NL Central clash here on Tuesday has the Cincinnati Reds hosting the St Louis Cardinals. The Reds took the opener in this series on Monday, 6-1. The Reds are in 4th in the division with a 58-61 record, 9.5-games back of the Brewers. The Cardinals are 60-59 and in 2nd place, 7.5-games back. The Cardinals will start Erick Fedde here today. Fedde is 8-5 with a 3.28 ERA this season. The Cards acquired Fedde from the White Sox at the trade deadline. Fedde has two starts with St Louis, going 10 innings and allowing six runs. Hunter Greene will toe the rubber today for the Reds. Greene is 8-4 this year with a 2.90 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. Greene has been excellent, allowing just three runs over his last four starts and all those coming in his last start at Miami. Before that he went three starts and allowed no runs over 20 innings with 23 KO's and just five walks. Greene has been tough and I like him here today. Play the Reds.

The Houston Astros and Tampa Bay Rays begin a new week here in baseball with their set ready for game one on Monday. The Tampa Bay Rays have a tall ladder to climb if they want to make the postseason. They are 11 games back in the AL East but only 5.5 back in the AL Wildcard. The problem is that they have four teams to climb over to get that Wildcard. The Houston Astros best road to the postseason is to win the AL West and right now they are in a virtual tie with the Mariners for that spot. The Astros have won five straight games and seven of their last 10 games. The Astros will start Framber Valdez today who is 11-5 with a 3.46 ERA and 1.19 WHIP. The Astros have won his last five starts and with the exception of one game where Valdez allowed four runs, he's been excellent. Valdez has allowed two runs or fewer in the other four games and has 41 KO's and 10 Walks during that span. The Rays will start Taj Bradley today. Bradley is 6-6 with a 3.07 ERA and 1.09 WHIP. Bradley has slipped a bit in recent games, allowing nine runs over his last 9 2/3 innings as the Rays lost both those starts. Valdez looks too good to pass on and the Astros playing very good right now. Play Houston.

The Houston Astros lead the AL West by just one percentage point over the Seattle Mariners. The Astros have taken the first two games of this series at Boston and look for the third game here on Sunday. They have won the two games 8-4 and yesterday 5-4. The Red Sox are 61-54 and in third place in the AL East, 7.5-games back of first place Baltimore. After winning three straight, the Red Sox have now lost three straight games. The Astros will start Hunter Brown today. Brown is 9-7 with a 3.98 ERA on the season. Brown is coming off a nice start at Texas where he allowed just one run and three hits over six innings. In fact, Brown has allowed two runs or fewer in four of his last five starts. James Paxton will start for the Red Sox with his 9-3 record and 4.42 ERA. Paxton came over from the Dodgers before the trade deadline and has started two games, gone 10 1/3 innings and allowed 11 hits and five runs. Not sure Paxton is as good as the record states since he came over from one of the best run support teams in the Dodgers. I'll take the Astros to win again here on Sunday.

That warm breadth that the LA Dodgers feel on their collective necks is that of the San Diego Padres baring down on them. The Padres are the hottest team in baseball and have cut the LA lead to just 2.5 games in the NL West. What once looked like a cake walk for the Dodgers is now a all out battle for the Division. LA took game one of this series with the Bucs behind newly acquired Jack Flaherty and another Shohei Ohtani home run. Flaherty, acquired by LA before trade deadline was brilliant yet again as he struck out 10 in his Dodger Stadium debut as LA cruised to a 9-5 win. Meanwhile the Pirated dropped their fifth game in a row with that loss on Friday. They are 56-59 and now 10-games back of first place Milwaukee in the NL Central. Paul Skenes will start for the Bucs here on Saturday as he's been very good with a 6-1 record and 1.99 ERA with a 0.94 WHIP. Skenes has allowed five runs over his last three starts (19 2/3 innings). LA will turn to rookie Rivery Ryan making just his fourth start at the big leagues. Ryan is 1-0 with a 1.72 ERA and 1.28. Ryan has looked excellent for LA as the Dodgers have won all three of his starts and he has 14 KO's but nine walks. This looks to be a great pitcher matchup here on Saturday. I'll be on the Dodgers though in this one.

 Interleague action here on Friday has the LA Angels travelling to Washington to take on the Nationals. The Angels are coming off a series at the Yankees in which they took two of three games and scored 22 runs over three games. Still, LA sits in fourth place in the AL West with a 51-64 record and 8.5-games back of the Astros. The Nationals are coming off a four game set vs the Giants in which they lost three of four games. The Nationals are 52-64 and 17.5-games back of the Phillies in the NL East. Jose Soriano will start for the Angels here on Friday. Soriano is 6-7 with a 3.47 ERA and 1.21 WHIP. Soriano has pitched well of late, allowing five total runs over his last four starts (22 1/3 innings). The Angles have also won the last four starts of Soriano. The Nats will counter with Mitchell Parker. Parker is 6-6 with a 4.06 ERA. Parker has allowed 14 earned runs over his last five starts (21 2/3 innings). The Nationals are 2-3 in those last five starts. Two poor teams here on Friday but the edge in this one goes to the Angles. Take LA on Friday.

 A pair of last place teams meet here on Thursday as the Miami Marlins host the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds are 55-59 and 9.5 games back of the NL Central 1st place Milwaukee Brewers. The Reds have a 2-1 lead in this best of four series, winning Monday and Tuesday and losing yesterday, 4-6. The Marlins are 43-72 and 25.5 games back of the 1st place NL East Philadelphia Phillies. They also have the third worst run differential in baseball at -151. Hunter Greene will start for the Reds today. Greene is having a fine season with a 8-4 record, 2.83 ERA and 1.02 WHIP. Greene has not allowed a run in three straight games (20 innings) with 23 KO's and just five walks. Kyle Tyler will start for the Marlins. He's 0-2 with a 5.27 ERA and 1.76 WHIP. Tyler has allowed 10 runs over his last 11 1/3 innings with eight walks. Greene has the big advantage here today and that's the side I'm on. Play Cincinnati.

Don't look now LA Dodgers but that breadth you feel on your back is that of the San Diego Padres. The Padres have closed the gap in the NL West to just four games. The Padres have been red-hot too, winning three straight games and 12 of their last 14 games. They took the opening game of this set with the Pirates on Tuesday, 6-0. The Dodgers have struggled of late. Mookie Betts has been out of the lineup for a while with a broken bone in his hand and Freddie Freeman has missed time due to a family matter. The Dodgers are just 3-4 their last seven games and 4-6 their last 10 games. The Padres hope these misfortunes for LA will be their shot at getting back to the top of the division. They will have Michael King on the hill today. King is 9-6 with a 3.26 ERA. King has been excellent of late, allowing two runs or fewer in each of his last five starts. The Padres have won four of those starts. King also has 35 KO's to just seven walks during that span. The Pittsburgh Pirates are 56-56 on the season and in 3rd in the NL Central, seven games back of the Milwaukee Brewers. The Pirates have also lost two straight games and six of their last 10 games. They will send Marco Gonzales to the hill today. He's 1-2 with a 3.72 ERA and 1.52 ERA. He's allowed six runs over his last two starts (7 innings). I'm sticking with the red-hot Padres here on Wednesday.

The Red Sox and Royals play game two of their set here on Tuesday. The Red Sox took game one one Monday, 9-5. The Sox have won six of their last 10 games and are 60-51 overall and six games back of the Yankees and Orioles in the AL East. Despite the loss, the Royals kept pace with the Guardians as they still sit five games back in the AL Central at 63-51. The Sox will start Brayan Bello today. Bello is 10-5 with a 5.13 ERA and 1.44 WHIP. Bellow has pitched well of late, allowing three runs or fewer in each of his last four starts. Seth Lugo will go for the Royals and he's been their Ace this year. Lugo is 13-5 with a 2.57 ERA and 1.02 WHIP. Lugo had a bad start two games ago but rebounded with a nice eight inning performance vs the Tigers with just four hits and one run. I still like Lugo a lot and will be on the Royals today after losing Monday.

 The San Francisco Giants and Washington Nationals opened their set on Monday with the Giants winning game one, 4-1. The Giants have been hot, winning eight of their last 10 and closing the gap a bit in the NL West to nine-games back of the division leading Dodgers. But everyone in the West division has been hot so they haven't moved from their 4th place. Meanwhile, the Nationals lost their sixth in the last 10 games on Monday. They sit in 4th in the NL East, 16 games back of the Phillies. Hayden Birdsong starts for the Giants and is 3-0 with a 2.97 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. He has been very good in his last five starts, allowing no more than two runs in each start and no runs over his five innings in his last start. MacKenzie Gore will counter for the Nats today. Gore is 6-9 with a 4.54 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. Gore has been hit hard of late, allowing nine runs over his last 10 1/3 innings. I'm sticking with the hot Giants here today. Play San Francisco.

The San Diego Padres open a set here today with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Padres have won four of their last five games and 11 of the last 13 games. They have closed the LA Dodgers lead in the NL West to just 4.5 games and are also contending for a Wild Card. The Pirates just lost two of their three games to the D'backs and have also lost three of their last four overall. The Pirates will start Bailey Falter who is 5-7 wit a 3.95 ERA. Falter has been good but the Bucs have still lost three of his last five starts. Dylan Cease will start for the Padres with his 11-8 record and 3.42 ERA and 0.99 WHIP. The Padres have won his last four starts. In fact, the Padres have scored 22 runs in those four starts will allowing just one total run. That is excellent run support. Cease has allowed just one run over his last 27 2/3 innings of work. I'm sticking with Red-Hot Cease and the Padres here today. Play San Diego.

 The Boston Red Sox continue to fight for a playoff spot as they are 59-51 overall with a +33 run differential. The Red Sox took two of three games from the Rangers over the weekend. That made them 3-1 over their last four games. The Royals have won seven of the last 10 games including taking three of four from the Tigers in their last series. They have closed the game pin the AL Central to just five games behind the Cleveland Guardians. James Paxton will start for the Red Sox after coming over in the trade with the Dodgers. This will be his second start for the Red Sox after a rocky first start. He went 4 1/3 innings vs the Mariners and gave up six hits and six runs. The Royals will start Brady Singer who is 8-6 on the season with a nifty 2.88 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. Singer has been very good in recent starts, going 21 innings over his last three outings, allowing just three total runs as the Royals have won all three of those. I'm sticking with Singer here on Monday. Play Kansas City.

 The New York Mets took the opener in their series at the Angels on Friday, 5-1. That makes the Mets 3-1 in their last four games. The Angels lost their third straight game on Friday. That dropped them to 47-63 and 10.5 games back of the Astros in the division. David Peterson will start for the Mets. Peterson is 5-1 on the season with a 3.52 ERA. The Mets are 4-1 in his last four starts though his last one was the worst of the lot where he gave up four hits and four runs in a loss to the Braves. Jose Soriano will start for the Halos with his 6-7 record and 3.69 ERA. Soriano only went 2 2/3 innings in his last start vs the A's, giving up five hits and six runs though the Angels did rally to win that game. I'll take the Mets here on Saturday with Peterson on the hill. Play New York.

The Brewers took game one of this set with the Nationals on Friday, 8-3. The Brewers snapped a two-game losing streak with the win on Friday. The Washington Nationals have lost five in a row after Friday's setback. The Brewers will start Aaron Civale on Saturday. He's 2-7 with a 4.92 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. The Brewers acquired Civale from the Rays in early July. He's had four starts with the Brewers and while they are just 1-3 in those starts, he has allowed just fix earned runs over his last three starts (15 innings). DJ Herz will counter for the Nationals. He's 1-4 with a 4.79 ERA and 1.33 WHIP. The Nats have lost his last five starts. I'll take the first place Brewers here on Satuday.

AL East matchup here on Friday has the last place Toronto Blues taking on the Yankees which are tied for the division lead with Baltimore. The Jays are coming off a series with Baltimore in which they lost three of four games and dropped to 50-59 in the standings and 14.5 games back. The Yankees won their fifth game in a row with their sweep of the Phillies. Kevin Gausman will start for the Jays with a 9-8 record and 4.44 ERA. The Jays have won his last three starts and he pitched a complete game win last time out vs the Rangers, allowing just four hits and three runs in the win. The Yankees will counter with Marcus Stroman who is 7-5 with a 3.64 ERA. The Yankees have split his last four starts, winning two and losing two. He's allowed 11 runs over those four outings (18 innings). Yankees a big favorite here today as they should be. However, the Blue Jays best shot at a win comes in this matchup. I'll take a show with them today as a nice dog play.

AL Central clash here on Friday has the Kansas City Royals taking on the Tigers from Detroit. This is game two of this four game set with the Royals taking game one on Thursday, 7-1. That was the fourth win in a row for Detroit, which sits in 2nd in the division six games back of the Guardians. The Tigers lost their fourth game in a row and are in 4th in division, 15 games back of the Guardians. Tarik Skubal will start today for the Tigers. It's a bit surprising that he's still with the team considering he was one of the hottest commodities up until the trade deadline. Likely his price was too high for many teams to want to pay for a 12-3 starters with a 2.35 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. Skubal hasn't allowed more than two runs in any of his last five starts and the Tigers have won four of those games. Cole Ragans will counter for the Royals with a 7-7 record and 3.37 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. Ragans has allowed seven runs over his last two starts (11 2/3 innings). Both of those starts coming since his appearance in the ALL-Star game. I'm sticking with Skubal today as the Tigers look like they will be keeping the AL All-Star starting pitcher. Take Detroit.

Interleague action here on Thursday has the NL West worst Colorado Rockies taking on the AL West 4th place LA Angels. The Rockies finally broke a five game losing streak with a win over the Angels on Wednesday, 2-1. The Angels have won six of their last 10 games but still trail 1st place Houston and Seattle by 9-games. Ryan Feltner will start for the Rockies tonight. Feltner has been on the bad side of luck all season with just one win and 10 loss and a 4.99 ERA. He's pitched well of late but the Rockies have still lost his last five starts. The Angels will start Carson Fulmer tonight. Fulmer has started two game since 7/21 and gone 10 1/3 innings, allowed seven hits and six runs. He has a 3.77 ERA and pitched mainly out of the bull pen. He's also been better at home with a 2.59 ERA whereas he has a 5.19 ERA on the road. I'll take the Angels tonight with Fulmer.

The Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers played game two of their three game series on Tuesday with the Braves taking game one, 5-1. The Brewers took game one on Monday, 8-3. The Braves shaved a game off of 1st place Philadelphia's lead in the AL East as the Phils lost in extra innings to the Yankees. The Braves have won three of their last four games. The Brewers have lost three of their last five games after their loss on Tuesday. They are 61-46 and in first place in the NL Central. They have a 6-game lead over St Louis. Chris Sale will start for the Braves. Sale having a Cy Young type of season with a 13-3 record, 2.68 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. The Braves lost his last start at the Mets, but Sale got the no decision as he went 7 1/3 innings, allowed two hits and two runs to go with nine KO's and one walk. Sale has not allowed more than two runs in any of his last five starts. Freddy Peralta will counter for the Brewers today. Peralta is 6-6 with a 3.94 ERA and 1.21 WHIP. Peralta is coming off a loss to the Marlins where he allowed six hits and five runs over 5 1/3 innings. He also walked five batters in that game. I'm take the Braves here on Wednesday with one of the best in the NL on the hill in Chris Sale. Play Atlanta.

: Huge NL West series starts tonight as 1st place LA Dodgers travel to San Diego to play the 2nd place Padres. The Dodgers lead over the Padres has dropped to 6.5 games as both teams have won seven of their last 10 games. The Dodgers did drop two of three games in their recent series at Houston. With the MLB Trade deadline just one day away I expect both these teams to be active, especially the Dodgers. The Padres have been red hot as they had their seven game win streak snapped by the Orioles in their last game, 6-8. Tyler Glasnow recently came off the IL list for the Dodgers and will start tonight. Glasnow is 8-6 on the season with a 3.47 ERA and 0.96 WHIP. Glasnow has allowed 12 runs over his last three starts (14 innings) with eight walks. The Padres will counter with Matt Waldron who is 6-9 with a 3.96 ERA and 1.15 WHIP. Waldron has allowed four runs over his last two starts (12 innings) with nine KO's and two walks. Padres have done well vs the Dodgers at home in recent games and I expect this game to be close. I'll take the dog though with the Padres.

The NY Mets have taken two of the first three games in this four game set with the Atlanta Braves. They did lose on Saturday, 0-4. They are 55-49 on the season, 10-games back of first place Philadelphia. The Braves snapped their six game losing streak with that win on Saturday. They have dropped to 55-48 and 9.5 games back of the Phillies and just a half game ahead of the Mets as they battle for a Wild Card slot at this point. The Braves will start Reynaldo Lopez today who is 7-4 with a 2.12 ERA. Lopez has been a bit inconsistent of late. He has allowed 18 hits and seven runs over his last two starts (12 innings). He did pitch in the All-Star game, going just a 1/3 of an inning. David Peterson looks to stay perfect here today with his 5-0 record and 3.14 ERA. Peterson hasn't allowed more than two runs in any of his last five starts and the Mets have won all five with great run support. The Mets have scored at least five runs in those Peterson five starts. I'm taking the Mets here today as the Braves look to be headed in the wrong direction. Play NY Mets.

The two worst teams in the AL West will meet here tonight in Anaheim as the LA Angels host the Oakland A's. The Angels are in 4th place in the division with a 45-59 record, 9.5-games back of first place Houston. The A's are 43-63 and in last place, 12.5-games back of Houston. Oakland has taken the first two games of this series, 6-5 on Thursday and 5-4 on Friday. The A's looks to take the series today while the Angels look to get back into it. The A's will start Mitch Spence who is 6-6 with a 4.67 ERA. Spence has allowed 12 runs over his last 15 innings of work. He also has nine walks during that span. The Angels will look to Tyler Anderson tonight. Anderson is 8-8 overall with a 2.91 ERA and 1.15 WHIP. Anderson has been pitching well, allowing just five runs over his last three starts (19 2/3 innings). He also has 22 KO's against just one walk during that time. I like Anderson here tonight as the Angels get a win in this series. Play LA Angels.

The Yankees and Red Sox play game two of their three game rivalry set here on Saturday. The Red Sox rallied late for three runs in the 8th inning to grab the win in game one on Friday, 9-7. That was the third loss in a row for the Yankees and their fifth loss in their last six games. The Sox have won two of their last three games after a four game losing skid was halted. The Yankees will start Marcus Stroman here today who is 7-5 with a 3.51 ERA. Stroman has allowed three runs in his last two starts. However, before that he allowed 11 runs over his previous 16 innings. The Red Sox will counter with Kutter Crawford. Crawford is 6-8 with a 3.37 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. Crawford is coming off one of his worst starts where he allowed six runs and seven hits over five innings to the Dodgers. Before that bad start he had allowed just one run over his previous three starts (20 innings). I look for Crawford to return to his previous form here tonight. Take the Red Sox.

The Pittsburgh Pirates and Arizona Diamondbacks begin their 3-game set here on Friday. The Pirates took two of three games from the Cardinals and improved to 52-40, seven games back of the Brewers in the NL Central. The D'back have won two straight and took two of three games in their set with the Royals. They are 53-50 and 8.5-games back of the Dodgers in the NL West. Luis Ortiz will start tonight for the Bucs. Ortiz has a 2.57 ERA and 1.11 WHIP this season. Ortiz has started four games while coming out of the pen ins 22 games with a 5-2 record. Ortiz is coming off an excellent start where he went seven innings and allowed just three hits and no runs for the win over the Phillies. Zac Gallen will counter for the D'backs. Gallen is 7-5 with a 3.64 ERA this year. He has been inconsistent this season. He is coming off a very good start where he allowed three hits and no runs over five innings to the Cubs. However, the two starts prior he went 9-innings and allowed 16 hits and 12 runs. Ortiz is a big dog here tonight and he's been good enough to play the Bucs as a live dog. Play Pittsburgh.

The AL East clash between the Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays continues here on Thursday with game three of this set. The teams have split the first two games with the Rays winning on Monday 4-2 and the Jays on Tuesday, 6-3. The Blue Jays are in 4th in the AL East with a 51-51 record and 9.5 games back of the Orioles. The Blue Jays are 46-55 and 14 games back. The Rays will start Taj Bradley here tonight with his 5-4 record and 2.63 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. Bradley has pitched great of late, going 14 innings in his last two starts and allowing six hits and no runs. He's only allowed three runs over his last five starts (31 innings). Chris Bassett will start for the Jays with a 8-8 record and 3.71 ERA. Unlike Bradley, Bassett has been hit fairly hard of late, allowing 12 runs over his last 16 2/3 innings. I like the Rays and Bradley here in the final game of this set. Play Tampa Bay. Blue Jays 6-3 on Wednesday.

Interleague action here on Wednesday has the Arizona Diamondbacks against the Kansas City Royals. This will be the final game of this three game IL set. The teams have split the first two games with the Royals winning on Monday 10-4 and the D'backs on Tuesday, 6-2. The Royals are 56-46 and 5-games back of first place Cleveland in the AL Central. Arizona is 52-50 and 9-games back of the 1st place Dodgers in the NL West. Arizona will start Ryne Nelson tonight. Nelson is 7-6 on the season with a 4.78 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. Nelson has pitched better of late, allowing six runs over his last four starts. Michael Wacha will counter for the Royals. Wacha is 7-6 with a 3.55 ERA and 1.20 WHIP. The Royals have won his last four starts and he's been very good too, allowing six runs over his last five starts (28 1/3 innings). Both pitchers have been good, but the Royals are at home and playing better. Take Kansas City.

 Important AL Central matchup here on Monday as the 1st place Cleveland Guardians take on the 4th place Detroit Tigers. The Tigers trail Cleveland by 10 games and if they hope to close that gap then it start here on Monday. The Tigers lost on Sunday but have won seven of their last 10 games. The Guardians lost two of three over the weekend to Padres. they have also lost six of their last eight games. A.L. All-Star starter Tarik Skubal will make his first start of the 2nd half of the season here tonight. Skubal is 10-3 with a 2.41 ERA and very nice 0.88 WHIP. Skubal went one inning in the All-Star game and allowed no hits and no runs. He has also allowed just three runs over his last two starts (13 innings) with 21 KO's and just one walk. Carlos Carrasco will counter for the Guardians. Carrasco is 3-7 on the season with a 5.02 ERA. He's pitched better of late though, allowing three runs or fewer in each of his last five starts. Even with Carrasco pitching better, I still like Skubal in this spot. Take the Tigers.

NL West game here on Saturday evening has the San Francisco Giants playing at the Colorado Rockies. The Giants lost last night to the Rockies and are now 47-51 and 10-games back of the LA Dodgers. They also have a -31 run differential. The Rockies are in last place in the division but have won two straight games and have a horrible -165 run differential. All Star Logan Webb will start for the Giants with a 7-7 record and 3.47 ERA. Webb was hit hard in the All-Star game, going one inning and allowing three hits and three runs. The start to finish the first half of the season wasn't much better, as Webb went five innings and gave up eight hits and seven runs. Kyle Freeland is 1-3 for the Rockies this year with a 6.00 ERA. Despite his poor record and high ERA he's been very good since returning in last June. Freeland has gone 26 1/3 innings in his four starts since June 23rd and allowed just five total runs with 21 KO's and just five walks. The Rockies have also won his last three starts. With Freeland a big dog here on Saturday I'm going to take him and the Rockies. Play Colorado.

The Baltimore Orioles started the 2nd half of the baseball season the way they ended the first half, with a win. They took game one of this set with the Rangers on Friday. The have won just four of their last 10 games however and have just a one game lead over the Yankees in the AL East. The Rangers have won seven of their last 10 games despite the loss on Friday. They have closed the gap in the AL West to just five games behind first place Houston. Grayson Rodriguez will start for the O's here on Saturday. He's 11-4 with a 3.88 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. Rodriguez is coming off one of his worst starts, allowing eight hits and six runs in a 1-6 loss to the Yankees. Max Scherzer will get the start for the Rangers. Scherzer is 1-2 with a 2.96 ERA and 0.99 WHIP this season. The Rangers have won his last two starts with Scherzer going 10 2/3 innings and allowing four runs with 12 KO's and just one walk. I like the Rangers here this afternoon with Scherzer on the hill. Play Texas.

Cross State rivalry here as the Philadelphia Phillies take on their rivals from the West part of the state, Pittsburgh Pirates. The Phillies have the best record in baseball with a 62-35 mark. They also have a +109 run differential. However, they have lost two straight games including last night's contest to the Pirates. The Pirates aren't out of the race yet, as they trail first place Milwaukee by just six games in the NL Central. The Pirates have the longest win streak in baseball right now with five straight wins. They are also 7-3 over their last 10 games. The Phils will start Cristopher Sanchez who his7-4 with a 2.96 ERA. Sanchez pitched in the All Star game and went 2/3 innings with no hits and no runs. He did get hit pretty hard two starts ago in Chicago, allowing seven hits and seven runs over just four innings. Luis Ortiz had a bad start back on June 21st, since then has four excellent starts. Ortiz has gone 19 2/3 innings and allowed just three total runs to go with one walk and 21 KO's. I like Ortiz here this afternoon as he's a nice home dog. Play Pittsburgh.

Second half of the season is underway and the Rays and Yankees play game two here on Saturday. The Yankees won game one on Friday and they sit one game back of the Orioles in the AL East at 59-40. They also have the best run differential in the East at +106. The Rays are 4th in the East with a 48-49 record and 11-games back of the Orioles with a -68 run differential. Taj Bradley will get the start for the Rays with his 4-4 record and 2.90 ERA. Bradley has been very good of late, allowing two runs or fewer in each of his last five games with the Rays winning four of those games. Nestor Cortes will counter for the Yankees. Cortes is 4-8 with a 3.67 ERA on the season. The Yankees have lost his last four starts as he's allowed 12 runs over his last 21 2/3 innings of work. The Rays are worth a shot here on Saturday with Bradley pitching very well and Cortes having trouble getting wins for his team. Take the Rays.

 Baseball enthusiasts, gear up for an exciting showdown this Friday as the Tampa Bay Rays go head-to-head with the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium! This game features a marquee pitching matchup between Zach Eflin and Gerrit Cole, setting the stage for a thrilling contest. Tampa Bay Rays: Zach Eflin Zach Eflin has been a consistent force on the mound for the Rays this season with a 5-6 record and 3.99 ERA with a 1.12 WHIP. With a repertoire that includes a sharp fastball, a deceptive slider, and a reliable changeup, Eflin has the tools to keep the Yankees powerful lineup in check. His ability to induce ground balls and limit walks will be crucial in navigating the dangerous hitters in the Bronx. New York Yankees: Gerrit Cole Gerrit Cole, one of the premier pitchers in the league, will take the mound for the Yankees. Known for his overpowering fastball and devastating slider, Cole has the ability to dominate any lineup. His strikeout potential and command of the strike zone make him a formidable opponent for the Rays. Cole is 2-1 with a 5.40 ERA and 1.46 WHIP. Cole has allowed one run in two of his last three starts. Pitching Duel: The Eflin vs. Cole matchup is one to watch, as both pitchers have the capability to take control of the game and deliver a pitching clinic. Power Hitters: Rays hitters like Wander Franco and Randy Arozarena will look to challenge Cole, while Yankees sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton aim to capitalize on any mistakes from Eflin. Game Outlook This game is could shape up to be a classic pitchers duel with the potential for explosive offensive moments. The Yankees are 58-40 and trail the Orioles by just one games as they start the 2nd half of the season. The Rays are 48-48 and 10 games back of the O's. Until I see better from Cole in his few starts, I'll stick with Eflin here on Friday as a nice sized dog. Play Tampa Bay.

Last day before the All-Star break has this storied rivalry between the Chicago Cubs and St Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals are in 2nd in the NL Central, climbing back to within 3.5 games of 1st place Milwaukee. The Cubs are 46-51 and in last in the division, 8.5-games back. Both teams are still in the negative for run differential with the Cubs at -10 and the Cards at -33. The Cardinals looking for the series here on Sunday after taking game two on Friday, 11-3 and game three on Saturday, 4-5. They did lose game one to the Cubs, 1-5. These two wins snapped a three-game losing streak. The Cards will start Miles Mikolas today who is 7-7 overall on the season with a 4.88 ERA and 1.21 WHIP. Mikolas was hit hard on his June 27th start vs the Reds, giving up 12 hits and nine runs over 4 1/3 innings. Since then he has been much better with 12 1/3 innings of work and two earned runs. The Cubs had been on a roll before this series with St Louis, winning five straight games including a sweep of Baltimore. The Cubs can come out of this series 2-2 and they will look to Jameson Taillon to do just that. Taillon has a 6-4 record for the Cubs with a 2.99 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. He's been very consistent, allowing two runs or fewer in four of his last five starts and three runs in the other start. He's also been very good with the strikeouts, chalking-up 32 KO's during the last five starts to just four walks. I'm taking the Cubs to win today and even this final series before the All-Star break. Play Chicago.

Another IL matchup here on Saturday has the Arizona Diamondback hosting the Toronto Blue Jays for game two of their three game set. Toronto is last in the AL East, 14-games back of the 1st place Baltimore Orioles. They also have a -56 run differential. The Diamond backs have climbed into a tie with the San Diego Padres for second in the AL West, eight games back of the Dodgers. They have a +7 run differential. The D'backs have won three straight and five of their last seven games. Yilber Diaz will make the start for the D'backs with his 1.50 ERA and 0.83 WHIP. He has just the one starts thus far and it was very good, going six innings vs the Braves and allowing four hits and one run with five KO's and one walk. Jose Berrios is 8-6 on the season for the Jays, with a 3.767 ERA and 1.13 WHIP. Berriors has been hit hard of late, allowing nine runs over his last 11 innings. Berriors has been decent for the Jays this year, but I'm sticking with the D'backs tonight. They have been one of the best teams in June and July and they have climbed the division to get back into the race. Play Arizona.

Interleague action continues here on Saturday between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago White Sox. The Pirates took the first game of this three game set on Friday, 4-1. It was the Bucs second win in a row and their fourth in the last five games. Luis Ortiz will start today for the Pirates with a 2.95 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Oritz has been used mainly out of the pen and aside from one outing he's done well. He's allowed three runs in 19 innings of work with one outing he gave up 10 hits and six runs over four innings. The Pirates are in 3rd in the NL Central with a 46-48 record and 7.5-games back of first place Milwaukee. The White Sox likely makes some sales before this month's trade deadline. They sit dead last in the AL Central, 31.5 games back of the Guardians. They have lost two straight games and seven of their last 10 games. They also have a horrible -168 run differential. Chris Flexen will start today for the Sox with a 2-7 record and 4.95 ERA. The Sox have not won any of his last five starts and he's allowed 22 runs over his last 27 innings. I'm taking the Pirates here on Saturday against this Sox club and Flexen. Play Pittsburgh.

The LA Dodgers have been hit hard by injuries both on the mound and at the plate. They lost Mookie Betts, their leadoff hitter and shortstop to a broken hand and Max Muncy has been out for some time. They have suffered many injuries to their starters and bullpen too. Yet, they are still in 1st place in the NL West, 7-games up on the 2nd place Padres. The Dodgers limp into this series at Detroit after being swept at Philadelphia, scoring just five total runs while allowing 19 runs to the Phillies. They have now lost four straight games and six of their last eight games. The Detroit Tigers are in 4th in the AL Central with a 45-49 record, 13 games back of 1st place Cleveland. They have won two straight and seven of their last 10 games though. James Paxton will start for LA with his 7-2 record and 4.24 ERA. Paxton has had a inconsistent couple of starts, allowing two runs over his five innings to the Brewers in his last starts. However, the start before that he allowed 12 hits and nine runs in just four innings in a loss to the Giants. Tarik Skubal will counter for the Tigers. Skubal has been the Ace of this Tigers staff this year with his 10-3 record and 2.37 ERA and 0.90 WHIP. He's also allowed just four runs over his last three starts (20 innings) with 27 KO's and just two walks. With the Dodgers struggling and likely making moves before the trade deadline, I'll take the Tigers with the Ace on the hill today. Play Detroit.

NL Central matchup here on Thursday has the first place Milwaukee Brewers hosting the third place Pittsburgh Pirates. The Brewers are 54-39 with a +78 run differential. The Pirates are 44-48 and 9.5 games back of the Brewers. These teams have split the first two games of the set with the Brewers winning on Tuesday, 12-2 and the Pirates yesterday, 9-0. The Brewers are 2-4 their last six games. Aaron Civale will start for the Brewer with a 2-6 record and 5.18 ERA. The Brewers picked up Civale from the Rays after June 29th. His first start with the Brewers resulted in a loss, going five innings and allowing five runs to the Dodgers. Paul Skenes will start for the Bucs. He's been excellent with a 5-0 record and 2.12 ERA. Skenes has allowed just five total runs over his last five starts (32 1/3 innings. I like Skenes here today against a suspect starter for the Brewers. Take Pittsburgh.

AL Central battle here on Thursday has the 1st place Cleveland Guardians taking on the 4th place Detroit Tigers. The Guardians have a five game lead over 2nd place Minnesota and they have a +96 run differential. This game will wrap the four game set between these teams. The Tigers have taken two of the first three games of the series, including yesterday's game, 5-4. Spencer Howard will start for the Guardians. Howard has a 5.63 ERA and a 1.83 WHIP. He has been a spot starter but mostly out of the bullpen. He allowed six hits and six runs in his last appearance against the Dodgers. Jack Flaherty starts for the Tigers with a 5-5 record and 3.24 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. Flaherty has pitched very well, except his last outing where he gave up five runs over 5 2/3 innings to the Angels. However, before that start he had allowed just one run over four starts with 27 KO's and just four walks. I'm taking the Tigers here in this game four.

The Colorado Rockies and Cincinnati Reds play the final game of their three-game set here on Wednesday. The Rockies look to salvage one game after dropping the first two games, 0-6 and yesterday 6-12. The Rockies have now lost three straight after having won three in a row. The Rockies are in last in the NL West, 23-games back of the Dodgers. The Reds are in 4th in the NL Central, nine-games back of the Brewers. After dropping three straight games they have won these last two vs the Rockies. Kyle Freeland will start for the Rockies with his 0-3 record and 6.62 ERA. Freeland has pitched well of late though, allowing just three earned runs over his last 19 2/3 innings. Frankie Montas will go for the Reds with his 4-6 record and 4.19 ERA. The Reds have lost four of the last five of Montas starts. The way Freeland has looked of late and the inability of the Reds to win with Montas means I will take a shot today with the Rockies as a big dog.

It's the penthouse vs the outhouse here on Tuesday as the AL East 1st place Baltimore Orioles face the NL Central last place Chicago Cubs. The Cubs are 42-49 and 11-games back of the division leading Milwaukee Brewers. They also have a -24 run differential. The O's are 3-games ahead of 2nd place NY Yankees and have the second best run differential in baseball with a +106 mark. Bit of a question who will start today for the Cubs, Shota Imanga or Jameson Taillon. Taillon is 5-4 with a 2.99 ERA. He's been the better pitcher of late, allowing six runs over his last 20 innings with 22 KO's and just one walk. Imanaga is 7-2 with a 3.16 ERA. The Cubs have lost two of his last three starts. He's allowed 16 runs over his last 14 innings. Dean Kremer will go for the O's with his 4-4 record and 3.93 ERA. Kremer coming off an excellent start where he went five innings at Seattle and allowed just two hits, no runs, 8 KO's and 2 Walks for the win. Take action today with the Orioles since we'll go against either Taillon or Imanaga. Take Baltimore action.

The Boston Red Sox and NY Yankees play game three of their series here on Sunday. The Red Sox took game one on Friday, 5-3 and then dropped Saturday's contest, 4-14. Ben Rice became the first Yankees rookie to hit three home runs in a game in that blowout win. The Yankees are 55-36 and in 2nd place in the AL East, 2-games back of first place Baltimore. The Red Sox are 48-40 and 7.5-games back of the Orioles. Kutter Crawford will make the start for the Sox with his 4-7 record and 3.47 ERA. Crawford rebounded from his poor start on June 21 with a nice six innings and one run performance vs the Marlins on July 2. Luis Gil is 9-4 for the Yankees with a 3.41 ERA. The Yankees have lost Gil's last three starts as he's allowed 16 runs over 9 2/3 innings. The Sox look to rebound from that pounding they took on Saturday. I'll take them as a dog here on Sunday evening. Play Boston.

The Detroit Tigers and Cincinnati Reds continue their Interleague play here on Sunday. The Tigers are in fourth in the AL Central with a 41-48 record. The Reds are in 4th in the NL Central with a 42-47 record, 9.5-games back of the Brewers. The Tigers have taken the first two games of this series, 5-4 on Friday and 5-3 on Saturday. The Tigers look for the sweep here on Sunday and will turn to Tarik Skubal for that effort. Skubal has been excellent this year for the Tigers, going 9-3 with a 2.45 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. He's allowed three runs over his last two starts (13 innings) with 14 KO's and just two walks. The Reds will counter with Graham Ashcraft who is 5-4 on the season with a 5.45 ERA. He's allowed nine runs over his last two starts (10 1/3 innings) with six KO's and three walks. The Tigers have their Ace on the hill today and that's good enough for me. Take the Tigers.

A meeting here of two first place clubs as the Milwaukee Brewers play game two of their set with the LA Dodgers. The Dodgers used three Will Smith home runs on Friday to help beat the Brewers in game one, 8-5. LA has struggled of late though, going just 3-4 over their last seven games. This all coming without two of their stars in Max Muncy and Betts, both of whom are on the IL. Milwaukee has lost two straight and three of their last five games. They remain in first place, but just five games ahead of 2nd place St Louis. The LA pitching staff, which has been so good, has been beaten up lately. The starters have been hit hard of late and the bullpen has been getting over used. James Paxton will start tonight for the Dodgers with a 7-2 record and 4.28 ERA. Paxton was one of those hit hard, giving up 12 hits and nine runs in his last start at the Giants. Freddy Peralta will counter for the Brewers. He's 6-4 this year with a 3.83 ERA. He's also give up just three runs in his last three starts (18 innings. LA has issues right now with their pitching and the bottom half of the lineup has produced very little this year. With Mookie Betts and Muncy out they need the pitching which hasn't been good of late. Take the Brewers here on Saturday night.

Interleague action has a pair of last place teams meeting here on Saturday as the Miami Marlins host the Chicago White Sox. The White Sox are last in the AL Central with a 26-64 record. The Sox took game one of this set on Friday, 3-2. They have won five of their last eight starts. Garrett Crochet will start today for the White Sox. Crochet has been the center of some trade rumors as the trade deadline approaches. He's 6-6 this season with a 3.02 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. He's been very good of late, allowing two or fewer runs in four of his last five starts and three runs in the other start. He's also struck out 48 his last five starts to just five walks. The Marlins are 30-58 overall and have lost five straight games. Yonny Chirinos will start for the Sox. He has a 3.77 ERA in his last three outings. In fact, he has just those three recent outings, going 14 1/3 innings and allowing 20 hits and six runs. He does have 15 KO's to just four walks. Still, Crochet looks to move on to green pastures soon and these starts are crucial to his getting that done. Take Chicago.

The St Louis Cardinals and Washington Nationals play the second of their three game set here on Saturday. The Cardinals took game one on Friday, 7-6. The Cards have won two straight games and four of their last five games. They have inched closer to the Brewers in the NL Central, now just five games back and in 2nd place. The Washington Nationals loss last night snapped a 2-team win streak. The Nats are now 2-4 over their last six games. Washington will start Mackenzie Gore here today. Gore is 6-7 on the season with a 3.47 ERA. The Nats have lost his last three starts as he's allowed eight runs over his last 15 2/3 innings of work. Lance Lynn will start for the Cardinals. Lynn is 4-3 on the season with a 4.59 ERA. The Cards have won four of his last five starts. Lynn has been very good of late, allowing just one run over his last 12 2/3 innings with 11 KO's and just one walk. I give all the edges here today to the Cardinals and getting them as a slight dog is a plus. Take St Louis.

The NY Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates begin their three-game set here on Friday. The Mets coming off a four game split with the Nationals, winning the first two games and dropping the last two. The Mets are 3rd in the NL East with a 42-43 record and can get back to the .500 mark with a win here tonight. The Pirates dropped two of three games with the Cardinals. That makes them 2-4 over their last six games. They have dropped to 41-45, 10 games back of the Brewers in the NL Central. Luis Servino will start today for the Mets with his 5-2 record and 3.42 ERA. He's coming off a start vs the Astros where he went seven innings and allowed eight hits and four runs. Paul Skenes will start for the Bucs. He's having a fine season with a 4-0 record, 2.06 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. Skenes has been even better of late, allowing just one run in each of his last three starts and three total runs over his last four starts. I'm sticking with Skenes here on Friday as he's been the Bucs best this season.

The Boston Red Sox and Miami Marlins play game three of their Interleague set here on Thursday. The Red Sox have won the first two games of this series, 8-3 on Tuesday and 7-2 last night. The Sox are in 3rd place in the AL East, 8.5-games back of first place Baltimore. Miami has lost three straight games and sits in last in the NL East, 27 games back of the Phillies. The Red Sox will start Nick Pivetta today who is 4-5 with a 4.52 ERA. The Sox have won four of his last five starts and have given Pivetta plenty of run support. Kyle Tyler has started just two times this season and has gone 10 2/3 innings with four earned runs, five walks and seven KO's. He pitched well in his last start on June 28th vs the Phillies, going 4 2/3 innings and allowing one run. Still, walks are an issue for Tyler. And with limited games his status as a starter is still in limbo. I'm taking the Red Sox here on Thursday.

A pair of first place teams matchup here on Wednesday as the AL East leading Baltimore Orioles play the AL West leading Seattle Mariners. The O's took game one of this set last night with a 2-0 win. That was the team's fifth win in their last six games. They lead the Yankees by one game in the division. The O's have the third best run differential in baseball with a +114 mark. The M's dropped to 47-40 with their third loss in a row. Their lead over 2nd place Houston now just 3-games. Dean Kremer will start tonight for Baltimore with his 3-4 record and 4.32 ERA. Kremer has lost two straight games, allowing 11 runs over his last 9 2/3 innings of work. Logan Gilbert will counter for the Mariners with his 5-4 record and 2.72 ERA and 0.88 WHIP. Gilbert has been very good of late, allowing just two total runs over his last three starts (20 innings) with 18 KO's and just one walk. I'm taking Gilbert and the M's here on Wednesday.

A big rivalry matchup here begins anew as the Dodgers travel to the Bay area to take on their hated rivals, the Giants. The Dodgers bring a four game win streak into this matchup after sweeping their series at the Chicago White Sox. The pitching and bullpen have been outstanding as they allowed just three total runs to the White Sox in the three games. LA still has a comfortable lead in the NL West, 8.5-games over the 2nd place San Diego Padres. The Giants are in 4th in the West, 12-games back of the Dodgers. LA also has now taken over the top spot in run differential in baseball with a +120 mark. The Giants come in at -30. The Dodgers will start Landon Knack tonight who is 1-1 in his five starts with a nifty 2.10 ERA and 0.935 WHIP. Knack has yet to allow more than two runs in any of his five starts and just two total runs over his last three starts (14 2/3 innings). Logan Webb will start for the Giants with his 6-6 record in his 17 starts with a 3.16 ERA. Webb is coming off a loss at St Louis where he allowed nine hits and four runs over his six innings. Should be a great opening salvo in this series but I will be on the 1st place Dodgers and their great bullpen.

 The Cleveland Guardians and Kansas City Royals begin a 3-game set here on Friday. The Guardians are coming off a 2-1 series win over Baltimore. Their loss last night to the O's snapped a seven game win streak by Cleveland. The Guardians have a comfortable lead in the AL Central of 9-games over 2nd place Minnesota and 3rd place Kansas City comes in 10-games back. They also have one of the best run differentials in baseball with a +107 mark. The Guardians will start Ben Lively here today with his 7-3 record in 12 starts and 3.03 ERA. Lively is coming off a very good start vs Toronto where he went 5 2/3 innings and allowed just three hits and two runs. The Royals will counter with Michael Wacha who is 4-6 in his 13 starts and has a 4.07 ERA. The Royals have lost Wacha's last three starts, though he's pitched well in all three games. Guardians have been playing too

First game of the doubleheader between the Braves and Cardinals here on Wednesday. The Cardinals took game one on Tuesday, 4-3. They have now won four straight games. The Cardinals are 40-37 and have climbed into 2nd place in the NL Central. They still have a -30 run differential though. The Braves have lost two of their last three games but are still 5-2 over their last seven games. The Braves have gained a couple games on first place Philadelphia and now trail the Phillies by 7.5-games. The Braves also have a +49 run differential. The Braves will start Lopez here in game one with a 5-2 record in his 13 starts and a nifty 1.57 ERA. He has not allowed a run over his last 11 innings with 14 KO's and just walks. The Braves have also won nine of his 13 starts this year. The Cardinals will start Kyle Gibson. Gibson is 5-2 in his 14 starts with a 3.44 ERA. He is coming off a very good start where he allowed two hits and no runs vs the Cubs for the win. Both pitchers are excellent and this should be a close match. However, I still give the nod to Lopez in this matchup. Play the Braves in game 1.

The Subway Series plays a quick 2-games set beginning with tonight's game in Queens. The Yankees have lost four of their last five games after dropping two of three at home to the Braves. The Yankees are still in 1st place in the AL East with their 52-28 record and two-game lead over the Orioles. They also have a +109 point differential on the season. They will start Gerrit Cole today who makes only his second appearance of the season after a lengthy stint. Cole did go four innings on the 19th vs the Orioles, allowing three its and two runs. He struck out five and walked just one. The Mets have played much better of late, winning nine of their last 11 games, including taking two of three games at the Cubs in their recent series. The Mets are tied for third in the NL East with a 37-39 record as they approach the .500 mark. Still, they trail 1st place Philadelphia by 14-games. David Peterson is 3-0 in his four games this year with a 3.97 ERA. Peterson has two quality starts in his four outings. One area of concern are walks, where he has seven free passes his last three starts with just nine KO's. Should be a great game here on Tuesday, but I'll stick with the team tied for the most wins in baseball. Cole looks to extend his outing a bit longer today. Take the Yankees.

 The Seattle Mariners and Miami Marlins play the second game of their three game set here on Saturday. The Marlins took game one on Friday, 3-2 in 10 innings. The Mariners jumped out to a 2-0 lead after two innings but couldn't hold on to win. The loss was the third in a row for the Mariners. The M's still hold a comfortable lead in the AL West with a 7-game cushion over 2nd place Houston. The Mariners also have a +10 run differential. As for Miami, the runs have been few and far between this year with a 26-49 record. They are a distant 23-games back of Philly in the NL East. The Marlins also have the third worst run differential in baseball with a -114 mark. Logan Gilbert gets the start for the Mariners today with his 4-4 record in 15 starts with a 2.93 ERA. Gilbert has allowed three runs over his last two starts (14 2/3 innings) with 17 KO's and no walks. Miami will counter with Shaun Anderson who is 0-1 in his only start thus car. He went just two innings vs the Nationals in his only start, allowing 10 hits and seven runs. I'm sticking with the Mariners here today with Gilbert and I'll lay the steep road price tag. Play Seattle.

 A pair of teams both struggling to get back to the .500 mark meet today as the Chicago Cubs host the NY Mets. The Mets enter this three-game set with the Cubs 4th in the NL East with a 35-38 record and 13.5-games back of the Phillies. The Mets have a -7 run differential. Jose Quintana will start today for the Mets. Quintana is 2-5 in his 14 starts with a 4.98 ERA. He's been even worse on the road with a 6.68 ERA. The Cubs are in 4th place in the NL Central, eight games back of first place Milwaukee. The Cubs took two of their three games with the Giants including the last two games. They will send Shota Imanaga to the hill today with a 7-1 record in his 13 starts. He has an excellent ERA of 1.8 and the Cubs have won all seven of his home starts this season. Imanaga has won his last two starts, allowing a total of three runs over his last 13 2/3 innings. I like Imanaga here today with the Cubs.

A pair of first place teams meet here on Thursday as the Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians play the second game in their three-game set. The Mariners took the opener on Tuesday, 8-5, extending their win streak to four games in a row and eight of their last nine. The Mariners have a commanding lead in the AL West with a 44-31 record and 10-game lead over 2nd place Houston. The Mariners also have a +22 run differential. They will send Bryan Woo to the hill today. Woo has been excellent for the M's this year with a 3-0 record in his six starts and a 1.07 ERA. He's only allowed runs in two of his four starts and that was three runs to the Nationals and one run to the Royals. The Cleveland Guardians are in 1st place in the AL Central with their 44-26 record. They have a 4.5-game lead over 2nd place Minnesota and 5-games over third place Kansas City. They also have a division best +83 run differential. Tanner Bibee will get the start today for the Guardians with his 4-2 record and 3.94 ERA in his 14 starts. Bebee is coming off a loss at Cincinnati where he allowed four hits and four runs over 5 1/3 innings. It was the second straight loss for the Guardians when Bebee has started. I like Woo today for the Mariners. Take Seattle.

The Baltimore Orioles and NY Yankees begin a pivotal series as the top two teams in the AL East square off. The Yankees are 50-24 while the Orioles are 47-24 and trail the Yanks by 1.5-games. Both teams can hit and both have good pitching, evidenced by the Yankees best +124 run differential and the Orioles 2nd best +114 mark. The Orioles will start Albert Suarez this evening. Suarez is 3-0 with a nifty 1.61 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in his 14 starts. He's also allowed just three total runs over his last five starts (20 innings). The Yanks will counter with Nestor Cortes. Cortes is 3-5 on the season with a 3.59 ERA. Cortes has been much better at home where he is 3-2 with a 1.77 ERA. Still, I have to give the pitching edge here to Suarez who has been excellent. Plus I get Suarez and the O's as a dog in this one. Take Baltimore.

Arizona and Washington begin their three-game set here on Tuesday. The Diamondbacks are 35-37 and tied for third in the NL West, nine-games back of the LA Dodgers. They also have a +3 run differential. Slade Cecconi will start for the D'backs and is 1-5 on the season with a 6.70 ERA. The 6-foot-4 righthander has struggled lately, allowing six runs or more in three of his last five starts. That includes his last game where he went just three innings and allowed 10 hits and seven runs to the Angels in a loss. The Washington Nationals have won three straight games and eight of their last 10 games. They have a -9 run differential and are in 3rd in the NL East, 12.5-games back of the Phillies. Jake Irvin will make the start for the Nats. Irvin is 5-5 with a 3.00 ERA and 1.04 WHIP. Irvin has been very good of late took allowing two runs or fewer in each of his last five starts. Moreover, he has 31 KO's to just six walks during that span. I will be taking the Nationals with a very hot Irvin here on Tuesday.

Tampa Bay and Atlanta conclude their three-game set here on Sunday. The Rays look to avoid the sweep here today. They lost the opener on Friday, 3-7 and then lost again Saturday, 2-9. The Rays are last in the AL East, 16-games back of the Yankees. They have a -73 run differential. Zach Eflin will start today for the Rays with a 3-4 record in his 12 starts and a 4.06 ERA. Eflin has pitched well his last two starts, allowing two runs in each game (9 2/3 innings) with six KO's and no walks. The Rays have won his last five starts. The Atlanta Braves have won three straight games and are in 2nd place in the NL East, eight games back of the Phillies. They have a +39 run differential. Hurston Waldrep makes his second start of the season today. Waldrep is 0-1 and got hit hard in his first start vs Washington. He allowed four hits, four walks and seven runs over 3 2/3 innings to the Nationals. Have to stick with the Rays here today to avoid the sweep. Plus we just don't know what Waldrep can do yet but he didn't show much in that first start. Take Tampa Bay.

Classic rivalry here has the NY Yankees take on the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees lost yesterday at Kansas City, 3-4 while the Sox won at home over Philadelphia, 9-3. The loss for the Yankees snapped a four game win streak. The Yanks still lead the AL East over the Orioles by 2.5 games. They also have the best road record in baseball with a 27-12 mark and a MLB leading +127 run differential. The Red Sox are a very distant 3rd place in the AL East with a 35-34 mark and 13 games back. The Yankees start Luis Gil here today who is having an excellent season with a 8-1 record in his 13 starts. He has a very nice 2.04 ERA and 0.920 WHIP. The Yankees are also 11-2 in Gil's starts this season and have won eight straight. The Sox will counter with Brayan Bello who is 6-3 in his 11 starts with a 4.78 ERA. He has been roughed up a bit his last two starts, allowing nine runs over his las 11 innings. Gil has been like money in the bank this season and I don't see that changing here on Friday. Play the Yankees.

The Atlanta Braves and Baltimore Orioles play the final game of their three-game set here on Thursday. The Braves look to salvage the final game after losing 0-4 in game one and 2-4 last night. The Braves still remain in 2nd in the NL East, but the Phillies are running away with the division as they lead now by 10-games. The Braves have lost five straight and seven of their last 10 games. Key pitching and position injuries have hurt the Braves badly this season. They will send Reynaldo Lopez to the hill today with a 3-2 record in his 11 starts. Lopez has a nifty 1.85 ERA and 1.090 WHIP. The Orioles improved to 45-22 and still trail the Yankees by 2.5 games. They have won six straight games and eight of their last 10 games. They also have the second best run differential in baseball with a +110. Cole Irvin has been excellent for the O's this year with a 6-1 record in 10 starts and a 2.67 ERA. He hasn't allowed more than two runs in any of his last nine starts. Lopez is a very good starter for the Braves, however the Braves just aren't scoring or hitting home runs like they have in past seasons. Injuries have hurt this team and I look for them to get swept here on Thursday. Play Baltimore.

The Washington Nationals and Detroit Tigers play game two of their three game set here on Wednesday. The Nationals took game one last night, 5-4 and have now won four straight games after they swept the Atlanta Braves in the series before this one. Washington is 3rd in the NL East, but 15 games back of 1st place Philadelphia. The Tigers lost their fourth game in their last five last night. This has dropped them to under .500 at 32-34 and now 11.5 games back of the 1st place Guardians. The Tigers will start Reese Olson today with a 1-7 record in 12 starts. He also has a 3.43 ERA and 1.203 WHIP. Olson has been hit hard of late, allowing 18 hits and 13 runs over his last 9 1/3 innings. Jake Irvin will counter for the Nats with his 4-5 record in 13 starts and 3.12 ERA. Unlike Olson, Irvin has been very good of late. He's allowed just two total runs over his last three starts (18 innings) with 20 KO's and five walks. I'm sticking with the Nationals here tonight and a very hot Jake Irvin. Play Washington.

The Atlanta Braves and Baltimore Orioles play game one of their three game set here on Tuesday. The Braves just lost three of four games at the Washington Nationals. The Braves are fading fast in the NL East. Even though they are in 2nd place, they trail first place Philadelphia by 9-games.  They also have a +31 run differential. They also are without their best player in Ronald Acuna Jr, who is out for the season. Max Fried will start today for the Braves. He's having a good season with a 6-2 record in his 12 starts and a 2.93 ERA. The Baltimore Orioles are in a two horse race in the AL East as they trail 1st place New York by just 2.5 games. The third place Boston Red Sox are 13-games off the pace in the division. The O's have won four straight games and seven of their last 10 games. They also have one of the best run differentials in baseball with a +104 mark. The Orioles will start Albert Suarez today who is 1-0 with a 2.15 ERA in his six starts. He's allowed more than two runs just one time this year in his six starts. Suarez should give the O's a good four or five innings as he rarely goes further. The Orioles bullpen has been very good this year with a 3.30 ERA. They are also 0.00 in their last seven games.  I'll take the O's today against Atlanta. 

The Houston Astros and San Francisco Giants begin a 3-game set here on Monday. The Astros are coming off a series at LA Angels where they took two of three games. The Astros are in 3rd place in the AL West, 6.50-games back of first place Seattle. Spencer Arrighetti will make the start tonight for the Astros. He's 3-5 in 10 starts with a 5.79 ERA and worse on the road with a 1-4 record and 7.54 ERA. The Giants took two of three games from the Rangers. They are 32-34 on the season and in 3rd place in the NL West, 8.5-games back of the Dodgers. Kyle Harrison makes the start tonight and is 4-3 with a 4.18 ERA. The Astros are just 13-18 on the road while the Giants are 17-14 at home. I'll take the Giants here tonight in game one of this series.

These once storied cross city rivals now cross country rivals as the old Brooklyn Dodgers now LA face the NY Yankees. This is a battle of 1st place teams and just maybe a preview of the World Series for later this year. The Dodgers were slumping a bit coming into this series, however they have taken the first two games of the series after winning Saturday, 11-3. The Dodgers have held the big hitting Yankees to just five total runs thus far. Part of the issue is that Juan Soto has missed the series with a forearm injury. He has been a huge factor in the Yankees wins this year. This will be a great Sunday night matchup as two of the best pitchers in baseball thus far meet up tonight. Tyler Glasnow has been excellent for the Dodgers this year despite his 6-4 record. Glasnow has just a 2.93 ERA and has allowed three runs or fewer in eight of his last nine starts. Problem is the Dodgers give him very little run support, evidenced by zero runs in his last five start while he was in the game. The Yankees have Luis Gil going tonight with a 8-1 record in his 12 games. The Yankees are 10-2 in his starts and Gil has a 1.82 ERA. He's been even better at Yankee stadium, going 6-0 in six starts with a 1.05 ERA. He's allowed one or no runs in seven straight starts. Still, somehow this very good Yankee team is a small dog at home on Sunday night. Even wit Soto out of the lineup I look for the Yankees to salvage the final game with Gil on the Hill. Play the Yankees.

The Seattle Mariners and Kansas City Royals play the final game of their three game set here on Sunday. The Royals have taken the first two games, 10-9 on Friday and 8-4 on Sunday. The Mariners are still in first place in the AL West with a 36-30 record and +5 run differential. They will start George Kirby here on Sunday who is 5-5 in his 13 starts with a 4.05 ERA. He's been very good at home but terrible on the road with a 1-6 record and 5.35 ERA. The Royals are in 2nd in the AL Central with a 39-26 record, three games back of the Cleveland Guardians. They also have a +77 run differential. Cole Ragans will start today with a 4-4 record in his 13 starts and a 3.33 ERA. He's pitched very well of late, allowing four total earned runs over his last four starts (24 innings). I am taking the Royals here to sweep the Mariners.

The Houston Astros and the LA Angels play game two of their three game set here on Saturday. The Astros took game one on Friday in Anaheim, 7-1. The Houston Astros have a long hill to climb to get back into the AL West race. However, if there is one division that they can to it, it's this one. Only one team in this division has a record above .500 and that's the 1st place Seattle Mariners. The Astros are in 3rd place with a 29-35 record, 6.5-games back. The LA Angels are 11 games back of the Mariners and in last in the division with a 24-39 record. The Astros will start Hunter Brown who is 1-5 in his 11 starts. Brown has a lofty 6.62 overall ERA and is 0-4 on the road with a 11.85 ERA. The Angels will counter with Tyler Anderson who is 5-5 in his 12 starts. Unlike Brown, he has a very good ERA of 2.37. He's also been very good of late, allowing just one run in each of his last four starts (26 2/3 innings). I give is big edge in this one to Anderson and with a less than average Houston team I have no problem taking the host tonight. Play LA Angels.

 The Minnesota Twins look to snap a four game losing streak here today in game two of their three game set with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Twins were shut-out last night by the Bucs, 0-3. The Twins are in 3rd in the AL Central with a 33-30 record, 7.5 games back of 1st place Cleveland. Despite winning four of their last six games, Pittsburgh is still in last in the AL Central with a 30-33 record. Don't know for sure who the Pirates will start today, it's likely a pitcher that hasn't started yet in either Carmen Mlodzinski or Ortiz. Either way I'm looking at the Twins with Siemon Woods Richardson on the hill. Richardson is 2-0 in his nine starts with a 3.05 ERA and 1.105 WHIP. He's allowed three runs or fewer in each of his last four starts and the Twins have won his last three starts and are 7-2 in all his starts. I'll be on the Twins today no matter who the Pirates start in this one. Play Minnesota.

The Cleveland Guardians visit Southern Florida to face the Marlins in the start of their 3-game interconference set tonight. The Guardians split their two games with the Royals putting them at 40-21 overall and four games ahead of the Royals for first place in the AL Central. The Marlins bring a four-game losing streak into tonight's contest. They are also 3-7 over their last 10 games with a -88 run differential. The Guardians start Logan T Allen here tonight with his 6-3 record in his 12 starts and a 5.83 ERA. The Marlins will start Ryan Weathers tonight who is 3-5 in his 12 starts with a 3.41 ERA and 1.121 WHIP. Those numbers are higher at home where it's 1-2 in five starts with a 5.33 ERA. This one is the Penthouse against the Outhouse and I'm on the boys at the top. Play Cleveland.

The Cubs and Reds play the 2nd game of their four game set here on Friday. The Reds took game one on Thursday, 8-4. The Cubs dropped to 31-32 and 5.5 games back of first place Milwaukee. They have a -14 run differential. The Reds are in 3rd place in the NL Central, one game back of the Cubs and 6.5-games back of the Brewers. They have a +15 run differential. The Reds have also won five straight games and seven of their last 10 games. The Cubs will start Justin Steele today. Steele is 0-2 in his seven starts with a 4.34 ERA. The Cubs are 1-6 in his seven starts this year. The Reds will start Nick Lodolo tonight who is 5-2 overall in his eight starts with a 3.11 ERA and 0.993 WHIP. The Reds are 6-2 in his eight starts this season. Lodolo has allowed just three total runs over his last two starts (12 innings). I like the Reds in this divisional battle here tonight.

The Seattle Mariners and Oakland A's play the third and final game of their 3-game set here on Thursday. The teams have split the first two games with the Mariners winning on Tuesday, 4-3 and the A's winning last night, 2-1. The Mariners are the only team in the AL West with a winning record, as they dropped to 35-28 with their loss last night. They have won eight of their last 10 games and have a +7 run differential. The A's are in fourth place in the West with a 25-38 record, 10 games back of the Mariners. The A's have a division worse -64 run differential. Bryan Woo will start for the M's today with a 2-0 record after five starts. Woo has been very good with a 1.30 ERA. The M's have won all five of his starts and he has allowed one or no runs in four of his five starts. JP Sears will toe the rubber for the A's with a 4-4 record after 12 starts. Sears has a 4.01 ERA and has pitched well despite the A's posting a 5-7 record in his starts. I'm sticking with the Mariners here today with Woo pitching very well. Play Seattle.

The Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers play game three of their three-game set here on Wednesday. Detroit has taken the first two games of this set with a 2-1 win on Monday and then a 3-1 win yesterday. The Tigers improved to 31-30 and are in 4th in the NL Central, 9.5-games back of the 1st place Guardians. Kenta Maeda will make the start here today for the Tigers with a 2-2 record in his nine starts and a lofty 6.25 ERA. He's been even worse on the road with a 0-1 record in four starts and a 10.80 ERA. The Rangers fell to 29-32 but still trail 1st place Seattle by just 5.5-games. The AL West right now looks to be one of the weakest in baseball with just the Mariners having a winning record. Jose Urena will start for the Rangers with a 1-3 record and 3.24 ERA. He's been better at home with a 0-0 record after one start and a 1.50 ERA. Urena has not allowed more than three runs in any of his five starts. In fact, only one of those were more than two runs and that was a three spot. I'm taking the Rangers to salvage game three of this series today with Urena much better than his record shows. Play Texas.

The NY Mets took game one of this three game set with the Washington Nationals on Monday, 8-7. They had to hold on late and stave off a 9th inning rally by the Nationals to preserve the win. The Mets are 25-35 and in fourth in the NL East, 16.5-games back of division leader Philadelphia. The Mets also have a -40 run differential. David Peterson makes just his second start of the season for the Mets. Peterson went five innings and gave up seven hits and two earned runs in a no decision in his first start against the Dodgers. The Mets will have their hands full today with Nationals starter Trevor Williams. Williams is the Nats best starter with a 5-0 record in his 11 starts and a 2.22 ERA. He's also 2-0 at home in four starts with a 1.69 ERA. He's coming off a nice win over the Braves as a +1.70 dog where he allowed just four hits and one run over 5 2/3 innings of work. The Nats are 9-2 in Williams start this year and 4-0 at home. Somehow the Mets are favored here today against one of the best pitchers in baseball. I had them in his last start as a big dog, I'll take him and the Nats again here on Tuesday. Play Washington.

The St Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros begin a 3-game set here today in Texas. The Cardinals salvaged the final game of their three game series with the Phillies, winning on Sunday, 5-4. The Cardinals have been playing much better, winning eight of their last 11 games. The Cardinals have taken over 2nd place in the NL Central, still trailing first place Milwaukee by 7-games. Kyle Gibson will start today for the Red Birds. Gibson is 4-2 in his 11 starts with a 3.60 ERA. Gibson coming off one of his best starts of the season, going six innings and allowing just two hits and one run in a win over the Reds. The Astros lost two of their three games to the Twins, including Sunday's game, 3-4. They are 2-5 over their last seven games. The Astros are 3rd in the AL West with their 26-34 record. They are 7.5-games back of the first place Seattle Mariners. Justin Verlander gets the start today with his 3-2 record and 3.26 ERA. Verlander hasn't been as good at home, going 0-2 in his two home starts with a 4.63 ERA. A very high line today on the Astros, mainly because of the pedigree of Verlander. But in reality, Gibson has been just as good if not better. Plus the Cardinals are a very hot team of late while the Astros are not. I'll take this big price today and look for the upset win by St Louis.

 The NY Yankees and SF Giants conclude their three game series here on Sunday. The Yankees looking for the sweep after taking game one on Friday, 6-2 and then yesterday's game, 7-3. That makes four wins in a row for the Yankees and eight of their last 10. The Yankees are in first place in the AL East, two games ahead of the Baltimore Orioles. They also have the best run differential in baseball with a +105. Nestor Cortes will start today for the Yankees with a 3-4 record and 3.30 ERA. Cortes has been very good of late, allowing just two earned runs over his last three starts (17 1/3 innings). The Giants three game losing streak has dropped them into third place in the NL West, 7.5-games back of the Dodgers. Blake Snell starts today for the Giants, looking for his first win since coming over from San Diego in the offseason. Snell has not been good with a 10.42 ERA in his five starts. He has pitched a bit better of late, allowing seven earned runs over his last 7 1/3 innings. I have to stick with the big hitting Yankees here on Sunday as they sweep the Giants.

 Tampa Bay and Baltimore finish up their three game set here on Sunday. The Orioles have taken the first two games of this series, 3-1 on Friday and 9-5 on Saturday. The Orioles are two games back in the AL East behind the NY Yankees. They have won three straight and eight of their last 10 games with a +75 run differential. The Rays continue to drop in the division, now 12.5-games back of the Yankees after losing their second in a row and their seventh of their last 10 games. Zack Littell will start for the Rays with a 2-3 record and 3.03 ERA. Despite his decent ERA, the Rays are just 5-6 in his 11 starts this year. Cole Irvin will toe the rubber for the O's. Irvin is 5-1 in his eight starts with a 2.58 ERA. Unlike Littell, the O's have won seven of the eight starts Irvin has made this year. Moreover, Irvin has been red hot, allowing just two runs over his last five starts (30 2/3 innings). The way Irvin has pitched of late it's difficult to find fault in taking him here and the O's to sweep this series. Take Baltimore.

 The Minnesota Twins and Houston Astros play game two of their three game set here on Saturday. The Twins took game one on Friday, 6-1, winning their second game in a row, fourth in their last five and eighth in their last 10 games. The Twins are 3rd in the AL Central, six games back of first place Cleveland. They also have a +8 run differential. Joe Ryan gets the start here today for the Twins. Ryan is 4-3 in his 11 starts with a 3.09 ERA and 0.940 WHIP. Ryan has allowed just one run over his last 14 innings of work with 15 KO's and two walks. Ryan has been very good on the road, going 2-0 in five starts with a 1.44 ERA. The Twins are 5-0 in Ryan's five away games. The Astros have lost six of their last 10 games and are in 3rd in the AL West, 6.5-games back of the Mariners. They have a -9 run differential. Framber Valdez starts for the Astros with a 3-3 record in his nine starts. Valdez has a 5.25 ERA and 1.479 WHIP. He's allowed 11 runs over his last 11 innings of work. I'm sticking with the Twins here on Saturday with a very good pitcher on the hill. Play Minnesota.

The Minnesota Twins and Houston Astros begin a three game set here on Friday. The Twins coming off a four game set vs the Royals where they won three of the four games. The Twins have dropped to third in the AL Central with a 31-25 record, 6-games back of the Guardians. Pablo Lopez will start today for the Twins with a 4-5 record in his 11 starts. Lopez has a 5.25 ERA and 1.167 WHIP. He's a bit worse on the road with a 2-3 record and 6.00 ERA. The Astros are just 5.5-games back of the Seattle Mariners in the NL West, despite just a 25-32 record and very poor start to the season. Ronel Blanco starts for the Astros. He's having an excellent season with a 5-0 record in his nine starts and a 1.99 ERA and 1.012 WHIP. He's allowed just one run over his last 10 innings of work. The Astros have also won eight of his nine starts this season. 

Early game on the schedule today has the Chicago Cubs hosting the Cincinnati Reds. This is game one of their three game set. The Reds are coming off a series with the Cardinals where they lost two of three games. The Reds are in last place in the NL Central with a 24-32 record. Graham Ashcraft starts for the Reds today. Ashcraft is 4-3 in his 10 starts with a 4.67 ERA. He is coming off a poor start where he allowed eight hits and five runs over 5 1/3 innings vs the Dodgers, though he did get the win in that game. The Cubs can get back to the .500 mark with a win today. They are 28-29 overall and 5.5-games back of the Brewers. Javier Assad starts for the Cubs with a 4-1 record in 11 starts. He has a 2.17 ERA and a home ERA of 1.33. I'm taking the Cubs here on Friday.

Final game of this four game set between the Washington Nationals and Atlanta Braves. The Nationals have won two of the first three games of this set, outscoring Atlanta 15-8. The Braves are in 2nd place in the NL East, now six back of first place Philly while the Nationals are in 3rd place, 12.5-games back. Trevor Williams has been the best pitcher this year for the Nats. He has a 4-0 record in his 10 starts with a 2.29 ERA and 1.079 WHIP. Williams continues to pitch well, allowing one run or no runs in six of his last seven starts. The Nats have also won eight of his 10 starts this year. The Braves will start Raymond Kerr for just the second time. And Kerr hopes this start is better than his first where he allowed seven hits and five runs over four innings in a loss at Pittsburgh. The Braves will be without Ronald Acuna Jr who tore his left ACL last Sunday. He will require surgery and likely is lost for the year. This is a huge loss for the Braves and when you couple that with today's starter being very shaky and the Braves laying a huge price, I'll take Williams and the Nationals who will be in this game. Play The Nationals.

The AL West is one of the weakest divisions in baseball and while that might be bad overall, it means no team is really out of it in the West. Only Seattle has a winning record and that's 31-26 with a -3 run differential. Only the Rangers have a positive run differential and that's just +1. The Mariners have won four straight games after Wednesday's win over the Astros, 2-1. They have held the Astros to just five total runs over the first three games with the final game today. The Astros dropped their third game in a row to 24-32 which is still good for third in the West, 6.5-games back of the Mariners. The Astros will start Spencer Arrighetti today who is 2-5 in his eight starts with a 6.93 ERA and 1.779 WHIP. He's been even worse on the road with a 0-4 record and 10.26 ERA. The Mariners will start Logan Gilbert today who is 3-2 in his 11 starts with a 3.06 ERA and 0.962 WHIP. Gilbert allowed just one run and three hits over his six innings vs the Nationals in his last start. He has allowed over three runs just one time in his last nine starts. I like the Mariners today with Gilbert on the hill. Play Seattle.

 The Cubs and Brewers play game three of their four game set here on Wednesday. The Brewers took game one on Monday, 5-1 and the Cubs took game two on Tuesday, 6-3. This is a battle of the first two place teams in the NL Central with the Brewers being in 1st, 3.5-games back of the Cubs. The Brewers are the only team in the division with a positive run differential that comes in at +46. The Cubs will start their Ace today in Shota Imanaga. Imanaga came over from Japan in the offseason and has been sensational for the Cubs. He's 5-0 in his nine starts with the Cubs going 8-1 in his starts. He also has a 0.84 ERA and 0.913 WHIP. He hasn't allowed a run over his last 12 innings with 15 KO's and four walks. The Brewers will start Bryse Wilson who is 0-1 in his six starts with a 2.20 ERA and 1.221 WHIP. Wilson has pitched well, allowing just five runs over his last four starts (20 2/3 innings). However, the Brewers are 1-3 during that four game span. Both pitchers have been excellent, but Imanaga has been Cy Young amazing this year. I'll take the Cubs and their Ace today.

The LA Dodgers snapped a season long five-game losing streak on Tuesday by sweeping their doubleheader with the Mets, 5-2 and 3-0 in the nightcap. The Dodgers still sit comfortably in the NL West with a 5.5-game lead over both the Giants and Padres. LA also ha a +75 run differential this season. John Paxton will start today for the Dodgers. He's had a fine season at 5-0 in his nine starts. He also has a 3.49 ERA and 1.428 WHIP. The Dodgers are 7-2 in Paxton's five starts this season. The NY Mets have lost eight of their last 10 games and now sit a whopping 15-games back in the NL East behind the Phillies. They also have a -30 run differential. The Mets have activated David Peterson for the 60 day IL for this start today. Peterson underwent hip surgery last November and missed all of Spring training in his recovery. He has pitched 23.2 innings in the minors with a 1.14 ERA, 35 KO's and just three walks. Peterson will likely see most of his play from the bullpen as one of the only two lefties along with the occasional spot start. As for today, not sure how he will do in his first MLB start in quite some time. I'll stick with the Dodgers and a very good Paxton on the hill. Play LA.

AL West Clash here on Tuesday has the Houston Astros taking on the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners took game one of this four game set on Monday, 3-2. Seattle is 29-26 and the only team in the division with a winning record. Every team in the AL West also has a negative run differential with Seattle coming in at -6. The Houston Astros are only 24-30, but trail the Mariners by only 4.5-games. The Astros will start Hunter Brown who is 1-5 in his nine starts with a lofty 7.75 ERA and 1.878 WHIP. He's been horrible on the road with a 19.95 ERA in his three starts and a 0-3 record. Luis Castillo will start for the Mariners with a 4-6 record in his 11 starts and a 3.44 ERA. Castillo has not allowed more than three runs in any of his last eight starts. The M's have also win five of his last seven starts. I look for the Mariners to take game two here on Tuesday. Play Seattle.

A Memorial Day rivalry here as the Milwaukee Brewers host the Chicago Cubs in game one of a four game set. The Cubs look to snap a four-game losing streak here on Monday. The Cubs are in 2nd place in the NL Central, now 3.5 games back of division leading Milwaukee. They have also dropped into the negative in run differential with a -3 mark. The Cubs will start Justin Steele on Monday. Steele is 0-2 in his five starts with a 6.04 ERA and 1.184 WHIP. After a promising start he's fallen on hard times, allowing 16 runs over his last 16 innings. The Cubs are 0-5 in Steele's starts this year. The Brewers lost on Sunday to the Red Sox, 1-2. They lead the NL Central with a 30-22 record and are the only team in the division with a positive run differential at +45. Robert Gasser will start his fourth game on Monday. Gasser is 2-0 with a 2.65 ERA. He's 2-0 at home with a 0.82 ERA. I like the Brewers on Monday against a Cubs team that has struggled and a starter yet to post a win for his team. Play Milwaukee.

The Kansas City Royals and Minnesota Twins begin a four game set here on Memorial Day Monday. The Royals have been red hot, winning eight of their last nine games. Though they did have their win streak snapped on Sunday by the Rays, 1-4. Unfortunately for the Royals they are chasing an equally hot Cleveland team that has won nine straight games. the Guardians lead the division by 2.5-games over 2nd place KC. The Twins are 4-6 in their last 10 games after losing Sunday to the Rangers, 2-6. They have dropped to 7.5-games back in the AL Central behind the Guardians. The Royals have the best run differential in the division with a +79, with the Guardians at +73 and the Twins coming in a distant third at +4 runs. The Royals will send Alec Marsh to the hill today. Marsh is 4-1 with a 2.72 ERA and 1.070 WHIP. He has allowed more than three runs in a start just one time this season. The Royals are also 7-1 in his eight starts. The Twins will counter with Joe Ryan. Ryan is 3-3 in his 10 starts with a 3.30 ERA. Ryan is coming off his best start, allowing three hits and no runs in a win over the Nationals. The Twins are fading fast as the Royals and Guardians run away with the division. I'm sticking with KC here on Monday with the much more consistent starter on the hill. Play Kansas City.

The Yankees continue to be one of the hottest teams in baseball, now having won four straight and eight of their last 10 games for a MLB 2nd best 37-17 record and +95 run differential. The Yankees had little trouble with the Padres on Saturday, winning 4-1. They also took Friday's game vs the Padres, 8-0. That means they have outscored San Diego 12-1 in the first two games of this series. They have also held their last three opponents to just one total run. The Yankees can complete the sweep here on Sunday as they send Clarke Schmidt to the hill. Schmidt is 5-2 in his 10 starts with a 2.59 ERA and 1.132 WHIP. Schmidt has been very good of late, allowing just two runs over his last three starts (19 2/3 innings with 20 KO's and four walks. The Yankees have also won eight of Schmidts 10 starts this year. The Padres have dropped below .500 again to 27-28, 6.5-games back of the Dodgers. Joe Musgrove will start for the Padres on Sunday. Musgrove is 3-4 in his nine starts with a 5.93 ERA and 1.522 WHIP. Mustgrove has pitched better in his last two starts, allowing just two earned runs over nine innings. Aaron Judge has been on a power tear, hitting a home run in four straight games and has 17 dingers this year. For the first time in franchise history, the Yankees starters have allowed two or fewer runs in 13 straight games. I look for dominance to continue here on Sunday. Take the Yankees.

The Cleveland Guardians scored four runs in their third inning and made them stand up as they beat the LA Angels on Saturday, 4-3. The win extended the Guardians win streak to eight games as they lead the AL Central with a 35-17 record and +72 run differential. The Angels have really struggled at home this year, posting a 6-18 record. The Angels are in last place in the AL West, 6.5-games back of the Seattle Mariners. The Guardians will start Ben Lively, not to mistaken with Blake Lively as someone might have called him. Ben is 3-2 in his seven starts with a 2.84 ERA and 1.237 WHIP. Lively has pitched very consistent this year, not allowing more than three runs in any of his seven starts. The Angels will send Reid Detmers to the hill. Detmers is 3-4 in his 10 starts with a 5.80 ERA. He's not pitching well, allowing 16 earned runs over his last 14 innings of work. I'm sticking with the hot Guardians here on Sunday with Ben and not Blake Livley on the hill. Play Cleveland.

Game two of this best of three series has the Mariners looking to get even after their loss in Washington last night, 1-6. That was the Mariners third loss in a row. The loss dropped the M's to just 27-25 overall and a -9 run differential. However, because the AL West is the weakest division in baseball they are in first place by three games. In fact, no other team in the division has a winning record and all the teams in the division have a negative run differential. Logan Gilbert gets the start today for the Nats. Gilbert is 3-2 in his 10 starts with a 3.20 ERA. Gilbert has allowed 14 runs over his last three starts (16 2/3 innings). The Nationals are third in the NL East with a 22-27 record and -16 run differential. They will start Trevor Williams today who is 4-0 in his nine starts with a 2.35 ERA and 1.087 WHIP. Williams has been impressive this year for the Nats as he's not allowed more than three runs in any of his starts. I like live dogs and the Nationals are just that today with Williams on the hill. Play Washington.

The Texas Rangers have been a far cry from the team that won the World Series last year. They have now lost five straight games and 11 of their last 13 games. Yet, because they play in the worst division in baseball they are just three games back of first place Seattle, despite a 24-28 record and -8 run differential. Really, no team in this division is out of it with even the last place Angels just 6.5-games back. The Rangers will start Michael Lorenzen today. Lorenzen is 2-3 in his seven starts with a 3.61 ERA. Lorenzen has pitched decent enough, yet the Rangers have lost his last five starts. If the Minnesota Twins played in the AL West they would be in first place with their 27-23 record. Still, the Twins are in 3rd in the Central, 6.5-games back of the Guardians. The Twins have won three straight games and look to make up some ground in the division. Chris Paddack will start for the Twins with a 4-2 record in his nine starts and a 4.47 ERA. If you look past his start two games ago where he allowed five runs and 12 hits to the Yankees, Paddack has only allowed three runs over the other three starts. And as hot as the Yankees bats are, that can be disregarded. I'm sticking with the Twins here today and Paddack.

The Cleveland Guardians and LA Angels begin their three game series here from Anaheim, CA on Friday. The Guardians are 33-17 and have won six in a row and nine of their last 10 games. They have a +65 run differential and lead the AL Central by 1.5-games over the Royals. Logan T Allen will toe the rubber today for the Guardians. He's 5-2 in his 10 starts with a 4.91 ERA. He's pitched well of late, allowing no earned runs over his last two starts (12 innings) with 10 KO's and just two walks. The LA Angels are percentage points in last place in the AL West, 6.5-games back of first place Seattle. They have a -28 run differential and have split their last 10 games overall. Patrick Sandoval will start for the Halos with a 2-6 record in his 10 starts and a 4.76 ERA. He's coming off one of his best starts, allowing just three hits and one run to the Rangers in a no decision. Still, I like the Guardians here today with the better starter on the hill. Play Cleveland.

The San Francisco Giants have won two straight games and six of their last seven games. They are 3rd in the NL West with a 25-26 overall record and can get back to the .500 mark tonight. They also have a -24 run differential on the season. The Giants will start Kyle Harrison who is 4-1 in his 10 starts with a 3.60 ERA and 1.273 WHIP. After losing his first two starts, the Giants have won the last seven start that Harrison has made. He's also allowed three runs or fewer in each of those seven starts. The New York Mets have lost three straight games and five of their last six games. They were just swept by the Cleveland Guardians. The Mets have dropped to 21-28 overall with a -19 run differential. They are in fourth in the NL East, 15 games back of the Philadelphia Phillies. Christian Scott will make his fourth start of the season here tonight. Scott is 0-2 with a 4.32 ERA and 1.320 WHIP. Scott has also allowed seven runs over his last 10 innings. I like the hot Giants here tonight with the better starter against a cold NY Mets team. Play San Francisco.

The Kansas City Royals and Tampa Bay Rays begin a three-game series here on Friday from Tampa, FL. The Royals bring a six game win streak into this game on Friday and are just 1.5 games back of first place Cleveland in the AL Central. They also have a division best +72 run differential. The Royals will start their best pitcher thus far this season in Seth Lugo. Lugo is 7-1 in his 10 starts with a 1.93 ERA and 0.995 WHIP. Lugo has allowed three runs or fewer in five straight games and all but one of his 10 starts this season. He's also been great on the road, going 4-0 in four away starts with a 0.62 ERA. Lugo also has 22 KO's over his last 13 2/3 innings against just one walk. The Tampa Bay Rays have lost four straight games and are in 4th in the AL East, 9.5-games back of the NY Yankees. They also have a division worst -40 run differential. Shawn Armstrong will make his fourth start here on Friday. He's 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA and 2.000 WHIP this season. Armstrong is really an opener and won't go more than one or two innings here today. The bullpen has a 4.36 ERA this season and 4.67 at home. I like Lugo a lot here in this spot. Take the Royals.

The San Francisco Giants had their four game win streak snapped yesterday in game one of this series with the Pirates, 6-7. While the NL West is dominated by the LA Dodgers right now, the 2nd, 3rd and 4th place clubs are all at least eight games back. One of those are the 4th place Giants who at 23-26 are nine-games back of the Dodgers. However, they are just one game back of 2nd place San Diego. The Giants will start Blake Snell, whom they acquired in the offseason from the Padres as a free agent. Right now Snell has not been what was expected, in fact far from that pitcher. Snell is 0-3 in his three starts with a 11.57 ERA and 1.971 WHIP. Snell has yet to make it past five innings and has allowed 12 runs over his last 8 2/3 innings. The Pirates won their second game in a row and fourth in their last five games. They have climbed back into 3rd place in the NL Central and have a -26 run differential. Jared Jones starts for the Bucs with a 3-4 record in his nine starts. Jones has a nice 2.89 ERA and 0.906 WHIP. Jones has also been very consistent, as he's not allowed more than three runs in any of his nine starts this season. I like Jones today, he's consistent and keeps his team in games for the possible wins. Snell on the other hand will have to turn it around quickly if I ever look to back him. Play the Pirates today.

The Baltimore Orioles and St Louis Cardinals had their game suspended yesterday in the 6th inning due to rain. That game should be concluded today. This is the regular scheduled final game three of the series. The Cardinals took game one on Monday, 6-3. The Orioles started today 1.5 games back of the Yankees in the AL East. They have a + 55 run differential. John Means will toe the rubber today for the O's. Means is 2-0 in his three starts with a 3.06 ERA and 0.849 WHIP. Means has great control thus far, walking zero batters while striking out 15. The Cardinals are 21-26 and in 4th in the NL Central. They are 6.5-games back of the Brewers and have a division worst, -46 run differential. Kyle Gibson will start for the Cardinals. Gibson is 3-2 in his nine starts with a 4.09 ERA. Gibson coming off a win vs the Red Sox where he allowed eight hits and five runs over six innings. I still like the Orioles here in the regular scheduled contest. Play Baltimore.

 The Baltimore Orioles and St Louis Cardinals play game two of their three game set here on Tuesday. The Cardinals took game one on Monday, 6-3. The Cardinals are now 21-26 and in fourth place in the NL Central, six games back of the Milwaukee Brewers. They also have a division worst, -46 run differential. The Cardinals will start Lance Lynn here on Tuesday. Lynn is 1-2 in his nine starts with a 4.17 ERA and 1.478 WHIP. He's allowed eight runs over his last 9 2/3 innings (both losses). The Orioles dropped out of first place in the AL East after a lengthy stay. They are now in 2nd place, two games back of the Yankees. Kyle Bradish will start for the O's with a 0-0 record after three starts. He has a 2.63 ERA and 1.317 WHIP. Bradish has not allowed more than two runs in any of his three starts this year. I look for the Orioles to take game two here on Tuesday. Play Baltimore.

 The Brewers and Marlins opened their three game set on Monday and the Marlins took the opener 3-2 in 10 innings. Despite the loss the Brewers held onto first place in the NL Central, 1.5-games ahead of the Cubs. The Brewers are 5-5 over their last 10 games with a +37 run differential. They will start Robert Gasser today who is 2-0 in his two starts with a nifty 0.82 ERA and 0.818 WHIP. He's allowed just one total run over his 11 innings of work with just one walk and six Ko's. The Marlins have won six of their last 10 games but are still in last in the NL East, 18.5-games back of the Phillies. They also have one of the worst run differentials with a -81. The Marlins will start Trevor Rogers today. Rogers is 1-6 in his nine starts with a 5.7 9 ERA and 1.762 WHIP. Rogers is coming off his best start of the season, allowing no runs and three hits over five innings ow work in his first win of the season vs the Tigers. I still like the Brewers here today. They are in 1st while the Marlins are in last and they still have the better pitcher on the hill. Play Milwaukee.

The NY Mets and Cleveland Guardians play game 2 of their three game set here on Tuesday. The Guardians took game one on Monday, 3-1. The loss dropped the Mets to 21-26 overall and 12.5-games back of the first place Phillies. They also have lost seven of their last 10 games and have a -15 run differential. Adrian Houser will start today for the Mets with a 0-3 record and 8.16 ERA. He's been even worse on the road where he has a 13.00 ERA in his two away starts. The Guardians improved to 31-17 and have won four straight and seven of their last 10 games. They are 1.5-games in first place ahead of the Kansas City Royals. They also have a division leading +61 run differential. The Guardians will start Carlos Carrasco, who is 2-4 in his nine starts with a 5.16 ERA. He's been better at home where he is 1-2 in his three starts and a 4.02 ERA. Guardians are playing well while the Mets are not. Also give the pitching edge to Carrasco in this one. Play Cleveland.

The Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals begin their three game set here on Monday. The Tigers are 23-23 overall and come off a 2-1 series at Arizona. They outscored the D'backs 25-9 in that series. Detroit is in 4th in the AL Central, 5.5-games back of the Guardians. The Royals are 28-19 and in 2nd place in the AL Central, 1.5-games back of the Guardians. Kansas City is coming off a three game sweep of the Oakland A's. Michael Wacha starts for the Royals with a 3-4 record and 4.71 ERA and 1.369 WHIP. He's actually been a bit worse at home, going 1-1 in three starts with a 5.40 ERA. Reese Olson will start for the Tigers. He's 0-4, but that's a bit misleading since he has an excellent 2.09 ERA and 0.993 WHIP. Moreover, Olson has allowed just two total earned runs over his last four starts (26 innings). He also has 23 KO's and seven walks during that span. Olson is too good to not have a win this season and I'm taking him here on Monday as I look for him to register that first "W."

 The Milwaukee Brewers and Houston Astros play the final game of their three-game set here today. The teams have split the first two games with the Astros taking game one and the Brewers winning on Saturday, 4-2. The Brewers are 27-18 and in first place in the AL Central. They have a +43 run differential. The Astros are climbing in the AL West after being in last for most of the season they are now in 3rd place with a 20-26 record and -11 run differential. They are five games back of the Mariners in the division. Colin Rea will start for the Brewers today with a 3-1 record in his eight starts. Rea has a 3.45 ERA and 1.263 WHIP. Spencer Arrighetti will start for the Astros with his 1-4 record in his six starts. Arrighetti has a lofty 7.52 ERA and 1.898 WHIP. I'll take the Brewers to take this final game of the set.

The Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies play the final game of their three game set here on Sunday. The Nationals look to salvage the final game of this series. The Phillies too game one, 4-2, and game two on Saturday, 4-3 in 10 innings. The Phillies are 1st in the NL East with a 4-game lead over the Braves. The Nationals are in 3rd in the division, but they are 11.5-games back. The Phils also have one of the best run differentials in the NL with a +74 while the Nats come in at -13. Still, the Nats have played this series to the edge in both games. Trevor Williams will start on Sunday for the Nats and he's been their Ace this year. Williams is 4-0 in his eight starts with a stellar 1.94 ERA and 1.056 WHIP. He hasn't allowed more than three runs in any start this year and he's allowed three total runs over his last three starts (15 innings). The Phils will start Aaron Nola who is 5-2 in his nine starts with a 3.26 ERA and 1.103 W:HIP. Nola has been very good for the Phillies but is only 3-2 at home with a 4.91 ERA. The Phillies are a huge favorite on Sunday, but Williams is a great pitcher for the Nationals and they have played the Phillies tough this entire series. I'll take a shot with a two-dollar dog on Sunday. Play Washington.

 The Mets and Marlins play game two of their three game set here on Saturday. The Marlins shut out the Mets in game one, 8-0. The loss dropped the Mets to 20-24 and 11-games back of the Phillies in the NL East. The Mets have a -16 run differential. The Marlins are still in last and likely there the entire season. They improved to 14-32, 18-games back of the Phillies with a -79 run differential. Luis Severino will start today for the Mets. Severino is 2-2 in is eight starts with a 3.60 ERA and 1.222 WHIP. Severino has been very consistent since his opening day start where he gave up a season high six runs. Since then, he's allowed over three runs just one time and that was four vs the Rays. Braxton Garrett will start for the Marlins. Garrett is 0-0 in his one start with a 8.44 ERA. He allowed five runs over 5 1/3 innings vs the Phillies for a no decision. Hard to see the fish winning two in a row, I'll take the Mets here in game two. Play New York.

 The Ny Mets and Miami Marlins have game one of their three game set here on Friday. The Mets snapped a three game losing streak with a win over the Phillies on Thursday, 6-5. The Mets are 20-23 overall and in 4th in the NL East, 10-games back of the Phillies. Christian Scott will start today for the Mets. He's 0-1 in his two starts with a 2.84 ERA and 1.105 WHIP. He's also had 14 KO's and three walks over his 12 2/3 innings of work. The Marlins took two of three games from the Detroit Tigers. They only scored three runs over their last two games but held the Tigers to no runs. The Marlins are last in the NL East with a 13-32 record and are tied with the White Sox for the worst run differential in baseball with a -87. They are 18 games back of the Phillies and eight games back of fourth place NY Mets. Jesus Luzardo is 0-3 in his six starts with a 5.97 ERA and 1.326 WHIP. The Marlins give little run support to their starters and Luzardo is no exception. I'll take the Mets here on Friday.