This four-game series between the White Sox and Red Sox will conclude Thursday night at Fenway Park. The White Sox have outperformed expectations, while the Red Sox have been a bit of a disappointment.
The National League East was supposed to be the Philadelphia Phillies division once again this year, but in the middle of the July the Phillies sit in last place in the division.
The Braves are riding a season-best 7-game winning streak and they have a hot pitcher on the mound, as they open a series facing the NL West leading Giants.
The New York Yankees have hit their stride over the past couple months. The Yankees have taken a firm hold of the lead in the AL East with their red hot run, and they now also have the best record in baseball.
While the Phillies have won 2 straight they are only 3-7 in their last 10 games and they are 14 games out of first place in the NL East. If Philly does not start winning they may shelve the season and trade away some of their key players.
Both the Angels and the Tigers are coming off a win and are in 2nd place in their respective divisions and if the season ended today the Angels would be the team in the AL that would snag the Wild Card berth.
The Chicago White Sox have been one of the best road teams in baseball so far this year. The Kansas City Royals have been one of the worst home teams in baseball this season.
It’s only fitting that the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves would start the second half of the season with a series against each other. These two have battled for the second place position in the NL East all season.
We have arrived at the half-way part of the season – what a perfect time to take a look at the teams that have impressed throughout the first three months of the season and the teams that have fallen flat.
Last night’s Yankees vs. Red Sox series opener had plenty of fireworks. Both teams put up a five spot in the first inning. The Yankees ended up winning a slugfest 10-8. On Saturday, the teams will play a day-night doubleheader.
These teams enter this game with nearly identical records. Both have been surprises, but in different ways so far this year. The Orioles have been much better than expected, while the Angels haven’t lived up to expectations.
A few weeks ago the Dodgers had the best record in baseball and everything was looking great. Now, the Dodgers are in a tailspin and looking like a team destined to head back to the .500 mark.
Oakland dominated the first game of this three-game set, but Boston starts Ace Jon Lester in this one. The Red Sox started the season poorly, but they have been playing good baseball for the last month or so.
Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics MLB Betting Preview
Starting Pitchers: Boston (Lester) vs. Oakland (Colon)
Date/Time: July 3, 10:05 p.m. EST
MLB Gambling Odds from TopBet
Moneyline: Boston (-131) Oakland (+121)
Runline: Red Sox -1.5 (+125) vs. Athletics +1.5 (-145)
Total: 7.5
Oakland is proving to be a scrappy team that is difficult to beat, especially at home. Let’s take a look at this Tuesday night matchup.
The Red Sox might consider Jon Lester their Ace, but he hasn’t pitched like one so far this season. Lester is 5-5 with a 4.53 ERA in 2012. He has allowed 109 hits in 101 innings pitched. He has a very disappointing 1.34 WHIP. Lester has been one of the better pitchers in the American League over the past four years, but he hasn’t been able to find his command this year. Boston’s offense has been short-handed all season, but this team has still managed to pile up the runs. Boston is averaging an impressive 5.14 runs per game. Veteran David Ortiz and youngsters Daniel Nava and Will Middlebrooks are all exceeding expectations and leading the way for this offense.[dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
Bartolo Colon will start for the Athletics in this contest. Colon hasn’t started a game since June 17due to an oblique injury. He is 6-7 with a 4.22 ERA this year. The Athletics have managed to stick around .500 despite having the worst team batting average in the majors. Oakland is 20-19 at home so far in 2012. Josh Reddick leads a more powerful than expected middle of the order. Reddick has 19 homers already this year. Yoenis Cespedes has missed a lot of time this year, but he looks like a guy who will hit a lot of home runs for many years to come. The Athletics are fifth in the majors in stolen bases. The pitching staff has a solid 3.53 ERA.
Both of these pitchers have been inconsistent at best this year. Colon is coming off an injury against a good lineup, and Lester has yet to prove himself this season. I like this one to go over the posted total.
MLB Free Pick: Over 7.5
Another two weeks has passed – time for Dave B’s bi-weekly MLB Power Rankings! This week sees some familiar teams at the top with a traditional powerhouse almost reaching the pinnacle.
There isn’t a more heated rivalry in baseball than the Dodgers vs. the Giants. The bad blood between these two runs extremely deep.
Two streaky teams square off in this Interleague series finale Thursday night in Boston. Both Miami and Boston have looked great at times this year and looked terrible at times this year.
