BOOM!!
There we go!! That was more like it, even if our losses were on the tough side. It should have been a nearly +7 UNIT night of PROFITS and should have been even better but once again the scoring in the Spurs/Warriors game slammed to a halt and forced us to take a break even night in the NBA as opposed to a MONSTER night there as well!! NHL was a PERFECT 3-0 and we took the KINGS and the UNDER off the board, so it could have been an even better night!! But the MLB ended on a positive note as the DBacks picked up the 2-play sweep and finished our night a PERFECT 3-0 in our 2 UNIT plays there!! All in all a good night as promised. Let's keep it going today.......
TODAY'S ACTION --
(MLB)
*2 UNITS* UNDER 9.5 TOR BLUE JAYS @ BOS RED SOX (-125)
Lester did his thing on Friday night and now it is time for Bucholz to continue to do his thing on another Saturday. Lester was brilliant, holding the Jays to a mere 1 H in his 5-0 shutout last night, shutting down the Blue Jay bats completely after they just rolled through Tampa Bay. The Red Sox needed the lift, after losing 3 of 4 to the Twins at Fenway and they should get another pick-me-up in the form of another strong Bucholz outing here today. The Red Sox righty has started out 2013 in monster fashion, posting a perfect 6-0 record with a tiny 1.60 ERA and even tinier 1.03 WHIP in over 50+ innings of work this season. The Red Sox are also a perfect 7-0 ML in those starts and have won 5 of those 7 games by at least 2 runs. Clay has allowed only 8 ER through his 5 starts at home so far, allowing his team to outscore their opponents by a 25-11 margin on his own home turf. How can you not roll with the guy? He may or may not be cheating (depending on what pundit you talk to), but he also may not even need to cheat today if he is. Buehrle is on the hill opposite him and he was awful in his first start against the Sox this season, allowing 5 ER and 7 H in 6.2 IP, in a game the Red Sox went on to win laughably, 10-1. His last start against the Red Sox at Fenway came last season, and the lefty was torched in that game as well, for 6 ER in only 5 IP. Buehrle hasn't had the best of luck in Beantown throughout his career, either, as he has been toasted for 6 ER or more in 4 of his L5 outings there. He also comes in allowing 17 ER over his L3 outings this season. This should be a much better start for him, but these two pitchers should be able to keep the ball in the ballpark and thus, keep the score down. Unfortunately for Buehrle, have to give the edge to the Sox, as expecting a near un-hittable performance from Bucholz against this suddenly cold Blue Jays lineup. Take the UNDER and the BOSTON RED SOX on the RUN LINE to come through once again at home today................
*2 UNITS* 1ST 5 INNINGS: OVER 4 PIT PIRATES @ NY METS (-125)
Expect the runs to come early and often for this one (or at least Over 4), as Francisco Liriano makes his first start for the Pirates, after the left-hander suffered a season-opening layoff due to breaking his arm while "slapping a door" in his home over the winter. Not that we are expecting a totally awful outing from the veteran, but he has never really had a very good first outing of the season in all of his career since he became a starter. In fact, from 2008-2012, he compiled a dismal 0-4 record in those 5 starts (the Twins went 1-4 in those 5 starts) and allowed 4 ER or more in 4 of those games as well, while failing to even make it through 5 innings in 3 of them. Even further, in his season-opening starts in that span, he holds a balky 6.92 ERA through 26 innings pitched, with an equally high 1.65 WHIP. And that was when he was feeling good. The two teams have combined to go well over 4 R in the first 5 innings of 3 of those games as well, although only one actually totaled more than 7 R for the game overall. He has never faced the Mets, and this will officially be his first start as a National League pitcher so really this one could go either way, but his track record suggest that there will be some early runs here. Niese will be on the mound for the Mets and although he has dominated the Pirates in his career (2-0 / 1.93 ERA in 3 GS), he has not been anywhere near dominant lately. The Mets ace has allowed 19 R (16 ER) over his L5 starts. Also, 6 of his 7 starts have had the two teams 9 total R in the game this season, with 5 of those outings seeing the two teams combine for well into the double-digits. McCutchen has hit him well though, going 3-for-6 with 2 2B and an RBI against the lefty in his career. The Mets could use the type of outing he has been producing at home all season though, as he has been pretty good on his home mound. Through 4 starts there in 2013, he has allowed 1 R or fewer in 3 of those 4 starts, with a total of 5 ER in all through 21.2 IP at Citi Field (one start was only 2.1 IP). He is coming in off his worst start of the season so far, allowing 7 ER in only 4 innings in a 9-4 loss at ATL, and that brutal start marked only the 4th time in his career he allowed 7 ER or more in a start. One of those outings was his last start of the season, so he only has 3 follow-up outings to go off of. In those 3 outings, he has bounced back nicely, allowing a mere 5 R in 19.1 IP for a decent 2.33 ERA. Last season, he allowed 7 ER or more in 2 starts. He was incredible in those two follow-up starts, allowing a measly 2 ER in 14.2 IP (1.23 ERA) and an ice cold 0.68 WHIP. With last night's win, the Mets have now won 6 of the L7 meetings, also going 7-4 ML in the L11 between the two squads, including a 4-2 ML mark in the L6 in New York. Even worse for the Pirates, they have been owned by the Mets in the big city in recent years, with New York holding a 23-7 ML mark in their L30 home games against the Pirates since 2005. That includes a 13-4 ML run at home they are currently on against the Pirates. Take the OVER for the 1ST 5 INNINGS in NY today.......
UNDER 7 COLORADO ROCKIES @ ST. LOUIS CARDINALS (+110)
This one just seems a little too easy and hopefully it ends up coming through as such. There is a trend in play that suggests it will though. Currently the trend is on a 7-2 run and is 9-3 in the L12 situations for the Rockies. Take the UNDER in this early match-up.......
There you have it!! That will kick off this SUPER SATURDAY of action in the MLB!! We will be back with another set of plays, most likely before the 4 PM EST / 1 PM PST games so make sure to check back to the website throughout the day......
Best of luck to all today!! Let's get that money!!
PORT PORT SPORTS