My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the TB Rays at 7:10 ET.

The Baltimore Orioles have missed the postseason in each of the last FIVE years, losing 100-plus games in THREE of the four full seasons, including tying Arizona for MLB's worst record in 2021 at 52-110. The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021). Few could have predicted that an Oriole visit to "The Trop" to take on the Rays the weekend before the All-Star break would have had any significance at the start of the 2022 season. However, that's EXACTLY what we have.

Baltimore carries a 10-game winning streak into the series and sits one game above .500 (45-44) following a 7-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday. The Orioles have gone 21-9 since falling a season-worst 11 games under .500 at 24-35 on June 10, and incredibly, find themselves a legitimate wild card contender. Baltimore is currently 1 1/2-games behind in the race for the third and final AL wild card spot. Shane Baz is the Rays' 17th player to be placed on the injured list, tied with the Cincinnati Reds for the highest total in the majors. However, Tampa Bay enters this series off a four-game home sweep of the Red Sox, giving them a 49-40 record which ranks third best in the AL.

The starting pitching matchup tonight features Baltimore's Tyler Wells (7-4, 3.28 ERA) and Tampa Bay's Luis Patino (0-1, 13.50 ERA). Wells made 44 appearances last season (all in relief) but ALL his 17 appearances this season have been starts. He opened 1-4 over his first nine (Baltimore was 2-7) but he's been unbeatable over his last EIGHT starts (he's 6-0 and Baltimore 8-0!), while posting a 2.36 ERA. Tampa Bay is expected to activate Luis Patino from the injured list in time for the Friday start. He has been out since leaving in the first inning of his season debut on April 11 due to a left oblique strain. Patino has made six minor league rehab starts and allowed seven runs over 17.1 innings (3.63 ERA). He likely will be limited to no more than three innings on Friday.

Here's the rub. No one can be sure Patino will start, which is why I'm making this 'side' play "action!" Tampa's Cash 'invented' the idea of using an "opener" and I'm comfortable with whomever the Rays send to the mound in this game. With all due respect to Baltimore and Wells, the team and pitcher are overachieving, and I expect the Rays to be FULL of confidence off their four-game sweep of the Red Sox. GREAT 'price' on the Rays in this one!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekly Wipeout is on the Mil Brewers at 9:45 ET.

The Milwaukee Brewers entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The San Francisco Giants finished with the best record in the majors last season (107-55, .660) while finishing one game ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West. The Brewers and Giants open a four-game series tonight in San Francisco and both teams have struggled lately. Milwaukee was 32-18 through May 30 but has gone 17-22 since, leaving them at 49-40 (still lead the Cards by two games in the NL Central, three in the loss column). The Giants were 37-27 through June 18 but are 8-15 since, falling to 45-42, 12 games behind the first-place Dodgers. The Giants are currently ONE game behind the Cards, who own the third and final wild card spot).

There is plenty of time for both clubs to get "back on track' and the series opener features two standout pitchers set to join forces for the National League in the All-Star Game next week at Dodgers Stadium. Corbin Burnes (7-4, 2.20 ERA) gets the nod for Milwaukee, while Carlos Rodon (8-5, 2.70) takes the mound for San Francisco. Burnes won the National League Cy Young Award last season, posting an 11-5 record with a league-leading 2.43 ERA. He had 234 strikeouts and a 0.94 WHIP. Rodon was 13-5 (2.37 ERA) for the White Sox in 2021 (Chicago was 16-8 in his starts) but he then signed a two-year, $44 million contract with the Giants in March.

Burnes is unbeaten in his last five starts, going 4-0 with a 1.60 ERA plus a 42-9 KW ratio. He's twice thrown seven shutout innings during the run, including his most recent start Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs, when he gave up just three hits and struck out 10. His overall record is modest, but he has produced 14 quality starts in 17 tries this season. Rodon was initially denied a chance to join Burnes next week for the All-Star Game in Los Angeles when the NL's starting pitchers were announced. However, Brewers closer Josh Hader turned down his invitation due to a family matter, opening the door for Rodon to make his second straight All-Star Game appearance. Similar to Burnes. Rodon's record should be better, as he has had just ONE poor start in 17 outings, allowing eight ERs over 3.2 innings of a 15-6 loss at St Louis on May 15. He's allowed two ERs or less in 14 of his 17 starts in 2022!

With all of the above noted, I like the Brewers in this series (AND particularly in this game), as Milwaukee's 28 road wins are the most in the NL, while the Giants check in at just 23-21 at home. That's after going 54-27 at home in 2021, when they had MLB's second-best home record. Milwaukee is likely headed to a FIFTH straight postseason, while San Francisco's 2021 season may have just been an outlier, as the Ginats entered 2021 off FOUR consecutive losing seasons. The Brewers win "with room to spare!"

Good luck...Larry 

My 8* Las Vegas Insider is on the NY Mets at 8:05 ET.

The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season) before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. In stark contrast, the Mets went 22-38 down the stretch to finish in third place at 77-85, 11 1/2 games out of first place. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years. As for the Cubs, who were coming off a 71-91 season in 2021, here's how one preseason magazine summed up the Cubs' situation entering 2022. "Highly successful early in the 20th century, followed by 100 years of mediocrity, then a six-year burst of winning and now back into the abyss."

The Mets got off to a great start this season and were 34-17 through the end of May. As for the Braves, Atlanta was just 23-27, 10 1/2-games behind New York at that time. However, the Braves opened June by winning their first 14 games and ended the month 21-6. They then began July 8-2. They opened a three-game home series with the Mets at 52-35. The Mets came in 19-16 since June 1, with their lead having been cut to 1 1/2-games. However, the Mets took the series 2-1 and now head to Wrigley at 54-36, 2 1/2-games up on Atlanta. The Cubs welcome the Mets to Chicago on a SEVEN-game losing streak and an overall record of 34-54, going a pathetic 17-29 at home.

Carlos Carrasco (9-4, 4.55 ERA) gets the start for the Mets, while the Cubs counter with Keegan Thompson (7-3, 3.04 ERA). Carrasco went 60-36 for Cleveland from 2015-2018, but the previous three seasons, was just 10-16 with a 4.69 ERA. He opened with a so-so April (1-1 in four starts / team was 1-3) with a 4.50 ERA. However, after 13 starts he was 8-2 with a 3.96 ERA, Carrasco was hammered in his last two June starts (11 ERs allowed in just 6.2 innings) but has opened July by allowing just three ERs over 11.1 innings (2.38 ERA) with a 13-3 KW ratio.

Thompson made 32 appearances (six starts) last season, going 3-3 with a 3.38 ERA. He's been a bright spot in Chicago's starting rotation in 2022, going 7-3 with a 3.04 ERA and 1.17 WHIP (down from 1.48 LY) in 19 appearances (11 starts). Thompson may be just 1-1 over his last five starts (Cubs are 2-3) but he owns a stellar 1.93 ERA in his last five starts. 

The Cubs have dominated the Mets during the regular season since the start of the 2014 campaign, winning 19 of 23 games. However, as noted, "The Friendly Confines" have NOT been 'friendly' to the Cubs this season, while the Mets own a 27-19 road mark in 2022 (second-best in the NL). The Mets HAD to gain some confidence by winning TWO of three in Atlanta and now get a chance to gain some real positive mojo (heading into the break) by ending their recent Wrigley 'woes' against the sad-sack Cubs. Cubs Lose! Cubs Lose!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Situational Stunner is on the Tex Rangers at 8:05 ET.

Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The Texas Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017, including going 60-102 (.370) last season.

Seattle and Texas open a four-game series in Arlington Thursday night, as the MLB heads to the All-Star break after Sunday. The Mariners were just 29-39 through June 19 but will take the field tonight having won 18 of their last 21 games and on a 10-game winning streak. At 47-42, Seattle has tied Toronto and Boston, with all three teams just 1 1/2-games behind Tampa Bay. The Rays own the No. 1 wild card spot, leaving two openings. Texas is NOT a playoff contender but at 41-45 is "on pace" to win 77 games in 2022, 17 more than in 2021.

Marco Gonzales (5-9, 3.24 ERA) will get the nod for Seattle, while Martin Perez (7-2, 2,72 ERA) goes for Texas. Gonzales went 46-30 for Seattle from 2018-21 and remains a mainstay in Seattle's starting rotation in 2022, despite his losing record. Seattle is just 6-11 in his starts this season, including losing SIX of his last eight. However, Gonzales has allowed more than two ERs in just ONE of those eight starts. He deserves better. The problem here for Gonzales and Seattle is that they are facing Perez, who is one of the biggest surprises in MLB in 2022.

Perez spent his first seven seasons with Texas but the last three seasons, he had a one-year stint in Minnesota, then pitched for Boston in 2020 and 2021. In that three-season span, he posted a 4.88 ERA. Perez signed a one-year, $4 million contract to return to the Texas Rangers in March and he has turned into a 'different pitcher' in 2022. He went 4-0 over six starts in May (Texas was 6-0!) with an 0.64 ERA to earn American League Pitcher of the Month. He's made 17 starts this season, allowing two ERs or less 11 times! Texas lost THREE of Perez's first starts in 2022 but since May 1, Texas is 12-1 over his last 13 starts (a 92% winning situation)! 

Seattle's the better and 'hotter' team but I'll continue to ride Perez when he's priced in this range!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Late Breaker is on the LA Angels at 9:38 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. In contrast, the LA Angels were coming off a 77-85 season in 2021 and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years. Los Angeles came out strong to open the current season and through May 24th, was 27-17. That left them just ONE game behind the Astros in the AL West, who owned a 28-16 record on the same date.

However, the Angels began a 14-game losing streak on May 25 that lasted through June 8. The Angels welcomed the Astros to Anaheim on Tuesday to begin a three-game series, coming off an anemic 1-8 road trip against the Astros, Miami Marlins and Baltimore Orioles in which they scored just 20 runs. In stark contrast, the 56-29 Astros owned a 12-game lead in the AL West, while the Angels sat a season-worst 11 games under .500 at 38-49 (19 games behind Houston). The Astros prevailed last night in a 6-5 win and at 57-29 are now 20 games better than the 38-50 Angels. The series resumes tonight with Houston's Cristian Javier (6-4, 3.01 ERA) squaring off against LA's two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani (8-4, 2.44 ERA).

This is Javier's third season with Houston and he's been a solid contributor. He will make his 13th start (17th appearance overall) in this one and owns a 0.92 WHIP and BAA of .177. It's also noteworthy that he is 1-0 with an 0.73 ERA in three games (one start) against the Angels this season and 3-0 with a 1.95 ERA in seven games against them in his career. That includes three starts in which he is 3-0 with a 2.04 ERA and 0.57 WHIP!). Ohtani comes in on quite a roll, having won each of his last FIVE starts, allowing just one ER over 33.2 innings for an 0.27 ERA. He has not allowed an earned run in 28.2 innings, going back to June 9, and over his last three starts he has 34 strikeouts in 20.2 innings.

One could focus on the fact that Ohtani is only 1-3 with a 4.75 ERA in seven career starts vs Houston (Angels are just 2-5) but I will counter by noting that in two starts vs the Astros in 2022, he's allowed one ER over 10.2 innings (0.84 ERA) with a KW ratio of 21-2. I used Houston as my 10* last night but will back the Angels as my top-rated play tonight. Here's the dope. While Ohtani has won his last FIVE starts, the Angels have gone 6-19 their last 25 in that span with another pitcher getting the nod. "In Ohtani We (I) Trust!'

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Getaway Day Game of the Week is on the KC Royals at 2:10 ET.

The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). The Detroit Tigers have missed the postseason the last SEVEN years and are well on their way to making it EIGHT straight non-playoff seasons in 2022, as they are currently 30-46. Kansas City is also headed for a SEVENTH straight non-playoff year as when the teams play this "Getaway Day" game on Wednesday, the Tigers are 37-51 and the Royals 34-53. A victory by KC would clinch their second home series victory in a row after they hadn't won a home set since late April. It would also be Kansas City's second series win over Detroit this month (took two of three from July 1-3 at Detroit).

Detroit will send Tarik Skubal (6-7, 3.99 ERA) to the mound to face Brady Singer (3-3, 4.25 ERA) in the finale of this four-game series. The Royals swept a doubleheader on Monday before the Tigers posted a 7-5 victory last night. Skubal was Detroit's best starter through early June, going 5-2 in 11 starts (Tigers were 7-4), while posting a 2,33 ERA. However, he then lost his next FIVE starts, allowing 23 ERs in 23 innings (9.00 ERA!). He is coming off a win in his last outing, as he beat the White Sox 7-5, while allowing just two ERs over six innings.

Singer is in his third season with KC and opened the 2022 season with a 9-15 record (4.62 ERA) in 39 starts. He's made 13 appearances this season, including 10 starts. His first three appearances in 2022 were in relief but he was then optioned to Triple-A Omaha in late April. He returned on May 17 and went 2-0 with a 1.37 ERA in three starts. However, it didn't last, as five June starts, Singer was 1-2 (team was 1-4) while posting a 5.97 ERA. Then again, the Royals have won BOTH of his July starts (3.86 ERA), including a July 3 win over Detroit when he tied his season-high with nine strikeouts.

That win over the Tigers gives him a 4-0 record with a 2.98 ERA in eight career starts against Detroit]it (Royals are 6-2). In contrast, Skubal is 1-5 with a 4.38 ERA in eight career appearances (six starts) against Kansas City. Ryals grab the "W."

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Sea Mariners at 12:05 ET (Game 1 doubleheader).

Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The Nationals arrived in Washington back in 2005 (via Montreal) and in their first seven seasons, finished in 5th-place (last) FIVE times. However, in a six-year span from 2012-17, the Nats made the postseason season FOUR times, but in each instance, couldn't make it past the NLDS. That all changed in 2019, when the Nats won the World Series over the Astros. That said, the Nats finished in last place the next two seasons and at 30-58 this season, are again LAST in the NL East, 24 games behind the Mets.

The Seattle Mariners and Washington Nationals were set to open a two-game IL series Tuesday night in Washington, D.C. but the game was postponed due to rain. The teams will  npw play a Wednesday doubleheader. Seattle is riding an EIGHT-game winning streak and has scored five or more runs in five of its last six contests. The Mariners are on a 16-3 run since June 21, the organization's best three-week stretch since 2003. It leaves the team 45-42 and currently right in the mix with Toronto, Tampa Bay and Boston for one of THREE wild card sports. Meanwhile, the Nationals have lost four in a row and 10 of their last 11 games.

Chris Flexen (5-8, 4.00 ERA) gets the call for the Mariners, while Josiah Gray (7-5, 4.14 ERA) takes the mound for the Nationals in today's Game 1. Chris Flexen was 14-6 (3.61 ERA and 1.25 WHIP) in 2021 and with the Mariners going 22-9 in his starts, owned MLB's best moneyline mark at +$1,597. He began the 2022 season poorly, as he owned just TWO wins in his 13 starts (Seattle was 3-10). However, he's won his last THREE starts, posting a 3.06 ERA. Gray opened the 2022 season with just 14 career appearances (13 starts), while posting a 5.48 ERA. However, in 14 starts this season, he has cut his ERA to 4,14 with the Nats going 8-8 in his starts. However, while he owns a 2,14 road ER, it's 6.42 at home.

There is little season that the Nats will 'cool off' the Mariners here!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Game of the Week is on the Hou Astros at 9:38 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. In contrast, the LA Angels are coming off a 77-85 season in 2021 and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years. Los Angeles came out strong to open the current season and through May 24th, was 27-17. That left them just ONE game behind the Astros in the AL West, who owned a 28-16 record on the same date.

However, the Angels began a 14-game losing streak on May 25 that lasted through June 8. The Angels are coming off an anemic 1-8 road trip against the Astros, Miami Marlins and Baltimore Orioles in which they scored just 20 runs, as Houston visits Anaheim for a three-game series beginning tonight. The 56-29 Astros own a 12-game lead in the AL West, while the Angels sit a season-worst 11 games under .500 at 38-49 (19 games behind Houston).

Luis Garcia (7-5, ERA 3.81) gets the call for the Astros, while the Angels counter with Noah Syndergaard (5-7, 3.84 ERA). Garcia was 11-8 with a 3.30 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 30 appearances (28 starts) in 2021, finishing as the American League Rookie of the Year runner-up. Garcia has made 16 starts in 2022 and enters off FOUR straight wins. An important note for this game is that he has been a MUCH better pitcher away from home in 2022 (road ERA is 2.37, compared to a home ERA of 5.04).

Syndergaard is not the same pitcher he was early in his career while with New York. Per Statcast, his average four-seam fastball is 94.2 mph. Impressive, but down from when the pitch averaged 97.8 mph in 2019. He was 4-2 over his first seven stars (Angels were 4-3) but he's 1-5 in his last six starts, posting a 4.73 ERA.

Here's the bottom line. The Astros outscored the Angels 21-4 in their three-game home set from July 1-3. Those victories came during a stretch in which the Astros won eight straight games. Houston takes the field having won 19 of its last 24 games, I've detailed LA's woes above and will add that Mike Trout batted just .147 (5-for-34) with one HR and 16 strikeouts during the team's 1-8 road trip, including going 0-for-11 with nine strikeouts in the three losses in Houston. Trout and two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani made the AL All-Star team and the only game the Angels won during the nine-game stretch was when Ohtani was on the mound and defeated the Marlins. More on that point, the Angels are 5-1 since the start of June with Ohtani on the mound but 6-25 when anyone else starts.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Division Game of the Month (NL East) is on the Atl Braves at 7:20 ET.

The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season) before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. In stark contrast, the Mets went 22-38 down the stretch to finish in third place at 77-85, 11 1/2 games out of first place. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years, Are we headed for a similar scenario in 2022?

The Mets got off to a great start this season and were 34-17 through the end of May. As for the Braves, Atlanta was just 23-27, 10 1/2-games behind New York at that time. However, the Braves opened June by winning their first 14 games and ended the month 21-6. They have followed by beginning July 8-2 and will open this three-game home series with the Mets at 52-35. The Mets haven't collapsed but since June 1 New York is a modest 19-16 and its lead over Atlanta has been cut to 1 1/2-games. It's a MAJOR pitching showdown tonight, as the Mets go with Max Scherzer (5-1, 2.26 ERA) and the Braves with Max Fried (9-2, 2.52 ERA.

Scherzer was traded by the Nats to the Dodgers during the 2021 season and he would go 7-0 with a 1.98 ERA and 0.82 WHIP in 11 starts (Dodgers were 11-0). He then left for a HUGE contract with the Mets and they won his first five starts of 2022. His 16-start winning streak ended with back-to-back team losses on May 8 and 13, despite allowing only four ERs over 13 innings (2.77 ERA). Scherzer suffered a moderate-to high-grade oblique strain after his May 18th start and that kept sidelined for 48 days. He returned July 5, striking out the first batter he faced and continued to roll across six scoreless innings of a game the Mets lost 2-0. He finished with a season-high 11 strikeouts and two hits and one hit batter.

Fried entered this season with a 38-13 (.745) record from 2019-21 and the Braves were also an OUTSTANDING 50-19 (.724) in all of his starts. He opened the current season 0-2 (5.72 ERA) but the Braves have won 13 of his last 15 starts, including NINE in row in which Fried is 5-0 with a 1.85 ERA. Scherzer is a 'bulldog' but going against the Braves right now, especially with Fried on the mound, is NOT something I'd even consider.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Las Vegas Insider is on the StL Cards at 2:15 ET. (NOTE: This play is listed as "action").

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. As for the Philadelphia Phillies, they opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The Cards, as expected. are battling the Brewers for the NL Central top spot and entered Friday 45-40 (2 1/2-games behind the Brewers in the division), as they got set to host the Phillies for a three-game series. Philadelphia fired Joe Girardi on June 3 and Rob Thomson took over as interim manager and won his first EIGHT games! The Phillies have cooled somewhat (but NOT too much), as after taking each of the first two contests in this series, are 24-10 under Thompson and 46-39 overall. However, they are SEVEN games behind the first place Mets in the NL East and 4 1/2-games behind the four-time defending NL East champion Braves. As for the Cards, the back-to-back losses drops them to 45-42, 3 1/2-games behind Milwaukee.

The Cards will attempt to avoid the "dreaded" home sweep Sunday behind Andre Pallante (2-4, 3.03 ERA). Philadelphia is expected to counter with either Cristopher Sanchez (1-1, 3.48 ERA) or Nick Nelson (3-1, 4.17 ERA). Sanchez could get another fill-in start with the rotation missing Ranger Suarez (low back spasm) and Zach Eflin (bruised right knee). In his first start after moving from the bullpen, Sanchez threw five strong innings against the Washington Nationals in an 11-0 victory on Tuesday. He allowed just two hits and two walks. As for Nelson, he made 22 appearances (just two starts) with the NY Yankees the last two seasons (6.43 ERA) but all 22 appearances with the Phillies in 2022 have come out of the bullpen. This would mark his first start. Pallante is looking to bounce-back after enduring the roughest outing in his young career. He allowed seven ERs on 10 hits in just 3.2 innings in a July 5 loss in Atlanta. However, in his previous 23 appearances (including five starts), he had posted a 2.10 ERA. Pallante wants to be more efficient so he can work deeper into games.

Pallante will also need some support from his teammates, as the Cardinals have lost EIGHT of their last 10 games, scoring a total of just FOUR runs in their last six losses combined. I like St Louis' chances to score here vs either Sanchez or Nick Nelson. For that matter, the Phiilies could choose to go with another starter ("opener"), which is why I list this game as "action." It's the Cards over whomever the Phillies decide to start.

Good luck...Larr

My 7* Weekend Wipeout is on the TB Rays at 1:40 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021), The Cincinnati Reds broke a six-year postseason drought in the COVID season of 2020 but were eliminated by the Braves 2-0, as the Reds did not score a SINGLE run in 22 innings (lost 1-0 in 13 innings and 5-0). The Reds missed the postseason again in 2021 (83-79) and then opened the current season by going 3-22 in their first 25 games. The Rays came to Cincinnati on Friday to open a three-game series with the Reds, having won FIVE of six (were 45-37). The Reds' 3-22 start basically 'killed' their season and welcomed Tampa Bay to the Queen City 27-54, owners of the second-worst record in the NL.

However, the Reds have won the first two games of the series 2-1 and 5-4, both in 10 innings. The Reds earned their second straight 10-inning win Saturday when they scored TWICE in the bottom of the 10th to beat the Rays. The Reds are now 29-54 and going NOWHERE (sit 16 games behind the Brewers in the NL Central), as they try to complete a three-game home sweep on Sunday. The back-to-back losses for the Rays hurts, as the now 45-39 Rays are in the middle of a three-way 'war' with the Red Sox (46-39) and Blue Jays (45-41), as all THREE teams have fallen way behind the 61-24 Yankees in the AL East. The Rays send Shane Baz (1-1, 2.92 ERA) to the mound in the finale of this weekend's interleague series, while the Reds counter with Nick Lodolo (1-2, 4.19 ERA).

Baz made three starts for the Rays in 2021, going 2-0 (team was 3-0), while posting an ERA of 2.03 and WHIP of 0.68, while holding opponents to a .130 BAA. He lost his season debut 6-5 on June 11 to Minnesota, allowing five ERs in just 2.1 innings. However, last Sunday, the 23-year-old became the third starter in Rays history (age 23 or younge) to make four straight starts allowing fewer than two runs, joining Matt Moore in 2012 and Scott Kazmir in 2007 and 2006. Baz earned his first win of 2022, allowing just one run on seven hits over six innings in Tampa Bay's 7-3 win at Toronto. Lodolo will be making his fifth start of 2022 but just his second since a 69-day stint on the injured list with lower right back strain.

The Rays are SOOO much the better team and I have to believe they will avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the sad-sack Reds. Baz comes in with a 1.21 ERA over his last four starts, while Lodolo is making just his second start since April 27. He did show well up against New York Mets ace Max Scherzer in his last start on Tuesday, striking out eight and allowing just three hits in 4.2 scoreless innings, but this a game the Rays SHOULD and WILL, win!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Mia Marlins at 1:40 ET.

The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years, Miami and New York will conclude a four-game series at Citi Field on Sunday, with the Mets having won two of the first three. The Mets will look to build off Saturday's dramatic victory. The Mets earned a stunning 5-4, 10-inning Saturday win when Tomas Nido delivered the game-tying RBI double with two outs and scored the winning run when Marlins pitcher Tanner Scott threw the ball away on Brandon Nimmo's comebacker. The roller-coaster win came hours after the Mets retired the No. 17 worn by Keith Hernandez, the captain of the 1986 World Series champions who staved off elimination in Game 6 against the Boston Red Sox by overcoming a two-run deficit after there were two out and nobody on in the 10th inning at Shea Stadium.

The Marlins had won SIX straight from June 29-July 5th (to close to within ONE game of .500) but take the field Sunday losers of FOUR of five to drop to 40-42, 12 games behind the first-place Mets. New York is 53-32, giving them the second-best record in the NL (Dodgers are 53-29), as they look to hold off the four-time defending NL East champion Braves, who have closed within 2 1/2-games. Sandy Alcantara (9-3, 1.82 ERA) gets the nod for Miami, while the Mets counter with Taijuan Walker (7-2, 2.86 ERA). Miami's Pablo Lopez won National Pitcher of the Month in April and his teammate Alcantara claimed the honor in June, going 3-1 with a 1.89 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and a BAA of.199. He allowed only 34 hits in 47.2 innings with a 34-8 KW ratio. Alcantara is having a 'Cy Young-like' season so far, posting a 0.91 WHIP and BAA of .198 to go along with his splendid ERA. Alcantara allowed just three ERs in a six-start stretch (May 11 through June 8). It was the first time a pitcher had allowed three ERs or less over a six-start stretch spanning at least 48 innings since Jake Arrieta did so for the Chicago Cubs during his NL Cy Young Award-winning season in 2015.

Walker began his career back in 2013 with Seattle and this marks his second season with the Mets. He has stepped up for a rotation that is still waiting to see if deGrom will be able to pitch this season plus one in which Max Scherzer (5-1, 2.26 ERA in nine starts) has made just ONE start since May 18. Walker's 7-2 record (2.86 ERA / 1.14 WHIP) is impressive, but I have to note that the Mets are 1-4 in his five no-decisions (8-6 in his 14 starts). Here's the 'dope.' Alcantara continued his Cy Young push this past Tuesday, when he surrendered just two hits and struck out 10 over eight scoreless innings and recorded the victory as the Marlins edged the LA Angels, 2-1. It was the 11th straight start in which Alcantara threw at least seven innings, the longest streak in the majors since Clayton Kershaw and Rick Porcello each tossed at least seven innings in 11 consecutive starts during the 2016 season. Miami has just ONE loss over his last 11 starts, as he's 7-1 and the Marlins are 10-1, a 91% winning situation. I'm NOT stepping in front of the Alcantara 'train,' especially as an underdog.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Game of the Week is on the Tor Blue Jays at 10:10 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. Toronto visits Seattle for a four-game series tonight and here's 'the state of the union' for each team.

It seems HIGHLY likely that no one is going to catch the Yankees in the AL East (New York leads by 15 1/2-games) and the same holds true for the Astros (Houston leads by 13 games) in the AL West. The Jays snapped a five-game losing streak on Wednesday but have opened a four-game series in Seattle by losing 8-3 and 5-2. The team's 1-7 slide has dropped Toronto to 45-40, a half-game behind the Red Sox and one game behind the Rays. As for Seattle, the Mariners were only 29-39 as recently as June 19, but have won SIX straight games and 14 of their last 17 to move into second place in the American League West at 43-42. Seattle won't catch Houston, but it has clawed its way back into the wild card chase with 77 games yet to play.

The series continues tonight with Toronto sending Alek Manoah (9-3, 2.33 ERA) to the mound, while Seattle counters with Robbie Ray (7-6, 3.62 ERA). Manoah was 9-2 with a 3.22 ERA in his rookie season of 2021, with Toronto going 16-4 in his 20 starts. The Jays are a more modest 10-6 in his 16 starts this season but Manoah is 9-3 and his 2.33 ERA is almost a FULL run lower than last season plus his WHIP is 0.99, while he's held opponents to a .213 BAA. Ray won the American League Cy Young Award pitching for Toronto in a near-unanimous vote, receiving 29 of 30 first-place votes. He had a 13–7 record but led the American League in ERA (2.84), strikeouts (248), innings pitched (193.1) and WHIP (1.04). He left 90.1% of runners on base, tops in the majors. However, Seattle signed Ray to a five-year contract worth $115 million back on November 30, 2021. His first 12 starts this season were a struggle, as he was 5-6 (team was 6-6) with Ray posting a 4.97 ERA, However, Seattle is 4-1 over Ray's last five starts, as he owns an 0.80 ERA and 40 strikeouts in 33.2 innings.

Seattle HAS Toronto's attention, as the Mariners have closed within two games of the suddenly struggling Blue Jays in the race for the American League's third and final wild card. "Believe me, we got plenty of baseball left," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said. "I'm sure this lineup is going to get hot again and we're going to score runs." The Blue Jays had their chances last night, as they left 13 runners on base and went 2-for-20 with RISP. Stealing a line from the Black-Eyed Peas, "I've got a feeling that tonight's going to be a good night" for the Blue Jays!

Good luck...Larry

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Cle Indians at 4:10 ET.

Cleveland began a new era in 2022 (no longer the Indians, now the Guardians). Cleveland lost to the Cubs in the 2016 World Series (led 3-1, before losing the final three games) and followed with THREE more postseason appearances in the next four years (exception was in 2019 when the team won 93 games). However, Cleveland would go just 80-82 in 2021. The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). The AL Central rivals opened a three-game series Friday in KC, with the Royals winning 4-3. Cleveland's loss was its FIFTH straight and 13th in the last 17 games. That said, the 40-41 Guardians are still just 4 1/2-games behind the division-leading Twins, as well as 1 1/2-games up on the defending champions White Sox. As for the Royals, they are 20 games under .500 (31-51), well on their way to a SEVENTH straight season of missing the playoffs.

Triston McKenzie (5-6, 3.71 ERA) will get the start for the Guardians, while the Royals counter with Jonathan Heasley (1-4, 4.76 ERA). McKenzie has run hot or cold this season, with very few in-between outings. He has three quality starts in his past six, following FIVE straight quality starts. However, in his three non-quality starts in that 11-game span, he's given up FIVE, SIX and SEVEN runs. In his most recent start, he shut down the New York Yankees, allowing no runs on one hit in seven innings in a 2-0 victory on Sunday, the last time the Guardians won a game. McKenzie is 3-2 with a 3.15 ERA in eight career appearances (six starts) against the Royals.

This is Heasley's rookie season (pitched 14.2 innings in 2021) and he has a poor 1.43 WHIP to go along with his near-5.00 ERA. He's made 10 appearances (all starts), with the Royals going 3-7 in those starts. He might be pitching for his spot in the Royals' rotation. He avoided a demotion, either to the bullpen or to the minors when Zack Greinke returned from the injured list because Daniel Lynch had a blister on the index finger of his left (pitching) hand. However, Lynch appears close to returning from the injured list. The Guardians really need to win here (and tomorrow, as well), as they are home next week for eight games in seven days entering the All-Star break. The first four are with Chicago (including a doubleheader on Tuesday) and the last four with Detroit. First things first, Cleveland is the play on Saturday!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Tex Rangers at 4:05 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. The Texas Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. Both teams are playing MUCH better than expected in 2022 and opened a three-game series in Texas on Friday. The Texas bullpen came up big on Friday, logging 3.2 scoreless innings in the Rangers' 6-5 win over the Twins in Arlington, Texas. The Twins are currently 47-39 and the Rangers 38-43. The Twins lead the AL Central by 4 1/2-games over Cleveland and by SIX over the defending champion White Sox. The Rangers are sub-500 and are NOT in playoff contention but their win percentage is .469, compared to .370 last season (on pace to win 76 games, 16 more than last year's 60!).

Minnesota will send Devin Smeltzer (4-2, 3.04 ERA) to the mound on Saturday to oppose Martin Perez (7-2, 2.34 ERA), who is one of the biggest surprises in MLB in 2022. Smeltzer began the 2022 season in the minors, having made just 19 MLB appearances (seven starts) and a 4-4 record with a 4.26 ERA. The Twins decided to promote Smeltzer and he made his season debut back on May 14. He opened by going 3-0 in his first six starts (Twins were 4-2) and didn't allow more than three ERs in any starts (owned a 0.97 WHIP and a BAA of .203). However, the Twins are just 1-3 in Smeltzer's last four starts, with him posting a 4.03 ERA. Moving on to Perez. He spent his first seven seasons with Texas but the last three seasons, he had a one-year stint in Minnesota, then pitched for Boston in 2020 and 2021. In that three-season span, he posted a 4.88 ERA. Perez signed a one-year, $4 million contract to return to the Texas Rangers in March and he has turned into a 'different pitcher' in 2022. He went 4-0 over six starts in May (Texas was 6-0!) with an 0.64 ERA to earn American League Pitcher of the Month. He's made 16 starts this season, allowing two ERs or less 11 times! Texas lost THREE of Perez's first starts in 2022 but since May 1, Texas is 11-1 over his last 12 starts (92% winning situation)!

One could argue that Perez can't possibly "keep it up," but I won't be that person. I've backed Perez in each of his two outings (both road wins) and I'll take him here at home against Smelter (remember, the Twins have lost three of his last four), who owns a 4.10 ERA in five road starts, compared to a 2.10 ERA in five home starts.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Tor Blue Jays at 10:10 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. Toronto visits Seattle for a four-game series tonight and here's 'the state of the union' for each team.

It seems HIGHLY likely that no one is going to catch the Yankees in the AL East (New York leads by14 1/2-games) and the same holds true for the Astros (Houston leads by 13 games) in the AL West. The Jays rallied for a 2-1 victory at Oakland on Wednesday afternoon, snapping a five-game losing streak but opened a four-game series in Seattle last night with an 8-3 loss. The team's 1-6 slide has dropped Toronto to 45-39, a half-game behind the Red Sox and one game behind the Rays. As for Seattle, the Mariners were only 29-39 as recently as June 19, but have won FIVE straight games and 13 of their past 16 to move into second place in the American League West at 42-42. The team is back at .500 for the first time since May 3). Seattle has clawed its way back into the wild card chase with 78 games yet to play. "I told y'all back in May when we still had over 100 games left that we are fine," Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford said. "I knew we were gonna get in a groove like we are right now. I knew it was going to come. It was just a matter of when, and it's here and it's been fun."

The Blue Jays were hoping that Kevin Gausman (6-6, 2.86 ERA) would be ready to take the mound but he's scheduled to throw a bullpen session Friday and he's hopeful he could start Sunday or Monday. Gausman left his last start Saturday, after being hit in the right foot by a line drive. He had an MRI on his right ankle that showed a bone bruise, but no fracture.

Ross Stripling (4-3, 3.32 ERA) is set to start for the Blue Jays on Friday. He began his career in 2016 with the Dodgers but was traded to Toronto during the 2020 season. He made 24 appearances (19 starts) last season, going 4-7 with a 4.80 ERA (Toronto was 10-9 in his starts). The versatile Stripling has pitched from the bullpen and the rotation this season. This marks Stripling's SIXTH straight start, as he is filling Hyun Jin Ryu's (season-ending elbow surgery) spot in the rotation. Stripling has allowed a total of just eight ERs (over 30.1 innings / 2.37 ERA) in those starts, with Toronto going 4-2.

The Mariners counter Stripling with rookie George Kirby (2-3, 3.75 ERA). He's made 11 starts, with Seattle going 6-5, However, Kirby has struggled at home, posting a 4.64 ERA in six home starts, compared to a 2.67 ERA in five road starts. I like the way Stripling has filled in for Toronto and I'll back him here vs a rookie who is facing the Blue Jays for the first time.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Las Vegas Insider is on the StL Cards at 8:15 ET.

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. As for the Philadelphia Phillies, they opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The Cards, as expected. are battling the Brewers for the NL Central top spot and enter Friday 45-40, 2 1/2-games behind the Brewers in the division. Philadelphia fired Joe Girardi on June 3 and Rob Thomson took over as interim manager and won his first EIGHT games! The Phillies have cooled somewhat, but they are 22-10 under Thompson. However, at 44-39 overall, they are EIGHT games behind the first place Mets in the NL East and 4 1/2-games behind the four-time defending NL East champion Braves. The Cards and Phillies played a three-game series last weekend in Philadelphia, with the Phillies taking two of three by winning the rubber match 4-0 last Sunday night

The Phillies are in St Louis this weekend for a three-game series opening tonight. The pitching matchup last Sunday was Wainwright vs Wheeler and that's the same matchup we have tonight in this series opener. Zack Wheeler (7-4, 2.66 ERA) scattered four hits and struck out five over seven scoreless innings in last Sunday's 4-0 victory, while Wainwright (6-6, 3.26 ERA) allowed all four runs on eight hits (including two HRs) in 5.2 innings.

Wheeler spent FIVE seasons with the Mets but really never fulfilled his promise. This marks his third season with Philly but he's coming off the best season of his career in 2021. He finished 14-10 with a 2.78 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 32 starts (team was 19-13). He opened the current season 0-3 with an 8.53 ERA but he then went 6-0 over his next nine starts (Phillies were 7-2 with Wheeler posting a 1.40 ERA). The Phillies then lost his next two starts. He allowed five ERs on 12 hits over 10.2 IP for a 4.22 ERA in those two Philly losses but also had a 16-4 KW ratio). He was back in prime form last Sunday (see above).

Wainwright was just 2-3 (4.00 ERA) in April but even though his last win came back on May 20, the Cards have won EIGHT of his 11 starts since May 1 (his ERA is 2.97 in that span). Wainwright had thrown seven shutout innings in a 9-0 victory over the Miami Marlins, before his less-than-spectacular outing last Sunday against the Phillies and Wheeler.

I really like Wainwright in this quick 're-hook' and will add that this rematch is in St Louis, where Wainwright owns a 2.25 ERA (his road ERA is 4.10). As for Wheeler, his home ERA is 1.62 but his road ERA is 4.45. The 'old man' leads the Cards to a win!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekly Wipeout is on the Min Twins at 8:05 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020.The Texas Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. Both teams are playing MUCH better than expected in 2022, with the Twins sitting at 47-38 and the Rangers at 37-43 as the teams begin a three-game series in Arlington. The Twins lead the AL Central by 4 1/2-games over Cleveland and by SIX over the defending champion White Sox. The Rangers are sub-500 and are NOT in playoff contention but their win percentage is ,463, compared to .370 last season (on pace to win 75 games, 15 more than last year's 60!).

The AL Central-leading Twins were unable to protect a two-run lead in the eighth inning on Wednesday at Chicago, losing 9-8 in 10 innings. However, after a day off, should be ready for a Texas team that has gone just 17-20 at Globe Life Field. The Rangers are riding a four-game road losing streak, including three straight by one run. Losing the close ones has become a theme for Texas in 2022, as the Rangers are 4-17 in one-run games. The pitching matchup for Friday night is a 'battle of two Grays,' who are not related.

Sonny Gray (4-1, 2.47 ERA) starts for the Twins and Jon Gray (4-4, 3.96 ERA) for the Rangers. Sonny won 14 games in back-to-back seasons (2014 and '15) with Oakland but has been an underachiever since. He began this season 82-72 with a career ERA of 3.61. He strained his right hamstring in his second start of 2022 (Apr 16) but returned May 7 after a three-week absence. He also missed the first two weeks of June but takes the mound tonight with the Twins having won EIGHT of his last nine starts, as he's posted a 2.05 ERA

Jon won 43 games in a four-year span from 2016-2019 for Colorado but then went 10-16 with a 5.03 ERA in 2020 and 2021, Still, the Rangers signed him to a four-year, $56 million contract prior to the start of 2022. He's made 14 starts and has not pitched poorly but Texas is just 7-7 in his starts. Jon Gray will be pitching against the Twins for the first time in his career, while Sonny Gray owns a 9-3 record with a 2.86 ERA in 94.1 innings over 15 appearances (14 starts) in his career against Texas.

Texas is the 'king' of one-run losses (see above) but the Twins win this one "with room to spare!"

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Las Vegas Insider is on the TB Rays at 7:10 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021), The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004 but Boston struggled to a 24-36 record in the 2020 season, before surprising most by going 92-70 in 2021. The Red Sox made it to the ALCS but lost 4-2 to the Astros. The AL East is loaded in 2022 but it looks as if no one will catch the Yankees, who own MLB's best record at 58-23. The Rays and Red Sox opened a three-game series July 4th at Fenway, with Boston earning a 4-0 win, but the Rays rebounded with an 8-4 win last night. The Red Sox are currently 45-36 (13 games behind the Yankees), just ahead of 44-37 Tampa Bay and 44-38 Toronto. The Rays ripped Pivetta last night (7 ERs in 5.2 innings), who entered the game having allowed two ERs or less in EIGHT of his last 10 starts, going 8-1 (Boston was 9-1) with a 2.12 ERA.

Highly touted pitching prospect Brayan Bello will make his major league debut for the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday, with starter Rich Hill on the 15-day injured list with a knee sprain. The call went to the 23-year-old right-hander from the Dominican Republic, who has piled up 114 strikeouts over 85 innings in the minors this season. He has gone 6-2 with a 2.81 ERA in nine games for Triple-A Worcester, the last of which was on Friday. He's been in the Boston system since 2018 and was the 2021 Red Sox Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year.

Bello will make his MLB debut against Corey Kluber (3-5, 3.91 ERA). Kluber is a two-time American League Cy Young Award winner, but he has dealt with a variety of injuries over the past few years that have limited his availability. The Rays took a chance on him by signing him to a one-year, $8 million deal, hoping he could provide leadership as well as some productive innings on the mound. His W-L record is unimpressive but let me note the following. Kluber allowed eight ERs (in just three innings) at the LA Angels back on May 10. However, over his next EIGHT starts, he allowed only 13 ERs over 43.1 innings (2.70 ERA) with a 39-5 KW ratio. The fact that the Rays were just 4-4 in those starts was hardly Kluber's fault.

However, Kluber's strong eight-start run ended in his last outings, as he allowed five ERs in just three innings of a 9-2 loss to the Blue Jays last Friday. That said, I'm taking the two-time Cy Young winner (as an underdog) against the rookie making his first career start in legendary Fenway Park.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Getaway Day Game of the Week is on the Chi White Sox at 2:10 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in both 2019 and 2020. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. The two AL Central rivals opened an important three-game series July 4th in Chicago and the Twins have won both contests, 6-3 (10 inn.) and 8-2. The 47-37 Twins have gained two games in the division on the 37-41 White Sox and now go for the three-game road sweep, leading the defending division champions by 6 1/2-games (Minnesota leads Cleveland by 4 1/2-games).

Taking the mound for the series finale will be Minnesota's Joe Ryan (6-3, 3.00 ERA) and Chicago's Lance Lynn (1-1, 4.50 ERA). Ryan made just five starts in 2021, going 2-1, posting a 4.05 ERA but an impressive 0.79 WHIP, while holding opponents to a .168 BAA. He's pitched well this season, even though he spent about three weeks on the COVID-19 injured list from late-May to mid-June. The Twins are 8-4 in his 12 starts and his WHIP is again low (1.05) and opponents are still struggling at the plate against him (.208 BAA). Ryan hasn't faced the White Sox in any of his 17 career starts.

Lynn was 11-6, 2.69 ERA in 2021, finishing third in the AL's Cy Young voting. Lynn has been a 'workhorse' these last few seasons and has had top-6 finishes in the Cy Young voting for THREE consecutive years! Lynn was sidelined all with a right knee injury and didn't make his 2022 debut until June 13. Lynn is coming off his best start among his four this season, when he took a no-decision last Friday after pitching three-hit ball over six shutout innings in San Francisco. "It's coming back," said Lynn. "The first couple of starts, I threw the ball well at times and then had some bad luck, and that's going to happen. But I think once you get in the flow of what you're doing and your pitches and things like that, then everything starts rolling a little bit differently."

The White Sox haven't been .500 since they were 22-22 back on May 26 and BADLY need to salvage the final game of a series they needed to win. Lynn is 2-0 with a 2.17 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in five career starts against Minnesota, with 24 strikeouts in 29 innings. I'm backing the veteran Lynn in this near must-win game.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Chi White Sox at 8;10 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in both 2019 and 2020. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. The two AL Central rivals opened an important three-game series July 4th in Chicago, with 45-37 Twins sitting two games ahead of Cleveland in the division plus 4 1/2-games up on the 38-39 White Sox. It's been a nice "bounce-back" year for Minnesota, while Chicago, a team that was favored to win its division in 2022, hasn't been at .500 since it was 22-22 back on May 26.

The Twins improved to 4-0 against the White Sox this season with a 6-3, 10-inning win on Monday. It was tough loss for the White Sox (a win would have gotten back to .500 and closed the gap with Minnesota to 3 1/2-games), who tied the game at 2-all to start the seventh and had two runners on and NO outs when AJ Pollock flied into a triple play. Twins center fielder Byron Buxton made a game-saving catch near the warning track in right-center field that started the triple play. The latter sequence went down as the first recorded 8-5 triple play in major league history You CAN"T make that up!

Chris Archer (2-3, 3.08 ERA) will start for Minnesota tonight, with Michael Kopech (2-5, 2.78 ERA) set for Chicago. Archer is a classic underachiever, who did make two All-Star appearances while with Tampa Bay (2015 and 2017). However, despite a decent career ERA of 3.84, owns a lifetime record of only 63-84 (.429). Kopech made 44 appearances last season (just four starts) but he's been a regular in the rotation in 2022, making 14 starts. His W-L record of 2-5 (team is only 5-9 in his starts) is wildly deceiving, as Kopech has a 1.03 WHIP and .165 BAA to go along with his sub-3.00 ERA.

The Twins are now 5 1/2-games up on the White Sox (plus 3 1/2-games ahead of Cleveland) in the AL Central. I felt like Chicago needed to take at least two of three in this series (I lost with the White Sox last night) and now will have to win tonight and Wednesday to pull that off. Am I 'spitting into the wind?' We'll see, as I'm backing Chicago again here, as I still believe the White Sox are the best team in the division.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* PERFECT STORM is on the Bos Red Sox at 7:10 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021), The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004 but Boston struggled to a 24-36 record in the 2020 season, before surprising most by going 92-70 in 2021. The Red Sox made it to the ALCS but lost 4-2 to the Astros. The AL East is loaded in 2022 but it looks as if no one will catch the Yankees, who own MLB's best record at 58-22. The Jays and Red Sox opened a three-game series July 4th at Fenway, with Boston earning a 4-0 win. The Red Sox are currently 45-35 (13 games behind the Yankees), just ahead of 44-37 Toronto and 43-37 Tampa Bay.

The series continues tonight with Tampa Bay sending Jeffrey Springs (3-2, 2.25 ERA) to the mound to face Boston's Nick Pivetta (8-5, 3.23 ERA). Springs entered this season having made just TWO starts in 102 career appearances and was coming off his best season in 2021. He was 5-1 in 43 relief appearances, posting a 3.43 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. Springs joined the Rays' rotation on May 9 and while he's just 2-2 in his nine starts since then, the Rays have won ALL five of his no-decisions. Springs returns to the rotation after missing his scheduled start last Thursday due to a family medical emergency. Pivetta was acquired (along with prospect Connor Seabold) from the Philadelphia Phillies in 2020 in exchange for pitchers Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree. His 2022 season started off as a disaster, as he was 0-4 with a 6.08 ERA after six starts (team was 0-6) but he's paid HUGE dividends since May 13. He's allowed two ERs or less in EIGHT of his last 10 starts, going 8-1 (Boston is 9-1) with a 2.12 ERA.

Before arriving in Boston, the Rays' offense scored 24 runs over three Saturday and Sunday wins against Toronto, after Tampa Bay had lost the first two games of that series by scoring a total of only THREE runs. The Rays were held to just TWO hits and shut out on Monday and now face the red-hot Pivetta and a Boston team which has gone 34-15 (.694) since an 11-20 start to the season. As the saying goes, "things DON'T end well" for the Rays.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Mia Marlins at 6:40 ET.

The LA Angels are coming off a 77-85 season in 2021 and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years (got swept 3-0 in a 2014 ALDS in its lone appearance in that span). The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95. The Angels visit South Beach for a brief two-game set with Miami at Marlins Park. Los Angeles came out strong to open the current season and through May 24th, was 27-17. That left them just ONE game behind the Astros in the AL West, who owned a 28-16 record on the same date. However, the Angels began a 14-game losing streak on May 25 that lasted through June 8. Los Angeles 'limps' into Miami 37-44, 16 games behind Houston and well on its way to missing the postseason for the 12th time in 13 years. Miami welcomes the Angels to town on a FIVE-game winning (just swept the Nats in a four-games series) and with a 38-40 record. The Marlins are at best long shots for a playoff spot but after finishing 28 games under .500 (4.14) in 2021, Miami is playing MUCH better in 2022 (.487).

Noah Syndergaard (5-6, 3.86 ERA) takes the mound tonight for the Angels, while the Marlins counter with Sandy Alcantara (8-3, 1.95 ERA). Bottom line is this. Syndergaard is not the same pitcher he was early in his career in New York. Per Statcast, his average four-seam fastball is 94.2 mph. Impressive, but down from when the pitch averaged 97.8 mph in 2019. Syndergaard is 7-1 with a 2.16 ERA in 12 career starts against the Marlins but ALL of those came while he was with the New York Mets (seemingly, a lifetime ago!). Miami's Pablo Lopez won National Pitcher of the Month and his teammate Alcantara claimed the honor in June, going 3-1 with a 1.89 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and a BAA of.199. He allowed only 34 hits in 47.2 innings with a 34-8 KW ratio. Alcantara is having a 'Cy Young-like' season so far, posting a 0.95 WHIP and BAA of .198 to go along with his splendid ERA. Alcantara allowed just three ERs in a six-start stretch (May 11 through June 8) spanning at least 48 innings. It was the first time a pitcher had allowed three ERs or less over a six-start stretch spanning at least 48 innings since Jake Arrieta did so for the Chicago Cubs during his NL Cy Young Award-winning season in 2015.

The Angels are coming off getting swept in Houston by the Astros over the weekend, reminding them just how 'sad' their season has become. No such negativity in Miami and why not ride the Alacantara 'train!'

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Month (AL Central) is on the Chi White Sox at 8:10 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. However, as the two AL Central rivals get set to open a three-game series July 4th in Chicago, the 45-37 Twins are two games ahead of Cleveland in the division plus 4 1/2-games up on the 38-39 White Sox. It's been a nice "bounce-back" year for Minnesota, while Chicago, a team that was favored to win its division in 2022, hasn't been at .500 since it was 22-2 back on May 26.

However, a weekend sweep of the San Francisco Giants has the up-and-down White Sox feeling good about themselves again. Monday's game begins a stretch of 15 division games in 14 days heading into the All-Star break. SEVEN of those come against the Central-leading Twins. Minnesota sends Dylan Bundy (4-4, 4.71 ERA) to the mound for the series opener, while the White Sox counter with Johnny Cueto (2-4, 3.33 ERA). Bundy spent his first five seasons with Baltimore but then pitched for the Angels in 2020 and 2021. He was awful in 2021, going 2-9 with a 6.06 ERA but Minnesota did sign him to a one-year contract in the off season. He opened the current season 3-0 with an 0.50 ERA but then 'the music died!' Bunday has won just ONCE over his last 10 starts, with the Twins going 0-9 in the other nine.

Johnny Cueto's All Star years are behind him (last notable season was 2016 when he was 18-5 with 2.79 ERA for the Giants) but he signed a minor league contract with the Chicago White Sox in April. The White Sox promoted Cueto to the major leagues on May 16 and the White Sox are 4-4 in his eight starts, with Cueto posting a 3.12 ERA (not bad at all). The White Sox have underachieved all season but I'm pretty sure that Chicago IS the best team in the division.

Bundy seems 'ripe for the taking,' as I'm filing him going 5-0 with a 3.46 ERA in seven career appearances against Chicago (including six starts) as "old news." For what it's worth. Cueto is 3 -0 with a 0.90 ERA in three starts with 21 strikeouts in 20 innings in his career vs Minnesota. The White Sox really need to go at least 2-1 in this series and celebrate "the 4th" with a "W" in this first game. 

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Bal Orioles at 1:05 ET.

The Texas Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021 but have played better this season, sitting 36-37 (.493) on the morning of July 4th. The Baltimore Orioles have missed the postseason in each of the last FIVE years, losing 100-plus games in THREE of the four full seasons, including tying Arizona for MLB's worst record in 2021 at 52-110. However, this July 4th game marks the season's midway mark for the Orioles. After 80 games in 2021, they were 26-54 (.325) but this season, the Orioles stand 36-44 (.450).

Neither team is playoff-bound but both have shown improvement as they open a three-game series at Baltimore's Camden Yards. Dane Dunning (1-6, 4.09 ERA) will take the mound for Texas, while Baltimore counters with Dean Kremer (2-1, 1.29 ERA). Dunning was just 5-10 with a 4.51 ERA and 1.44 WHIP as a rookie last season in 25 starts (team was 9-16). He opened the season 1-1 (Texas was 3-2) in his first five starts of 2022, posting a 3.81 ERA. However, the Rangers have just ONE win over his last 11 starts, with Dunning posting an ERA of 4.21 (actually, not that horrible!).

Kremer made just four starts in 2020 but had 13 in a disastrous 2021 season. He finished 0-7 with a 7.55 ERA, 1.64 WHIP and a BAA of .292 (Orioles were 2-11 in his starts). Nonetheless, Kremer was poised to earn a spot in the bottom of the rotation out of spring training but he suffered a left oblique strain while warming up in the bullpen during the team’s third game on April 10 at Tampa Bay. He was finally ready to go in June and he made his 2022 debut on June 5 against Cleveland. He allowed three ERs in 4.1 innings of that contest in a 3-2 loss. However, over his last four starts, he's allowed just one ER over 23.2 innings for an 0.38 ERA. He takes the mound on July 4th having thrown 18.2 scoreless innings over his past three starts. What a difference one year can make!

The Rangers are a slightly better team but I want NO part of Dunning (of course, the Rangers will eventually win one of his starts) going up against a young pitcher like Kremer who is showing all sorts of confidence.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekend Wipeout is on the StL Cards at 7:08 ET.

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. As for the Philadelphia Phillies, they opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The Cards opened a three-game series in Philadelphia against the Phillies on Friday and the teams will play the "rubber match" (Philadelphia won Friday and St Louis on Saturday) with this Sunday Night Baseball contest on ESPN. The Cards, as expected. are battling the Brewers for the NL Central top spot and enter Sunday 44-36, just ONE game behind Milwaukee. Philadelphia fired Joe Girardi on June 3 and Rob Thomson took over as interim manager and won his first EIGHT games! The Phillies have cooled somewhat, but they are 19-9 under Thompson. However, at 41-38 overall, they are 7 1/2-games behind the first place Mets in the NL East and five games behind the four-time defending NL East champion Braves.

Sunday's starting pitchers will be Adam Wainwright (6-5, 3.07 ERA) for St Louis and Zack Wheeler (6-4, 2.89 ERA) for Philadelphia. Wainwright is now 40 years old and is coming off a 17-7 (3.05 ERA) season last year and received Cy Young Award votes for the FIFTH time in his career, finishing seventh in voting. He finished 3rd in 2009, 2nd in 2010, 2nd in 2013 and 3rd in 2014. Wainwright was just 2-3 (4.00 ERA) in April but even though his last win came back on May 20, the Cards have won EIGHT of his last 10 starts since May 1 (his ERA is 2.67 in that span). Wainwright threw seven shutout innings in his most recent start, a 9-0 victory over the Miami Marlins on Monday.

Wheeler spent FIVE seasons with the Mets but really never fulfilled his promise. This marks his third season with Philly and he's coming off the best season of his career in 2021. He finished 14-10 with a 2.78 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 32 starts (team was 19-13). He opened the current season 0-3 with an 8.53 ERA but he then went 6-0 over his next nine starts (Phillies were 7-2 with Wheeler posting a 1.40 ERA). He hasn't pitched all that poorly in his most recent two starts (5 ERs allowed on 12 hits over 10.2 IP for a 4.22 ERA but also a 16-4 KW ratio), however, the Phillies have lost both games.

Wainwright is 7-4 with a 3.06 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 15 career starts vs the Phillies (Cards are 9-6), while Wheeler has just four career starts vs St Louis, going 1-2 (teams are 2-2) with a 4.24 ERA and 1.37 WHIP. More notably, the Phillies are playing with Bryce Harper, while the Cards' Nolan Arenado is really 'warming up!' After hitting just .196 in May, Arenado batted .290 with 17 RBI in June and he is 6-for-8 with six RBI in his first two games in July. He drove in three runs as the Cardinals fell to the Phillies 5-3 on Friday, then Arenado hit two HRs and drove in three runs as the Cardinals responded with a 7-6 victory on Saturday. Take the Cards with Wainwright.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Year (AL East) is on the Tor Blue Jays at 1:37 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021), while the Toronto Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. The two AL East rivals began an important FIVE-game series Thursday night in Toronto. The Blue Jays won 4-1 on Thursday and backed it up with a 9-2 win on Friday. The Rays' hitters broke out of their drought in Saturday's doubleheader, scoring 17 runs while winning 6-2 and 11-5. The doubleheader sweep ended a four-game slide and leaves Tampa Bay with a 42-36 record. Toronto is 44-35 and 43-35 Boston joins the two teams in an AL East that's been dominated this season by the Yankees, who own a MLB-best 58-21 record. It's highly unlikely that anyone catches the Yankees this season but with a new playoff structure, it's possible that Toronto, Boston and Tampa Bay could all join the postseason field.

Sunday's game now becomes the "rubber match" of the series (tied at 2-all), with Shane Baz (0-1, 3.38 ERA) getting the ball for the Rays and Ross Stripling (4-2, 3.12 ERA) for the Blue Jays. Baz made three starts for the Rays in 2021, going 2-0 (team was 3-0), while posting an ERA of 2.03 and WHIP of 0.68, while holding opponents to a .130 BAA. He's made four starts here in 2022 but despite a 3.38 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and BAA of .182, he lost his lone decision, and the Rays are 0-4 in his starts! Stripling began his career in 2016 with the Dodgers but was traded to Toronto during the 2020 season. He made 24 appearances (19 starts) last season, going 4-7 with a 4.80 ERA (Toronto was 10-9 in his starts). The versatile Stripling has pitched from the bullpen and the rotation this season. This marks Stripling's FIFTH straight start, as he is filling Hyun Jin Ryu's (season-ending elbow surgery) spot in the rotation. Stripling has allowed a total of just five ERs (over 25.2 innings / 1.75 ERA) in those starts, with Toronto going 4-1.

Yes, we are not yet at the All Star break but the Jays need to get a series win here, after winning the first two games. They figure to be battling the Rays and Red Sox the rest of the way plus have a favorable schedule ahead of them before the break. Toronto spends next week on the road at Oakland (three games) and Seattle (four games), before returning home for two games against Philadelphia and four against KC. The 41-38 Phillies are the only winning team in that group plus the A's (26-54) and Royals (28-48) own two of MLB's three-worst records. I like what Stripling has done for Toronto this season plus Baz has pitched with 'hard luck' in his handful of 2022 starts. Jays rebound in a big way off that doubleheader loss!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Arz D'backs at 9:10 ET.

Arizona joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). Colorado joined the NL in 1993 and has just FIVE postseason experiences, highlighted by a 2007 World Series appearance in 2007 (got swept 4-0 by Boston). Colorado made the playoffs in 2017 (87 wins) and 2018 (91 wins) but entered the current season off three straight losing seasons, finishing 35-games, 17-games (in a 60-game season) and 32.5-games out of first place. The teams opened a three-game series at Coors Field on Friday, with Arizona cruising to a 9-3. The 35-42 D'backs are two games better than the 33-44 Rockies, as the team's seemed destined to battle all season to try to stay out of the NL West 'basement!'

Tonight's starting pitchers are Dallas Keuchel (2-5, 7.93) for Arizona and Austin Gomber (3-7, 6.55 ERA) for Colorado. Keuchel won the American League Cy Young Award with the Houston Astros in 2015 and is a two-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner. He started a three-year contract with the White Sox in 2020, posting a 1.99 ERA in the pandemic-shortened season. However, since then, he’s had a 5.71 ERA. including 2-5 with a 7.88 ERA through eight starts this season. prompting his release in late May. Arizona signed him to a minor league contract on June 6 and he made his Arizona debut last Sunday at home vs Detroit. Here's the 'dope' on why Arizona took a chance with Keuchel. Arizona's fifth starters have been just AWFUL (7.93 ERA over 14 starts) and Keuchel is reuniting with pitching coach Brent Strom, who tutored him in 2015 when he won the American League Cy Young Award with the Houston Astros (20-8 record and 2.48 ERA). The hope is that Keuchel can shore up the back of Arizona’s rotation. His Arizona debut was hardly inspiring (4.1 IP / 4 ERs / 7 Ks) but the D'backs did win, 11-7.

Gomber spent his first two seasons with the Cards and was 9-9 with a 4.53 ERA in 23 starts last year for Colorado. He's 3-7 in 14 appearances (12 starts) this season, with his ERA up over two runs (6.56) and his WHIP up to 1.49 from 1.24 plus his BAA is up to .294 from .232. Gomber was relegated to the bullpen after his poor finish to May carried into June. He wasn't effective in his stint as a reliever either, allowing four runs and five hits, including two home runs, in 4.1 innings (two appearances). Arizona is MUCH improved from last year when the team played .321 baseball. After winning only 52 games in 2021, the D'backs (.455) are on pace to win 73 or 74 games in 2022. Meanwhile, after posting a winning percentage of .446 the last three seasons, Colorado's win percentage is .429 in 2022 (on pace for 69 wins). I played on Keuchel last Sunday (I did cash, despite his so-so effort) but I'm willing to come back with him again in this spot vs a struggling Gomber and a Colorado team that after going 48-33 at Coors in 2021, is just 21-21 at home in 2022.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Month (AL West) is on the Hou Astros at 4:10 ET.

The LA Angels are coming off a 77-85 season in 2021 and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years (got swept 3-0 in a 2014 ALDS in its lone appearance in that span). Meanwhile, the Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs.

The Angels came out strong to open the current season and through May 24th, were 27-17. That left them just ONE game behind the Astros in the AL West, who owned a 28-16 record on the same date. However, the Angels began a 14-game losing streak on May 25 that lasted through June 8. Los Angeles would go 10-10 their last 20 games of June but as July dawned, were 37-41. As for Houston, the Astros have pulled away from LA in the AL West since late-May and welcomed the Angels to Houston on Friday for a three-game series with a 48-27 record. The Astros took the field last night off NINE consecutive games against the Mets and Yankees, having gone 7-2. Houston easily got the better of LA last night with an 8-1 win and will take the field Saturday on a four-game winning streak (Astros are 12-3 their last 15!) in which its pitching staff has allowed just THREE runs!

Saturday's starters will be Patrick Sandoval (3-2, 2.63 ERA) and Jose Urquidy (6-3, 4.36 ERA). Sandoval opened the current season having made a modest 36 appearances (29 starts), going 4-15 with a 4.42 ERA. However, the Angels would win SIX of his first seven starts in 2022, with Sandoval posting a 1.79 ERA. However, the Angels would lose his next three starts (Sandoval posted a 5.93 ERA), before pitching better in his last two outings (two ERs allowed in 11 innings for a 1.64 ERA in a team win and team loss). Urquidy had a nice 2021 season for Houston, going 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 20 starts (team was 14-6). Urquidy's ERA has jumped to 4.36 and his WHIP to 1.37 in 2022 but one needs to look closer. Urquidy's road ERA is 5.52 but at home, it's 3 1/2-runs less at 2.51.

What's more, he's 3-0 with a 4.15 ERA in six career start against the Angels (Astros are 5-1), while Sandoval is 0-3 in five career starts vs Houston, posting a 6.62 ERA and 1.75 WHIP. The Astros replicate Friday's win on Saturday.

Good luck...Larry

 My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Tex Rangers at 4:10 ET.

The Texas Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021 but have played better this season, sitting 36-39 (.480) as of Saturday morning. The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season) before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. In stark contrast, the Mets went 22-38 down the stretch to finish in third place at 77-85, 11 1/2 games out of first place. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years, However, the Mets have had an excellent 2022 season so far, going 48-29. They lead the Braves by 3 1/2-games in the NL East, despite Jacob deGrom being sidelined all year and Scherzer having last pitched on May 18.

The teams opened a three-game IL series last night at Citi Field with New York ending a season-high three-game skid with a 4-3 victory. Saturday's pitching matchup will feature Martin Perez (6-2, 2.22 ERA).and Trevor Williams (1-4, 3.64 ERA). Perez spent his first seven seasons with Texas but the last three seasons, he had a one-year stint in Minnesota, then pitched for Boston in 2020 and 2021. In that three-season span, he posted a 4.88 ERA. Perez signed a one-year, $4 million contract to return to the Texas Rangers in March and he has turned into a 'different pitcher' in 2022. He went 4-0 over six starts in May (Texas was 6-0!) with an 0.64 ERA to earn American League Pitcher of the Month. He's made 15 starts this season, allowing two ERs or less 11 times! Texas lost THREE of Perez's first starts in 2022 but since May 1, Texas is 10-1 over his last 11 starts (91% winning situation)!

Trevor Williams spent his first five seasons with the Pirates but signed with the Cubs as a free agent prior to the 2021 season. However, the Cubs traded him to the Mets on July 30. He made 10 appearances (three starts) for New York, without earning a decision (3.21 ERA). He's made 14 appearances for the Mets in 2022, including six starts. He's really nothing more than a journeyman and is in the starting rotation occasionally, only because of injuries to regulars in New York's rotation being sidelined. New York manager Buck Showalter tied Hall of Fame member Tommy Lasorda for 22nd place on the all-time managerial wins list after the Mets' 4-3 victory over the Rangers on Friday and will obviously move past Lasorda but that WON'T be today! Take the 'sweet price' on Perez and Texas.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* NL Pitching Mismatch of the Month is on the Was Nats at 6:05 ET.

The Marlins joined the National League in 1993 and entering the COVID-shortened season of 2020, had made the postseason just TWICE. However, the Marlins would capture the World Series each time, in 1997 over the Indians and in 2003 over the Yankees. The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95. The Nationals arrived in Washington back in 2005 (via Montreal) and in their first seven seasons, finished in 5th-place (last) FIVE times. However, in a six-year span from 2012-17, the Nats made the postseason season FOUR times, but in each instance, couldn't make it past the NLDS. That all changed in 2019, when the Nats won the World Series over the Astros. That said, the Nats finished in last place the next two seasons and at 29-49 this season, are again LAST in the NL East, 19 games behind the Mets. The Marlins are 34-40 (.459) and playing a little better than they did last season (.414) but they are 12 games behind the Mets as they visit D.C. for a four-game series with the Nationals.

The starting pitchers for the series opener are Trevor Rogers (3-6. 5.86 ERA) for Miami and Josiah Gray (6-4, 3.82 ERA) for Washington. Rogers was Miami's first-round draft pick in 2017 and went 7-8 in 25 starts in 2021. However, he posted a 2.64 ERA, 1.15 WHIP (157-65 KW ratio) and opponents batted only .218 against him. Those numbers were good enough for him to finish second in the voting for National League Rookie of the Year. As for 2022, it's been a struggle for Rogers, who has just ONE quality start in 14 tries. His ERA is up to 5.86, his WHIP to 1.63 and opponents are hitting .274 against him. Gray opened the 2022 season with just 14 career appearances (13 starts), while posting a 5.48 ERA. However, in 14 starts this season, he is 6-4 (team is 7-7) and has cut his ERA by more than 1 1/2-runs to 3.82.

The Marlins are the better team and I can't hide from the fact that Miami has won EIGHT of nine meetings with Washington so far in 2022. However, it's my STRONG belief that Gray gives the Nats a significant pitching advantage over the Marlins' Rogers. I've documented Rogers' season-long struggles above and will add here that Gray enters this contest having allowed just four ERs on 16 hits over his last five starts. He's pitched 29 innings in that span, posting a 1.24 ERA with 45 Ks! He's gone 2-0 during those five starts but the Nats have lost all THREE of his no-decisions, because of a lack of run support. 

Count on Gray to continue his strong pitching, while the Nats take advantage of a struggling Rogers.

Good luck...Larry

My 7* Weekly Wipeout is on the StL Cards at 6:05 ET.

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. As for the Philadelphia Phillies, they opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The 43-35 Cards, as expected, are battling the Brewers for the top spot in the NL Central and open this three-game series just ONE game back. Philadelphia fired Joe Girardi on June 3 and Rob Thomson took over as interim manager by winning his first EIGHT games! The Phillies have cooled somewhat, but they are 18-8 under Thompson. However, at 40-37 overall, they are 7 1/2-games behind the first place Mets in the NL East and four games behind the four-time defending champion Braves.

Taking the mound in tonight's series opener will be Miles Mikolas (5-5, 2.57 ERA) of St Louis and Bailey Falter (0-2, 4.50 ERA) of Philadelphia. Mikolas had a breakout season in 2018 (18-4, 2.83 ERA) but from 2019 through 2021 (he missed the entire 2020 season due to undergoing surgery to repair a flexor tendon in his right arm), was just 11-17 with a 4.17 ERA. His record may be just 5-5 this season but he takes the mound tonight having allowed just five ERs on 12 hits over 29 innings over his last four starts (1.55 ERA). Bailey Falter will make his eight appearance of 2022 of the season tonight, as Zach Eflin is sidelined due to a knee injury. It marks his fourth straight start, after lasting only 12.2 innings over his first three, allowing nine ERs on 14 hits for a 6.40 ERA.

The Cardinals are the better team (note: Philadelphia's Harper is sidelined for the next 6-to-8 weeks) and have the MUCH better pitcher. "B-L-O-W-O-U-T Alert!"

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the TB Rays at 3:07 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021), while the Toronto Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. The two AL East rivals began a FIVE-game series (doubleheader on Saturday) Thursday night, with the Blue Jays winning 4-1. That result moved Toronto to 43-33, tied with Boston (both teams are 12 1/2-games behind the first place Yankees). The loss dropped the Rays to 40-35, 2 1/2-games back of Toronto and Boston. The Rays had played a team-record 14 consecutive games decided by one or two runs before losing 4-1 to the Blue Jays in the series opener. They were 5-9 during that stretch.

Tonight's pitching matchup features Corey Kluber (3-4, 3.45 ERA) and Jose Berrios (5-4, 5.86 ERA). Kluber is a two-time American League Cy Young Award winner, but he has dealt with a variety of injuries over the past few years that have limited his availability. The Rays took a chance on him by signing him to a one-year, $8 million deal, hoping he could provide leadership as well as some productive innings on the mound. His W-L record is unimpressive but let me note the following. Kluber allowed eight ERs (in just three innings) at the LA Angels back on May 10. However, over his last EIGHT starts, he's thrown 43.1 innings and allowed only 13 ERs (2.70 ERA) with a 39-5 KW ratio. The fact that the Rays are just 4-4 in those starts is hardly due to Kluber not pitching well.

Berrios won 40 games for the Twins from 2017-19 but was traded last July to Toronto during the 2021 season. The Blue Jays went 5-0 in his April starts, despite Berrios posting a less-than-spectacular 4.13 ERA. His ERA ballooned to 7.01 in five May starts (Jays were 2-3). He opened June by posting a 2.45 ERA in his first three starts but has been ripped for 14 ERs on 17 hits in his final two starts of June (lasted just 6.2 innings). That left his June ERA at 5.48! Let me add that in five career starts vs Tampa Bay, Berrios is 0-3 (teams are 1-4) with a 5.76 ERA. The Rays are '"the play!"

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Rivalry Rout is on the LA Dodgers at 10:10 ET.

The San Diego Padres ended a 13-year playoff drought in 2020's 60-game season and were expected to contend for the NL West title in 2021. However, the Padres would finish 79-83, 20 games behind the first-place Giants. The Dodgers had won EIGHT straight NL West titles heading into 2021 but despite winning 106 games, the Dodgers finished ONE game behind the 107-win SF Giants. However, the Dodgers opened the current season having played in NINE consecutive postseasons (next best run is FIVE straight by the Astros and Yankees). Here in 2022, the Dodgers are currently 46-28 (best record in the NL) but only lead the 46-31 Padres by 1.5-games in the West (defending champion Giants are SIX back of LA). The Dodgers welcome the Padres to Dodgers Stadium for a four-game series, with the two rivals having met just once so far in 2022 (LA took two of three in SD in late April).

Joe Musgrove (8-1, 2.12 ERA). will take the mound for the Padres in tonight's series opener, while the Dodgers counter with Mitch White (1-1, 4.25 ERA). Musgrove threw the first no-hitter in Padres history just over a year ago and his 11 wins, 3.18 ERA and 31 starts were San Diego's best marks in what was a disappointing 2021 season for the team. However, let me note that 2021 was the first winning year he's had in his six MLB seasons. That said, he's been TERRIFIC here in his seventh big league season. The Padres were 11-1 in his first 12 starts, with his 1.59 ERA and 0.92 WHIP showing marked improvement from his career numbers (3.77 ERA and 1.16 WHIP). However, Musgrove was sidelined because of COVID-19 protocols, before returning last Thursday to face the Phillies (his last previous start had been June 16). Musgrove suffered his worst outing of 2022 against the Phillies, allowing six ERs on seven hits (two HRs) over six innings (just one strikeout) in a 6-2 loss. He now looks for a bounce-back effort against LA but he's s 0-4 with a 4.26 ERA against them in six career starts.

Mitch White is in his third season with LA, entering the current season 2-3 with a 3.44 ERA in 23 appearances, including just four starts. He's mad 10 appearances in 2022, the first five coming in relief. His first start came on May 21 and he's allowed three ERs in three of his starts, but zero runs in the other two (longest outing as a starter has been five innings). I'm backing the Dodgers here NOT because of White but for the following reasons. Off his last effort, I question whether Musgrove is back to 100% and the fact he's winless vs the Dodgers surely doesn't inspire confidence. The Dodgers lead all of MLB in scoring (5.08 RPG) and own MLB's second-best run differential (plus-129), while also owning MLB's third-best team ERA (3.01).

The Padres see the Dodgers as their No. 1 rival but for the Dodgers, it's the Giants (dating back to their days in New York). However, the Padres surely have the Dodgers' attention for this series and I'm expecting Freddie Freeman, who is on a 13-game hitting streak during which he is batting .407 (22-for-54) with four HRs and 13 RBI, to lead the LA 'attack' against Musgrove. The Dodgers take the first game of the series, "with room to spare!"

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Game of the Week is on the Cle Guardians at 7:10 ET.

The Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. Cleveland began a new era in 2022 (no longer the Indians, now the Guardians). Cleveland lost to the Cubs in the 2016 World Series (led 3-1, before losing the final three games) and followed with THREE more postseason appearances in the next four years (exception was in 2019 when the team won 93 games). However, Cleveland would go just 80-82 in 2021. The AL Central rivals opened last week with a three-game series in Minnesota (Guardians took two of three) and are playing a FIVE-game series over the first four days of this week in Cleveland (single games Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, with a doubleheader on Tuesday. The Twins won 11-1 on Monday but then the teams split Tuesday's doubleheader, as Cleveland won 3-2 in Game 1 and Minnesota won 6-0 in the nightcap.

The series continues Wednesday night with 43-34 Minnesota atop the AL Central by three games over 37-34 Cleveland (Guardians have lost SIX of their last seven games). Dylan Bundy (4-4, 4.80 ERA) takes the mound for Minnesota, while Cleveland counters with Cal Quantrill (4-4, 3.76 ERA). This is Bunday's eighth season but first with Minnesota. He pitched poorly for the Angels in 2021 (2-9 with a 6.06 ERA) but opened the current season 3-0 with an 0.59 ERA. However, over his last nine starts, he's 1-4 with a 6.65 ERA (Twins are 1-8). This is Quantrill's 4th MLB season, and he was 8-3 with a 2.89 ERA in 2021 (40 appearances, including 22 starts). Cleveland lost SIX of Quantrill's first eight starts in 2022 but has won three of his last five.

Quantrill is nothing but a "back of the rotation" starter but I find it easy to 'sell' the idea that the Cleveland bats will 'wake up' against Bunday and his 6.65 ERA over his last 10 starts.

Good luck...Larry

My 8* Las Vegas Insider is on the Sea Mariners at 4:10 ET.

The Baltimore Orioles have missed the postseason in each of the last FIVE years, losing 100-plus games in THREE of the four full seasons, including tying Arizona for MLB's worst record in 2021 at 52-110. Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. After splitting the first two contests of this three-game series (Orioles won 9-2 on Monday, with Seattle winning 2-0 on Tuesday), it's the rubber match of the series set for Wednesday afternoon. Both teams own identical 35-41 records, with Baltimore almost guaranteed to sit out the playoffs for a sixth straight season, while Seattle seems highly likely to make it 21 consecutive non-playoff seasons

Taking the mound for Wednesday's final are Austin Voth (0-0, 7.81 ERA) for Baltimore and Chris Flexen (3-8, 4.31 ERA) for Seattle. Voth was designated for assignment on May 31. He had started 22 of 92 games and had a 9–8 record with a 5.70 ERA in parts of five seasons with the Nationals. He was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles seven days later on June 7. He's made five appearances since arriving in Baltimore (3.00 ERA) and this marks his THIRD straight start. The Orioles have won his first two but Voth has only pitched a combined total of only 5.2 innings in those starts. Chris Flexen was 14-6 (3.61 ERA and 1.25 WHIP) in 2021 and with the Mariners going 22-9 in his starts, owned MLB's best moneyline mark at +$1,597. The 2022 season has NOT gone as smoothly, as he owns just THREE wins in 14 starts. Flexen got off to a brutal start, going 1-6 over his first eight starts (Seattle was 1-7) with a 4.98 ERA. However, he's been steady over his last six outings (he's 2-2 and Seattle 3-3), posting a 3.44 ERA.

My "gut" tells me Flexen has figured things out and will be a 'money-maker' the rest of the way. Meanwhile, Voth has shown VERY little in his career and will likely NOT pitch more than four innings

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Getaway Day Game of the Week is on the KC Royals at 2:10 ET.

The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021 but have played better this season, sitting 36-37 (.493) as of Wednesday morning. The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). Unlike Texas, KC is NOT playing better in 2022, as the Royals are tied for the second worst record (with the Reds) in all of MLB. The Rangers opened a nine-game trip on Monday night in Kansas City and have won the first two contests. Texas now goes for a three-game sweep, looking to get back to .500 on the season. As for the Royals, their 2022 season is effectively 'over!'

The starters for this afternoon's series finale are Dane Dunning (1-5, 4.17 ERA) for Texas and Zack Greinke (1-4, 4.68 ERA) for Kansas City. Dunning was just 5-10 with a 4.51 ERA and 1.44 WHIP as a rookie last season in 25 starts (team was 9-16). He opened the season 1-1 (Texas was 3-2) in his first five starts of 2022, posting a 3.81 ERA. However, he owns just ONE win over his last 10 starts, with Texas losing ALL nine of his other starts in that stretch! Greinke won the AL Cy Young award for KC back in 2019 (16-8, 2.16 ERA). He then won 129 games over a seven-year span (that's 18.4 per season) pitching for the Brewers, Dodgers, D'backs and Astros. He returned to KC for the 2022 season, signing a one-year, $13 million contract on March 16, 2022. He was the Royals' Opening Day starter this season, allowing just one ER over 5.2 innings in a 3-1 KC win (he settled for a no-decision). He then made another nine starts since Opening Day but remained winless, with the Royals going 3-6 in those starts. Greinke had been out since May 30 with a right flexor strain and it was clear that something was bothering him before he went on the IL. In his first six starts, he allowed three runs or less and pitched at least five innings, posting an ERA of 2.67. However, in his next four starts, he had an ERA of 9.50!

Greinke was activated on Friday after a four-week absence, and he allowed one run on three hits in six innings against the Oakland Athletics en route to a 3-1 win that night. "He looked great," Kansas City manager Mike Matheny said. "But he's looked great in so many outings this year when he didn't get the results. It was good to see the results match the execution. I expect another solid effort from Greinke here, as he helps KC avoid a home sweep at the hands of the Rangers. Texas has lost the last seven times Dunning has started. Make that EIGHT in a row after today's game!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Year (NL West) is on the Arz D'backs at 9:40 ET.

The San Diego Padres ended a 13-year playoff drought in 2020's 60-game season and were expected to contend for the NL West title in 2021. However, the Padres would finish 79-83, 20 games behind the first-place Giants. Arizona joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). The two NL West rivals open a two-game series in Arizona Tuesday night, after the Padres swept the D'backs in a three-game series at San Diego last Mon-Wed. The San Diego Padres have done an excellent job this season at beating teams with losing records, aside from their struggles against the Colorado Rockies. The Padres swept all six games in their season series against Cincinnati. They went 5-2 against the Cubs, 4-2 against the Pirates and won three of their first four meetings against the Marlins. San Diego is 6-1 this season against the Arizona Diamondbacks, heading into this two-game series in Phoenix.

Tonight's starting pitching matchup is a quick 're-hook,' as Sean Manaea (3-3, 3.87 ERA) takes on Zac Gallen (4-2, 2.92 ERA). Manaea and Gallen pitched to a virtual dead heat when they faced off June 21 in San Diego in a game the Padres won 3-2 in 11 innings. Gallen gave up two runs on five hits and three walks with a season-high 11 strikeouts. Manaea also gave up two runs in six innings on four hits and three walks with six strikeouts. Manaea had his moments with Oakland but was never really able to put together a full season. He opened 2-1 with a 1.42 ERA for the Padres but he has earned just ONE win in his last 10 starts. The Padres are 5-5 in that span but note that Manea's ERA in that span is 4.65.

Gallen was among MLB's best pitchers over his first seven starts, allowing just five ERs over 39.1 innings for a 1.14 ERA with a 39-8 KW ratio. However, he is just 1-2 (team is 3-3) over his last six starts, posting a 5.12 ERA. That said, Gallen has been sharp in his last two starts of that six-game span, allowing only three ERs over 13 innings (2.08 ERA) with a 16-3 KW ratio.

The D'backs are significantly improved from last season's .321 'winning' percentage, entering this contest at 33-41 (4.46). I really like Gallen, who has SEVEN quality starts in 2022 and has allowed TWO runs or less in 11 of his 13 outings! In this quick 're-hook,' Gallen and Arizona is the way to go.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Bos Red Sox at 7:07 ET.

The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004 but Boston struggled to a 24-36 record in the 2020 season, before surprising most by going 92-70 in 2021. The Red Sox made it to the ALCS but lost 4-2 to the Astros. The Toronto Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. It doesn't look as if ANY team will catch the Yanks in 2022 and the Red Sox and Blue jays opened a three-game series last night in Toronto. The Blue Jays defeated the Red Sox 7-2, ending Boston's seven-game winning streak. The series continues Tuesday night with Boston checking in at 42-32 (12 games behind New York), while Toronto is 41-32, a half-game behind the Red Sox.

Boston's Conner Seabold was overwhelmed last night (7 ERs on 9 hits in 4.2 innings) but tonight Michael Wacha (6-1, 2.34) will start for Boston. He'll be opposed by Ross Stripling (4-2, 3.08 ERA). Wacha made a big 'SPLASH' for the Cards back in 2013 as a rookie and then went 17-7 in 2015. However, from 2016-2021 he had gone just 37-34, while battling injuries. Wacha has had a bounce-back season so far in 2022 and this marks his 12th start. He has allowed two runs or fewer in NINE of his previous 11 starts (he's 6-1 and Boston 7-4). Along with his 2.34 ERA, he owns a 1.04 WHIP and BAA of just .205.

Stripling began his career in 2016 with the Dodgers but was traded to Toronto during the 2020 season. He made 24 appearances (19 starts) last season, going 4-7 with a 4.80 ERA (Toronto was 10-9 in his starts). The versatile Stripling has pitched from the bullpen and the rotation this season. This marks Stripling's FOURTH straight start, as he is filling Hyun Jin Ryu's (season-ending elbow surgery) spot in the rotation. Stripling has allowed a total of just three ERs (over 20.2 innings / 1.31 ERA) in those starts, with Toronto going 3-1.

Stripling's a versatile commodity but I really like the way Wacha's bounced back this season plus while Boston is 19-5 in June, Toronto is a modest 13-12.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Atl Braves at 7:07 ET.

The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season), before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. The Philadelphia Phillies opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak IN MLB. The 42-32 Braves are in Philly to take on the 39-35 Phillies for a three-game series beginning tonight. The Braves ended May just 23-37 and were a whopping 10.5-games back of the 34-17 NY Mets in the NL East as June dawned. However, the Braves opened June by winning 14 straight and the team's 19-5 record in the month has cut the Mets' lead in the division to just FIVE games. Philadelphia fired Joe Girardi on June 3. Rob Thomson took over as interim manager and the Phillies won EIGHT in a row. They've cooled but they are 17-6 under Thompson to close with THREE games of the Braves, although they are EIGHT games behind the Mets in the NL East.

Charlie Morton (4-3, 4.84 ERA) will take the mound for the Braves, while the Phillies counter with staff ace Zack Wheeler (6-4, 2.77 ERA) in the opening contest of the series. Morton turned his career around beginning in 2017. Excluding the COVID season of 2020, he has gone 49-22 in the last four full seasons, playing on teams that have played in THREE World Series (winning twice) in that span (with Houston in 2017and Atlanta in 2021). Morton allowed two runs on two hits and a walk in 5.1 innings against the Cincinnati Reds on April 8, earning a "W" in Atlanta's 7-6 victory. However, over his next four starts, he allowed 16 ERs in 18.1 innings (7.85 ERA) in going 0-3 (Braves lost all four). However, over his last NINE starts, the Braves are 7-2 in his outings (he hasn't suffered a loss in that span, going 3-0).

Wheeler spent FIVE seasons with the Mets but really never fulfilled his promise. This marks his third season with Philly and he's coming off the best season of his career in 2021. He finished 14-10 with a 2.78 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 32 starts (team was 19-13). He opened the current season 0-3 with an 8.53 ERA but he's 6-1 over his last 10 starts (Phillies are 7-3), posting a 1.55 ERA. There is little doubt that Wheelers is in a groove but remember, Morton hasn't lost a game his last NINE outing (Braves are 7-2). The Braves are 3-1 in Morton's June starts, with the vet owning a 40-4 KW ratio over 25 innings. Philadelphia will play without Bryce Harper. as the Phillies await word on the recovery timeline of Harper's fractured left thumb (he was injured when hit by a pitch from Blake Snell of the San Diego Padres on Saturday night). I'm taking Morton as a small underdog.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* AL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Tex Rangers at 8:10 ET.

The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021 but have played better this season, sitting 34-37 (.479) as of Monday morning. The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). Unlike Texas, KC is NOT playing better in 2022, as the Royals own the AL's worst record at 26-45. The Rangers open a nine-game trip on Monday night with a three-game series in Kansas City. The starters for tonight are Martin Perez (5-2, 1.96 ERA) for Texas and Kris Bubic (1-4, 7.41 ERA) for Kansas City.

Perez spent his first seven seasons with Texas but the last three seasons, he had a one-year stint in Minnesota, then pitched for Boston in 2020 and 2021. In that three-season span, he posted a 4.88 ERA. Perez signed a one-year, $4 million contract to return to the Texas Rangers in March and he has turned into a 'different pitcher' in 2022. He went 4-0 over six starts in May (Texas was 6-0!) with an 0.64 ERA to earn American League Pitcher of the Month. He's made 14 starts this season, allowing two ERs or less 11 times! This year has been a rollercoaster for Bubic on the mound. He went 0-3 over his first six appearances (five starts), posting a horrific 12.83 ERA! However, KC has won THREE of his four June starts (3.92 ERA), including Bubic earning his first win of 2022 last Monday, when he allowed two ERs over six innings of a 6-2 win in Anaheim.

Royals manager Mike Matheny took notice and said that Bubic securing his first win of the 2022 season was a big deal at an individual level. I'm not as impressed as Matheny. I see Bubic being over-matched up against Perez, who takes the mound with the Rangers having won NINE of his last 10 starts, with Perez posting a 1.63 ERA. Perez has won his last two starts (at Detroit and home to Philly), allowing just one ER over 13 innings (0.69 ERA).

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the StL Cards at 7:45 ET.

The Marlins joined the National League in 1993 and entering the COVID-shortened season of 2020, had made the postseason just TWICE. However, the Marlins would capture the World Series each time, in 1997 over the Indians and in 2003 over the Yankees. The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95. The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. The Marlins begin a seven-game road trip (ends July 4th) with a three-game series against the Cards in St Louis starting tonight. The Marlins come to St Louis just 33-38 (12.5-games behind the Mets in the NL East), while the 41-35 Cards are just ONE game behind the first place Brewers in the NL Central.

The Marlins will start Pablo Lopez (5-3, 2.61 ERA) in the opener of the series at Busch Stadium, while the Cards counter with Adam Wainwright (5-5, 3.32 ERA). Lopez has grown the previous two seasons as a starting pitcher. In a combined 31 starts, he's allowed 139 hits in 160 innings with a 174-44 KW ratio and a 3.26 ERA. He's made 14 starts in 2022. He was near-perfect in April (3-0 with an 0.39 ERA in four starts / Marlins were 4-0). He then made SIX starts in a busy May but despite a 2.78 ERA, was only 1-2 with the Marlins going 1-5. The Marlins have won three of his four June starts, despite his 4.56 ERA.

Wainwright is now 40 years old and is coming off a 17-7 (3.05 ERA) season last year and received Cy Young Award votes for the FIFTH time in his career, finishing seventh in voting. He finished 3rd in 2009, 2nd in 2010, 2nd in 2013 and 3rd in 2014. Wainwright was just 2-3 (4.00 ERA) in April but even though his last win came back on May 20, the Cards have won SEVEN of his last nine starts since May 1. Lopez has only faced the Cards three times in his career, going 1-1 with a 1.74 ERA (Marlins are 1-2), including blanking the Cardinals for seven innings with nine Ks nine in a 5-0 victory back on April 21. Meanwhile, Wainwright is 7-2 with a 2.99 ERA in 15 career outings against Miami (13 starts / Cards are 10-3).

I often play on Wainwright and will do so again here, as the Cards get three games with the Marlins (14-22 on the road), while the Brewers play a two-game IL set on the road against Tampa Bay Tuesday and Wednesday. A three-game home sweep would be 'sweet' but that's getting ahead of myself. Take the vet tonight over the young 'gun!'

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Sunday Night Game of the Month is on the LA Dodgers at 7:08 ET.

The Dodgers had won EIGHT straight NL West titles heading into 2021 but despite winning 106 games, the Dodgers finished ONE game behind the 107-win SF Giants. However, the Dodgers opened the current season having played in NINE consecutive postseasons (next best run is FIVE straight by the Astros and Yankees). The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season), before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. The Dodgers and Braves will play the rubber match of their three-game series tonight in Atlanta on ESPN. Los Angeles won 4-1 on Friday but the Braves won 5-3 last night on a two-run HR in the 8th, after blowing a 3-0 lead. The Dodgers are currently 44-26 (a half-game behind the Mets for the NL's best record) but more importantly, are only ONE game clear of the SD Padres in the NL West. The Braves ended May just 23-37 and were a whopping 10.5-games back of the 34-17 NY Mets in the NL East as June dawned. However, the Braves opened June by winning 14 straight and the team's 19-4 record in the month has cut the Mets' lead in the division to just FIVE games.

Tonight's starting pitchers will be Tony Gonsolin (9-0, 158 ERA) for the Dodgers and Atlanta rookie Spencer Strider (3-2, 3.40 ERA). This is Gonsolin's fourth season with LA and he opened the 2022 season 10-5 with a 2.85 ERA over 35 lifetime appearances, including 27 starts. All of his 13 appearances this season have been in the role of a starter and Gonsolin has yet to have suffered a loss! The Dodgers are 10-3 in those games and Gonsolin owns a 0.82 WHIP and .150 BAA to go along with his miniscule ERA (see above). Strider's first 11 appearances this season came out of the bullpen. His first start was May 30, when he allowed five runs (three earned) in 4.1 innings of a 6-2 loss at Arizona. However, he was 2-0 and the Braves 3-0 over his next three starts, as he allowed just three ERs over 15.1 innings (1.76 ERA). Strider's most recent outing was this past Tuesday at home vs the Giants, when he was ripped for six ERs in just 3.2 innings of a game the Braves lost 12-10.

Here's the bottom line. Gonsolin will lose some time but I'm NOT about to try and predict when. He's been just terrific, and he pitches for an LA team that leads all of MLB in scoring (5.13 RPG) and the NL in run differential by a WIDE margin. The Dodgers are plus-130 runs (only the NYY are better at plus-141) but LA's differential is 62 runs better than the Mets (plus-68), owners of the NL's second-best differential (note: Atlanta's run differential is plus-46). Oh, by the way. LA's team ERA is a MLB-best 2.94. Dodgers get the "W' under the ESPN 'lights.'

Good luck...Larry

My 8* Situational Stunner is on the Arz D'backs at 4:10 ET.

The Detroit Tigers have missed the postseason the last SEVEN years and are well on their way to making it EIGHT straight non-playoff seasons in 2022, as they are currently 28-43. Arizona joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). The teams opened a three-game series at Chase Field on Friday and the Tigers have won each of the first two contests (5-1 and 6-3) and will go for a three-game series sweep of the slumping Diamondbacks today in Phoenix. The D'backs have played much better in 2022, as even though they have dropped 14 of their last 20 games. Arizona is currently 32-41 (.438), a far cry from the team's .321 'winning' percentage of 2021.

Dallas Keuchel won the American League Cy Young Award with the Houston Astros in 2015 and is a two-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glove winner. He started a three-year contract with the White Sox excellently in 2020, posting a 1.99 ERA in the pandemic-shortened season. However, since then, he’s had a 5.71 ERA. including 2-5 with a 7.88 ERA through eight starts this season. prompting his release in late May. Arizona signed him to a minor league contract on June 6 and he will make his Arizona debut today (more later). He will be opposed by Detroit rookie Beau Brieske (1-6, 4.07 ERA). Brieske is not exactly a "bonus baby," as he was drafted in the 27th round of the 2019 Draft. He's made 11 starts this season and has just ONE win, with the Tigers going 2-8 in his other 10 starts. Yes, the D'backs are slumping, but while Brieske owns a 2-75 ERA at home, it's 5.34 on the road.

Here's the 'dope' on why Arizona is taking a chance with Keuchel. Fourteen times this year, the Diamondbacks have trotted out a starting pitcher not named Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Madison Bumgarner or Zach Davies. In those 14 starts — one for Caleb Smith, nine for Humberto Castellanos, three for Tyler Gilbert and one for Luke Weaver — they’ve gotten a combined 7.93 ERA across 59 innings. By joining Arizona, Keuchel is reuniting with pitching coach Brent Strom, who tutored him in 2015 when he won the American League Cy Young Award with the Houston Astros (20-8 record and 2.48 ERA). The hope is that Keuchel can shore up the back of Arizona’s rotation, as it would provide a major boon. In contrast to the struggles from their fifth spot, the Diamondbacks’ top four starters have a cumulative 3.58 ERA, which would be the third best rotation ERA in the National League. Let's NOT forget that Detroit opened this series with MLB's worst road record of 8-21 and I want NO part of expecting them to pull off the three-game road sweep.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Signature 38-Club is on the Sea Mariners at 10:07 ET.

Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The LA Angels are coming off a 77-85 season in 2021 and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years (got swept 3-0 in a 2014 ALDS in its lone appearance in that span). Seattle went 11-10 in April but fell below .500 with a loss on May 4th and have remained a sub-.500 team ever since. Meanwhile, the Angels got off to an impressive 27-17 start through May 24th and were challenging the Astros, who were 28-16 on the same date, for the AL West lead. However, as we are all aware, things can change VERY quickly in sports (in life, as well!).

The Angels began a 14-game losing streak on May 25 and after losing 4-3 last night to the Mariners, in the opener of this three-game home series, take the field tonight having lost 22 of their last 29 games to fall to 34-39. The Angels are no longer a threat to the 44-26 Astros, who lead them by 11.5-games! As for Seattle, last night's win was the team's FOURTH in a row and while the Mariners are not exactly surging, they have gone 15-13 since May 25 and at 33-39, find themselves just a half-game behind the Angels, as well as only 1.5-games behind the second-place Rangers in the AL West. The pitching matchup for Saturday will feature Seattle's Logan Gilbert (7-3, 2.28 ERA) and LA's Patrick Sandoval (3-2, 2.70 ERA).

Gilbert was just 6-5 with a 4.68 ERA in his rookie season but the Mariners went 16-8 in his 24 starts. That gave him a moneyline record of +$1,106 (3rd-best in MLB). Gilbert made four starts in a dominating April, which included victories over reigning division champions Tampa Bay and the Chicago White Sox. He was 3-0 (team was 4-0) with an 0.44 ERA, a showing that earned him the American League Pitcher of the Month Award for April. He opened May with a 7-3 win (5.2 IP / 1 ER) and was 4-0 (team was 5-0) with an 0.64 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and a BAA of .180. Seattle then lost his next FOUR starts, as he was 0-2 with a 4.84 ERA. However, Gilbert would go 3-0 with a 1.44 ERA over his next four starts (Seattle was 4-0), before losing his last outing (June 19), when he allowed a modest two ERs over six innings of a 4-2 loss to these same Angels.

Sandoval opened the current season having made a modest 36 appearances (29 starts), going 4-15 with a 4.42 ERA. However, the Angels would win SIX of his first seven starts in 2022, with Sandoval posting a 1.79 ERA. However, the Angels would lose his next three starts (Sandoval posted a 5.93 ERA), before he pitched well in his last outing, June 18 vs the Mariners. he allowed just one ER  over six innings of a game the Angels won 4-2 in 10 innings. These two pitchers pitched a day apart when the Angels and Mariners met in Seattle from June 16-19 for FIVE games in four days, but will square off against each other tonight.

The Angels actually won FOUR of those five games (LA is 3-21 in games outside of that series going back to May 25!) but as mentioned, the Mariners got the 4-3 win last night. I'm 'ALL OVER' Seattle again here, as the Mariners are 25-12 with Gilbert starting since the beginning of the 2021 season.

Good luck...Larry

My 8* Weekly Wipeout is on the KC Royals at 8:10 ET.

The Oakland A's entered the current season coming off their fourth consecutive winning season (85-76) but missed the playoffs in 2021, after playing three consecutive postseasons (2018-2020). The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). The A's and Royals open a three-game series Friday night in KC with each team residing in last place in their respective divisions. The A's are 23-48 (AL West and the Royals are 25-43 (AL Central). The A's were 10-9 through April 27th but will take the field tonight, having gone 13-38 their last 52 games. Typical of their season was last night's game. Starter Frankie Montas took a no-hit bid into the eighth inning but then reliever A.J. Puk threw a pair of run-scoring wild pitches with two outs in the ninth that gave the Seattle Mariners a 2-1 win. As for the Royals, they return home after coming off their most successful road trip of the season, going 5-4 on their recent trip through San Francisco, Oakland and Anaheim.

Taking the mound tonight will be Cole Irvin (2-4, 3.14 ERA) for Oakland and Zack Greinke (0-4, 5.05 ERA) for Kansas City. Irvin made 19 appearances (just three starts) in 2019 and 202, pitching only 45.1 innings with a 6.75 ERA. He made 32 starts in 2021, going 10-15 with a 4.24 ERA. He's made 11 starts this season. FIVE came in April, when the A's went 3-2 and he had a 2.93 ERA. However, he was then sidelined for three weeks by shoulder tendinitis. He returned on May 22 and despite a 3.31 over his last six starts, he's 0-3 and the A's have lost ALL six games!

Most (all?) are familiar with Greinke, who won the AL Cy Young award for KC back in 2019 (16-8, 2.16 ERA). He then won 129 games over a seven-year span (that's 18.4 per season) pitching for the Brewers, Dodgers, D'backs and Astros. He returned to KC for the 2022 season, signing a one-year, $13 million contract on March 16, 2022. He was the Royals' Opening Day starter this season, allowing just one ER over 5.2 innings in a 3-1 KC win (he settled for a no-decision). He's made another nine starts since Opening Day but remains winless, with the Royals going 3-6 in those starts. Greinke has been out since May 30 with a right flexor strain. It was clear that something was bothering him before he went on the IL. In his first six starts, he allowed three runs or less and pitched at least five innings, posting an ERA of 2.67. However, in his last four starts, he had an ERA of 9.50!

Neither team is going anywhere in 2022 but at least the Royals have shown some spunk as of late, while the A's just look 'dead in the water.' Greinke is 11-3 with a 2.76 ERA in 24 appearances (19 starts) all-time against the A's, so I'm issuing a 'B-L-O-W-O-U-T Alert" on the Royals.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Las Vegas Insider is on the Bos Red Sox at 7:10 ET.

The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004 but Boston struggled to a 24-36 record in the 2020 season, before surprising most by going 92-70 in 2021. The Red Sox made it to the ALCS but lost 4-2 to the Astros. Cleveland began a new era in 2022 (no longer the Indians, now the Guardians). Cleveland lost to the Cubs in the 2016 World Series (led 3-1, before losing the final three games) and followed with THREE more postseason appearances in the next four years (exception was in 2019 when the team won 93 games). However, Cleveland would go just 80-82 in 2021.

The Red Sox visit the Guardians Friday night to begin a three-game series. Boston has won four in a row and 16 of its last 20 but the 39-31 Red Sox reside in the same division as the 52-18 Yankees, who own MLB's best record. Boston trails New York by 13 games but is in good shape in the wild card race, a half-game behind Toronto and 1.5 games up on Tampa Bay. The Guardians were a season-low five games below .500 on Memorial Day morning at 19-24 but they have won 17 of 22 to reach 36-29 (.554) and into a virtual tie with 39-32 (.549) Minnesota atop the AL Central. Taking the mound tonight in the series opener will be Boston's Nick Pivetta (7-5, 3.31 ERA) and Cleveland's Cal Quantrill (4-4, 3.77 ERA).

Pivetta was acquired (along with prospect Connor Seabold) from the Philadelphia Phillies in 2020 in exchange for pitchers Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree. His 2022 season started off as a disaster, as he was 0-4 with a 6.08 ERA after six starts (team was 0-6) but he's begun to pay big dividends as of late. He's earned a decision in each of his last EIGHT starts, going 7-1 with a 1.96 ERA. This is Quantrill's 4th MLB season, and he was 8-3 with a 2.89 ERA in 2021 (40 appearances, including 22 starts). He's made 12 starts in 2022, with Cleveland going 5-7.

Cleveland is clearly a threat to win the AL Central (Twins and White Sox have other ideas) but while catching the Yankees in the AL East is unlikely, the Red Sox are back in the thick of playoff contention thanks to their recent hot streak. Pivetta has been on quite a roll since mid-May (see above) and the following has me 'all over' him and the Red Sox here, against Quantrill and the Guardians. Quantrill won his 2022 debut 17-3 at KC (April 10) but he's 0-4 over his last five road starts (4.55 ERA) with the Guardians losing ALL five games!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Hou Astros at 7:05 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. The Yankees began the current season having made five consecutive playoff appearances, tied with the Astros for the second-longest active streak in MLB (the Dodgers have made the postseason the previous NINE seasons). The Astros and Yankees opened a four-game series last night in the Bronx and New York earned its 15th consecutive home win when Judge's RBI single gave them a 7-6 win, capping a FOUR-run, ninth-inning rally. The Yankees enter play Friday on their longest home winning streak since 1961 and three shy of the team record set in 1942. During their streak, the Yankees are outscoring opponents 90-28. The Astros have to be at least a little bit in shock but will get to send future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander (8-3, 2.30 ERA)  to the mound tonight to oppose New York's Luis Severino (4-1, 3.27 ERA).

Verlander was shut down on September 19 of 2020 and would miss the remainder of that season plus all of the 2021 season (he underwent  Tommy John surgery on September 30, 2020). Verlander signed a one-year contract with the Astros on December 13, 2021, Verlander returned to the mound on April 9, 2022, against the Los Angeles Angels, for the first time since Opening Day 2020. He struck out seven and gave up one run over five innings in a 2–0 loss. He then threw eight scoreless innings against the Seattle Mariners in a 4–0 victory on April 16.He's had an excellent season so far (see above) but  he looks to rebound from his shortest (and WORST) start of the season last Saturday. He allowed seven runs (four earned) on nine hits in just 3.2 innings of a 7-0 home loss to the White Sox.

Much like Verlander, Severino has been sidelined by arm issues since going 14-6 in 2017 and 1918 in 2018. Severio made only three appearances in 2019 and in February of 2020, it was announced that Severino would undergo Tommy John surgery to repair a partially torn UCL in his right elbow, ending his 2020 season. He officially underwent the surgery on February 27 along with removing a bone chip from his right elbow. Severino was activated off the injury list for the first time in 706 days on September 20, 2021 and made only four appearances. However, just like Verlander, he's had a bounce-back season in 2022. He opened 3-0 with a 3.63 ERA in his first seven starts (Yanks were 7-0) but he's only 1-1 in his last five starts (Yanks are 2-3), despite a 2.87 ERA. Also like Verlander, Severino is coming off allowing a season-worst five runs on three hits (two HRs) in five-plus innings last Sunday against the host Blue Jays (Toronto won 10-9).

I had the Yankees last night ('miracle' win) but will jump on the Verlander 'train,' expecting a 'perfect' bounce-back win!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Game of the Month is on the NY Yankees at 7:05 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. The Yankees began the current season having made five consecutive playoff appearances, tied with the Astros for the second-longest active streak in MLB (the Dodgers have made the postseason the previous NINE seasons). The 43-25 Astros (10) and 51-18 Yankees (12) hold double-digit division leads and it is possible (likely?) that both teams could see a lot of each other with the American League pennant on the line in mid-October. In the meantime, the rivals will see plenty of each other when the Astros begin a four-game series with the Yankees in the Bronx.

The Astros are on a three-game winning streak (just swept a two-game home series over the NL-best Mets Tuesday and Wednesday) and are 7-2 in their last nine games, following a three-game skid June 8-11. That pales in comparison to what the Yankees are currently doing.
The Yankees welcome the Astros to New York, having won 14 straight home games. The Yankees are outscoring foes by an 83-22 margin since their last home loss (May 23) and take an overall 22-5 run into this series opener! Framber Valdez (7-3, 2.78 ERA) opens the series for Houston, while Jameson Taillon (8-1, 2.70 ERA) gets the nod for New York.

Valdez had a good regular season for Houston in 2021, going 11-6 with a 3.14 ERA in 22 starts (team was 13-9). However, in five postseason starts, he allowed 17 ERs over 19.2 innings for a 7.78 ERA and 1.83 WHIP. He enters this contest on a roll, going 6-1 with a 2.42 ERA over his last seven starts. He completed at least six innings for the 10th straight time in Friday's 13-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. when he allowed three runs on eight hits in six innings. Taillon underwent offseason ankle surgery, and this marks his second season for the Yankees. He was 8-6 with a 4.30 ERA in 29 starts in 2021 (Yanks were 17-12), coming off a second Tommy John surgery (first was in May of 2019). Taillon enters this contest even 'hotter' than Valdez, (8-1, 2.70), as he has won his last EIGHT eight decisions and has allowed two runs or less in 10 of his 13  starts this year, with New York going 11-2.

Nothing to knock regarding Houston or its starting pitcher (Valdez) but Taillon hasn't suffered a losing decision since his 2022 debut (April 11). The Yankees own MLB's best record (by a 7.5-game margin) and its best moneyline mark (plus-145 runs), as well as being MLB's top scoring team (5.12 RPG), while owning MLB's lowest team ERA (2.90). The Yankees draw 'first blood' in this series tonight.

Good luck...Larry 

My 8* Getaway Day Game of the Month is on the Min Twins at 1:10 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. However, the Twins have had a nice bounce-back start in 2022. The Twins welcomed Cleveland to Target Field for a three-game series starting Tuesday and expected to have their work cut out for them. The Guardians were a season-low five games below .500 on Memorial Day morning at 19-24 but they had won 15 of 19 to reach 34-28, closing within ONE game of the first-place Twins. The teams will take the field this afternoon for the series finale, after the Guardians have won each of the first two contests, leapfrogging the Twins to take over first place in the AL Central (Cleveland is 36-28 and Minnesota 38-32). The Twins have to be HUGELY frustrated, after blowing a two-run lead in the eighth inning of a 6-5, 11-inning loss in the series opener on Tuesday and then squandering a three-run lead in the ninth en route to an 11-10 loss on Wednesday.

Minnesota will now look to avoid a home sweep against a Cleveland team that has won 17 of 21 and already clinched its SEVENTH consecutive series win. Zach Plesac (2-4, 4.41 ERA) will get the nod for Cleveland, while Minnesota will counter with Devin Smeltzer (3-1, 3.52 ERA). This is Plesac's 4th season with Cleveland. He caused a stir back in 2020 when he was sent home by the team via car service after violating team and Major League Baseball COVID-19 protocols after going out with friends in Chicago following a game against the White Sox. It caused a disruption for both him AND the team. Plesac later issued a statement apologizing and in 2021, went 10-6 with a 4.67 ERA in 25 starts (team was 14-11). He's made 12 starts in 2022 and owns just two wins (Cleveland is 5-7 in his starts).

Smeltzer began the 2022 season in the minors, having made just 19 MLB appearances (seven starts) and a 4-4 record with a 4.26 ERA. The Twins decided to promote Smeltzer and he made his season debut back on May 14. He's made seven starts and before his last outing, he owned a 3-0 record (Twins were 4-2) and hadn't allowed more than three ERs in any starts (owned a 0.97 WHIP and a BAA of .203). However, Smeltzer is coming off his worst start of the season, when he allowed SEVEN runs (six earned) on nine hits in 4.1 innings of a 7-2 loss at Arizona on Friday night.

Both starters own poor career records against tonight's respective opponents. Plesac is 0-1 with a 6.26 ERA in four career starts (team is 1-3), including an 0-1 mark and a 7.71 ERA in two career starts in Minneapolis. As for Smeltzer, he is 1-2 with a 5.33 ERA in six career appearances (four starts / team is 1-3) against Cleveland. Which way to go here? I will 'step out' on Minnesota, coming off back-to-back blown opportunities the first two games, to avoid the home sweep. Supporting my selection is that Plesac has a 3.34 home ERA but a 5.57 ERA on the road. Moving over to Smeltzer, he owns a 4.87 road ERA and BAA of .300 but a 2.00 home ERA with a BAA of .150.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Oddsmaker's Error is on the Oak A's at 9:40 ET.

Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The Oakland A's are coming off their fourth consecutive winning season (85-76) but missed the playoffs in 2021, after playing three consecutive postseasons (2018-2020). Neither team is 'thinking' playoffs in 2022, as the Mariners were just 29-39 and the A's only 23-45, as the two AL West rivals opened a three-game series last night in Oakland. I had Seattle last night, saying "I'm comfortable calling Gonzales over Kaprielian a Pitching Mismatch," and ca$hed as the Mariners won 8-2.

Rookie George Kirby (1-2, 3.56 ERA) will start tonight's game for Seattle, opposed by Oakland's Paul Blackburn (6-2, 2.26 ERA). Kirby was a 2019 first-round pick (20th overall) and made his MLB debut back on May 8. He began his career with an 0-1 record and 4.50 ERA in his first four outings (Mariners were 1-3), but he has gone 1-1 with a 2.74 ERA in his last four starts (Seattle is 3-1). He got a no-decision in a 7-5 May 24th home loss against the A's, allowing four ERs in five innings. Blackburn entered the current season with a five-year record of 6-11 in 30 appearances (27 starts), posting a 5.74 ERA. However, he's a 'new man' in 2022, going 6-2 with a 2.26 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 13 starts (Oakland is 9-4 in his starts). Blackburn is 2-2 lifetime in five starts against Seattle (4.68 ERA) but in his lone start against them here in 2022, he beat the Mariners (and ace Robbie Ray) 4-2 back on May 25, pitching 5.1 scoreless innings while allowing just ONE hit.

Oakland's 'turn' to win tonight and we get a nice 'price.' I see no reason for Seattle to be favored. Bow-wow!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Year (NL Central) is on the StL Cards at 8:10 ET.

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. The Milwaukee Brewers entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Cards and Brewers are in the midst of a four-game series in Milwaukee, one in which the Brewers won 2-0 on Monday but then the Cards responded with a 6-2 win on Tuesday. As the teams take the field tonight, St Louis and Milwaukee are tied atop the NL Central at 39-31. The Brewers were 32-18 through Memorial Day but have lost 13 of 20 since, allowing the Cards (12-10 in that same span) to create the current deadlock in the division.

Adam Wainwright (5-5, 3.06 ERA) will get the start for St Louis, and he'll be opposed by Milwaukee's Eric Lauer (6-2, 3.57 ERA). Wainwright, now 40-years-old, went 17-7 with a 3.05 ERA last year and received Cy Young Award votes for the FIFTH time in his career, finishing seventh in voting. He finished 3rd in 2009, 2nd in 2010, 2nd in 2013 and 3rd in 2014. Wainwright hasn't won since May 20 in Pittsburgh, but since May 1, the Cards are 6-2 in his starts with Wainwright posting a 2.58 ERA. Lauer entered the 2022 season just 21-24 with an ERA hovering around 4.00. He's regularly overshadowed by the front end of the Brewers rotation, but Lauer leads the team in victories with six. He was 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in four April starts (team was 4-0). He made five May starts and the team went 3-2 with Lauer's ERA going up just slightly to 2.95 for the month. However, Lauer has given up three HRs in each of his last two outings, allowing 12 ERs on 13 hits over 11.1 innings (9.53 ERA). Lauer got the win his last time out, allowing four runs in 6.1 innings in a 5-4 victory at Cincinnati.

Lauer is 2-1 with a 6.75 ERA in five career appearances against the Cardinals, including four starts (Brewers are 3-1 in those starts but Lauer owns a 5.82 ERA and 1.82 WHIP). Yes, Wainwright is 0-2 with a 6.75 ERA in two starts against Milwaukee in 2022 but he's started 44 games against the Brewers in his career (Cards are 28-16), with Wainwright owning a 2.76 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. The 'old man' comes up big here. Take St Louis.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Atl Braves at 7:20 ET.

The Los Angeles Dodgers had won EIGHT straight NL West titles heading into 2021 but despite winning 106 games, the Dodgers finished ONE game behind the 107-win SF Giants. It was quite a 'leap' by San Francisco, which had last made the postseason back in 2016. Heading into last season, the Giants had finished 40, 18.5, 29 and 14 games (60-game season) behind the Dodgers in the NL West. Meanwhile, the Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season), before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. The Giants and Braves opened a four-game series Monday in Atlanta. The Braves won the opener 2-1 Monday on a walk off single but then San Francisco evened the series with a 12-10 victory on Tuesday, which ended Atlanta's EIGHT-game home winning streak. The 38-29 Giants are currently 3.5 games behind the Dodgers and Padres, who are in a virtual tie atop the NL West. The 39-30 Braves, who are 16-3 in June, are still 5.5 games behind the Mets in the NL East (New York's 45-25 record is the best in the MLB).

Carlos Rodon (6-4, 2.84 ERA) will get the nod for the Giants, while Charlie Morton (4-3, 5.08 ERA) will take the mound for the Braves. Rodon was 13-5 (2.37 ERA) for the White Sox in 2021 (Chicago was 16-8 in his starts) but he then signed a two-year, $44 million contract with the Giants in March. Rodon was 4-1 (1.80 ERA) through his first six starts (team was 4-2) but he then suffered his LONE poor outing of the season on May 15, allowing eight ERs in 3.2 innings against the Cards. He has not allowed more than three ERs in any of his other 12 starts in 2022. However, including that loss to St Louis, the Giants had lost the next FIVE times Rodon took the mound. He has bounced back VERY well in his last two outings, winning both 2-0 (ZERO runs allowed over 14 innings with a 16-5 KW ratio).

Morton turned his career around beginning in 2017. Excluding the COVID season of 2020, he has gone 49-22 in the last four full seasons, playing on teams that have played in THREE World Series (winning twice) in that span (with Houston in 2017and Atlanta in 2021). Morton allowed two runs on two hits and a walk in 5.1 innings against the Cincinnati Reds on April 8, earning a "W" in Atlanta's 7-6 victory. However, over his next four starts, he allowed 16 ERs in 18.1 innings (7.85 ERA) in going 0-3 (Braves lost all four). However, the raves have won SIX of Morton's last eight starts heading into this contest.

Rodon is a 'tough nut to crack' but I'm backing Morton. He's just 4- in 14 career starts vs San Francisco (teams are 6-8) but he owns a 2.55 ERA! The Braves have been MLB's best team in June and after seeing their eight-game home winning streak snapped in last night's slugfest, begin a new home winning streak here behind Morton.

Good luck...Larry

My 7* AL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Sea Mariners at 9:40 ET.

Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The Oakland A's are coming off their fourth consecutive winning season (85-76) but missed the playoffs in 2021, after playing three consecutive postseasons (2018-2020). Neither team is 'thinking' playoffs in 2022, as 29-39 Seattle is 13 games out of first place in the AL West, while 23-45 Oakland is 19 games out!

The AL West's 4th-and 5th-place teams open a three game series tonight in Oakland. Seattle's Marco Gonzales (3-7, 3.41 ERA) and Oakland's James Kaprielian (0-4, 6.31 ERA) are the scheduled starters in the first of what will be seven meetings between the AL West clubs in 13 days. Both teams are struggling with their respective offense, so the key to Tuesday's game will be the starting pitchers. Gonzales has gone 46-30 for Seattle from 2018-21 and remains a mainstay in Seattle's starting rotation in 2022. Say what? Haven't the Mariners lost his last four starts? Yes, but he has posted a 2.84 ERA in that span, while getting a total of just SIX runs of support! Gonzales owns a 3.41 ERA on the season and it ranks as the best among the 11 major-league pitchers with SEVEN or more losses in 2022!

James Kaprielian was a rookie in 2021 and went 8-5 with a 4.07 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 24 appearances (21 starts with the A's going 11-10). He's yet to earn a win in NINE starts here in 2022 (0-4), with his ERA up over two runs per game (to 6.31) and his WHIP is up to 1.50. One could point out that the A's have gone 4-1 in his no-decisions this season and while that's true, he has allowed 13 ERs over 19.2 innings in those four team wins for a 5.95 ERA! Yes, I'm comfortable calling Gonzales over Kaprielian a "Pitching Mismatch."

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Las Vegas Insider is on the Hou Astros at 8:10 ET.

The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season) before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. In stark contrast, the Mets went 22-38 down the stretch to finish in third place at 77-85, 11 1/2 games out of first place. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years, The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. As the two teams get set to open a brief two-game IL series in Houston on Tuesday night, the Mets own the NL's best record 40-22 and are still 5.5 games ahead of the Braves in the NL East, even though Atlanta has gone 16-2 in June. As for Houston, the Astros are 45-24 and lead the AL West by 10 games over the Angels, who have lost 20 of their last 26 games.

Trevor Williams (1-3, 3.53 ERA) will start the series opener for the Mets, while the Astros counter with Jose Urquidy (5-3, 4.99 ERA). Williams spent his first five seasons with the Pirates but signed with the Cubs as a free agent prior to the 2021 season. However, the Cubs traded him to the Mets on July 30. He made 10 appearances (three starts) for New York, without earning a decision (3.21 ERA). He's made 12 appearances for the Mets in 2022, including five starts (he's 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in those five starts / Mets are 3-2). Urquidy had a nice 2021 for Houston, going 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 20 starts (team was 14-6). Urquidy's ERA has jumped to 4.99 and his WHIP to 1.52 in 2022 but one needs to look closer. Urquidy's road ERA is 6.28 but at home, it's 3 1/2-runs less at 2.78!

This could be a World Series preview and I REALLY like the Astros in tonight's game. Urquidy is pitching at home against Williams, who is nothing more than a journeyman.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Tor Blue jays at 8:10 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. The teams opened a three-game series Monday night in Chicago. After losing all three games in their first series against the Toronto Blue Jays this season (May 31-June 2), the Chicago White Sox got off to a good start in the rematch, holding off the Blue Jays 8-7 last night. The series continues tonight with Toronto having gone just 8-9 since that three-game sweep of Chicago and falling 12 games behind the NY Yankees in the AL Eats at 38-29. It's been a disappointing season so far for Chicago, a team that was favored to win its division in 2022. The White Sox have been hovering around .500 the last month and are currently 32-33, 4.5 games behind division-leading Minnesota and 3.5 games behind Cleveland.

Kevin Gausman (5-6, 3.21 ERA) will start for the Blue Jays, with Dylan Cease (5-3, 2.91 ERA) going for the White Sox. Gausman had a career year in 2021 for the Giants, going 14-6 with a 2.81 ERA (his career ERA is 3.97) and 1.04 WHIP. He got off to an excellent start in 2022 for Toronto, going 5-3 with a 2.51 ERA in 10 starts (Jays were 7-3). However, he has begun June 0-3, allowing 22 hits and nine ERs in just 12 innings (6.75 ERA). Cease had a strong season for Chicago in 2021, going 13-7 with a 3.91 ERA and is 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 13 starts (team is 9-4) here in 2022.

I lost with the Blue Jays last night but will come back with them here again, based on these following season-long trends. While Gausman owns a 4.76 ERA and .324 BAA at home, his road ERA is 1.85 and BAA is .230. In contrast, Cease owns a 1.76 road ERA, compared to a 3.86 home ERA (just over two runs more per game)!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Situational Stunner is on the Tor Blue Jays at 8:10 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. The two teams get together for a three-game series beginning Monday night in Chicago. The Jays swept the White Sox in Toronto from May 31-June 2 but are just 8-8 since. Toronto was outscored 16-3 in the first two games of a weekend home series against the Yankees, but the Blue Jays rallied for a 10-9 victory Sunday to stop New York's winning streak at nine games. The Jays are currently 38-28, 11 games behind the Yankees and two games ahead of the Rays. It's been a disappointing season so far for Chicago, a team that was favored to win its division in 2022. The White Sox have been hovering around .500 the last month and are currently 31-33, after completing a 4-2 road trip. The White Sox return home here, where manager Tony La Russa has recently been the subject of "Fire Tony" chants by the home crowd. Chicago opens the series FIVE games behind first-place Minnesota and four games behind Cleveland in the AL Central.

Jose Berrios (5-2, 4.65) will start for the Blue Jays, while the White Sox counter with Lance Lynn (0-0, 6.23 ERA. Berrios won 40 games for the Twins from 2017-19 but was traded last July to Toronto during the 2021 season. The Blue Jays went 5-0 in his April starts, despite Berrios posting a less-than-spectacular 4.13 ERA. His ERA ballooned to 7.01 in five May starts (Jays were 2-3) but he owns a 2.45 ERA in three June starts (Toronto is 3-0). Berrios is very familiar with the White Sox with 21 career starts against Chicago (teams are 14-7), with Berrios going 12-5 with a 3.12 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. It's his highest win total against any opponent. Lynn gets the call for Chicago and is making just his second start after opening the season on the injured list. Lynn has been a 'workhorse' these last few seasons and has had top-6 finishes in the Cy Young voting for THREE consecutive years! He was 11-6, 2.69 ERA in 2021, finishing third in the AL's Cy Young voting. However, after being sidelined with a right knee injury, it's hard to know just how effective he'll be. He allowed 10 hits in just 4.1 innings (three ERs) last Monday in a 9-3 team win at Detroit. It also doesn't inspire confidence that in eight career starts vs Toronto, Lynn is 1-3 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.42 WHIP (teams are 2-6)

Methinks that LaRussa just may be hearing more "Fire Tony" chants tonight. Take Toronto.

Good luck...Larry

My 7* Non-Division Game of the Month (NL) is on the Atl Braves at 7:20 ET.

The Los Angeles Dodgers had won EIGHT straight NL West titles heading into 2021 but despite winning 106 games, the Dodgers finished ONE game behind the 107-win SF Giants. It was quite a 'leap' by San Francisco, which had last made the postseason back in 2016. Heading into last season, the Giants had finished 40, 18.5, 29 and 14 games (60-game season) behind the Dodgers in the NL West. Meanwhile, the Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season), before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. The Giants are currently 37-28, leaving them three games behind the first place Dodgers, as well as 2.5 games back of the 2nd-place Padres. The Braves closer May just 23-27 but opened June by winning their first 14 games, before losing two of three this past weekend at Wrigley Field against the sad-sack Cubs. At 38-29, the Braves are 5.5 games behind the 44-29 Mets in the NL East (note: Mets own the NL's best record).

The Atlanta Braves open a four-game series Monday night against the visiting San Francisco Giants, kicking off a stretch of 10 games against playoff contenders (note: the Braves are coming off a 21-8 stretch against teams with losing records). The pitching matchup for Monday features San Francisco's Logan Webb (6-2, 3.43) and Atlanta's Max Fried (7-2, 2.90 ERA), as the team's meet for the first time in 2022. Webb went 11-3 with a 3.03 ERA and 1.11 WHIP for the Giants in 27 appearances (26 starts) last season. The Giant won 21 of his 26 starts, giving him MLB's second-best moneyline mark at +$1,229 at $100/game. However, he had entered the 2021 season just 5-7 with a 5.32 ERA in 21 appearances (19 starts) in his first two years. How is he doing this season? His ERA (3.43) and WHIP (1.18) are slightly higher than in 2021 but the Giants have won NINE of his 13 starts. The good news is that in three career starts vs Atlanta, he's 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA and 0.80 WHIP (Giants are 3-0).

That said, Fried is the BETTER pitcher. Fried entered this season with a 38-13 (.745) record from 2019-21 and the Braves were also an OUTSTANDING 50-19 (.724) in all of his starts. He opened the current season 0-2 (5.72 ERA) but hasn't lost a decision since. He's 7-0 in nine starts since the (Braves are 7-2) and will take the mound tonight with the Braves having won his last FIVE starts, while posting a 2.27 ERA. Like Webb, Fried has dominated this opponent, going 3-0 with a 1.85 ERA and 0.82 WHIP in four career starts vs the Giants (Braves are 4-0). I rarely go against Fried and will definitely back him here, noting that while Webb owns a 2.74 ERA at home, his road ERA is 4.25. Important series for both teams but the play (bet) in tonight's contest is Fried and the Braves.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Situational Stunner is on the Cle Indians at 4:10 ET.

The Cleveland Guardians and the LA Dodgers cap a three-game IL series at Dodgers Stadium on Sunday, The Guardians won 2-1 (10 inn) on Friday, with LA bouncing back with a 7-1 win last night. The Guardians were a season-low five games below .500 on Memorial Day morning at 19-24 but they've won 14 of 18 to reach 33-28, closing within TWO games of the first-place Twins in the AL Central. The Dodgers had won EIGHT straight NL West titles heading into 2021 but despite winning 106 games, the Dodgers finished ONE game behind the 107-win SF Giants. However, the Dodgers opened the current season having played in NINE consecutive postseasons (next best run is FIVE straight by the Astros and Yankees). The Dodgers sit atop the NL West this morning, but just barely. Los Angeles has lost 10 of its last 17 games and its lead is just a HALF-game over San Diego and three over San Francisco.

It's the rubber match of the series on Sunday, as Cleveland sends ace Shane Bieber (3-3, 3.01 ERA) to the mound to face LA's Andrew Heaney (1-0, 0.00 ERA). Bieber was a rookie in 2018 and in 2019 went 15-8 and was the All-Star Game's MVP. In the COVID-shortened 2020 season he went 8-1 in 12 starts (team was 10-2), leading the AL in wins, ERA (1.63) and Ks (122), while posting an 0.87 WHIP and .167 BAA. He won the AL's Cy Young award. Bieber missed a chunk of the 2021 season (7-4 with a 3.17 ERA but 134 Ks in 96.2 IP) with a strained throwing shoulder. He was expected to be back at full strength this season and he has been. He posted a 2.45 ERA in five April starts but opened May by allowing seven ERs in just 3.1 innings vs Toronto on the 7th. However, over his last six starts, he's allowed just nine ERs over 30 innings for a 2.08 ERA with 46 strikeouts (Guardians are 5-1).Heaney joined the Dodgers this past offseason and made two starts (10.1 IP / allowed one unearned run / LA was 2-0) before going on the IL with left-shoulder inflammation. After two months away, he rejoins a starting staff that got Clayton Kershaw back from the IL last week but lost Walker Buehler to a forearm strain.

This marks Heaney's ninth season and I've never been impressed. Why should I be? He entered this season just 32-38 with a 4.73 ERA in 121 appearances, including 114 starts. Meanwhile, Bieber comes in pitching great and Cleveland's 7-1 defeat last night, snapped a five-game winning streak. Bieber is a native of nearby Laguna Hills, and he will make his Dodger Stadium debut and his first career start against the Dodgers (big deal). Heaney's only faced Cleveland twice, without a decision (4.00 ERA and 1.67 WHIP / teams are 0-2), and hasn't been on a big league mound since April 17. Grab the 'juicy' price with Bieber and the Guardians.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Division Game of the Month (NL East) is on the Mia Marlins at 1:40 ET.

The Marlins joined the National League in 1993 and entering the COVID-shortened season of 2020, had made the postseason just TWICE. However, the Marlins would capture the World Series each time, in 1997 over the Indians and in 2003 over the Yankees. The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95.  The Marlins seem well on their way to sitting out another postseason in 2022, as they sit just 28-35, 14 games behind the first-place Mets in the NL East. The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season) before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. In stark contrast, New York went 22-38 down the stretch to finish in third place at 77-85, 11 1/2 games out of first place. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years. However, here in 2022, the Mets own the NL's best record at 44-23 and are 6 1/2-games games ahead of the Braves in the NL East, even though Atlanta won 14 straight from Jun 1-15.

The Mets have won the first two games of the series (10-4 and 3-2) of this four-game series and look t0 make it three straight wins on Sunday, sending Chris Bassitt (5-4, 4.01 ERA) to the mound to face Miami's Alcantara (6-2, 1.68 ERA). Alcantara is having a 'Cy Young-like' season so far, posting a 0.96 WHIP and BAA of .192 to go along with his splendid ERA. He's been so good, that Monday's start, when he allowed two runs over 7.2 innings and didn't factor into the decision in the Marlins' 3-2 loss, qualified as a 'hiccup.' Say what? Consider this. In his six starts prior to Monday, Alcantara allowed just three ERs in 48 innings, the first time a pitcher's allowed three ERs or less over a six-start stretch spanning at least 48 innings since Jake Arrieta did so for the Chicago Cubs during his NL Cy Young Award-winning season in 2015. W-O-W!

Bassitt was 27-11 with 3.43 ERA the previous three years with Oakland but was traded to the New York Mets on March 12, 2022. Bassitt has become the de facto staff ace with Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom sidelined. He was fine through mid-May (4-2 with a 2.34 ERA in seven starts / Mets were 5-2) but over his next five outings, he allowed 22 ERs over 26 innings for a 7.62 ERA. Bassitt did snap that six-start winless streak Tuesday, when he allowed just three hits over eight scoreless innings as the Mets beat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-0. However, note that it was just the THIRD time Bassitt has thrown at least eight scoreless innings in 106 big-league starts.

My 10* LEGEND Play is on the Bos Red Sox at 1:35 ET.

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000.The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004 but Boston struggled to a 24-36 record in the 2020 season, before surprising most by going 92-70 in 2021. The Red Sox made it to the ALCS but lost 4-2 to the Astros. The Cardinals and Red Sox opened a three-game IL series Friday night at Fenway (teams hadn't met for a three-game series since 2014), with Boston winning 6-5., However, the Cardinals rebounded on Saturday, as a six-run sixth inning led to an 11-2 romp over the Red Sox (Boston mustered just five hits on Saturday-all singles). The rubber match of the series goes Sunday afternoon, with rookie Andre Pallante (2-1, 1.46 ERA) going up against Nick Pivetta (6-5, 3.50 ERA).

Pallante has made 20 starts in 2022 but this is just his THIRD starting assignment. The first was June 4 at Wrigley vs the Cubs (4 IP / 1 ER) and the second was at home vs the Reds on June 10 (5.1 scoreless innings). on Sunday afternoon. The 29-year-old Pivetta was acquired (along with prospect Connor Seabold) from the Philadelphia Phillies in 2020 in exchange for pitchers Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree. His 2022 season started off as a disaster, as he was 0-4 with a 6.08 ERA after six starts (team was 0-6) but he's begun to pay big dividends as of late. He's earned a decision in each of his last seven starts, going 6-1 with a 2.06 ERA.

The Cards are in a life-and-death battle with the Brewers in the NL Central (cards currently own a one-game lead) but despite winning 12 of their last 16 games, the Red Sox remain a whopping 14 1/2-games behind the first-place Yankees in the AL East. That said, with a slightly different playoff set-up in 2022, Boston is VERY much alive for a wild card berth. The Cards' Pallante is still very much an "unknown quantity" (note: his only two starts have come against the 25-40 Cubs and 23-42 Reds), while Pivetta has allowed more than three ERs in just ONE (he allowed four) over his last 10 starts.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Weekend Wipeout is on the Mil Brewers at 4:10 ET.

Milwaukee entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Brewers were looking pretty good after a Memorial Day win left them at 32-18, atop the division. However, the Brewers have lost 12 of their last 16 to fall to 36-30 (one game behind the Cards in the NL Central). The Cincinnati Reds broke a six-year postseason drought in the COVID season of 202 but were eliminated by the Braves 2-0, as the Reds did not score a SINGLE run in 22 innings (lost 1-0 in 13 innings and 5-0). The Reds missed the postseason again in 2021 (63-79) and then opened the current season by going 3-22 in their first 25 games. The teams opened a three-game series last night in Cincinnati, with the Brewers winning 5-4, dropping the Reds to 23-41.

A pair of rookie starting pitchers will square off in Saturday's contest, as Jason Alexander (0-0, 2.16 ERA) will make his fourth start for Milwaukee and Graham Ashcraft (3-0, 2.22 ERA) makes his sixth start of the season for Cincinnati. Opponents are batting .328 in Alexander's first three appearances but his 2.16 ERA is the third lowest in franchise history of any pitcher after his first three major league games, trailing only Bill Parsons (1.42 in 1971) and Brandon Woodruff (1.62 in 2017). Meanwhile, the Reds have won all FIVE of Ashcraft's previous starts, including June 12 when he allowed four runs on nine hits and earned a no-decision in a 7-6 win over the host St Louis Cardinals.

I guess it's fair to give Ashcraft the nod over Alexander but the Brewers, despite their recent struggles, are CLEARLY the much better team. The Reds have recovered from their dreadful start (see above) to go 20-19 their last 39 games but they are still a last-place team and going nowhere. The Brewers play the Reds Saturday and Sunday, but then return home to open next week with a VERY important four-game series with the Cards. A sweep of the Reds would be a HUGE boost. Milwaukee moves closer to that sweep with a win here. B-L-O-W-O-U-T Alert!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Oak A's at 4:07 ET.

The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). The A's are coming off their fourth consecutive winning season (85-76) but missed the playoffs after playing three consecutive postseasons (2018-2020). Neither team is 'thinking' playoffs in 2022, as KC is 22-41 (last in the AL Central) and 22-44 Oakland is last in the AL West. The Royals' Daniel Lynch got the better of A's ace Frankie Montas in the series opener Friday, striking out a career-high 10 in a 5-1 victory during the clubs' first meeting this season. Brad Keller (1-8, 4.74 ERA) will try to pitch the Royals to a season-high-tying third consecutive win on Saturday, while the A's counter with Cole Irvin (2-3, 3.34 ERA).

Keller has lost SIX of his seven starts since a 7-1 victory over the St Louis Cardinals back on May 3 and was roughed up by the visiting Orioles for five ERs and seven hits in only 1.2 innings this past Sunday, his worst outing of the year. The Royals are just 3-9 in his 12 starts in 2022, losing each of his last SEVEN. Meanwhile, Irvin will attempt to end a SIX-start winless streak but note that in that span, he owns a more than respectable 3.34 ERA. He has pitched well in his two career starts against the Royals, going 1-0 with a 1.38 ERA (Oakland won both games).

The 'clincher' for me in this contest between two struggling teams is that in five road starts Kellers owns a 6.26 ERA (BAA of .304), while in five home starts, Irvin owns a 1.64 ERA!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Tor Blue Jays at 3:07 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. The Yankees may not have won a World Series since 2009 but going back to 1995, New York has missed the postseason just FOUR times. The Yankees began the current season having made five consecutive playoff appearances, tied with the Astros for the second-longest active streak in MLB (the Dodgers have made the postseason the previous NINE seasons). The Jays welcomed the Yankees to Toronto for the opener of a three-game series on Friday night and were trounced 12-3! The Yankees have won EIGHT in a row and continue to lead all of MLB with a 48-16 record. New York is MLB's top scoring team (5.11 RPG) plus owns MLB's lowest team ERA (2.79). For good measure, the Yankees own MLB's best run differential (plus-140 runs), as well as its top moneyline record (+$1,340 at $100/game). Toronto gets sets to host Saturday's game at 37-27, giving the team a winning percentage of .578, just slightly better than last season (.562). The Jays are 11 games behind the Yankees and are two games up on the two-time defending AL East champions Rays.

Jameson Taillon (7-1, 2.93 ERA) will take the mound for New York, while Toronto will counter with Manoah (8-1, 1.67 ERA). Taillon underwent offseason ankle surgery, and this marks his second season for the Yankees. He was 8-6 with a 4.30 ERA in 29 starts in 2021 (Yanks were 17-12), coming off a second Tommy John surgery (first was in May of 2019). The Yankees are 10-2 in Taillon's 12 starts this season. He's allowed two ERs or less in NINE of his 12 starts and in three starts against the Blue Jays this season, Taillon is 2-1 with a 2.76 ERA. However, in seven career starts going back to 2017, he is a more modest 3-3 (teams are 4-3) with a 4.08 ERA against them.

Toronto's 12-3 loss last night followed a 10-2 loss to Baltimore on Thursday. Blue Jays starters Kevin Gausman (Thursday) and Ross Stripling (Friday) combined for a total of six innings, which put a burden on the bullpen. Alek Manoah starting for Toronto could not come at a better time. Alek Manoah will start Saturday afternoon against the visiting New York Yankees, and it could not come at a better time. He has pitched fewer than six innings only ONCE in his 12 starts this season, and that was when he went five innings at Cleveland back on May 8. The Jays are 9-3 in his 2022 starts, after Toronto went 16-4 in his 20 starts in 2021, Manoah's rookie season (he was 9-2 with a 3.22 ERA). Manoah is 1-0 with a 0.75 ERA in two starts against the Yankees this season and 2-0 with a 1.52 ERA and 0.89 WHIP in four career starts against them. (Jays are 3-1).

I had the Yankees last night but will 'switch sides' on Saturday to go with Manoah and the Jays in this 'PERFECT STORM' situation.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* IL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Min Twins at 9:40 ET.

The Minnesota Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. However, the Twins have had a nice bounce-back start in 2022, checking in at 37-28. They currently lead Cleveland by two games in the AL Central, despite the Guardians having won 13 of their last 16 games (the defending champion White Sox are five games back). The Twins open a three-game series at Chase Field against the D'backs on Friday night. Arizona joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). However, Arizona has played MUCH better in 2022, entering tonight's game at 30-35 (.461 win percentage compared to last year's .321).

The Twins will hand the ball to Devin Smeltzer (3-0, 2.38 ERA) for the series opener, while the D'backs counter with Madison Bumgarner (2-6, 3.50 ERA). Smeltzer began the 2022 season in the minors, having made just 19 MLB appearances (seven starts) and a 4-4 record with a 4.26 ERA. The Twins decided to promote Smeltzer and he made his season debut back on May 14. He's made six starts and when he allowed three ERs in six innings of a 9-4 win over the Rays last Friday, it was the first time that he had allowed more than two ERs in a 2022 start. He has just 16 Ks in 34 innings but owns a 0.97 WHIP and a BAA of .203.

Madison Bumgarner was part of San Francisco's starting rotation when the team captured World Series wins in 2010, 2012 and 2014 (he had a legendary 2014 postseason!). He won 18 games in 2015 and 15 in 2016 but from 2017-2021, he was only 27-39 with a 4.02 ERA. He's made 13 starts in 2022 with Arizona going 5-8. Bumgarner is 1-1 with an 11.05 ERA in two career starts against Minnesota but that's "old news." What is NOT old news is the fact that Bumgarner is 0-5 with a 5.03 ERA over his last six outings.

This seems odd but it's true. "In the moment," the Twins own the pitching mismatch advantage with Smeltzer over Bumgarner. That's the bet.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Oddsmaker's Error is on the StL Cards at 7:10 ET.

The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000.The Red Sox have won four World Series titles since 2004 but Boston struggled to a 24-36 record in the 2020 season, before surprising most by going 92-70 in 2021. The Red Sox made it to the ALCS but lost 4-2 to the Astros. The Cardinals will make a rare visit to Fenway Park when they begin a three-game series against the Red Sox on Friday night, as the teams haven't met for a three-game series since 2014.

St Louis was unable to complete a four-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, losing 6-4. Prior to that game, the Cardinals were a season-high 10 games above .500. The Cards open the series 37-28, two games ahead of the second-place Brewers in the NL Central. Boston went just 23-27 through the end of May but have opened June winning 11 of 14 games. Problem is, the Red Sox play in the AL East where they reside in fourth-place, 13 1/2-games behind the division-leading Yankees. Boston left 13 runners on base despite collecting 11 hits on Thursday in a 4-3 loss to the Oakland A's, going 1-for-14 with RISP as the team lost for just the third time in 14 games.

Adam Wainwright (5-4, 2.84 ERA) will get the start for St Louis and he'll be opposed by Michael Wacha (4-1, 2.33 ERA), who came up in the St Louis organization and pitched parts of seven seasons for the Cardinals. Wainwright, now 40-years-old, went 17-7 with a 3.05 ERA last year and received Cy Young Award votes for the FIFTH time in his career, finishing seventh in voting. He finished 3rd in 2009, 2nd in 2010, 2nd in 2013 and 3rd in 2014. Wainwright struck out seven while allowing eight hits and three runs against the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday but it was his third consecutive seven-inning start without a decision, Yes, Wainwright hasn't won since May 20 in Pittsburgh, but since May 1, the Cards are 6-1 in his starts with Wainwright posting a 2.15 ERA.

Wacha made a big 'SPLASH' for the Cards back in 2013 as a rookie and then went 17-7 in 2015. However, from 2016-2021 he had gone just 37-34, while battling injuries. Wacha's has had a bounce-back season so far in 2022 and this marks his 11th start. He has allowed two runs or fewer in EIGHT of his 10 starts, in which the Red Sox are 6-2 (Boston is 7-3 in his 10 starts). Wacha's 2.33 ERA and .195 opponent batting average are tops among Boston starters. Wacha faces his ex-team for the first time and draws his mentor as a mound opponent, Wainwright (the teacher) bests Wacha (the student) and we get a 'cheap' price with the Cardinals.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* AL East Showdown is on the NY Yankees at 7:07 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. Toronto is currently 37-26 (.587), just slightly better than 2021'2 winning percentage of .562. The Jays welcome the NY Yankees to Toronto for the openers of a three-game series on Friday night. The Yankees may not have won a World Series since 2009 but going back to 1995, New York has missed the postseason just FOUR times. The Yankees began the current season having made five consecutive playoff appearances, tied with the Astros for the second-longest active streak in MLB (the Dodgers have made the postseason the previous NINE seasons). The Yankees come to Toronto on a SEVEN-game winning streak and as owners of MLB's best record at 47-16 (10 games clear of Toronto).

Taking the mound in tonight's opener are Jordan Montgomery (2-1, 2.70 ERA) for the Yankees and Ross Stripling (3-1, 3.14 ERA) for the Blue Jays. This duo faced each other in Toronto back on May 2 and neither factored into the decision of a 3-2 Yankees win. Stripling allowed two runs in four innings and Montgomery allowed two runs in five-plus innings. The Yankees lost SIX of Montgomery's first eight starts this season despite Montgomery posting a solid 3.30 ERA. However, they have won his last FOUR starts, as Montgomery has allowed only five ERs over 26.1 innings (1.71 ERA). The versatile Stripling has pitched from the bullpen and the rotation this season. Stripling is 2-1 with a 2.81 ERA in seven starts this season and 1-0 with a 4.09 ERA and one save in eight relief appearances. This marks Stripling's third straight start, as he is filling Hyun Jin Ryu's (season-ending elbow surgery) spot in the rotation. Stripling has allowed a total of two hits and no walks while striking out six in 11 scoreless innings in his past two starts (he was credited with wins in both games).

Here's the bottom line. The Yankees not only own MLB's best record but they own its best moneyline mark (+$1,250 at $100/game), best run-differential (+131 runs) and best team ERA (2.78). New York ranks third in runs scored (5.00 ERA) and Stripling is 0-4 in six career appearances (three starts) against the Yankees, posting a 4.50 ERA. The Yankees play three games in Toronto over the weekend and then visit St Petersburg for three games with Tampa Bay to open next week. No six-game prediction but I do want the Yankees tonight.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Oddsmaker's Error is on the LA Angels at 10:10 ET.

The LA Angels are coming off a 77-85 season and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years (got swept 3-0 in a 2014 ALDS in its lone appearance in that span). Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season.

The two AL West rivals open a five-game series Thursday night in Seattle with both teams struggling. The Angels were 27-17 through May 24 but have lost 18 of 20 to fall to 29-35. The Astros were 28-16 through May 24 but the Angels now trail Houston by 10 1/2 games. LA is one game back of Texas and just a half-game up on Seattle in the division standings. Seattle opened the season 11-6 but had fallen to 12-12 by May 3rd, and the Mariners have been below .500 ever since. For teams that showed promise early in the season, the Angels and Mariners are in danger of falling out of the playoff race by the All-Star break.

Shohei Ohtani (4-4, 3.64 ERA) is scheduled to start the series opener against Mariners rookie right-hander George Kirby (1-1, 3.65 ERA). Ohtani is the AL's defending MVP. Ohtani hit a two-run HR and allowed just one run in seven innings of a 5-2 win over the Red Sox on June 9, helping the Angels end their 14-game losing streak. He is 2-0 with a 2.37 ERA in three career starts against Seattle (Angels are 2-1). Kirby was drafted by the Seattle Mariners with the 20th overall pick in the 2019 Draft but his MLB debut didn't come until May 8 of this season. This marks his eight start of the season (Mariners are 4-3 in his first seven) and his FIRST against the Angels.

It's hard to say whether the Angels or the Mariners are struggling more at the plate but I believe that the price is 'cheap' in taking Ohtani over Kirby and that's my bet!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Oddsmaker's Error is on the Cle Guardians at 8:40 ET.

The Cleveland Guardians were a season-low five games below .500 on Memorial Day morning at 19-24, but after winning the first contest of this three-game series at Coors Field with the Rockies 4-3 (inn) last night, have won 11 of their last 14. The surge has lifted them into second place in the AL Central, just 2 1/2-games behind the Twins. The Colorado Rockies got off to a solid start in 2022 but after opening 16-11 through May 11, last night's loss leaves them EIGHT games under .500 (27-35) and in last place in the NL West.

Konnor Pilkington (1-0, 3.57 ERA) will take the mound tonight for Cleveland, while Austin Gomber (3-6, 6.17 ERA) will start for the Rockies. Pilkington was acquired from the Chicago White Sox at the trade deadline last July and began the season in the bullpen. He made his major league debut April 15 against San Francisco and his first career start on May 8 vs Toronto. Pilkington has bounced between Cleveland and Triple-A Columbus this season but has been with the Guardians since being recalled on May 26. He got his first victory against Kansas City on June 1, which marked the first time he pitched past the fourth inning. This marks the fifth start of his career.

Gomber's first season with Colorado came in 2021. He made 23 starts, going 9-9 with a 4.53 ERA and 1.24 WHIP (team was 11-12). However, he's struggled in his 11 starts in 2022, as his ERA is up to 6.17 and his WHIP is up to 1.42 (Rockies are 4-7 in his starts). Gomber had a bounce-back performance in his last start at San Francisco on Thursday, allowing two runs on five hits in six innings to earn his first victory in more than a month. That said, let me note that Gomber had allowed 17 ERs in only 6.1 innings in his previous two starts. Gomber has struggled in his five home starts this season, going 1-3 (Rockies are 1-4) with a 6.21 ERA and a BAA of .321!

I realize that 'the jury is still out' on Pilkington but so far, the rookie has been relishing the experience of pitching in the majors. "It's a lifelong dream to get to the major leagues and when you do you want to enjoy it and feel that success," Cleveland pitching coach Carl Willis said. "He never stops competing. He never stops attempting to attack the strike zone." Cleveland looks to be a real contender in the AL Central here in 2022, while Colorado seems well on its way to a FOURTH consecutive season. The price on the Guardians seems 'cheap' to me and Cleveland is the play.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* NL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Arz D'backs at 3:40 ET.

The Cincinnati Reds broke a six-year postseason drought in the COVID season of 202 but were eliminated by the Braves 2-0, as the Reds did not score a SINGLE run in 22 innings (lost 1-0 in 13 innings and 5-0). The Reds missed the postseason again in 2021 (63-79) and then opened the current season by going 3-22 in their first 25 games. Arizona joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). The now 23-39 Reds (20-17 since that awful start) have won the first two of this three-game series in Arizona, ensuring the team will win just its second road series of the season. Arizona has played MUCH better in 2022, entering at 29-35 (.453 win percentage compared to last year's .321).

Luis Castillo (2-4, 3.23 ERA) will start the series finale for Cincinnati, while Arizona counters with Zac Gallen (4-2, 2.95 ERA). Castillo was 15-8 in 2019 but is coming off a 2021 season in which he was 8-16 in 33 starts. The Reds were 11-22 in those starts, giving Castillo the worst moneyline mark of ANY starter (-$1,265). Castillo missed spring training and the first 28 games with a right shoulder strain and didn't make his 2022 debut until May 9. This is only his eight start of the current season (Reds are 3-4) and he is 2-4 with a 4.05 ERA in seven career starts against the Diamondbacks (Reds are 2-5).

Gallen was among MLB's best pitchers over his first seven starts, allowing just five ERs over 39.1 innings for a 1.14 ERA with a 39-8 KW ratio. However, he will be trying to rebound from the shortest start of his major league career, when was rocked for six runs (four earned) on seven hits in just 1.2 innings of a 7-5 loss at Philadelphia last Friday. Expect Gallen to bounce back here at home where he's made six starts (D'backs are 4-2), posting a 2.57 ERA and BAA of .194. The Reds have already claimed the series win but the D'backs get the "W" here to avoid the home sweep.

Good luck...Larry

My 7* Getaway Day play is on the Hou Astros at 2:05 ET (Note: this side play is "action").

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Houston Astros and Texas Rangers will square off on Wednesday afternoon in the rubber game of a three-game series in Arlington. Texas earned the 5-3 Monday victory when it scored three runs in the eighth and got strong performances from its beleaguered bullpen. The script was flipped on Tuesday. Houston was held scoreless on two hits through the first seven innings but then erupted for four runs on three hits in the eighth to erase a 3-0 deficit and win 4-3.

The Astros will send right-hander Luis Garcia (3-5, 3.60 ERA) to the mound, while the Rangers had yet to name a starter as of Wednesday morning. Garcia was 11-8 with a 3.30 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 30 appearances (28 starts) in 2021, finishing as the American League Rookie of the Year runner-up. Garcia has made 11 starts in 2022, with Houston going a modest 6-5 in those contests. However, I will note that Garcia has been a MUCH better pitcher away from home in 2022 (road ERA is 2.25, compared to a home ERA of 5.14) plus in two starts vs Texas as a rookie, won both games (1.74 ERA).

Garcia hasn't won since May 12 but that changes this afternoon, and this is an "action" play, meaning I'm playing ON Houston, regardless of whom Texas chooses to start.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Month (AL West) on the Hou Astros at 8:05 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Astros and Rangers opened a three-game American League West series Monday in Arlington, with 37-23 Houston leading the division by 8 1/2-games and the 28-31 Rangers having moved into 2nd-place in the division due to Angels' collapse.

The Astros and Rangers had already met EIGHT times in 2022, with Houston winning SIX of the eight. However, the Rangers will look for their fourth straight overall win, after coming back from a 3-0 deficit to earn a 5-3 win. In Tuesday's middle game of this three-game series, Jose Urquidy (5-3, 5.04 ERA) will start for the Astros against the Rangers' Dane Dunning (1-4, 4.41) ERA). Urquidy had a nice 2021 for Houston, going 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 20 starts (team was 14-6). Urquidy's ERA has jumped to 5.05 and his WHIP to 1.59 in 2022 but one needs to look closer. He's made three starts against Seattle (0-3) and he's allowed 15 ERs in just 13 starts (10.38 ERA). However, in his other eight starts this season, the Astros have won SEVEN times, with Urquidy posting a 3.43 ERA. Dunning was just 5-10 with a 4.51 ERA and 1.44 WHIP as a rookie last season and was 1-1 (Texas was 3-2) with a 3.81 ERA in five April starts. However, the Rangers have lost SIX of his last seven starts, including FOUR in a row.

Dunning is 0-1 against the Astros with a 5.40 ERA in three career meetings, two of them starts. In contrast, Urquidy has never lost to the Rangers, posting four wins and a 1.60 ERA in five appearances (all starts / Astros are 4-1). He beat Texas on May 22, allowing one run on six hits in 6.2 innings with 10 strikeouts. Houston bounces back with a "W" on Tuesday!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekly Wipeout is on the Chi White Sox at 7:10 ET.

The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. However, it's been a disappointing season so far for the team favored to win its division in 2022, as the White Sox have been hovering around .500 the last month. Chicago is currently 27-31 and is probably happy to leave home after dropping four of its past five, including an 8-6, 12-inning defeat on Sunday. Manager Tony La Russa was again the subject of "Fire Tony" chants. The Tigers have missed the postseason the last SEVEN years and are well on their way to making it EIGHT straight non-playoff seasons in 2022 (are currently 24-35), as they welcome the White Sox to Detroit for the opener of a three-game series on Monday.

Chicago starting pitcher Michael Kopech departed in the first inning on Sunday, after suffering a knee injury. The good news is that veteran right-hander Lance Lynn is expected to be activated from the injured list to start the series opener for the White Sox. Lynn was 11-6, 2.69 ERA in 2021, finishing third in the AL's Cy Young voting. Lynn has been sidelined all season with a right knee injury and takes the mound 6-3 with an ERA of 3.21 in nine career starts against Detroit. He has won FOUR consecutive starts against the Tigers. Detroit will counter with Rony Garcia (0-1, 4.50 ERA), who will be making his 12th appearance and fourth start this season. In his first three starts (all since May 25, Garcia owns a 6.43 ERA. This is his first-ever start vs Chicago, but it hardly inspires confidence that he owns a 9.82 ERA in five career relief outings against the White Sox.

Lynn has been a 'workhorse' these last few seasons and has had top-6 finishes in the Cy Young voting for THREE consecutive years! He faces a Detroit team that unlike in 2021 when the Tigers finished with third best moneyline record (+$2,303 at $100/game) in MLB, this year's team checks in at -$474 vs the moneyline. Maybe the fact that the Tigers are the lowest-scoring team in the majors (162 runs / 2.75 per game) and are suffering from a major power shortage. The Tigers have only hit a HR in their last eight games and have just 30 for the season (fewest in MLB). In contrast, New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge leads the majors with 24 HRs. B-L-O-W-O-U-T Alert!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Rivalry Game of the Month is on the LA Dodgers at 4:05 ET.

The Los Angeles Dodgers had won EIGHT straight NL West titles heading into 2021 but despite winning 106 games, the Dodgers finished ONE game behind the 107-win SF Giants. However, the Dodgers did beat the Giants in a NLDS matchup, 3 games-to-2. The Dodgers/Giants is one of MLB's great rivalries (back to the days when both teams played in New York) and the two rivals opened a three-game series Friday night in San Francisco. The teams met back in LA on May 3 and 4, with the Dodgers winning 3-1 and 9-1. However, the Giants have taken the first two games of this series, 7-2 and 3-2. Los Angeles has now lost EIGHT of its last 12 games and at 37-22, is just a HALF-game ahead of San Diego, with San Francisco closing within 4 1/2-games.

Julio Urias (3-5, 2.78 ERA) gets the nod on Sunday for the Dodgers, while the Giants counter with Carlos Rodon (4-4, 3.51 ERA). Urias was MLB's lone 20-game winner in 2021 (20-3 with a 2.96 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP in 32 starts). His ERA has dropped slightly from last year and his WHIP has gone up just a bit, but in 11 starts, he has just three wins and LA is only 4-7 in his outings (note: Dodgers were 26-6 in his 2021 starts!). Rodon was 13-5 (2.37 ERA) for the White Sox in 2021 (Chicago was 16-8 in his starts) but he signed a two-year, $44 million contract with the Giants in March. Rodon was 4-1 (1.80 ERA) through his first six starts (team was 4-2) but he then suffered his LONE poor outing of the season on May 15, allowing eight ERs in 3.2 innings against the Cards. He has not allowed more than three ERs in any of his other 10 starts in 2022. However, including that loss to St Louis, the Giants have lost the last FIVE times Rodon has taken the mound.

Urias is 3-3 with a 2.41 ERA in 21 career games (15 starts) against the Giants, while Rodon has made only three career starts vs the Dodgers. He hasn't had any success, going 0-2 (teams are 0-3) with a 4.76 ERA. The Dodgers have scored just TWO runs on both Friday and Saturday, but note that LA is MLB's top-scoring team (5.24 RPG) and owns MLB's second-best run differential mark at plus-108. NO sweep here!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* AL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the TB Rays at 2:10 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021). The Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. The Rays began the week with an impressive three-game sweep of the Cardinals but have opened a nine-game road trip by losing the first two of this three-game series in Minnesota against the Twins. Tampa Bay is now 34-25, NINE games behind the Yankees in the AL East. The Twins have rebounded impressively from their poor effort last season and at 35-26, own a FOUR-game lead over Cleveland, as well as a SIX-game lead over the White Sox (last year's AL Central champs).

The Rays look to avoid the sweep on Sunday and will send Jeffrey Springs (2-2, 1.62 ERA) to the mound. Springs entered this season having made just TWO starts in 102 career appearances and was coming off his best season in 2021. He was 5-1 in 43 relief appearances, posting a 3.43 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. Springs joined the Rays' rotation on May 9 and will be making his eighth start. Over his last five, he's posted a 1.32 ERA and, on the season, owns an 0.92 WHIP and .197 BAA to go along with his sub-2.00 ERA. With wins on Friday and Saturday, the Twins improved to 4-1 against Tampa Bay. Those back-to-back wins are even more impressive when one considers the fact that they won those contests with starting pitchers Devin Smeltzer and Chi Chi Gonzalez, who weren't even on the 28-man Opening Day roster.

Rookie Cole Sands (0-2, 8.49 ERA) will make his third major league start on Sunday afternoon. He made his major league debut in relief against Tampa Bay on May 1, when he pitched the final two innings of a 9-3 victory over the Rays. He allowed two runs on three hits. However, he has picked up losses in his two previous starts, a 4-0 loss at Detroit on May 31 and a 10-4 setback to the visiting New York Yankees on Tuesday. He allowed a combined eight ERs on 13 hits and six walks over 7.2 innings during that span for a 9.39 ERA. Springs owns a HUGE edge here and Tampa Bay avoids the three-game sweep.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekend Wipeout is on the Mil Brewers at 1:35 ET (Note: this side play is "action").

Milwaukee entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Brewers were looking pretty good after a Memorial Day win left them at 32-18, atop the division. However, the Brewers have lost 10 of their last 11, including EIGHT in a row heading into Sunday's game with the Nationals. The Nationals arrived in Washington back in 2005 (via Montreal) and in their first seven seasons, finished in 5th-place (last) FIVE times. However, in a seven-year span from 2012-17, the Nats made the postseason FOUR times, but in each instance, couldn't make it past the NLDS. That all changed in 2019, when the Nats won the World Series over the Astros. That said, the Nats finished in last place the next two seasons and back-to-back wins over the Brewers still leaves them at 23-36 (once again, LAST in the NL East!).

The Nationals have a total of seven HRs in the first two games of the series, winning 11-5 and 8-6. However, The Nats average a modest 4.20 RPG (21st), which can't compensate for their pitching staff allowing a MLB-worst 5.35 ERA. Jason Alexander (0-0, 2.25 ERA) will try to get the Brewers turned around in his third career start. He didn't factor into a decision in either of his first two starts, both Milwaukee losses, but he pitched well. Nationals manager Dave Martinez threw a bit of a curve when announcing that Paolo Espino (0-0, 2.03 ERA) would get the opening call. This will be his 21st game, but his FIRST start of the season. He did make 19 starts a year ago, going 5-5 with a 4.27 ERA. Note that the Nationals could still leave some of the heavy lifting for Evan Lee (0-1, 3.38), who made his major league debut earlier this month when he worked as a starter and was used in relief Tuesday.

The Washington starting pitching choice is a "toss-up," which is why this side play is "action." The Brewers have fallen 1 1/2-games behind the Cards in the NL Central and can't afford getting swept by the lowly Nats. That's the bet!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Situational Stunner is on the NY Mets at 10:07 ET.

The Braves were 51-53 in late-July of 2021 but went 37-20 the rest of the way and won the NL East (for the FOURTH straight season) before capturing the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. In stark contrast, New York went 22-38 down the stretch to finish in third place at 77-85, 11 1/2 games out of first place. The Mets made the 2015 World Series (lost 4-1 to KC) and made a one-game wild card appearance in 2016, but they've been playoff-less the last five years. Here in 2022, the Mets own the NL's best record 39-21 but they are surely well aware that the Braves have 'caught fire,' winning NINE in a row to close within 6 1/2-games in the NL East. The Angels are coming off a 77-85 season and the franchise's only World Series title came back in 2002. I'm sure it seems like even more than two decades ago to Angel fans, as the team has missed the postseason 11 times in the last 12 years (got swept 3-0 in a 2014 ALDS in its lone appearance in that span). The Angels got off to a strong start in 2022 and on the morning of May 25, owned a 27-17 record (Astros were 28-16). However, the Angels have lost 14 of their last 15 (including 7-3 in the opener of this three-game series), to fall NINE games behind Houston in the AL West.

Carlos Carrasco (7-1, 3.52 ERA) was originally scheduled to start Friday's game but was pushed back to Saturday. Carrasco went 60-36 for Cleveland from 2015-2018, but the previous three seasons, was just 10-16 with a 4.69 ERA. He opened with a so-so April (1-1 in four starts / team was 1-3) with a 4.50 ERA. However, in seven starts since May 1, he's 6-0 with a 3.00 ERA (team is 6-1). He is 3-0 with a 2.02 ERA in 11 career games (five starts) against the Angels. His teams are 4-1 in these five starts, with Carrasco posting a 2.55 ERA and 0.88 WHIP. Michael Lorenzen (5-3, 3.69 ERA) will start for LA. He spent his previous six seasons as a reliever, but the Angels decided to make him part of their starting rotation in 2022. This marks his 1oth start of 2022 and he's earned a decision in EIGHT of his first nine starts. Generally, he's done a decent job but enters off back-to-back starts (Angels are 0-2) in which he's allowed eight ERs in just 12.1 innings (5.84 ERA).

Will the Angels eventually put together some wins? I'm sure they will but why here? On a team that features Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, it's easy to forget about someone like Carrasco. The veteran Carrasco is in his 13th major league season and has more career wins (96) than deGrom (77). He takes the mound tonight having won his last SIX decisions, facing a team that's lost 14 of its last 15 games. What's more, the Mets not only own the NL's best record, but they are also atop MLB's moneyline standings at plus-$1,118!

Good luck...Larry

My 8* PERFECT STORM is on the Chi White Sox at 2:10 ET.

The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021 but have played better this season (26-31, .456). That said, they take the field Saturday having lost SEVEN of nine (lost 8-3 Friday night) and are 9 1/2-games behind the Astros in the AL West. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. However, it's been a disappointing season so far for the team favored to win its division in 2022, as the White Sox have been hovering around .500 the last month. Chicago is currently 27-29 but with a little over 100 games remaining, the team is just FIVE games behind the first-place Twins in the AL Central.

Martin Perez (4-2, 1.56 ERA) takes the mound for Texas and Lucas Giolito (4-2, 3.54 ERA) for Chicago. Perez spent his first seven seasons with Texas but the last three seasons, he had a one-year stint in Minnesota, then pitched for Boston in 2020 and 2021. In that three-season span, he posted a 4.88 ERA. Perez signed a one-year, $4 million contract to return to the Texas Rangers in March and he has turned into a 'different pitcher'' in 2022. He went 4-0 over six in May (Texas was 6-0!) with an 0.64 ERA to earn American League Pitcher of the Month. He opened June with a no-decision on Sunday, despite allowing only two runs on seven hits in six innings against the Seattle Mariners.

Giolito was 14-9 (3,41 ERA) in 2019 and then went 4-3 with a 3.48 ERA in 12 starts during 2020 (COVID) plus 11-9 with a 3.53 ERA in 31 starts in 2021. He's 4-2 with a 3.42 ERA in nine 2022 starts but note that he's had just ONE poor outing, when he allowed six ERs May 31 vs Toronto. He's allowed three ERs or less in his other EIGHT starts (2.68 ERA). He may not be Chicago's ace but he is a consistently solid starter. He's made just two career starts vs Texas but is 2-0 with a 2.38 ERA. In contrast, Perez owns a 3-3 record with a 5.36 ERA in seven career starts vs the White Sox.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I just don't see Perez continuing his early season success plus I do believe the White Sox are still the AL Central's best team, I will note that Chicago owned the best home record in the AL last season (53-28) and will start to make a surge before the All Star break. Giolito gets the best of Perez in this one.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Weekly Wipeout is on the TB Rays at 8:10 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021). The Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. The Rays are coming off an impressive three-game sweep of the Cardinals but at 34-23, trail the 41-16 Yankees in the AL East by SEVEN games (Yanks own MLB's best record). Tampa Bay begins a nine-game road trip with a three-game series Friday night in Minneapolis. The Twins have rebounded impressively in 2022 and at 33-26, lead the AL Central by three games over the Guardians and five games ahead of the defending champion White Sox.

Drew Rasmussen (5-2, 3.02 ERA) will make his first career start against the Twins on Friday, while Devin Smeltzer (2-0, 1.93 ERA) will also make his first career start against the Rays. Rasmussen overcame two Tommy John surgeries to secure a spot in the Rays' starting rotation late last season and finished it strong. He has made 11 starts in 2022 and the Rays are 8-3 in those starts.He has only allowed more than three ERs in ONE of his 11 starts, including pitching seven scoreless innings last Saturday. He left with a 2-0 lead, but the Rays bullpen allowed a three-run 8th, as the White Sox won 3-2.

Smeltzer made his MLB debut with the Twins back in 2019 and entered the 2022 season having made only 19 appearances (seven starts), going 4-2 with a 4.26 ERA. Smeltzer didn't make his 2022 debut until May 24, when he was recalled from Triple-A. His return to the majors followed an injury-filled 2021 where he lost the feeling in three fingers on his pitching hand before sustaining a herniated disc in his neck. No doubt that he's been effective in his five starts (team is 2-3), as he owns a 0.93 WHIP and .206 BAA to go along with his sub-2.00 ERA.

With a three-game trip to Yankee Stadium coming up Monday through Wednesday, this weekend series in Minnesota looms LARGE for the Rays. B-L-O-W-O-U-T Alert.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Arz D'backs at 7:05 ET.

The Philadelphia Phillies opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The Arizona Diamondbacks entered 2022 knowing WAAY too much about losing. Arizona joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941).

However, the D'backs have taken 'giant steps' in early 2022, opening a three-game series Friday night in Philadelphia at 28-31. What's more, after the team's horrific moneyline record last season (see above), the D'backs are plus-$361 in 2022, the 5th-best in MLB. As for the Phillies, they fired Joe Girardi and named Rob Thomson interim manager last Friday. Just hours after Thomson took the reins, the Phillies beat the Angels 10-0. They completed the three-game sweep over the weekend and then swept all THREE games in Milwaukee to open this week. All of a sudden, the Phillies have won SEVEN consecutive games to climb within one game of .500 at 28-29.

Zac Gallen (4-1, 2.40 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Diamondbacks, while the Phillies counter with Kyle Gibson (3-2, 4.40 ERA). Gallen was among MLB's best pitchers over his first seven starts, allowing just five ERs over 39.1 innings for a 1.14 ERA with a 39-8 KW ratio. He was roughed up back on May 24th, giving up six ERs over 5.1 innings against the Kansas City Royals, although the D'backs won the game 8-6. However, he gave up two runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings against the Atlanta Braves to earn a 6-2 win in his next start but suffered his first loss of the season last Sunday at Pittsburgh (3-0), despite allowing two runs in five innings.

Kyle Gibson won 10-plus games in FIVE of six seasons (2014-19) for Minnesota, going a career-best 13-7 in 2019. He signed a three-year, $28 million contract with the Texas Rangers on December 6, 2019. He almost didn't pitch in 2020 because he was considered "high risk" for COVID-19. The 60-game season was ultimately the worst of Gibson's career, as he went 2–6 with a 5.35 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP. Gison pitched well for Texas in 2021 (received his first All-Star Game selection) but was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on July 30, 2021. This marks his 11th start of 2022, with Philly going 6-5 in his starts.

I'm a fan of Gallen and will back him and Arizona to end Philadelphia's current seven-game winning streak.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* NL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Was Nationals at 6:40 ET.

The Nationals arrived in Washington back in 2005 (via Montreal) and in their first seven seasons, finished in 5th-place (last) FIVE times. However, in a seven-year span from 2012-17, the Nats made the postseason season FOUR times, but in each instance, couldn't make it past the NLDS. That all changed in 2019, when the Nats won the World Series over the Astros. That said, the Nats finished in last place the next two seasons and at 21-36 this season, are again LAST in the NL East. The Marlins joined the National League in 1993 and entering the COVID-shortened season of 2020, had made the postseason just TWICE. However, the Marlins would capture the World Series each time, in 1997 over the Indians and in 2003 over the Yankees. The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95. The 24-30 Marlins hardly look like contenders in 2022, as they go for a three-game sweep of the Nats Thursday at Marlins Park

Trevor Rogers was Miami's first-round draft pick in 2017 and went 7-8 in 25 starts in 2021. However, he posted a 2.64 ERA, 1.15 WHIP (157-65 KW ratio) and opponents batted only .218 against him. Those numbers were good enough for him to finish second in the voting for National League Rookie of the Year. 2022 has been a struggle for Rogers, who has just ONE quality start in 10 tries. He's 2-5 with a 5.80 ERA, 1.56 WHIP and opponents are hitting .274 against him. The Marlins are just 2-8 in his outings and in his last three starts (all Miami losses), Rogers has pitched just 12.2 innings, allowing 13 ERS (9.24 ERA).

Opposing Rogers will be Stephen Strasburg. He's making his first major league appearance in one year and eight days, as Strasburg is set to complete his comeback from thoracic outlet surgery. "I told him: 'For what it's worth, I'm proud of you,'" Nationals manager Dave Martinez said. "I said: 'This has been a difficult time for you, but you worked your butt off to get back. Go out there and have fun.'" Strasburg is a three-time All-Star and the 2019 World Series MVP, He's made three rehab starts in the minors over the last three weeks, going 1-1 with a 1.98 ERA. In his most recent outing, he threw 83 pitches and six scoreless innings of one-hit ball for Triple-A Rochester.

Miami seems like the perfect opponent for Strasburg to make his return against. He's made 36 career starts against Miami, going 21-7 with a 2.65 ERA and 1.03 WHIP, with the Nats going 27-9 in all of his starts. A "true" Pitching Mismatch!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Las Vegas Insider is on the Mil Brewers at 8:10 ET.

Milwaukee entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Philadelphia Phillies opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The Phillies fired Joe Girardi and named Rob Thomson interim manager last Friday. Just hours after Thomson took the reins, the Phillies beat the Angels 10-0. They then completed the three-game sweep with a 9-7 Sunday win. The Brewers welcomed the Phillies for a three-game series on Tuesday, coming off losing the last THREE games of a four-game home series against the Padres.

Milwaukee led 2-1 in the ninth last night and handed the game to closer Josh Hader, who hadn't blown a save — or surrendered a run — in 19 previous appearances this year. Bohm belted a leadoff homer off Hader, snapping his streak of 40 straight regular-season scoreless appearances dating to last season, which tied a major league record. Two batters later, pinch-hitter Vierling, in his first major league at-bat since May 10, took Hader deep again to put the Phillies in front. The 3-2 win was Philadelphia's FIFTH straight (4-0 under Thomson), while the Brewers have lost FOUR in a row, plus SIX of seven!

Aaron Nola (3-4, 3.92 ERA) gets the ball for the Phillies, while the Brewers counter with Adrian Houser (3-5, 3.51 ERA). Nola went 17-6 with a 2.37 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 2018 but has never come close to that since then He's made 11 starts in 2022 and the Phillies are just 3-8! Houser was just 7-13 (4.13 ERA) in his first four years with Milwaukee, before going 10- 6 with a 3.22 ERA in 2021. The Brewers went 18-8 in his 26 starts, giving Houser MLB's 11th-best moneyline record (+$793 at $100/game). Houser has made 10 starts in 2022 and despite a respectable 3.51 ERA, the Brewers are just 4-6. However, here's the catch. He's been brutal in five road outings (5.32 ERA / .281 BAA) but in five starts at home, his ERA is 1.95 and his BAA is .210.

Milwaukee had been 27-0 this season when leading after the eighth inning, BEFORE last night (I had Milwaukee!). Milwaukee has lost a season-high four straight, but I won't back off them here.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Hou Astros at 6:40 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs. Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The teams play the rubber match of a this three-game series on Wednesday, with Seattle winning on Monday and Houston winning last night. With the Angels on a 13-game losing streak, the 36-20 Astros have opened up a 9 1/2-game lead in the NL West, while the 25-31 are headed for a 21st straight non-playoff season (are currently 11 games back of Houston).

Logan Gilbert (5-2, 2.22 ERA) gets the starting assignment for the Mariners on Wednesday, while the Astros counter with Jose Urquidy (5-2, 4.76 ERA). Gilbert was just 6-5 with a 4.68 ERA in his rookie season but the Mariners went 16-8 in his 24 starts. He opened the current season 4-0 through his first five starts (Seattle was 5-0 and Gilbert owned an 0.64 ERA!) but the Mariners then lost his next FOUR starts, with Gilbert posting a 4.86 ERA, more that FOUR runs higher than in his first five starts. However, he's been sharp his last two starts, allowing two ERs over 13 innings (Seattle has won both games), including him earning a 6-0 win over the Astros (and Urquidy) back on May 28. Urquidy had a nice 2021 for Houston, going 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 20 starts (team was 14-6). The team lost two of his first three starts in 2022 (Urquidy's ERA was 5.52) but the Astros then won his next FIVE starts (he was 3-0 with a 3.51 ERA), before losing May 28th to Gilbert and Seattle. Urquidy is off a 10-3 win (6 IP / 3 ERs) in his last outing Friday vs KC.

BOTH of Urquidy's two loses in 2022 have come against Seattle, as he's posted an 11.42 ERA and 2.65 WHIP while allowing 12 runs (11 earned) on 20 hits and three walks over just 8.2 innings. However, note that each of those games were played in Seattle but he takes the mound Wednesday with Houston having won SIX of his last seven starts overall, pitching for a team that's 11 games better than Seattle. Houston is 15-7 at home, while Seattle is 13-21 on the road. THIRD time is the 'CHARM' for Urquidy. Just PERFECT!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Oddsmaker's Error is on the Mil Brewers at 8:10 ET.

Milwaukee entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Philadelphia Phillies opened the season having failed to make the playoffs in each of the last 10 years, the second-longest active streak in MLB. The Phillies fired Joe Girardi and named Rob Thomson interim manager last Friday. Just hours after Thomson took the reins, the Phillies beat the Angels 10-0. They then completed the three-game sweep with a 9-7 Sunday win. The Brewers welcome the Phillies for a three-game series, coming off losing the last THREE games of a four-game home series against the Padres. Despite winning four in a row, Philadelphia's 25-29 record leaves them 11 1/2-games behind the Mets in the NL East. The Brewers had Monday off and it was probably welcome news, as Sunday's loss ended a stretch of 18 games in 17 days. They open the series 33-23, just a half-game ahead of the Cards in the NL Central.

Ranger Suarez (4-3, 4.69) gets the nod for Philadelphia, while Milwaukee counters with Jason Alexander (0-0, 2.57 ERA), who will be making his second big league start. Suarez is in his fifth season but has made just 25 starts in his 93 career appearances. His lifetime record is 19-11 with a 3.09 ERA. He's made EIGHT starts in 2022 with his last victory coming back on May 14. In his three starts since that win, he has given up 10 ERs on 16 hits with nine walks in 11.2 innings over that span (7.71 ERA), not lasting longer than 4.1 innings in any of those starts. Alexander was called up from Triple-A Nashville with starters Freddy Peralta and Brandon Woodruff on the IL. He was solid in his debut last Wednesday against the Cubs, allowing three runs -- two earned -- on seven hits in seven innings.

Are we supposed to impressed with Philly's "mini" surge of three straight wins under interim manager Rob Thomson? After all, those wins came over the Angels, who have currently lost 12 in a row! The Brewers are well aware that the Cards are right in their heels but with this three-game home series vs Philly and then three games at Washington (Nats are 21-35) to end the week, Milwaukee has a great opportunity to get back on track. The PRICE is sure RIGHT for tonight's game.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Las Vegas Insider is on the Chi White Sox at 8:10 ET.

The Dodgers saw their streak of EIGHT straight NL West titles end in 2021 (Giants won 107 games to LA's 106) but made the postseason for the NINTH consecutive season. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. Los Angeles is coming off a 2-5 homestand in which its two victories were bookended by three losses to Pittsburgh and two defeats at the hands of the NL East-leading New York Mets, who rallied to split a four-game set. Still, the Dodgers are 35-19, averaging a MLB-best 5.37 RPG. also giving them MLB's best run differential mark of plus-113 runs. It's basically been two months of uninspired play by the Chicago White Sox, but manager Tony La Russa is hoping a series win at Tampa Bay over the weekend, just may be a 'spark.' Chicago is still two games under .500 at 25-27, but set a season high with 16 hits in Sunday's series-clinching 6-5 victory against Tampa Bay. Like Los Angeles, Chicago had Monday off.

Mitch White (1-1, 4.79 ERA) gets the nod for the Dodgers, while the White Sox counter with Michael Kopech (1-2, 2.20 ERA). White has made just 31 appearances in his short career, including only SEVEN starts. However, this marks his FOURTH straight start. He pitched a season-high five innings in his most recent outing, scattering three runs and four hits in an eventual 8-4 loss to Pittsburgh last Wednesday. He's gone only 11.2 innings in his starts, posting a 4.76 ERA. Kopech pitched mostly out of the bullpen last season (just four starts in 44 appearances) but has made the move to being a regular in the rotation here in 2022. This marks his 10th start and his 1-2 record (White Sox 4-5) belies how well he's pitched. Not only does he own an excellent ERA, but his WHIP is 1.02 plus opponents have batted only a miniscule .149 against him.

'Gut' tells me the White Sox are the play in this one, favoring Kopech over White.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* IL Game of the Month is on the Pit Pirates at 7:05 ET.

A brief two-game IL series between the 21-33 Tigers and the 24-28 Pirates opens tonight in Pittsburgh. The Tigers have missed the postseason the last SEVEN years and are well on their way to making it EIGHT straight non-playoff seasons in 2022. The Pirates last made the playoffs in 2015, posting sub-.500 records in FIVE of the last six seasons. Pittsburgh came into the 2022 season off three losing seasons, including going 61-101 in 2021. The Pirates, much like the Tigers, seem headed for another playoff-less season. Detroit had won SEVEN of nine before getting swept by the Yankees this past weekend, getting shut out in two of the three games. As for Pittsburgh, the Tigers appear to have found a spark since bottoming out with an 18-4 loss at home to St Louis on May 22. Since then, the Pirates are 8-4 and have won THREE of four series. 

Tonight's starting pitchers are Tarik Skubal (4-2, 2.15 ERA) and Jose Quintana (1-2, 2.32 ERA). Skubal's first full season was 2021 and he made 31 appearances (29 starts), going 8-12 with a 4.34 ERA. However, he's been Detroit's best pitcher in 2022, as he hasn't allowed an earned run in SIX of his 10 starts this season. That said, Detroit is a modest 6-4 in his starts. Quintana has been around since 2012 and had 13-win seasons in 2016, 2018 and 2019, However, he made just 33 appearances (only 11 starts) in the 2020 and 2021 seasons combined, going 0-3 with 6.16 ERA. Quintana was brought in at least in part to add a veteran presence to the Pittsburgh rotation, but he has done MUCH more than that. He has not allowed more than three ERs in ANY of his 10 starts and has given up just four ERs over his last five starts (1.38 ERA).

Here's the bottom line. Skubal is in just his second full season and is his strong start for real? Meanwhile, Quintana has had success in the past. Unlike last season, when the 77-85 Tigers owned MLB's third best moneyline record (+$2,303 at $100/game), this year's team checks in at -$696 vs the moneyline, with almost ALL of the damage coming on the road (7-18, -$629). Why are the Tigers favored?

Good luck...Larry

My 10* PERFECT STORM is on the Mil Brewers at 2:10 ET.

The San Diego Padres ended a 13-year playoff drought in 2020's 60-game season and were expected to contend for the NL West title in 2021. However, the Padres would finish 79-83, 20 games behind the first-place Giants. Milwaukee entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Padres and Brewers opened a four-game series in Milwaukee on Thursday, with the Brewers rallying to win 5-4 with four runs in the ninth inning off Padres closer Taylor Rogers. However, after consecutive shutout losses (San Diego won 7-0 on Friday and 4-0 on Saturday), the Brewers are looking to rediscover their offense and salvage a split against the Padres on Sunday. The Padres enter Sunday's game 32-21 (three games behind the Dodgers in the NL West), while the Brewers' 33-22 record gives them a 1 1/2-game lead over the Cardinals in the NL Central.

San Diego will give Mike Clevinger (1-0, 3.21 ERA) his first start since coming off the injured list, while Milwaukee will counter with Eric Lauer (5-1, 2.49 ERA). Clevinger missed all of 2021 after Tommy John surgery and didn't make his 2022 debut until May 4. He made three starts after opening the season on the injured list with a sprained knee, with San Diego winning all three. However, Clevinger was sidelined with a right triceps strain and now makes his first start since May 17. Eric Lauer entered the 2022 season just 21-24 with an ERA hovering around 4.00. He's regularly overshadowed by the front end of the Brewers rotation, but Lauer leads the team in victories. He was 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA in four April starts (team was 4-0). He made five May starts and the team went 3-2 with Lauer's ERA going up just slightly to 2.95 for the month.

At the moment, it's MUCH easier to back Lauer, than Clevinger, who is again coming off an injury. Aside from Thursday's 9th-inning rally of four runs, the Brewers have scored just ONE other run in the 27 innings. In fact, Friday and Saturday marks the first time Milwaukee has been shut out in consecutive games since early July 2019 at Cincinnati. Brewers are just 'PERFECT' in this spot!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekend Wipeout is on the Arz D'backs at 1:35 ET.

The Arizona D'backs joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). The Pirates last made the playoffs in 2015, posting sub-.500 records in FIVE of the last six seasons. Pittsburgh came into the 2022 season off three losing seasons, including going 61-101 in 2021. Arizona has greatly improved from 2021, checking in at 26-28, while the Pirates are 23-28. Arizona hit five HRs in an 8-6 win on Friday, while Jack Suwinski hit a walk-off, two-run HR in Pittsburgh's 2-1 victory on Saturday.

It's the rubber match of this three-game set on Sunday, as Zac Gallen (4-0, 2.32 ERA) gets the nod for Arizona and Zach Thompson (2-4, 5.18 ERA) for Pittsburgh. Gallen was among MLB's best pitchers over his first seven starts, allowing just five ERs over 39.1 innings for a 1.14 ERA with a 39-8 KW ratio. He was roughed up back on May 24th, giving up six ERs over 5.1 innings against the Kansas City Royals, although the D'backs won the game 8-6. However, he gave up two runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings against the Atlanta Braves on Monday, good enough to earn a 6-2 win. Thompson was BRUTAL in April, posting a 10.05 ERA in four starts. However, he has allowed no more than two ERs in four of his five May starts, posting 2.45 ERA for the month.

That said, I 'LOVE' Gallen over Thompson in this spot, as he owns a 1.76 ERA, 167 opponents' batting average and a 0.85 WHIP in his three road starts here in 2022. No surprise, the D'backs have won ALL three! B-L-O-W-O-U-T Alert!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* LEGEND Play is on the TB Rays at 4:10 ET.

The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. The White Sox then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Rays entered the current season off three straight postseason appearances (the team has won the AL East in both 2020 and 2021). Both teams were expected to be division and/or postseason contenders in 2022. So far, only Tampa Bay is holding up its end. After 6-2 start, the White Sox have been hovering around the .500 mark for most of the season and enter this game having lost SIX of seven, including their FOURTH straight defeat last night in the first of this three-game series with the Rays. Friday's 6-3 loss dropped Chicago to 23-27, SIX games behind the Twins in the AL Central. Tampa's win was its THIRD straight and at 31-21, while the Rays are SIX games behind the Yankees in the AL East, they currently own the AL's No. 1 wild card spot.

Dylan Cease (4-2, 3.69 ERA) will get the ball for Chicago, while Tampa Bay counters with Drew Rasmussen (5-2, 3.47 ERA). Cease had a breakout season in 2021, going 13-7 with a 3.91 ERA. He has made 10 starts in 2022 and while the White Sox are 7-3 in those starts, let me point out something. He lasted just four innings (allowed six ERs) on May 12, then bounced back by pitching 5.2 scoreless innings in his next start. However, he followed that by lasting only THREE innings on May 24th, allowing seven ERs. Again, he bounced in his last outing (May 29) by allowing one ER in seven innings. Seems to me like he's tracking for a poor effort here.

Rasmussen overcame two Tommy John surgeries to secure a spot in the Rays' starting rotation late last season and finished it strong. He has made 10 starts in 2022 and the Rays are 8-2 in those starts. I will note that he's off his worst start of the season his last time out, allowing five ERs in only three innings of work in a 9-5 loss at Texas. That said, that's the ONLY time this season he has allowed more than three ERs in a start (note: he's allowed two ERs or less in SEVEN starts). Taking an even closer look, Rasmussen is 3-0 in his five home starts this season (Rays are 5-0!), posting a 2.10 ERA while holding opponents to a .194 BAA. I'm "all over" Rasmussen and the Rays!

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Weekly Wipeout is on the Hou Astros at 8:10 ET.

The Houston Astros entered the season having won the NL West in FOUR of the previous five seasons (three WS appearances in that span) and were preseason favorites to repeat as AL West champs in 2022.The KC Royals began the current season having missed the postseason in each of the previous SIX years, after making back-to-back World Series in 2014 (lost) and 2015 (won). The Astros won 11 in a row in early May to reach 22-11 but then went 7-7 over their next 14 games, before winning their last four games. The good news for Houston fans is that the Angels have lost EIGHT in a row and the Astros enter this weekend 6 1/2-games ahead of LA in the division. The Kansas City Royals return home from a nine-game road trip, in which they finished 2-7. They have lost 11 of 13 overall and at 16-33, own MLB's worst record.

Jose Urquidy (4-2, 4.80 ERA) will get the nod for Houston and Brady Singer (2-0, 2.49 ERA) for KC. Urquidy had a nice 2021 for Houston, going 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 20 starts (team was 14-6). The team lost two of his first three starts in 2022 (Urquidy's ERA was 5.52) but then the Astros won his next FIVE starts, as he posted a 3.51 ERA in that span. That streak ended last Saturday, as Urquidy allowed five ERs in just 4.2 innings of a 6-0 loss at Seattle. Singer entered this season with a career record of 9-15 with a 4.62 ERA in 39 starts in 2020 and 2021. Singer began this season in the bullpen, then had to swallow some pride by making starts at Triple-A. However, he has been terrific since returning from Omaha, allowing only three ERs over 19.2 innings for a 1.37 ERA and a 20-3 KW ratio.

Kudos to Singer but he takes the mound for the team with MLB's worst record (see above) to face the 33-18 Houston Astros. Only the Yankees have a better record in the AL (36-15) than the Astros, who face nothing but current sub-.500 opponents until they end June with NINE straight games against the Mets and Yankees. Time to 'make some hay' and the 'hay-making' begins tonight.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Seattle Mariners at 8:05 ET.

Seattle finished second in the American League West in 2021 with a 90-72 record, just two games out of a wild-card berth. That extended Seattle's postseason drought (the longest active one in MLB) to 20 years, as the Mariners last made the playoffs back in 2001. Ironically, that team won 116 games, tying a MLB record for most wins in a single season. The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021. The two AL West rivals begin a three-game series tonight in Texas, with the 24-26 Rangers off to a slightly better start in 2022 than the 22-29 Mariners. The teams met back in April, with Seattle taking two of three at home.

Friday's starters will be Logan Gilbert (5-2, 2.29 ERA) of Seattle and Dane Dunning (1-3, 4.31 ERA) of Texas. Gilbert was just 6-5 with a 4.68 ERA in his rookie season of 2021 but the Mariners went 16-8 in his 24 starts. He opened the current season 4-0 through his first five starts (Seattle was 5-0 and Gilbert owned an 0.64 ERA!) but the Mariners then lost his next FOUR starts (he was 0-2), while his ERA of 4.8 was more that FOUR runs higher than in his first five starts. However, Gilbert won his final start of May (28th) 6-0 at home over Houston, pitching SEVEN scoreless innings (5-0 KW ratio). He will look for his second win over the Rangers this season, as he beat them at home on April 20, when he threw 6.2 scoreless innings. Gilbert is 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA in four career starts against Texas (Seattle is 3-1).

Dunning was just 5-10 with a 4.51 ERA and 1.44 WHIP as a rookie last season and opened 2022 by lasting a total of just 12.2 innings in his first three starts (5.68 ERA / 1.89 WHIP / 321 BAA). to go along with his 5.68 ERA. He has improved since then, but the Rangers are just 3-4 in his last seven starts, as he has cut his ERA by about 1 1/2-runs in that stretch (is now 4.31 on the season0. That said, it's clear that 'the jury is still out' as to his viability as a regular part of the rotation. Dunning lost to Gilbert and the Mariners on April 20, when he gave up three runs on six hits in four-plus innings. I expect Dunning and the Rangers to be on the losing side again tonight, as let's call for Gilbert and Seattle to be 'PERFECT' in this situation!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* AL Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Cle Guardians at 7:05 ET.

Cleveland began a new era in 2022 (no longer the Indians, now the Guardians). Cleveland lost to the Cubs in the 2016 World Series (led 3-1, before losing the final three games) and followed with THREE more postseason appearances in the next four years (exception was in 2019 when the team won 93 games). However, Cleveland would go just 80-82 in 2021. The Baltimore Orioles have missed the postseason in each of the last FIVE years, losing 100-plus games in THREE of the four full seasons. The22-24 Guardians begin a three-game series in Baltimore tonight to take on the 22-31 Orioles. The teams are meeting for the first time this season. Cleveland is coming off a three-game home sweep of KC (outscored the Royals 19-6) and would like to make it "deja vu all over again" here vs the Orioles

Shane Bieber (2-3, 3.19 ERA) will get the nod for Cleveland, while Baltimore counters with Bruce Zimmermann (2-3, 4.53 ERA). Bieber was a rookie in 2018 and in 2019 went 15-8 and was the All-Star Game's MVP. In the COVID-shortened 2020 season he went 8-1 in 12 starts (team was 10-2), leading the AL in wins, ERA (1.63) and Ks (122), while posting an 0.87 WHIP and .167 BAA. He won the AL's Cy Young award. Bieber missed a chunk of the 2021 season (7-4 with a 3.17 ERA but 134 Ks in 96.2 IP) with a strained throwing shoulder. He was expected to be back at full strength this season. He seems to be hitting his stride heading into this start against the Orioles. He posted a 2.45 ERA in five April but opened May by allowing seven ERs in just 3.1 innings vs Toronto on the 7th. However, over his last three starts, he's allowed just four ERs over 21 innings (1.71 ERA) with a 22-5 KW ratio.

Zimmermann has made only 26 appearances in his short career (24 starts), going 6-8 with a 4.98 ERA, 1,40 WHIO and a BAA of .285. He's made 10 starts in 2022 but after posting a 1.20 ERA in his first three starts, his ERA over his last seven starts is 5.89 (Orioles are 2-5). He has gone almost a month since his last victory and he has never faced Cleveland in his short career. Getting back to Bieber, he hasn't allowed a run across 17 innings while racking up a 2-0 record and 26 strikeouts without issuing a walk! The Cleveland pitching staff is rounding into form, as the Guardians have gone FIVE games without giving up more than three runs. With Cleveland's ace on the mound, the Guardians get win No. 1 in this three-game series.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Situational Stunner is on the Mil Brewers at 7:40 ET.

The San Diego Padres ended a 13-year playoff drought in 2020's 60-game season and were expected to contend for the NL West title in 2021. However, the Padres would finish 79-83, 20 games behind the first-place Giants. Milwaukee entered the current season having made the last four postseasons, winning the NL Central in 2021 and were favorites to do so again in 2022. The Padres open a four-game series against the host Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday in hopes of igniting a sluggish offense. San Diego had extended its winning streak to a season-high five games by capturing the opener of a three-game home series vs Milwaukee back on May 23 but the Padres have followed that up by scoring a combined 19 runs in the eight games since. They have lost SIX of the eight to enter this series 30-20, three games behind the Dodgers in the NL West (SD currently owns the No. 1 NL wild card spot). The Brewers had won FOUR consecutive series  from May 14-25, but have split back-to-back series since then. The 32-20 Brewers own a two-game lead over the Cards in the NL Central.

Sean Manaea (2-3, 4.02 ERA) will get the nod for San Diego in tonight's opener, while the Brewers will counter with Adrian Houser (3-5, 3.69) Manaea had his moments with Oakland but was never really able to put together a full season. He opened 2-1 with a 1.42 ERA for the Padres but he's 0-2 (team is 2-4) over his last six starts, with a 4.60 ERA. He did not pitch in San Diego's previous series against Milwaukee. He lost his lone career encounter versus the Brewers after allowing five runs on six hits -- including two HRs -- in seven innings in a June 2016 game while pitching for the Oakland Athletics.

Houser was just 7-13 (4.13 ERA) in his first four years with Milwaukee, before going 10- 6 with a 3.22 ERA in 2021. The Brewers went 18-8 in his 26 starts, giving Houser MLB's  11th-best moneyline record (+$793 at $100/game). Houser has made nine starts in 2022 and despite a respectable 3.69 ERA, the Brewers are just 3-6. However, here's the catch. He's been brutal in five road outings (5.32 ERA / .281 BAA) but in four starts at home, his ERA is 1.99 and his BAA is .200. Houser received a no-decision in his most recent meeting with San Diego, yielding one run on three hits in six innings on May 23. He is 0-1 with a 1.88 ERA in five career appearances (four starts) vs the Padres.

Houser can be trusted at home, especially against a San Diego team that's in a hitting slump (2.38 RPG its last eight). Trust Manaea? Not I.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* Pitching Mismatch of the Week is on the Mia Marlins at 6:40 ET.

The 2021 Giants surprised all by winning a MLB-best 107 games last season, ending the Dodgers' run of eight straight NL West titles. However, they lost to the Dodgers in an NLDS matchup. The Marlins joined the National League in 1993 and entering the COVID-shortened season of 2020, had made the postseason just TWICE. However, the Marlins would capture the World Series each time, in 1997 over the Indians and in 2003 over the Yankees. The Marlins overcame all sorts of team COVID issues to end a 16-year postseason drought in 2020 but the 2021 team finished 67-95. The 27-22 Giants will open a four-games series tonight in Miami against the 20-28 Marlins. San Francisco sits in third-place in the NL West, 2 1/2-games behind the Padres and 5 1/2-games behind the Dodgers. Meanwhile, the Marlins may already be out of postseason hopes, as they are already 13 games behind the first-place Mets.

That said, the Marlins are favored in this game. Here's two reasons. Note that while the Giants are five games over .500, their run differential is plus-21. Meanwhile, despite a record of eight games below .500, Miami's run differential is almost the same (plus-16). I will also note that after averaging just three runs per contest in losing EIGHT of 10 games (Miami was only 7-19 in May), the Marlins scored 26 runs while splitting a doubleheader with the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday in Denver (won 14-1 and lost 13-12, with a combined 33 hits!). However, the key to Miami being favored is the pitching matchup, which features Alex Wood (3-4, 4.81 ERA) and Sandy Alcantara (5-2, 2.00 ERA).

Wood has been around since 2013 and had that memorable 2017 with the Dodgers, going 16-3 with a 2.72 ERA. He joined the Giants last season and was a solid member of the team's rotation, going 10-4 with a 3.83 ERA in 26 starts (Giants went 19-7!). Wood has faced San Diego 11 times in his career and while he's 4-2 and his teams are 5-6, he's posted a solid ERA of 3.19 and a WHIP of 1.19. Wood owns a 4.81 ERA, a 1.47 WHIP and a BAA of .289 in his nine 2022 starts. His career numbers in those categories are 3.55, 1.23 and .250. His ERA in five May starts was 5.32. 

Alacantara's MLB debut came back in 2017 and entered this season just 20-34, despite a respectable 3.48 ERA. However, he's risen to be Miami's ace. He owned a 1.78 ERA in April and it was 2.13 in May. He enters this game having pitched 32 innings over his last four starts (one CG, two 8-inning efforts and a 7-inning start), going 3-0 with Miami winning all four. His ERA in that streak is 0.84 and he owns a 32-6 KW ratio. Paraphrasing a classic political line, "It's the pitching, stupid!"

Good luck...Larry

My 8* Las Vegas Insider is on the TB Rays at 8:05 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays won the AL East the last two years and entered 2022 off three consecutive playoff appearances. The Rays completed a four-game home series with the Yankees this past weekend and after losing the first two, rebounded to win on both Saturday and Sunday to earn a split. The Rays opened the current week with a four-game series in Arlington against the Rangers and have lost each of the first two. The 28-21 Rays have fallen a half-game back of the 28-20 Jays in the AL East, as both team 'chase the 34-15 Yankees. The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021, so it's fair to say that they are an improved team in 2022, as they check in at 24-24 (.478), after winning Monday and Tuesday. However, I doubt anyone sees the Rangers as a serious postseason contender.

Jeffrey Springs (2-2, 1.62 ERA) will start for Tampa Bay. Jon Gray (1-2, 5.56 ERA) for Texas. Springs entered this season having made just TWO starts in 102 career appearances and was coming off his best season in 2021. He was 5-1 in 43 relief appearances, posting a 3.43 ERA and 1.10 WHIP. Springs will be making his sixth start and 14th appearance on Wednesday and owns an 0.81 WHIP and .174 BAA to go along with his excellent 1.62 ERA. Gray won 43 games in a four-year span from 2016-2019 for Colorado but then went 10-16 with a 5.03 ERA in 2020 and 2021, Still, the Rangers signed him to a four-year, $56 million contract prior to the start of 2022. He's been limited to seven starts because of nagging injuries (team is 3-4) and is CLEARLY underachieving.

The Tampa Bay 'bats' have been silent the last six games, scoring just 14 runs (2.33 RPG) but should 'wake up' here vs Gray. As for Springs, the rays really like what they are seeing with him moving into the starting rotation.

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Division Game of the Month (AL Central) is on the Min Twins at 7:10 ET.

The Twins went just 73-89 in 2021 (20 games behind the division-winning White Sox), after winning the AL Central in 2019 and 2020. However, Minnesota has rebounded impressively in 2022 and will go for a split of its four-game series Wednesday night in Detroit against the Tigers. Minnesota is 30-21, FIVE games ahead of the White Sox, who last year won the AL Central, finishing 20 games better than the Twins. The Tigers have missed the postseason the last SEVEN years and at 19-30, are well on their way to making it EIGHT straight non-playoff seasons.

Bailey Ober (1-1, 3.25 ERA) will get the starting nod for Minnesota, while Detroit counters with Tarik Skubal (3-2, 2.44 ERA). Ober made 20 starts as a rookie in 2021, going 3-3 with a 4.19 ERA (Twins were 12-8 in his starts). He's made just six starts in 2022, as he missed most of May with a strained right groin. However, after allowing four ERs in his season debut, he allowed just six ERs in over his last five starts, posting a 2.49 ERA. Skubal's first full season was 2021 and he made 31 appearances (29 starts), going 8-12 with a 4.34 ERA. However, he's been Detroit's best pitcher in 2022, as he hasn't allowed an earned run in FIVE of his nine starts this season. That said, Detroit just 5-4 in his starts.

Unlike last season, when the 77-85 Tigers owned MLB's third best moneyline record (+$2,303 at $100/game), this year's team checks in at -$$610 vs the moneyline. I'm taking the MUCH better team (Minnesota), who has won FIVE of Ober's six starts here in 2022.

Good luck...Larry

My 9* PERFECT STORM is on the Tor Blue Jays at 7:07 ET.

The Blue Jays missed a wild card spot by ONE game in 2021 but were a 'sexy' preseason pick to best the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees in the brutally tough AL East in 2022. The White Sox ended an 11-year postseason drought in 2020 with a wild card appearance. They then ran away with the American League Central title last season with a 93-69 record, winning the division by 13 games over Cleveland. The two teams opened a three-game series Tuesday in Toronto, with the Blue Jays winning 6-5. It was Toronto's SIXTH straight win, as the Jays improved to 28-20. They moved past the Rays in the AL East by a half-game but still trail the 1st-place Yankees by 5 1/2-games.  The loss dropped the White Sox below .500 (23-24) and they sit FIVE games behind Minnesota in the AL Central (note: Chicago won 20 games more than Minnesota in 2021!).

Taking the mound tonight will be Michael Kopech (1-1, 1.29 ERA) for the White Sox and Hyun Jin Ryu (1-0, 6.00 ERA) for the Jays. Kopech will pitch for the first time since May 22, when he allowed one hit over seven scoreless innings against the New York Yankees. The added time between starts was to manage his innings as he makes the move to a regular in the rotation after pitching mostly from the bullpen last season (just four starts in 44 appearances). Kopech has an 0.86 WHIP and .122 BAA to go along with his 1.29 ERA but the White Sox are just 4-4 in his starts. Ryu was on the injured list from April 17-May 13 with forearm inflammation but has "returned to form" in his three starts since getting back on the mound. He's 2-0 and the Jays 3-0 in those starts, as Ryu has allowed only three ERs over 15.2 innings (1.72 ERA).

Toronto makes it a 'PERFECT' seven straight wins tonight!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* PERFECT STORM is on the StL Cardinals at 7:45 ET.

The San Diego Padres ended a 13-year playoff drought in 2020's 60-game season and were expected to contend for the NL West title in 2021. However, the Padres would finish 79-83, 20 games behind the first-place Giants. The StL Cards have been a postseason regular this century, making the playoffs 15 times since 2000. San Diego opened a three-game series in St Louis on Memorial Day, sporting a 30-17 record. The Padres opened the season just 5-5 but it's been a steady climb since, as they were 25-12 since that .500 start. The Padres are stuck in the NL West and began the week three games back of the 33-14 Dodgers. The Cards opened the series 26-21, 3 1/2-games behind the NL Central-leading Brewers. If the season ended on Memorial Day, the Padres would own the NL's No. 1 wild card spot and the Cards the No. 2 spot.

The Padres went with Nick Martinez in Monday's game, while the Cards approached Monday's contest as a bullpen start. Packy Naughton arrived from Triple-A Memphis to fill the role of opener. Both teams had double digits in hits (SD with 11 and StL with 10) but the St Louis 'start by committee' worked well, as FIVE pitchers allowed just three ERs while striking out 13 Padres. Martinez pitched OK (6 IP / 3 ERs) but the Cards came away with a 6-3 victory. The series continues tonight, with San Diego turning to Blake Snell (0-2, 6.00 ERA), who will be making just his third start of 2022. St Louis counters with veteran Adam Wainwright (5-4, 3.12 ERA).

Snell hasn't been the same pitcher ever since Game 6 of the 2020 World Series. With the Rays leading 1–0 with one out, Snell was pulled by Kevin Cash for Nick Anderson in the 6th inning after pitching a shutout with two hits and nine strikeouts. The Dodgers then scored two runs in that inning and would go on to win the game 3–1 and the World Series for the first time since 1988. Snell opened the 2022 season on the injured list with a strained adductor, the same problem he had during the 2021 season. This marks just his third start of 2022 and the 'jury is still out' on this former Cy Young winner. All are familiar with Wainwright's successful career and after going 2-3 with a 4.00 ERA in five April starts, he won his first THREE May starts, allowing just three ERs on hits over 20 innings (1.35 ERA). However, Wainwright struggled while taking a 4-3 loss to the Brewers last Thursday, allowing four runs (three earned) on 10 hits in five innings.

No one doubts Wainwright anymore (even at 40-years-old) and in 15 career starts vs San Diego, he owns a 2.71. That bodes well against a San Diego offense that has scored just 15 runs in its last six games. The Cards have won SEVEN of their last 10 and have closed within THREE games of the Padres for the NL's No. 1 wild card spot. Make that TWO back after tonight!

Good luck...Larry

My 10* Oddsmaker's Error is on the Arz D'backs at 8:10 ET. (This side play is listed as "action").

The 2021 Braves won the NL East for the FOURTH straight season last year and then captured the franchise's first World Series title since 1995. However, the Braves fell to 5-6 on the season with a 2-1 loss at SD back on April 17 and have yet to climb back to .500. They will open this three-game series in Arizona against the D'backs at 23-25, 8 1/2-games behind the NY Mets in the NL East. The Arizona D'backs joined the NL in 1998 and made the playoffs in THREE of the team's first five seasons (won 2001 World Series). However, since 2003, Arizona has missed the postseason in 16 of the last 19 years. The D'backs hit 'rock bottom' in 2021, earning the dreaded 'daily double,' as owners of MLB's worst record (52-110) and its worst moneyline mark (-$3,941). However, the D'backs are 23-26 here in 2022 and while the Dodgers are not 'looking over their shoulders' (see below) in the NL West (D'backs are 11 games out of first place), Arizona owns a winning percentage of .469 (up from .321 last season) and is up $293 in the moneyline standings, after last season's 'nightmare' finish (see above).

Atlanta rookie Spencer Strider (1-1, 2.22 ERA) is set to make his first major league start in tonight's contest, while Zac Gallen (3-0, 2.22 ERA) will take the mound for Arizona. Strider has been outstanding as a reliever in his first 11 games, allowing six ERs across 24.1 innings with a 37-12 KW ratio, 1.05 WHIP and a .167 BAA. Arizona's Gallen was among MLB's best pitchers over his first seven starts, allowing just five ERs over 39.1 innings for a 1.14 ERA with a 39-8 KW ratio. However, he struggled in his last outing by giving up six ERs over 5.1 innings against the Kansas City Royals last Tuesday. That said, the D'backs won the game 8-6.

Atlanta has just not been able to put together a winning streak so far (note: Atlanta is -$571 against the monryline) and it could be coming soon, but I'm not betting it starts here! Who knows how Strider's first start will go and just in case the Braves make a late pitching change, I'm listing this play as "action." As for Arizona, it will be glad to turn the page following another lost series against the Dodgers, as Los Angeles is now 24-5 against Arizona over the past two seasons, including eight straight wins! Expect the D'backs AND Gallen to bounce-back here, and the 'PRICE' is sure 'RIGHT!"

Good luck...Larry

My 8* Las Vegas Insider is on the TB Rays at 8:05 ET.

The Tampa Bay Rays won the AL East the last two years and entered 2022 off three consecutive playoff appearances. The Rays just completed a four-game home series with the Yankees and after losing the first two, rebounded to win on both Saturday and Sunday to earn a split. The Rays head to Arlington for a four-game series with the Texas Rangers, 4 1/2-games behind the first place Yankees and also just ONE game ahead of the Jays, who have won FIVE in a row. The Rangers appeared in back-to-back World Series in 2010 and 2011 (lost both) but continued to be competitive, making the playoffs in THREE of the next five seasons. However, it's been FIVE consecutive losing seasons for Texas since 2017. The Rangers were just 60-102 (.370) in 2021, so it's fair to say that they are an improved team in 2022, as they check in at 22-24 (.478), although I doubt anyone sees the Rangers as a series postseason contender.

Texas had its four-game winning streak snapped on Sunday to finish a 10-game trip 5-5. The Rangers are back home this week for four games with the Rays and then three with Seattle (note: Texas is a modest 10-12 at home this season). The pitching matchup for Monday's series opener will be Drew Rasmussen (5-1, 2.68 ERA) for the Rays and Glenn Otto (2-2, 4.91 ERA) for the Rangers. Rasmussen made 27 appearances (all in relief) in his first two seasons but 10 of his 20 appearances in 2021 were starts. He finished with a 4-0 record, a 2.44 ERA, a 0.97 WHIP and a .205 BAA. All nine of this year's appearances have been as a starter, with the Rays winning EIGHT of the nine. His WHIP 0.98 and his BAA is .204. In comparison, Otto made six starts in 2021, going 0-3 with a 9.26 ERA, 1.71 WHIP and .320 BAA (Rangers were 1-5 in his starts). He's made six starts here in 2022 (team is 3-3), with his ERA 'improving' to 4.91, and his WHIP 'improving' to 1.40.

The Rays are the MUCH better team and Rasmussen is the MUCH better pitcher. Does that guarantee a Tampa Bay win? Of course not, but it deserves a play on the Rays.

Good luck...Larry