MLB Betting News and Notes Tuesday 9/20

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Tampa Bay Rays Visit New York Yankees
By: Dave Consolazio

The Tampa Bay Rays hope to continue to close the gap in the AL Wild Card race Tuesday night when they head to the Bronx York to play the first game of a four-game series against the New York Yankees.

Tuesday’s matchup is set to start at 7:05 p.m. (ET) at Yankee Stadium with right-handers Wade Davis and Ivan Nova on the mound.

With the Boston Red Sox losing eight of their last 10, the Yankees and the Rays have benefited. Entering Monday’s action, New York held a 4.5-game lead over Boston in the AL East, and Tampa Bay had closed the Wild Card gap to just two games. This series is critical for both teams as Tampa Bay fights for a spot in the postseason and New York hopes to lock up the division.

Tampa Bay (85-67) has given Boston fans reason to worry, going 11-4 (+6.20 units) over the last 15 games, including a 6-1 record (+5.95 units) in seven games against the Red Sox. If the Rays can stay hot, they could pull a shocker and knock Boston out of playoff contention.

Davis (10-9, 4.41 ERA) has been the beneficiary of solid run support of late. Despite giving up three or more runs in six of his last nine starts, Tampa Bay is 7-2 (+4.80 units) over that stretch.

This will be Davis’s first start against the Yankees this season. In five career starts against them, he is 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA.

New York (91-60) hasn’t been playing particularly well of late, losing three of their last four (-3.95 units) and six of their last 10 (-6.85 units). But with Boston playing worse and a nice cushion in the AL East, the Yankees are still in the driver’s seat to hold on to the division down the stretch.

Nova (15-4, 3.81 ERA) has been a major bright spot for the Yankees this season. He has given up two runs or less in eight of his last 14 starts, and the Yankees are 12-2 (+8.40 units) over those games. New York has lost Nova’s last two trips to the mound, but he didn’t pitch poorly in either of them.

Nova pitched well in his one start against Tampa Bay this season, giving up one run in 5 1/3 innings to earn the win over James Shields on May 17. He fared much worse in his two starts against the Rays in 2010, in which he had two no decisions and a 6.97 ERA.

The season series between these AL East rivals has been pretty evenly matched, with New York holding the slight 6-5 edge. Despite the powerful offenses of these teams, the total has trended ‘under’ at 7-4.

Tampa Bay has been a good betting option away from home, going 43-34 (+10.60 units). New York has played well at home, but are only slightly profitable at 46-37 (+1.65 units).

Ben Zobrist (personal) will be out Tuesday, but should return to the lineup for Wednesday’s doubleheader.

Tuesday night’s weather is expected to be slightly cloudy with winds of up to 10 mph.

[new york knight]

Cleveland Indians Host White Sox For Two
By: Evan Abrams

The Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians begin a doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon from Progressive Field in Cleveland. Game 1 is set for a 1:05 p.m. (ET) first pitch, with the second game scheduled to start around 7:05 p.m. (ET).

Both the White Sox and Indians remain 10 plus games behind the division-leading Detroit Tigers, who have already clinched a playoff spot and the division crown in the American League Central.

After beginning the season on such a hot streak (30-15 through 45 games), the Indians have struggled with a 45-60 mark since to enter Monday's action even at 75 wins and 75 losses. Cleveland entered the week with a 2-game lead over the White Sox in the division as the clubs battle for second place in the final standings.

The Indians have acquired a majority of their victories at home this season (39-33), while the White Sox have struggled at home and found an offensive rhythm on the road (41-36).

The Indians return home after a long 10-game road trip, where Cleveland went 5-5 and went into Monday's makeup with the Mariners on a 3-game win streak.

Pitching for the White Sox in the first game of the doubleheader will be Gavin Floyd (12-11, 4.42), who has helped his team to a 7-3 overall record in his last 10 starts. Chicago is 4-0 in Floyd's starts vs. the Tribe this season, Floyd's ERA a solid 2.42 in those 26 innings.

In Game 2, Chicago will be starting rookie right-hander Dylan Axelrod (0-0, 2.25). Axelrod has only started one game this season, appearing in one other out of the 'pen. The 26-year-old out of Irvine, CA worked six innings in his lone starting assignment, striking out eight and only walking two in the no-decision loss to the Tigers.

Starting for Cleveland in the first game of the doubleheader will be Fausto Carmona (6-15, 5.26), who has struggled mightily in the 2011 season. He's picked up just one victory in his last 11 starts with the Indians going 4-7 as a team during that span. The Indians are 9-6 when Carmona has started against the White Sox over his career, but just 1-3 this year.

Cleveland will throw rookie right-hander Zach McAllister (0-1, 12.27) in Game 2. The former 3rd-round pick by the Yankees last pitched at the end of August when he allowed eight earned runs in only 3 1/3 innings against the Mariners.

The ‘over’ was a perfect 4-0 when the Indians and White Sox met in Chicago a little more than a week ago. The 'over' is also 9-0 in Cleveland’s last nine games versus a right-handed starter. The White Sox lead the season series 9-5 going into this four-game series in Cleveland.

The forecast for Tuesday's twinbill at Progressive Field is a good one with afternoon highs reaching the low-70s under mostly clear skies. Look for the thermometer to be sitting in the low-60s for the nightcap.

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Tuesday's Streaking and Slumping Starting Pitchers


Streaking

Cliff Lee, Philadelphia Phillies (16-7, 2.38 ERA)

Lee threw one bad pitch in his last start and it cost him another complete-game shutout. He struck out 12 and didn’t walk a batter before giving up a solo homer in the ninth inning. The veteran has now allowed just two runs over his last five starts and has 223 strikeouts on the year.

Derek Holland, Texas Rangers (14-5, 4.02 ERA)

Holland picked up his 14th win of the season last week, allowing just one run over seven innings against the Indians while striking out six and walking three. He has now struck out at least six in six of his last seven starts.

"I want to finish strong," Holland said. "The year may be good in some people's eyes, but to me it's an OK year. I'm disappointed with how many walks I've had, but I want to give the team a chance to win and that's all that matters."

Slumping

Fausto Carmona, Cleveland Indians (6-15, 5.26 ERA)

Carmona began the season as Cleveland’s Opening Day starter, but he might have a tough time even holding down a spot in the rotation next year unless he pulls himself together. He gave up five earned runs over six innings while walking five against Texas, the fourth consecutive time Cleveland has lost with him on the hill.

“Carmona was overthrowing everything,” manager Manny Acta said. “He walked five guys. He was throwing it side to side. He didn’t have good sink on his fastball.”

Gavin Floyd, Chicago White Sox (12-11, 4.42 ERA)

Floyd hasn’t been terrible lately, but he’s still looking for his first win this month and is working on a 5.06 ERA over those three starts. He gave up four runs on four hits over 5 1/3 innings in his last outing against Detroit and also walked four. Those four walks were the most he has allowed in a start all season.

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Tuesday's Best MLB Bets


Tampa Bay Rays at New York Yankees (-170, 9)

Monday was another big day in New York Yankees history as closer Mariano Rivera became baseball’s all-time saves leader with 602 in a 6-4 win over Minnesota.

"When you talk about the greatest relievers of all time, there's only one guy," teammate Mark Teixeira said. "That conversation begins and ends with Mo."

The Yankees’ bullpen sits second in the Majors with a 2.97 ERA, trailing only the Giants (2.89) but the pen may get a rest Tuesday with Ivan Nova on the mound.

Nova has worked at least seven innings in four of his last five starts and he’ll share the mound with Wade Davis, who has been pretty good in his own right. He has allowed three or fewer runs in four of his last six outings.

Pick: Under

Seattle Mariners at Minnesota Twins (-110, 8)

The Seattle Mariners haven’t exactly given their arms much run support this season, averaging just 3.40 runs per game. However, on Monday they blew up with nine runs in the third inning against Cleveland.

Mike Carp hit a grand slam to do the bulk of the damage and finished the game with five RBIs for the M’s.

If they can give Jason Vargas any type of run support Tuesday, we like the Mariners in this spot. Vargas has allowed just two runs over his last two starts
(spanning 12 innings) after fixing a hitch in his delivery after giving up 13 earned runs in two outings before that.

The Twins have just five wins in their last 28 home games and the Mariners should extend that home slide Tuesday.

Pick: Mariners