Larry Ness
15* Team Mismatch of the Week
(31-10 since Aug 7 / 114-40 since Opening Day!)
Larry's 15* Total of the Week 'sailed over' last night, upping his current run with 15*s to 31-10, which brings his Y-T-D mark to a simply stunning, 114-40! Larry heads into the weekend off back-to-back sweeps in MLB (combined 5-0 Weds and Thurs), as his "assault on MLB's moneyline" continues!
15 * COLORADO ROCKIES
Larry Ness
Fabulous Friday Total-MLB (24-12 with MLB totals in '07!)
My Fabulous Friday Total is on SF/SD Over at 10:05 ET. Barry Zito has had a poor overall season, entering this game 9-12 with a 4.46 ERA. However, he's pitched well lately, allowing three ERs or less in SEVEN of his last eight outings. However, the Padres have done well vs the Giants this year, winning nine of the 12 meetings. San Diego has also hit left-handed starters at home in '07, especially in night games, going 10-4 while averaging 4.8 RPG. Chris Young is 9-7 with a 2.72 ERA this year and still owns a home ERA of 1.24. However, he's NOT been the same pitcher since he returned from a 15-day stint on the disabled list for a strained left side muscle. He's made six starts since August 9, going 0-4 with a 6.23 ERA (team is 0-6). He's allowed four ERs or more in FOUR of those six starts. The posted total reflects Young at "full strength," which he CLEARLY is not
Fabulous Friday Total
SF/SD Over
Larry Ness
Las Vegas Insider-MLB (5-0 MLB sweep on Weds and Thurs!)
My Las Vegas Insider is on the Sea Mariners at 10:05 ET. When either Kazmir or Shields starts for Tampa Bay, the Devil Rays have gone 34-27 (.557) this year (plus-$784). With ANY other starting pitcher on the mound, the team is 27-59 (.314) and minus-$1,823. So with James Shields on the mound tonight looking to win his fourth straight decision (he's 3-0 with a 2.72 ERA in his last five starts, all Tampa wins), I'm taking the Devil Rays, right? NO! Tampa Bay (61-86) received a strong performance from another young starter in Thursday's series opener as Jason Hammel allowed one run in six innings. However, the bullpen, which owns a MLB-high 6.30 ERA, gave up two runs in the seventh and five more in the eighth as Seattle rallied for an 8-7 victory. The Devil Rays have now squandered leads of 8-1, 4-0 and 7-1 in losing three straight games. Tampa owns the worst record in MLB and at 26-46, the worst road record in the AL. Seattle's win was only the fourth in 19 games for the Mariners (77-68), who are third in the wild-card race, 5 1/2 games behind the New York Yankees with 17 games remaining. However, it was the team's second straight win (both of the comeback variety) and I look for this team to finish strong! Felix Hernandez (12-7, 4.17 ERA) has not been a "shut-down" pitcher this year but the Mariners are 18-8 (plus-$877) in his starts, which ranks him 8th among all starters this year. Hernandez has surrendered at least four runs in five of his last eight outings but has also pitched six innings or more in 13 consecutive starts! Despite the team's recent collapse, Seattle is still No.2 in the moneyline standings at plus-$1,389, with $1,165 of that profit coming at home, where the team is 43-29!
Las Vegas Insider
Seattle Mariners