Rickenbach MLB Game #905/906 - Slugfest Smash - *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in Milwaukee vs Arizona @ 8:10 ET Tuesday - I had a tough loss in this match-up yesterday and I won't hesitate to come right back with it here. Yesterday's over was also a 9.5 and the game had 9 runs through 6 innings but stalled there. The game had 21 hits and it was truly a fluke (it happens!) that it did not go over the total. Look for today's match-up to make up for it. Neither team has a particularly strong bullpen so that is what made yesterday's end result even more surprising. As for the starting pitchers today, Patrick Corbin gets the start for Arizona and he is 0-3 with an 8.79 ERA and a 2.16 WHIP in his last 3 starts. The southpaw is on the fade and 3 of the Brewers 4 games against left-handed starters since the All Star break have gone over the total. Milwaukee will have Matt Garza on the mound Tuesday and he, like Corbin, is also 0-3 in his last 3 starts. Garza has compiled a 9.21 ERA and a 1.91 WHIP in his last 3 outings. The over is 5-0 in Corbin's last 5 starts and 13-4-1 in his last 18 starts overall! The over is 27-16 in Arizona's games against teams with a losing record this season. *10* OVER 9.5 in Milwaukee

Rickenbach MLB Game #965/966 - Slugfest Smash - *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Kansas City vs Los Angeles Angels @ 8:15 ET Monday - The Royals are hitting .281 this season against left-handed pitching. That is good enough for the #3 spot out of all 30 MLB teams. They're catching the Angels Hector Santiago at the right time to enjoy some success at the plate. The southpaw allowed 3 runs in just 5 innings in his most recent start and he also issued 3 free passes in that short outing. However, the Royals hurler is the big story here. Ian Kennedy continues to struggle with the long-ball and the wind will be blowing out at Kauffman Stadium this evening in Kansas City. Kennedy gave up 4 homers in his most recent start and no pitcher has given up more than the 26 he has allowed so far this season. The over is 3-1 in Kennedy's last 4 home starts. The Angels enter this game off of 3 straight losses. They are 9-4 to the over this season and 25-12 to the over the last 3 seasons when they enter a game off of 3 or more consecutive losses. The Angels are hitting .272 on the road this season and that ranks them 3rd in the majors. LA resumes the hot hitting they had been enjoying before the 3-game losing streak while KC continues to hit lefties well. That spells an easy over here. *10* OVER in Kansas City

Rickenbach MLB Game #911/912 - Total Dominator - *10* Top Play OVER 9 in St Louis vs Los Angeles Dodgers @ 8:05 ET Sunday - The Cardinals are turning to rookie Mike Mayers for this spot start. It will be his MLB debut. Mayers may indeed end up having success at the MLB level but I don't expect it right off the bat. In looking at Mayers trek through the minors he struggled every time he was bumped up a level. This is the first season he's enjoyed success at the AAA level and I expect him to struggle in his first time up in the bigs. Mayers is certainly facing a confident Dodgers lineup. Los Angeles won 7-2 yesterday and the Dodgers have averaged 5.5 runs per game in their last 8 games. The Cardinals should be able to match LA run for run here as the Cards "tee off" against Scott Kazmir. The Dodgers southpaw is off of a strong start but the soft-throwing lefty has had trouble stringing together quality back to back starts this season. He did pitch well against St Louis in May but that means the Cardinals are getting a 2nd look now and Kazmir has been known for getting roughed up in situations like this. The over is 7-2 in Kazmir's 9 road starts this season and all 3 of his career starts against the Cards have gone over the total. The over is also 5-1 in the Dodgers last 6 games overall. The over is also 17-10 in Cardinals games against left-handed starters this season and 10-4 in their Sunday games this year. *10* OVER 9 in St Louis

Rickenbach MLB Game #923/924 - Slugfest Smash - *10* Top Play OVER 9 or 9.5 in Houston vs Los Angeles Angels @ 2:10 ET Sunday - The Astros Mike Fiers is coming back down to reality after pitching better than expected for much of the first half of the season. There is a mental aspect to pitching that is extremely important and I would not be surprised to see Fiers really struggle here. He got into altercations both with his manager as well as teammates after being taken out of his last start during the 4th inning. The fact is he deserved to get yanked from the outing and it was his 2nd straight rough outing. Now he faces an Angels team that rocked him for 7 earned runs in less than 4 innings back in May. That said, don't be surprised if Fiers has another short and ugly outing here as it is not the right lineup for him to "get right" against. The Angels will have pitching issues of their own in this one as Tim Lincecum gets the ball. He gave up 5 earned runs in less than 5 innings of work when he faced the Astros in late June. Also, Linceum has simply been awful overall this season as his ERA could easily be higher than the 6.59 it currently sits at as he has been hit at an ugly .370 clip on the year. That is not a misprint, opponents are hitting .370 against Lincecum on the season! Look for both pitchers to get rocked here as the over goes to 13-5 in Fiers' starts this season. *10* OVER in Houston

Rickenbach MLB Game #977/978 - MLB Game of the Month - *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Oakland vs Tampa Bay @ 9:05 ET Saturday - The over is 7-1 in the Rays Drew Smyly's road starts this season. He comes into this match-up with the A's struggling badly. Smyly has given up at least 4 earned runs in 8 of his last 9 starts! The southpaw is not showing any signs of improving either as he has walked 5 while striking out just 3 in his last 2 starts. Smyly has given up 22 hits (including 4 homers) in his 16 career innings against the Athletics. The A's will have Kendall Graveman on the mound for this one. Graveman faced the Rays in May this season and he gave up 4 earned runs on 6 hits and 3 walks while striking out just 1 in less than 6 innings of work. Graveman has a losing record in night games this season and opponents have hit him at a .293 clip in night games on the year. The Rays lineup comes into this game with plenty of confidence. Although they were shutout last night, Tampa Bay previously scored an average of 7.4 runs per game in their last 5 games. A road trip to hitter-friendly Coors Field helped the Rays lineup get back on track and they'll respond after the shutout loss yesterday. In games this season where Tampa Bay is a road dog of +100 to +125, they over is 11-3 on the year. The over is 17-6 in A's games against left-handed starters this season. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB Game #973/974 - Slugfest Smash - *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in Boston vs Minnesota @ 7:10 ET Saturday - After winning three straight games and averaging 9 runs per game, Boston had a frustrating effort at the plate last night and they'll make up for it Saturday. Facing the Twins Ricky Nolasco insures that! The Minnesota right-hander is off of a rare strong effort against the Tigers where he held them to 1 earned run in 6 innings of work even though he walked 3 and did not record a single strikeout. His strikeout numbers have been trending downward and, prior to the solid start against Detroit, Nolasco gave up 17 earned runs in his last 24 and 1/3 innings. Also, he has given up 58 hits in his last 43 innings on the mound. The Red Sox should pound this ultra-hittable veteran hurler. The Red Sox have David Price on the mound but the big name southpaw hasn't been living up to his reputation in many of his recent starts. Price has given up 44 hits in his last 30 and 1/3 innings. The Boston lefty has a 4.75 ERA during this stretch and the Twins will benefit from facing lefties in back to back starts as they faced Rodriguez yesterday. The over is 13-4 in Nolasco's starts this season and the Twins are 36-16 to the over in night games this season. Look for the Red Sox over to improve to 10-4 in Saturday games this season as they get back to their big hitting ways after yesterday's dismal effort at the plate. *10* OVER in Boston

MLB Game #919/920 - Slugfest Smash Rickenbach *10* Top Play OVER 10.5 in Boston vs Minnesota @ 7:10 ET - These teams combined for 15 runs for an easy win for my Top Total yesterday and I expect a similar total to result today. Kyle Gibson of the Twins and Eduardo Rodriguez of the Red Sox square off tonight in Boston. The last time these hurlers faced these opponents it also was a match-up against each other and that game totaled 19 runs. Gibson gave up 5 runs in less than 6 innings and Rodriguez gave up 4 runs in less than 5 innings. Although Rodriguez had a strong start last week in his return from AAA, he did face a Yankees team that has often struggled this season against lefties. Also, Rodriguez managed only 1 strikeout in the game and I again expect plenty of contact against the southpaw tonight. With the wind blowing out at Fenway Park this evening and with Rodriguez being homer-prone this season, don't be surprised if the Twins get some dingers in this one. Minnesota has averaged 6 runs per game in their past dozen road games. As for the Red Sox, they are averaging 6 runs per game in their home games and they should have no trouble with the offerings of Gibson here. He has allowed 8 earned runs on 17 hits in the 11 innings of work spanning his last two starts. Gibson has a 6.75 ERA and 1.85 WHIP in his road start this year. The over is 16-9 in Twins games against left-handed starters this season and 36-15 in their night games this year. The over is 40-29 in Red Sox games against right-handed starters this season. *10* OVER 10.5 in Boston 

Rickenbach Game #963/964 - Slugfest Smash MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10 in Boston vs Minnesota @ 7:10 ET - The Red Sox finally got their sticks going again in yesterday's offensive onslaught against the Giants. I look for carry over of momentum for the BoSox lineup from that big victory right into tonight's game. Boston will be facing Tyler Duffey of the Twins and he has allowed at least 4 earned runs in 9 of his last 11 starts. Duffey will be opposed by knuckle-baller Steven Wright of the Red Sox who has hit a very tough stretch over the past month. Wright has given up 15 earned runs on 27 hits in the less than 22 innings of work spanning his last 4 outings. Minnesota will fare better against him than they did last month as they now get a quick second look at his offerings and he is in a downward cycle. Duffey was the opposing starter in that outing coincidentally and he got rocked for 6 earned runs on 10 hits in 5 and 1/3 innings of work. The over is 8-4 in all of Duffey's starts this season and 6-3 in all of Wright's home starts this year. The Twins scored 10 runs in their last 2 games at Detroit (both victories) so they have some momentum coming into Fenway Park. The over is 22-11 this season in Twins games when they are off of a win. Also, Minnesota is 35-15 to the over in night games this year. The Red Sox and Twins have played 3 games this season and none have stayed under the total. Look for the over to improve to 7-2 in Thursday BoSox games this season. *10* OVER in Boston

Rickenbach Divisional Game of the Month MLB *10* Top Play UNDER 8 in Philadelphia vs Miami @ 7:05 ET - The Phillies have been one of the streakiest teams in the league this season. They were hot early in the year and getting great pitching. Then the Phils started struggling and endured long losing stretches. Then they got hot again and even started winning games with their sticks. Now though they have reverted back to their season long struggles at the plate and I expect that to continue today. The Phillies are facing a southpaw and they rank last in the league against left-handed pitching for runs scored, home runs, and slugging percentage. That is out of all 30 teams in the majors, the Phillies are dead last. In the last 11 games for Philadelphia, only one has resulted in an over. The Phils have been getting good starting pitching again and that should continue today with Jeremy Hellickson on the mound. Each of his last 5 starts have stayed under the total and the Phillies righty has a solid 2.90 ERA during this stretch. He has held the Marlins to a 3.97 ERA in his 6 career starts against them and 5 of those 6 outings resulted in an under. 8 of the Marlins last 12 games have stayed under the total and Miami is also 10-4 to the under in Wednesday games this season. As a home dog of +100 to +125, the Phillies are 9-4 to the under this season. 12 of their 19 games against left-handed starters have resulted in unders this season. The Marlins have been held to 8 hits or less in 6 of their last 9 games. The Phils have been held to 5 hits or less in 3 straight games and 4 of their 5 games since the All Star Break. Wei-Yin Chen has a 1.11 WHIP on the road this season which is outstanding. His biggest problem recently has come via the long-ball but the Phillies have struggled to generate power against southpaws all season long. That sets this one up nicely for another pitchers' duel. *10* UNDER in Philadelphia

Rickenbach Slugfest Smash MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Oakland vs Houston @ 3:35 ET - The Astros Doug Fister has had great success against the A's this season but Oakland will now be seeing him for the fourth time this year. Fister also was hit harder in his only start that was at Oakland this season and the other two starts were in Houston including a solid outing two weeks ago. Looking at Fister's other recent starts (his last three not against the A's) he has given up 12 earned runs on 22 hits in 16 and 1/3 innings. Look for more struggles for him here. The Athletics will have some pitching issues of their own here. Daniel Mengden gets the start and the right-hander is having an awful July. So far this month he has a 10.80 ERA and a 2.10 WHIP. Also, in his lone start against the Astros this season he was rocked for 6 earned runs in less than 5 innings of work. Yesterday's game between these divisional foes stayed under the total but that was just the 2nd under the Astros have had since the All Star Break and it was the first one for the A's since the break. The over is a perfect 4-0 in Mengden's last 4 starts. Also, the over is 23-13 in A's games against teams with a winning record this season. As a home dog of +100 to +125 Oakland is 7-3 to the over this season. As a road fave of -100 to -150 the Astros have gone 19-10 to the over this season. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach Slugfest MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11.5 in Colorado vs Tampa Bay @ 8:40 ET - As a road dog of +100 to +125 the Rays are 10-2 to the over this season. The over is 6-2 in Tampa Bay's Monday games this year and the over is 8-2 in Rockies inter-league games this season. Colorado got shutout yesterday. The last 4 times they scored three runs or less they responded with a big effort at the plate each time averaging 9 runs per game in the process. The Rockies should have no problem with the offerings of the Rays Drew Smyly here. The Tampa Bay southpaw is an ugly 2-10 on the season and he has given up at least 4 earned runs per game in 7 of his last 8 starts! His ERA over this rough two month stretch is a 7.92 and going to hitter-friendly Coors Field is unlikely to help matters for Smyly! He'll be opposed by the Rockies Tyler Anderson tonight and the young southpaw has an impressive ERA this season but he's been quite fortunate. He has an amazing 2.63 ERA at home this year despite getting hit at a .313 clip at Coors Field! Anderson has given up 25 hits in less than 18 innings of work spanning his last 3 home starts. It catches up with him here. The Rays have a .471 slugging percentage against lefties this season and that is #1 in the American League. The Rockies have a ridiculous .533 slugging percentage in home games this season which is far and away the best mark in the majors. This one gets crazy EARLY in the thin air of Denver. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach Slugfest MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 in Oakland vs Toronto @ 4:05 ET Sunday - This will be a contrarian play and I am taking advantage of the early line move here from an 8.5 down to an 8. Certainly I understand the move based on this match-up of crafty left-handed pitchers but there is plenty of reason to expect a lot of offense in this one. Afternoon games at Oakland are a little more hitter-friendly as you don't have the same dense night air you have in night games along the West Coast. Additionally, the wind is going to be blowing out at Oakland Coliseum Sunday afternoon. The over is 16-5 this season in Oakland's games against left-handed starters as they have hit southpaws well this season. Sunday they face the Blue Jays J.A. Happ who gave up 5 earned runs in 5 innings in his most recent road start. Also, Happ has given up 3 earned runs in each of his last 2 starts against the Athletics. Rich Hill gets the start for the Blue Jays tonight and he allowed 3 earned runs in his only recent start against the Blue Jays. Also, although he has impressive numbers this season Hill has been dealing with a blister on his throwing hand which certainly could be an issue as he tries to command his pitches Sunday. It did push his start back from it's original schedule and he could be a little rusty here. The A's are 22-12 to the over this season in their games against teams with a winning record. *10* OVER 8 in Oakland

Rickenbach Divisional Total of the Month MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs in New York Yankees vs Boston @ 4:05 ET - A pair of struggling southpaws match up at Yankee Stadium Saturday afternoon and that means, even though the Yanks have had some struggles with lefties this season, there should be a barrage of hits against Boston's Eduardo Rodriguez in this one. The southpaw has gone winless with an 11.54 ERA in his last 3 starts. His lefty counterpart tonight is C.C. Sabathia who is likely to get lit up by Boston. Sabathia is also winless in his last 3 starts and he has a 7.71 ERA during this stretch. The veteran left-hander has in fact allowed 5 earned runs or more in 4 straight starts! The over, heading into the All Star Break, was on a 14-5-3 run in Yankees games. The over in Boston games was on a 12-6 run heading into the All Star Break. The mindset of Rodriguez for the Red Sox also could be called into question because his winless in the 7 starts he has made at the minor league level as well this season. Yankees bats should have no trouble with his offerings while Boston has one of the most dangerous lineups in baseball and should have no trouble pounding a struggling hurler whom they are very familiar with. Indeed Sabathia's struggles continue. The over is 9-3 in Red Sox Saturday games this season and Boston entered last night's action with a mark of 8-2 to the over this season in road games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. Yankees are 5-1 to the over this season in home games where their money line is -100 to -125. *10* OVER in New York Yankees

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 9 runs in Philadelphia vs New York Mets @ 7:05 ET Friday - Bartolo Colon gets the start for the Mets Friday. Although he was successful in shutting down the Phillies quite well in a pair of starts in April, the Phils were winning with pitching back then. Philadelphia's current winning streak has been thanks to hitting and they're catching Colon at the right time to do some damage. Not only are they seeing him for a 3rd time this season but also he was rocked for 6 earned runs on 10 hits in less than 5 innings of work in his final start before the all star break. He'll be opposed by the Phillies Jeremy Hellickson in this one. The veteran righty gave up 4 earned runs on 10 hits in only 4 and 1/3 innings of work the last time he faced the Mets and they'll be seeing him for a 3rd time this season. Hellickson has not pitched as well in evening games as he has under the sun as he has a 2.78 ERA in day games but a 4.50 ERA in night games this season. Citizens Bank Field is hitter-friendly and the Phillies entered the All Star Break having gone 23-13 to the over in their last 36 games! The Mets 56 homers on the road ranks them 4th in the National League and I look for some fireworks as they have already hit 3 homers in Hellickson's 10 innings against them this season. *10* OVER in Philadelphia Friday

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 in National League vs American League @ 8:15 ET Tuesday - Unlike the NFL (Pro Bowl) or NBA (All Star Game), the MLB game is anything but meaningless. The fact that the World Series host league is decided based on who wins this game definitely has helped to keep the competition level up for this game. That said, I look for another dandy this year. Even though Petco Park is certainly known as a pitcher-friendly park, the Padres have surprisingly been recording a lot of overs in their home park this season. This has been especially true over more than the past month too so it's no fluke. Certainly San Diego's home park is no hitters' park but the production at the plate here has been stronger than usual this season. Three of the last four All Star games have totaled at least 8 runs and, though it was more than two decades ago, historians will be glad to know the last time an All Star Game was held in San Diego it totaled 19 runs! This season overall in the big leagues it has been notable that offense does seem to be "up" on the year. Even in April there seemed to be more high-scoring games than usual but certainly once the warmer weather of May and June (and now July) arrived, the scoring really seems to be on an "uptick" this season. Of course it goes without saying that there will be plenty of talented pitchers as well as talented players in San Diego for this one. The keys for me are the fact that hitters have had the upper hand quite often this season and the fact that Petco Park has been playing to unusually high-scoring games this season. The past 7 weeks the over is 16-7 (70%) in games played at Petco Park. For the 4th time in the past 5 years, and with plenty to play for again this season, I look for at least 8 runs to be scored in the MLB All Star Game. *10* OVER in MLB All Star Game Tuesday

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Kansas City vs Seattle @ 2:15 ET - Yesterday's game stayed just under the total but, based on the pitching match-up and the wind blowing out to left at a good clip this afternoon, a slugfest can be expected Sunday. The Mariners are starting Mike Montgomery. The southpaw has pitched well out of the bullpen this season but is now making a spot start for Seattle. The M's lefty struggled often in the starting role last year and, in his last three starts of 2015, Montgomery gave up 17 earned runs on 23 hits in less than 10 innings of work! He's facing a Royals team that did get the sticks going again yesterday as they pounded out 12 hits in only 8 innings! Kansas City is hitting .286 against left-handed pitching this season which is good for the #2 spot out of all 30 MLB teams. Seattle is hitting .266 against right-handed pitching and that is good for the #5 spot among AL teams. The Mariners should have no trouble with the offerings of Dillon Gee. The Royals right-hander was 0-3 with a 7.90 ERA last season with the Mets in 8 games (7 starts) and he got hit at a .329 clip! This season, opponents are hitting .299 against Gee and that includes his numbers out of the pen but he's been even worse as a starter. This will be just his 5th start of the season and he's making a spot start here. Gee has gone 2-2 with a 6.05 ERA and a 1.81 WHIP this year as a starter. Gee has been particularly roughed up in his last two starts and they both went over the total. This one should too because neither pitcher is likely to enjoy success here and the Mariners had gone 8-6 and averaged 5 runs per game in their last 14 games before yesterday's tough effort at the plate. The Royals are averaging 5 runs per game in their last 13 home games and will build off of yesterday's strong effort at the plate. *10* OVER in Kansas City

Rickenbach AL Total of the Month *10* Top Play OVER 11.5 in Texas vs Minnesota @ 9:05 ET - The Rangers are turning to Kyle Lohse for this start. That is unlikely to have positive results for Texas as Lohse is 3-5 with a 5.06 ERA in his 10 starts at AAA Round Rock this season down in the minors. In his most recent MLB activity, last season, Lohse compiled a 5-13 record with Milwaukee as he was done in by a 5.85 ERA and getting hit at a .297 clip. The 37 year old right-hander is simply not the pitcher he once was and the Twins should pound him. Yesterday's game went over the total and Minnesota had had just 3 unders in their last 10 games. The Twins have produced 6.4 runs per game while averaging nearly 10 hits per game in their last 12 games. Lohse faced Minny twice last season and he gave up 9 earned runs in 12 innings against the Twins. Minnesota has a pitching concern of their own in this game. Ricky Nolasco gets the start and he is 3-7 with a 5.26 ERA on the season plus he has allowed 14 earned runs on 23 hits in the 18 and 1/3 innings spanning his last 3 starts. His last game stayed under the total but that was just the 3rd under in 17 Nolasco starts this season! Yes indeed, he has been an "over machine" in 2016. Texas has also been an "over machine" of late as they have had just 3 unders in their last 12 games. The Rangers are a top 5 team this season for home batting average (.281) and the Twins are averaging 7.6 runs per game in their last 7 games. The over is an incredible 26-12 in Minnesota's games against teams with a winning record this season and even more incredible 34-12 in Twins night games this season! The Rangers have scored at least 5 runs in 12 of their last 16 games and both teams have had bullpen issues this season too. All signs point to an absolute slugfest here. *10* OVER 11.5 in Texas

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 10 in Toronto vs Detroit @ 7:05 ET - The Tigers Mike Pelfrey is off of a RARE good start as he held the Rays in check in Tampa Bay Sunday. He still is winless on the road this season and has a 5.42 ERA on the year. Also, even including that good start, Pelfrey has allowed 30 hits in the less than 17 innings of work spanning his last three starts. Now he faces a red hot Blue Jays team that has won 6 straight games and is on a 9-4 run in their last 13 games that has seen Toronto produce an average of nearly 7 runs per game! Pelfrey has been rocked for 9 earned runs in the 10 and 1/3 innings spanning his last two starts against the Blue Jays. He'll be opposed by Toronto's J.A. Happ this evening in Toronto. The Jays southpaw has led his team to only 1 win in his 5 career starts against the Tigers while producing a 5.16 ERA in those outings. In his 3 starts against Detroit within the past year, Happ has been rocked for 13 earned runs in 16 innings of work. The over is 6-2 in Happ's 8 home starts this season. Pelfrey's most recent start was a surprising one that stayed under the total but 7 of his 11 prior starts went over the total and I look for a return to "normalcy" for the ultra hittable Pelfrey tonight. Detroit's games against team with a winning record this season have gone 30-15 (67%) to the over. The Tigers, before last night's 5-4 loss here, had won 7 of their last 9 games and averaged nearly 7 runs per game during the hot streak. Plenty of pop in both of these lineups and plenty of reason to believe both hurlers struggle tonight. *10* OVER in Toronto 

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 12 in Colorado vs Philadelphia @ 8:40 ET - The Phillies Adam Morgan has a 1.60 WHIP. The Rockies Chad Bettis has a 1.52 WHIP. Allowing too many base-runners (measured by Walks and Hits per Inning Pitched) is a key measurement in looking at all MLB match-ups but it is especially key at Coors Field. That's because it is the most hitter-friendly ballpark in the entire league and the ball carries so well that big innings are commonplace in this venue. Yes the total of 12 (and possibly moving to 12.5 or higher) is certainly a big number but it is absolutely justified in this situation. The Phillies have been hitting the ball very well. The Phils 4-3 win yesterday makes them 9-3 their last 12 games. Philadelphia has averaged scoring 6 runs per game in these dozen games! The Rockies, as so typically happens, struggled to score runs on their west coast road trip that wrapped up last night in San Francisco. However, Colorado is thrilled to be back home where they are simply a different team! The Rockies are hitting .305 at home this season (and remember the pitcher bats too in NL parks so this is an insane team batting average) and Colorado has averaged 6.34 runs per game at Coors Field. The Phillies Morgan has a 6.55 ERA on the season and the Rockies Bettis has a 6.69 ERA in his 7 home starts this season. 4 of his last 5 home starts have gone over the total while Morgan's starts have resulted in 5 straight overs! I expect 6-0, 100% here and I also expect the Rockies to improve to 8-0, 100% overs in Thursday games this season. Two 100% streaks being tested here. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Washington vs Milwaukee @ 4:05 ET - Matt Garza has a 3.74 ERA on the season in his limited action thusfar but he's been about as lucky as you can be. Garza has given up 29 hits in less than 22 innings of work spanning his 4 starts. One of those starts came against the Nationals less than 2 weeks ago so the Nats will be getting a quick second look at him. Likewise, Washington's Tanner Roark just faced the Brewers less than 2 weeks ago so Milwaukee is getting a quick second look at him. These types of scenarios (especially with two mediocre pitchers) usually work out well for the hitters! Roark has allowed 15 hits in the 14 innings spanning his last two starts but amazingly has given up only 2 earned runs during this time. His "luck" runs out today in a rematch with the Brewers. Yesterday's game was a 5-2 Milwaukee win and there hasn't been much scoring so far in this series but that should change on a mild afternoon in DC with favorable conditions for the hitters. The ball should be jumping off the bats today and Garza is not a strikeout pitcher and Roark's strikeout numbers have been trending downward of late. This is one of those contrarian plays where the public sees two guys with low ERAs but I see two pitchers who have been fortunate and are currently over-rated as a result. Roark was 4-7 with a 4.38 ERA and a .279 BAA last season. Garza was 6-14 with a 5.63 ERA and was hit at a .294 clip last season. Back to reality for these two hurlers today as the bats come alive in the finale! *10* OVER in Washington

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Philadelphia vs Atlanta @ 7:05 ET - With yesterday's 8-2 Phillies victory, the Braves have now gone 6-2 to the over in their last 8 games and Philadelphia is now 22-10 to the over since June 1st. Earlier this season it was the Phillies pitching staff that was a key in their surprising solid start to the season. Then, after a slump followed the hot start, it is now the Phillies lineup that is leading the resurgence. Philadelphia has averaged 6 runs per game in their last 13 games and they have won 8 of their last 11 games! The Phillies Zach Eflin gets the start today and the over is 3-1 in his 4 starts so far. His first start, his MLB debut, looks like the ugliest outing he's had but though his stats indicate he may have recovered a bit from that he truly hasn't. Eflin gave up 4 runs (3 earned) to the Diamondbacks in his most recent start. In his prior start, at San Francisco, the numbers look okay but he gave up a ton of line drives in that game and was just fortunate that many were caught for outs. Eflin doesn't get many strikeouts and contact at Citizens Bank Park can be a problem. He'll be opposed by Mike Foltynewicz and he only went 3 innings in his return from the disabled list as his start was shortened due to rain. He was not overly impressive in that outing and he certainly wasn't overly impressive in his lone career start against the Phils which was last season as he allowed 4 earned runs in 5 and 1/3 innings. That game went over the total and Atlanta is 17-9 to the over this season in games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs. The Phillies are 46-31 to the over the past three seasons in home games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs. *10* OVER 8.5 in Philadelphia

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs in New York Mets vs Miami @ 4:10 ET - The Marlins are off of a 5-2 win over the Braves in a game played at Fort Bragg, NC Sunday night as part of the special festivities surrounding the July 4th weekend. Miami could have scored much more than the 5 runs they pushed across the plate in that game as the Marlins ended up stranding 10 baserunners in that game. Miami has averaged 5 runs per game in their last 9 games and the over is 8-1 in these games. The Marlins should have no trouble with the offerings of the Mets Matt Harvery as he is struggling right now. Though his last start was cut short by rain, it is not as if Harvey was enjoying success in that start anyway. The Mets right-hander walked 3 and gave up 4 hits in less than 4 innings of work in the rain-shortened outing. Prior to the start against the Nats, Harvey had given up at least 4 earned runs in 4 of his last 8 starts. He's given up 19 hits in the 15 and 2/3 innings spanning his last 3 starts. He won't be the only starter struggling this afternoon. Tom Koehler gets the start for the Marlins and he has given up 9 earned runs on 15 hits in his last 9 innings of work. Now he takes on a Mets team that exploded for 14 runs yesterday afternoon and will be stepping to the plate with plenty of confidence this afternoon. Each of Koehler's last three starts against the Mets have gone over the total. As a road dog of +125 to +150, the over is 5-1 in Marlins games this season. The Mets lineup is likely to stay red hot after their 4-game sweep of the Cubs that saw New York average 8 runs per game. Low total here and considering the overall mediocre recent results of these two starting pitchers, I am happy to take advantage of the low number here. *10* OVER in New York Mets

Rickenbach MLB 1st Half TOTAL OF THE YEAR *10* OVER 8.5 in Oakland vs Pittsburgh @ 4:05 ET - Make no mistake, Daniel Mengden has pitched surprisingly well for Oakland since his call-up from the minors. However, he does not have overpowering stuff and I expect him to struggle against the red-hot Pirates this afternoon. With their 4-2 win yesterday, Pittsburgh is 6-2 in their last 8 games and has averaged 5.4 runs per game during this stretch. Oakland also has been swinging the bats well. Prior to being held to 2 runs yesterday, the Athletics had averaged 6.9 runs per game in their last 9 games. Oakland should certainly bounce back against the Pirates Francisco Liriano today. Not only has the Pirates southpaw been struggling, the A's rank 8th out of all 30 MLB teams for slugging percentage against left-handed pitching. This has played a big role in the over being 14-4 in Oakland's games against southpaw starters this season! Liriano is 1-4 with a 6.98 ERA in his 7 road starts this season. The Pirates lefty has been issuing too many walks and is having trouble with location of his pitches in the strike zone. This has played a key role in Liriano allowing at least 4 earned runs in 5 of his last 6 starts. The Pittsburgh southpaw has walked 29 in the 36 innings spanning his last 7 starts. The over is 21-10 this season in Pirates games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs. Pittsburgh's interleague games are 10-4 to the over this season and day games have gone 17-9 to the over. The over is 37-23 in Pirates games against right-handed starters and the over is 19-6 in their games against teams with a losing record. The A's pound Liriano as they look to avoid the sweep but I also expect Mengden (0-3 in day games) to come back to reality after pitching "over his head" so far at the big league level. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB Slugfest *10* Top Play OVER 10 in Boston vs Los Angeles Angels @ 7:15 ET - Yesterday's game between these clubs was unbelievable. The teams combined for 28 hits but yet scored only 9 runs. It was one of the worst beats on an over that I have seen in a long time. We should get redemption today by coming right back with the same selection as the pitching match-up is conducive to an over and both teams are swinging the bats well as evidenced yesterday. The Angels will have Hector Santiago and he has struggled in most of his starts since late April. The Los Angeles southpaw has had only 3 quality starts out of his 12 starts dating back to April 29th. The over is 9-2 in Santiago's last 11 starts and he has a 6.48 ERA in his last 12 starts. He gave up 6 earned runs versus Oakland last week and gave up 8 hits in 5 innings the last time he faced the Red Sox. Boston will have Clay Buchholz on the mound this evening and he gave up 6 earned runs in 6 innings the last time he faced the Angels. Also, like Santiago, he has struggled for much of this season. He allowed 4 earned runs in his most recent start and that was the 8th time in 12 starts this season that Buchholz has allowed 4 earned runs or more. Buchholz again had command issues with his pitches in his start last week versus the Rangers. The over is 8-2 in Red Sox Saturday games this season. When Boston is a home fave of -150 to -175 this season the over has hit 80% of the time. The Angels loss yesterday was their fourth straight and they are 24-12 to the over the past three seasons combined when they enter a game on a losing streak of 3 games or more. *10* OVER 10 in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10 in Boston vs LA Angels @ 7:10 ET - Both of these clubs were off on Thursday. The Red Sox are off of a shutout loss on Wednesday at Tampa Bay. That is only the 3rd time this season that Boston has been shutout. After each of the first two, the BoSox next game resulted in an over. I expect another one here. The Red Sox should pound Jhoulys Chacin. The Angels right-hander was somewhat rejuvenated after arriving to the Angels from the Braves earlier this season. However, Chacin has certainly quickly reverted to his old form and that has seen him get pounded. In his last three starts Chacin has a 10.03 ERA and a 2.49 WHIP. None of his last 5 starts have resulted in unders and the Angels righty has given up 21 earned runs in the 22 innings spanning these 5 outings. Chacin has given up 9 earned runs on 15 hits in his last 9 innings against the Red Sox. Boston will have Steven Wright on the mound this evening and the knuckleballer certainly has put up some strong numbers this season. However, he gave up 6 earned runs in 5 innings when he most recently faced the Angels and that was last July. Wright is coming off of a tough start at Texas where the Rangers got to him for 8 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits and a pair of walks in less than 5 innings of work. The Angels have gone over the total in 5 of their last 7 games and are averaging 10.6 hits per game in their last 8 games. The Red Sox were averaging 10.3 hits per game in their last 7 games before the ultra rare shutout at Tampa Bay Wednesday. The BoSox bounce back at home today and the Angels sticks stay hot and pound out double digits in hits yet again. The over is 11-5 the past three seasons when the Angels are off of a game where they allowed 10 runs or more. The over is 24-11 the last three seasons when the Angels enter a game on a losing streak of 3 games or more. The over is 35-23 in Boston's games against right-handed starting pitchers this season. The over is 26-15 in Red Sox games against teams with a losing record this season. *10* OVER 10 in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs in New York Mets vs Chicago Cubs @ 7:10 ET - A pair of solid hurlers with overall good numbers on the year is keeping this total lower than it would otherwise be given the following facts. The Cubs John Lackey has a 6.61 ERA in his last three start and the Mets Steven Matz also has a 6.61 ERA in his last three starts. Lackey has given up three homers in his last two starts and the wind is expected to be blowing out at Citi Field tonight. Though it is generally a pitcher-friendly venue, Citi Field will be a little friendlier than usual to the hitters tonight. Lackey particularly struggled at Miami in his most recent start and I look for him to again get hit hard here. The Mets Matz has allowed 22 hits in his last 3 starts spanning 16 and 1/3 innings. He also has given up a homer in each of his last two starts and did not record a single strikeout in his most recent outing. That is always an alarming stat as it shows that hitters aren't having any trouble seeing (and making contact with) his pitchers. The over is 4-2 in Matz's home starts this season and 2 of Lackey's last 3 road starts have gone over the total. The Cubs have not had a single under in any of their last 6 games. The Cubbies bats have been rejuvenated on this road trip as they averaged 9 runs per game at Cincy and have scored at least 5 runs in 5 of their last 6 games. In their 41 road games this season, the Cubs have had just 15 unders. In their 41 Thursday the games the past three seasons it has also been only 15 unders for the Cubs. Look for this one to easily get over the low total as the normally low-scoring Mets take advantage of catching Lackey at the right time while the Cubs also stay hot at the plate. *10* OVER in New York Mets

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in New York Yankees vs Texas @ 7:05 ET - With their 7-1 win yesterday, the Rangers are now 13-3 in their last 16 games and have averaged 6 runs per game during this hot streak. The Yankees have cooled off a bit at the plate recently but are still averaging 10 hits per game in their last 10 games. Facing the Rangers Nick Martinez Wednesday should bring the Yanks bats right back to life after scoring just a single run yesterday. Martinez has struggled in both of his starts this month since moving into the rotation. He has more walks than strikeouts and also gave up 2 homers in his most recent start. Martinez has given up 8 earned runs in less than 13 innings of work spanning his last two starts against the Yankees. The Yanks got to him for 3 homers in those two outings. Masahiro Tanaka gets the start for the Yankees in this one. He allowed 4 earned runs on 9 hits and 3 walks (for a 2.00 WHIP) in the 6 innings he logged against the Rangers in his only career start against them. Tanaka comes into this home start having allowed 8 earned runs in the 12 and 1/3 innings spanning his last two home starts. In fact, Tanaka has a 5.74 ERA in his last 5 home starts so he's certainly been far from dominant at Yankee Stadium. The Rangers have recently had a lot of unders but that has had a lot to do with getting solid pitching. With Martinez on the mound tonight, that is unlikely to be the case and the Rangers sticks will remain hot as well. In other words, perfect ingredients for an over. The Yankees have had just 2 unders in their last 10 games. Prior to yesterday's defeat, the Yanks had averaged 5 runs per game in going 6-4 in their last 10 games. Look for the Yankees offense to get right back on track tonight. *10* OVER 8.5 in New York Yankees

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Los Angeles Angels vs Houston @ 3:35 ET - With yesterday's 7-1 win, the Astros have now won 9 of their last 10 games and they've averaged 6.5 runs per game during this hot streak. I don't see Jered Weaver being able to slow down the Astros red hot sticks. The veteran right-hander was long-known for excelling in his home starts but, after another rough effort Friday, Weaver has given up 4 earned runs or more in 5 of his last 7 home starts. Not surprisingly, the over is 5-2 in Weaver's last 7 starts. Weaver has allowed 9 earned runs in the less than 12 innings of work spanning his last two starts against Houston. Weaver also has given up 4 homers in his last 3 starts against the Astros. He will be opposed by Dallas Keuchel this afternoon. The southpaw has certainly been the victim of some bad breaks in some of his starts this season but there is no denying he was way too "hittable" in his most recent start as the Royals got to him for 4 earned runs on 11 hits in his 6 innings of work. The left-hander allowed 2 homers in that start and also allowed 2 homers in his most recent outing against the Angels in late May. Keuchel dominated at home last season but was not so dominant on the road last year. This season, he's been far from dominant away from home as Keuchel has a 5.89 ERA in road games in 2016. The fact he only had 2 strike-outs at Kansas City in his most recent start is also cause for concern. The over is 17-8 (68%) the last 3 seasons in Astros road games where they are a fave of -125 to -150. The Houston hot hitting continues here but the Angels sticks will respond after producing just 2 runs yesterday and that means an afternoon slugfest can be expected here. *10* OVER 9 in Los Angeles Angels

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 12 in Colorado vs Toronto @ 8:40 ET - As of early Tuesday morning it appears the wind will be switching around this evening. Even though when the first pitch is made in this game the wind may not be blowing out it is likely that it will end up blowing out for much of this game. That said, I see a lot of value with another over in the dry, thin air at Coors Field tonight. With last night's 9-5 win, the Rockies have now seen 7 straight games go over the total. There is no reason not to expect another one tonight. Colorado crushed the Blue Jays bullpen last night and let's not forget that the Rockies bullpen has been one of the worst in the league this season. That is bad news for Colorado tonight because their starter, Eddie Butler, is unlikely to pitch deep into this game. Butler has a 10.42 ERA and a 2.11 WHIP in his home starts this season. The Rockies righty also has a 10.20 ERA and a 2.27 WHIP in his last 3 starts overall. Facing a Blue Jays lineup that has averaged 6.5 runs per game in their last 12 games isn't going to help matters for Butler! The Rockies will be facing J.A Happ of the Blue Jays tonight. The southpaw faced Colorado twice in the last two months of last season so they have some familiarity with him even though this is an inter-league match-up. The red-hot Rockies have averaged 8 runs per game in going 5-3 in their last 8 games. The over is 3-1 in Butler's 4 home starts this season and the over is 7-1 in the Rockies 8 inter-league games this season. Look for yet another wild one at Coors Field tonight. *10* OVER 12 in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 12 in Colorado vs Toronto @ 8:40 ET - Yesterday's Blue Jays game (at the White Sox) stayed under the total but the Jays had previously gone over the total in 5 of their last 7 road games. The Rockies game (versus Arizona) went over the total yesterday and that made it 6 straight overs in Colorado games. Now the Rockies are back into interleague action again and the over is 6-1 in their interleague games this season. Colorado will have Jon Gray on the mound and he walked 5 in just 4 innings in his most recent start. Gray allowed 4 earned runs in that outing and was diagnosed with a tired arm that forced him to exit early. Even though he's back on track for this start Monday, I do expect him to continue to show signs of fatigue. The Blue Jays hurler tonight also has an injury concern here as Marco Estrada has been having some discomfort in his back. Since he pitched in the National League for much of his career he's faced the Rockies a few times. He has allowed 11 earned runs on 19 hits (including 3 homers) in the less than 11 innings of work spanning his last two outings. Estrada comes into this start as the first pitcher ever to make 11 straight starts of 6+ innings with allowing 5 hits or less in each of the outings. Of course trying to keep that going at Coors Field is about the toughest test a hurler could have and I look for him to struggle again here (just like he did in his most recent start against the Rockies back in 2014). Though all 7 of his home starts have stayed under the total this season, Estrada's road starts have had mixed results in terms of the total while Gray's 5 home starts have yielded just 1 under. Look for the over to go to 22-13 in Rockies home games this season as the warm (and thin air) of Denver continues to lead to crazy slugfest results. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play UNDER 12.5 in Colorado vs Arizona @ 4:10 ET - Yes ,it is hitter friendly Coors Field and yes these teams have been piling up runs in their meetings this season. However, both of the hurlers today are capable of shutting down the opposition. Colorado is hitting 28 points less against lefties than righties this season and they'll be facing southpaw Patrick Corbin whose team has gone 9-2 in his 11 career starts against the Rockies. The last time Corbin pitched at Coors Field he allowed just 2 earned runs in 6 and 1/3 innings on September 1st. As for Arizona, they are hitting 28 points less against righties than lefties and they'll be facing right-hander Chad Bettis who has allowed just 2 earned runs in each of his last two starts while striking out 13 and walking just 1. He's in top form right now with walks down and strikeouts up. He'll have plenty of confidence for this afternoon match-up with the Diamondbacks and the wind most likely will be blowing in from right field in this one. 3 of Corbin's last 4 starts have stayed under the total. Also, the under is 4-1 in Corbin's divisional starts this season. Only 51 of Arizona's 123 day games the past 2+ seasons have gone over the total. Only 3 of the Rockies 10 Sunday games so far this season have resulted in an over. Yesterday's Rockies win was their 35th this season. So far this season Colorado has won just 13 games the 34 times they are off of a win. With a big total to work with here and a pair of starting pitchers likely to work deep into the game and have success, I expect a rather easy totals winner on the short side of this one. *10* UNDER 12.5 in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Kansas City vs Houston @ 7:15 ET - Yesterday's game got crazy right away in the top of the first inning. Error, infield hit, walk, grand slam...it basically had it all. While a repeat of such a huge first inning is unlikely here it absolutely should be another easy over on a warm night in Kansas City with the wind expected to be blowing out to left field at Kauffman Stadium. Though the Royals Chris Young has pitched better of late he is well known for having issues with the long ball and, before allowing just 1 in each of his last 2 starts, Young allowed 4 homers in an outing at Cleveland. The Astros are a power-hitting team and, as you would expect, that is the type of club that gives Young problems. The veteran righty has allowed 7 homers in his last 3 starts against Houston. Also, in Young's last two starts against the Astros he has given up 13 earned runs on 17 hits in the less than 8 innings of work spanning those two outings. He'll be opposed by Michael Fiers tonight. The Astros right-hander is 0-2 with a 7.36 ERA in his two career starts against the Royals. Fiers has been solid at home for Houston this season but the Astros are 1-4 in his 5 road starts this season as he's been rocked for a 6.43 ERA away from home. 4 of those 5 Fiers road starts went over the total and the over is 6-2 in the Royals last 8 games after yesterday's easy over. When Houston is on the road and priced as a small fave of -100 to -125, the over is 8-3 this season. Look for the over to improve to 7-2 in the Royals last 9 games as KC also could get a boost with the return of Alex Gordon to the lineup today. Either way, yesterday's 25 hits is a sign of what should be expected throughout this weekend series. *10* OVER in Kansas City

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11.5 in Colorado vs Arizona @ 4:10 ET - Both bullpens got crushed in yesterday's game and that could be a significant factor today as neither one of these starting pitchers has been an "innings-eater" this season. The Diamondbacks Miller has averaged 4.8 innings per start while the Rockies De La Rosa has averaged 4.3 innings per start. Miller is off of a rare solid start for Arizona but he faced a floundering Phillies team. Prior to that effort, Miller had given up 22 earned runs in his last 31 innings. Colorado's De La Rosa has been pitching better of late since he returned to the rotation but he allowed 3 homers in his last start and that's certainly a bad sign that he's reverting to his old form of leaving too many pitches in the wrong part of the zone. That is part of what has led to his ugly 8.57 ERA on the season. Also, though the wind is not expected to be a huge factor one way or the other today, there is a chance it will be switching around and blowing out during this game with warm afternoon conditions favoring an over as well. All 4 of De La Rosa's home starts have gone over the total this season and Arizona leads the majors in slugging percentage (.492) against left-handed pitching. The over is 20-11 in Dbacks games against teams with a losing record this season. With last night's game crushing it for 19 runs, the over is 12-6 in Rockies home games with a posted total of 11 or 11.5 runs this season. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in Texas vs Boston @ 8:05 ET - The Red Sox had recently hit a lull with some surprisingly low-scoring games but yesterday's 8-7 win marked the 2nd straight "wild one" with the White Sox as the teams combined for 29 runs and 50 hits in the last 2 games of the series. Look for the Boston bats to stay hot as they head to Texas now. Even though David Price is on the mound for the BoSox tonight, another wild one should be expected. The Rangers have pounded left-handed pitching this season. Their .289 batting average against southpaws ranks them 1st in the majors. Price is 3-8 with a 5.14 ERA in his career outings against the Rangers so Texas certainly hasn't been one of his favorite places to visit. He's allowed at least 4 earned runs in 2 of his last 3 meetings with the Rangers. Texas is going to have a pitching concern of their own tonight as Nick Martinez certainly wasn't sharp against the Cardinals Saturday. The Rangers right-hander was unable to complete 5 innings as he allowed 8 baserunners in 4 and 1/3 innings while striking out just 1. He was fortunate the damage wasn't worse than the 3 earned runs he allowed. Last season Martinez had a 5.79 ERA and a .303 batting average against after the all star break and his first start shows he's carried those struggles right into this season. Even in the minors this season he was getting hit at a .292 clip. The over is 16-7 in Boston's games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs this season. Included in that record is a 6-2 over mark when the Red Sox are on the road. The Rangers are 16-10 to the over this season in home games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. *10* OVER in Texas

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10.5 in Colorado vs Arizona @ 8:40 ET - The Rockies lost 9-8 in the Bronx yesterday but that marked the 9th time in their last 12 games that Colorado has scored at least 5 runs. The Diamondbacks are also off of a loss yesterday and were held to just 2 runs at Toronto but Arizona had previously won 5 straight games and averaged 5 runs per game during the hot streak. The Dbacks should certainly have no problems with the offerings of Colorado's Eddie Butler. The right-hander had made three appearances in June, including two starts. Butler has been rocked for 24 hits and he has also walked six in the 13 and 1/3 innings spanning these three games. In his 3 home starts this season (and the wind is likely to be blowing out tonight at hitter-friendly Coors Field), Butler has a 10.29 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP. He'll be opposed by Arizona's Zack Greinke tonight and that is what is helping to keep this total lower than it should be (given that it's Coors Field and should be hitter-friendly weather conditions). Greinke has impressive numbers this season and so certainly many may expect him to dominate here. However, Coors Field is a unique challenge for pitchers and Greinke is no exception. He allowed 5 earned runs on 10 hits in 6 innings while striking out just 2 in his most recent visit here. Also, Greinke has faced the Rockies twice (both in Arizona) this season and he has allowed 9 earned runs on 17 hits (including 3 homers) in 11 innings of work. The Rockies hitters will be stepping up to the plate with confidence in this one and Colorado is hitting nearly .300 at home while averaging 6 runs per game. The over is 6-0 in Rockies Thursday games this season. The over is 18-11 in Diamondbacks games against teams with a losing record so far this season. *10* OVER 10.5 in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 in Miami vs Chicago Cubs @ 7:10 ET - The Marlins Wei-Yin Chen got rocked for 6 earned runs in less than 3 innings of work in his most recent start. That outing was against the Rockies and it was NOT at hitter-friendly Coors Field either. Chen's prior two starts saw him allow 7 home runs in his two outings prior to the debacle versus Colorado. The Marlins southpaw is simply in awful current form right now. Even though the Cubs have been scuffling a bit at the plate lately this is still one of the most dangerous lineups in the league and facing a struggling southpaw is likely to bring out the best in them. What is helping to keep this total lower than it should be (opened up at a 7.5) is the fact that Jon Lester is on the mound for the Cubs. However, the left-hander is off of a very fortunate start in his most recent outing as he allowed 11 base-runners (but only 3 runs) in his start against the Pirates. He now faces a Miami team that crushed him for 6 earned runs in 5 innings when they faced him last season. The over is 5-1 in Lester's road starts this season. Also, the over is on a 5-1 streak in Chen's starts. When the Cubs are a road favorite in a price range of -150 to -175 this season, the over has gone 7-1 (88%). Additionally, the over is 5-2 this season (and 25-14 the last 3 seasons) in Cubs Thursday games. The over is 45-33 in Marlins games against left-handed starters the past three seasons. Additionally, the over is 24-16 in Thursday games during this 3-year stretch. The Marlins rested Stanton and Prado in yesterday's early afternoon game but I expected those key sticks to be back in the lineup this evening. *10* OVER in Miami 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in Boston vs Chicago White Sox @ 7:10 ET - Back to back 3-1 games to open up this 4-game series with a pair of easy unders. Look for the low-scoring trend to come to an abrupt end on Wednesday evening. The Red Sox are sending Eduardo Rodriguez to the mound and he is winless with an 8.59 ERA and a 1.84 WHIP in his last 3 starts. The struggling southpaw gave up 6 homers in those 3 starts even though he averaged under 5 innings per outing. While Boston will struggle to hold the ChiSox offense in check tonight, the Red Sox lineup should provide plenty of fireworks on their own. Yes, the BoSox have struggled the last few games at the plate but they are getting a second look at Jose Quintana after seeing him last month. The White Sox lefty has been an "under machine" this season but he has given up 4 homers in his last 4 starts. Also, in the month of June he has been hit at a .275 clip. On the season, right-handed hitters have hit Quintana 71 points higher than lefties and last season the margin of difference was 50 points. He will face plenty of right-handed lumber in the BoSox lineup tonight and I look for his recent struggles to resume. Before struggling the first two games of this series, Boston had reached double digits in hits in 6 of their last 9 games. The over is 15-7 this season in Red Sox games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs and also 23-14 this season in their games against teams with a losing record. The over is 4-1 in White Sox road games this season with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. *10* OVER 9.5 in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in Texas vs Cincinnati @ 8:05 ET - The Rangers Colby Lewis is off of an incredible start where he had a perfect game into the 8th inning and a no-hitter into the 9th inning. Oftentimes when a pitcher like this (4.50 ERA and .289 BAA at home this season) is off of a phenomenal start, they quickly come crashing back down to reality. The fact is that Lewis is known for struggling at hitter-friendly Globe Life Park in Arlington. Last season he had a 5.07 ERA in his home starts. In 2014, Lewis went 3-9 with a 5.90 ERA and .315 BAA. Look for Lewis to again struggle tonight as he's back home off of a lengthy outing where he logged 109 pitches as he was going for the no-no. The over is 6-1 in the 7 home starts that Lewis has made this season. He'll be opposed by Anthony DeSclafani of the Reds. The Cincinnati right-hander struggled in what was just his 2nd start of the season. He's fortunate, to say the least, that he has a 2.08 ERA so far this season as he has a 2.31 WHIP in his 8 and 2/3 innings on the mound. DeSclafani has been hit a .389 clip in his limited action this season but the fact is he's been hit hard at the MLB level with a .282 BAA in his 226+ career innings. Even in the minors the young righty has struggled this year. At the AA and AAA level combined, DeSclafani gave up 11 earned runs in 17 innings of work. Amazingly, he allowed 6 homers in those 17 innings at the minor league level! The over is 3-1 this season when the Reds are off of a shutout loss and they lost 6-0 to Houston on Sunday. The over is 32-19 this season in Cincinnati's games against right-handed starters. As a home favorite in the -175 to -225 range the Rangers are on a long-term 115-76 run to the over. Look for the over to improve to 9-3 in Rangers Tuesday games this year with another wild one tonight. *10* OVER in Texas

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 in Cleveland vs Tampa Bay @ 7:10 ET - There were 5 homers hit in yesterday's game and it finished with 11 runs in Cleveland's 7-4 win. Contrary to what many are likely expecting here, I am well known as a contrarian and I fully expect another rather high-scoring match-up tonight. A low total is being offered on today's game because of the long-term reputation of Corey Kluber of the Indians. This is a great value for over players today because Kluber is coming off of a rough start plus he has struggled often in his outings at home this season. Kluber got rocked at Kansas City in his start last week as he allowed 8 earned runs in only 5 innings of work. Now the Indians right-hander is back home where his last start was a successful one, also against the Royals. But prior to that strong outing at home, Kluber had given up at least 4 earned runs in 4 of his first 5 home starts this season. This is hardly "ace like" production and I look for Kluber to again struggle tonight as the Rays have gotten to him for 10 earned runs the last 3 times they've faced him. Tampa Bay will have pitching issues of their own tonight as the Rays hand the ball to Blake Snell for tonight's start. The young lefty didn't even make it out of the 4th inning in his start last week and yet it took him 92 pitches just to get to that point (1 out in the 4th inning when Snell exited). The 23 year old southpaw allowed 5 runs but was fortunate only 1 was earned as he gave up 8 hits in 3 and 1/3 innings. The over is 11-3 in Cleveland's home games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs this season. The over is 20-9 in Tampa Bay's road games this season. Look for another game to reach double digits in runs tonight as Snell's struggles continue and Kluber has another rough outing which has been a problem for him all season long at home. *10* OVER 8 in Cleveland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10 in Detroit vs Seattle @ 7:10 ET - The Tigers Mike Pelfrey is 1-7 with a 5.30 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP on the season. He's been extremely hittable all season long and he's fortunate that his ERA isn't higher. The veteran right-hander now faces a Mariners team that will be ready to bounce back after being held to just 1 run despite 8 hits in yesterday's game. The M's have averaged 9.4 hits per game in their last 9 games. Before back to back unders 5 of the Mariners last 7 games had gone over the total and I look for that type of trend to resume here as the over is 4-2 in Pelfrey's home starts this season. The Tigers had an extremely disappointing effort at the plate in yesterday's 2-1 loss. However, 5 of Detroit's 6 prior games had gone over the total. The Tigers were averaging 6.4 runs per game in their last 8 games before yesterday's disappointing result. Detroit should be able to bounce back strong against the offerings of Nate Karns. The Mariners righty has a 6.75 ERA and a 1.95 WHIP in his last 3 starts as control has been an issue with far too many walks. Also, only 3 of Karns' last 12 starts have resulted in an under. The Tigers are happy to be back home and the over is 18-8 in their home games this season. Detroit is also 7-1 to the over in their Monday games this season. Against teams with a winning record, the Tigers are 23-10 to the over this season and, against right-handed starters, the Tigers have gone 31-17 to the over this season. Both lineups bounce back from disappointing efforts at the plate as each club resumes the hot hitting that had been on display in recent games. *10* OVER in Detroit

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Oakland vs Los Angeles Angels @ 4:05 ET - Yesterday's game was 7-1 in the top of the 6th inning and the posted total was an 8.5 but the game stalled at that point and did not get the single run it needed to go over the total. That might help limit the market activity on today's total and help to keep it at a 9 but, either way, this is one match-up that should easily fly over the total. Eric Surkamp gets the start for the A's and he hasn't even made it out of the third inning in two of his last three starts. Also, the southpaw is struggling overall with more walks than strikeouts as a starter this season. Surkamp is winless in his 7 starts this season with an ugly 8.07 ERA that is worse (9.25 ERA) at home and that is showing no signs (13.03 ERA last 3 starts) of turning around. As Surkamp continues to head the wrong direction we also continue to see from the Angels Jered Weaver what we've seen with him for many years. That is that he struggles on the road. Through the years he's taken advantage of pitching his home starts at pitcher-friendly Anaheim but has struggled away from home. This season he has a 5.97 ERA on the road and, even though Oakland is generally considered a pitcher-friendly venue, the ball carries better in afternoon games and this is especially true when the wind is blowing out as it is expected to be at a good clip today. Each of Weaver's last 3 starts have gone over the total and the same is true of Surkamp's last 3 starts. Surkamp struggled against the Angels in his lone start against them in April of this year. He allowed 5 hits and 4 walks for 9 baserunners in a start that lasted less than 5 innings. Weaver has been rocked for 10 earned runs in less than 13 innings of work in his last two starts at Oakland. The A's had averaged nearly 6 runs per game in their last 6 games before struggling at the plate yesterday. Against Weaver, they will resume the hot hitting. As for the Angels, with their 7-1 win yesterday, they have averaged 6 runs per game in winning 3 of their last 4 games. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs in New York Mets vs Atlanta @ 8:15 ET - This total has dropped from an 8 to a 7.5 as of gameday morning and this is offering substantial line value to the over. The Braves have their sticks going as, with yesterday's 5-1 win, Atlanta has averaged 6 runs per game in their last 5 games. Also, the Braves are averaging 10 hits per game in their last 12 games and they again reached double digits in hits last night with 11. Though the Mets Steven Matz has a solid ERA on the season, the southpaw has given up 24 hits in the 16 and 2/3 innings spanning his last 3 starts. He's been ultra-hittable and will be facing an ultra-confident Braves lineup tonight. That should help get this one to be an easy over because Atlanta will have the struggling Aaron Blair on the mound. The Braves right-hander is winless in his 9 starts this season with a 7.59 ERA and a 1.81 WHIP. Blair has a 9.26 ERA on the road this season and a 9.45 ERA in his last 3 overall starts. The over is 4-1 in the 5 home starts that the Mets Steven Matz has made this season. The over is 8-2 this season in Mets Saturday games. The Braves are a huge dog here and that is noteworthy as the over is 7-2 long-term in Atlanta road games where they are a big dog in a price range of +225 to +250. Before yesterday's under, the Braves were on a 5-1 run to the over and the Mets were on a 4-1 run to the over. The Mets had averaged 10 hits per game in their last 7 games and they'll respond against the struggling Blair and a weak Braves bullpen after being held to just one run yesterday. *10* OVER in NY Mets

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in Boston vs Seattle @ 7:10 ET - The Red Sox stunk it up at the plate last night which is rare, especially at Fenway Park, and I look for Boston to respond in a big way tonight. Before scoring just one run in last night's game, the BoSox had averaged 7 runs on 11.6 hits per game in their last 5 games. Friday I expect the Red Sox to take advantage of facing a hurler they have dominated. Seattle will have Hisashi Iwakuma on the mound and the right-hander has found the Red Sox to be a nemesis. Iwakuma has gone winless in 4 career starts against the Mariners while compiling a 9.60 ERA and a 2.20 WHIP. The Seattle starter comes into this start having allowed 6 homers in his last 3 starts. The Mariners last 6 games in Boston have all gone over the total and I expect the Mariners to hit the ball very well tonight as well. The M's can tee off against Roenis Elias as the former Seattle hurler was called up from AAA Pawtucket to make this start. I expect the southpaw to feel the added pressure of having to face his former team in his first start back in the big leagues. In 2016 with Pawtucket and 2015 with Tacoma (both are AAA clubs), Elias has a combined 5.44 ERA. That is a lofty ERA considering it is minor league ball and I don't expect him to fare well at all against a team that certainly has great scouting reports on his repertoire of pitches. The Mariners come into this game off of a 6-4 win at Tampa Bay yesterday. Seattle will be facing a left-handed starter for a 3rd straight game which is a plus for the hitters. The M's have averaged about 5 runs per game in their last 9 games. The over is 5-2 this season in Mariners road games that have a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The over is 15-6 in Red Sox games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs this season. *10* OVER in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Chicago White Sox vs Detroit @ 8:10 ET - For the 2nd straight night these two teams combined for 19 runs in their game. Game 3 of the series should result in another easy over. The Tigers have won 9 of their last 13 games and are averaging 6 runs per game in their last 14 games. The White Sox have gone 13-7 to the over in their last 20 games and should enjoy continued success at the plate against Mike Pelfrey. The Tigers right-hander has a 1-6 record and a 4.68 ERA this season but his ERA could easily be even higher. Pelfrey has been hit at a .322 clip so "big damage" is almost always just "a pitch away" for the veteran hurler. The way the White Sox are swinging the bats in this series, and considering it will be another hitter-friendly weather night in Chicago tonight, Pelfrey is likely to suffer the "big damage" in this one. The only good news for he and the Tigers is that they are catching Chris Sale at the right time. The big White Sox southpaw has been struggling of late. He's compiled a 6.57 ERA in his two starts in the month of June but the struggles go even further back. Looking at his last 4 starts, Sale has allowed 17 earned runs on 34 hits and 9 walks in his last 22 and 2/3 innings. That equates to a very "un-Sale like" 6.75 ERA and 1.90 WHIP as the lanky lefty has allowed nearly 2 baserunners per inning in his last 4 starts! Since these teams are divisional rivals, the Tigers are very familiar with Sale and enjoyed success against he and Pelfrey squared off earlier this month. That game ended with 11 runs scored and a similar result tonight should be expected. *10* OVER in Chicago White Sox

Rickenbach MLB *10* OVER 8 in Kansas City vs Cleveland @ 8:15 ET - Some low run totals recently for Kansas City is hiding the fact that the Royals have averaged 10.2 hits per game in their last 5 games. Also, they faced Carlos Carrasco in his first start off of the disabled list and the Royals got to him for 9 hits in a start where the Indians right-hander was fortunate that he only allowed 3 earned runs. In his next start, Carrasco gave up 4 earned runs at pitcher-friendly Seattle and the Mariners got to him for two homers. This is just his third start since coming off of the DL and he's giving the Royals lineup a quick "second look" so this is likely to be a tough start for him. Kansas City is also likely to see their starting hurler struggle tonight as Edinson Volquez gets the start. The Royals right-hander will be facing the Indians for the third time already this season. In 10 and 2/3 innings versus Cleveland, Volquez has given up 10 earned runs on 14 hits. In each of the starts, he has allowed two home runs plus walked four batters. Volquez is an ugly 2-6 with an 8.12 ERA in his career against the Indians. He is winless in his last three overall starts entering this outing and he has compiled a 6.35 ERA in these games. The Indians are 9-3 in their last 12 games and have averaged nearly 6 runs per game in the 9 victories. Cleveland is 14-8 to the over this season in games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs. Kansas City is 4-2 to the over in Monday games this season and the Royals are 24-16 to the over on Mondays the past three seasons combined. *10* OVER in Kansas City 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 in San Francisco vs Los Angeles Dodgers @ 8:30 ET - The Giants didn't get much of anything going in yesterday's game until the bottom of the 10th when they rallied to tie the game and then win it, courtesy of 4 straight hits. Coming off of a dramatic late win like that, I look for the San Francisco bats to build off that performance. As for the Dodgers, they are certainly frustrated about losing last night's game but the lineup finally got things going with 11 hits in yesterday's game. Facing Jake Peavy should help the Dodgers lineup to build off of yesterday's performance. I am well aware that the Giants right-hander has great career numbers against the Dodgers. However, he has allowed 4 earned runs in less than 6 innings of work in 2 of his last 3 starts against LA. Peavy also gave up 4 earned runs in 5 innings in his start against the Cardinals earlier this week. He has a 2-6 record and a 6.41 ERA on the season and the veteran is simply not the same pitcher he once was. Peavy will be matched up with Julio Urias who will be making just his 4th start of the season. The southpaw will be facing a Giants team that has hit .271 in their games against left-handed starters this season. Urias is winless in his first three starts this season and got crushed in both road outings to the tune of a 9.39 ERA away from home. Urias is only 19 years old and he's been crushed by right-handed hitters at the MLB level as they've hit .378 against him. That's bad news for what is to come tonight and, even though AT & T Park is a pitcher-friendly park, the wind will be blowing out tonight and I expect both of these hurlers to struggle badly in this one. The over is 5-2 in Dodgers games this season where they are a road dog of +100 to +125. The over is 13-8 in Giants games against teams with a winning record this season. *10* OVER in San Francisco

Rickenbach MLB *10* OVER 8 in Pittsburgh vs St Louis @ 7:15 ET - Yesterday's game certainly had no business going over the total as some late runs changed the complexion of the game and then it went over the total thanks to a 6-run 12th inning from the Cardinals. I had the Cards yesterday and certainly was not happy when they allowed the tying run in the bottom of the 9th. All's well that ends well however and today I expect the big bats to show up well before a 12th inning! The Cardinals have admittedly struggled against the Pirates Francisco Liriano this season. However, the Pittsburgh southpaw has been rocked in each of his last two starts so he enters this game in poor current form. Liriano has given up 12 runs (11 earned) on 16 hits (including 3 homers) and 8 walks in his last 2 starts which have spanned only 9 and 1/3 innings. Liriano continues to struggle with command as he has walked 13 in the 15 innings spanning his last 3 starts. The Cardinals have drawn nearly 4 walks per game on the road this season where their .346 on base percentage ranks them 2nd out of all 30 MLB teams. They'll be patient at the plate today and frustrate Liriano. The Pirates lefty will be opposed by Carlos Martinez of the Cardinals today and the over is 8-2-1 in his 11 starts this season. The Cards right-hander is just 2-3 with a 4.89 ERA in his career starts against Pittsburgh and he has allowed 19 hits in his last 16 innings versus the Pirates. The over is a PERFECT 8-0 this season in Cardinals Saturday games. Also, when off of a win, St Louis has gone 22-10 to the over this year. The over is 16-3 in Pirates games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs this season and that includes 11-1 in home games! Pittsburgh is also 19-9 to the over this season when off of a loss. The Pirates and Cards will also both benefit from the wind blowing out to left field on a warm evening in Pennsylvania tonight. *10* OVER in Pittsburgh 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 12 in Colorado vs San Diego @ 4:10 ET - With temperatures expected to be in the low 90s and the wind expected to be blowing out to left field at a good clip, this has the makings of a pitchers' nightmare in this afternoon match-up in the thin air of Colorado. The Rockies will send Tyler Chatwood to the mound and he has a tremendous home/road dichotomy. Colorado has gone a perfect 6-0 (and he has pitched well) in his road starts. But, when Chatwood is at home, the Rockies have gone 2-4 and he's been rocked to the tune of a 5.30 ERA and 6 homers allowed in 6 starts. Chatwood is facing a Padres lineup that has been swinging the bats quite well. The over is 9-4-1 in San Diego's last 14 games and the Padres have averaged 6 runs per game during this stretch. There is no doubt the Rockies should be able to pound the ball as well this afternoon. Colorado will be able to "tee off" against newly acquired Erik Johnson. He's allowed 5 homers in his 2 big league starts this season and the Padres right-hander has compiled a 6.94 ERA in those outings. In his only career start at hitter-friendly Coors Field Johnson gave up 4 earned runs on 9 hits in less than 6 innings of work. The outcome on a hot afternoon with the wind blowing out is likely to be much worse than that. Look for the over to improve to 7-3 in San Diego's Saturday games this season and to 17-10 in Rockies home games this season. This is not the venue where Johnson would have chosen to make his Padres debut. Rockies pen struggled yesterday too and the Padres starter had to exit after retiring just one batter yesterday. Both pens now will get even more work today too! *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 in New York Yankees vs Detroit @ 7:05 ET - Even though C.C. Sabathia of the Yankees has been pitching quite well, the Tigers have the firepower to give him some trouble here. Detroit has averaged 6 runs per game in their last 9 games. Sabathia has struggled (and was unable to complete 5 innings) in two of his three home starts this season. The Yanks southpaw remains winless in home starts this season. The Tigers will have Mike Pelfrey on the mound and the veteran right-hander has been fortunate with his road ERA - to say the least! Pelfrey has a 3.81 ERA away from home this season despite producing a 1.92 in his five road starts! Pelfrey is winless on the road but, as you can see from that WHIP, he's been fortunate the damage hasn't been worse. Look for the Yankees to crush him as Pelfrey is 2-4 with a 5.68 ERA in his 7 career starts against the Yankees and 6 of the 7 games went over the total. The Yankees are 6-2 in their last 8 games and have averaged 6 runs per game during this hot streak. The Tigers, as a road dog of +125 to +175, have gone 10-5 to the over this season. That record in that price range is a solid 35-20 to the over the past three seasons combined. Coincidentally, the over is also 35-20 in all Tigers games this season. With a struggling Pelfrey on the mound, look for that season record on overs to add another easy W tonight. *10* OVER in New York Yankees

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 runs in New York Yankees vs Los Angeles Angels @ 7:05 ET - There were 7 homers in last night's game and I look for more of the same this evening. It will be another "hitter-friendly" night at Yankee Stadium and the Bronx Bombers have been heating up. The Yankees are averaging 6 runs and 11.4 hits per game in their last 7 games. This is a stretch that has seen the Yanks go 5-2 including winning 3 straight. The Yankees should have no trouble staying hot against Jhoulys Chacin who allowed 6 hits and walked 4 while striking out just 1 in his most recent start - an outing that lasted only 5 innings. Chacin has a 4.85 ERA on the road this season and has never made a start at Yankee Stadium in his career. It can be an intimidating venue and Chacin has certainly shown he's vulnerable to instability in highly charged situations. Emotions will be high the Angels right-hander here after struggling so badly in his most recent start and now facing a red hot Yankees lineup. The good news for Angels fans is that Chacin should at least get plenty of run support in this one. That's because he'll be opposed by the Yankees Ivan Nova. The Yanks right-hander has been struggling badly with a 1-2 mark and 6.27 ERA in his last 3 starts. Nova has allowed 4 homers in these 3 games and, by the way, all 7 of the homers Chacin has allowed this season have come in his 7 road starts! As for Nova, he has also been hit hard by the Angels in his career starts against them. Nova has a 5.19 ERA in his career against the Angels and 5 of the 7 games went over the total. The past three seasons, when the Angels enter a game on a losing streak of 3 games or more, the over is 19-10. Also, when off of game where they allowed 10 runs or more, the over has gone 11-4. The Yankees, in 10 games this season as a home favorite of -125 to -150, have had only 3 unders. *10* OVER in NY Yankees

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11.5 runs in Colorado vs Pittsburgh @ 5:10 ET - Of course Coors Field is known for very light air but, based on the weather conditions today and the fact that this game starts at 3 PM local time, the ball should be carrying extremely well in Denver Thursday. Warm temperatures, light winds, ultra dry air, clear skies, it is set up to be a hitters paradise in Colorado today. Of course 11.5 is a big number but don't let that scare you away. There should be scoring early and often in a situation like this. It is a makeup game so Pittsburgh flew in just for this game. The Rockies are happy to be beginning a homestand and will be facing a pitcher, Jeff Locke, who had a solid start at Colorado earlier this season but that was on a cool evening in April. Conditions will be much different today and Locke allowed 10 earned runs on 18 hits in 12 and 1/3 innings in his two prior starts at Colorado. The over is an incredible 9-2 in Locke's 11 starts this season. He'll be opposed by Chad Bettis and he is 0-3 with an 11.47 ERA and a 2.40 WHIP in his last 3 starts as he's been getting absolutely rocked in recent outings. Bettis, despite allowing 4 earned runs on 10 hits in only 5 innings of work, saw his last start stay under the total but previously only one under had been recorded in his last six starts. The over is 17-5 in Pittsburgh's games against teams with a losing record this season. The over is also 15-7 in Pirates day games this season and the over is 17-9 when they are off of a loss. The over is 10-5 in Rockies home games with a posted total of 11 or 11.5 runs this season. Interestingly the over is 5-0 in Colorado's Thursday games this season and the Pirates are 4-1 to the over on Thursdays! This combined 9-1 (90%) trend is tested here. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* OVER 9 in Texas vs Houston @ 8:05 ET - Yesterday's game was a pitchers duel between Dallas Keuchel and Cole Hamels but I expect today's game to play out much differently based on this pitching match-up. The Astros Doug Fister has a 4.91 ERA in his career starts against Texas. The big right-hander has allowed 21 hits in the 19 innings spanning his last 3 road outings and has been fortunate the "damage" has not been worse in those outings. Fister also walked 4 in his most recent road start. In a hitter-friendly venue tonight where the ball carries very well, both he and the Rangers Yu Darvish are likely to struggle. The Texas right-hander will be making his first start on normal rest (4 days between starts) since returning from Tommy John surgery. Darvish pitched very well in his first start back but that was against an NL foe not use to facing him. In his 2nd start he faced an AL opponent and was hit harder. Tonight he faces a team that truly has been a nemesis for him. In his last two starts against the Astros, Darvish has been rocked for 12 runs (11 earned) on 19 hits in just 10 innings of work. Look for more struggles today! Prior to yesterday's under, the Astros were on a 7-2 run to the over and the Rangers were on a 6-1 run to the over. Houston is 20-9 to the over in road games this season including 6-1 to the over in those with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The Rangers are 15-8 to the over in home games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs so far this season. *10* OVER in Texas

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs +105 in Cincinnati vs St Louis @ 7:10 ET - A total of 9.5 in a national league game not played at Coors Field in Colorado certainly may seem high. But, in this case, it is absolutely justified. The wind, though not strong, will be blowing out at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati and certainly the Reds home park has earned its reputation as a hitter-friendly venue. Cincy has been swinging the bats very well. The Reds have averaged 7.1 runs per game in their last 10 games and are confident at the plate thanks to a 6-3 stretch in their last 9 games. The Cardinals enter this game off of back to back wins that saw St Louis produce a total of 13 runs on 22 hits. The over is 12-5 in the Cards last 17 games. The Reds have had just 5 unders in their last 21 games! Though Mike Leake has solid numbers for the Cardinals this season, he spent many years as a Red and Great American Ball Park was not kind to him as he notoriously produced a high ERA and a high BAA in his home outings for Cincinnati. Also, Leake comes into this start having allowed 3 homers in his last 2 starts and the Reds John Lamb comes into this outing having allowed 4 homers in his last 3 starts. The Cincinnati southpaw has a 5.58 ERA on the season and Cardinals games against left-handed starters have gone 10-4 to the over this season. Also, the over is 17-9 in St Louis road games this season and the Cards are 20-9 to the over this season when off of a win. The Reds are 4-0 to the over this season and 7-0 to the over the past three seasons combined when they are a home dog in a price range of +150 to +175. The over is 17-10 this season in Cincy home games and 15-7 in Reds divisional games. Against right-handed starters, the over is 28-12 (70%) in Cincinnati games this season. Also, after a game where they allowed 10 runs or more (keep in mind their bullpen is atrocious), the Reds have gone 5-1 to the over this season and 17-6 to the over the past three seasons combined. As you can see from all of the above, there is plenty of reason to expect this match-up to reach a total of double digits in runs. *10* OVER in Cincinnati 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs +100 in Texas vs Houston @ 8:05 ET - Yesterday the Astros were at home against the A's and their game stayed under the total. However, Houston had gone over the total in 6 of their 7 prior games. Also, the over is 7-2 this season in Astros road games where they are priced from -100 to -125. Houston is also 5-1 to the over this season in road games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The Rangers game stayed under the total yesterday but Texas is still 14-8 to the over this season in home games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. Also, the Rangers are 5-2 to the over this season when they enter a game on a winning streak of 3 games or more. Texas will have Colby Lewis on the mound and he is known for struggling in his home starts. In 2014 he went 3-9 with a 5.90 ERA at home. Last season Lewis compiled a 5.07 ERA at home. This season Lewis has been fantastic on the road but he has a 4.50 ERA at home where he has been hit at a .288 clip. He just faced the Astros in Houston a little over two weeks ago and had success but the fact this is a quick second look for the Astros plus the fact Lewis struggles at home combines to mean this outing is likely to be quite different! Mike Fiers gets the start for Houston and his solid effort versus the Rangers a little over two weeks ago was a rarity. It produced only the 2nd under that he has had this season compared to 8 overs! The Astros are winless in Fiers road starts this season and all 3 went over the total as he has compiled an ugly 8.04 ERA away from home. The Rangers had 5 straight overs before yesterday's under. That said, look for both teams to resume their hot hitting ways Monday as the pitching match-up and home/road dichotomies of these two hurlers is likely to bring out the best in each lineup. The Rangers have averaged 6.7 runs per game in their last 10 games. The Astros have averaged 6.5 runs per game in their last 8 games. A 7-6 type game here would not surprise me in the least. *10* OVER in Texas

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 or 8.5 runs in St Louis vs San Francisco @ 8:05 ET - The whole world is likely to flock to the under here and I love fading the masses. What people see here is that Jake Peavy is off of back to back strong starts. However, he faced a Padres team that certainly is not known for their hitting prowess and Peavy faced a Braves team that possesses arguably the worst offense in baseball. That said, let's look at what he did before these two starts. The Giants right-hander got crushed by the Cubs in a start where he gave up 7 earned runs and didn't even last 2 innings. That start was at home but it's not like things have gone well for Peavy on the road either. He is 1-3 with a 7.20 ERA in his 5 starts away from San Francisco this season. Tonight Peavy faces a Cardinals lineup that is rejuvenated after rallying from a 4-0 deficit yesterday. The Cards have now won 5 of their last 8 games and they've averaged 7.6 runs per game in the 5 victories. As a home favorite of -125 to -150, the Cardinals are 6-1 to the over this season. When off of a win the Cards are 19-9 to the over this year. The Giants are 28-14 to the over the past three seasons when they are a road dog of +125 to +150. This season San Francisco is 15-7 to the over when off of a loss. The Giants have scored at least 4 runs in 9 of their last 11 games. San Fran should have no trouble with the offerings of Carlos Martinez. The right-hander is off of a strong start at free-swinging Milwaukee but he previously got rocked for 10 earned runs in 10 innings in his 2 prior starts and those were both in St Louis. Martinez is back home again for tonight's match-up with the Giants and, before shutting out the Brewers in his most recent start at Milwaukee, he had given up at least 4 earned runs in 4 of his last 5 starts. Struggles resume for him tonight and both line-ups are "feeling it" right now at the plate! *10* OVER in St Louis 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs +112 in Texas vs Seattle @ 3:05 ET - With yesterday's 10-4 Seattle loss going over the total easily, the Mariners have now been a part of a 11 straight games going over the total! I fully expect them to make it 12 in a row on Sunday. The Mariners have averaged 7.6 runs per game during this 11 game stretch and they're matched up with a Rangers club that has averaged 6.8 runs per game during their current 8-2 run their last 10 games. As you can see, both teams are swinging the bats extremely well and neither starting pitcher today is overpowering. The Mariners Hisashi Iwakuma has allowed 5 homers in his last 3 starts and these came against Oakland, Cincinnati, and San Diego. The A's are one of the lowest scoring teams in the league and the Reds and Padres are both hitting under .240 this season! Now Iwakuma must deal with a potent (and red hot!) Rangers lineup on a mild afternoon in Texas with the wind blowing out to right field at a good clip. Iwakuma struggles against left-handed batters and the Rangers could have as many as 5 left-handed bats plus a switch-hitter (Jurickson Profar) in the lineup this afternoon. Of course the Rangers sticks are unlikely to be the only bats doing damage today. The Mariners should crush Derek Holland. Yes, the Rangers southpaw had a successful outing against them earlier this season but, in Holland's two prior starts versus the M's (including one in Texas) he gave up 12 earned runs in less than 12 innings of work! In Holland's 4 home starts this season, only one stayed under and the over is 8-3 in Iwakuma's starts this season. The over is 14-7 in Rangers home games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs this season and the over is 13-6 in Texas games against teams with a winning record this year. There is simply no reason that the Mariners shouldn't make it 12 overs in a row this afternoon! *10* OVER in Texas Sunday.

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs in Baltimore vs New York Yankees @ 7:15 ET - Ivan Nova gets the start for the Yankees and he has compiled an 8.21 ERA in his last 3 starts against the Orioles. He comes into this start having allowed 4 earned runs in each of his last two starts and certainly Baltimore's lineup is filled with confidence right now! The Orioles have won 3 straight games and averaged scoring 10.3 runs per game in these three blowouts! Overall, the over is 8-1-1 in the O's last 10 games and I highly doubt that Nova is going to slow them down. Not only is Nova having some current struggles but, again, it is the match-up issue here that will be a key as the 8.21 ERA in Nova's last 3 starts against Baltimore is indicative of many Orioles hitters simply 'having his number'. The Yankees have mostly been an "under team" recently but a lot of that has also had to do with the Yanks struggles against southpaws. Saturday the Bronx Bombers will be facing a right-hander who is not overly dominant. Tyler Wilson has pitched decently since moving into the rotation but he does appear to be fading. In his last three starts, Wilson has a 5.30 ERA and has given up 4 homers. Wilson is still winless in home starts this season and in his 7 overall starts this season only 2 have resulted in an under. The over is 6-2 in Orioles Saturday games this season and the over is an incredible 12-2 in Baltimore games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs this season. The O's bullpen has been much more hittable of late and has helped result in this factoid: with allowing 10 hits to the Yanks yesterday, the Orioles have allowed double digits in hits in 5 straight games and 7 of their last 8 games! Look for more of the same today as another 6-5 game with both teams reaching double digits in hits certainly is a strong probability again today. *10* OVER in Baltimore

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Cincinnati vs Washington @ 7:10 ET - The over is 3-0 in the Nationals Gio Gonzalez last three starts. The Nats southpaw has struggled badly in the last two outings with 13 earned runs allowed in the two starts which have spanned less than 10 innings of work. Gonzalez will be opposed by the Reds Brandon Finnegan tonight. The Cincinnati southpaw has only 1 win even though he's made 11 starts this season. Finnegan is winless in his five home starts and the over is 4-1 in those 5 outings. The Red southpaw has walked 4 batters or more in 3 of his last 4 starts overall. Also, he has a 6.10 ERA in his last 4 home starts. 7 of the Nationals last 11 games have gone over the total and Washington has scored an average of 6 runs per game in their last 7 wins. The Reds have had just 1 under in their last 7 games and they've got their confidence going at the plate again thanks to a road trip that wrapped up with visits to hitter friendly Milwaukee and ultra hitter-friendly Colorado. The Reds have scored an average of 7 runs per game in their last 7 games and have averaged 11.5 hits per game in their last 6 games. With their confidence at the plate and now back home and facing a struggling Gonzalez, this should turn into a slugfest because Finnegan's struggles at home are likely to continue. The Reds southpaw faced Washington in September and struggled badly while Gonzalez faced Cincy once last season and he also struggled in that outing. As a home dog of +150 to 175 the past three seasons, the over has gone 5-0 in Reds games! Look for the over to improve to 6-2 in Washington's Friday games this season. *10* OVER 8.5 in Cincinnati

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs in Baltimore vs Boston @ 7:05 ET - After yesterday's slugfest there is really no reason not to expect more of the same today. What is helping to keep the total down on this game is the impressive full season stats of Rick Porcello. That is good news because his current form is not what it was earlier this season and the Red Sox right-hander truly seems to be coming back down to earth after his surprising early season success. Porcello has given up 9 run (8 earned) on 15 hits in 11 and 2/3 innings of work spanning his last two road starts. This 6.17 ERA on the road in his last two outings could certainly balloon even more Thursday evening as he faces an Orioles lineup surging with confidence after piling up 13 runs on 14 hits in yesterday's game. Baltimore has averaged 9.3 hits and 5.5 runs per game in their last 6 games. Facing the Orioles has been a nightmare for Porcello in recent meetings as he has given up 17 earned runs on 28 hits in less than 17 innings of work spanning his last 3 starts versus the O's. The only good news for Red Sox fans tonight is that Porcello should get plenty of run support. Ubaldo Jimenez takes the mound for the Orioles tonight and he is an awful current form plus has a history of struggles versus Boston. Jimenez is 2-6 with a 7.00 ERA in his 13 career starts against the Red Sox. Also, Jimenez comes into this outing 0-3 with an 11.57 ERA in his last 3 starts. Boston has had just 2 unders in their last 9 games and the Orioles have had just 1 under in their last 6 games. The over is 12-5 in Baltimore games against teams with a winning record. Also, the over is 11-2 this season in Orioles games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The over is 11-3 in Red Sox games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. It's "getaway day" for the BoSox today and I look for the over to improve to 5-1 in Boston's Thursday games this season. *10* OVER in Baltimore

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Houston vs Arizona @ 8:10 ET - With yesterday's 8-3 win, not only have the Astros won 7 of their last 8 games, they have scored 8 runs in three straight games. Houston is averaging about 10 hits per game during this 8 game stretch and they should have no problems with the offerings of Robbie Ray. The Diamondbacks struggling southpaw allowed 5 earned runs on 9 hits (including 2 homers) to the light-hitting Padres in his most recent start. That doesn't bode well for Ray in terms of now facing a much stronger, and much hotter, lineup in the form of the Astros in Houston tonight. Ray has a 1.67 WHIP on the season so don't be fooled by his "respectable" 4.50 ERA on the season. He has been far worse on the mound than what that ERA would lead you to believe. Ray won't be the only hurler getting pounded tonight. The Astros Michael Fiers got rocked in a pitcher-friendly park in his most recent start. At Anaheim to face the Los Angeles Angels, Fiers gave up 7 earned runs in less than 4 innings of work. The Houston right-hander has allowed 10 homers in his 9 starts this season and now faces the Diamondbacks at hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park. Fiers has given up 10 earned runs in his last 10 innings against the Dbacks and Arizona has got to him for 3 homers in those two starts against him. The over is 7-2 in Fiers starts this season. The over is a perfect 4-0 in Ray's last four starts and 6 of his last 7. The over is 14-6 in Arizona's 20 games against teams with a losing record this season. The over is 9-3 in Astros games against teams with a losing record. The over is also 8-4 in Houston's games against left-handed starters this season. *10* OVER in Houston 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 in Kansas City vs Tampa Bay @ 8:15 ET - With yesterday's 6-2 win, the Royals are not only 7-0 to the over in their last 7 games, Kansas City has averaged 7 runs per game and 12 hits per game during this red hot stretch. I expect the Royals to remain on fire at the plate as they face the Rays Drew Smyly tonight. The Tampa Bay southpaw has begun to struggle after a strong start to the season. Smyly has given up 8 earned runs in his last two starts and has allowed four homers during this rough stretch. Smyly also has allowed three homers in his last two starts against the Royals. This gives us what we need for one half of the slugfest tonight as the Royals are also 3-1 to the over this season when they enter a game on a winning streak of 3 games or more and the over is 6-2 in Kansas City's Tuesday games  this season. The Rays should also enjoy plenty of success at the plate tonight. The Royals will be sending Dillon Gee to the mound and the right-hander is 1-2 with a 5.65 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP in his three starts since moving into the rotation. The over is 9-1-1 in the Rays last 11 road games and after a loss this season (26 before yesterday's defeat), an under has resulted in the next game just 10 times in 26 occurrences. Look for the Rays sticks to respond after a tough time in their last two games. Gee just isn't getting the job done right now for the Royals and the Rays sticks will take advantage. Take advantage of the low total here and, as long as we hold off the rain in this one (could be scattered storms in the KC area tonight) we should be able to cash a rather easy over in this one. *10* OVER in Kansas City

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs in Oakland vs Minnesota @ 4:05 ET - The A's game stayed under the total but Oakland had previously gone over the total in 4 of their last 6 games and they did notch 4 runs on 9 hits in yesterday's game. Oakland is now averaging 5 runs per game and 9 hits per game in their last 7 games. The Athletics are 16-10 to the over in the month of May. The Twins have had just 6 unders in their 25 games in the month of May. Minnesota comes into Monday's game having gone over the total in 6 straight games. The Twins have averaged 5.5 runs per game during this stretch as they have finally got their bats going and the A's Kendall Graveman is unlikely to slow them down! Graveman has a 5.36 ERA on the season and a 1.85 WHIP in his last 3 starts! In other words, he's been allowing way too many baserunners and the way the Twins are swinging the bats right now (3 homers yesterday in Seattle) allowing too many baserunners will get Graveman into trouble in a hurry in this one. The Twins Ervin Santana comes into this game off of an ugly start versus Kansas City. He allowed 6 earned runs on 9 hits in less than 4 innings of work! Santana has a 1.62 WHIP in road games this season and the right-hander is facing a very confident A's team at Oakland this afternoon. With back to back wins and piling up 26 hits in their last two games, the A's should have no trouble with the offerings of Santana this afternoon. The over is 18-9 this season in Twins games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs. When off of a win the over is 11-3 in Minnesota games this season. Also, the past three seasons combined the over is 23-10 when the Twins enter a game on a winning streak of 3 games or more and this includes a perfect 3-0 mark to the over this season. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10.5 runs +105 in Colorado vs San Francisco - These teams combined for 15 runs yesterday and it should be more of the same today. Johnny Cueto of the Giants comes into this game with great overall numbers on the season but he now goes from back to back starts against light-hitting Padres in pitcher-friendly parks to facing a dangerous Rockies lineup in the most hitter-friendly ball park in the league. Also, being an afternoon game and with extra dry air expected at Coors Field today, it will be a challenge for Cueto. He did face the Rockies earlier in May and did have success despite allowing 8 hits but that start was in San Francisco. He has had some success at Coors Field in past years but Colorado is hitting .294 at home so far this season while averaging 5.5 runs. The Rockies are averaging nearly 5 runs per game in day games this season while the Giants are averaging 5.6 runs per game under the sun this season. San Francisco should have no troubles with the offerings of Chris Rusin today. The Giants are hitting .272 against lefties this season and the southpaw got absolutely crushed by the Giants when he faced them at San Francisco in early May. Now he must take them on at Coors Field where he has a 4.97 ERA this season and had a 5.29 ERA last season. Rusin is 11-21 in his MLB career and has been hit at a .295 clip in the bigs. Couple that with the fact he's facing a Giants lineup that just put up 10 runs yesterday and he's facing them at Coors Field and you have the opportunity for him to take another pummeling like he did at AT & T Park earlier this month. The over is 13-6 in Giants day games this season and I look for another one here. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs -105 in Oakland vs Detroit @ 4:05 ET - The Tigers full season batting stats against left-handed pitchers are not that impressive but Detroit has hit southpaws better recently. Detroit got to the A's Manaea for 9 hits in 6 innings and they also got to the Rays Smyly for 7 hits in 6 and 1/3 innings. Both these outings occurred within the past 9 days and I look for the Tiger to enjoy some success against Rich Hill of the A's this afternoon. Yes he's been pitching extremely well this season but the Oakland left-hander is 1-3 with a 3.79 ERA in home starts this season so it's not like he has been flawless this season. Additionally, the Tigers already faced Hill in late April so they will be getting a rather quick second look at him. The A's lineup will also be getting a rather quick second look at the Tigers Mike Pelfrey whom they pounded them and I look for even better success in the rematch. Pelfrey remains winless on the season and he's allowed 18 hits (including 4 homers) in the 11 and 1/3 innings spanning his last two starts. Pelfrey is 0-3 with a ridiculous 11.04 ERA in his 3 career starts against Oakland. The Athletics pounded out 17 hits in yesterday's 12-3 win over the Tigers and they should no problem with Pelfrey as the over improves to 17-9 in Oakland's games this month. As for Detroit, the over is a perfect 6-0 in their Sunday games this season. Also, the over is an insane 16-2 in Tigers day games this season. Also, when off of a game where they allowed 10 runs or more, the over is 21-12 in Detroit games the past three seasons combined. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs in LA Angels vs Houston @ 10:05 ET - Last season Dallas Keuchel was phenomenal at home but much more hittable on the road. This season he's getting roughed up both home and away and a start at Anaheim against the Angels is unlikely to help matters. Keuchel is 1-4 on the road with a 6.57 ERA this season. In his last 3 starts the southpaw is winless with an 8.84 ERA. Even though the Angels Jered Weaver is off of a strong start, he previously allowed 12 runs (11 earned) on 19 hits in 11 innings of work spanning his last two starts. Home runs allowed have been a big problem for Weaver with 11 homers in 9 games and the Astros do have a potent, dangerous, powerful lineup that has enjoyed some longball success against Weaver in his career outings against them. The over is 3-0 in Keuchel's last 3 starts and also 5-1 in his road starts this season. The Angels lineup has been heating up and should have no trouble with Keuchel's offerings. With their 7-2 win yesterday, the Angels have scored at least 7 runs in 7 of their last 13 games. The Astros haven't been scoring a lot of late but Weaver does not have overpowering stuff and will prove to be a good match-up for them tonight. The over is 6-3 in the Angels last 9 games and 15-9 in the month of May overall. The over is 10-1 in Astros road games where they are priced from -100 to -150 this season! When playing against a team with a losing record, the over is 6-2 in Astros games this season. *10* OVER 7.5 in LA Angels 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7 runs -115 in Tampa Bay vs New York Yankees @ 7:10 ET Friday - The Yankees struggled again against a southpaw yesterday. It looked like the right spot for them to snap out of their funk against lefties but it continued. The good news Friday is that they face a right-hander instead of a lefty. The other good news is that it's a righty who has been struggling of late. Chris Archer gets the start for the Rays Friday and he has been struggling as evidenced by his 7.71 ERA and 1.86 WHIP in his last 3 starts. Also, even though he has great career stats against the Yankees, Archer has lost his last two starts against the Yanks while allowing 7 runs (6 earned) in 12 and 1/3 innings of work. 7 walks and 2 homers were also a problem in those two outings which both occurred in September. Before their 3-1 loss yesterday, the Yankees had won 6 of their past 7 games while averaging 5 runs per game. Their offense will get right back on track against a struggling righty. As for the Rays offense, they got embarrassed in yesterday's 9-1 loss to Miami. Tampa Bay had averaged 6.5 runs per game in their 11 prior games. They should resume their hot hitting against Masahiro Tanaka of the Yankees. The Yanks right-hander just faced the Rays about five weeks ago so that should help in the rematch. Additionally, Tanaka comes in struggling a bit as he's compiled a 5.21 ERA in his last three starts overall. The over is 2-1 in those starts and the over is 3-0 in Archer's last three starts. With yesterday's 9-1 loss, the over is now 11-3-1 in the Rays last 15 games. The Yankees respond to facing a righty tonight (6-2 and 5 runs per game in their last 8 vs right-handers) and this one soars over the low number. *10* OVER in Tampa Bay

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs -115 in New York Yankees vs Toronto @ 4:05 ET - J.A. Happ made 10 daytime starts while with the Mariners last season and he went 0-4 with a 6.75 ERA. The prior season he was with the Jays and he had a 4.75 ERA in his daytime outings. Happ also had a 5.67 ERA in away games that year while with the Jays. With the M's last season he went 2-4 with a 5.98 ERA in games away from home. The point is that an afternoon match-up on a warm afternoon in the Bronx with the wind likely blowing out toward left field is not a good match-up for the left-hander. The Yankees just saw him last month and they should fare much better in the rematch given the conditions and the fact that they now get to face him on their home turf. The Yanks will need to score plenty to stay in this game today because their starter, C.C. Sabathia is likely to get rocked. I am fully aware that he had a good first start when he first came off of the DL but, like Happ, Sabathia is a guy who has struggled in day games in recent seasons. Sabathia has a 5.06 ERA in his 2 daytime starts this season, 7.36 ERA last season, 8.38 ERA in 2014, and a 4.71 ERA in 2013. The over is 5-1 this season in Yankees home games where they are priced from -100 to -125. Sabathia has given up 13 runs (12 earned) on 24 hits in his last 18 innings of work against the Blue Jays spanning his last 3 starts against them. Happ gave up 2 homers in just 5 innings in his last start in the Bronx and though he is off of a good start at Minnesota he was previously rocked by Tampa Bay in an ugly outing in his prior start which lasted only 2 innings. More of the same here. *10* OVER in NY Yankees

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 6.5 runs -120 in Tampa Bay vs Miami @ 1:10 ET - These teams are both swinging the bats quite well and yet we've seen back to back unders in this series the past two games. The teams fell just short of going over the total in each of the last two games even though they combined for 39 hits. A key problem, as you would expect, is wasted opportunities, and the teams have left 37 men on base in the past two games. The fact that each of the last two games failed to go over the total and the fact that today's pitching match-up makes it "look like" this should be a low-scoring game is combining to give us tremendous value with the over. Even though the Marlins Jose Fernandez is throwing very well right now, he has struggled against the Rays. Tampa Bay has proven to be a bit of a nemesis for him as he's gone 0-2 with a 5.79 ERA and a 2.04 WHIP in his two career starts at Tropicana Field. While the Rays also have a "red hot" pitcher on the mound this afternoon and he did have a successful outing against the Marlins last season, Drew Smyly could be in trouble here. Miami is hitting left-handed pitching at a .295 clip so far this season! They have dominated southpaws as only one team (Boston) out of all 30 MLB teams has a higher batting average against lefties. Though Smyly has a "decent" ERA at home this season he is 0-3 in his home starts and he comes into this outing off of three road starts where he's compiled a 5.51 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. Giving up too many homers has been a problem and even if Yelich and Stanton are not in the lineup today the Marlins still have plenty of hitters with pop for extra bases...especially against lefties as they've hit so well against southpaws. The over is 41-28 the last 3 seasons combined in Marlins games against southpaws. The over is 21-11 the last three seasons in road games where Miami is priced between -100 and -125. The over is 13-8 this season in Marlins games against teams with a losing record. *10* OVER in Tampa Bay 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 runs in Boston vs Colorado @ 7:10 ET - The Rockies Chad Bettis could be a little "off" for this start. His last scheduled start was Sunday and he threw just one inning before the game got cancelled due to rain. Needless to say his routine could be a bit off after the rain-shortened start and now taking the ball on Wednesday for his first "full start" in over a week. Facing one of the toughest lineups in baseball in one of the most hitter-friendly ballparks in MLB is also not going to do Bettis any favors here. The Red Sox are on an 11-4 run and have averaged 7.5 runs per game during this 15 game hot streak at the plate! Boston will have knuckle-baller Steven Wright on the mound this evening. He has produced solid stats so far this season but if you look at the teams he has faced all of his opponents are ranked in the bottom half of the league in batting average or runs scored or BOTH. The point is that a dangerous Rockies lineup could definitely do some serious damage against him Wednesday night. The Rockies are hitting .297 on the season and the over is 31-20 the last 3 seasons combined in Colorado games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The over is 7-2 this season in Red Sox games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The over is also 16-9 in Boston games this season when they are off of a win. Look for the Red Sox hitters to stay hot at the plate while the Rockies join in for some offensive fireworks tonight in weather conditions that are very favorable for the hitters Wednesday at Fenway Park. *10* OVER in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs in San Francisco vs San Diego @ 3:45 ET - The Giants offense got back on track in yesterday's 8-2 win and I expect another big game from them here. But it also won't surprise me to see the Padres match San Francisco run for run in this one. That's because the Giants will have Jake Peavy on the mound and he is 1-5 with an 8.21 ERA and a 1.90 WHIP this season. Peavy has given up at least 4 earned runs in 6 of his 9 starts this season. Even though the Padres have one of the weaker lineups in baseball, they should have no problems getting to Peavy in an afternoon game with the wind blowing out in San Francisco. As for the Giants hitters', they will be seeing the Padres James Shields for the 3rd time already this season. Even though Shields hasn't given up many runs in those two starts there certainly are some noteworthy stats that show he could be on the cusp of getting crushed by the San Francisco lineup this afternoon. Shields walked 4 in the first start and then allowed 9 hits in a start that lasted less than 7 innings in his 2nd start against the Giants. That outing came just last week and will help ensure that the San Francisco bats are "honed in" on Shields' offerings today. Look for the over to improve to 8-2 this season in Peavy's starts and also 4-2 in the Padres last 6 games. The over is 12-5 in Giants day games this season and 74-56 the last 3 seasons combined. *10* OVER in San Francisco

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 runs in Pittsburgh vs Arizona @ 7:05 ET - The Diamondbacks were off yesterday but they are on 5-1 run to the over through Sunday. In those 6 games Arizona has averaged 6.5 runs per game and they may surprise some today in terms of the damage they are capable of against Francisco Liriano of the Pirates. They got to him for two homers earlier this season in their game against the Pittsburgh southpaw and it marked the 2nd straight time that the Dbacks have gotten to him for at least 4 earned runs. Arizona is likely to again give Liriano some trouble Tuesday as he has allowed 10 earned runs on 16 hits (including 4 homers) in his last two starts which have spanned 11 and 2/3 innings. That's good news for the Diamondbacks because they'll need all the runs they can get today. That's because Arizona is starting Shelby Miller today and the right-hander has looked like he's throwing batting practice in recent outings. Miller has given up 17 hits in his last two starts and he's been fortunate that he's allowed only 3 earned runs in each outing as the 17 hits and 4 walks have been accumulated in just 11 and 1/3 innings of work. In other words Miller's current form shows him allowing about 2 baserunners per inning. That's not going to bode well for a match-up with a Pirates team that has won 6 of their last 8 games and has averaged 6.3 runs per game in those six victories. Pittsburgh has been red hot at the plate and, with yesterday's over versus Colorado, the Pirates are now 11-1 to the over this season in games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs. The over is also 6-0 in Pittsburgh's Tuesday games this season. When playing against a team with a losing record, the over is 11-5 in Pirates games so far this year. The Diamondbacks have averaged 5.2 runs per game this season in games where the opposition started a southpaw. The Pirates are hitting .288 in home games this season. This has all the makings of a high-scoring battle between these foes Tuesday. *10* OVER in Pittsburgh

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs in Miami vs Tampa Bay @ 7:10 ET - Both of these teams were involved in games that went over the total yesterday and I look for more of the same today. The Rays have only stayed under the total once in their last dozen games! The Marlins certainly have not been such an "over machine" of late but Miami should feast on the offerings of the Rays Matt Moore today. The Marlins .273 batting average versus southpaws this season ranks them 5th in the majors and Moore is struggling badly. The Rays left-hander is winless in his last 3 starts with an 8.36 ERA and a 2.14 WHIP. The only good news for Moore is that he should benefit from some solid run support on Monday. Tampa Bay has a slugging percentage of .473 against left-handed pitching this season and that ranks them 4th in the majors! That said, southpaw Wei-Yin Chen could give up some big hits in this one. The lefty has given up 23 hits (including 2 homers) in his last 17 and 1/3 innings of work. Also, the Rays lineup is very familiar with him and Chen has allowed 21 hits (including FOUR homers) in his last 17 innings against Tampa Bay. The over is 3-1 in Rays games this season where they are a small road dog of up to +125. In their 12 games against left-handed starters this season, Tampa Bay has had just 4 unders. The over is 40-28 in Marlins games against southpaw starters the past three seasons combined. *10* OVER in Miami

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Los Angeles Angels vs Baltimore @ 3:35 ET - Yesterday's game was a pitchers' duel that came within one pitch of being an Angels 1-0 win. However, with two on and two out in the top of the 9th, the Orioles got a three-run bomb and went on to win 3-1. There is every reason to believe that today's game will play out much differently than yesterday's low-scoring affair. The total on today's game is a 9 with good reason as it will be a mild afternoon with the wind blowing out in Anaheim. The pitching match-up is ideal for a slugfest and the over is a perfect 5-0 this season in Orioles road games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. Also, in games where the O's are a small road favorite of up to -125, the over is 4-0 this season! Orioles day games are 7-2 to the over this season. Before yesterday's under, the Angels had been on a 7-2 run to the over and I expect their hot hitting to resume today. Ubaldo Jimenez gets the start for the Orioles and he's given up 11 runs (10 earned) in his last two starts and those outings spanned only 9 and 1/3 innings! Those were both at home for Jimenez whom has also gone 0-2 on the road this season with a 5.73 ERA. Jered Weaver has also struggled in his last two starts for the Angels. The veteran right-hander has gone 0-2 with 12 runs allowed (11 earned) on 19 hits (including FIVE homers!) in only 11 innings of work. The Orioles have averaged 6.5 runs per game in their last 4 road games and the Angels, overall, had averaged 6.2 runs per game in their last 9 games prior to yesterday's tough day at the plate. The Angels stranded 11 men on base yesterday. Look for them to make up for that today as both these starters get rocked on a perfect afternoon for baseball in Anaheim! *10* OVER in LA Angels

Rickenbach MLB *10* OVER 9 or 9.5 runs in Boston vs Cleveland @ 4:05 ET Saturday - A very mild afternoon is expected in Boston Saturday and the wind is expected to be blowing out. That can help to turn Fenway Park into a "bandbox" that is very favorable for the hitters and that is exactly what I am expecting in Game Two of this series. Helping our cause here (for the over) is this pitching match-up. Joe Kelly gets the start after coming back from a trip to the DL. He went on the DL due to a shoulder impingement. Though he pitched well in the minors in his final rehab start, he certainly hasn't fared well at the big league level this season with a 9.34 ERA in his three early season starts. Also, since coming to Boston, he had a 6.29 ERA in his day game outings in 2014 and a 5.62 ERA in his day games starts last season. This season he's been hit at a .368 clip and I don't see a day game at Fenway Park being a good situation for him to make his first start back. However, at least he should have plenty of run support because the Red Sox offense has been among the best in baseball early this season. Boston should have no trouble with the offerings of Cleveland's Trevor Bauer. They faced him in August here at Fenway Park and got to him for 5 earned runs early and knocked him out of the game in the 2nd inning! Even though Bauer has pitched better early this season, this is still a guy with a career 4.44 ERA and now facing his toughest start so far this year. 3 of his first 4 starts this season (filling in for Carlos Carrasco) have come against three opponents with team batting averages of .235 or less (Philadelphia, Houston, and Minnesota). Now he faces a Boston team hitting nearly .300 on the season. Entering Friday's action the over was 21-11 in Indians games on grass fields this season. The over was also 5-1 in Red Sox home games with a posted total of 9 to 9.5 runs. This total is big for a reason. This should be a slugfest Saturday. *10* OVER in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs in Boston vs Cleveland @ 7:10 ET - The Indians are off of a 7-2 in at Cincinnati last night that went over the total. In their last 15 games, Cleveland has stayed under the total only 3 times. The Indians now visit a hitter-friendly park and face one of the most dangerous lineups in baseball as Cleveland faces the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Boston is on an 8-1-1 run to the over and the weather is also expected to be favorable for an over on Friday night. Even though Corey Kluber is a "big name pitcher" for Cleveland, the right-hander has given up 9 earned runs in his last two starts spanning only 9 and 1/3 innings of work. Also, he faced Boston in early April and got clobbered. By the way, the Red Sox Clay Buchholz faced the Indians in early April and he also got hammered. Buchholz comes into this start in poor current form as well as he has allowed 9 earned run in his last 2 starts spanning only 11 innings of work. The Red Sox right-hander has given up 3 homers in his last two starts as well and both of those outings were at home. This total looks to be moving toward a 9 and the over is already 7-2 this season in Boston's games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. The Red Sox are coming off of a win Wednesday and the over is 15-8 in Boston's games this season when they are off of a win. As for the Indians, the over is 21-11 in their games on grass this season and 17-9 in Cleveland's games against right-handed starters. The Red Sox lineup has been producing runs like crazy while the Indians lineup is hotter than it's been all season. All signs are therefore pointing to a slugfest at Wrigley Field Friday night. *10* OVER in Boston

Rickenbach MLB *10* OVER 8.5 runs -105 in Cincinnati vs Cleveland @ 7:10 ET - Josh Tomlin of the Indians is 5-0 on the season. However, he has allowed 6 homers in his last 4 starts and, in his last three starts he has compiled a 4.42 ERA. The last time he faced the Reds Tomlin gave up 6 runs in less than 5 innings of work. The last time he pitched at Cincinnati Tomlin gave up 6 earned runs in only 4 innings of work. Cincy has scored 6 runs or more (plus had 10 hits or more) in 3 of their last 4 games. The Reds stay hot at the plate tonight and they'll need it because the Indians have beaten Cincinnati three straight times and averaged 12 runs per game in those three victories. The Tribe should have no problems with the offerings of Tim Adleman. He is making just his 4th start of the season and he has struggled more with each start he's made. 7 baserunners in 5 innings two starts ago and then 10 baserunners in 5 innings in his last start. That outing came against a Phillies team that certainly has not been an offensive juggernaut this season. That said, the way the Indians are hitting the ball, they should do damage early and often against Adleman. Another key factor here is that the Cincy bullpen is easily one of the worst in baseball so Cleveland should be piling up runs throughout Thursday's contest. The over is 16-9 in Indians games against right-handed starters this season and 20-11 in their games on grass. The over is 18-10 in Reds games against right-handed starters this season. 9 of the last 13 meetings between these teams have gone over the total and that strong trend continues Thursday. *10* OVER in Cincinnati

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 runs -102 in Oakland vs Texas @ 3:35 ET - This is truly a contrarian play as many are likely to be looking for a pitchers duel here based on the low ERAs of these two hurlers. This is helping to give line value here as the juice has already moved from the over side to the under side in this one as of early gameday morning. A crazy 9th inning is what allowed yesterday's game to soar over the total as both bullpens suffered collapses. That is good news if we need some late runs in this one as both pens are "rattled". However, I don't expect to need that as I look for both of these starting pitchers to have some issues. Texas is looking to avoid a sweep and the over is 10-7 this season in Rangers games when they are off of a loss. They are facing Rich Hill who has enjoyed some surprising early season success but whom is 0-3 with a 4.85 ERA in his home starts this season. The journeyman southpaw is having some issues with command of his pitches and has walked 3 or more batters in 5 of his last 6 starts. The Rangers have a potent enough offense to make him pay as they are averaging 6 runs per game in their last 11 games and it will be a mild afternoon in Oakland with the wind blowing out to right. As far as the A's offense, this will be the 4th straight southpaw starter they are facing. The over is 5-2 in Athletics games against left-handed starters this season. It tends to help a lineup when they see a lefty in consecutive outings and in this case it's been lefty-lefty-lefty-lefty for the A's to tee off against. Like Hill, Martin Perez of the Rangers is having some issues with command of his pitches and the left-hander also has given up 12 earned runs in his last 2 starts against Oakland and those spanned a total of less than 9 innings! Perez has more walks than strikeouts in his road starts this season and the A's confidence at the plate is soaring right now as they have scored at least 5 runs and reached double digits in hits in 5 of their last 8 games. The over is 8-2 in the Rangers last 10 games and 10-3 in the A's last 13 games. More of the same Wednesday afternoon. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs +105 in Detroit vs Minnesota @ 7:10 ET - These teams exploded for 18 runs yesterday and the Twins offense is certainly coming to life as they have now averaged 6.25 runs per game in their last 4 games. The Tigers lineup has pounded out 13 or more hits in 3 of their last 5 games and the over is 8-2 in Detroit's last 10 games and 13-3-1 in the Twins last 17 games. With this pitching match-up today featuring a pair of fading veteran hurlers I look for both teams to continue pounding the ball tonight. Both of these starting pitchers have already seen the better years of their career. Mike Pelfrey of the Tigers faced the Twins two weeks ago and got pounded for 5 earned runs in 4 innings of work. Phil Hughes of Minnesota faced the Tigers a little over two weeks ago and he gave up 4 earned runs in just 5 innings on the mound. Overall, Hughes has a 12.27 ERA and 2.09 WHIP in his last 3 starts. Detroit's Pelfrey is off of a surprisingly "decent" start at Baltimore in his last outing but he previously allowed 5 earned runs in each of his 3 prior starts. He's winless on the season and has a 9.39 ERA in his home starts on the year. The Twins are 14-6 to the over in night games this season and 6-1 to the over this season in their games against teams with a losing record. The Tigers are 11-4 to the over this season in their home games and also 22-9 to the over this season in their games against a right-handed starter. *10* OVER in Detroit

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs +105 in Detroit vs Minnesota @ 7:10 ET - The Tigers Jordan Zimmerman certainly has impressed early this season. However, after a 5-0 start he's now lost 2 straight and Monday he'll be facing a Twins team that is off of back to back wins and scored 17 runs in their 3-game set at Cleveland over the weekend. The point is that Minnesota could absolutely give Zimmerman some trouble here. As well as the Detroit right-hander has pitched early this season his strikeout numbers were down in his past two starts and he did allow 14 hits in his 15 innings of work. Solid outings nonetheless but it's not like the guy has been unhittable and the Twins are swinging the sticks better in recent games. Minnesota has had just 2 unders in their 13 games in the month of May! The Twins are also 7-2 to the over when off of a win this season and they also are 5-1 to the over when facing a team with a losing record. The Tigers are 10-4 to the over in May and also 10-4 to the over in their home games this season. Detroit also is 21-9 to the over in their games against right-handed starters this season. Jose Berrios gets the start for Minny tonight and he has a 1.75 WHIP in his 3 starts this year and his ugly 6.28 ERA could easily be even worse. The hungry Tigers (slumping for weeks) got a much needed win yesterday and produced 6 runs on 13 hits. Detroit is happy to be back home and I look for them to rally after yesterday's win. They should score plenty tonight but the Twins are starting to put things together at the plate and this should be a close, but high-scoring, game all the way. The Minnesota bullpen has a 5.89 ERA on the road this season and the Tigers pen has a 5.10 ERA at home this season. Big runs at Comerica Park tonight. *10* OVER 8.5 in Detroit

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10 runs +105 in Colorado vs New York Mets @ 4:10 ET - This match-up actually stayed under the closing total yesterday as the line moved to 11.5 rather early in the day and, amazingly, the game got to 7-4 by the top of the 6th and then went scoreless the rest of the way. The teams did combine for 25 hits and I look for more hot hitting today. Even though the Mets Jacob deGrom has good career numbers against the Rockies a lot of that has to do with the fact that he has never faced them at hitter friendly Coors Field. This will be deGrom's first ever start at Colorado and the Rockies have pounded out at least a dozen hits in 4 of the first 5 games of this 6 game homestand. The Mets deGrom has only allowed a total of 5 earned runs in his last two starts but he did give up 16 hits in the 12 innings of work. Baserunners at Coors Field lead to problems in a hurry and that is especially true in an afternoon game. Yes the wind will be blowing in and it will be a little cool this afternoon but that thin and air (especially in an afternoon game) is so favorable for the hitters at Coors Field. That is a big reason why you also see the huge home/away disparity with Tyler Chatwood's numbers for the Rockies. The right-hander gets the start for Colorado this afternoon and, while he has pitched very well on the road, he has been rocked at home this season. Chatwood has gone 0-3 with a 7.87 ERA in his three home starts this season. I expect both Chatwood and deGrom (welcome to Coors Field!) to struggle this afternoon and, even though it may not be needed, there certainly should be more late inning runs than what we saw yesterday. The Rockies bullpen has a 5.71 ERA in home games this season. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs +105 in Cleveland vs Minnesota @ 4:10 ET - This can be categorized as a bit of a contrarian play. I say that because I am well aware of the fact that it will be a bit of a "raw" afternoon in Cleveland and the wind will be blowing in and the temperatures will only get cooler as the game goes along. However, one of the keys in a situation like this is it tends to give line value to the over. The conditions don't seem ideal but the current trending of both of these clubs as well as current struggles for both of these hurlers has me backing the over in a big way Saturday. Yesterday's 7-6 Cleveland win means that Minnesota has gone over the total to the tune of 8-1-1 in their 10 games this month. As for the Indians, they have had only 2 unders in their last 8 games. The Twins Ervin Santana just returned from the disabled list and the results were concerning. Santana gave up 7 hits and 3 walks in only 3 and 1/3 innings. Things are unlikely to improve for the struggling right-hander today as he gave up 8 earned runs on 10 hits in only 2 and 2/3 innings in his last start at Cleveland! The key "X factor" to this play is that Corey Kluber is a big name pitcher for the Indians but I fully expect him to struggle here. He has allowed 8 earned runs in his last 9 and 2/3 innings of work against Minny and he is coming off of a rough outing in his most recent start. Kluber gave up 5 earned runs in less than 3 innings of work at Houston on Monday. The over is 10-5 in Cleveland home games this season. Also, the over is 10-4 in Indians divisional games this season. *10* OVER in Cleveland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10 runs -105 in Colorado vs New York Mets @ 8:40 ET - Temps will get up into the mid-70s today before cooling off this evening in Denver. Though a cool front is coming in and the wind will likely be blowing in from right field, the air will still be extremely dry and balls hit well to center and left field should carry well given the expected win direction. The key here is we are getting some line value because these pitchers have some good numbers and likely because of the forecast wind condition. Keep in mind, totals at Coors Field are usually in the 11 range and oftentimes even up into the 12 range. With this one opening up at a 10.5 and then moving down to a 10, I am not going to hesitate to get involved. Sure, Matt Harvey has good career numbers against the Rockies but he's never faced them at hitter-friendly Coors Field! As for Jon Gray, the last time he faced the Mets was in Colorado in August and he gave up 7 earned runs in less than 2 innings of work. Gray has an 11.42 ERA in his two home starts this season. Harvey is coming off of a great outing but that was against a Padres team that has one of the weakest lineups in baseball. Harvey's first 5 starts this season, saw him allow 42 hits in 34 innings and truly he has faced a lot of struggles offenses this season. 5 of the 6 games saw him face teams that are hitting .236 or less this season. The other one was against a Royals team that ranks 26th out of 30 teams for runs scored this season! Now Harvey will face a Rockies team that is hitting .292 in home games which is tops in the NL and 2nd in MLB overall. The over is 10-5 this season in Colorado home games and 3-1 when the Rockies are coming off of an off day. The Mets weren't off yesterday but they may as well have been. They got shut out by Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. The over is 3-0 this season in Mets games when they are off of a shutout loss. Also, the past three seasons combined, the over is 24-14 in Mets games when they are a small road favorite (up to -125).  *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9.5 runs +105 in Baltimore vs Detroit @ 7:05 ET - The Orioles are hot. Not only have they won four straight games but they have scored an average of 7.5 runs per game during this streak while also averaging 12.5 hits per game. Now, on Thursday, the O's get the luxury of teeing off against the Tigers Mike Pelfrey. The veteran right-hander has been a model of consistency for Detroit but not in a good way! Pelfrey has given up 5 earned runs in each of his last three starts! Also, the Tigers righty has walked 14 while striking out just 12 in his last five starts. In his last 3 starts against Baltimore, Pelfrey allowed only 3 earned runs in each outing but he certainly was fortunate. He gave up 27 hits in those 3 starts even though they spanned less than 17 innings of work! The only good news for Tigers fans tonight is that at least their lineup should make some noise as well. Detroit is off of a disastrous game at Washington yesterday that felt much worse than the 3-2 final score. The Tigers struck out 20 times in the game and are anxious to redeem themselves against Ubaldo Jimenez tonight. The Orioles right-hander is only 1-2 with a 5.30 ERA and a 1.61 WHIP in his last 3 starts. Also, against the Tigers, Jimenez gave up at least 6 earned runs against them in each of his two outings last season even though he didn't make it out of the 5th inning of either start. The over is 12-4 in Detroit's games against teams with a winning record this season. The over is 5-2 this season in Orioles games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs. *10* OVER in Baltimore

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10.5 runs -105 in Colorado vs Arizona @ 3:10 ET - Yesterday's game easily stayed under the total but it was a 'quirky' result to say the last. The Diamondbacks pounded out 14 hits Tuesday but they left 10 men on base. The Rockies went an insane 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position yesterday. That is not a result you are likely to see again at Coors Field anytime soon. After being held to just 1 run in yesterday's game, look for the Rockies to get right back on track here. Colorado should have no trouble with the offerings of Robbie Ray as they just saw him in Arizona less than 2 weeks ago and they pounded him for 5 earned runs in just 4 innings of work. The Rockies got 4 homers off of Ray in that game! The Diamondbacks southpaw has an 8.03 ERA and a 2.11 WHIP in his last 3 starts. The only good news for Ray today is that he should have plenty of run support behind him. The Diamondbacks have averaged 6 runs and 11 hits per game during their current 5 game winning streak. Though Chad Bettis held them to 3 earned runs when he faced them in Arizona, the Rockies right-hander did given up 9 hits in his 6 innings on the mound. Overall, Bettis has been getting hit hard recently with 8 earned runs on 17 hits in his last 12 innings of work. The Rockies hitting production at home ranks among the best in the league but their bullpen work at home ranks them among the worst in the league in that category. With that said, this one is likely to turn into a slugfest Wednesday afternoon. Even with yesterday's surprising under, the over is still 9-5 in Rockies home games this season. Also, Colorado is 6-3 to the over in their 9 games against left-handed starters this season. The over is also 17-7 the last 3 seasons in Arizona games when they enter on a winning streak of 3 games or more. In their 8 Diamondbacks day games so far this season, only 2 have resulted in unders. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11 runs +105 in Colorado vs Arizona @ 8:40 ET - I am well aware of the fact that Rubby de la Rosa pitched quite well before struggling in his most recent outing. I also know he's enjoyed some surprising success at Coors Field in recent outings. However, the way he struggled at Miami seemed to be a bit of a mechanical flaw that I don't see him turning around from one outing to the next. Also, he's now 0-2 on the road this season with a 5.22 ERA. The Diamondbacks right-hander also got rocked by the Rockies when he faced them in Arizona last July. Overall, de la Rosa has allowed 9 earned runs in the 11 innings spanning his last two starts against Colorado. The Rockies are averaging 6.4 runs per game against Diamondbacks pitching this season and will be looking to respond after yesterday's 10-5 loss. They may respond at the plate but the Rockies pitching continues to be a concern. At home, the Colorado bullpen has a 6.28 ERA this season. That's particularly bad news today because certainly the Colorado bullpen may be called upon early in this one. That's because southpaw Chris Rusin is getting the start for the Rockies. He pitches to contact but managed to have surprising success against the Diamondbacks in Arizona last month. Now the Dbacks get a quick second look at him though and he is coming off of a start where he got absolutely hammered at San Francisco. Overall, Rusin is 11-19 with a 5.11 ERA and a .296 BAA in his MLB career. In the past 4 years, he was hit at .308 or better in 3 of the 4 seasons. He's facing a Diamondbacks team that has a lofty .457 slugging percentage and has averaged 5 runs in their games against left-handed starters this season. The Dbacks have won 4 straight games and the over is 17-6 the last 3 seasons when Arizona enters a game on a winning streak of 3 games or more. The over is 9-4 in Rockies home games this season and the weather should be ideal for the ball to again carry very well tonight. There were 13 extra base hits in last  night's games and I expect more of the same tonight. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11 runs -110 in Colorado vs Arizona @ 8:40 ET - Archie Bradley is only 23 years old and had an ERA up near 6 in his 8 starts with the Diamondbacks last season. He is making a spot start here for Arizona and this is just his 2nd start at the MLB level in 2016. If his first one is any indication, it should be a rough outing for Bradley. He got rocked at pitcher-friendly San Francisco 3 weeks ago and now he has to make his first-ever Coors Field start and the wind direction could be switching around early in this game and actually blowing out. Even if it's blowing in a bit in the early stages, the thin air of Colorado will help the carry of the ball and Bradley is going to get rocked by a Rockies lineup that routinely hits around .300 in their home games year in and year out. The Diamondbacks should also enjoy success at the plate tonight. Tyler Chatwood has struggled in his home starts this season. Also, the right-hander's last significant time as a starter (2013 season) shows this is no fluke as he got hit at a .294 clip in his home starts that season at Coors Field. Even earlier in his career he was hit a .310 clip in home games for a full season as a starter for the Angels. The Diamondbacks saw him last month so that will help them hone in on his offerings tonight. The Dbacks are off of a series sweep at Atlanta where they hit the ball well and they are 16-6 to the over the last three seasons combined when they are on a winning streak of 3 games or more. The Rockies are 8-4 to the over in their home games this season. Rockies bullpen has ERA at home up near 6 so far this season. *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 runs -110 in St Louis vs Pittsburgh @ 2:15 ET - The ball is known for carrying well in day games in St Louis and the weather should be especially helpful in that regard today. Warm afternoon weather with the wind blowing out and with the air fairly dry. The ball will carry very well today and that's bad news for the pitchers in this one as they were already struggling coming into this outing. The Pirates Jeff Locke has pitched a little better in his last two starts but Pittsburgh is still only 1-4 in his starts this season as he's compiled a 4.72 ERA that certainly could be much worse considering his 1.84 WHIP. The right-hander has an atrocious 2.07 WHIP in his road outings this season and got rocked for 4 earned runs in just 5 innings of work in his most recent start at St Louis. The Cardinals will have Adam Wainwright on the mound and he's only 2-3 this season with a 6.68 ERA. Also, his two home starts have seen the veteran right-hander compile a 7.94 ERA. In his last 3 starts against the Pirates Wainwright has compiled a 5.00 ERA and he allowed three homers in his last home start versus Pittsburgh. Both of Wainwright's home starts have gone over the total and 3 of Locke's last 4 starts have gone over the total. The over is 7-1 in Pirates games with a posted total of 8 or 8.5 runs this season. The over is also 7-3 in Pittsburgh's day games this season. This will be the 5th Saturday game for the Cardinals so far this season and they've yet to record an under on a Saturday. Look for that streak to remain intact with today's result on a great day for baseball (particularly hitting the baseball) this afternoon at Busch Stadium. *10* OVER in St Louis

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8.5 in Cincinnati vs Milwaukee @ 7:10 ET - Tyler Cravy gets the start for the Brewers only because Wily Peralta was placed on the paternity list (birth of daughter). Cravy will be limited to just 85 pitches as he had only made one start at Triple A before this call up. This is bad news for a Milwaukee bullpen whose ERA is over 5 and that, on the road, has a WHIP up near 2.00 so, in other words base runners galore. This has played a big role in the Brewers going over the total in 8 straight games and 10 of their last 11. As for the Reds, they are starting Tim Adleman who had a good outing in his first this season but whom will be making just the 2nd MLB start of his career. The Reds have gone over the total in 4 of their last 5 games and their bullpen has had a disastrous start to the season including a 6.53 ERA and only 1 save in 6 opportunities so far. The over is 7-3 this season when the Reds are off of a win and also 11-5 in divisional games. The Brewers have had just 7 unders in their 28 games this season. Milwaukee is averaging nearly 6 runs per game in their last 11 games. The Reds are averaging nearly 6 runs per game in their last 5 games. With two inexperienced starting pitchers on the mound, two weak bullpens, and some confident sticks loaded up in each lineup, this one should fly over the total. *10* OVER in Cincinnati

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play UNDER 8.5 runs in Cleveland vs Detroit @ 6:10 ET - With the Indians 4-0 win yesterday, Cleveland games have now stayed under the total in 4 of their last 5. The Indians are only hitting .247 on the season. The Tigers have averaged just 1.6 runs per game in their five games against the Indians this season. They are likely to struggle again this evening. Not only is it going to be a raw, chilly night with a north wind blowing in as well, the fact is that the Indians Trevor Bauer is going to be much stronger tonight now that he's not on a strict pitch count. In his first start this season, last week, he was limited but tonight he'll be turned loose and Bauer is healthy again and he's tough when he's commanding his pitches like he is right now. The Tigers will have Michael Fullmer on the mound and, like Bauer, he'll be making his 2nd start of the season and, like Bauer, I expect him to go even deeper into this game after a solid MLB debut. Fullmer did a good job of keeping the ball down in his MLB debut and 6 of the 7 hits he allowed were singles. He got a lot of ground ball outs and some nice strike outs as well. The Tigers bullpen has been stellar this season while the Indians bullpen has been solid as well. Factoring in the weather as well that makes this the perfect spot for a solid under. You might expect a "crazy" game after yesterday's shutout win for the Indians but the Tigers are actually 2-0 to the under when off of a shutout loss. Also, the under is 16-9 in Indians games the past three seasons when they are off of a shutout win. In 14 night games this season for the Tribe, only 5 overs have resulted. This evening's game should stay well under the total as well. *10* UNDER in Cleveland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play UNDER 7.5 runs -110 in San Diego vs Colorado @ 10:10 ET - When people think of the Rockies offense often comes to mind. However, they are a different team away from hitter-friendly Coors Field. Yesterday's 2-1 loss easily stayed under the total and that means that Colorado has had just 3 overs in their last 11 road games! Though there were 15 hits in yesterday's game, 13 of them were singles. The Padres are known for their struggles at the plate and Petco Field is absolutely a pitchers park. That is a big part of the reason that Andrew Cashner has great career numbers in his home starts with San Diego. Already this season Cashner has been strong at home. He's coming off of a rare rough road outing but, in his prior two starts (both at home) he allowed just 1 earned run in 6 innings in each start. In his last home start versus the Rockies, the Padres right-hander gave up just 1 earned run in 7 and 1/3 innings of work. Cashner will be opposed by Eddie Butler of the Rockies tonight. One must be careful in looking at his stats both in the majors and minors. That's because his home games at the MLB level are at hitter friendly Coors and in the minor leagues his recent action has been at AAA Albuquerque and they play their home games in one of the most hitter friendly venues in all of minor league baseball. Butler struck out 4 in 2 and 1/3 innings in his first appearance (out of the bullpen) for the Rockies this season. He's capable of holding the Padres in check here as they went into yesterday's game hitting just .219 in home games this season! The Rockies bullpen also, as you would expect, is much better on the road compared to at home. The under is 4-0 in the Padres last 4 games. Look for another pitchers duel tonight. *10* UNDER 7.5 in San Diego 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play UNDER 7.5 runs -115 in Kansas City vs Washington @ 8:15 ET - The Nationals have had just 8 overs in their 24 games this season while the Royals have had just 5 overs in their 24 games this season. Based on the pitching match-up for Monday, this looks like another great spot for the under. Gio Gonzalez has a 1.42 ERA and a 0.99 WHIP so far this season. Edinson Volquez is coming off of a rough start so I fully expect him to respond as he's back home for this start and the Royals right-hander has a 0.96 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in his three home starts this season. His most recent was on the road and was truly an aberration as he had pitched well in all four of his starts so far this season (including a road outing) before that ugly outing last week. Washington hasn't faced Volquez since 2014 and he held them to 2 earned runs in over 12 innings of work in his two starts against them that season. Gonzalez struggled against the Royals when he last faced them but that was in 2013 and that was the only start he has had against them since the 2011 season. A lack of familiarity is almost always an edge for the pitcher and the Nationals left-hander is throwing extremely well so far this season. The Royals are averaging just 2.7 runs per game in their last 11 games. The Nationals are hitting just .234 on the season. Both clubs bullpens have been fantastic this season. The under has cashed in 9 of 11 Royals home games this season. In 12 road games this season the Nationals have had just 3 overs! *10* UNDER in Kansas City

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 8 runs -105 in Oakland vs Houston @ 4:05 ET - The A's Rich Hill has an interesting dichotomy that has developed so far this season. He's been great on the road but struggled at home. As we enter the 2nd month of the season this will be Hill's 3rd home start of the young season. Though he's been lights out on the road this season, the Oakland southpaw has gone 0-2 with a 6.43 ERA at home and that ERA could easily have been even worse as Hill has a 2.29 WHIP in home games. Putting baserunners on against a powerful Astros lineup can prove to be dangerous. Yes, Houston has struggled at the plate this season as shown by their batting average but they are still putting together a solid slugging percentage due to good power in the lineup. After getting shutout yesterday I look for the Houston bats to respond today and they certainly will need to because their starting pitcher, Doug Fister, is struggling miserably. Fister is 0-3 with a 5.60 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP in his last 3 starts. He has given up 5 homers in his 4 starts this season and he walked 7 in his most recent outing. Fister has given up 15 earned runs on 29 hits in just 15 and 1/3 innings in his last 3 starts against the A's. Oakland's bats should do plenty of damage here in a day game with the wind blowing out. The over is 10-4 in Houston road games this season and the over is 3-1 in Astros games against left-handed starters this season. The Houston bullpen has a 6.80 ERA on the road this season. *10* OVER in Oakland

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 runs in Arizona vs St Louis @ 9:40 ET - The Cardinals lineup is on fire. St Louis has won 4 of their last 5 games and is averaging 9 runs per game in those contests. The Cardinals certainly should stay hot at the plate against Rubby De La Rosa. The Diamondbacks right-hander is off of a strong outing but that doesn't completely erase how tough his early season outings have gone overall. Also, De La Rosa is known for struggling badly against left-handed batters and the Cardinals have some very tough left-handed sticks that will be in the lineup tonight. The Cards aren't the only hot lineup involved tonight. The Diamondbacks have won 7 of their 11 games and have averaged 6.4 runs per game during this hot streak. The over is 9-3 in Arizona's last 12 games and the over has cashed in 5 straight St Louis games. Even though the Cardinals Michael Wacha is certainly a pitcher I respect, he has not been overly impressive this season. He has been hit at a .301 clip so far this season. Also, in his most recent start (at pitcher-friendly Petco Park!) he walked 4 Padres while not recording a single strikeout. That doesn't bode well for what to expect from Wacha tonight at hitter-friendly Chase Field. The Cardinals are 9-3 to the over this season on the road and the over is 9-2 in St Louis games this season when they are off of a win. The over is 9-4 in Diamondbacks home games this season. In the finale of this 4-game set tonight look for another game filled with fireworks from each of the lineups as they make the over a perfect 4-0 in this series. The Dbacks relievers have a 5.26 ERA in home games this season. More struggles against tonight as De La Rosa is likely to have an early exit at the hands of the powerful Cards. *10* OVER in Arizona 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs +100 in Seattle vs Houston @ 10:10 ET - The Mariners exploded for 11 runs yesterday in what was their 6th win in their last 7 games. The M's are averaging 6 runs per game during this hot streak and Colin McHugh of the Astros is unlikely to slow Seattle down. The Astros right-hander has allowed 28 hits in his last 3 starts and those have spanned just 16 and 1/3 innings. He has been way too hittable and already has an ugly 7.56 ERA on the season. In his last two starts against the Mariners, McHugh has given up 6 homers so that's bad news for tonight as Seattle is certainly "feeling it" with how hot their bats have been of late. As for the Astros sticks, they have certainly struggled so far this season but they were heating up before they were shut down by Nate Karns yesterday. The Astros had averaged 5 runs per game and 11 hits per game in their 3 prior contests. After getting shutdown last night, look for the Astros to bounce back tonight. They are still among league leaders in homers early this season. They'll be facing the Mariners Hisashi Iwakuma. The Seattle right-hander has allowed four earned runs in each of his last three starts against the Astros. Iwakuma allowed 2 homers the last time he faced Houston. He also comes into this start having allowed 3 homers in his past two starts overall. The over is 6-2 in McHugh's starts against the Mariners in his career. The over is 8-3 in Astros road games this season. *10* OVER in Seattle

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 10 runs -105 in Colorado vs Pittsburgh @ 8:40 ET - There is no denying that Gerrit Cole is a fantastic young hurler. But Coors Field has humbled many great pitchers through the years and Cole will be making his first ever appearance here. Cole lucked out as the weather is more favorable than usual for pitchers at Coors Field tonight. The wind will be blowing out of the north and it will be a chilly night. However, that doesn't change the fact that the air is still very thin air and the density of the air (in this case, thin air) absolutely impacts the movement of pitches as well as how well the ball carries here. Cole will be having to adjust on the fly here in his first ever appearance in this ball park. The fact this total has come down from an 11 to a 10 is providing even more line value with the over in this match-up tonight. Cole was 10-1 in day starts last year but 9-7 in night starts with an ERA a full run higher under the lights. As for the Rockies, Jorge De La Rosa gets the start tonight but has a few strikes against him in this spot. The southpaw had his start pushed back a day because he's 'under the weather'. Also, the lefty is struggling badly so far this season with a 9.86 ERA and a 1.96 WHIP so far this year. He's facing a Pirates team that has seen a surge in confidence surging through the lineup as they have their sticks going with 7.6 runs per game in their last 5 games. On the season the Pirates are hitting .292 overall and they've averaged 7.3 runs per game in their games against left-handed starters. The Rockies are hitting a solid .287 at home this season and this game has all the makings of offensive fireworks after last night's rare result as the Rockies scored just 1 run last night. Look for the over to improve to 12-3 in the Pirates last 15 games! *10* OVER in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11 runs -110 in Colorado vs LA Dodgers @ 4:10 ET - Yesterday was a rare pitchers duel at Coors Field and there will be nothing like that today. We also get to take advantage of the line move here with this total moving down from an 11.5 to an 11 as of early Sunday morning. Both of these starting pitchers are likely to struggle today. Alex Wood gets the start for the Dodgers and he's 0-2 with an 8.00 ERA and a 2.22 WHIP in his two road starts this season. Now he'll be pitching in the toughest venue for pitchers in baseball today. Wood pitcher he in July and September of last year and he allowed 7 earned runs in the first start and 8 earned runs in the second start at Coors Field. Ouch...and I look for more of the same today. His counterpart today is Jordan Lyles. The Rockies right-hander is off of a great start at Cincinnati but his first two starts this season were at home in hitter-friendly Coors. Lyles went winless in those two starts and compiled an 11.25 ERA and a 2.25 WHIP in those two outings. Lyles also is 0-3 with a 6.85 ERA in his career against the Dodgers and that's even with the last three outings all coming at pitcher-friendly Dodger Stadium. Today Lyles faces them in the thin air of Denver and I expect he will get crushed and so will Wood in what should be a wild game with plenty of fireworks on offense from both lineups. The Dodgers are 4-2 to the over in road games with a posted total of 11 or 11.5 runs the past three seasons combined. The Rockies are 7-4 to the over in divisional games this season. The over is 93-71 in Rockies home games the past three seasons combined. *10* OVER 11 in Colorado

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 11 runs -105 in Colorado vs LA Dodgers @ 8:40 ET Friday - In the last 38 meetings between these teams only 14 have resulted in an under. The Rockies will have Jonathan Gray on the mound tonight. The right-hander is making his first start this season. His biggest issues at the MLB level have been with consistency and command. This spring he had trouble again as walks were an issue. Last season he struggled badly in outings at hitter-friendly Coors Field as he went winless in five starts. In those five outings, Gray got hit at a .391 clip and compiled an 8.27 ERA. Now he faces a Dodgers that has won 6 of their past 8 games and is averaging 5 runs per game on the road this season. The Rockies have won 3 of their last 4 home games and averaged 9 runs per game in those 3 victories. They are happy to be back home after a week-long road trip. Colorado is hitting .303 in their home games this season. This is nothing new as last season the Rockies hit .302 in their home games. In the thin air of Colorado look for Kazmir the Dodgers Scott Kazmir to struggle to get the movement on his pitches that he needs to be successful. He is a soft thrower and he could end up getting walloped on a mild night with the wind expected to be blowing out at Coors Field. After a good first start this season (against a Padres team that couldn't hit anything earlier this season), Kazmir has struggled with 10 earned runs allowed in the 8 innings spanning his past two starts. The Rockies are 6-3 to the over in divisional games this season. The Dodgers went 3-1 to the over the past two seasons when they are on the road and the posted total was 11 or 11.5 runs. Big number on this total tonight but it's absolutely justifiable. *10* OVER in Colorado Friday

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 runs in Baltimore vs Toronto @ 7:05 ET - I am well aware of the fact that Toronto has been an "under machine" so far this season and this has been particularly true on the road. However, R.A. Dickey has struggled badly so far this season and the Blue Jays knuckle-baller went 2-8 with a 4.83 ERA in his road starts last year. This season the 41 year old Dickey is off to a rough start and has a 6.75 ERA and has been hit at a .313 clip so far this season. Facing an Orioles team that is hitting .285 so far this season and has plenty of power is not going to help the knuckler. His counterpart tonight is Ubaldo Jimenez. Even though Jimenez hasn't looked "that bad" this season he has been quite hittable. He's given up 14 hits in his last 12 innings of work and he really labored in his most recent start (at Boston) with command of his pitches also being a real issue against the Red Sox. Jimenez is getting hit at a .298 clip so far this season and has walked 11 and allowed 16 hits in his last 17 and 2/3 innings of work against the Blue Jays. That equates to a 1.53 WHIP and allowing too many baserunners against a powerful Toronto lineup can quickly lead to some "crooked numbers" being put on the scoreboard frame by frame. The fact is that the Jays lineup is getting back into their groove with each win and they have shaken off a slow start to win 6 of their last 9. In road games with a posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs, the Blue Jays have recorded just 17 unders in the last 43 such games. Look for the over to improve to 6-2 in the Orioles last 8 games with a slugfest breaking out on Wednesday. *10* OVER in Baltimore

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 9 in Texas vs Houston @ 8:05 ET - The Astros bullpen has a 6.65 ERA on the road. The Rangers bullpen has an 11.21 ERA at home. With that said, even though yesterday's game got rained out and the Astros have had a day off to rest up and the Rangers have had two days to rest their bullpen, it may not matter! These guys just flat out struggle to record outs and it will be the same story for the starters today as well. The Astros will send Scott Feldman to the mound and he's struggled in his only road start this season. He also got rocked in both starts versus the Rangers last season. Feldman gave up 18 hits in less than 9 innings of work against Texas last season. As for the Rangers starter tonight it will be Derek Holland getting the call. The southpaw has enjoyed some success early this season but it came against teams struggling to score runs. He now faces an Astros team that has a .445 slugging percentage in road games this season. Hollland faced Houston twice in September last season and got hammered in both starts. This one sets up perfectly for both teams to hit the ball well as the Astros got to him for 9 earned runs on 17 hits in less than 11 innings of work last September. The over is 5-1 in Astros road games this season and the over is also 5-1 in Rangers home games this season. The over is 4-0 in Texas home games with posted total of 9 or 9.5 runs this season. Also, the over is 7-2 in Rangers night games so far on the young season. *10* OVER 9 in Texas 

Rickenbach MLB *10* Top Play OVER 7.5 runs +100 in LA Dodgers vs San Francisco @ 8:05 ET - This total has rise from a 7 to a 7.5 as of early Sunday morning and the move is absolutely correct (in my opinion) in this case. Kenta Maeda gets the start for the Dodgers and is welcomed into the SF/LA rivalry. I don't expect it to go well for him. Even though he's been successful in his first two starts this season, the Dodgers righty (signed to MLB contract after years of baseball in Japan) was fortunate in who he faced in his first two starts. Maeda faced the light-hitting Padres and a Diamondbacks team that is hitting .217 on the road this season. Facing the Giants will prove to be a much tougher test as San Francisco is averaging 5.7 runs per game on the season. Maeda will be opposed by Jeff Samardzija of the Giants tonight. I know the veteran righty is off of a surprisingly strong start against the Rockies but one should never put too much weight into just one outing. In his first start this season he truly had to "sneak by" the Brewers as they did get to him for 8 hits and 3 walks in only 5 and 1/3 innings of work. Samardzija has a 6.35 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP in his two career starts against the Dodgers and I look for more struggles here. The Dodgers are 25-16 to the over as a home favorite of -125 to -150 the past three seasons. The Giants are 27-12 to the over as a road dog of +125 to +150 the past three seasons. *10* OVER 7.5 runs in LA Dodgers