 walks, batted .385 with 11 runs scored over his run.

Phillies starter Jeremy Hellickson (2-1, 3.81) comes off his best outing of the season, a seven-inning stint in which he struck out eight in Wednesday's 3-0 victory at Washington.

The veteran right-hander has not faced St. Louis since 2011. The available Cardinals hitter he has faced the most is Brandon Moss, who is 1 for 6 in this matchup.

Moss went deep for the team-high sixth time Sunday for all the offense St. Louis mustered in a 6-1 defeat to the Nationals. The Cardinals have totaled six runs while batting .206 in this four-game slide.

Yadier Molina went 0 for 3, snapping an 11-game hitting streak in which he batted .378 and an 18-game streak of reaching base safely.

The Cardinals took five of seven from the Phillies in 2015.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Nationals (16-7) at Royals (12-11)

Game: 1
Venue: Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium
Date: May 02, 2016 8:15 PM EDT

The Washington Nationals' first three games in Missouri proved fruitful, but the next three come against a team that's been a little more difficult to beat at home.

That might not matter if Gio Gonzalez can keep limiting teams the way he has so far this season Monday night against the Kansas City Royals.

Washington (17-7) canceled out three home losses to Philadelphia with a three-game sweep in St. Louis over the weekend for a fine start to a difficult 10-game road trip that ends with four against the MLB-leading Chicago Cubs.

"For us to be able to come in here and take three games from them, that's huge, especially on this road trip," Sunday starter Max Scherzer told MLB's official website. "This road trip is going to tell us where we're at. We started off well."

It came with Bryce Harper striking out in all four of his at-bats, and the reigning NL MVP is 1 for 17 in his last five games. It's often been Harper and Daniel Murphy pacing the offense, but they'll eventually need Anthony Rendon (.240), Ryan Zimmerman (.219), Jayson Werth (.213), Michael A. Taylor (.190) and Danny Espinosa (.188) to get going. Clint Robinson stepped up with a two-run homer for just his second hit in 23 at-bats this season.

"It's a long season, and it's going to have to come from somewhere other than the same guys every day," Robinson said. "It's got to come from different sources. So today, that was an example of that."

The Washington staff combined to allow two runs in the last two games against the Cardinals, and Gonzalez is one of a few good options to continue the impressive pitching. Gonzalez (1-1, 1.42 ERA) gave up two runs - one earned - and five hits in 6 1/3 innings of a 3-0 home loss to the Phillies on Wednesday and has allowed four total earned runs over his four starts with a .196 opponent batting average.

The left-hander has only faced the Royals once since 2011 but is 3-3 with a 7.49 ERA in eight career starts against them. Salvador Perez (5 for 6) and Eric Hosmer (4 for 6 with two home runs and three walks) have hit him best.

The Washington-Montreal franchise is 9-3 against the Royals and has won two of three in both of its past visits to Kansas City.

Even so, the Royals (13-11) will be happy to return home after a 1-5 road trip on which they avoided going winless only with Sunday's 4-1 win in Seattle. Prior to taking a 1-0 lead in the second inning, they'd gone 27 innings without scoring.

Alcides Escobar was 3 for 5 after going 2 for 24 in his previous six games, while Hosmer and Lorenzo Cain each had two hits.

"We knew we were going to have to find ways to scratch runs across the board, and we did a good job of that," Hosmer, who's 7 for 16 with two home runs in his last four. "We had some things going on the bases today, we had some big hits."

The Royals are 8-3 at home and haven't lost a series of any real consequence in Kansas City since Minnesota took two of three from July 2-4. They went 4-8 with three series losses from Sept. 4 through the end of the regular season last year but entered that span with a 13-game lead in the AL Central.

Kansas City looks to Edinson Volquez to bounce back after allowing a career high in hits the last time out. Volquez (3-1, 3.34) gave up eight runs and 12 hits in five innings of Tuesday's 9-4 loss at the Los Angeles Angels. The right-hander's ERA jumped more than threefold from 1.09.

Murphy is 6 for 15 against Volquez, but Harper is 0 for 6.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Mariners (13-10) at Athletics (13-12)

Game: 1
Venue: Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Date: May 02, 2016 10:05 PM EDT

Oakland's sweep of Seattle last month put in motion a road winning streak that stretched on for its first seven games, but that road form has since fallen off.

The Mariners don't have that kind of winning streak, but they've been more than capable away from home and have had similar success in Oakland for nearly two years.

Seattle has a chance to get back at the Athletics this week with three in the East Bay beginning Monday night with Nathan Karns hoping to build off an impressive outing.

Oakland (13-13) won three at Seattle from April 8-10 while holding the Mariners (13-11) to four runs and a .155 average. Seattle, however, has won four straight series in Oakland and is 12-5 there since dropping two of three from April 3-5, 2014.

The Mariners are yet to lose a road series, going 8-4 while taking two of three in four different sets. They also won two of three in both their recent home series, though Sunday's 4-1 loss to Kansas City denied them a sweep. They've won five straight series for the first time since a run of six from May 18-June 5, 2011.

The little offense Seattle got Sunday again involved Seth Smith, who was 2 for 3 with a run scored and is batting .389 in his last five with two home runs and a double. The right fielder is batting .317 with a .990 OPS after being at .241 and .714 on May 2 in his first season with Seattle.

"I think his approach from the first day of spring training has been fantastic," manager Scott Servais told MLB's official website. "He's not trying to do too much. He's used the whole field. He's a guy they typically shift against a lot, and multiple times he's beat the shift because he is using the whole field.

"Just the quality of the at-bat and the consistency of it is great to see."

He'll be out to support Karns (2-1, 3.63 ERA), who didn't need much help in his latest effort. The right-hander yielded two hits with three walks in seven scoreless innings of Tuesday's 11-1 home win over Houston.

"He established it from the get-go, he was going to be in control," Servais said. "When you see that confidence come from your starting pitcher and really good tempo, it really dictates the rest of the game."

Control has held him back from going that deep into more games with Karns issuing 11 walks in 17 1/3 innings of his last three starts. Still, that's been the route to success for him so far after opening the season by allowing four runs and seven hits with one walk in five innings of a 6-1 loss to Oakland on April 9.

Karns has lost both career starts against the A's with a 5.06 ERA and .318 opponent average. Josh Reddick (2 for 5) and Marcus Semien (2 for 7) have both homered off him.

The A's counter with Kendall Graveman, whose start to the season went the other way in his latest outing. Graveman (1-2, 4.03) surrendered six runs and 10 hits in 4 2/3 innings of last Monday's 7-3 loss in Detroit after giving up four runs and 10 hits in 17 2/3 innings of his first three starts. Three home runs were the difference.

"You've just got to execute and not fall behind, and also make more meaningful pitches early in the count," said Graveman, who's 1-0 with a 0.90 ERA in a start and two relief efforts against Seattle.

The A's also just missed out on a sweep because of Sunday's 2-1 loss to Houston, dropping them to an AL-worst 5-8 at home with 2.77 runs scored per game.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Rockies (11-12) at Padres (9-15)

Game: 1
Venue: PETCO Park
Date: May 02, 2016 10:10 PM EDT

Colorado's Nolan Arenado has been to an All-Star Game and won a Silver Slugger Award thanks in part to the kind of torrid stretch he's riding right now.

Now the third baseman will try to build on his lofty numbers versus James Shields on Monday night when the Rockies chase their first four-game winning streak since July in the opener of a three-game road series against the San Diego Padres.

Arenado has picked up where he left off last season when he tied Bryce Harper for the NL home run title with 42 and led the league with 130 RBIs and 354 total bases.

On Sunday, the three-time Gold Glove award winner surpassed rookie teammate Trevor Story to take the major league lead with his 11th homer in a 6-3 win at Arizona. He also knocked in three runs, raising his MLB-leading total to 25.

Arenado is 10 for 22 with four homers in his last five games for Colorado (12-12), which moved into a tie for first place in the NL West following its first sweep at Arizona since 2004.

"He literally impacts the game on both sides of the ball almost every single day," manager Walt Weiss told the league's official website. "That's why it's so hard to give him a day off."

Arenado will try to lead the Rockies to their longest winning streak since they last ran off four straight from July 9-12. He's batting .322 with five home runs in his last 16 games at San Diego and is 12 for 23 with four homers versus Shields.

Shields has four quality starts in his first five outings, but he's dropped his first four decisions for the first time in his career. The Padres haven't scored for him in three of those starts, and he has the second-lowest run-support average in the majors at 1.36.

The right-hander is coming off his best performance Tuesday when he allowed one run and three hits over seven innings in a 1-0 loss at San Francisco. He had won six straight decisions versus Colorado before surrendering four runs and six hits - including three homers - over seven innings in a 6-3 road loss April 10.

Arenado, Carlos Gonzalez and Ryan Raburn took him deep in that one. Gonzalez is batting .360 with three homers in 25 at-bats against Shields (0-4, 3.55 ERA).

The Padres (9-16) fell short of their first sweep Sunday when they managed only three hits off Clayton Kershaw in a 1-0 road loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

'There's more fight in us, and we've got to get that fight out of us,' manager Andy Green said after his team's sixth loss in eight games.

Matt Kemp has been a bright spot, going 12 for 33 with two homers in his last eight games. He's batting .410 with nine home runs and 24 RBIs over his past 15 versus Colorado.

Jon Gray (0-0, 11.42) will try to keep the Padres scuffling, but he's allowed 11 runs and 16 hits over 8 2/3 innings in his first two starts. The third overall pick in 2013 is still seeking his first big league victory, going 0-2 with a 6.57 ERA in 11 starts.

The right-hander, though, has been at his best versus San Diego, surrendering one run and six hits with 11 strikeouts over 10 innings in two career meetings.

The Rockies dropped two of three at home to the Padres from April 8-10.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

MLB

Monday's games

National League games
Cubs @ Pirates
Hammel is 3-0, 0.75 in four starts this year (under 2-1-1).

Cole is 2-1, 3.00 in his last three starts, all of which went over.

Cubs won six of last eight games; over is 4-0-1 in their last five road games. Pirates are 8-2 in their last 10 games; over is 15-5 in their last 20 games.

Giants @ Reds
Former Red Cueto 4-1, 2.65 in five starts this year (over 2-2-1).

Finnegan is 1-1, 5.14 in five starts this year; three of his last four starts went over. .

Giants lost six of their last eight road games; nine of their last ten overall went over total. Reds lost eight of their last ten games; over is 4-0-1 in their last five home tilts.

Braves @ Mets
Foltynewicz is making his first '16 start; he is 4-7, 5.64 in 34 MLB games (15 starts). He is 1-2, 2.05 in three AAA starts this year.

Colon is 1-1, 3.63 in four starts this year (over 2-2).

Mets won eight of last nine games; over is 11-4 in their last 15 games. Atanta is 2-9 in its last 11 games; six of its last eight road games went over.

Phillies @ Cardinals
Hellickson is 2-0, 1.45 in three road starts; three of his last four starts went over.

Wainwright is 1-3, 7.16 in five starts this year; three of his last four starts went over.

Phillies won nine of last ten games; their last five games all stayed under. Cardinals lost their last four e games (over 6-0-2 in last eight).

Rockies @ Padres
Gray is 0-0, 11.42 in two starts this year (over 2-0).

Shields is 0-2, 2.70 in his last three starts; San Diego is 0-5 in his starts, scoring total of six runs (under 4-1).

Colorado is 8-4 on the road this year; eight of its last ten road games stayed under. San Diego lost six of last eight games; four of their last five stayed under.


American League games

Rangers @ Blue Jays
Griffin is 3-0, 2.88 in four starts this year (over 3-1).

Dickey is 0-3, 8.31 in his last four starts (over 3-2).

Texas won four of its last five games, but they've lost four in row on road; seven of its ten road games stayed under. Toronto is 4-7 in its last 11 games; its last four all stayed under the total.

Twins @ Astros
Berrios allowed five runs in four IP (93 PT) in his MLB debut, vs Indians.

Keuchel is 1-3, 4.91 in his last four starts (over 3-2).

Twins are 1-10 on road; they lost last four games overall. Over is 8-3 in their last 11 games overall. Houston lost nine of last 12 games; over is 5-3 in their last eight.

Mariners @ A's
Karns is 2-0, 3.12 in his last three starts (over 2-2).

Graveman is 1-2, 4.03 in four starts this year (over 2-2).

Mariners won eight of last 11 games; under is 6-2 in their last eight road games. A's won four of last five home games; under is 8-3 in their last 11 hjome games.


Interleague

Angels @ Brewers
Weaver is 3-0, 3.86 in four starts this year (over 2-2).

Nelson is 3-1, 4.50 in his last four starts (under 3-2).

Angels lost seven of last ten road games; under is 6-1-1 in their last eight road games. Milwaukee lost six of its last eight games; over is 4-0-1 in their last five at home.

Nationals @ Royals
Gonzalez is 1-1, 2.13 in four starts this year (under 3-1).

Volquez is 3-0, 0.96 in three home starts this year (under 4-1)

Washington won five of its last six road games; under is 5-1-2 in their last eight games on foreign soil. Royals lost five of their last six games; under is 9-2 in their last 11.


Teams won-lost records when this pitcher starts:

Chi-Pitt-- Hammel 3-1; Cole 2-2
SF-Cin-- Cueto 4-1; Finnegan 2-3
Atl-NY-- Foltynewicz 0-0; Colon 2-2
Phil-StL-- Hellickson 3-2; Wainwright 2-3
Col-SD-- Gray 1-1; Shields 0-5

Tex-Tor-- Griffin 3-1; Dickey 1-4
Minn-Hst-- Berrios 0-1; Keuchel 2-3
Sea-A's-- Karns 3-1; Graveman 1-3

LAA-Mil-- Weaver 3-1; Nelson 3-2
Wsh-KC-- Gonzalez 2-2; Volquez 4-1


Starting pitchers allowing 1+ runs in first inning:

Chi-Pitt-- Hammel 0-4; Cole 1-4
SF-Cin-- Cueto 2-5; Finnegan 2-5
Atl-NY-- Foltynewicz 0-0; Colon 2-4
Phil-StL-- Hellickson 2-5; Wainwright 2-5
Col-SD-- Gray 1-2; Shields 1-5

Tex-Tor-- Griffin 1-4; Dickey 2-5
Minn-Hst-- Berrios 0-1; Keuchel 2-5
Sea-A's-- Karns 2-4; Graveman 1-4

LAA-Mil-- Weaver 2-4; Nelson 1-5
Wsh-KC-- Gonzalez 0-4; Volquez 0-5

 

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'On the Diamond'

Minnesota at Houston May 2, 8:10 EST

One team comes home and the other hits the road as the Houston Astros return to Minute Maid Park Monday night to host Minnesota Twins. According to opening odds the Astros are -$1.80 home favorites with the total set at 8 runs.

Houston will send out southpaw Dallas Keuchel, carrying a 2-3 record, 4.41 ERA. However, looking at home and away splits is illuminating, since it shows that Keuchel has faltered on the road (1-3) this season but tossed an 8 inning no run gem in a win over Tigers in his lone home start. Looking back, history shows Keuchel loves pitching in front of the friendly crowd at Minute Maid Park. In the lefthanders last nineteen starts in this venue he is 17-0 with Astros 17-2 in those games. The dominance is reflected by the fact he's allowed an average 1.4 runs/game over the span with a 148-32 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Minnesota will counter with rookie righthander Jose Berrios who is 0-1 in his lone career start saddled with a 11.25 ERA. Adding to the pitching mismatch Minnesota must contend with, the Twins must also try to solve issues away from Target Field. In the eleven played in unfriendly territory this season the Twins are 1-10.

 

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Monday's six-pack

Westgate Sportsbook listed spreads for some late season NFL games:

-- Baltimore @ Pittsburgh (-7.5)-- Christmas night in Steel City.

-- Denver @ Kansas City (-3)-- Nightcap of Christmas twinbill,

-- Detroit @ Dallas (-6)-- Monday Night Football night after Christmas.

-- Green Bay (-3) @ Detroit-- Pack won here on a Hail Mary LY.

-- Bears @ Vikings (-5)-- Fans will be glad for the domed stadium here.

-- Raiders @ Broncos (-4)-- Mark Sanchez started 10 games (4-6) last 3 years.

 

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#1 Sports

Monday's Free Selection: St Louis Cardinals - 180

 

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Mike Wynn

Bonus Play: MLB Kansas City w/Volquez -115 Over Washington

 

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Totals4U

Monday's Free Selection: Seattle Mariners/Oakland Athletics under 7 1/2

 

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Atlantic Sports

Monday's Free Selection from Atlantic Sports: Philadelphia Soul - 7 (Arena FB)

 

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Platinum Plays

Free Pick: the Houston Astros w/Keuchel -180 over Minnesota

 

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Hawkeye Sports

Monday's Free Selection: Pittsburgh Pirates - 135

 

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The Vegas Steam Line

Your free winner for Monday: Take CHICAGO CUBS (Hammel) Pick'em over Pittsburgh

 

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High Stakes Syndicate

Free Selection for Monday: Houston Astros - 180

 

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Nevada Sharpshooter

Your free winner for Monday: Take SAN FRANCISCO (Cuet) -160 over Cincinnati