You’ve surely heard it many times before: The baseball season is a marathon, not a sprint. As the third month of play comes to an end and we near the midway point of the season, let’s re-evaluate some names we see on the betting board every fifth day, while noting a few that may have been overlooked.
Here are three starting pitchers worth backing, and three you’re going to want to fade.
Cincinnati is looking to close some ground in the National League Central but couldn’t take advantage of a loss by St. Louis and finished yesterday behind Pittsburgh in a fun race to watch.
The Texas Rangers drew first blood in this series between former World Series combatants (2011). Texas took the first game and if they keep winning they might use this series to reclaim first place in the American League West. Not exactly a true measure of revenge but better than nothing.
The mountains of data offered to fans can sometimes be intimidating, but once in a while a gem appears that can help us to make sense of what we can expect to see out on the diamond.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are in last place and fading, with the worst record in the National League West Over the last 10 games.
The Rangers have lost 7 of their last 10 games and they lost yesterday to the A’s, which dropped them 3 games behind Oakland in the AL West. MLB lines have the A’s as slight road favorites with a total of 9.5 runs.
To me the San Diego Padres are one of the most counfounding teams out there. With the names they have on their roster they should probably be among the worst teams in the Majors but they are hanging in there at just below .500.
San Francisco Giants (32-29) vs Arizona Diamondbacks (35-27)
The San Francisco Giants came into this weekend hoping to close the gap against the first place Arizona Diamondbacks but the best they can hope for now is winnning the series. They dropped the opener but came back yesterday winning a 10-5 victory.
This is an important series between the Nationals and Braves this weekend and the Nationals struck first taking game 1 – thought it may have cost them ace Stephen Strasburg.
Is the National League Central the best division in baseball? Well it is the only one with three teams with 34 or more victories heading into June. Two of those are locked up here as the Red and Pirates are tied for second behind the Cardinals after the Reds won the series opener Friday night.
The Indians are struggling losing 4 straight games and they now are 2.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central.
The A’s are one of the hottest teams in baseball, as they have won 4 straight and 9 of their last 10 games.
The Indians are struggling losing 4 straight games and they now are 2.5 games behind the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central.
The Angels (23-27) are the hottest team in baseball, as they have won 8 straight games. They have a lot of work still to do, as they trail the Texas Rangers by 9 games in the AL West.
The 2 seasons for the New York teams could not be going any differently, as the Yankees have been great, despite their many injuries, while the Mets have the 2nd fewest wins in the National League.
The St. Louis Cardinals came into Friday night with the best record in baseball. As this is being written they were beating L.A 3-0 and looking to extend their lead in the National League Central. You have to hand it to St. Louis for always being so competitive.
