Saturday 8/22/15 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Cardinals (77-44) at Padres (60-62)

Game: 2
Venue: PETCO Park
Date: August 22, 2015 8:40 PM EDT

The St. Louis Cardinals started a long road trip in a sloppy way, but Carlos Martinez is there to help the best team in the majors clean up the mess.

St. Louis has won 82 percent of the games Martinez starts this year, and the right-hander will take the Petco Park mound Saturday night against the San Diego Padres hoping to wash away the taste of an error-filled opener.

The Cardinals (77-44) still have a 4 1/2-game lead over Pittsburgh in the NL Central and six upcoming games against the under-.500 Padres (60-62) and Diamondbacks (60-61) on their West Coast trip.

But San Diego has turned a corner over the last week, winning four straight and six of seven. The Padres will look to take the season series against the Cardinals on Saturday with their fourth win in six tries.

For the Cardinals, Martinez has been the right man for the job. St. Louis is 18-4 when the right-hander starts this season.

Martinez (12-5, 2.78 ERA) didn't get a decision against the Padres in a 2-1 Cardinals win on July 4 after lasting 6 2-3 innings and surrendering eight hits and a run, his only start against San Diego after three rocky relief appearances in 2013-14.

Jedd Gyorko has four singles in five at-bats against Martinez, while Yangervis Solarte is 2 for 5 with a home run that came in last month's meeting. Solarte homered for the third straight game in Friday's 9-3 win, giving him six hits and seven RBIs in this impressive stretch.

"He believes he can play. You can see it in him. Look at the way he responds to a poor at-bat. This kid believes, and I think that's a big part of the battle," interim manager Pat Murphy told MLB's official website.

Errors from Mark Reynolds, Stephen Piscotty and Kolten Wong led to San Diego's five-run fifth inning. Two Wong errors hurt Martinez on Sunday in a 6-4 loss to the Marlins.

"We've done a nice job of not having multiple mistakes in a game defensively and when you do see it, it stands out," manager Mike Matheny said. "We have had a couple of those this year where we talk about the defense looking uncharacteristically off and just on a couple plays, and absolutely every time this happens it's going to cost you in the long run."

Martinez gave up five runs and seven hits in five innings of work against Miami. It was the third time in his last four starts that he lasted five, a stretch that's resulted in a 1-1 record and 5.09 ERA.

Ian Kennedy has been trending in the opposite direction for the Padres.

Kennedy (7-11, 4.20) started the year 2-5 with a 7.15 ERA through eight starts, but he has been solid since June 2. In his last 14 starts, Kennedy has a 2.82 ERA and has allowed more than three runs just once.

That period included a 3-1 loss to the Cardinals on July 5 in which Kennedy tossed six innings and allowed three runs. Yadier Molina went 2 for 3 with a double in that game, and the St. Louis catcher is 5 for 15 lifetime against Kennedy with three doubles.

Three of the four runs he allowed in Sunday's 5-0 loss at Colorado were unearned due to Derek Norris' dropped popup at first base in the seventh inning.

Right fielder Jason Heyward was a late addition to St. Louis' lineup Friday after successfully testing out his sore hamstring. Heyward went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and a walk.

San Diego center fielder Travis Jankowski became the ninth player in franchise history to have two or more hits in his big league debut with a pair of singles Friday.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Blue Jays (67-55) at Angels (63-59)

Game: 2
Venue: Angel Stadium of Anaheim
Date: August 22, 2015 9:05 PM EDT

Josh Donaldson's case for the AL MVP continues gaining steam as the Toronto Blue Jays inch closer to the top of the AL East.

Mike Trout, the reigning award winner, isn't providing much help for the Los Angeles Angels during their playoff pursuit.

The wild-card leaders continue their critical series Saturday night as Andrew Heaney takes the mound for the Angels looking to cool Donaldson and the Blue Jays.

Toronto (67-55) made bold deals to acquire David Price, Troy Tulowitzki and Ben Revere at the trade deadline and they've helped spark the club's 17-4 surge since July 29.

The Blue Jays, however, may have made their most savvy move back in November when they dealt Brett Lawrie and three prospects to Oakland to acquire Donaldson, who set career highs with 29 homers and 98 RBIs in 2014.

Donaldson already has 33 homers and a .939 OPS that's far better than that season's .798 mark with the A's. He had a pair of RBI doubles and drove in another run to give him 94 RBIs while increasing his average to .296 in Friday's 9-2 win over the Angels (63-59).

Price pitched eight solid innings for Toronto, which moved one-half game behind the first-place New York Yankees and four games ahead of Los Angeles for the wild-card lead.

"We've got our eyes on the people in front of us," Price said. "I don't know who's behind us."

Donaldson appears to be the front-runner to take the MVP from Trout, who went 0 for 3 and fanned twice to drop his average to .183 with 23 strikeouts in 20 games this month.

Los Angeles, which has scored five times in its last three, is 9-17 since July 23 and has fallen 3 1/2 games back of Houston for the AL West lead.

"We never gave ourselves a chance," manager Mike Scioscia said. "Fortunately, it's one loss. That's all. We're going to play better (Saturday)."

The Angels, though, have won eight of the 10 times Heaney (5-1, 2.43 ERA) has taken the mound since he made his debut June 24. He allowed one run in six innings of Monday's 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox, escaping a bases-loaded jam on a strikeout with the last of his career-high 100 pitches.

"It was a borderline pitch, but I got the call," said Heaney, who has allowed two runs or fewer nine times.

The left-hander hasn't missed much while walking only 10 in 63 innings, a positive sign after Hector Santiago walked four of the first six hitters he faced Friday. Angels pitchers have issued 19 free passes in five meetings with the Blue Jays this season.

Toronto looks to win a third straight matchup as it sends Marco Estrada (10-7, 3.20) to the hill. Estrada's ERA hit 4.24 after he allowed five runs in a win over Boston on June 14, but he's since surrendered two earned runs or fewer 10 times while posting a 2.31 ERA in 11 starts.

He took the loss last Saturday despite giving up just three hits in six innings against the Yankees. Two hits went for solo homers, one more than he'd allowed in his previous seven starts combined.

"I guess the line looks pretty good, but I missed a lot of spots," Estrada said. "I wasn't my usual self."

The right-hander made his only career start against the Angels while with Milwaukee in 2013, allowing four earned runs - including a homer to Chris Iannetta - with eight strikeouts while going seven innings in the Brewers' 6-5 loss.

Iannetta, though, is batting .094 with 13 strikeouts in his last 10.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: White Sox (57-63) at Mariners (56-66)

Game: 2
Venue: Safeco Field
Date: August 22, 2015 9:10 PM EDT

Trying to remain relevant in the AL wild-card race, the Chicago White Sox hope they're in the early stages of a needed surge.

After roughing up Seattle's ace, the visiting White Sox look for a third consecutive victory Saturday night against the Mariners.

One night after snapping a seven-game road skid with an 8-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels, Chicago (57-63) got to Felix Hernandez for four runs and nine hits in Friday's 11-4 victory. Carlos Sanchez had four RBIs and fellow rookie Tyler Saladino delivered three hits for the White Sox, who have scored two fewer runs in the last two games than they did in the previous eight.

"A nice job of going to the plate and making stuff happen," manager Robin Ventura said.

The White Sox have closed within five games of the AL's final wild-card spot, but they have six teams ahead of them in the standings. Making up that amount of ground with that much traffic in the way might seem like a tall order, but all hope is not lost within the organization.

Chicago has already posted winning streaks of six and seven games during this rather disappointing season.

"We all entered this year with high hopes and high expectations and, to date, we have not met them yet," general manager Rick Hahn told MLB's official website. "There's still time to potentially meet them."

Sanchez is batting .412 with 11 doubles and nine RBIs in his last 20 road games. Saladino has five hits and three RBIs in the last two contests after going 1 for 9 in the previous three.

The White Sox look to take further advantage of a Mariners pitching staff that's allowed 105 hits, walked 28 and posted a 9.53 ERA during the club's current 2-5 stretch.

That trend might continue when Seattle (56-66) hands the ball to Vidal Nuno (0-1, 3.67 ERA), who is 0-1 with a 6.23 ERA in three starts since joining the rotation earlier this month. The left-hander has yielded 19 hits, including five home runs, and failed to last more than five innings in any of those starts.

Pitching for the New York Yankees on May 24 of last year, Nuno gave up nine hits but three runs over seven-plus innings of a 4-3, 10-inning victory in his only start against the White Sox.

Chicago counters with rookie Carlos Rodon (5-5, 4.42), who is 1-1 with an 0.87 ERA in his last three road starts in which his teammates totaled four runs. The left-hander allowed his only two runs over than stretch on a pair of homers in eight innings of Monday's 2-1 loss to the Angels.

"After the first homer (in the second inning), the way he responded to it was great,' Ventura said. 'He was really aggressive in the zone with all of his stuff, not just the fastball. He wasn't necessarily relying on his slider as much. He was going after it with his fastball, locating it and making it tough on them.'

Rodon will try to contain Nelson Cruz, who hit his major league-leading 37th home run Friday. Cruz has 16 homers and 23 RBIs while batting .381 in his last 28 games.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Wolf, Farmer fill Tigers' rotation vacancies
By THE SPORTS XCHANGE

DETROIT -- The stability problems that have plagued the Detroit Tigers' bullpen this season are now filtering over to the rotation.

The Tigers filled two rotation holes that cropped up Thursday, but just how well they did may take a couple of starts to determine.

The first hole was plugged when Detroit purchased the contract of veteran left-hander Randy Wolf from Toronto's organization and announced he would start Saturday against Texas.

Manager Brad Ausmus announced after the Tigers' 4-0 victory over the Texas Rangers on Thursday night that Buck Farmer would be yanked from the bullpen to start Monday night's makeup game in Cincinnati.

Wolf, 38, has not pitched in the majors this year. He underwent his second Tommy John surgery following the 2012 season, but he returned to make six appearances (four starts) for the Miami Marlins in 2014. Wolf was 9-2 with a 2.58 ERA in 23 starts for Triple-A Buffalo this year.

Farmer has made spot starts for the Tigers over the past two years, but they were largely unsuccessful. However, in this time of need, Farmer provides Detroit with a pitcher who should at least provide three to four decent innings.

The Tigers found themselves in need of two starters when rookie lefty Daniel Norris strained a right oblique muscle in his Wednesday night start and was placed on the 15-day disabled list a day later.

A second starter was lost when the club announced right-hander Anibal Sanchez, who has allowed a league-high 29 home runs this season, needed to go on the disabled list due to a right rotator cuff strain.

"I've played with Randy," Ausmus said. "I know Wolfie pretty well. He's probably the first teammate I will manage.

"I played with Wolfie, I caught Wolfie. He's stayed in touch. I would say I know him relatively well. I've been to his house.

"This all came together quickly. It probably happened in a matter of two hours. I'm sure he's got a few more miles on him. He's a savvy left-hander. I'm sure he doesn't have the same stuff."

Detroit no doubt got scouting reports on Wolf from lefties Norris and Matt Boyd, both of whom pitched with him at Toronto's Triple-A farm club in Buffalo.

Boyd was used in relief Wednesday night in Chicago against the Cubs. He threw fewer than 20 pitches in getting two outs, but Detroit is exercising caution by pushing his start back to Sunday. Wolf will start Saturday.

Sanchez would have been due to take his turn Monday. Farmer will fill in, and he could be a one-shot starter because lefty Kyle Lobstein might be able to return following one more rehab start.

Lobstein, out most of the season with a sore arm, is currently on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo. He pitch for the Mud Hens on Thursday, allowing six runs on 12 hits and two walks in 3 2/3 innings.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Mariners disable Beimel, call up Rasmussen
By THE SPORTS XCHANGE

The Seattle Mariners placed reliever Joe Beimel on the 15-day disabled list and recalled left-hander Rob Rasmussen from Triple-A on Friday.

Beimel has posterior inflammation in his left shoulder. The Mariners gave no timetable on his anticipated return.

The 38-year-old Beimel has a 2-1 record with one save and a 4.78 ERA in 42 relief appearances this season for the Mariners. But the left-hander's ERA has risen more than two points in his last five outings after allowing runs in each game. In his first 37 games, Beimel made 27 scoreless appearancess.

Beimel signed a minor league contract with the Mariners on April 2 and started the season in extending spring training before joining Triple-A Tacoma.

The 26-year-old Rasmussen is 2-1 with a 16.20 ERA in eight games for the Mariners this season. He had been optioned to Tacoma on Monday and worked a scoreless inning before getting the call to return to the majors.

Rasmussen came to Seattle in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays along with right-hander Jose Ramirez in exchange for right-hander Mark Lowe on July 21

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

'Contrarian Play'

The second matchup of a three game series is today’s baseball betting focus as the Houston Astros host the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday evening at Minute Maid Park. Scott Kazmir (6-8, 2.43 ERA) gets the nod for Astros looking to halt a season-high three game skid that has seen the lefthander tagged for 13 runs (9 earned) on 22 hits, 4 long-ball. Kazmir matches pitches with Dodgers' Zack Greinke (13-2, 1.58 ERA) who is undefeated in eleven starts with Dodgers 9-2 over the span. According to opening betting odds the Dodgers enter the contest as -$1.25 road favorites with the total set at 7 runs.

Going against Greinke might be considered sacrilege by some in MLB handicapping. But, the Dodgers haven't been a peg to hang your hat on lately when away from Chavez Ravine as the result has been 9 losses, 2 wins past 11 in enemy territory. Additionally, the Dodgers have been poor bets on the road when chalk of -$1.20 to -$1.50. In 16 occurrences this season they've posted a 5-11 record costing backers -$933 at the betting window. On the flip side, Stros have won 6 straight and 9 of 11 at Minute Maid Park vs a team with a winning record and have won 5 of 6 against the Senior league in front of the friendly home crowd.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Streaks, Tips, Notes

San Francisco at Pittsburgh Saturday August 23, 4:05 EST

The Pittsburgh Pirates will start Gerrit Cole when they host San Francisco Saturday afternoon which does not spell good things for the Giants. In three career appearances against the Giants (one this year) the Pirates have won each contest. Adding to those numbers, Pirates are 10-1 in Cole's last 11 starts at home vs a team with a winning record. The fact this is a day game is another nod towards Pirates w/Cole. The righthander has a sparkling 7-1 record, 1.84 ERA in daylight hours.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

MLB

National League

Braves @ Cubs
Perez is 0-4, 7.66 in his last four starts.

Haren is 1-3, 4.67 in his last five starts; over is 3-1 in his last four home starts.

Braves lost nine of last 11 games overall. Cubs lost three of their last five games-- six of their last eight games went over. Atlanta lost last four games with the Cubs, with four of last five going under- they scored five runs total in last four series games.

Giants @ Pirates
Leake is 4-1, 0.99 in his last five starts; five of his last six stayed under; he is making first start since August 2 (hamstring).

Cole is 0-3, 5.48 in his last four starts; five of his last six stayed under.

Pittsburgh won eight of last 11 games with the Giants; over is 4-1-2 in last seven series games. Pirates won 11 of last 14 games (over 9-4-2 in last 15). SF lost three of last five games; under is 8-3-1 in its last twelve.

Brewers @ Nationals
Jungmann is 2-1, 3.38 in his last three starts; under is 6-3-1 in his last ten.

Ross is 1-2, 5.14 in his last four starts; four of his last five stayed under.

Milwaukee lost four of last seven games with Washington (over 6-1); Brewers won five of last seven games overall; over is 3-0-1 in last four. Nationals lost eight of last ten games (under 6-4).

Diamondbacks @ Reds
Delgado has made 47 MLB starts, 36 in 2012-13 (9-16, 4.61), four LY. He has thrown 50 innings in 43 relief appearances this year (no starts).

DeSclafani is 2-1, 2.52 in his last four starts (under 4-0).

Arizona won five of last six games with Cincinnati; eight of last ten games in series stayed under the total. D'backs are 4-3 in last seven games; four of last six stayed under. Reds lost ten of last twelve games; four of their last five stayed under the total.

Phillies @ Marlins
Harang is 0-3, 10.80 in his last three starts; three of his last four went under.

Nicolino is 2-1, 4.24 in his four starts (over 2-1-1).

Philly won four of last six games with Miami (over 4-1-1); Phils lost seven of last ten games (over 7-3-1 in last 11). Marlins scored 38 runs in winning four of last six games; over is 7-1-2 in their last ten.

Mets @ Rockies
Niese is 2-0, 2.42 in his last four starts; his last four on road stayed under.

Rusin is 1-1, 1.80 in his last three starts.

Mets won their last nine games with Colorado; home side won nine of last 11 in series; seven of last nine stayed under- they lost four of last six games overall; their last five games went over. Rockies lost nine of last 11 games; three of their last five games stayed under the total.

Cardinals @ Padres
Martinez is 1-1, 6.26 in his last four starts; under is 6-2-1 in his last nine.

Kennedy is 3-0, 2.12 in his last three home starts; under is 8-2 in his last ten starts overall.

St Louis won six of last ten games with San Diego; three of last four series games stayed under total. Cardinals won six of last ten games. Padres won eight of last ten games; seven of last nine went over.


American League

Indians @ Bronx
Salazar is 3-0, 1.27 in his last four starts; four of his last five stayed under.

Severino is 0-2, 3.71 in his three starts (under 2-1); Bronx scored total of six runs in those three games.

Bronx lost six of last seven games with Cleveland (over 7-4 in last 11), but they won six of last nine games overall; six of their last ten stayed under total. Indians lost four of last seven games (four of last five went over).

Rangers @ Tigers
Gallardo is 2-0, 3.38 in his last three starts, but has finished 6th inning only once in last eight starts- his last three starts stayed under.

Veteran hurler Wolf is making first '15 start; he has started 372 MLB games, only four the last 2+ years (1-3, 5.26 with Miami LY). He was 9-2, 2.58 in 23 AAA starts this season.

Texas lost four of last five games with Detroit; last three series games stayed under the total. Rangers won seven of last nine games overall; under is 6-1-1 in their last eight. Tigers won four of last six games; three of their last five games went over the total.

Twins @ Orioles
Gibson is 0-3, 8.18 in his last six starts (over 2-0-1 in last three on road).

Tillman is 3-0, 2.18 in his last five starts; seven of his last eight went under.

Minnesota won its last six games with Baltimore; over is 4-2-1 in last seven in series. Twins lost five of last nine games; five of last eight stayed under. Orioles won five of last eight games; four of their last six went over the total.

Royals @ Red Sox
Ventura is 3-0, 3.94 in his last five starts; under is 6-4 in his last ten.

Barnes allowed six runs in five IP (102 PT) in his first MLB start.

Royals lost ten of last 12 games with Boston; six of last seven series games went over the total. KC won five of its last seven games (under 5-2). Red Sox won six of last eight games; 11 of their last 12 games went over.

Rays @ A's
Ramirez is 2-0, 1.42 in his last two starts; three of his last four went over.

Gray is 2-1, 1.91 in his last five starts; under is 7-0-1 in his last eight.

Tampa Bay lost five of last eight games; under is 5-1 in last six games; Rays are 5-6 in last 11 games with Oakland (under 7-2-2). A's won five of last six home games.

Blue Jays @ Angels
Estrada is 3-1, 1.82 in his last four starts; six of his last seven stayed under.

Heaney is 0-1, 3.57 in his last four starts (under 3-1).

Blue Jays are 14-3 in their last 17 games; their last three went over the total. Angels are 6-5 in last 11 games with Toronto. Halos won three of last five games overall; three of their last four went over.

White Sox @ Mariners
Rodon is 1-1, 1.20 in his last two starts; his last three road starts stayed under.

Nuno is 0-1, 6.23 in his three starts (over 2-1) this season.

White Sox lost five of last seven games, but scored 19 runs in winning last two; three of last four went over. ChiSox lost three of last five games with Seattle; five of last seven series games went under the total. Mariners lost five of last seven games (over 4-2-1 in last seven).


Interleague

Dodgers @ Astros
Greinke is 9-0, 1.70 in his last 10 starts; five of his last seven stayed under.

Kazmir is 0-3, 7.02 in his last three starts; five of his last six stayed under.

Dodgers won eight of last 11 games with Houston (under 7-3-1). LA lost nine of its last 11 road games- four of its last seven games overall went over. Astros won six of last nine games; their last four games stayed under total. Dodgers got no-hit Friday by a journeyman righthanded pitcher


Win-loss records this year for team with this starting pitcher:
SF-Pitt-- Leake 11-11/0-1; Cole 16-8
Atl-Chi-- Perez 5-7 (0-5 last 5); Haren 11-13/1-2
Mil-Wsh-- Jungmann 8-5; Ross 3-6
Az-Cin-- Delgado 0-0; DeSclafani 11-12
Phil-Mia-- Harang 6-15 (1-12 last 13); Nicolino 3-1
NY-Col-- Niese 9-14; Rusin 4-9
StL-SD-- Martinez 18-4; Kennedy 10-12

Cle-NY-- Salazar 14-8; Severino 0-3
Tex-Det-- Gallardo 13-12; Wolf 0-0
Min-Balt-- Gibson 12-12; Tillman 12-10
KC-Bos-- Ventura 9-10; Barnes 0-1
TB-A's-- Ramirez 13-6; Gray 15-9
Tor-LA-- Estrada 10-9; Heaney 8-2
Chi-Sea-- Rodon 10-7; Nuno 2-1

LA-Hst-- Greinke 17-7 (8-1 last 9); Kazmir 10-13/2-3


Times this starting pitcher allowed a run in first inning:
SF-Pitt-- Leake 4-22; Cole 8-24
Atl-Chi-- Perez 4-12; Haren 3-24
Mil-Wsh-- Jungmann 3-13; Ross 0-9
Az-Cin-- Delgado 0-0; DeSclafani 5-23
Phil-Mia-- Harang 8-21; Nicolino 0-4
NY-Col-- Niese 8-23; Rusin 4-13
StL-SD-- Martinez 5-22 (3 of last 4); Kennedy 8-22

Cle-NY-- Salazar 6-22; Severino 1-3
Tex-Det-- Gallardo 9-25; Wolf 0-0
Min-Balt-- Gibson 6-24; Tillman 4-22
KC-Bos-- Ventura 4-19; Barnes 0-1
TB-A's-- Ramirez 5-19; Gray 4-24
Tor-LA-- Estrada 4-19; Heaney 0-10
Chi-Sea-- Rodon 5-17; Nuno 2-3

LA-Hst-- Greinke 6-24; Kazmir 4-23


Umpires
SF-Pitt-- Underdogs won five of last seven Davis games.
Atl-Chi-- Underdogs won six of last eight Miller games.
Mil-Wsh-- Five of last seven Fagan games stayed under.
Az-Cin-- Under is 9-4 in last thirteen Muchlinski games.
Phil-Mia-- Over is 7-1-1 in last nine Hoberg games.
NY-Col-- Underdogs are 13-9 in Schrieber games this year.
StL-SD-- Under is 6-1-1 in last eight Segal games.

Cle-NY-- Over is 9-2-1 in last twelve LBarrett games.
Tex-Det-- Eight of last eleven Carapazza games went over.
Min-Balt-- Seven of last nine Carlson games went over.
KC-Bos-- Underdogs won last four Wendelstedt games.
TB-A's-- Home side won seven of last ten Nauert games.
Tor-LA-- Over is 10-4-1 in last fifteen Diaz games.
Chi-Sea-- Under is 5-2-1 in last eight Cederstrom games.

LA-Hst-- Favorites are 12-4 in last sixteen BWelke games.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Saturday's six-pack

Top six NBA coaches, in terms of longevity in their current job........

Dec 1996-- Gregg Popovich, Spurs-- You win four titles, you keep your job.

April 2008-- Eric Spoelstra, Heat-- Was a lot smarter when he coached Lebron.

May 2008-- Rick Carlisle, Mavericks-- Transferred from Maine to Virginia in college

Jan 2011-- Frank Vogel, Pacers-- Did solid job with George out most of last year.

June 2011-- Kevin McHale, Rockets

June 2011-- Dwayne Casey, Raptors

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Streaks, Tips, Notes

Oakland Raiders at Minnesota Vikings August 22, 8:00 EST

Minnesota is unbeaten in six preseason games under head coach Mike Zimmer (5-1 ATS). The defensive effort on full display allowing an average 12.2 PPG last August and just nineteen total points in their two preseason tilts this year coach Zimmer is shaping up to be one of the few coaches putting an emphasis on winning these meaningless games. Minnesota's stingy preseason defense the Raiders offense will be scrounging for points. Not the best news for a Raider squad 0-6 (1-5 ATS) away from O.co Coliseum in preseason.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Arthur Ralph Sports

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