Rory Gold

World Series betting continues and we could have a classic on our hands after seeing C.C. Sabathia, Cliff Lee, Pedro Martinez and A.J. Burnett hurl gems in Games 1 and 2. For the second time in three games, we’ll see a lefty-versus-lefty matchup in Game 3 as the series shifts back to Philadelphia. Can the Phillies bounce back at home, where they’ve been untouchable in the playoffs over the last several seasons?

World Series – Game 3
New York Yankees @ Philadelphia Phillies
Saturday, October 31, 7:57 p.m. ET
Andy Pettitte (2-0, 2.37) vs Cole Hamels (1-1, 6.75)
Online betting odds: Yankees -123, Phillies +103

The Phillies give the ball to Cole Hamels for Game 3 and can only hope their supposed ace regains his World Series MVP form of 2008. So far, so bad for Hamels in the 2009 playoffs. The stat line has been ugly for him: three starts, 14.2 innings pitched, six homers allowed, 11 earned runs, 20 hits and a .308 average. Hamels is throwing strikes — he’s walked just two batters — but he’s been strangely hittable. It’s worth noting, however, that he was significantly better at home this season (7-5, 3.76) versus on the road (3-6, 4.99), so there’s a chance he bounces back like a late-charging horse at the racebook.

Philly’s hitters face a tough test in Andy Pettitte. Not only has Pettitte turned back the clock so far in the playoffs, he pitched well on the road all season, sporting a 3.71 ERA and allowing just six homers in 94.2 innings. A hitter’s park like Citizen’s Bank thus may not scare him like it does some pitchers. The Phillies have plenty of lefty killers in theory, and Chase Utley certainly did a number on C.C. Sabathia in Game 1, but they’re underachieving against lefties overall in the playoffs; no Phillies hitter is batting better than .250 against southpaws.

Factoring in (a) Hamels’ slump; (b) Pettitte’s experience and hot streak; (c) Philadelphia’s inability to get it done against lefthanded pitching; and (d) New York’s momentum after winning Game 2, all signs point to another Yankee win. Make the Bronx Bombers your MLB picks for Game 3.

Pick: Yankees -123

MLB playoff betting favored St. Louis before their NLDS series with the Los Angeles Dodgers started, but they find themselves just trying to avoid elimination on Saturday when the host the Dodgers at Busch Stadium.

Dodgers vs Cardinals Odds – Saturday, October 10, 6:07 PM ET

Vicente Padilla (12-6, 4.46) is making the first postseason start of his 11-year career, and in seven career outings against the Cardinals, including three starts, Padilla is 2-1 with a 3.68 ERA. He’s never pitched at the new Busch Stadium, but strangely, Padilla was better away from home this year, going 7-2 in 13 games (12 starts) and a 3.60 ERA with the Dodgers and Texas Rangers. Sportsbook players may think this is a strange hurler to have out there when the Dodgers have Chad Billingsley, who is slated for Game 4 and had a lot of problems in the second half of the year.

Joel Pineiro (15-12, 3.49) should have a better record at home, but he was hurt by some poor run support early in the season. Pineiro is only 7-6 in 15 starts at home despite a 2.87 ERA, but the Cardinals came on later in the season for the 31-year-old. Pineiro is 2-0 in three career outings against the Dodgers with a 3.38 ERA, and he’ll be making his first postseason start since 2001, when he gave up a run on four hits in just two innings with Seattle, but he did manage to strike out five hitters.
Betting services favor St. Louis at home at -165, and they really should be tied at one in this series, if it wasn’t for an untimely and incredibly uncharacteristic error by Matt Holliday in the ninth inning of Thursday’s 2-1 loss to the Dodgers. Pineiro gives the Cardinals an excellent chance to win, and it’ll also be interesting to see how Padilla fares in his postseason debut. He’s a veteran, but we’ve seen the playoffs eat up more experienced and talented pitchers before. It’ll be close, though, as the Cardinals are only one game better at home than the Dodgers are on the road. Go with the Cardinals in your MLB picks.

MLB Betting – Reds Aim To Bounce-Back After Historic Beat Down

22-1 sounds more like an online NFL betting result and less like the final score of a baseball game, but that was the home-away numbers in the box score at the end of last night’s Cincinnati Reds-Philadelphia Phillies contest.

I’m betting management on the Reds side wasn’t too pleased to see the Phillies keep on hitting throughout the game. The Phillies scored 10 runs in the first inning and were up 16-1 when they added six more runs – including a grand slam – off of Reds utility man Paul Janish, who was forced in to pitch. We’ll see if tempers boil over.

Cincinnati Reds @ Philadelphia Phillies

Sportsbook betting odds: Phillies -145

The Cincinnati Reds have lost two straight games and have now dropped below .500 at 40-41. That’s the bad news. The good news is that they are still just 3.5 games out of first place in the NL Central and can get back on track with a win tonight.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Phillies are cruising right now and the defending World Series champs have won four straight. The scary part might be that might that Jimmy Rollins, who was the 2007 NL MVP, is finally getting going.

Rollins, who batted .207 in April, .238 in May and .167 in June, has finally gotten going in July. He had 26 RBIs in his first 304 at-bats but has six in his last 22 at-bats.

In July, Rollins is hitting .455 and he’s starting to get in a rhythm.

J.A. Happ will start for the Phillies and he has been a nice surprise so far. The rookie has a 5-0 record with a 2.96 ERA. He’s also allowed just two earned runs in his last two starts, which has spanned 16 innings.

Happ will take on Aaron Harang, who has really struggled on the road this year. Harang has an overall ERA of 3.86 and a home ERA of 2.83 but when he pitches on the road, that number inflates to 4.94. Harang is 0-4 with a 4.65 ERA in his last seven starts.

Over his last five starts, Harang has alternated good and bad. He has three starts where he has lasted seven innings or more and sandwiched in between are two outings where he lasted just 4.2 innings and two innings.

The Phillies are hot so stick with him for now.

Daily Sportsbook Betting Pick: Phillies -145

With the UFC odds heating up for the centennial celebration and Wimbledon odds not really getting into important matches for a few more days, it’s the calm before the sports betting storm. In the meantime, let’s make some baseball picks as the MLB inches toward the halfway mark of the season.

Wednesday, June 24

Cubs @ Tigers – 7:05 p.m. ET

Rich Harden (4-3, 5.27) vs Rick Porcello (8-4, 3.54)

Two of baseball’s hotter teams clash in Detroit when the Cubs travel to Comerica Park. They’ll be in tough against rookie Rick Porcello, who continues to impress, though he’s more vulnerable at home 4.22 ERA.  Meanwhile, flamethrower Rich Harden continues to struggle but everything could click at any moment. Some run support from slumping Alfonso Soriano would go a long way.

Phillies @ Rays – 7:08 p.m. ET

Joe Blanton (4-3, 5.28) vs Matt Garza (4-5, 3.83)

The World Series rematch continues! Joe Blanton usually pitches better on the road, but he struggles at Tampa’s Tropicana field (7.64 ERA). Matt Garza, meanwhile, usually pitches his best against top teams. The Rays will be the favorite, but the powerful Philly bats can end a slump at any moment.

Thursday, June 25

Cardinals @ Mets – 1:10 p.m. ET

Chris Carpenter (5-1, 1.53) vs Johan Santana (8-5, 3.22)

Is this the pitching matchup of the year so far? Baseball predictions don’t get tougher than Carpenter-Santana. When Carpenter is healthy, he’s among the game’s best, and he’s proving that this year. He also has red-hot Albert Pujols supporting him. But will that be enough to overcome Santana, perhaps the NL’s top ace, in New York?

Dodgers @ White Sox – 2:05 p.m. ET

Chad Billingsley (9-3, 2.83) vs Clayton Richard (2-1, 4.03)

If Carpenter and Santana don’t watch their backs, L.A.’s Billingsley will steal the Cy Young from them this year. The Dodgers’ workhorse seems to give a quality start every time he takes the hill. He still has an uphill battle against the big White Sox bats in homer-friendly U.S. Cellular Field, though. And Clayton Richard is holding his own in Chicago’s rotation.

Friday, June 26

Giants @ Brewers – 8:05 p.m. ET

Matt Cain (9-1, 2.28) vs Yovani Gallardo (7-4, 3.00)

How many Cy Young contenders are there in the NL? 10? Two more go head to head when Matt Cain and the Giants visit the Milwaukee Brewers in a battle of Wild-card contenders. Cain is pitching as well as anyone on the planet this month but he faces a potent lineup and will have to keep the ball down, as Gallardo should mow through the San Fran lineup. This one is so close to call that you may want to try out some betting software to help you beat the sportsbook.

Most of the sportbook focus this weekend will be on the Belmont Stakes betting and the French Open Finals odds but there will also be plenty of good baseball action. Let’s take a look at what the National League West will be up to.

San Francisco Giants @ Florida Marlins

Don’t look now but the San Francisco Giants are a respectable team. Don’t look now, but the Florida Marlins are not.

The Giants started the season 3-8 but are 22-17 since. Meanwhile, the Marlins started the season 11-1 but are 14-28 since.

San Francisco has played much better at home (18-9) than on the road (7-16) but the same is the case for the Marlins, who don’t take advantage of their home field.

The Marlins will face Barry Zito, Jonathan Sanchez and Tim Lincecum in this series. The Marlines should be able to capitalize on the two lefties they face as they are 12-6 against left-handed starters this season. Read more

MLB Betting – Plenty Of Fireworks To Be Expected In Yankees, Rangers Series

It might be hard to believe that Rachel Alexandra won’t be factoring in the Belmont Stakes odds this weekend, but that’s just as hard to believe as the fact that the Texas Rangers are in first place in the American League West.

No handicappers, betting software or pundits could have predicted that the Rangers would be as good as they, especially not after how they’ve played over the last decade or so.

The Rangers are 10 games above .500 at 30-20 and actually have a better record than the visiting New York Yankees (30-21).

Interestingly enough, the team has been able to win 30 of its first 50 games without All-Star Josh Hamilton for most of the season. Hamilton has just 125 at-bats this season and has already spent some time on the disabled list with a strained ribcage. Read more

It was the Angels first game since pitcher Nick Adenhart was tragically killed by a drunk driver just hours after pitching 6 scoreless innings, in what was the best outing of his young career.  Jarrod weaver mowed down 8 but his mind quickly

turned to Adenhart.  “It was one of the toughest I’ve had to get through,” said Weaver. “It still really hasn’t hit home yet. I shed a couple tears before I went over there.” 

The Angels are favored to win their division will do so with heavy hearts. My heart goes out to the Adenhart’s family.