We are back at it on the diamond on this Tuesday, and there is a good amount to like. Yesterday was the first day that umpires now routinely check all the pitchers for foreign substances, and didn’t seem to go too badly. There were not issues to be noted, and most players said it was quick and painless. You saw Jacob DeGrom laughing with the umpires, and he still looks unhittable. It’s still an interesting development to watch, even more so with the MLB’s latest cryptic tweet…
Big things coming. đź‘€ pic.twitter.com/xDs7jvVBRy
— MLB (@MLB) June 22, 2021
It will be interesting to see what that means, if anything at all. I wouldn’t put it past the league office to do something crazy like totally changing the baseball mid-season, but who knows. This would just frustrate players even more, so I doubt it would be something that extreme. I only had one play yesterday, and it was a winner with the Padres. Let’s keep the winning ways going, as I have a few more plays today.
MLB⚾️6/21: 1-0 (+1.00u)
Padres (-123)âś…— Bets By Bob (@BetsByBob) June 22, 2021
Chicago White Sox (Lucas Giolito) at Pittsburgh Pirates (Tyler Anderson)
Play: White Sox -1.5 (-105)
*Playable to White Sox -1.5 (-115)
By now if you follow and bet baseball, you are very well aware of the narrative of the White Sox against left-handers. It’s very true, and well I successfully faded that trend a few days ago, it’s time to get back on the train.
Lucas Giolito gets the nod for the visiting Chicago White Sox, and has been solid this season. He enters with an ERA of 3.86 and a FIP of 4.22. Giolito has done a good job keeping hitters off balance, and faces one of the worst lineups in the big leagues in the Pirates. He has a strikeout rate of 30.9% and opposing batters are only hitting .207 against him. The White Sox should be plenty motivated here to get a win, losing their past 4 games, and expect a good performance from that lineup today.
Tyler Anderson gets the task of shutting down a talented White Sox lineup today, and a tough task it will be. Anderson has had a rough go as of late, getting shelled for 6 runs his last time out against the Nationals. He enters with an ERA of 4.89 and a FIP of 4.51. Most concerning is the amount of long balls he has given up as of late. That could very well come into play today against a lineup that can absolutely mash the deep ball. The Pirates are 2-8 in their last 10, and have the second worse run differential in baseball. The White Sox should be able to take care of business today and get back in the win column.
Los Angeles Dodgers (Clayton Kershaw) at San Diego Padres (Blake Snell)
Play: Over 7.5 (-110)
*Playable to Over 7.5 (-120)
© Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
The Los Angeles Dodgers are back in action against their division rival, the San Diego Padres again tonight. The Padres were able to take the series opener, tagging Julio Urias for 4 runs before he even recorded an out. They followed that by cruising to a nice 6-2 victory. Tonight they have a matchup against someone who they are all too familiar with.
Clayton Kershaw gets the ball for the Dodgers, and is still doing Kershaw things. He has an ERA of 3.36 with a FIP of 2.75. It is really astonishing how long he has been an elite pitcher. He has been getting hit a bit harder lately, at a rate of 40.1% of the time. The Padres also seem to get to him, and tagged him for 3 home runs their last time facing him. The added familiarity plays a factor, as he has a funky delivery that could be harder without seeing him before.
Opposing Kershaw will be the struggling Blake Snell. He enters with an ERA of 5.72 and a FIP of 4.37, while sporting a BABIP of .336. At first glance it would look like there is some better luck coming his way, but I am not so sure about that. He hasn’t located his fastball well as of late, and has given up a lot of hard contact here recently. The other alarming statistic that jumps out at me is that he is walking batters at a 13.2% clip. It’s hard to prevent runs when you’re allowing that many free baserunners, and will eat you up at some point. Both these lineups are top in the league, and with a low total here, I have a decent edge pointing toward the game going over the total in this one.
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