You don’t have to say it; I know I’m right. The Phillies and Rays are both sportsbook.com flukes. Yep, after 2 games I’m able to draw that conclusion. Anyway, let’s look at some upcoming matchups.
Twins at White Sox, Sunday April 12: This should see Liriano vs. Buehrle in each Ace’s second start of the season. Neither looked superb in start 1 but both were solid. Sox look fine in the first week with some pop here and there. Of course, they won’t be able to rely on Thome’s bat to win every game, if for no other reason than the body attached to that bat probably won’t last the entire season. Expect a slim line favoring the home team. – 125 for the Sox, maybe +110 for the Twins. The Sox struggled with the Twins last year, especially away. The Sox have uneven hitting dispersed among the starters, and the Twins are spreading the hits around better as a team early on. My bet would be on the Twins in this game.
Mets at Marlins, Sunday April 12: Over in the other league, these two teams both could be in the thick of the playoff hunt toward the end of the season. This game is an easy one, though, as unless things change, you won’t see me betting against Johan Santana at all this year. The Marlins should throw Nolasco, who despite winning his first start “scattered” 7 hits, allowed 5 and will need to whittle down his 7.5 era over his next few starts. However, the Marlins offense should be able to stand toe-to-toe with the Mets. It’s the pitching that’ll let them down. Home team goes in as the underdog at + 135; Mets will be around -150.
Let’s jump ahead to a great baseball betting opportunity – Monday’s game when the Yankees visit the Rays. Rays will be the favorite here, and the probably should, but just by a slight margin. Even though I might be convinced they’re a fluke this early, Vegas isn’t. They’re at home and the Yankees predictably aren’t the unbeatable force just yet everyone expected them to be when they signed half the free agent market in the off-season. The Rays DH pickup of their own, though, Pat Burrell, adds meat to the middle of their order, but will it mess with the chemistry that lifted them as a unit passed the two beasts of the AL East in 2008? Time will tell. For this one, I’m calling a -115 Rays and a +110 Yanks. I’d give the betting edge to the Rays.