Sunday 4/3/16 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

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Rob Vinciletti

Tampa Bay Rays +110

The Rays start their season off at home today against the A.L. East Champs Toronto Blue Jays. Tampa has won 6 of 9 at home vs Toronto has their ace in C. Archer on the mound. Archer has won his last 3 home starts v Toronto and has allowed just 2 earned runs in 20 innings in those starts. Archer has allowed just 3 runs in 18 innings in April home starts. This will be the first road start in April. In a closely lined game we will back the home team with the pitching advantage in this one. We will back the Rays in their home opener.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Joseph D'Amico

St Louis Cardinals +115

Adam Wainwright makes his first start since last April, but did pitch 6 times in relief, including 3 post-season appearances. The crafty veteran allowed 8 runs, fanning 11, in 15 IP in Spring training and makes his 4th straight opening day start for the perennial NL Central Champs. The Cardinals did lose SS, Jhonny Peralta for a few months but still own a very experienced and dangerous lineup. Pittsburgh's problem is that they share the Division with St. Louis and Chicago, which hasn't fared well for them. They send Francisco Liriano to the mound. The LH was 12-7 last year and gave up 9 runs in 13 1/3 IP this Spring. The Cards are 7-2 in Wainwrights L9 starts vs. the Pirates, 42-20 their L62 in Game 1 of a series, and 5-1 in Wainwrights L6 road starts.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Jesse Schule

Tampa Bay

The Toronto Blue Jays will play in Tampa on Opening Day, and the defending AL East champs are coming off an impressive Spring Training in the Grapefruit League. Toronto is a slight road favorite in this matchup, but history favors Chris Archer and the Rays.

Archer has had no shortage of success against the Blue Jays, even more so than his record of 5-3 with a 3.26 ERA over the last three seasons would indicate. What's most impressive of Archer's numbers in previous starts against Toronto, is how he's silenced the Blue Jay's big bats. Jose Bautista is batting a minuscule .152 with only one home run and four strikeouts in 33 career at bats, while Edwin Encarnacion is even worse, hitting .139 in 36 career at bats. Archer looked sharp in nine innings this spring, striking out seven while holding opposing batters to a .194 average.

The Jays will send 24 year old Marcus Stroman to the mound on Opening Day, and that's a lot of pressure to put on a young pitcher. Stroman has looked very sharp in Spring Training, but he's been far better at home than he has been on the road in his brief career. He has just 30 starts under his belt in two seasons, and his ERA of 4.97 on the road is more than double what it is at Rogers Center. He's surrendered eight runs on 17 hits going 1-1 with a 5.73 ERA in two career starts versus Tampa. Evan Longoria was 3-for-5 with a home run in those two games.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Bruce Marshall

Orlando

Memphis trying to get healthy while also holding on to the 5th seed in the West playoffs and a more-favorable first-round matchup vs. the Clips (as opposed to dropping to the sixth or lower seed and getting OKC or Spurs). Z-Bo has returned to active duty, but Griz still missing key G Mike Conley (Achilles; hopefully to return before end of regular season), and Memphis had all hands on deck (including now-absent Marc Gasol) when it was forced into OT at FedEx Forum by Orlando on Jan. 25. With playoff pressure now removed, Magic suddenly looking a bit dangerous, blowing out Bulls & Nets in last two home games at Amway Center. And recently-hurting Ersan Ilyasova and Nikola Vucevic scheduled to have returned by now. Their recent absences, however, have opened up more time for former St. Bona star Andrew Nicholson, who took advantage with 19 ppg over recent three-game stretch. Magic displaying some real offensive efficiency in recent games after dropping into the league's bottom quartile in that department since the All-Star break. If recent Orlando home form holds, Griz could be in trouble.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Will Rogers

Toronto /Tampa Bay Under

The Toronto Blue Jays come into the 2016 season with lofty expectations. They are the defending AL East champions, and they had a fantastic Spring Training. The Jays will be playing at Tampa on Opening Day, and we could see a pitcher's duel with each team sending their respective ace to the mound. The total is pretty low for an American League game, but I still think the value lies with a play on the under.

Here are my keys to the game:

1. Previous History - The Jays are 0-4 in their last four road games versus a right-handed starter. They've also had plenty of troubles with Chris Archer, who was 3-2 with a 3.11 ERA versus Toronto last year. His career numbers against the Jays are even better, and he also has favorable day/night splits.

2. Batter vs. Pitcher - The Jays top two run producers have really struggled against Archer. Jose Bautista is batting .152 with four strikeouts in 33 career at bats. Edwin Encarnacion is hitting .139 over 36 at bats, while Josh Donaldson is 2-for-17 lifetime versus Archer.

3. X-Factor - The under is 4-1-2 in Blue Jays last 7 during game 1 of a series.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Scott Spreitzer

Tampa Bay

Toronto will send Marcus Stroman to the mound, while the Rays will counter with Chris Archer, and we expect the Rays' right-hander to be the difference maker in this one. Edwin Encarnacion (oblique) is expected to DH for the Jays on Sunday, and we all know the potential of the Toronto offense. But Encarnacion, Jose Bautista, and Josh Donaldson, have all had their problems attempting to solve Archer. In fact, Archer has held the upper hand, holding Encarnacion to a .139 batting average in 36 at-bats. He's held Bautista to a .152 batting average in 33 at-bats, and Josh Donaldson has a .118 average in 17 at-bats. Archer owns a 1.14 WHIP in 15 starts against the Blue Jays, and finished last season with a .213 BAA at Tropicana Field. The Rays added a little offense in the off-season, including Corey Dickerson, Brad Miller, and Logan Morrison, and I expect the bats to provide enough support to give Archer a lead. No Jake McGee out of the pen anymore, he's now earning a paycheck with the Rockies, and Brad Boxberger is banged-up to start the season, but Tampa mgmt was ready for this to start the season and they have been known to make the most out of what they have in the pen.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Larry Ness

Orlando Magic

The 2015-16 season began well for Orlando, as the Magic closed 2015 at 19-13. However, the Magic are a woeful 13-31 (.295) sine Jan 1 and well out of the East’s playoff picture. Orlando will host Memphis tonight, a team bruised and battered like no other club in NBA history. The Grizzlies have lost Marc Gasol (16.6-7.0) for the year and Mike Conley (15.3-6.1 APG) may or may not get back on the court. Plus, numerous others have missed time over the course of the season . The Grizzlies have tied the NBA record by using 27 players this season and can pass the 1996-97 Dallas Mavericks if recently acquired G Bryce Cotton gets in on Sunday.

The Grizzlies limp into Orlando having lost FIVE in a row and while Memphis is currently the West’s No. 5 seed (leads Portland by just a half-game), even a four-game lead over ninth-place Houston doesn't feel safe these days. "We just have to stay the course and continue to just fight," veteran swingman Vince Carter said. "No one said it's going to be easy, and I think everyone understands that." Meanwhile, with no playoff chances any longer, Orlando has averaged 118.5 PPG over its last four, including Tuesday's 139-105 home rout of Brooklyn that marked the team's highest-scoring effort since 2009. "The guys have played well the last few games, but it's just a (four)-game stretch and a small sample size," head coach Scott Skiles told the team's official website. "We'll have to see if we can keep it going and end the season on a high note playing good basketball."

The good news for Memphis in this one is that the Grizzlies have won NINE in a row in this series but the bad news is, the current Memphis roster is not a playoff-caliber team (Grizz have lost NINE of their last 11). I’ll take Orlando, which can win three in a row at home for the first time since November.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

CHRIS JORDAN

The last Bonus Play out of baseball I gave you was the Kansas City Royals to win the World Series. Now, I open the 2016 campaign with a play in the same series we ended with, as I like the Under in the Royals/Mets clash tonight in Kansas City.

MAKE NOTE: All Total plays automatically list pitchers with the starters who are scheduled to go at the time of the wager, and I want you to be sure the following pitchers are the starters of record on your ticket when making your play: Matt Harvey and Edinson Volquez. If one or both of these pitchers is not going, this is a no-play.

Keep in mind, the last Mets starter to face the Royals in the 2015 World Series will be the one to greet them on Opening Night, and after 30 months removed from Tommy John surgery, Harvey is coming off a season that saw him set career highs in starts, innings and wins. He's also looking for a bit of revenge after his team lost in the Fall Classic. He will be on his game tonight.

Volquez gets the start on Opening Night at Kauffman Stadium in a rematch of Game 5 of the World Series against Harvey. The Royals plan to raise the World Series championship banner in pregame ceremonies, and he'll be reaching deep into his arsenal to keep the Mets off the basepaths.

4* UNDER Mets/Royals