Well guys, it had to happen sooner or later. I have been writing my “Clear The Bases” baseball column here in GamingToday for over 32 weeks and haven’t had a “bad” week with games yet.
Last week, I was atrocious, going 0-3. Wow, what a stinkeroo that was. I posted three Run Line games on which two won by 1-run.
Have you noticed, as I have, there seem to be more high-priced games than ever in baseball? I remember 28 years ago when I moved to Las Vegas, we only saw a $2 favorite very rarely and that was when Roger Clemens or Randy Johnson were on the mound, with optimum conditions (at home and facing poor teams).
I looked at the baseball rotation this past Tuesday and there were 15 games scheduled. Two games had no lines yet and of the remaining games, seven were priced at least $1.80 or higher. Please understand, baseball is all about value. Because of these high prices, I must go to the Run Line often here in my column. So, having said that, I will not let you down like that again, my friends.
Here is this week’s Best Bet (all stats and trends are as of print and may change as can starting pitchers.):
Wednesday
Take Chicago over Arizona: With the Brewers just 2.5 GB and the Cardinals 5.5 GB in the Central, the first-place Cubs need every win they can get right now. Don’t get me wrong, so do the Diamondbacks, who trail the Dodgers by 5.0 games and the Rockies by .5 game in the West. However, Chicago is playing much stronger baseball, having won four of their L5, including a Game 1 victory over Arizona on Monday. The D-Backs are just, 4-13 their L17 overall. Cole Hamels has been solid for the Cubs.
Since joining the team, the LH is 4-0 in nine starts, en route to a season mark of 9-9, with a 3.68 ERA. Robbie Ray gets the nod at home. The LH is 5-2, but the 26-year-old dons a 4.14 ERA on the campaign. The Cubs are 5-1 the L6 meetings in Arizona and 5-2 the L7 vs. the NL West. The Diamondbacks are 1-4 the L5 at home and 1-5 the L6 vs. the NL Central. CHICAGO
Season: 30-13-1