MLB: Star-studded pitching lineup for Monday

MLB: Star-studded pitching lineup for Monday

2010-06-28

Monday starts the first-day of post-Interleague action in Major League Baseball, as the American & National leagues wrapped up their head-to-head play for 2010 on Sunday. Be it coincidence or not, managers seem to have saved some of their top pitchers for their league/division counterparts, as many top hurlers, and several others that are hot of late, are scheduled to go on Monday night. Let’s take a look at those games and see if we can’t uncover some edges. Get all of the key betting info for every game on the GAME MATCHUPS page of Sportsbook.com.

(901) NY METS (DICKEY) at (902) FLORIDA (NOLASCO) 7:10 PM - ** Game played in San Juan, PR

Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey has been a major surprise for the Mets this season since joining the rotation on May 19th and comes into Monday’s game versus Florida with a 6-0 won-lost mark. His last three starts have been particularly strong, as he allowed just three earned runs in 21 innings in those contests. In the start prior to that, he yielded three runs to these same Marlins in 6-1/3 innings and got the win. Dickey’s WHIP on the season is a very-respectable 1.295 and he opened as a -110 favorite at Sportsbook.com for Monday’s game, which incidentally, is being played in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Dickey will be opposed by Ricky Nolasco, who has won just two of his last seven starts, allowing 28 earned runs in 37 innings during that stretch.

(903) PHILADELPHIA (KENDRICK) at (904) CINCINNATI (CUETO) 7:10 PM

Johnny Cueto and the N.L. Central-leading Reds host the Phillies for three games starting on Monday night. Cincinnati has won nine of its L11 games with Cueto getting the ball, and he has allowed just one run in his last two starts covering 12-1/3 innings. He will be looking to erase the memories of the worst start of his pitching career, which came last July at Philadelphia, when he allowed nine runs in two-thirds of an inning to the Phillies.

Kyle Kendrick gets the start for the Phillies, and has won three straight starts. However, with a 5.62 ERA in those outings, he has his offense to thank. Philadelphia has given him 24 runs of support during that span.

(905) WASHINGTON (STRASBURG) at (906) ATLANTA (HUDSON) 7:10 PM

The pitching matchup of the night pits rookie Stephen Strasburg of the Nationals versus Tim Hudson and the Braves. It will be Strasburg’s fifth start of his career, and the first one in which he is not a heavy favorite. In fact, it is the Braves that opened as -120 home favorites.

Strasburg has been dominant in his first four starts, striking out 41 hitters in 25-1/3 innings. His ERA is a miniscule 1.78 with a WHIP of 0.947. Still, the Nats are just 2-2 in his four starts, losing the two most recent in interleague play.

Hudson has been good all season and is rightfully the favorite in this matchup. He boasts a 7-3 mark with a WHIP of 1.168 and ERA of 2.54. Those numbers are even better at home (4-1, 1.010, 1.87), following a pattern he has enjoyed his entire career…HUDSON is 115-50 (+33.7 Units) against the money line in home games.

(911) ARIZONA (HAREN) at (912) ST LOUIS (CARPENTER) 8:15 PM

Aces collide in St. Louis on Monday night when Chris Carpenter and the Cardinals host Dan Haren and the Diamondbacks. Haren isn’t enjoying the success he has in recent years but his WHIP is still a respectable 1.311 and his record is 7-6, despite pitching for one of the National League’s worst teams. Arizona is 13-3 OVER the total in his 16 starts, a sign of how poorly the bullpen is supporting Haren in his outings.

Carpenter has been as solid as ever this season, with a 9-1 record, 1.131 WHIP, and 2.63 ERA in 16 starts. He has struck out 95 hitters in just shy of 110 innings. In his last outing, he held the Jays scoreless in eight innings in Toronto. The Cardinals are a -180 favorite for this contest, setting up Carpenter for what has been an incredibly productive trend:

* CARPENTER is 15-1 (+13.0 Units) against the money line as a favorite of -175 to -250 over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record) The average score was CARPENTER 4.8, OPPONENT 1.9 - (Rating = 0*)

(913) COLORADO (JIMENEZ) at (914) SAN DIEGO (CORREIA) 10:05 PM

The league’s best pitcher in 2010, Ubaldo Jimenez, takes the hill tonight for the Rockies in what is a big game for his team. Colorado trails the Padres by 6-games in the N.L. West and has a chance to bite into that when the teams start a 3-game set on Monday. Jimenez will be opposed by San Diego’s Kevin Correia and pitches as a -160 favorite, according to Sportsbook.com.

Jimenez has been nothing short of dominant this season but was hit hard in his last outing by the Red Sox, allowing a season-high six runs in 5-2/3 innings. His ERA for 2010 remains a paltry 1.60, and perhaps most importantly, the Rockies are 14-1 in his 15 starts, including 10-0 when his team is coming off a loss. Jimenez has won four straight decisions over the Padres dating back to August ’08, allowing eight runs in 27 innings.

(917) TORONTO (ROMERO) at (918) CLEVELAND (WESTBROOK) 7:05 PM

Ricky Romero of the Jays didn’t allow an earned run in either of his last two starts (14 innings) and will look to extend that streak on Monday night as a -150 favorite in Cleveland. For the season, Romero, a former top 10 first round draft pick, boasts a 2.85 ERA and 1.217 WHIP in 15 starts, going 6-3. He would seem to be a in a very good spot here against Jake Westbrook and Cleveland, but keep in mind, Romero’s road WHIP is a much-less flattering 1.593 in 2010.

(921) CHI WHITE SOX (BUEHRLE) at (922) KANSAS CITY (LEREW) 8:10 PM

Mark Buehrle of the White Sox took full advantage of the interleague schedule by going 3-0 over the last 2+ weeks. In wins over Atlanta, Pittsburgh and the Cubs, Buehrle allowed just four earned runs in 20 innings. He has done very well versus the Royals throughout his career, going 20-10 with a WHIP of 1.221. One trend you’ll want to consider for tonight focuses on Buehrle’s performance on totals:

• BUEHRLE is 19-6 UNDER (+12.3 Units) in road games in night games over the last 3 seasons. (Team's Record) The average score was BUEHRLE 3.3, OPPONENT 4.1 - (Rating = 1*)

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