5* graded play on the Seattle Mariners as they take on the San Diego Padres in MLB interleague action set to start at 10:10 PM ET. Which team have we decided to back with out MLB picks tonight, and with the lines moving, are we better to jump on the lines now?
Both of these teams are out of any meaningful playoff
contention, but they have had spirited contests in the past two games. San
Diego won the first two games by one run margins and Seattle will look to avoid
a three-game sweep tonight.
Seattle is in last place in the American League
West division with a 27-37 record and trail the division leading Texas Rangers
by 9 ½ games. The Padres are also in last place in the National League West
division with a 22-41 record and trail division leading Los Angeles Dodgers by
17 ½ games.
MLB odds makers had opened Seattle as the -125 favorites, but that has quickly been bet up to -131.
Team Rankings and Overview
These teams have average pitching
staffs and far worse offenses and when combined becomes clear to why they are
cellar dwelling teams. Seattle ranks 27th in MLB with a .235 team batting
average, 17th with 2,361 plate appearances, 21st averaging 4.11 runs per game,
26th averaging 7.97 hits per game, 16th averaging 0.90 home runs per game, and
16th averaging 7.79 strikeouts per game. By comparison, San Diego ranks 28th
with a .230 team batting average, 21st with 2,343 plate appearances, 29th
averaging 3.35 runs per game, 28th averaging 7.57 hits per game, and 29th
leaving an average of 4.05 runners in scoring position.
Erasmo Ramirez
Ramirez is an extremely talented
22-year old pitcher, who will be making his first career start. He has made
seven appearances out of the bullpen and posted a 2.45 ERA in 11 innings of
work. He was sent to Triple-A Tacoma to work on being a starting pitcher and
excelled, posting a 3-2 record with a 3.11 ERA in seven minor league starts.
Moreover, his command and ‘stuff’ were so good in his last start that he
carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning.
An advantage he will have is the
simple fact that the Padres have never faced him. Scouting and video reports
are always helpful, but facing a starter for the first time is a far more
difficult task. I fully expect him to have a dominating performance agaist a
struggling Padres offense tonight.
Edison Volquez
Since his last win at
Philadelphia, Volquez has struggled over his last five starts losing four of
them and the Mariners winless in all five of these starts. Over the last three
starts he has posted a 5.44 ERA with a 1.620 WHIP, walking 12 batters, and
striking out 14 batters in 16 ? innings of work. His command is quite poor as
highlighted by the walked batters and Seattle hitters will make him work and
get themselves into hitter-friendly counts.
Supporting System
Supporting this graded play is a
system that has produced a record of 108-63 for 63% winners and has made 43.9
units per one unit wagered since 2006. Play on home teams when the money line is +125
to -125 and is an excellent fielding team averaging 0.5 or fewer errors per game on the season
and after scoring and allowing three runs or less. The average play for this system has been
-100.
The one thing Seattle does very
well is defensive fielding, where they rank second best with just 25 errors on
the season. San Diego, by comparison, ranks 25th with 49 errors made on the
season.
Take Seattle as a 5* graded play.