Saturday 8/15/15 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

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Preview: Marlins at Cardinals

GAME: Miami Marlins (46-69) at St. Louis Cardinals (74-41)
DATE/TIME: Saturday, August 15 - 7:15 PM EST
WHERE: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri
LINE: N/A TOTAL: N/A

The St. Louis Cardinals seek their eighth victory in 10 games when they host the Miami Marlins on Saturday for the second contest of their three-game set. St. Louis posted a 3-1 victory in the series opener to maintain its six-game lead over Pittsburgh in the National League Central.

The Cardinals are 3-1 on their nine-game homestand and possess the best home record in the majors at 43-17. Matt Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs on Friday and is 14-for-38 with five blasts and 10 RBIs during his 10-game hitting streak. Miami had its three-game winning streak snapped, but Cole Gillespie turned in his fifth straight multi-hit effort and is 11-for-21 during the stretch. Miami's Ichiro Suzuki went 1-for-4 for his 4,191st professional hit - counting 1,278 from his tenure in Japan - the same number that second-place Ty Cobb accumulated in the majors.

TV: 7:15 p.m. ET, FSN Florida (Miami), FSN Midwest (St. Louis)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Marlins LH Brad Hand (2-2, 4.29 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH John Lackey (9-7, 2.91)

Hand is coming off a superb outing in which he gave up one run and two hits over seven innings while defeating Atlanta. The solo homer he served up to Jonny Gomes of the Braves is the only blast he has allowed in 56 2/3 frames this season. Hand has yielded just one run in 17 1/3 innings over his last seven appearances, including two starts.

Lackey has lost his last two decisions and is winless over his past three starts. He allowed three runs in each of his last two outings after a nine-start stretch in which he gave up two or fewer runs. Lackey's lone career outing against the Marlins came on June 18, 2005, when he gave up one run and six hits in 6 2/3 innings while pitching for the Angels.

WALK-OFFS

1. Cardinals 1B Mark Reynolds recorded an RBI single in the series opener, the first run he's driven in since July 24.

2. Miami CF Christian Yelich (knee) has missed three straight games but hopes to return on Saturday.

3. St. Louis 2B Kolten Wong is batting .174 this month with no extra-base hits in 46 at-bats.

PREDICTION: Cardinals 4, Marlins 2

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Rays at Rangers

GAME: Tampa Bay Rays (58-57) at Texas Rangers (57-57)
DATE/TIME: Saturday, August 15 - 8:05 PM EST
WHERE: Globe Life Park in Arlington, Arlington, Texas
LINE: -138, 127 TOTAL: 8.5

Josh Hamilton looks to build off one of his most positive days of the season when the Texas Rangers host the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday in the middle contest of their three-game series. Hamilton rejoined the lineup Friday after an MRI on his left knee showed no structural damage and celebrated by knocking in two runs, including the go-ahead tally, as the Rangers rallied for a 5-3 win.

Hamilton, who missed the previous two contests, belted his sixth homer in his 37th game of the season Friday as Texas won for the eighth time in its last nine at home. The Rays let a late 3-2 lead slip away in the series opener to remain two games behind the Los Angeles Angels for the second American League wild card and one-half game ahead of the Rangers. Asdrubal Cabrera registered three hits Friday and has at least two in nine of his last 10 games for Tampa Bay, which had its four-game winning streak come to an end. All-Star Chris Archer goes after his career-high 11th victory for the Rays on Saturday.

TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, Sun Sports (Tampa Bay), FSN Southwest (Texas)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays RH Chris Archer (10-8, 2.62 ERA) vs. Rangers RH Colby Lewis (12-5, 4.61)

Archer has allowed two runs or fewer five times in his last seven starts but has only one victory to show for his efforts. The 26-year-old permitted three runs over six innings without factoring in the decision against the New York Mets on Sunday and has notched 37 strikeouts in his last four starts. Archer, who has limited Adrian Beltre to 1-for-11 with five strikeouts, gave up five runs in 3 1/3 frames of a loss to Texas on May 7.

Lewis saw his four-start winning streak come to an end on Sunday, when he yielded four runs (three earned) in eight innings at Seattle. The 36-year-old Californian has limited opponents to three or fewer earned runs in 11 of 13 starts since the beginning of June. Cabrera (1-for-9) has struggled versus Lewis, who missed the Rays earlier this season but is 4-1 with a 3.49 ERA in six career appearances (five starts) against Tampa Bay.

WALK-OFFS

1. Tampa Bay OF Desmond Jennings, who has been out since April with a knee injury, went 3-for-4 with an RBI in his first game since returning from the disabled list.

2. Texas 2B Delino DeShields is 8-for-25 with three RBIs and four runs scored over the last six games and belted his first career homer on Friday.

3. Rays C Curt Casali did not go deep in 30 games during his first year in the majors in 2014 but has eight homers in 31 contests this season.

PREDICTION: Rays 5, Rangers 1

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Padres at Rockies

GAME: San Diego Padres (55-61) at Colorado Rockies (47-67)
DATE/TIME: Saturday, August 15 - 8:10 PM EST
WHERE: Coors Field, Denver, Colorado
LINE: -106, -102 TOTAL: 10.5

Matt Kemp became the first San Diego player to hit for the cycle in the series opener and the right fielder looks for his third straight strong game when the Padres visit the Colorado Rockies on Saturday. Kemp went 4-for-5 with a homer and four RBIs in Friday's 9-5 victory and smacked a run-scoring triple in the ninth inning to complete the cycle and make franchise history.

Kemp is suddenly hot with two homers and seven RBIs over the past two games after going 17 games without an extra-base hit. He experienced a power drought by hitting one homer over the first two months of the campaign and Friday's blast upped his season count to 13. Fading Colorado has lost five straight games - scoring ten total runs - and six of its last seven. The Rockies have been dominated by the Padres this season, dropping eight of 10 matchups.

TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, FSN San Diego, ROOT (Colorado)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Padres RH Andrew Cashner (4-12, 4.09 ERA) vs. Rockies RH Jon Gray (0-0, 2.70)

Cashner has lost consecutive starts and has only one victory in his last six outings. He has served up three homers in his last three turns after going five starts without being taken deep. Cashner is 1-3 with a 5.91 ERA in 10 career appearances (five starts) against Colorado and has struggled against second baseman DJ LeMahieu (5-for-10).

Gray was solid in his second major-league outing Monday as he gave up one run and one hit - a homer by Travis d'Arnaud - in six innings while receiving a no-decision against the New York Mets. He has limited batters to a .162 average in his two starts and has struck out nine in 10 innings. Gray was the third overall selection of the 2013 draft and nearly won a rotation spot in spring training before being optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque.

WALK-OFFS

1. Padres 2B Jedd Gyorko homered and drove in four runs Friday - the second time he's done both in the last three games.

2. Colorado 3B Nolan Arenado went 3-for-4 with a homer in the series opener and ranks second in the National League with 29 homers.

3. San Diego C Derek Norris homered on Friday, the first time he has gone deep since July 30.

PREDICTION: Padres 9, Rockies 7

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Reds at Dodgers

GAME: Cincinnati Reds (51-63) at Los Angeles Dodgers (65-51)
DATE/TIME: Saturday, August 15 - 9:10 PM EST
WHERE: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
LINE: 184, -201 TOTAL: 7.5

The Los Angeles Dodgers rebounded from a series-opening thrashing and aim to beat Cincinnati for the second straight night when they host the Reds on Saturday. Los Angeles posted a 5-3 victory on Friday one night after Cincinnati racked up 15 hits while rolling to a 10-3 win.

Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez belted a three-run homer Friday, marking only the second time he has gone deep since July 20. The homer against John Lamb - making his major-league debut - was Gonzalez's 23rd of the season but only the third that has come against a left-handed pitcher. Los Angeles holds a 2 1/2-game lead over the San Francisco Giants in the National League West and has the fourth-best record in the NL behind three teams from the Central Division. Reds first baseman Joey Votto homered and drove in all three runs Friday and is 6-for-12 with two homers and six RBIs over the past three games.

TV: 9:10 p.m. ET, FSN Ohio (Cincinnati), SportsNet LA (Los Angeles)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds LH David Holmberg (1-1, 3.06 ERA) vs. Dodgers LH Brett Anderson (6-7, 3.43)

Holmberg is making his fourth start of the season and allowed two runs and walked three in each of the other three. He lost to San Diego in his last turn when he gave up two runs and six hits in a season-best 6 2/3 innings. Holmberg has made nine previous big-league starts and has a 3-3 career mark to go with a 4.38 ERA.

Anderson was blasted by Washington in his last outing as he gave up season worst totals of seven runs and 10 hits in five innings while losing for the third time in his last four decisions. He allowed two or fewer runs in 13 of his previous 17 starts before the poor showing. Anderson, who has never faced the Reds, is 2-4 with a 3.95 ERA in 12 home starts.

WALK-OFFS

1. Dodgers RHP Kenley Jansen recorded his 23rd save of the season Friday and 129th of his career, tying Jeff Shaw for second-most in franchise history behind Eric Gagne (161).

2. Cincinnati SS Eugenio Suarez is 4-for-7 with two doubles, one homer, four RBIs and two walks in the series.

3. Los Angeles INF Enrique Hernandez is 6-for-8 in the series and is batting .469 over his last 32 at-bats.

PREDICTION: Dodgers 5, Reds 4