MICAH ROBERTS
Yankees at Indians
Pick: Indians -1.5
Will Phil Hughes be better this time around for the Yankees? Is his dead arm better? The Yankees think so and thought so much of him they sent Ivan Nova down to the minors despite being second in wins on the staff. Hughes has pressure to produce and knows that Nova is waiting his shot back to the team and also knows that he may have only two starts to prove himself. Justin Masterson finally got rewarded for his great games with a win his last time out, his first since April. Look for the Indians bats to jump out early on Hughes and start all the second guessing from the NY media.
Yankees at Indians
Pick: Indians -1.5
Will Phil Hughes be better this time around for the Yankees? Is his dead arm better? The Yankees think so and thought so much of him they sent Ivan Nova down to the minors despite being second in wins on the staff. Hughes has pressure to produce and knows that Nova is waiting his shot back to the team and also knows that he may have only two starts to prove himself. Justin Masterson finally got rewarded for his great games with a win his last time out, his first since April. Look for the Indians bats to jump out early on Hughes and start all the second guessing from the NY media.
O.C. Dooley
“1 UNIT” INFORMATION TOTAL (Cubs at Nationals OVER 8’ in a 7:05 eastern start------Wells versus Gorzelanny):
One of the keys to this selection surrounds tonight’s Washington offensive lineup which WILL have Michael Morse back at firstbase for the first time since way back on Saturday when he was hit by a pitch in the forearm. Morse has been one of baseball’s hottest hitters since the beginning of June batting .323 along with 13 homeruns along the way. His return to the lineup is good news for Nationals star infielder Ryan Zimmerman who is hitting just .193 since coming off the disabled list. The good news is that Zimmerman had a rare “multi hit” effort last night while another infielder continued to produce at the plate. Washington second-sacker Danny Espinosa is hitting a hefty .421 during the past five games and is close to setting a major-league rookie record for most homeruns (15) by the All Star break. The visiting Cubs also have a sizzling middle-of-the-order stick as Aramis Ramirez has swatted 8 homers in the past dozen outings which is tops in the majors during that span. Even though the Cubs offense has crossed the plate only 13 times in the past five games, they are averaging more than 4 runs per contest this campaign when facing a LEFTHANDED starter. Not only is Tom Gorzelanny a southpaw, he is 3-0 OVER the last three times he has faced the Cubs. On the mound for Chicago is Randy Wells (8.36 ROAD ERA) who has allowed at least one homer in 6 of 8 mound assignments. Not only is Mike Morse finally returning to the Nationals lineup tonight, veteran Jayson Werth will be moved down to the #6 spot which takes some pressure off of the struggling outfielder who has pressed ever since signing a rich contract during the offseason as a free agent
“1 UNIT” INFORMATION TOTAL (Cubs at Nationals OVER 8’ in a 7:05 eastern start------Wells versus Gorzelanny):
One of the keys to this selection surrounds tonight’s Washington offensive lineup which WILL have Michael Morse back at firstbase for the first time since way back on Saturday when he was hit by a pitch in the forearm. Morse has been one of baseball’s hottest hitters since the beginning of June batting .323 along with 13 homeruns along the way. His return to the lineup is good news for Nationals star infielder Ryan Zimmerman who is hitting just .193 since coming off the disabled list. The good news is that Zimmerman had a rare “multi hit” effort last night while another infielder continued to produce at the plate. Washington second-sacker Danny Espinosa is hitting a hefty .421 during the past five games and is close to setting a major-league rookie record for most homeruns (15) by the All Star break. The visiting Cubs also have a sizzling middle-of-the-order stick as Aramis Ramirez has swatted 8 homers in the past dozen outings which is tops in the majors during that span. Even though the Cubs offense has crossed the plate only 13 times in the past five games, they are averaging more than 4 runs per contest this campaign when facing a LEFTHANDED starter. Not only is Tom Gorzelanny a southpaw, he is 3-0 OVER the last three times he has faced the Cubs. On the mound for Chicago is Randy Wells (8.36 ROAD ERA) who has allowed at least one homer in 6 of 8 mound assignments. Not only is Mike Morse finally returning to the Nationals lineup tonight, veteran Jayson Werth will be moved down to the #6 spot which takes some pressure off of the struggling outfielder who has pressed ever since signing a rich contract during the offseason as a free agent
