Saturday 8 November 2014

NFL Betting Trends - Miami Dolphins at Detroit Lions Picks

Even a few weeks ago, Sunday’s game between Miami and Detroit looked like just a ho-hum affair, but both teams are surging into this matchup and, who knows, maybe it’s a Super Bowl preview. The Lions are 2.5-point NFL betting favorites.
Lions star wide receiver Calvin Johnson said he will play Sunday against the Dolphins after missing the last three games with an ankle injury. recovering from an ankle injury. It was in Week 3 when Johnson initially suffered his high right ankle sprain against the Green Bay Packers. He played on a limited basis the next two weeks before aggravating the injury in Week 5 against Buffalo. Running back Reggie Bush also will return from injury and start Sunday. The Lions come off a bye week and have staged huge come-from-behind wins in their past two games. The first-place Lions (6-2), who own a one-game lead over Green Bay atop the NFC North, won all three games in Johnson’s absence.
Johnson and Bush will match up with a familiar face Sunday — ex-teammate Louis Delmas. After being cut by the Lions in February, Delmas has started seven of eight games for Miami and was named AFC defensive player of the week after recording two tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception in Week 7 against Chicago.
Miami (5-3) has won three straight games, all by at least 13 points. The Fins crushed San Diego 37-0 last week. Ryan Tannehill threw for 288 yards and three scores, and Miami forced four turnovers. It was the Dolphins’ largest shutout victory since October 11, 1987 (42-0 vs. Kansas City). The Dolphins played with an emotional edge and earned their most impressive win of the season for Coach Joe Philbin, whose father passed a few days before the game.
The Dolphins are averaging 30.6 points in their past five games. They are fifth in the NFL in scoring over that stretch. The Lions are allowing 15.8 points a game — the only team in the NFL giving up fewer than 17 points a game.
DOLPHINS NOTES: In past 5, QB RYAN TANNEHILL has 1,283 pass yards & 10 TDs vs. 4 INTs for 104.1 rating. Club is 15-1 (.938) when Tannehill has 90+ rating. Aims for 5th in row with run of 20+ yards…In past 6, RB LAMAR MILLER has 531 scrimmage yards (413 rush, 118 rec.) & 5 rush TDs. Has rush TD in 5 of past 6…WR MIKE WALLACE had TD catch in only career meeting (10/11/09 with Pit.). Aims for 4th in row with TD vs. NFC. WR BRIAN HARTLINE (4,034) had 50 rec. yards last week & became 7th player in club history to reach 4,000 career. Last week, TE CHARLES CLAY led team with 65 yards on 5 catches with TD…In past 4, DE CAMERON WAKE has 4.5 sacks, FF & FR. Has 11 sacks, 2 FF & FR in past 9 vs. NFC. Has 58 career sacks & needs 2 to surpass JEFF CROSS (59.5) for 2nd-most in club history. S LOUIS DELMAS played 5 seasons in Detroit (2009-13) & posted 328 tackles, 6 INTs & 5 sacks. CB BRENT GRIMES has 3 INTs in past 2, incl. 2 vs. SD.
LIONS NOTES: QB MATTHEW STAFFORD led 21-point comeback win in Week 8. Is 1 of 3 QBs since 1966 to start 3 games in which team overcame 21+ point deficit to win. Since 2011, ranks 2nd in NFL with 16,871 pass yards. Has 120 pass TDs, most in team history…RB REGGIE BUSH played 2 seasons in Mia. (2011-12), rushing for 2,072 yards (1,036 per season) with 12 TDs & catching 78 passes for 588 yards with 3 TDs. RB THEO RIDDICK aims for 3rd in row with rec. TD. RB JOIQUE BELL has rush TD in 2 of past 3…WR CALVIN JOHNSON has 13 rec. TDs in past 14 vs. AFC. Has 84 catches for 1,521 yards (117 per game) & 11 TDs in past 13 vs. AFC. In past 16 at home, has 109 catches for 1,926 yards (120.4 per game) & 10 TDs. Since 2011, leads NFL with 5,485 rec. yards & 107.5 rec. yards per game. In past 5, WR GOLDEN TATE has 39 catches for 599 yards (119.8 per game) & 3 TDs, incl. 4 100-yard games. Has 15 catches for 250 yards (125 per game) & TD in past 2 vs. AFC…LB DE ANDRE LEVY had 30-yard INT-TD in last meeting. Leads team with 75 tackles. Has 7 INTs since 2013, most by LB. DT NDAMUKONG SUH had sack & FF in last meeting. In past 3, DE EZEKIEL ANSAH has 3.5 sacks & 2 FFs. CB CASSIUS VAUGHN had 45-yard INT in Week 8.
NFL betting trends: Dolphins are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games in November. Dolphins are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. Dolphins are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games after allowing less than 15 points in their previous game. Dolphins are 29-11 ATS in their last 40 road games vs. a team with a winning home record. Lions are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 home games. Lions are 6-15-1 ATS in their last 22 games in November. Lions are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games following a S.U. win. Lions are 3-12-2 ATS in their last 17 games in Week 10.

Wednesday 28 May 2014

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. New York Mets Free Picks May 28th

The Mets wrap up their 9-game homestand on Wednesday afternoon from the Pirates.  Charlie Morton got his first win of the growing season for Pittsburgh in his last outing.  Morton is 0-3 with a 4.62 ERA in four starts away from home this season.  He's zero wins in five career starts from the Mets.  Lucas Duda (3-7), David Wright (3-10) and Ruben Tejada (4-5) have good numbers versus Morton.  The Mets are hitting the ball well today as they've seven hits or more in 11 straight games. 

Bartolo Colon loves pitching in the home for New York.  He features a 3.15 ERA in three home starts for the Mets while striking out 18 and walking only one.  Colon beat the Pirates last year at their place after allowing 1 run and seven hits in seven innings of work.  Pittsburgh is merely 8-12 in day games while hitting .219 as a team and scoring just 2.4 runs per game.  Free Sports Picks We'll back New York in this game on Wednesday afternoon.

New York Yankees vs. St. Louis Cardinals Free Picks May 28th

The Yankees won the opener with this series on Monday but these were shutout yesterday behind an elegant performance from Lance Lynn who went the distance while allowing just five hits. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for New York and it turns to Hiroki Kuroda to test and take the series. Kuroda has not been at his best this season as he has tossed just five quality outings in 10 starts but his best work has come on the road where he has allowed three earned runs or less in all starts on the highway.
 
He faced the Cardinals five time while with the Dodgers and he was great at Busch Stadium as he posted a 2.84 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in three starts, all being quality efforts. The Cardinals counter with Shelby Miller who includes a solid 3.18 ERA but has labored for the absolute most part.
 
Only four of his 10 outings have already been quality starts and his 1.39 WHIP is a big concern. In his last start, he allowed four runs in five innings from the Reds which snapped a five-game winning streak over his previous five games. He has been excellent in the home but look for the Yankees to bounce back making use of their offense because they are 10-3 inside their last 13 games after scoring two runs or less inside their previous game. Free Sports Picks Play (929) New York Yankees

Sunday 11 May 2014

Triple Crown betting: Filly Ria Antonia running in Preakness Stakes?

While all the focus on the May 17 Preakness Stakes, the second leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown Betting , is on horse racing odds-on favorite California Chrome, the winner of the Kentucky Derby, there could be a female to crash the usually all-male party.
 
That would be Ria Antonia, who plans to take a shot at the boys May 17 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. Majority owner Ron Paolucci confirmed the news after Ria Antonia galloped Tuesday morning at Churchill Downs for trainer Tom Amoss, not Hall of Famer Bob Baffert, who trained her leading up to the Oaks.
If the daughter of Rockport Harbor is shipped to Pimlico Race Course to run in the middle jewel of the Triple Crown on May 17, she will be saddled for the first time by Amoss. Ron Paolucci’s Loooch Racing Stable and Christopher T. Dunn have transferred their 3-year-old filly from Baffert to Amoss after her distant sixth-place finish behind Untapable in the Kentucky Oaks the day before the Kentucky Derby.
 
Should Ria Antonia take on the boys, she would attempt to become the sixth filly to capture the Preakness. Fillies to win the Preakness include Rachel Alexandra (2009), Nellie Morse (1924), Rhine Maiden (1915), Whimsical (1906) and Flocarline (1903).
 
Then trained by Jeremiah Englehart, Ria Antonia finished second by a nose in last November’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies at Santa Anita but was declared the winner upon the disqualification of She’s a Tiger for interference in the stretch. She finished fourth in the Fair Grounds’ Grade III Rachel Alexandra won by Kentucky Oaks winner Untapable and was transferred to Baffert to race in California. Ria Antonia was second as the favorite on horse racing odds in the Santa Anita Oaks but was beaten almost 16 lengths by Untapable in the Kentucky Oaks.
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Saturday 19 April 2014

Finding a spot for Schoop Baltimore Orioles

A pleasant surprise for the Baltimore Orioles has been rookie infielder Jonathan Schoop, whose four-hit game against the Red Sox on Friday night raised his season average to .304.

Eduardo A Encina of the Baltimore Sun says he is starting to get questions from fans as to what the Orioles are going to do at third base when Manny Machado returns from the disabled list. It's likely Machado will go on a rehab assignment at some point next week, and the hope is he will be back by early May.

Finding a spot for Schoop is a good problem to have. A lot can happen between now and then, but Schoop has made a serious case to keep a roster spot even when Machado returns. The question will be whether the Orioles will be content for Schoop to get limited at-bats as a backup infielder rather than have him play every day at Triple-A Norfolk.

Schoop also has played second base in the minors, but the Orioles have received solid production this season at that position from Stephen Lombardozzi (.308 BA).

Baltimore Orioles Johan Santana ahead of schedule?

When the Baltimore Orioles signed Johan Santana to a minor league deal in early March, it was hoped that he would be able to help the big league club sometime in June. Could the two-time Cy Young Award winner be ahead of schedule?

Peter Gammons tweets Saturday that Santana’s velocity is up to 85 miles per hour and “is not far away.” Gammons says Santana is motivated to break the record for most wins by a Venezuelan pitcher, currently held by Freddy Garcia with 156. Santana has a career mark of 139-78.

Santana is currently throwing live batting practice as he continues to progress from his second shoulder surgery. According to an MLB.com report earlier this week, Santana “is on a five-day rotation-esque progression.”

It remains to be seen how the Orioles would work Santana into a rotation where Bud Norris (3.75 ERA) is currently at the back end.
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Atlanta Braves' Finding a fit for Gavin Floyd

The Atlanta Braves' rotation appeared to be in shambles a few short weeks ago when the club learned Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy would be lost for the season.

Enter journeyman Aaron Harang, who pitched seven no-hit innings against the Mets on Friday night to lower is earned run average to a miniscule 0.70 in four starts. Once desperate for healthy arms, the Braves may soon have to decide which effective starter gets bumped once Mike Minor and Gavin Floyd are ready to return.

Minor, who began the year on the disabled list with shoulder tendinitis, was scheduled to start for Triple-A Gwinnett on Friday night, but the game was postponed by rain. There is a chance he could join Atlanta's rotation next week, reports MLB.com’s Mark Bowman.

Floyd, who is attempting to return from Tommy John surgery, allowed four earned runs in 4 2/3 innings in a rehab start for Double-A Mississippi on Friday against Huntsville. Given Floyd has yet to complete five innings, he could be a few weeks away.

Following the last-in, first-out philosophy, the leading candidate to be bumped is David Hale, who has a 1.43 WHIP in four major league starts. Hale also could be kept as a reliever.

Finding a fit for Floyd, however, will be more difficult given Harang’s dazzling start. But some regression to the mean seems inevitable given Harang did have a 5.40 ERA last season. Remember, Paul Maholm got off to a similar start for the Braves last season (0.00 ERA in first three starts) before the bottom fell out.

At the very least, Harang’s performance takes away any temptation to rush Floyd back.