Bob Harvey

Tommy Hanson has been everything he was supposed to be, and more.  Hanson gets the nod today in DC against John Lannan and the Nationals.

There was much hype about Tommy Hanson when he was in the minors. Since being called up to the majors by the Braves, he’s lived up to the hype and much more.

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Hanson hasn’t allowed a run in his past three starts, and he’ll look to remain unbeaten in the big leagues when he takes the hill against the Nationals. The rookie sensation is 4-0 with a 2.48 ERA and he’s beaten all-comers including the Red Sox who he limited to two hits over six shutout innings. Did I mention Hanson was suffering from the flu when he did that?

The right-hander hasn’t allowed a run in 20 innings, a string dating back to June 12 in Baltimore, the site of his first MLB win. I can’t say it enough; this guy is the real deal. One last add on Hanson: He’s the first Braves rookie since 1900 to hold his opponents scoreless in three consecutive starts.

The Braves have won five straight and at this stage in the season look like they’re a a serious contender in the NL East. They’ve got the pitching and their offense has been going gangbusters even without an injured Nate McClouth. Just seven days ago Atlanta was ranked 26th in the majors in runs per game but have exploded for 30 runs in their past four games. They got the bats going during a sweep of the Phllies and kept them going last night in a wild 9-8 win over Washington.

If there’s anyone on the Nationals staff who can cool down the Bravos it wold be today’s starter John Lannan. The young lefty enters with a 5-5 record and a 3.45 ERA. He’s 2-2 with a 3.30 ERA in five career starts against the Braves, including 0-1 with a 2.77 ERA this season.

As they showed on Friday night, the Nats are indeed pesky. Whether they can “bug” Hanson much remains to be seen. I’m siding with the hotter pitcher and the hotter team in this D.C. showdown.

Free Pick: Braves -121

Out since June 12 with arm trouble, Ervin Santana returns to the Angels rotation on Friday just in time to face the roadkill otherwise known as the Baltimore Orioles.

The last place Baltimore Orioles continue to struggle on the road. The Birds are now 11-24 away from Camden Yards following a 5-2 loss to the Angels on Thursday night.

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Just about everywhere you look the numbers are bad for Baltimore. They’re 0-3 against the Halos this season and 7-21 in the last 28 meetings. The Orioles are just 3-7 in their last 10 outings and hitting just .236 on the road while posting an ERA of 6.01 as a visitor.

Tonight Baltimore will face Ervin Santana who has had two stints on the DL this season. It’s amazing how things can change in a year. In 2008 Santana was a member of the AL All-Star team; this season he’s had more stints on the disabled list than he has wins. Santana has been on the 15-day disabled list since June 23 (retroactive to June 12).  He experienced stiffness in his throwing arm following a start on June 11 in Tampa Bay and will take the mound this evening with a 1-3 record and an ERA of 7.47 in six starts.

The Orioles counter with David Hernandez who is 1-2 on the season with a 4.19 ERA. In his last three starts he’s had as many walks as strikeouts and his ERA is just a smidge under 5.00.

After a slow start with the bats, the Angels have come to life offensively. Los Halos have scored 34 runs in their last five games and Bobby Abreu has been a big reason for the increased production. Abreu, who homered twice on Thursday night, has driven in 27 runs since the start of June. The only hitter in the AL who has matched Abreu’s production is teammate Juan Rivera.

The Angels have somehow kept things together in a season where lesser teams would have unraveled. Even with a rusty Santana on the mound tonight, I like the Angels to keep things rolling.

Free Pick: Angels -147

Atlanta has been tough on southpaws this season, demolishing the Phillies' Cole Hamels last night.  The same treatment awaits Philadelphia's J.A. Happ on Thursday.

I’ve been told the key to making money with Atlanta this year is to back them every time they face a lefthander. If the Braves treatment of Cole Hamels on Wednesday night is any indication, I’m backing up the Brinks truck and throwing it all on Atlanta tonight.

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The Braves, who demolished Hamels and the Phillies 11-1, look for a repeat performance against A.J. Happ. He’s talented, he’s 5-0, but he’s also a southpaw. Happ is coming off a complete game 10-0 shutout of Toronto on Saturday and he may need an encore performance to keep the Phillies close.

Philadelphia is 4-13 in its last 17 games. That slide has a lot to due with the loss of Raul Ibañez who is on the disabled list  Without him the Phils' lackluster lineup has scored two or fewer runs in five of the last 11 games.

Atlanta is 6-2 against Philadelphia this season and the Braves are poised for their fist series sweep in four years. The Braves have won three straight overall and will look to extend their streak with Javier Vazquez on the hill. The veteran righthander is just 5-7 but his ERA of 3.07 ranks in the top ten in the NL. Vazquez is also 1-0 with a 3.29 ERA in his two starts against the Phils this season. Among starting pitchers this season Javier Vasquez leads the majors with 7.96 strikeouts per 100 pitchers (K/100P).

Oh and about those lefthanders. Atlanta is hitting .272 on the season and .294 in their last 10 games against southpaws.

Free Pick: Braves -136

The Marlins have won nine straight from the Nationals, and 22 of their last 25.  Follow Florida on the moneyline Wednesday afternoon when they wipe Washington out of town.

I had the feeling that if Washington was going to end their lengthy losing streak against Florida, their best shot was last night. However thanks to some late inning heroics from Hanley Ramirez and an assist from Mother Nature, the Marlins speared the Nats 7-5.

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Florida has now beaten Washington nine straight times and No. 10 is just around the corner.

To put the one-sided nature of this series in perspective, consider this: Florida is 22-3 vs. Washington since the start of last season. With Marlins ace Josh Johnson on the hill, I fully expect the domination to continue.

Johnson is having an All-Star season. He’s 7-1 with a 2.76 ERA and has been tough as nails against the Nationals going 4-0 with a 3.68 ERA in six starts. Opposing Johnson will by Jordan Zimmerman who is 3-3 with a 4.56 ERA. Zimmerman has gotten better with each start and looks like he could be a future star in the NL.

If the ML is too rich for your blood, the RL might be an attractive alternative. Florida is not only 8-0 against Washington this year, the Fish are also 8-0 on the RL. The Over is 6-2.

There are several ways to go in this game and all of them should be very prosperous. As long as your compass is headed in the direction of Florida, you’ll be fine.

Free Pick: Marlins -163

Sit back and prepare for a nice pitching matchup of young arms tonight in the Bronx when Brandon Morrow and the Mariners meet Joba Chamberlain and the Yankees.

The New York Yankees are rolling. They’ve won five straight overall and look to extend their current streak while hoping to maintain their dominance of the Seattle Mariners.

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The Yanks have been crushing the baseball against the Mariners hitting .348 while averaging 9.0 runs during an eight-game winning streak at home versus Seattle. This will be the teams' first meeting at the new Yankee Stadium, aka Coors Field of the East.

New York has also dominated the Mariners on the mound during this streak. The Yankees have posted a 2.75 ERA in their last eight meetings and with Joba Chamberlain on the hill the Bronx Bombers are hopeful of another strong performance.This will be Joba’s first career appearance against Seattle.

The Mariners will counter with reliever-turned-starter Brendan Morrow who is 0-3 this season and will be making his fourth start following 16 relief appearances.  His ERA is an astronomical 5.64.

It’s doubtful that Seattle’s woeful offense will be able to take advantage of the new Yankee Stadium launching pad. The Mariners rank 29th in runs scored and 20th in homeruns. Seattle is middle of the pack with a .260 team batting average and their lack of punch is evident in a 44-29-2 record to the Under.

And while the Yanks rank in the top three in all of baseball in home runs, runs per game and OPS, it usually takes some help from the other side to cash the Over. The Yankees are 6-4 to the Under in their last 10 outings.

Free Pick: Mariners-Yankees Under 10 -114

Texas comes in having dropped seven of 10 while the Angels have won seven of their last 10.  Stay with the hotter team on Monday night when the Halos visit the Rangers.

It seems to me the wrong team is favored in tonight’s AL West battle between the Los Angeles Angels and Texas Rangers.

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The Angels are clicking on all cylinders right now. They swept the hapless Arizona Diamondbacks, which in itself isn’t any great shakes. But the way the Halos did it speaks volumes about how much this club has improved over the last month. The Angels hit with runners in scoring position and hit for power. They were aggressive on the basepaths and they played solid defense.

They got great starting pitching in two of the three games and closer Brian Fuentes was lights out in his two appearances. Even the LA defense, which entered Sunday’s game with the worst bullpen ERA in baseball (5.51), stepped up big in the series finale. The Angels have now won five straight and seem to be playing their baseball of the season just in time for this week’s series against the second-place Rangers.

Texas swept Anaheim in May taking three games and beating Jered Weaver, John Lackey and Joe Saunders in that order. However this isn’t the same Texas team. Without the injured Josh Hamilton the offense has struggled. Case in point the once mighty Rangers managed just one hit Sunday against Chad Gaudin of the Padres.

Texas is 3-7 in its last 10 games and scored a total of 15 runs in those seven losses. The Angels are 7-3 over that same period in which they scored 12 runs on two different occasions and 1 runs in another.

Tonight’s pitching matchup has Angels rookie Sean O’ Sullivan facing Vicente Padilla. O’ Sullivan is 1-0 with an ERA of 3.00 while the veteran Padilla is 6-3 including a 3-0 mark with a 2.16 ERA in his last three outings.

Consider as well that with interleague play in the rear view mirror, Vlad Guerrero returns to the Angels lineup, giving them yet another weapon. If, or maybe when, Guerrero regains his power stroke, look out for the Angels.

Free Pick: Angels +120

Joel Pineiro has pitched mich better than his record this year, as the Cardinals have scored three runs or less his last 11 starts. They should exceed that vs. Liriano today though.

The St. Louis Cardinals send Joel Pineiro to the mound today vs. the Minnesota Twins, and if he can receive just a little run support, than this game should cash easily.

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I backed Pineiro in his last start on Tuesday night and was justly rewarded when he twirled a career best, complete game two-hitter as St. Louis blanked the New York Mets 3-0. He’s 1-2 but has a 1.61 ERA over his last three starts. His WHIP over that stretch is 0.76.

Francisco Liriano, the one-time phenom, has never recovered from arm problems that plagued him after his breakout season of 2006. He pitched briefly in ’07 but missed all of last season and has been a mere shadow of his former pitching self this season.

Liriano is 3-8 with an ERA of 5.88. He’s 2-1 over his past three starts despite an ERA of 5.00 and a WHIP of 1.57. Granted the Cards are hitting just .200 vs. lefties over the past ten games but the addition of Mark De Rosa should help. The veteran infielder was acquired by the Cards on Saturday night and his 13 homeruns and 50 RBI will be plugged in immediately.

I’m riding with Pineiro for the second time this week and hope that anyone not named Pujols will help Prince Albert at the plate. Pineiro has gotten three runs or fewer to work with in each of his last 11 starts and that probably won’t get it done with a powerful offensive team like the Twins.

Free Pick: Cardinals -126

Despite two solid arms on the mound in Josh Beckett and Jair Jurrjens, the Red Sox and Braves have the bats necessary to send tonight's contest in Atlanta over the total.

Josh Beckett has been dominant and then some against the Atlanta Braves. The Texas fireballer blanked the Braves last Saturday going the distance on a five-hitter and needed just 94 pitches to get the job done.

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He’s now 5-0 lifetime against the Bravos with a miniscule 0.45 ERA. Will he be even better tonight against Atlanta? Short of a no-hitter, probably not. But Beckett with just average “stuff” figures to be more than Atlanta can handle. Beckett hasn’t just dominated against the Braves either. He’s 8-3 on the year and is on a nice 6-0 run (one no-decision) and has an ERA of less than 1.50.

On the flip side, Jair Jurrjens, the clutch Dutch, is the best .500 pitcher in baseball. He’s just 5-5 but his ERA is a paltry 2.89.

However even with all the glossy pitching stats I’ve presented there’s the little issue of offense. The Red Sox have played four straight games to the high side while the Braves have a mini 2-0 Over streak.

Atlanta has seen Beckett’s best and they should fare much better tonight. The Red Sox are coming off a 9-3 loss to the lowly Nats on Thursday and should rebound with the bats tonight, especially in hitter-friendly Turner Field. Two of the three series matchups last weekend topped the total and I see another one tonight.

Boston ranks third in the majors in RPG and OPS. The Red Sox are fifth in HR’s and 8th in BA. Those numbers are a good indicator that a team as offensively potent as the Sox, aren’t likely to be shutdown for two days in a row.

Free Pick: Red Sox-Braves Over 8 (+110)

The red-hot Detroit Tigers looks to complete a 6-0 homestand and win their seventh straight Thursday afternoon when they finish their series against the Chicago Cubs.

The Detroit Tigers are red hot at home. They’ve won six straight in the friendly confines and look to make it seven in a row when they go for a three game sweep of the Cubs. A victory today would also give Detroit a perfect 6-0 homestand. However, the Tigers will need a solid outing from Armando Gallaraga to have a shot today.

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Gallaraga, who was nothing short of brilliant last season, has been nothing short of awful this season. He’s 3-7 with a 5.62 ERA and hasn't won since April 26. Gallaraga is also 0-7 his last 10 starts.

Needless to say Chicago’s got a huge pitching advantage with Ted Lilly on the hill. The veteran lefty has made four starts this month and has been brilliant in each one of them posting a 1.98 ERA. On the season Lilly has made 11 quality starts, meaning he’s gone at least six innings in each of those outings. Over his last 10 starts he’s 5-2 with a 2.78 ERA.

There are some other numbers that favor a play on Detroit. Like the Cubs' six-game losing streak to the Tigers dating back to 2001. Or how about the fact that the Cubs offense has gone south. Chicago has scored seven total runs while losing the first three of its 10-game stretch away from Wrigley Field. They’ve stranded 31 runners during its slide and if your not hitting with runners in scoring posistion, bad streaks tend to continue.

To loosely paraphrase Miss South Carolina, where as the Tigers can really hit the ball (eighth in homeruns and 9th in scoring) the Cubs, you know, don’t whereas hit the ball very well. Chicago is 22nd in runs scored, 24th in OPS and 26th in batting average.

Is Lilly the better pitcher today? Absolutely, he’s head and shoulders above Gallaraga. However Lilly can’t do much about the Cubs anemic offense and that’s why I’m playing the Tigers in this one.

Free Pick: Tigers +110

Fans may be fed up with the ongoing steroids saga in baseball, but it's still not showing up in ticket sales, especially in Albuquerque and San Bernardino.

Manny Ramirez returns to baseball Tuesday night as he begins a minor league rehab in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It’s a state famous for its UFO sightings and the perfect place for a space cadet like Ramirez to begin his comeback.

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The truth is baseball fans are suckers. How else can you explain the hysteria surrounding Manny’s return to baseball?  Over 40,000 tickets have been sold for the Albuquerque Isotopes four-game series against Nashville. The fans who have bought the tickets don’t really care why Man Ram is there. The fact that he was suspended 50-games for violating baseball’s drug policy and has to play in some minor league games to prepare for a return the Dodgers obviously doesn’t bother them, so why should it bother us?

After Manny finishes his stint in New Mexico he’ll rehab for two games with the Single-A club in San Bernardino, California. Ramirez is expected to play there Sunday and Monday, and both of those games are sellouts. How ironic is that Manny begins his minor league journey the day after the head of the players union Donald Fehr announces his retirement? As they say, timing is everything.

No doubt, the minor league hysteria surrounding his arrival will carry over to Manny’s Dodger Stadium homecoming. However July 3 in San Diego, when Ramirez is scheduled to return to the big leagues, you can bet the house that Manny will receive the Barry Bonds treatment and I’m not talking about intentional walks. Booing will be the least of his worries on the road.

Keep in mind that it wasn’t just a banned substance that cost him 50-games. He was taking a drug prescribed primarily for women. With Bonds, he was constantly pelted with syringes. I can only imagine what the creative fans will have waiting for Manny when he arrives.

I’ll bottom line it and give you my two cents: Baseball fans are as hypocritical as they come. They’ll bitch and moan about guys doing drugs unless it’s a guy on their team. And as much as I’d like to believe that Dodger fans will hold Ramirez to a higher standard, I’d be fooling myself. Myopic Dodger fans, who booed Barry Bonds for his steroid use, will roll out the red carpet and welcome him back with open arms. Just like they’ll do in Albuquerque and San Bernardino.

One final thought regarding Donald Fehr’s pending departure. Donald, I’ve got a great idea before you leave. How about you give the fans a nice parting gift and release that “list?” You know, the list that has the names of the other abusers on it? Because without it we’ll never truly know if guys like Albert Pujols or Raul Ibanez or Ryan Howard are clean. We’ll never know if we cheered loud enough for them or shouldn’t have cheered them in the first place.

Cheats like McGwire, Sosa, A-Rod and Bonds have made it difficult for us to know what’s real or synthetic. Now is the time for you, Donald Fehr, to do the right thing for baseball and the fans. Do it for the fans and the future of the game.

Believe it or not, Russ Ortiz is one reason why the Astros are enjoying a 12-7 month of June.  Hang with Houston at home on Tuesday vs. Zach Greinke and the KC Royals.

I’m showing some love today for the Houston Astros who showed signs of life this weekend taking two out of three from the Twins in Minnesota. The Royals were one of baseball’s biggest surprises early as they bolted out of the gates with an 18-11 record. But since they’ve dropped 18 of their last 29 games.

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Zach Greinke gets the call tonight for the Royals as he tries to regain the form that saw him get off to an 8-1 with an ERA under a buck. Now Greinke is 8-3 and the ERA is just under 2.00. Those numbers are still great but mirror the recent struggles of his team.

Russ Ortiz, who has had more bounce-backs than he can count, is trying for another one with Houston. Seven years ago Ortiz was a poor Dusty Baker decision away from winning a World Series ring, now he’s fighting for a job in Houston after stops in Atlanta and Arizona just to name two.

Ortiz is 3-2 with a 3.60 ERA and is a key cog in an Astros pitching machine that has lowered its team ERA nearly one full run over the past 20 games. The Astros are making a nice, quiet run right now and I don’t forseee a lumping Royals team slow them down.

Free Pick: Astros +128

Albert Pujols just about beat the Royals singlehandedly over the weekend, and now the Cardinals slugger sets his sights on Tim Redding and the Mets at Citi Field on Monday.

Have you seen the television commercials that proclaim, "So easy a caveman can do it?" That’s exactly how I feel about suggesting playing the Cardinals tonight against the Mets.

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I’ve got two words: Albert Pujols. He is a beast and is literally a one-man wrecking crew. There’s absolutely no truth to the rumor that the Kansas City Royals personally drove him to the airport and made sure he got on the first plane out of town after St. Louis' three-game weekend sweep at Kauffman Stadium.

Pujols, who went to high school in KC, shredded the Royals pitching staff hitting three home runs and driving in 10 runs in the three game series. He hit two homers on Sunday’s 12-5 Cards win, including a grand slam, his third of the year. Prince Albert has slugged eight homers in his last 10 games and teams are struggling to get him out.

Tonight it’s the Mets turn to try and slow down the Cardinals “Big Bird.” But New York starter Tim Redding is probably not the answer.  Pujols is hitting .407 against Redding with one homer and five doubles. Overall Redding, is 2-5 with a 5.69 ERA against St. Louis.

New York pitchers have been getting shelled lately. The staff ERA is 5.48 over the last 16 games of which the Mets have lost 10.

St. Louis starter Todd Wellemeyer has been no great shakes either, compiling a record of 6-6 with an ERA of 5.36.

The Cards swept the first three-game series against the Mets in April with the two teams combining for 37 runs. And that was before Albert got really hot. I’ve seen the Cards at +101 to -108. I’m definitely on the Redbirds tonight hoping I can get them at even money or better. It appears the public is on the Under 9½, but I’m waiting (hoping) for a 9 to pop up somewhere later today.

Free Pick: Cardinals +101

Is it too late to jump on the Rockies bandwagon?  Colorado is as hot as they were in September 2007 and the Angels look to cool them off in Anaheim starting Monday Night.

From a gambling perspective, streaks can be frustrating. Take the Colorado Rockies. They’re 16-1 in their last 17 games. If you’ve sided with the Rocks during the entire length of their hot streak, you’ve made some nice money.

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However for those of us who’ve missed the streak and only now are considering jumping on the Rockies bandwagon, we’re faced with the question: Am I too late?

The books caught on to this streak about a week ago. The vigs are getting increasingly higher so the cost of backing Colorado is becoming more expensive with each passing win. I’m here to tell you to get off the bandwagon. The Rockies will lose and it’s going to be tonight, but then again…

The Angels send Matt “Money” Palmer to the mound in the opener of the three-game interleague series. Palmer, a 30-year old rookie, was called up in April to make a couple of spot starts until the Angels could get some guys healthy like John Lackey, Ervin Santana and Kelvim Escobar. All Palmer has done is go 6-0 and is the No. 1 pitcher in baseball from a cash standpoint. Anaheim is 8-1 in Palmers starts netting an MLB-best $1,040. Palmer has been better than Josh Johnson, Tim Wakefield, Jason Marquis and Matt Cain. Matt “Freaking” Palmer is the No. 1 cash cow in MLB. Who would have thunk it?

While the Angels haven’t been quite as hot as the Rockies they’ve been tough over the past two weeks going 8-2 while improving their interleague record to 9-3.

Meanwhile Colorado has been playing incredible baseball. On June 3 they were 12 games below .500 and are now 36-33 heading into tonights tilt at the Big A. Give much of the credit for the Rockies turnaround to new manager Jim Tracy. Not only is Trace one of the good guys in baseball, he’s one heck of a manager. He got a raw deal in Los Angeles a few years ago so it’s nice to see someone debunk the old adage, “Nice guys finish last.”

Since taking over when Clint Hurdle was fired, Tracy has guided Colorado to an 18-5 record. Tracy has taken an unhappy and unproductive team and turned them around, not to mention saving Colorado’s season in the process.

Aaron Cook gets the start tonight for the Rockies as he goes for his fourth straight win. Cook is 6-3 with a 4.23 ERA. Cook has made just one career start against the Angels and that was three years ago. The Angels are coming off a weekend series against the Dodgers in which they swung the bats pretty well on Friday night but cooled off in the final two games (both losses) against Jeff Weaver and Clayton Kershaw.

The Angels are 18-14 in the OC this season, so playing under the Big A hasn’t proven to that much of an advantage. Thanks to their blistering streak, Colorado is 19-18 on the road and 8-0 in their last eight outings. The Angels are 8-2 in their last 10 games when favored. Palmer and Los Halos are anywhere from -116 to -130 tonight. The total is 9/-118 at my book and that’s the angle I’ll be looking at tonight.

I still don’t know what to do about this damn streak. Should I jump on the Rockies bandwagon tonight? I can get them at a nice price as a road dog. Or is this the night the magic runs out?  Do I take the MLB money man Palmer or do I ride the Rockie wave one more time? Either way tonight figures to be a great start to what should be one heck of a series in Anaheim.

The Twins look to bounce back from a disappointing loss Saturday, but their bullpen does not figure to implode twice in a row, and Glen Perkins has flourished in interleague play.

If not for a rare bullpen meltdown on Saturday, we’d be talking about the Minnesota Twins chances for a sweep today. Instead it’s about Minnesota winning the rubber game of the three game series vs. the Houston Astros.

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The Twins get the nod in terms of starting pitching today. Glen Perkins, who is 3-0 with a 3.96 ERA in four interleague outings, gets the call for Minnesota. This will be his first appearance against the Astros. He’ll be opposed by Wandy Rodriguez who has been up and down this season, but lately down, real down.

Houston hopes the “Wanderful One” can turn things around today. Rodriguez who hasn’t won since May 20th, started out 5-2 with a 1.83 ERA in his first nine outings but is 0-4 since with an ERA of 7.00. Wandy is also 5-6 with a 5.02 ERA in 14 interleague starts.

Both teams can bop. However there’s no better 1-2 combination in baseball than Joe Mauer and Justin Motneau. The Astros are no slouch though with Carlos Lee and Lance Berkman.

Minnesota is 7-4 in its last 11 games and is now 8-3 in interleague play. The Twins are also 24-13 at the Glad Bag Dome while the Astros are 14-17 on the road. Even though the Twins are still smarting from Saturday’s late inning loss, I think it has created a better value for us today.

Look for Perkins and the Twins to win today and capture yet another interleague series.

Free Pick: Twins -122

Both offenses are hitting on all cylinders and that makes it an easy decision to play the Over on Saturday when the Detroit Tigers host the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Brewers are conjuring up memories of the famous “Harvey’s Wallbangers” from the 1980’s. Milwaukee managed just four runs last night in a rain shortened game  against the Tigers, but before that they were literally knocking the cover off the ball.

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With Prince Fielder leading the way, the Brewers scored 30 runs on 40 hits in sweeping a three-game set in Cleveland against the Indians. Fielder is hitting .474 with two home runs and 12 RBI over the past four games.

This afternoon Milwaukee will face rookie Alfredo Figaro who is making his MLB debut despite having never pitched above Double-A. He was promoted when the D-Train, Dontrelle Willis, was derailed by anxiety issues. Even Tigers manager Jim Leyland isn’t sure what to expect from Figaro but says the rookie has the chops.

Dave Bush will be throwing for the Brewers and Milwaukee can only hope they see “vintage Bush” and not the 2009 model that has compiled 3-3 record with an ERA of 5.31. The numbers get worse. Bush, is 0-3 with an 8.64 ERA in his last five starts and is 0-1 with an 11.05 ERA against the Tigers.

Milwaukee has topped the total in their last five games while Detroit is 4-2 to the Over in their last six outings. Neither team lacks for power. Milwaukee is seventh in baseball with 78 roundtrippers while Detroit ranks 10th in the same category with 75 homeruns. Both teams have almost identical RPG totals with the Tigers at 4.85 and the Brew Crew ever so slightly behind at 4.81.

Miwaukee’s bullpen is good ranking seventh in MLB with an ERA of 3.56 and a 14-8 record. On the flip side, Detroit’s pen is ranked 23rd in all of baseball with an ERA of 4.53. Look for both the rookie Figaro and the veteran Bush to struggle. Both teams have enough “boppers” to make this an easy Over.

Free Pick: Brewers-Tigers Over 10 (-110)

Despite both teams being banged up and struggling a bit this season, today's contest between the Rays and Mets in New York remains a must-see game.

To this point in the season the Tampa Bay Rays have been a disappointment, at least when compared to last year’s team. The Rays have lost the advantage of sneaking up on teams the way they did in 2008. On their way to an improbable run to the World Series last year, Tampa had the right combination of offense, defense and pitching. This season the offense is still there but the pitching is lagging well behind.

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The Rays rank in the Top 5 in baseball in several key offensive categories. They’re first in runs scored with 385, fourth in home runs with 92 and fourth in team batting at .275. In order to be a serious player in the rough and tumble AL East, The Rays need to get their pitching staff in order.

Injuries have hurt both the starting rotation (Scott Kazmir) and the bullpen (Troy Percival). Their starters have combined for a 4.75 ERA and while the bullpen has put up a respectable 3.48 ERA, they’ve also blown eight of 25 save chances.

In the other dugout, despite losing six of their last nine games the Mets are still only two games behind the Phillies in the NL East. But they’re playing on borrowed time. Injuries have also impacted the Mets. John Maine is on the DL. Jose Reyes and Carlos Delgado are hurt. And on it goes.

New York would appear to have the right guy on the mound tonight as they look to keep the pressure on Philadelphia. Staff ace Johan Santana is 8-4 with a solid 3.29 ERA this season, but he’ll be facing a Rays team that eats lefthanders for lunch as witnessed by their 29 home runs and 124 runs batted in this season. Still, temptation being what it is, can you seriously overlook Santana at the rock-bottom price of -119? Obviously that relatively low number is a result of Santana’s last outing in which he allowed a career high nine runs in three-plus innings against the Yankees.

James Shields will be throwing ‘em down for Tampa Bay. He’s only 5-5 but his ERA is in the “Santana neighborhood” at 3.52. Shields is also 2-1 and 3.48 in his last three outings while Santana’s three game stats are a bit eschewed by his dreadful outing against the Yankees.

Early in the season this series was projected as being a possible “sneak peak” at the Fall Classic. But with both teams trying to deal with injures and consistency, it might be a long shot to even talk playoffs. It’s still relatively early in the year though and if the Mets can get healthy and add another quality starter, they could easily win the NL East. They’ve got one of the best bullpens in baseball and maybe the best closer in Franky Rodriguez and that will be huge down the stretch. Tampa Bay needs Scott Kazmir back in a bad way and they need to settle down their bullpen situation. The offense will take care of itself.

In what could be a World Series preview, the Angels host the Dodgers in the second installment of their 2009 Freeway Series, this set at the Big A in Anaheim.

The Dodgers and Angels meet in the Freeway Series tonight in Anaheim and you can expect runs to be at a premium.

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The Dodgers have won four of their last five games to improve to 44-23 on the year. They’ve got a nine-game lead over the second place Giants and have not missed a beat without the suspended Manny Ramirez. They’ve been playing the Joe Torre brand of baseball: a combination of strong starting pitching, a great bullpen and timely hitting.

Since getting chewed out by manager Mike Scoscia after a less than stellar performance in Tampa, the Angels have responded with six straight wins. Howie Kendrick was sent down to the minors, rookie sensation Sean Rodgriguez was called up and Vlad Guerrero returned to the line-up after missing a substantial amount of time with a torn peck muscle. All three of those moves have paid off handsomely for the Angels who are starting to look like the best of the AL West.

Chad Billingsley is 9-3 with a 2,72 ERA and he’ll be looking to make amends for his loss in May in which the Angels tagged hime for five runs in what turned out to be a 10-7 loss. Joe Saunders is 7-4 with a 3.66 ERA and continues to be the best lefthander in baseball that nobody knows. In three full seasons and part of another, he’s 39-19 and as dependable as it gets. He came within two outs of a complete game against San Diego last weekend, rebounding from back-to-back rough outings.

It’s tough to know which stats or trends are relevant given the turnover in personnel from one year to the next. For what it’s worth the Halo’s are 12-5 in their last 17 meetings against the Dodgers and 7-1 in Anaheim. Couple that with the Angels' current six-game winning streak and there’s certainly several reasons to like the Angels in this spot.

The Dodgers will be looking to avenge a series loss to their Interstate 5 rivals in May, but given LA’s dismal interleague road record of 14-37, that could prove to be a tough task. The Dodgers have a huge pitching advantage over the Angels. Torre’s staff is No. 1 in the majors while the bullpen is No. 4.  The Halos have the worst bullpen in baseball and overall their pitching staff ranks 25th.

This very well could be a preview of the Fall Classic, and like most any playoff game it’s pitching and defense that wins. The Dodgers have an edge in both. If you're an Angels fan you can only hope Saunders throws a complete game gem, because a trip to the bullpen is like taking trip to nearby Disneyland for one of those E-ticket rides.

The keys to the game: If the Dodgers get to the Angels' bullpen they’ll probably win. If the Angels keep up their recent offensive surge (47 runs in their last six games) they should pick up the W. Either way the opener of the Freeway Series is shaping up as one of the top games of this Interleague weekend.

Both teams came into this series with nice win streaks and have split the first two games.  Now comes the rubber match at Coors between the Rockies and Rays.

Two of baseball’s hottest teams square off in the Mile High city as the the Rockies host the Devil Rays in the series finale at Coors Field. Colorado has won 12 of 13 games while Tampa Bay has taken six of its last seven and are 12-5 over their past 17 outings.

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Both teams are getting it down offensively. The Rays lead the majors with 382 runs and boast a lineup of bashers from Carlos Peña and Evan Longoria to Ben Zobrist and B.J. Upton. Carl Crawford has been the table setter all season long hitting .314.

The Rockies' improvement at the plate and on the mound has moved them to within sniffing distance of the wild card race in the National League.

Since Jim Tracy replaced Clint Hurdle as manager on May 29, the Rockies are averaging over six runs per game and hitting just under .300 as a team (.298). Familiar names and faces like Todd Helton, Brad Hawpe and Ian Stewart have led the charge. Hawpe is having an all-star season. He’s hitting .347 with 47 RBI.

Matt Garza gets the start today for the Rays and while he’s 4-4 with a respectable 3.63 ERA, he’s struggled in his last two starts failing to make it out of the sixth inning. Opposing Garza will be Ubaldo Jimenez who is a big reason why the Colorado pitching staff has done an about face.  The Rockies have been outstanding during their streak posting a 3.31 ERA.

Jimenez has been a big part of that success. While Garza has been off in his last two starts, Jimenez has won two straight games including his second career complete game. Overall he is 5-6 with a 3.92 ERA. MLB scouts will tell you he’s got what it takes to become a top-tier pitcher but only time will tell if he can live up to expectations. The righthander, who has battled problems with control and efficiency in the past, has thrown 17 innings while winning his last two starts, pitching a complete game in Friday's 6-4 win over Seattle.

In what is virtually a “pick ‘em” game, bettors have a couple of ways to go here. Ride the home team that’s streaking to a tune of 12-1 or favor the AL squad that scored 12 runs on Tuesday night. Keep in mind Colorado is 17-9-1 to the Over at home this season but both the Rocks and the Rays are just 2-3 to the high side in their last five games.

This is one of the toughest games on the board to cap. I still think that despite Colorado’s 12-1 streak, Tampa Bay is the better team and should take the rubber match of this three-game series.

One final note: Jimenez is just 1-3 in day games with an ERA of 5.34. He’s allowed 29 hits in 28.2 innings. If he’s not spot on with his control today, the Rays and their power-packed lineup will make him pay. This figures to be one of those days where runs, not pitching, will be at a premium. Take the balls out of the humidor and let’s get ready to go.

After bouncing around with four teams the past six seasons, veteran righthander Javier Vazquez looks to have found a home with the Atlanta Braves.

Javier Vazquez, remember him? He’s the same guy who has bounced around teams like a pinball. Vazquez hit his high water mark in 2001 when he won 16 with Washington. He parlayed his success into a deal with the Yankees where he posted 14 victories. He moved on to Arizona and then Chicago and has surfaced again in Atlanta.

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After going 12-16 for the White Sox with an ERA of 4.67, many scouts thought that Vazquez’ best days were behind him. But so far in Atlanta he’s proving the skeptics wrong.

Vazquez might be the best four-win pitcher in baseball this season. He’s 4-5 with a 3.31 and leads the NL in strikeouts with 105. He’s been magnificent over his last three starts posting an ERA of 1.77. He’s also been rock solid against Cincinnati going 3-0 including a victory in April.

The Reds will counter with Micah Owings who might be the only weak link in one of the strongest (and youngest) starting rotations in the league. Owings is 3-7 with an ERA of 4.64. He’s garnered more headlines for his hitting than his pitching prowess so far in his career.

While Cincinnati is just 32-32 overall they own one of the best home records in baseball at 19-9.

Jay Bruce (15 HR) is developing into the slugger that everyone expected. Brandon Phillips continues to impress by leading the team in batting average (.273) and runs batted in with 43. The Reds pitching staff is ranked fifth in all of baseball with a 3.86 ERA and Cincinnati relievers are also ranked fifth in MLB with a pen ERA of 3.39.

Atlanta’s made plenty of headlines already this season. They botched the release of future Hall-of-Famer Tom Glavine and made a questionable free-agent signing of injury prone Garrett Anderson. On the plus side they have arguably the top pitching prospect in the majors in Tommy Hansen. The Braves also swung a deal to get Nate McLouth from Pittsburgh. Combining his numbers, McClouth leads the Braves in home runs with 10 and RBI with 36.

The Braves took two out of three in the first series meeting with two of the games going Over the posted total. Neither team has distinguished itself in the totals department. Atlanta is 15-15 on the road while Cincinnati is 16-12 but the Over is 37-16-2 in the last 55 overall. 

The trends favor the Reds in this series. Atlanta is 2-8 in it’s last 10 at the Great American Ballpark and are 3-8 in the past 11 road outings. On the flip side, The Reds are 6-2 run in their last eight home games.

Both offenses are in the lower third of the MLB rankings. Atlanta is 18th with a team batting average of .257. The Reds are 27th at .244.  Remember the MLB commercials years ago with Glavine and Greg Maddux saying “Chicks Dig The Long Ball”? Well the “chicks” aren’t digging this Atlanta team which has hit only 48 all season. The Reds are slightly better with the power numbers hitting 68 on the year.

The Reds took the series opener last night recording a 7-2 victory. Tonight Vazquez and the Bravos are -145 road favorites with the total set at 8½.

Colorado enters on an 11-game win streak while the Tampa Bay Rays come in winners of five in a row in what should be a hard-fought interleague battle in Denver.

Arguably the top game on Tuesday’s interleague slate will take place in Colorado where the blistering hot Rockies meet the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. These teams have one big thing in common besides their current winning streaks. They both stumbled coming out of the gate but both teams have been able to right their respective ships.

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The Devil Rays have won five in a row and are tied with the Toronto Blue Jays for third in the tough AL East. Tampa’s current hot streak now has moved them closer to the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees but there’s still a plenty big gap between them and the top two teams in the division.

Moving into third place though is a start. The Devil Rays are playing with that swagger again. Carlos Peña and Evan Longoria are heating up and the pitching, especially the bullpen, has them feeling like they can beat anyone. Rays relievers haven’t allowed a run since June 7. That’s a streak of 22.1 innings.

Then there are the Rockies who have won 11 straight and have thrived under new manager Jim Tracy. Since taking over for Clint Hurdle, the easy going and likeable Tracy, is 13-4. He  is getting contributions from several players that Hurdle had buried like Clint Barmes who is on a .383 tear during the streak and Todd Helton, hitting .315 on the year.

Tonight’s pitching matchup has Jeff Niemann going for Tampa Bay while Colorado counters with Jorge de la Rosa. Niemann is 3-1 with a 2.86 ERA in his last six starts but has been inconsistent when you look at his body of work for the season. De la Rosa has picked up both of his wins during the Rocks' current run. However bettors beware; he’s 0-4 with a 6.67 ERA at Coors Field this season.

The Rockies pen hasn’t been as dominant as Rays relievers but Colorado's closer has been lights out. Huston Street was 5-for-5 last week in save opportunities and is showing flashes of his early days in Oakland.

The line opened at Colorado -125 and has hopped to -128 in a few shops. However the Rockies are just 12-14 at home this season vs. Tampa's 13-9 road record. The total has held at 10 with most of the early money being placed on the Over. The Rockies are 16-9-1 to the high side at home this season while the Rays are 15-16-1 to the low side on the road.

It figures to be a warm and humid night in the Mile High city. The temperature will be in the 80’s at game time with clouds but no rain expected.

San Francisco has one of the top home records in the majors, and the Giants know they will be tested in this three-game interleague set against the Los Angeles Angels.

When Mike Scioscia speaks, the Angels listen.

Since Scioscia delivered a fiery, clubhouse address following a lopsided loss at Tampa Bay on Thursday, the Angels have turned things around. They finished off a sweep of the San Diego Padres Sunday with a 6-0 win as Jered Weaver tossed a shutout.

"We're playing better," Scioscia said. "I don't know if it coincides with any message that we talked about the other day. But we're seeing good at-bats. We're seeing guys produce."

Since Scioscia addressed the team after Thursday's 11-1 loss to the Rays, the Angels have scored 26 runs, hit nine home runs, accounted for 20 extra-base hits and received three quality starts by their starting pitchers.

The victory came at just the right time for the Angels who learned before the game that veteran reliever Scott Shields will undergo season-ending surgery on his left knee.
The Angels “shake-up” started in earnest when 2B Howie Kendrick was sent down the Triple-A Salt Lake City. Kendrick, who proclaimed prior to the season that he was “finally healthy,” was hitting just .231 and had gotten into Scoscia’s doghouse with his half-hearted effort and mindless mistakes in the field and on the basepaths.

Macier Iztirus will get the bulk of playing time at 2B while Triple-A phenom Sean Rodriguez will get an occasional spot start. Rodriguez hit 21 home runs and drove in 60 runs in just 57 games for the Bees.

Tonight in San Francisco, in one of just two games on the MLB slate, the Angels will send John Lackey to the mound against Barry Zito. Lackey has yet to find his game after starting the year on the disabled list. He is 1-2 with a 6.61 ERA and has yet to hit his stride. The righthander out Abilene, TX, has given up 15 earned runs and 28 hits in his last three starts.

Zito, who has struggled for the most part with the Giants since arriving as a free-agent, has a long history against the Angels. Zito is 12-9 with a 3.55  ERA in 28 starts against the Angels.

San Francisco is coming off a sweep of the Oakland A’s. During the three-game series, Oakland scored a combined three runs against Tim Lincecum, Randy Johnson and Matt Cain, with Cain sporting a 9-1 record now.

The Giants enter tonight’s game with a 34-28 record and are seven games behind the first-place Dodgers. San Francisco is red hot at home where they’ve won nine of their last 10 to improve to 21-9 at home. The Angels are 32-29 and 2½ games behind first-place Texas, but are just 15-16 on the road.

The Giants are 9-3 against the Angels in their last 12 meetings by the bay. The Under is 8-3-1 over that stretch. The Angels have to hope Lackey can give them some innings tonight because the bullpen has been a bust. With a 5.84 ERA the Halos are dead last in the majors.

On the flip side, the Giants are eighth in the majors with a bullpen ERA of 3.56. Both teams will carry three-game winning streaks into tonight’s encounter.

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Experience will win out on Sunday night in Orlando's Amway Arena when Kobe Bryant and the LA Lakers take possession of the Larry O' Brien Trophy as NBA champions.

The Lakers are one victory away from winning their 16th championship. All that stands between them and the Larry O’ Brien trophy are the pesky Orlando Magic.

The Lakers lead the series 3-1 but the Magic have been down this road before. Most recently Dwight Howard and crew were down 3-2 to Boston but came back to win that series including a Game 7 in Boston. The Magic suffered a couple of bad beats in that series so they’re no strangers to adversity.

However after two overtime losses in four games, and with players openly questioning their coach for his late game strategy and his substitution pattern (Rafer Alston, anyone?), it wouldn’t be too big of a reach to say the Lakers definitely have a great chance to win Game 5.

There’s not much more Dwight Howard can do to help the Magic, except maybe hit a few more free throws. Superman had one of the greatest performances in finals history in Game 4 scoring 16 points, pulling down 21 rebounds and blocking a finals record nine shots. However if Orlando does indeed lose the series, he’ll also be remembered for missing two free-throws with 11 seconds remaining that would have clinched the game and knotted the series at two wins apiece. Howard was not alone in his troubles at the line as Orlando as a team missed a total of 15 free throws.

Following the gut-wrenching Game 4 loss, Magic coach Stan Van Gundy made several strange statements but none that stood out like his “Experience is overrated” comment.

Van Gundy obviously needs some examples of experience and how it can affect a game. Kobe Bryant has it.  Derek Fisher and Phil Jackson have it. Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson and Van Gundy don’t. Kobe’s foul of Howard late in Game 4 turned out to be a brilliant move when Howard missed both free throws. Fisher struck not once but twice nailing a three-pointer to force overtime and then tickling the twine for the back-breaking three in OT. Van Gundy’s head scratching decision not to foul before Fisher’ first trey might be the single biggest mistake of the series.

The underdog has won three straight in this series which bodes well for the Lakers who opened at +3. Under players have made some great money on this series as the games have gone 3-1 to the Under. In fact the Lakers and Magic are a combined 28-17 to the Under.

Can the Magic recover and win three straight to complete one of the most incredible comebacks in NBA history? They could but they won’t. The bitter Game 4 pill will be a tough one to swallow. Don’t discount the fact that Kobe, as a student of the game, knows the importance of getting the job done sooner than later.

For the Lakers, this postseason has been about the lack of the “Killer Instinct” and the inability to knock teams out when they’ve got them on the ropes. That should all change Sunday night. I’m sure the Lakers wouldn’t mind some company on the ride back to Hollywood. But they’d rather it be a nice big trophy and not the Orlando Magic.

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History is on Detroit's side tonight as no road team has won a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Finals for 38 years.  The Red Wings fly high tonight in Hockeytown vs. the Penguins.

After a long season, it’s come down to a one game, winner-take-all battle in Detroit for the Stanley Cup. The Red Wings will have history on their side when they take the ice against the Penguins in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals.

Detroit’s home-ice advantage has been staggering this postseason. The Wings are 11-1 at Joe Louis Arena including a perfect 3-0 in this series. Henrik Zetterberg has kept Sydney Crosby in check. In Game 6, Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were shut out. Pittsburgh needs one or the other or both to get going offensively if they are to pull the huge upset.

Goalie Chris Osgood, while shaky on the road, has been brilliant at home with a GAA of 1.40. His counterpart, Marc-Andre Fleury is also a much better netminder at home than on the road. Fleury allowed five goals in the Pens Game 5 loss.

Detroit’s calling card is experience and depth. Both will play huge roles tonight. Take the Red Wings in Game 7 as they hoist the cup again for the second year in a row.

Free Pick: Red Wings -180

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Both teams have seen their bats go soft in recent action, making it an easy decision to play the Under on Thursday when the Oakland A's host the Minnesota Twins.

The A’s and Twins wrap up their series this afternoon at the Coliseum where runs figure to be at a premium. Trevor Cahill goes for Oakland while Minnesota counters with Nick Blackburn.

Cahill is 1-2 in his last three starts with an ERA of 3.06. The Under prevailed in two of those three outings. Meanwhile Blackburn is 2-1 over his last three starts with a 1.80 ERA and three Unders. Both teams are 7-3 to the low side in their last 10 outings.

In order to win, the A’s need great pitching and they’ve received plenty of that over the past 10 games. Offensively Oakland ranks next to last in team batting average with a .238 mark and are in the bottom third in MLB in runs scored.

Factor in two better-than-average bullpens playing in a notoriously pitcher-friendly park and you’ve got the ingredients for a rock solid Under play.

Free Pick: Twins-Athletics Under 8½ (-110)

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Stan Van Gundy had the perfect play drawn to get the Magic even in the series at the end of Game 2, only Courtney Lee's shot wouldn't go down.  Now Orlando faces a do-or-die in Game 3 at home on Tuesday.

The Lakers have gone from one extreme to another in building a 2-0 NBA Finals lead. The Western Conference champions won by 25 in Game One but needed a Courtney Lee miss and overtime to capture Game 2. LA hopes that while the venue changes the results remain the same.

Game 3 is tonight in Orlando with the Magic facing the first of three “must-win” situations. The 2-3-2 format favors the Lakers who are a win away from putting a hammer lock on this series. Orlando knows that one win won’t get it done and they’ll probably need a sweep for a realistic shot at a ring. How do they do it?

It starts with Dwight Howard. The Magic big man has had two sub-par games caused in large part by the Lakers three-headed monster of Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol. Howard committed seven of Orlando’s 20 turnovers in Game 2. He needs Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu to play like they did Sunday night when they combined for 56 points on 9-for-18 shooting from three-point range. If they keep hitting from long distance that should give Howard a little more room to roam. If not, the Lakers will continue to double and triple team every time Howard touches the rock.

With apologies to Kobe Bryant, the Lakers MVP in the series has been Pau Gasol. Not only has he been a dominant force on the offensive end (24 points and 10 rebounds in Game 2) but he’s been an unexpected surprise on the defensive end where he’s been asked to man up against Howard. If the Lakers can figure out how to keep Lewis and Turkoglu from getting wide open looks and continue to keep Howard in check, they could pull the upset tonight.

Which Bryant will we see tonight? Kobe admitted after Game 2 that he was guilty of playing too much like the Kobe of 2005. In the past #24 has been guilty of incessant grousing at his teammates and being a tad selfish at times. He promises things will be different tonight.

So in this land of Hollywood and Disney we’ve learned this much: Bryant played like a Superhero in the opener but was a mere mortal in the sequel. Meanwhile Orlando’s Superman, Howard, has been kept down in the first two games by the Lakers “kryptonite” defense and Howard’s personal “Lex Luther,” Gasol.

The Magic are favored by four points with the total set at 198. The total has been volatile to say the least. It was 206 in the opening game of the series.

The Lakers are +170 on the ML tonight compared to -180 for the Magic.

A closer look at the numbers will tell you that history favors the Lakers. Only three teams in NBA history have recovered from an 0-2 deficit to win the crown. LA is also 38-1 when they have a 2-0 series lead while Phil Jackson, who has won nine titles, is a perfect 43-0 in the postseason when his team wins Game 1 of a series. And to add insult to injury, the Magic are 0-6 in the championship round.

The Lakers say they’ve learned humility and how to put teams away after three grueling series leading up to the finals. The Magic will point to their ability to bounce back from heartbreaking losses (four to be exact) in these playoffs.

The Magic need a home sweep. The Lakers would be happy with at least one win in Orlando and a chance to wrap things up back in Hollywood. Either way there should be an electric atmosphere tonight in the “House of the Mouse.”

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It was all Kobe Bryant and the Lakers in Game 1 of the NBA FInals on Thursday as Los Angeles rolled to a 100-75 win over the Magic.  If Dwight Howard and Orlando is going to have a shot in this series, they know they have to pull at least one rabbit from their hat at the Staples Center.  Game 2 is set for Sunday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern from the Staples Center in LA with ABC providing the telecast.

The “Black Mamba” is poised to strike again as the LA Lakers host the Orlando Magic tonight in Game Two of the NBA finals.

Kobe Bryant scored a career playoff high 40 points in the series opener. He looked like a man possessed and a man single-handedly determined to erase the bitter taste of a finals loss last year to the Celtics. Bryant scored 18 points in the first half and then took over in the third quarter scoring 18 of the Lakers' 29 points.

Courtney Lee and Mikael Pietrus both took turns guarding Bryant, neither with much success. As Rafer Alson put it his team’s goal now is to keep Bryant from getting 50. Unfortunately for the Magic defense hasn’t been their calling card in the post-season. They doesn’t figure to change much now.

The Lakers had to like another number they saw on the stat sheet. LA had 56 points in the paint compared to 22 for Orlando. They outshot the Magic 46% to 29% and held Orlando to 8-of-23 from 3-point land. LA also won the battle of the boards as well, posting a 55-41 rebounding edge. I’m reminded of former Lakers coach Pat Riley and his mantra: “No rebounds, No rings.”

Lost perhaps in Kobe’s huge night was the defensive job the Lakers did on Dwight Howard who was held to just 12 points, nine below his playoff average. The Lakers used what Phil Jackson described as a slow-moving double team in which they waited for Howard to begin his move with a dribble before sending help. While Andrew Bynum had Howard straight up, Lamar Odom or Trevor Arizona and even Derek Fisher dropped down to help defend Howard. How Stan Van Gundy counters that defensive scheme will key to getting the Magic big man more involved in the offense.

Bynum’s Game 1 performance hasn’t gone unnoticed. The Lakers big man, who has been criticized for his lackadaisical effort in the postseason, held his own against Howard in Game 1 scoring nine points and pulling down nine rebounds. He was a big reason Howard began the game one of six from the field. If Bynum can stay out of foul trouble (a big if) he gives the Lakers a weapon that Boston and Cleveland didn’t have. If Bynum can contribute more that 22 minutes tonight, it’s likely the Lakers will head to Orlando with a 2-0 series lead.

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy faces some tough decisions in Game 2. If he tries to match the Lakers size — using more of Tony Battie and/or center Marcin Gortat — he sacrifices on the outside shooting and gets away from the style his team has played all season.

The truth is the matchup advantages that the Magic enjoyed against the Cavs aren’t there against the Lakers. Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and combined for 15 of the Lakers 41 buckets in Game 1 and present a “height” challenge that Superman alone can’t be expected to handle.

Shooting, rebounding and guarding Bryant are three areas in which Orlando must improve on if they’ve got any hope of stealing Game 2. But that’s easier said than done and still might not be enough to hold off the inevitable.

The Lakers are favored tonight by 6½ with the total at 202.  The series price for the Lakers to capture their 15th NBA title is now -325, up from -285 when the series started. The Magic are +265 to win the series. However before you lay down money on the attractive price for the Magic, remember that Phil Jackson coached teams are 31-0 in a seven game series in which they win the opener.

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It's not the LeBron vs. Kobe matchup many were hoping for in the NBA Finals, but the Lakers and Magic will still provide us with plenty of must-see TV.

One team is looking for redemption, the other for respect when the NBA Finals open tonight in Los Angeles.

The Western Conference champion Lakers were the bridesmaid a year ago, losing the championship series in six games to the Boston Celtics. With the Celtics out of the picture, Kobe and Company are favored to complete a job they were unable to finish last season, namely winning an NBA title.

Meanwhile the Magic, recognized for most of the year as only the third best team in the Eastern Conference, stunned the Celtics and Cavs in consecutive series to earn their first title berth since 1995. Gone are Shaquille O’ Neal and Penny Hardaway; taking their place are Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis.

Howard has truly been the beast of the East. The Orlando center has been a double-double machine in the playoffs. Howard is averaging just over 21 points and 15 rebounds. He’s also listed at +275 to win the finals MVP award.

But with all do respect to “Superman,” it’s the “Black Mamba”, Kobe Bryant, who will likely determine the outcome of the series. Bryant is averaging nearly 30 points, six rebounds and five assists per game. His motivation for winning the ring is simple. He wants to do it without Shaq. Kobe, by the way, is a -250 favorite to earn the series MVP.

How the Lakers defend Howard will be a big key in this series. Andrew Bynum needs to step up and play like he did before his knee injury. He’s looked unsteady and out of shape but he’s the Lakers one legitimate chance to tug on Superman’s cape. Otherwise the Lakers will have to double down on Howard and that will give Orlando’s bevy of three-point shooters some clean looks. Along that line, Pau Gasol’s defense on Rashard Lewis will be another important matchup.

The Lakers own a huge advantage in the experience category both on the court and on the bench. Phil Jackson has the best winning percentage in the history of the playoffs, he’s got more postseason wins than anyone who has ever prowled the sideline, and with nine NBA titles he’s tied with Red Auerbach. One more crown and the zenmaster will have the Celtics' legend in his rearview mirror.

And don’t for a moment think that his players aren’t aware of that statistic. If the Lakers win tonight when they’re favored by six, here’s another number to consider digest: A Phil Jackson coached team is 31-0 in a seven-game series in which they win the opener. This will be Kobe and Derek Fisher’s fifth NBA finals and that will be huge especially in Game 1.

The Magic swept both regular season meetings from the Lakers and have taken three of the last four meetings. The Lakers are -285 favorites to win the series while the Magic have a +250 dog tag.

Orlando backers can point to back-to-back series wins over the top two teams in the East, the Celtics and Cavs. Lakers proponents will have you look at this year's team being more battle ready after slugging it out with the Rockets and Nuggets to make it this far.

The NBA won’t get its desired Kobe vs. Lebron finals matchup. However the “Black Mamba” vs. “Superman” should make for a nice consolation prize for Commissioner David Stern. For the rest of us it’s definitely “must see” TV.

The Nuggets have enjoyed a great season and playoff run, but it ends tonight on their own court in Denver when Kobe Bryant and the Lakers take Game 6 and the Western Conference.
I might be the only guy this side of the Rocky Mountains who thinks the Lakers will win tonight in the Mile High City.

Forget the Game 4 loss. I know the Lakers have. Once they fell behind in the fourth-quarter it was garbage time and despite the final score it still counts as just one loss. I prefer to think that the LA team that captured Game 3 in Denver is going to be the LA squad we see tonight.

If I knew which Lamar Odom was going to show up, I could almost guarantee a win. But I don’t think even Odom knows which way the wind will be blowing tonight. If he comes anywhere close to his 16 point and nine rebound performance in Game 5, the Lakers should close out the series.

At this time of the season it’s about which team can handle the pressure. The Lakers handled the Game 5 pressure knowing a loss would send them to Denver down a game in the series. Now the question is can Denver respond to a “must win” situation?  Remember this is new territory for the Nuggets. It’s their first conference finals and it’s their first back-to-the-wall in this series.

I could throw all the numbers in the world at you but it boils down to playing under pressure. This is where Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant make the real difference. Another strong effort from Odom and Pau Gasol will make the task easier tonight. A few shots from Derek Fisher would be icing on the cake. Experience counts and that’ll be the difference tonight.

It says here the Lakers win and cover.

Free Pick: Lakers +5½

Recent meetings between the Cavaliers and Magic have leaned to the Under, and that's how Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals should end tonight in Cleveland.

Get ready for the NBA version of the “Big East” as the Cavs and Magic battle in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Cleveland is favored by 8½ and while that number looks intriguing for an Orlando play, I say the money to be made on tonight’s game is to play the Under.

Two of the three regular season meetings stayed below the number and the one game that topped the total occurred on a very rare off day for the Cavaliers' league-best defense. The Cavs gave up 116 points to the Magic and allowed them to shoot 54%.

Outside of that anomaly the games have predictably stayed on the low side. In fact the slew of low scoring games dates back to the ’07-’08 season in which four of the five series meetings finished below the number.

This should be a great series and I think much closer than the so called “pundits” have projected. In the last five meetings between the Magic and Cavavaliers, Orlando is 4-1 SU and 5-0 ATS. Exhibit A is Cleveland's impressive 39-2 home court record this year. But the veteran sports bettor will raise you Orlando’s 27 road victories.

Based strictly on this postseason, Cleveland looks like an unstoppable juggernaut posting an 8-0 SU record and 7-0-1 vs the spread. They’ve won all eight games by double-digits. But Orlando is the one team that can slow down Cleveland’s run. Orlando was 3-0 ATS against Cleveland this season even with Lebron James averaging 30 ppg.

My money is on a low-scoring Game 1 and a close win for the Cavs. This series won’t be a cake walk for either team, especially Cleveland. My series prediction for what it’s worth: Orlando Magic in 6.

Free Pick: Magic-Cavaliers Under 184½ (-110)

After struggling against the Rockets in the previous series, the Lakers should be ready to play some serious ball against the Nuggets at LA's Staples Center on Tuesday.

As tough as their second round series against Houston was, many of the Lakers (we think) took a crash course in “Playoffs 101.” From Phil Jackson to Kobe Jackson to Shannon Brown, the Lakers were humbled by Houston. Gone is there arrogance and where there was a hole, now there’s a heart.

If their Game 7 performance against the Rockets was any indication, the Lakers learned several valuable lessons leading up to the trendy favorite to win the West, the Denver Nuggets. Per usual there are two schools of thought on how Game 1 will turn out and why.

The Denver congregation will point to its easy series victories over the Hornets and Mavs. They’ll also go on about Carmelo Anthony and his coming out party in these playoffs. You’ll hear how J.R. Smith is going to be a three-point machine and how Nene Hilario, Kenyon Martin and the Birdman will have their way with the Lakers down low.

Let me say: Wrong on all accounts?  Denver advanced at the expense of a dysfunctional Hornets team that phoned in the series. Then they took care of an undermanned Mavericks team had one guy show up every night.

During the regular season the Lakers were 3-1 against the Nuggets. The only loss came in the second game of a back-to-back.

The Nuggets say they’ll turn it up defensively against the Lakers. Does that mean the ‘Melo will suddenly play D for the first time in his NBA career or that Chris Anderson can handle Andrew Bynum down low? No and No.

Then there’s that annoying little thing about George Karl who hasn’t won in LA in five years. And least I forget, Denver is 1-10 at Staples Center over the past two seasons, including a four-game sweep in last year's playoffs.

Here are some other numbers to chew on. Kobe averaged over 30 points per game in the four meetings. Anthony averaged 14 ppg. Pau Gasol is averaging nearly 10 rebounds per game as compared to Nene’s 6 rpg.

In their last meeting of the year on April 9, the Lakers won and covered 116-104. Kobe had 33 points, Gasol 27 and Andrew Bynum netted 16 points. For Denver, Anthony had 23 and Chauncey Billups scored 27. That game should give us a truer read on what is going to take place in this series.

I like the Lakers huge in tonight’s game. It appears Los Angeles has turned a lot of people off with their less than stellar play against Houston and I’m hoping more of those annoyed Lakers fans will continue to throw their money behind Denver.

This will be the best home price we’ll see on LA this series, I guarantee you.

I’m on the Lakers big tonight and for the series. This one will be over in five games with the Lakers and Cavaliers meeting the NBA finals. Just like everyone said they would months ago.

Free Pick: Lakers -6 (-110)

The hits just keep on coming at new Yankee Stadium.  Look for plenty of offense on Friday when Alex Rodriguez and New York host Justin Morneau and the Minnesota Twins.

It didn’t take long for the Yankees' new mega-billion dollar ballpark to be billed as “Coors Field of the East.” Fair or not, the new stadium has seen its share of homers and I’m expecting it will yield a few more tonight.

To be exact 47 roundtrippers have been recorded at the hitter-friendly park with the Yankees leaving their new yard 24 times. Add the power numbers to the fact that both pitching staffs have struggled and you’ve got the makings of a solid Over play.

Minnesota is 3-19 in their last 22 visits to the Bronx and over that stretch they’ve got a 5.52 ERA. Meanwhile the Yanks have a home ERA of 6.59.

New York’s starter tonight is righthander Phil Hughes who has been a disaster this season. Hughes is 1-2 with an 8.49 ERA and got just five outs in his last start giving up eights runs against Baltimore.

One time phenom Francisco Liriano goes for Minnesota. He’s just 2-4 with a 5.75 ERA.

The Yankees allow over seven runs per game while the Twins have seen the opposition touch the dish nearly six times per game. Justin Morneau, Jason Kubel, Alex Rodriguez and Johnny Damon have me conjuring up thoughts of a big Yankee Stadium slugfest tonight.

Free Pick: Twins-Yankees Over 10 (-113)

A Game 7 in Hockeytown will have Red Wings fans out in full force.  But home ice won't matter for Detroit as the Anaheim Ducks pull off the upset to advance to the Western Finals.

It’s another do-or-die situation in the NHL with the Ducks and Red Wings squaring off at Joe Louis Arena in the seventh game of their Western Conference semifinal series. Including this series, three of the four second round battles have gone the distance.

I had Anaheim pegged as “Dead Ducks” heading into Game 6 and I couldn’t have been more wrong. Detroit appeared to be gaining momentum and looked to the world to be ready to celebrate in the O.C. However, on their way to the conference finals, the Wings ran into a pair of grizzled veterans in Chris Pronger and Scott Niedermayer who shut down the Wings high scoring duo of Johan Franzen and Marian Hossa.

Meanwhile Anaheim goalie Jonas Hiller was nearly perfect between the pipes stopping 38 shots including several of the highlight reel variety. Hiller has a GAA of 2.09 in the series and a saves percentage of .950. His 18 save performance in the third period of Game 6 is the biggest reason we’re even talking about a Game 7.

It seems that just when you’ve written them off, the Ducks reach back for a little something extra. They did it in the first-round series against San Jose and they’re going to do it again tonight in Hockeytown.

I like the puckline in this one as well with Anaheim at +1½/-135 and the Under is also a tasty proposition. Four of the previous six games have stayed below the number.

This game will be close and could very well be decided in overtime. Tonight you’ll see two veteran hockey clubs in action but the difference maker will be Hiller.

Free Pick: Ducks +210

Dallas hasn't covered a spread yet in this series, and they won't buck that trend tonight in Denver when the Nuggets put an end to this Western Conference semifinal match.

I’m locking in right now with the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 vs. the Dallas Mavericks as this spread is only going to climb.

I look at the Nuggets as a more consistent version of the Lakers. You know Denver is going to win and unlike the Lakers, they do have the ability to put teams away and they have in their previous four wins at home.

The Nuggets are on a couple of impressive runs right now. Denver is 8-0-1 ATS in its last nine games overall and 5-0 ATS at home over the same stretch. Carmelo and company are also on an overall 8-1-1 ATS streak against the Mavs. Conversely Dallas is 1-5 vs. the number in its last six visits to the Mile High city.

I expect lots of scoring tonight in Game 5. Maybe we won’t see Dirk Nowitzki score 44 like he did in Game 4 or for Carmelo Anthony to hit for 41 again. But somebody or some bodies are going to “tickle the twine” plenty of times tonight.

To me, every other playoff series has been tough to cap. This one I’m seeing clearly, like the size of a beach ball almost. It’s tough to ignore the trends. Denver is playing lights out right now and they’ve been deadly at home. I’m siding with them tonight to wrap up the series and I’m also leaning heavily to a pretty good size play on the Over.

Free Pick: Nuggets -8½ (-110)

The Dodgers have continued to score runs even without Manny Ramirez, and their starter Kershaw has been brutal on the road. With Park also struggling at home, go Over.

Even with Manny Ramirez out of the lineup, the Los Angeles Dodgers continue to thrive offensively.

In the four-games since Ramirez was suspended for using a banned substance, the Dodgers have scored 23 runs. Since starting 13-0 at home, the Dodgers are 1-3 post Manny. Surprisingly the losing streak has had more to do with the Dodgers bullpen than the big bat in the middle of the line-up.

LA will try to get back on track today when they open a road series vs. the Philadelphia Phillies. Clayton Kershaw, whose been great at home and terrible on the road, gets the start for the Dodgers. The left-hander has had two effective starts (at home) after two poor ones (on the road).

When pitching in the confines of Dodger Stadium he’s 1-0 with an ERA of 0.95. But on the road he’s been an atrocious 0-2 with a 10.29 ERA. He hasn’t fared well either against the World Champion Phillies in his young career going 0-1 with an 8.10 ERA.

Kershaw will draw former Dodger Chan Ho Park in the opener. Park is 0-1 with a 6.67 ERA. He’s been bad at home: 0-1, 9.98 ERA and he’s allowed two homers in 10+ innings in the Philadelphia bandbox.

Manny deserved his 50 game suspension and probably more. Having said that, this series won’t be quite as fun to watch. But who is in this for fun? This is a great money making opportunity tonight.

This is one of the easy games on the Tuesday slate to handicap. Take the Over.

Free Pick: Dodgers, Phillies Over 10 (-105)

The Penguins took control of this series vs. the Capitals by winning in overtime in Washington in Game 5, putting them in position to end this series on home ice tonight. Given their playoff success vs. the Capitals, take Pittsburgh.

Will the Pittsburgh Penguins be in “Seventh Heaven” tonight?

You could not fault the Penguins for being extremely confident heading into Game 6 tonight against the Washington Capitals, as Pittsburgh is a perfect 6-0 when playing a closeout game against Washington.
 
What’s got to be even more frustrating for the Caps is they’ve let a 2-0 lead evaporate, and by losing three straight to the Penguins, they have put themselves in a “must win” situation tonight. History however is not on their side, as they’ve lost six of their last seven playoff games against the Pens, five of those being of the “come from ahead” variety.

The Penguins overtime victory in Washington has set them up for the opportunity to seal the deal on home ice. They played without their best defenseman Sergei Gonchar in Game 5 but were still able to pull off the upset in D.C.

Make no mistake: With four of the first five games in this series decided by one goal and the other by two, it'd be a little premature for the Penguins to be booking hotel rooms in Carolina or Boston just yet.

Ovechkin, the Caps “Great 8”, says the series is heading back to Washington for a seventh game. But the past dictates another Pens close out with Pittsburgh, not Washington, playing in the Eastern Conference finals.

Free Pick: Penguins -180

Game 2 of this Lakers, Rockets turned into a boxing card with several preliminary bouts, and the end result is Derek Fisher is suspended for this game while Kobe Bryant escaped unscathed. Now can LA get a needed road win?

All that’s needed to give this a Vegas mega-fight touch is Michael Buffer announcing the starting line-ups for tonight’s Game 3 and closing with his signature line: “Now Ladies and Gentlemen, Lets Get Ready To Rumble”.

Maybe Manny Pacquiao could handle the opening tip. Before this one’s over both the Lakers and Rockets will wish they had a Pacquiao or Mayweather Jr. they could send into the game to give an intentional foul. Come to think about it, wasn’t Roy Jones Jr. a part-time hoops player?

The boxing analogies fit. This game will be equal parts ball and equal parts brawl. It will be like an NBA version of “Survivor”. Ron Artest and Kobe Bryant will see to that.

If you watched Game 2 on Wednesday night, you saw for yourself how nasty things got. Houston had been setting hard picks all night and the Lakers finally took exception. Lamar Odom and Luis Scola had words and then Luke Walton and Scola had words and Derek Fisher delivered an elbow to Scola’s face resulting in a flagrant 2 foul and an automatic ejection.

Upon further review the league decided that Fisher’s hit on Scola warranted a one-game suspension. Kobe didn’t get suspended for his elbow to the throat hit on Ron Artest. The blow did set Artest off. He went face-to-face with Kobe and before you knew it the volatile Houston forward has gotten two technical fouls and he too was ejected.

That was just part of the extracurricular activity that went on in Game 2. That’s the appetizer for tonight’s Game 3 feast.

The Lakers lost Game 1 because Houston simply defended like a mother from the opening tip to the final buzzer. The Lakers came into Game 2 and obviously had heard the whispers about being soft.

Phil Jackson also made a bold move in the starting line-up inserting Lamar Odom in place of Andrew Bynum. That switch allowed Pau Gasol to switch to center where he’s a much better defender on Yao Ming. Regarding Bynum, TNT analyst Charles Barkley said it best. I paraphrase; The Lakers were missing Andruw Bynum during the regular season and Andruw Bynum is still missing”. The “Chuckster” nailed it. The Lakers need Bynum to play some minutes, some good minutes. They’re also going to need a huge effort from Jordan Farmar and Shannon Brown tonight to compensate for the loss of Fisher.

The Houston fans will be in full mob mode tonight. You talk about a hostile crowd….this will be by far the toughest venue the Lakers have played in all season. Sure they won twice there during the regular season but come playoff time, you can throw most of those numbers out the window.

As of this writing, the Lakers were favored by 1-1½ points at most major books. Given the fact that the Lakers are public darlings, I wouldn’t be surprised to see more money pouring in on LA throughout the day. That could be a great opportunity to back Houston. While I think the Lakers will still win this series, I’m not sure tonight is the spot where they regain home court advantage.

With a 13-0 mark at home to open the season, the Los Angeles Dodgers look to add to their MLB record on Thursday against the Washington Nationals.

The Dodgers are now 13-0 at home and show no signs of slowing down. What usually happens during a streak of this magnitude is a team gets every bounce and every break. That’s what’s been happening to the Dodgers.

But Joe Torre’s club hasn’t relied just on luck. They’re winning because of timely hitting, solid pitching and the league’s most improved defense. Los Angeles is playing with confidence and they have a boat load of momentum. That combination is going to be hard to overcome. Someone will do it but it won’t be Washington.

The Dodgers swatted the Nats Wednesday night 10-3 for their seventh straight win. LA owns the best record in baseball at 21-8 and is off to their best start since in 32 years. The Dodgers lead the league in batting average, runs and walks AND have left the fewest runners on base in the league.

They’re averaging 5.5 runs per game while allowing just over 3.5 per game. Manny Ramirez is hitting .348, Orlando Hudson .347 and Andre Eithier .317. That trio has combined for 15 home runs and 64 RBI. I said it going into the season and the numbers back me up, the Dodgers have the best lineup in baseball.

Tonight, Randy Wolf goes to the hill against Washington rookie Jordan Zimmermann. Wolf is 1-1 with a 3.93 ERA and is 9-4 liftetime against Washington. Zimmermann, who has never faced the Dodgers, will be making his fourth start of the year. He’s 2-1 with a 4.24 ERA but has allowed four home runs in just 17 innings.

The Dodgers are eventually going to cool off and the streak will end. But I don’t expect either to happen tonight against a Nationals team that hasn’t won in LA in four years.

Free Pick: Dodgers -157

Despite their strong offense, the Dodgers are not not leaning to the Over significantly so far.  Play the Under in LA when the Washington Nationals come to Chavez Ravine.

The Dodgers look to continue their historic winning streak tonight when they host the Washington Nationals in the opener of a brief two-game series.

Los Angeles tied a major league record last night with a win over the Diamondbacks. LA is now 12-0 at home. The only other team to accomplish that feat was the 1911 Detroit Tigers. Do I foresee a 13-0 streak on the horizon? Given the fact that the Dodgers haven’t lost to the Nationals in four years, another win is likely.

However there isn’t much value in this one. As much as I love LA, -200 is a little steep for my blood . I think the solid money-making play is the Under and here a few reasons why.

Despite their off-the-chart offensive numbers the Dodgers are a modest 13-10-5 to the Over. LA is 3-1-1 to the low side in their past five games. Washington is 4-2 to the Under in its last six-games.

Clayton Kershaw gets the start tonight for the Dodgers. While the Oklahoma native has struggled on the road, he’s flashed Cy Young form at home. Kershaw has an 0.64 ERA at Dodger Stadium with 16 strikeouts in 14 innings. Opposing batters are hitting just .193 against him.

Daniel Cabrera gets the start for the Nationals. He’s 0-2 on the year with a 4.44 ERA. Both losses have come on the road where his ERA is above 6.00.

The Dodgers have a “lights out” bullpen which ranks 4th in the majors with a 3.03 ERA. We’ll see scoring tonight, most likely from the Dodgers. But it won’t be enough to top the total. Play the Under tonight.

Free Pick: Nationals-Dodgers Under 9½ (-110)

Following losses to open their conference semifinal series, Boston and Los Angeles both face must-win situations at home on Wednesday night if they want to avoid digging out of an 0-2 hole.  The Celtics, still without Kevin Garnett, are 4-point favorites against the Magic in TNT's opening tip at 8:00 p.m. (ET) while Kobe Bryant and the Lakers are 9½-point chalk against the Houston Rockets.

Who could have imagined that last year's NBA finalists, Boston and LA, would both be facing must-win situations in the second round? The similarity doesn’t end there either as both teams are in danger of going down 0-2 at home!

The Celtics' Game 1 loss is a little easier to understand than the Lakers'. Boston was coming off a draining seven-game series against Chicago that featured four OT games. The Celtics spotted the Magic a 28-point lead in the opener and fought back to within three points. That and the fact that Boston bounced back after losing the first game to the Bulls should give Boston fans hope heading into Game 2.

While the comeback showed the heart of a champion and could be a momentum changer, the fact is the Celtics haven’t beaten the Magic without Kevin Garnett. Boston will have to scratch and claw tonight to win and cover the four-point chalk. The total is set at 188 and only once in five meetings have the teams played an Over.

The Lakers' effort in their Game 1 loss to the Rockets is harder to understand. Los Angeles didn’t appear ready for Houston’s defensive intensity and looked “soft,” especially in the middle where Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Andruw Bynum struggled all night. As expected Kobe Bryant got his points but Derek Fisher struggled and the LA bench was non-existent.

Maybe there’s a reason the Lakers struggled to put away Utah in Round 1. Sure, the Lakers went 65-17 and were the “best in the West” by plenty. But they wouldn’t be the first team in professional sports to be built for the regular season and not for the playoffs (see the Anaheim Angels).

There are many NBA “experts” who think the Lakers' lack of a killer instinct will be their downfall. From a betting standpoint, the Lakers have been an ATS disaster most of the season but particularly in the postseason going 1-4 against the number in their last five games. That money burning trend can be traced back to LA’s inability to land the knockout punch.

Bottom line: Houston’s Game 1 victory wasn’t a fluke. If the Lakers don’t match the Rockets' intensity on both sides of the ball they could become the first upset victim of these playoffs. The Lakers will need to do a complete 180 tonight to win and cover the 9½-point lumber. If Houston dictates tempo as they did in the opener, it might be tough for the two teams to top the 192½ total.

On a record run at home to start the season, the Los Angeles Dodgers will continue their winning ways on Tuesday vs. the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Dodgers beat the Diamondbacks 7-2 on Monday night to become the first team in National League history to win its first 11 games at home. Tonight Manny Ramirez and Company go for baseball’s all-time record set by the 1911 Detroit Tigers who started the season 12-0 at home.

Jeff Weaver heads to the hill for the Dodgers tonight in this his second tour of duty with the Blue Crew. Weaver started the year at Triple-A and was called up to shore up the back end of the Dodgers rotation. He’ll be opposed by Max Scherzer who will be after his first big league victory.

The Dodgers' home field dominance has been amazing. They’ve racked up a .332 team average and have hit 15 home runs while outscoring their opponents 75-28 at Chavez Ravine. It’s not just the offense that’s keyed the streak. The Dodgers have also done it with defense and especially pitching. Los Angeles has  a 2.52 ERA at home and is limiting opposing hitters to a a miniscule .190 batting average.

While I’m not willing to break the bank backing Weaver, this streak is tough to ignore. Combined with the fact that Arizona has lost six straight at Dodger Stadium playing the Dodgers (again) is too good a deal to pass up.

Free Pick: Dodgers -135

The Cavaliers set a new NBA standard in Round 1 against the Pistons, sweeping Detroit by double-digits in each game.  The Atlanta Hawks won't be that easy for Cleveland.

Now that LeBron James has won the top individual award in the NBA, he continues his quest for the biggest prize of all: the NBA Championship.

James, who averaged nearly 29 points per game in the regular season and 32 in the first-round of the playoffs, was named the NBA’s MVP on Monday finishing well ahead of runner-up Kobe Bryant of the Lakers. Now all that awaits the league’s best player is a championship that would cement his legacy at a very young age.

The Cavs are coming off a ground-breaking sweep of the Detroit Pistons in Round 1. Cleveland became the first team in NBA history to sweep and win all four games by double-digits. Granted that came at the expense of a woeful Pistons team, but the numbers don’t lie. Cleveland is on an 8-0 SU and ATS streak and has gone 30-13 ATS on their home floor this season. They were also 15-10-1 as a double-digit favorite.

However before you break out the brooms and the bubbly, this second round series against the Hawks could be harder than it looks. During the regular season Cleveland was 3-1 against Atlanta, but only covered once. The Hawks are also 5-2 ATS in their last seven games against the Cavs. Rust could also be an issue for the Cavaliers who have over a week off. Time off is not a factor for Atlanta which is facing a short turnaround after wrapping up their series against Miami on Sunday.

Cleveland is certainly the healthier of the two teams. Eight days of rest tends to cure a lot of aches and pains. Atlanta though has several players nursing injuries including Marvin Williams (wrist) and Al Horford (ankle sprain). It was Williams who drew the defensive assignment on James during the regular season and if he can’t go, the Hawks will be in deeper than they already are.

James, Mo Williams and Zydrunas Ilgauskas combined to average 65 points per game against the Hawks. Mike Bibby, Josh Smith and Joe Johnson will need to match that number in this series for Atlanta to have a chance. Bibby and Smith played well in round-one but Johnson’s numbers were down from the regular season. JJ will likely be guarded by James who has added improved defense to his already impressive resume.

Atlanta has been a double-digit dog just twice this season. One of those was against Cleveland in a game that the Cavs won and covered as 12 point favorites.

Cleveland is rested and on a mission. They’ve got momentum, chemistry and are playing with more confidence than anyone in the playoffs. With James leading the way, a second-round victory is almost a given. The question is not if Cleveland will win the series but can they get another sweep on their way to the Eastern Conference finals.

Game 1 almost slipped away from the Canucks.  Don't expect that to happen again tonight at Vancouver's General Motors Place against the Chicago Blackhawks.

I rode the Canucks to a 4-3 victory in Game 1 but I sweated it out. Vancouver led 3-0 only to see Chicago score three unanswered goals in the third period to even things up. The Canucks came back to win, thanks to a 4-on-1 rush that led to the go-ahead tally with 1:13 left to play.

Vancouver is a sparkling 27-12-1-4 at home this season including a 2-0 mark against Chicago. The Blackhawks are among the better road teams in the league posting a 23-18-2-2 ledger.

When breaking down these teams you realize how even they are in terms of talent and stats. Take the goaltenders for example. Both Roberto Luongo and Nikolai Khabibulin have a GAA of 2.35. Luongo has 33 saves to Khabibulin’s 24.

Chicago’s 21-year old phenom Jonathan Towes needs to play better in Game 2 if the Blackhawks hope to steal one in Vancouver. Towes who scored a game 34 goals during the season was shutout in the opener.

The Canucks have now won five straight games in the playoffs and they should get their 6th tonight. Look for the Vancouver defense to do a better job of protecting Luongo while the Canucks offense takes advantage of Chicago’s over aggressive play.

Free Pick: Canucks -140

The Hawks look to wrap this series up as road dogs in Game 6 at Miami.  Grab the points and Atlanta on Friday evening when they meet Dwyane Wade and the Heat.

The only consistent thing about the series has been its inconsistency. Both teams have been guilty of one Jeykyl and Hyde performance after another. Compared to the excitement and drama of the Chicago and Boston series, this is like kissing your grandmother after a night out with Selma Hayek! Atlanta and Miami have provided us with clunker after clunker.

For the first time in the series a team has finally established itself (we think) with back-to-back wins. Atlanta took Games 4 and 5 turning a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead and both were double-digit victories.

And where the Hawks have several scoring options – Joe Johnson, Mike Bibby and Josh Smith – the Heat have just one, Dwyane Wade. However he’s not enough and if Atlanta’s coaching staff was paying attention to how Denver shut down CP3, they could make Wade work even harder for his points tonight.

I said going in that Miami was the better team in large part because of Wade. And while I think Wade’s the best player on the court, the Hawks have more depth and are the better team right now.

Atlanta is a slightly better ATS road team (22-21) than Miami is as a home team against the number (21-21-1).

Even though the average margin of victory in this series has been 19 points per game, I’m looking for the two teams to buck that trend tonight. We’re finally going to have a close game and that should translate into a cover and perhaps an outright win for the Hawks.

One final note: Teams facing elimination are 0-4 SU and 1-3 ATS in this year's postseason.

Take Atlanta and the points tonight against the Heat.

Free Pick: Hawks +5 (-110)

Without Dwight Howard and Courtney Lee out for the Magic, the Philadelphia 76ers should have no problem covering this spread at home against Orlando.

You know that old saying, “If it’s too good to be true it probably is?" Here’s another old cliché: “There’s an exception to every rule.”

Philadelphia is laying five points against a beat-up Orlando team that will be without their best player, Dwight Howard. Superman was suspended for Game 6 for throwing an ill-advised elbow with intent to do great bodily harm. He’ll sit, along with shooting guard Courtney Lee, who suffered a fractured bone in his face when he ran into a Howard elbow.

The Sixers have been given a golden opportunity to square this series and force a Game 7 in Orlando, and I don’t anticipate they’ll blow it. Instead of facing Howard and Lee, they’ll see Marcin Gortat and J.J. Redick instead. I don’t know about you but the latter two players don’t worry me much. No NBA team at this point in the season will concede anything. But you couldn’t fault Orlando if they decided to save their ammunition for another day.

Outside of the Game 5 blowout by the Magic, every game in this series has been close. That tells me Philly should have no problem winning and covering tonight.

If your looking to “double up” tonight, the Under is an attractive play as well. The Sixers are 16-25-2 to the low side at home this season while the Magic are 37-50 to the Under this year.

I risked the farm last night on Denver and won. So I’m willing to risk both farms tonight along with my new John Deere tractor. Philly should roll and cover easily.

Free Pick: 76ers -5 (-110)

The Angels' bullpen is pitching BP to the opposition while the Orioles' overall staff has surrendered more runs than any MLB club this season.  Play the Over in Baltimore tonight.

Joe Saunders will start for the Angels and is 5-0 lifetime against the Orioles. For some reason, Saunders gets a healthy dose of offensive support whenever he faces Baltimore.

The Halos have scored 35 runs against the Birds in Saunders' five starts and even with the Angels' patchwork lineup, you expect that trend to continue against a struggling Orioles pitching staff.

Another promising number is the Angels' runs per game vs. runs allowed when facing the Orioles which adds up to just over 10 per game. On the flip side, The O’s are averaging over 11 runs per game in the similar categories.

If you’re playing the Over, you’ve got to love the Angels bullpen. They rank dead last in MLB with a 7.24 ERA. Scot Shields alone has a 10.80 ERA while Jason Bulger is at 12.86. Even Brian Fuentes, who was signed to replace closer Frankie Rodriguez, is at 6.00. Those numbers are real bad for the Angels but potentially profitable for us!

The Orioles have also struggled with their pitching, especially in the starting rotation and that’s led to a 13-7 record to the Over this season. Baltimore can rake: Their offense ranks eighth in the league. But much like the Angels, pitching has been a sore spot with the Birds who rank 29th in the league in ERA and quality starts.

Free Pick: Angels-Orioles Over 10 (-113)

Holding a 3-1 lead after Saturday's win on the road in Salt Lake City, look for the LA Lakers to close it out at home tonight when they host the Jazz for Game 5.

The Jazz saw their best and last chance to challenge the Lakers evaporate with a Game 4 loss Saturday in Salt Lake City. Instead of squaring the series at two wins apiece, Utah got spanked in front of its home crowd and is on the ropes, facing a 3-1 deficit.

The truth is the Jazz, one of the worst road teams in the league, have little or no chance to prolong the series. Utah lost the first two games of the series falling by double-digits in each game. That continued a season-long pattern of road woes for the Jazz who are now 18-25 SU and 18-25 ATS away from the great Salt Lake.

Granted the Lakers are just 21-22 against the number but this is one of those playoff occasions where the team leading the series, in this case the Lakers, will go for the throat Utah let its chance to make this a series with their Game 4 flop and they’ll pay tonight.

If the Lakers Game 4 victory in Utah is any indication, then it appears Phil Jackson’s club has finally figured how to put a team away. Led by Kobe Bryant’s 38 point performance, the Lakers went wire-to-wire for a 108-94 victory that wasn’t even that close. Bryant scored the Lakers first 11 points and rained 16 of 24 shots hitting them from every distance and every angle.

Jackson also made a lineup change prior to Game 4 in Utah, starting Lamar Odom in place of the ineffective Andrew Bynum. Odom responded with 10 points, 15 rebounds and six assists.

Geography will also play a huge role in tonight’s game, as in the Lakers don’t want to return to Utah for Game 6. I expect this game to play out much like Sunday’s finale between the Cavs and Pistons. Once LA gets out in front it wont’ be a matter of if they win, but by how much.

In the land of “Hotel California,” the Jazz have already checked out. I’ll be stunned if the margin of victory is anything less than 20 points.

Free Pick: Lakers -12 (-110)

The red-hot Red Sox are seeking their tenth consecutive victory tonight in the ESPN Sunday Night Baseball game, and they have certainly had karma on their side this series. The superior Boston pen makes the difference.

They say that timing is everything, and the New Yoek Yankees might agree after back-to-back losses to the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

It appears the Yanks have caught the Red Sox at exactly the wrong time. Friday night, New York blew a two-run lead in the ninth innings before falling in 11 innings 5-4. Saturday, the Yanks coughed up a 6-0 lead and ended up losing 16-11 as Mike Lowell drove in a career high six runs. Now the Bronx Bombers look to Andy Pettitte in hopes of avoiding a sweep.

The veteran lefty has been the Yankees’ rock this season. He is 2-0 with a 2.53 ERA, and he is 16-8 against the Red Sox in his career. If Pettitte goes the distance, you’ve got to like New York’s chances. But if Joe Girardi has to go to his bullpen, that spells trouble with a capital T. The New York bullpen is the third worst in baseball posting an astronomical 6.68 ERA. The pen has also given up 14 home runs, which is tops in the majors.

Justin Masterson, who is 1-0 with a 3.18 ERA, is coming off a one-run, four hit performance against Baltimore on Monday. Granted he only worked 5 1-3 innings, but Red Sox manager Terry Francona had the luxury of turning to baseball’s top bullpen to wrap up the 12-1 win.

The Red Sox haven’t won ten straight games since the summer of 2006. Look for that to change tonight as the take the brooms to the Yankees.

Free Pick: Red Sox -134

With offenses that are plating runs left and right, and two shaky bullpens to boot, look for the Dodgers and Rockies to light up the scoreboard at Coors Field tonight.

It’s early in the season but I’ve seen enough of the Dodgers to draw a few conclusions. In my opinion they’re the best team in the National League and offensively they have no peers. Joe Torre’s club is averaging nearly six-runs per game and it’s not a fluke.

Los Angeles has a solid lineup 1 through 8 and there isn’t an easy out in the bunch. However outside of Jonathan Broxton, I’m not impressed with their bullpen despite a 3.61 ERA. Their long relievers have been inconsistent and that weakness will be exploited tonight when rookie James McDonald takes the mound.

The 23-year old McDonald is the Dodgers No. 5 starter and in his previous two starts he’s had that “deer in the headlights look.” He hasn’t gotten past the fourth inning in either outing, going 0-1 with an ERA of 5.78. Another early trip to the showers tonight will expose the Dodgers middle relievers.

The Dodgers and Rockies combined for 11 runs on Friday night. That could have and should have been higher when you consider the Dodgers twice failed to score with the bases loaded and none out.

In the Colorado dugout, you’ve got a team that is averaging six runs per game and giving up six runs per game. The Rockies ‘pen is 25th in the league with an astronomical 6.18 ERA with 12 homeruns allowed.

Both teams can hit the long ball and humidor or not, we should see a few leave the yard. I see this as a real strong play. Pitching be damned, the Dodgers and Rockies are going Over tonight.

Free Pick: Dodgers-Rockies Over 10½ (-110)

Vancouver has been one of the hotter teams in the NHL with a 23-7-2 mark down the stretch, and the Canucks will stay hot Wednesday night at home vs. the St. Louis Blues.

The Vancouver Canucks certainly haven’t done things the easy way this season. In February, the Canucks were 13-points out of a playoff spot. They proceeded to finish with a 23-7-2 kick and clinched the Northwest Division title on the final day of the regular season.
 
Led by the Sedin Twins, Henrik and Mats, as well as Ryan Kesler, Mats Sundin, Pavol Demitra and Alex Burrows, the Canucks might not going scare anyone offensively but their seventh-ranked defense, with Roberto Luongo between the pipes, can be the difference maker.
Vancouver has been lights out at home since February going 13-1-1 and the Canucks have that all-important momentum heading into tonight’s series opener.

The Blues, who ended a three-year playoff drought, aren’t just happy to be here, they believe that they’re also got the formula to advance. St. Louis has used a familiar recipe: strong defense and goaltending, to get this far and they are banking on those two ingredients to get them through into Round 2.

Chris Mason has been a revelation in net for St. Louis.  Since taking over for Manny Legace, Mason appeared in 57 games with the Blues, and was strong down the stretch to get them into the postseason.
 
The two teams split their four games this season with three of the four going Over. And while that’s a tempting play tonight these are the NHL playoffs where stout defense usually prevails.
 
I see anything but a high-scoring game. Instead this will be grind it out hockey at its finest.

Free Pick: Canucks -180

The Rangers are smoking hot at the plate and the Tigers lineup should light up Kris Benson when Texas travels to Detroit for a Friday afternoon matinee contest.

The Rangers have come roaring out of the gate winning three straight. They’re averaging over nine runs per game to start the season and are allowing nearly five runs per game.

The prospects for another Over look good today as well. Texas will start the well-traveled Kris Benson who hasn’t appeared in a big league game since 2006. Even when healthy, Benson isn’t an overpowering pitcher and for that matter hasn’t been a productive one either.

The former No. 1 pick by the Pirates 13 years ago has a career mark of 68-73 and an ERA of 4.34. He was with the Phillies Triple-A team last season and went 1-4 with an ERA of 5.52. To no one’s surprise he was released following the season. His signing should tell you plenty about the woeful shape the Rangers pitching staff is in.

Detroit has gotten off to a slow start losing three of their first four games. Pitching has been the culprit for Jim Leyland’s team with Tiger hurlers posting a combined 6.00 ERA.  Armando Gallaraga, who won 13 games last season, will be throwing ‘em down for the Tigers in their home opener. Gallaraga’s ERA last season was under four so if he’s on, he’ll be tough.

I say with all of the big bats up and down both of these lineups, the Over is the right play here.

Free Pick: Rangers-Tigers Over 9½ (-115)