MLB

World Series Preview/Game 1 Preview

The Giants shocked America, and completed their miracle comeback from 3-1 down Monday night, when they defeated the Cardinals for the 3rd straight time in a row. Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers had a much easier route to the fall classic, as they swept the mighty New York Yankees in 4 games. The Tigers come into this series well deservedly as the heavy favorite due to their recent success, however this series might just be a lot closer than many think. The Tigers have the star power with 2011 and 2012 MVP winners Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera, to go along with the perennial all-star slugger Prince Fielder. However as a whole, the Giants roster might just have the edge. After Verlander, the pitching edge will go to the Giants in this series, whose staff posted and ERA of 3.68 in the regular season which was good for 7th in the league. Meanwhile, the Tigers haven't had quite the same success, ranking 17th in WHIP and 19th in Batting Average Against, both categories in which the Giants are in the top 15. Meanwhile, on the batting side of the ball both teams are nearly equal with Giants actually having a better batting average of .269 to the Tigers .268. If the Tigers don't win Verlander's starts, including game 1, they will be long-shots to win the series, as the Giants seem to have the advantage with the rest of their staff. Another advantage that the Giant's have is home-field advantage which they got from the NL winning the All-Star game earlier this year. This series has potential to be a classic, and provide a lot of drama, if not fireworks. It might just bring back baseball as America's top sport...     Eh that's a stretch.

Starting Pitching: Slight Advantage Giants  (more depth)

Batting: Slight Advantage Tigers   (more power)

Bullpen: Even    (Lincecum phenomenal play from the pen has elevated the status of once struggling Giant's pen"

The Series Pick: Giants in 7 Games

Game 1 Pick: Giants for 2 Units to get 3 Units

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 NLCS Game 7 Cardinals vs. Giants

You have to lay 1.8/1 if you take the Cardinals +1.5, and since no team so far in this series has won by less than 2 runs, we'll elect to take the Cardinals straight up getting +125. The Cardinals are not a team to be messed with in big games, as they have come out on top time and time again. The Giants will send Matt Cain to the bump, and the Cardinals will counter with Kyle Lohse. These are two of the best pitchers in baseball going up against each other, and the slight edge would go to Cain, if there is one at all. However, when you have two pitchers that are both in the elite category, it's ultimately up to the hitters on each team to get the job done, and this is why we think the Cardinals have the advantage. They had the highest on base percentage out of any team in the regular season, and their offensive success has largely carried over to the post-season, as they are averaging 4.75 runs per game in these playoffs. The winner here will be determined by which team can get their offense going quickly, and we see that team being the St. Louis Cardinals.   The Pick: Cardinals 2 Units to get 2.5 Units.

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 ALCS Cardinals vs. Giants Game 4 Preview

The reigning champion Cardinals will look to get back to the Fall Classic tonight.

The St. Louis Cardinals are looking to join the Detroit Tigers in the Fall Classic, and a win tonight against San Francisco would do it. Lance Lynn is set to take the bump for the Cardinals, and veteran Barry Zito will counter for the Giants, who's season is in jeopardy. The power pitcher Lynn, brings his 3.28 ERA at home, and microscopically low 2.96 ERA in the night-time this year, to tonight's game, and he should have the advantage over the aging Zito, whose 4.15 ERA during the regular season is nothing to boast about. Another reason for Giants fans to worry, is that the Cardinals have hit lefty's hard this season. They have a .276 batting average this year against southpaws, and the heart of the lineup, Matt Holiday, Allen Craig, Yadier Molina, and David Freese have fared even better, hitting .333. Meanwhile, Giants bats have been struggling this post-season, and have an abysmal .219 BA to show for it. The Cards are the pick here to win it, and set up a rematch of the 2006 world series with the San Francisco Giants.   The Pick: Cardinals -1.5 runs for 2 Units to get 3 Units

 

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 NLCS Giants @ Cardinals Game 4 Pick

Tim Lincecum is one of the most rapidly declining players in the MLB. Yet, the Cardinals have a .322 average against him, in their respective careers. Tim also has yet to make a start in around a month, and has a awful 6.43 ERA away from home.  Adam Wainwright is on the mound for the Cards, bringing in a 3.70 ERA at home, but a 3.28 overall ERA in the second half of the season, but in his last start he gave u 6 runs in 2.1 innings against WSH, and the Giant's are hitting over .300 career against him, but did only give up a .231 average against them this year. I have no idea which version of these pitchers will show up, they are both extremely inconsistent. One stat that is pretty telling about Wainwright however, is in his last start that he couldn't make it out of the third inning was @ Washington, in his next start against the Mets, he gave up 5 runs in 5 innings pitched. This could be a useless stat, but I feel SFG is the right play +1.5 tonight, because I love the 1.5 runs for away teams. SFG +1.5 FOR 2 UNITS TO WIN 1 UNIT. 

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NLCS Giants @ Cardinals Game 3 Preview/Pick

Matt Cain has struggled of late, giving up 6 runs in his last 10 2/3 innings.

I could rehash everything I wrote in my DS (draft street) article, but to put it simpler terms, Cain is pitching very bad right now, and the Giants' hitters seem to have Lohse's number. It has gone O the spread every game this series, and with 2 struggling pitchers on the mound, this one will get ugly fast. The bullpens are also rather depleted since most starters have struggled to give their club quality innings this series. Cain also has a 3.56 ERA away, compare to a 2.03 at home. Cain also has a slightly higher ERA during the day. Lohse also has a ERA almost a full run higher during the day, as well as the fact that he is struggling lately. This should get ugly quick, but the clubs will try and milk the SP to give RP a break, leading to a high scoring game. O 7 might be my favorite pick since creating the site, all as some people say all roads lead to over, this is a reputation based line. O 7 for 4 units.

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NLCS Cardinals vs. Giants Game 2 Pick/Preview

Chris Carpenter will look to put the Giants in a big hole tonight, for the reigning champion Cardinals, while Ryan Vogelsong will look to keep his Giants away from their grave. The Cardinals are red-hot and won Game 1 6-4. Right now, the Giants are getting 2/1 on covering the -1.5 spread. On paper it looks like the Cardinals might have the edge, however Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter has only pitched in 3 games this regular season due to receiving surgery to repair a nerve problem in his shoulder. In addition, Carpenter has a much worse ERA of 3.78 in his last 3 seasons at home compared to his dominant 2.96 at home. Meanwhile Giants pitcher Ryan Vogelsong has pitched well recently, giving up only 2 runs in his last 4 outings. The Over/Under line of 6.5 is way to low for a playoff baseball game, so we'll take the Giants and Over.  The Pick: Giants -1.5 2 Units to get 4 Units; Over 6.5 for 3 Units.

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NLCS Cardinals @ Giants Game 1 Pick/Preview

I am going to recommend you to pound the over. Lance Lynn has been awful in the second half of the season. He has been pitching in relief as of late, so its an interesting decision to start him tonight. He has a 8.37 ERA in playoffs, and has given up 6.00 ERA against the Giants.  Bumgarner has gone 4.1 innings and has given up 4 runs, in his only post-season start this year. He has yet to go 7 innings in his past 8 starts, despite playing SD 2X, Rockies 2X, ARI, and CHC. He clearly isn't the same SP he was earlier in the season, which will result in people overrating him. This, I think, will be a 12-15 run game, both SP just have not been good. O 7 for 2 Units.

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ALCS Tigers @ Yankees Game 1 Pick/Preview

Tigers @ Yankees: Pettitte has been pitching well. One huge problem, Tigers are hitting over .400 against him. Tigers hit lefties amazingly and I think they will be able to go yard quite a few times, Pettitte has given up 8 HR in 12 games, but that number is even higher at home. Fister has only given up .283 average to Yankees hitters, but the majority of those come from Ian Stewart, who is not in the lineup tonight. In this type of game, I like the U, both pitchers have pretty high ERA's and they are pitching in a hitters park, but they have been pitching very well of late. Fister has a 2 ERA against Yankees and a 2.74 since all-star break. U 7.5 1 UNIT.

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10/11 MLB Pick; A's vs. Tigers Game 4; Yanks vs. O's Game 4

Justin Verlander is taking the mound for the Tigers, who are the slight favorite to cover 1.5 runs in this game. Verlander has been dominant in his last four starts, so we'll keep riding his streak until it costs us, because that's the only mind set we can have with a pitcher as good as him. Jarrod Parker will make his post-season debut for the A's, who has a team are inexperienced at best. Look for the Tigers to jump out early, and for Verlander to go 7, maybe even 8 strong.  The Pick: Tigers -1.5 runs for 2 Units.

Meanwhile, the Yankees are also looking to secure a spot in the ALCS tonight, and a third win over Baltimore tonight, would do just that. Joe Saunders is taking the mound for the Orioles tonight, and he has avoided a bad start in his last 6 outings, which is good news for Orioles fans, as they'll need him to make it 7 if they want to last any longer. Despite this, one has to be cognizant of the fact that Saunders isn't exactly a strikeout pitcher, and that he also gives up lots of hits, which is evident by the fact that his career batting average against is .276. Against a powerful Bronx Bomber's lineup, this likely will not get the job done.  The Pick: Yankees -1.5 runs 3 units to get 2 Units

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  Giants Topple Reds; Yankees Edge Out O's

Giant's fans saw a glimpse of the old Tim Lincecum Wednesday

The San Francisco Giants and New York Yankees experienced a swift turn of events at some point or another on Wednesday night. Heading into Game 4, the Giants were trailing the Reds 2-1 in the series and were the heavy underdogs to even the series on the road. "Kung Fu Panda" Pablo Sandoval had an outstanding game, driving in 3 runs and going 3-4, however, it was the "Freak" Tim Lincecum, that gave Giant's fans the performance they've become accustomed to seeing from him every October. Lincecum was masterful in his 4 1/3 innings of work, giving up only 1 run on 2 hits. The momentum is now with San Francisco, and they will need all of it come Thursday when they face off with the Reds once more in the fifth and deciding game of the series.  Meanwhile in the ALDS, it was an odd day in the Bronx, that included superstar Alex Rodriguez getting booed by his own fans, and later being benched for pinch hitter Raul Ibanez. The gutsy decision turned out to be perhaps the move of the year by Yankees manager Joe Girardi, as Ibanez went yard in the 9th inning to knot the game up at 2, and then followed his heroic act with another one in the bottom of the 12th, where he hit his 7th and most memorable walk-off home run of his career. The series will stay in New York for a pivotal Game 4 on Thursday.



Check Out Interesting Fantasy/NFL Article below

http://mensgs.blogspot.com/2012/10/true-qb-value-guide.html

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 ALDS Yankees vs. Orioles Game 3 Preview/Pick

Baltimore is fresh off a 3-2 victory over the Yankees in game 2 to tie the series up, however don't count on this to continue. The Yankees are at home in the Bronx, which means the Orioles will face the daunting task of beating perhaps baseball's biggest team, on one of baseball's biggest stages. This doesn't bode well for them, as their starting pitcher for this matchup, Miguel Gonzalez is making his post-season debut. The amalgamation of the rowdy New York crown and New Yankee Stadium makes this an unideal place for him to start. Meanwhile, the Yankees will counter with the experienced Hiroki Kuroda, who at 37 years of age, seems a lot younger for his years with his 2.72 ERA at home this year. Throughout the regular season, the Yankees were top-10 in all major hitting categories, including being ranked 1st in slugging percentage. We think that their success will carry over to tonight's game, and force the Orioles to go to the pen early.The Yankees experience will let them take over this game early.    The Pick: Yankees -1.5 runs for 3 Units to get 2 Units. (Yankees are -1.5 to cover, so we have to lay odds)  Over 8.5 for 2 Units

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  Walking on Thin Ice

Brett Anderson shutout the Tigers on Tuesday night.

On the brink of elimination Tuesday night, both the A's and the Giants managed to stay alive by beating their opponents, the Tigers and Reds respectively. Both clubs were heavy underdogs, but they managed to grind it out for wins. The Giants were in a real nerve-racking situation as their game with the Reds went into extra innings. At any moment in the bottom half of the 9th and 10th inning, their season could've been over with one swing of the bat. Fortunately for them, they avoided that "one" swing, and used a bobble by an unlikely candidate, in 8 time gold-glove winner Scott Rolen, to score the go-ahead run in the top half of the 10th. Meanwhile in Oakland, moneyball was in full effect, as the Athletics got in a pitcher's duel with the Tigers; but it was Oakland who scored an early run in the first to take the lead, and not the powerful Tiger's lineup led by triple crown winner Miguel Cabrera. They would not look back the rest of the way, and shutout the Tigers in front of a home crowd of 37 thousand. Game 3 in the A's-Tigers series is on Wednesday at 9:37 PM ET, while Game 3 of the Giants Reds series is also on Wednesday at 4:07 PM ET.

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Tigers @ A's

Tigers @ A's -133: Well, Tigers are looking to sweep the storybook A's tonight. It certainly won't be easy, but I think it will be done. Anderson has a 11.57 ERA against the Tigers this year, in 2.1 innings pitched. Anderson only has 6 starts this year, and has a 2.57 ERA. I think it should be of note that he has only given up 1 HR in 35 innings pitched. Due to the lack of instant offence against Anderson, I also like U 7. Tigers combined have hit a .280 against Anderson. Another reason I like the Tigers is that Anderson frequently throws to the right side of the plate. The Tigers have hit pitches on the right side of the plate  50 batting points better, than pitches thrown on the left side. I believe that is a untold stat that explains why he struggles with the Tigers. Anibal Sanchez starts tonight, and although the A's are hitting .282 against him, Sanchez is a great road pitcher. He has pitched in two of the best hitters parks in the MLB, Marlins park and Detroit's home park. He has a staggering 3.29 ERA on the road, compared to 4.52 at home. Sanchez is also coming off a start in which he pitched 6 solid innings, and gave up 1 run against Minnesota, and before he pitched a complete game shutout against KC. Sanchez also has given up a crazy 20 HR this year in 32 starts, but I think he will strongly benefit from playing in Oakland's pitcher friendly park. Tigers for 1 unit and U 7 for 1 unit.
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  NLDS Reds vs. Giants Game 3 Preview/Picks

The Reds are looking to close out their opening series against the giants in about 30 minutes from now. The spread is Reds -1.5 (+158) and Giants +1.5 (-175) This means that if you pick the Reds to cover the 1.5 runs that they are favored to win by, you get an additional 58 cents or 0.58 units to your potential winnings for every dollar/unit you bet. Ryan Vogelsong will take the rubber for the Giants, who are hoping to avoid elimination, and Homer Bailey, fresh off two dominant performances including a no hitter against the Pirates on September 28th, will take the mound for the Reds. Both pitchers have similar ERA's as Vogelsong has the slight advantage with his 3.37 ERA compared to Bailey's 3.68. However, it was Bailey who has been dominant most recently, as he had a total ERA of only 2.02 in the month of September. Meanwhile, Vogelsong has been atrocious in August and September, posting ERA's of 6.32 and 6.48. Bailey has struggled throughout the season at home, however we expect that the fan base in Cincinatti will be energized, and spread the energy to not only Homer, but also to the Red's bats. San Francisco hasn't even been close in game 1 and 2 when they were at home, and they have 3 players in their lineup that have yet to record a hit in the series. Unless the Giants bats suddenly wake from hibernation and tee off on Homer Bailey, we don't see them winning. With the Reds getting odds to cover, they're a must pick in this game. Even if they don't manage to cover, we don't see the Giants putting up too many runs on Homer Bailey, so we'll take the under and sort of "hedge" our bet seeing that we're getting odds to take Reds -1.5. The Pick: 2 Units to get 3 Units on Reds -1.5  and  Under 7.5 for 2 units.   We would have to be totally off to lose units based on the bets we will place. A likely case is that the two picks will end up cancelling each other out.

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 MLB 10/8 Recap; O's Tie Yanks; Cardinals Bats Explode

It was an important day for the Baltimore Orioles and St. Louis Cardinals. Both teams dug themselves into a deep hole when they lost game 1 of their respective series's. With a loss meaning they would have to win 3 straight in enemy territory, both the Orioles and Cardinals knew what was at stake when they took the field Monday. They responded to the pressure masterfully, as the Cardinals woke up to crush the Nationals 12-4, and the Orioles, led by inexperienced pitcher Wei-Yin Chen held on to beat the Yankees 3-2. The Cardinals had a huge 2nd inning, where they put up a crooked number of 4 on the board, to take a early 4 to 1 lead. They would not look back for the rest of the day, and scored 4 more in the 8th to put a dagger in the National's chances of a comeback. Meanwhile, the Orioles didn't have as much breathing room, as they were involved in a nail biter all the way through; but they did what they have done all season long, and won another close game. In what may have seemed like an easy series for the Nationals and Yankees 24 hours ago, might now just be starting.

Game 3: Yankees vs. Orioles. Wed October 10th, 7:37 PM ET.

Game 3: Nationals vs. Cardinals Wed, October 10th, 1:07 PM ET.

 

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NLDS Cardinals vs. Nationals Game 2 Preview/Betting Prediction

The Cardinals and the Nationals get set to play each other today at 3:07 CT time. Jordan Zimmerman will take the bump for the Nats, and lefty Jaime Garcia will counter for the reigning world champions Cardinals. The Nationals lead the series 1-0 after taking game 1 three to two. The Cardinal's hitters struggled mightily and only recorded 3 hits for an abysmal .107. On the other side, the Nationals bats were awake in game 1, and had 8 hits. They have batted .265 against lefty's this year, and they have 3 starters that are hitting over .300 against them. Zimmermann has been lights out this year on the road, with a 2.36 ERA. Garcia has been nearly as dominant at home this year, posting a 2.86 ERA. All signs point to a low scoring game, so we think that it'll be hard for the Nationals to cover the -1.5 run spread on the road. The Cardinals, including Jaime Garcia have more postseason experience than the Nats and Zimmermann do, so we'll pick the Cardinals to cover the spread. Look for the Cardinals to bounce back in this one. The Pick: Under 7.5 runs for 2 Units and Cardinals +1.5 for 2 Units

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NLDS Giants vs. Reds Game 2 Preveiw/Betting Prediction

The Reds and the Giants face off tonight at AT&T ballpark in San Francisco. The Giants send Madison Bumgarner to the rubber, and the Reds will counter with Bronson Arroyo. Bumgarner had a 3.37 ERA in the regular season and had an even better 2.38 ERA at home. Meanwhile, Bronson Arroyo has a 3.74 ERA. The starters for the Reds have struggled against Bumgarner, and are a combined 14/69 (.200) against him. Meanwhile, the Giants starters have fared much better against their opposing pitcher, Bronson Arroyo, as they are 30/102 (.294) against him. The Giants have the advantage in this one, and being at home with a dominant pitcher like Bumgarner should allow them to cover the -1.5 spread.   The Pick: Giants -1.5 for 2 Units TO GET 3 and Under 7 for 1 Unit.   (Giants -1.5 handicap is +1.5 so we put in 2 to get 3)

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Day 1 Of MLB Playoffs: Tigers Beat A's; Reds Trump Giants

Day 1 of the MLB playoffs concluded today, after the Detroit Tigers beat the Oakland A's 3 to 1, which was later followed by the San Francisco Giants thrashing the Cincinnati Reds 5 to 2. Tigers ace, Justin Verlander picked up the win after pitching a phenomenal game in which he gave up only 1 run on 3 hits over 7 innings, while striking out 11 batters. He was dominant all game, and the Tigers bats produced just enough to give them the 1-0 series lead in this best-of 5 series. The series stays in Detroit, for a crucial Game 2 tomorrow which will be played at 12:07 PM ET. Tommy Milone will look keep the A's in contention as he'll be up against Doug Fister, who will be taking the bump for the Tigers.
Meanwhile, in San Francisco, the Reds managed to defeat the Giants 5 to 2, despite losing starting pitcher, Johnny Cueto to back spasms in the 1st inning. Brandon Phillips had a nice day going 3-5 with 3 RBI's, and Reds pitcher Mat Latos who was acquired earlier this year, came in for extended relief and pitched well, giving up only 1 run in 4 innings of work. Game 2 is back in San Francisco Sunday night at 9:37 PM ET, with Bronson Arroyo of the Reds set to go against Madison Bumgarner of the Giants.

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A's vs. Tigers

A's @ Tigers -1.5 +116: Well, after going 4-0 in baseball on wild card day, I take my talents to motor city (yes that was a LBJ reference if you struggle with Internet sarcasm.) The A's are hot right now, winning their last 5 games in order to win their respective division. However, I think that will overrate them. The A's have a very balanced staff, and believe it or not, that is not as important in the playoffs. Most MLB teams use a 3 team rotation for 5 game series, with 2 pitchers pitching on short rest. That means that the A's balanced staff will become a weakness against the top heavy rotation of the Tigers. The A's send out rookie Jarrod Parker, Parker is far from an ace, and has a 1.26 WHIP. WHIP is  a good stat to measure a pitchers pre dominance, as it just accounts hits and walks (WHIP=Walks+Hits in Innings Pitched.) Parker gave up .261 average to Detroit hitters in 5.2 IP in his only start against them. One thing benefiting Parker is his recent starts against elite offences. He has given up no more than 3 ER and in no less than 6 IP against Tex, Tex, NYY, Bal, LAA, LAA. Those are some tough O's. The problem that I have with the A's is their reliance on the HR ball. They rank 28th in the MLB in BA (while playing in the AL) and 24th in on base %. Against Verlander, they will not be able to go yard to often. In his 33 starts, he has only given up 19 HR total. For those of us who struggle with math, that is around .7 HR a game. Verlander also has a 1.06 WHIP to boast. To top it off the A's have a combined 110 ABs against Verlander, and a .164 average and 1 HR. I predict the A's will get shutout, and despite solid pitching from Parker, the Tigers should be able to put up a few. Tigers -1.5 +116 for 1 Unit. U 7.5 for 3 units.  

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Baltimore @ Texas Rangers

Red hot. That's 8 in a row for SGS, assuming that the Cardinals can hold their 3 run lead. Worst case, 7-1 ain't too shabby. Tonight, in our second wild card game Orioles head to Texas to take on the Rangers. Let's start off with pitchers, Yu Darvish is on the mound for Texas, since August 6th, Yu has started 8 games, gong 7.2 innings average, and has a 100% QS rate. He has also faced 5 of the best offences in the MLB, the Tigers, Rays twice, and the Angels twice. That shows he is not a flash in the pan (see Medlon, Kris). The Orioles send out a lefty specialist in Joe Saunders, who has 5 QS out of last 7 starts. He also only as a HR rate of only .8 a game, and a walk rate of 1.6 per nine innings. The problem with Saunders is that he is giving up a .300 average this season. It should be noted that the Rangers are primarily a lefty based team. But what if the Orioles go all out, and do what I am predicting, sending Saunders out for 3 innings. The O's have a bullpen that is 3rd in the MLB allowing 3.00 runs per 9 innings. Let's face it, Joe Saunders is not very likely to carry the Orioles to a W, I think they will stick with their biggest advantage over virtually every team in the MLB, their bullpen. I think that will work to keep these Texas hitters on their heals, but Yu will also pitch fantastic as he has of late. I am going to predict a 2-1 final, meaning I like the Orioles +1.5 at even odds, especially with Texas being at home, meaning if they are up by one run in the ninth the Orioles will more than likely cover. It also prevents a Texas walk off hit from winning the bet for Texas -1.5 betters. That -1.5 for home teams is the biggest trap in all of betting. ORIOLES +1.5 FOR 2 UNITS U 9 FOR 1 UNIT.

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MLB WILDCARD PICKS Cardinals vs. Braves

Cardinals @ Braves -172: In this one game format, anyone can win. Both teams will throw the kitchen sink, the question is who's sink is better. The line clearly shows that the public think the Braves have a MUCH better sink. Kris Medlen, in case you haven't followed baseball too closely this year, has a 1.57 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. He would have been the easy CY Young winner if he would have started in the first half of the season. I think that # is to generous. In his starts this year he has faced, MIA, HOU, NYM, SD, WSH, SD, COL, NYM, WSH, MIA, MIA, NYM. Red means bottom 1/4 in runs this year. You should obviously see that there is an insane amount of red. The greens are offences in the top 1/3 in runs. Plus this is Medlen's first clutch game, because by the time the Braves were at the all-star break, it was pretty clear they would be in the playoffs. The Cardinals are also the 4th best offensive team in the MLB over the year. Kyle Lohse also is on the mound for the Cardinals, and although his 2.81 ERA may not be accurate of how good he has been recently, I also think he will struggle, in his only start against Atlanta this year, he has given up .401 BA and 5 runs in 5 innings. The Braves are also hitting a combined .319 against Lohse in their respective careers. I think the stats illistrate that O 6.5 is clearly the right play, despite the SP's ERA, they are not as good as the ERA's indicate. I also think that the Cardinals are worth a small play @ +163, mostly because 2 playoff teams shouldn't be that highly favored over another. CARDS +163 FOR 1 UNIT TO WIN 1.5 AND 0VER 6.5 FOR 3 UNITS. CHECK BACK FOR UPCOMING CFB PICKS, AND LATE MLB PICK.

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Miguel Cabrera Wins Triple Crown

Miguel Cabrera's 2012 resume speaks for itself.

With a .330 batting average, 44 home runs, and 139 RBI's, Miguel Cabrera has won the Triple Crown award. Cabrera is only the 15th player to win this prestigious award in MLB history, and the first to do so since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. For Cabrera, it was a wonderful way to cap off a great season, where his Tigers just recently clinched the pennant, and a spot in the playoffs. Cabrera is also expected to win the AL MVP award, which his teammate, Cy Young winner Justin Verlander won last year.

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YANKEES WIN AL EAST

Robinson Cano went 4-4 to help the Yankees to their 10th pennant since 2000.

The New York Yankees have won the AL East after knocking off the Boston Red Sox 14-2. The Orioles lost 4-1 to the season killing Rays. The Yankees will now head into the playoffs as a major favorite to make it back to another World Series in this storied franchise's career. Meanwhile, the Orioles organization will look to improve even more after a fantastic turnaround season. 

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Tigers Magic Number is 1

Prince Fielder's home run in the 8th gave the Tigers the 2-1 lead

All of a sudden, the Detroit Tigers are only a game away from winning the AL Central. They did their part by beating the Twins 6 to 4 on Saturday, and then 2 to 1 today. Meanwhile the White Sox couldn't help their cause, and lost 10 to 4 on Saturday and 6 to 2 today, to fall three games back. With only three games remaining, the Sox will need a miracle and a lot of help from Kansas City if they want to continue playing ball in October.They finish up the season with a 3 game series against Cleveland, while Detroit
will head down to Kauffman Stadium, to take on the Royals.

 

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White Sox Stay Alive; Beat Rays 3-1

Chris Sale will take the mound for the Sox tomorrow. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

The White Sox closed the gap between them and the Tigers to only 1 game after their win tonight. Gavin Floyd's survival act was enough to get through 5 innings with only giving up 1 run, despite throwing 5 walks. The Sox' bats didn't quite explode, however the 3 runs that they produced was enough. Alex Rios capped off an already fantastic season by going 3 for 4 with a homer that gave the Sox a 2-1 lead. They never looked back, as Jesse Crain came in and shut out the Rays over 2 2/3. Meanwhile in Minneapolis, at Target Field, the Twins helped out their longtime rivals by edging out the Tigers 4-2. Twins starter Scott Diamond pitched a gem and gave up only 1 run over 7 1/3 innings, however only earned the no decision as the Twins bats didn't wake up until late Friday night.
          For the Sox, they'll look to build on this victory and tie up the race for the pennant. They take on the Rays again tomorrow at 3:05 with their Co-Ace Chris Sale set to take the mound, while the Rays will counter with Matt Moore. As for the Tigers, they'll give the nod to their Ace, Justin Verlander who will be up against a struggling pitcher in P.J. Walters of the Twins.

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Hunt for October Pennant Race (AL) 9.28.12

AL East
      Derek Jeter and the Yankees were shut out last night in Toronto as the Blue Jays won 6-0. The Orioles had an off day and they move 1 game behind New York. They each have 6 games left. Yankees: TOR, TOR, TOR, BOS, BOS, BOS. Orioles: BOS, BOS, BOS, TB, TB, TB.

                                                                                    AL Central
      Evan Longoria crushed the White Sox's hopes of a comeback victory Thursday night as he crushed a solo shot in the top of the ninth. The Rays won 3-2. The Tigers did not play and now have a 2 game division lead. Tigers (6 Games Left): MIN, MIN, MIN, KC, KC, KC. White Sox (6 Games Left): TB, TB, TB, CLE, CLE, CLE

AL West
    The Rangers moved 4 games ahead of Oakland after a 9-7 win last night over the A's. Oakland came back to score 3 on the 8th but could not make a final push. Rangers (6 Games Left): LAA, LAA, LAA, OAK, OAK, OAK. Athletics (6 Games Left): SEA, SEA, SEA, TEX, TEX, TEX.

AL Wildcard
    Baltimore and Oakland both hold the wildcard at this point with the Angels 2 games behind both of them. Angels (6 Games Left): TEX, TEX, TEX, SEA, SEA, SEA



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Hunt for October (Pennant Race) AL

Jake Peavy will look to end the White Sox skid tonight.

 AL East
  Sabathia struck out 10 as the Yankees won 8-2 over the Twins. The Orioles hit 7 home runs as they pounded the Blue Jays 12-2. The AL East is still the Yankees by 1.5 games.

AL Central
     The Tigers edged out the Royals 5-4 last night to take sole possession of first after the White Sox walked 12 and lost to the Indians 6-4.

AL West
    Josh Hamilton and the Rangers still have a commanding 3 game lead in the West after a 9-3 loss against the Athletics who are in second place in the division.

WildCard
     Baltimore and Oakland own the wildcard right now and have an almost identical record. The Angels are 2 game behind both of them.