Friday Lines/Discussion

[buckeyeburritos]

<table style="width: 100%;" border="0"><tbody><tr class="Column_Date_Headers_Odds"><td colspan="7">MLB Baseball - Fri 5/8

</td> </tr><tr class="Column_Headers_Odds"> <td colspan="3">Game</td><td>Run Line</td><td>Money Line</td><td>Total Runs</td><td>More</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>901</td><td>Atlanta Braves
JJ. Reyes</td><td>+1.5 -132</td><td>+162</td><td>OVER 9.5 -112</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>04:05 PM</td><td>902</td><td>Philadelphia Phillies
C. Hamels</td><td>-1.5 +122</td><td>-170</td><td>UNDER 9.5 +102</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>903</td><td>Pittsburgh Pirates
J. Karstens</td><td>+1.5 -135</td><td>+158</td><td>OVER 9.5 -110</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>04:10 PM</td><td>904</td><td>New York Mets
J. Niese</td><td>-1.5 +125</td><td>-166</td><td>UNDER 9.5 +100</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>905</td><td>St Louis Cardinals
J. Pineiro</td><td>+1.5 -177</td><td>+118</td><td>OVER 8.5 -105</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>04:10 PM</td><td>906</td><td>Cincinnati Reds
J. Cueto</td><td>-1.5 +167</td><td>-126</td><td>UNDER 8.5 -105</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>907</td><td>Chicago Cubs
R. Wells</td><td>+1.5 -178</td><td>+113</td><td>OVER 9 -119</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>05:05 PM</td><td>908</td><td>Milwaukee Brewers
D. Bush</td><td>-1.5 +168</td><td>-121</td><td>UNDER 9 +109</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>909</td><td>San Diego Padres
C. Gaudin</td><td>+1.5 -145</td><td>+151</td><td>OVER 8.5 -110</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>05:05 PM</td><td>910</td><td>Houston Astros
W. Rodriguez</td><td>-1.5 +135</td><td>-159</td><td>UNDER 8.5 +100</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>911</td><td>Florida Marlins
R. Nolasco</td><td>+1.5 -184</td><td>-101</td><td>OVER 11 -105</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>06:10 PM</td><td>912</td><td>Colorado Rockies
J. Hammel</td><td>-1.5 +174</td><td>-107</td><td>UNDER 11 -105</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>913</td><td>Washington Nationals
S. Martis</td><td>+1.5 -159</td><td>+127</td><td>OVER 10 -112</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>06:40 PM</td><td>914</td><td>Arizona D-Backs
Y. Petit</td><td>-1.5 +149</td><td>-135</td><td>UNDER 10 +102</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>915</td><td>San Francisco Giants
B. Zito</td><td>+1.5 -121</td><td>+185</td><td>OVER 8 +105</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>07:10 PM</td><td>916</td><td>Los Angeles Dodgers
C. Billingsley</td><td>-1.5 +111</td><td>-201</td><td>UNDER 8 -115</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>917</td><td>New York Yankees
C. Sabathia</td><td>-1.5 +101</td><td>-154</td><td>OVER 9.5 -103</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>04:05 PM</td><td>918</td><td>Baltimore Orioles
J. Guthrie</td><td>+1.5 -111</td><td>+146</td><td>UNDER 9.5 -107</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>919</td><td>Tampa Bay Rays
J. Shields</td><td>-1.5 +144</td><td>-109</td><td>OVER 10 +105</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>04:05 PM</td><td>920</td><td>Boston Red Sox
B. Penny</td><td>+1.5 -154</td><td>+101</td><td>UNDER 10 -115</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>921</td><td>Detroit Tigers
J. Verlander</td><td>+1.5 -175</td><td>+112</td><td>OVER 9 +100</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>04:05 PM</td><td>922</td><td>Cleveland Indians
C. Lee</td><td>-1.5 +165</td><td>-120</td><td>UNDER 9 -110</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>923</td><td>Seattle Mariners
C. Jakubauskas</td><td>+1.5 -148</td><td>+143</td><td>OVER 9 -108</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>05:10 PM</td><td>924</td><td>Minnesota Twins
S. Baker</td><td>-1.5 +138</td><td>-151</td><td>UNDER 9 -102</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>925</td><td>Texas Rangers
M. Harrison</td><td>+1.5 -177</td><td>+101</td><td>OVER 10.5 -120</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>05:10 PM</td><td>926</td><td>Chicago White Sox
J. Contreras</td><td>-1.5 +167</td><td>-109</td><td>UNDER 10.5 +110</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>927</td><td>Kansas City Royals
G. Meche</td><td>-1.5 +154</td><td>-103</td><td>OVER 9 +100</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD2"> <td>07:05 PM</td><td>928</td><td>LAA Angels
M. Palmer</td><td>+1.5 -164</td><td>-105</td><td>UNDER 9 -110</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>Fri 5/8</td><td>929</td><td>Toronto Blue Jays
S. Richmond</td><td>-1.5 +145</td><td>-109</td><td>OVER 9 +110</td><td rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle">
</td> </tr><tr class="AD1"> <td>07:05 PM</td><td>930</td><td>Oakland Athletics
J, Outman</td><td>+1.5 -155</td><td>+101</td><td>UNDER 9 -120</td></tr></tbody></table>

:cheers:

 

[lucash]

Finally Sabathia is almost priced as a human!

 

[HereWeGo]

Zito was cash money last year as a huge dog on numerous occasions. He has thrown the ball well the last 3 starts, albeit all of them were at home, including one vs LA where he was unhittable thru 6. May catch LA at a good time the night after the Mannywood fiasco...

 

[Certified]

whats with neise -166?

 

[hexguru]

Finally Sabathia is almost priced as a human!

only reason because its guthrie...

 

[E.T.G.]

Shields pitching in fenway is totally different than in the Trop. Boston at even money for me but want to see whats up with Ellsbury and Youk first

 

[buckeyeburritos]

Cueto pitched a total of 6.2 innings and gave up 12ER in his two games vs StL last year.

Stat of the day: In the last two years I've been to 9 reds games and they're 9-0 those games. I'll be at the game tomorrow FWIW

 

[E.T.G.]

haha thats awesome

 

[CharlieBX]

what's up everyone? maaan...i'm pissed at the yankees right now. gave up 6 home runs tonite. BUT on the brightside I'm proud of my boy Mark Buehrle! Pitched by far his best game of the year so far...owned Detroit.

Here's what caught my eye on the initial glance...obviously just leans that need to be worked on.

Philly
Neither of these guys pitched in the opening series that Atlanta won 2-1. Just don't trust Reyes and Hamels has some solid numbers against Atlanta. Just a slight lean here though as Philly returns home after losing back to back to the Mets and Atlanta's lineup is actually healthy now with Anderson back. Plus they saved their bullpen today as Jurrjens went 7 innings strong. Still...I just don't just Reyes lol.

St. Louis
Buckeye nailed it about Cueto's struggles against the Cardinals and Pinny throws that 2 seamer excellent nowadays. One thing that kind of wonders me about this though is Cueto is 0-2 with an ERA of 16ish in those two starts...Pineiro is 3-0 with a ERA of 2.22 against Cincy...and yet Cueto opened as a -145 fave? It's been bet down to the -125 already from what i've seen. Still, opened as a -140ish? Granted he's been on fire so far this year but look at who he's face and when. Last 3 starts against a Pitt squad missing some guys in their lineup...a Houston lineup which is horribly inconsistent..and a Cubs squad which at that time was still in their slump.

Florida @ Colorado
OVER anyone?

New York Yankees
Yes I am pissed off at them right now...and I get the feeling if I'm on them tomorrow I'll be pissed again lol. Guthrie has been anything but the supposed "ace" of the Baltimore staff. A-Rod is expected back tomorrow. This is a rematch of this matchup from April 9th...was also at baltimore and CC was -180 there. he got slapped around pretty good and the O's won 10-5. Now he opens as a -175, just 5 cents cheaper. I'm thinking he may bounceback as prior to the April 9th loss decision he had been 5-0 against Baltimore.

Boston
The bats caught fire tonight and as mentioned above James Shields is a different pitcher on the road. Brad Penny actually battled well in their last matchup, giving up just 3 earned runs. If Youk is in, I think I'm on board with Boston. Plus Tampa Bay is arriving from new york where they just swept them 2-0.

Minnesota
What the fuck is wrong with Scott Baker? Seattle's offense is sputtering though and Jakubauskas has been inconsistent in the majors. I think this one goes one of two ways. Seattle's offense sputters and Baker settles in and they win. OR Baker's struggles brings the Seattle offense to life and Jaku does just enough to keep Seattle in it.

Toronto
IF they lose tonight, I like them to bounce right back against Outman. Cool name but a horrible pitcher and Richmond has been pretty amazing so far this year.

 

[buckeyeburritos]

well i was looking at those two games and cueto gave up most of his shit to Glaus and Ankiel. They're both out...

 

[CharlieBX]

well i was looking at those two games and cueto gave up most of his shit to Glaus and Ankiel. They're both out...

yah, that is actually the one game that's got me thinking the most so far. I'm thinking if it gets driven down enough i may jump on cincy. votto and phillips rested today so they'll be back tomorrow.

 

[GameHunter]

Finally Sabathia is almost priced as a human!

Pitcher A has thrown 21 1/3 innings his L3 and allowed 20 hits and 16 runs.

Pitcher B has thrown 19 hit innings his L3 and allowed 20 hits and 12 runs.

Pitcher A's team has lost 5 straight and is 7-8 on the road.

Pitcher B's tean has won 3 of 4 and is 9-8 at home.

Is it human that Pitcher A and his team are laying -154 against Team B?

 

[CharlieBX]

Pitcher A has thrown 21 1/3 innings his L3 and allowed 20 hits and 16 runs.

Pitcher B has thrown 19 hit innings his L3 and allowed 20 hits and 12 runs.

Pitcher A's team has lost 5 straight and is 7-8 on the road.

Pitcher B's tean has won 3 of 4 and is 9-8 at home.

Is it human that Pitcher A and his team are laying -154 against Team B?

Very good comparison there to put things into perspective. Do you think it's to draw money in on Team B?

 

[E.T.G.]

There have been 47 home runs hit at the new Yankee Stadium, 32 of them to right. The record for the first 13 games at a major league park is 51 at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

its a joke

 

[GameHunter]

Very good comparison there to put things into perspective. Do you think it's to draw money in on Team B?

I think the books till know they get lots of Yankee action so their lines are always inflated.....look at the lines the last two nights.....Guthrie is no world beater but he was +180 opening day against Sabathia at Opening Day and beat him.....

 

[E.T.G.]

Molina is hurt, hamstring, don't know how serious. 3rd catcher now is Cervelli, he is a rookie who might of been batting .140 in the minors :hang:

 

[GameHunter]

Molina is hurt, hamstring, don't know how serious. 3rd catcher now is Cervelli, he is a rookie who might of been batting .140 in the minors :hang:

wow.....Molina calls a good game too...that is a big factor......I have to think I will take a flyer on the O's tomorrow.

 

[E.T.G.]

Mariano Rivera has thrown 11.1 innings this season and allowed 15 hits. Four of them are home runs.
To put that in some perspective, there were eight full seasons in Mo’s career when he did not give up four home runs. Tonight was the first time he has given up back-to-back homers.
Does his shoulder still bother him? Poor command is usually a sign of injury and Mo has yet to issue a walk. His velocity is down a tick or two but that is not unusual given his age and inconsistent workload this season.
If something is wrong with Rivera, it’s incomprehensible to think about what will become of the Yankees.
UPDATE, 11:07 p.m.: Girardi just said that Mo has been battling “arm strength” issues. Uh oh.
——————
Meanwhile, who gets fired for screwing up the new Yankee Stadium? The ball flies out in right field like it’s shot out of a cannon. We were lied to when they said the dimensions are the same. They’re obviously not. The wall is significantly shorter and the the gap in right field goes straight across, not out like it did at the old Stadium.
Between the homer-happy dimensions, Monument Cave, the prison-wall white concrete walls in the outfield and the empty premium seats, the new park needs a lot of work.

still looking for Molina info

 

[CapTwo]

only reason because its guthrie...

another great post from you. very insightful. ---"because its guthrie"

oh ok, because he's just the orioles ace. you talk about him like hes a back-end starter, but hes not.

"because its guthrie", yeah, that guy who already beat the yanks and CC on opening day this year.

little bit of a rough start this year, but look at who he's faced. its certainly been no cakewalk for him. NYY, tampa, boston, chisox, texas, jays.

everyone knows hes a late bloomer, he always starts off slow in march/april, but may/june/july seems to catch fire. last i checked its a 162 game season.

the movement he gets on his fastball when his mechanics are there is vicious, and when he has that slider going hes very tough to hit. his only problems are inconsistincies as far as leaving the ball over the plate.

at that price, against a team that has lost 5 in a row (all at home btw), ill be backing "because its guthrie", you can lay the road chalk on CC and the overpriced yanks.

saw something i liked tonight from the o's which was production in the 5-9 spots in their lineup. adam jones, roberts, and markakis (their 1-2-3 and usual run support) were totally anemic tonight, but they got the production from the bottom of the order for a change and that was something i was happy to see. greg zaun definitely got some pussy last night lol.

 

[hexguru]

since you have nothing better but to be a genius and feel your smarter than me...go right ahead you smuck...

1. I would not back th eyankees the way they are playing or CC has pitched.
2. If guthrie is so good, why is his numbers terrible this year? Another overrated pitcher per the books, i would rather have one of the other stiffs (or even you) on there pitching staff at almost +1.8-2.00 then guthrie at this price.
3. If you backed guthrie in all his starts, how you doing this year? Keep betting the potential and pay the price...

 

[tuck321]

Would say Baltimore is a play as they have a better pen and possibly better hitting and better current form.. Guthrie has not shown that he is a good pitcher and at some point Sabathia will resume being a great pitcher. Over is of interest. Best value of many wonderful ones would be Toronto.

 

[hexguru]

also your getting almost 30 cents less than opening day...baltimore playing that much better than expected for this dropoff?

 

[CapTwo]

Tuck he always gets off to a slow start and then picks it up in may.

Last year in may he had 2.9 ERA and guys were hitting .200 against him... but we had a much more inexperienced lineup, and the issue was run support, which is why he was 2-3 that month.

In 2007, he had a 1.78 ERA in may, and a 1.69 ERA in june.

Definitely a late bloomer, and he also said he lost a little bit of velocity on his fastball after the WBC. Once he gets the mechanics issues fixed, he'll return to form, and that should happen soon.

 

[CapTwo]

also your getting almost 30 cents less than opening day...baltimore playing that much better than expected for this dropoff?

???

of course im getting 30 cents less, it was CC on opening day!
with all the expectations for him, you knew he was going to be overpriced as hell in his first game in pinstripes.

plus i dont think anyone expected the yanks to be 13-15 at this point either.

anyways, dont want to go back and forth. you win, youre right.
ill be on the o's, GL.

 

[hexguru]

Tuck he always gets off to a slow start and then picks it up in may.

Last year in may he had 2.9 ERA and guys were hitting .200 against him... but we had a much more inexperienced lineup, and the issue was run support, which is why he was 2-3 that month.

In 2007, he had a 1.78 ERA in may, and a 1.69 ERA in june.

Definitely a late bloomer, and he also said he lost a little bit of velocity on his fastball after the WBC. Once he gets the mechanics issues fixed, he'll return to form, and that should happen soon.

so your going to back guthrie, with his mechanics screwed up according to you, loss of velocity, in bad form, hoping he turns it around tomorrow like he does at the end of the season, getting less odds than opening day, and you feel confident with this?

 

[CapTwo]

you mis-read and twisted every single thing i said.

i didnt say his mechanics are totally screwed, they just need to "tweak" a couple things. hes no matt chico.
hes certainly not in bad form.
he doesnt turn it around in the end of the season, his best months are may-june-july.

GL

 

[CapTwo]

as for the rest of the card, still looking

so far considering Cubs/Screwers Over

cubs going to their second home, wrigley north, to face dave bush who theyve seen plenty of times and hit him pretty well.

cubs throw randy wells in his first major league start... need to get some info on him before making a decision.
generally as a rule like to stay away from playing a total w/ guys making their first start, but may deviate here.

 

[RetroVK]

matt chico reference.

nice.

 

[tuck321]

Dodgers pen is getting hit. With great respect for Billingsley Zito will be worth a bet as will Atlanta. And there will be many strong overs. First half with Zito probably a good under.

 

[E.T.G.]

Shields in Boston his last 3 tries (09 and 08):

5.1ip-9h-5er-2hr-3bb-2k
3.2ip-10h-7er-3bb-3k
1ip-3h-4er-2k-2hbp


Like I said before, def want to see status of Youk, Ortiz, and Ellsbury. Last 2 nights Tampa used Howell and Wheeler a lot.

 

[GameHunter]

so your going to back guthrie, with his mechanics screwed up according to you, loss of velocity, in bad form, hoping he turns it around tomorrow like he does at the end of the season, getting less odds than opening day, and you feel confident with this?

Not interested in the arguing aspect between you guys but don't mind some productive debate. The Yanks have dropped 5 in a row. Rivera has been used back to back games and probably will be unavailable tomorrow and he is a far cry from what he once was. Molina got injured tonight and may miss tomorrow leaving the Yankees with a weak hitting third string catcher from Triple A. As bad as Guthrie has been the last few starts, his numbers are actually better than Sabathia's of late. There is only one way to play this game at the line posted. Could it lose? Sure. But if they played this game 100 times based upon current factors, do I think the orioles would win more than 39 times? ABSOLUTELY!

 

[tuck321]

Forget the first half under. This is the 3rd time the teams have seen both pitchers. See much equality here with the Dodgers upper 50's favorites at most so great positive value just with the side.

 

[C-MAN]

<OVerlander's Home/Away and Day/Night Splits so far this season:</O
<O></O>

<TABLE class=MsoNormalTable style="BACKGROUND: #cccccc; WIDTH: 100%; mso-cellspacing: .7pt; mso-padding-alt: 0in 2.25pt 0in 2.25pt" cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR style="mso-yfti-irow: 0; mso-yfti-firstrow: yes; mso-yfti-lastrow: yes"><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ece9d8; PADDING-RIGHT: 2.25pt; BORDER-TOP: #ece9d8; PADDING-LEFT: 2.25pt; BACKGROUND: white; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0in; BORDER-LEFT: #ece9d8; PADDING-TOP: 0in; BORDER-BOTTOM: #ece9d8">

Away<O></O>


0-2

11.25
16.0
25
21
20
17
5
2<O></O>​

​

</TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ece9d8; PADDING-RIGHT: 2.25pt; BORDER-TOP: #ece9d8; PADDING-LEFT: 2.25pt; BACKGROUND: white; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0in; BORDER-LEFT: #ece9d8; PADDING-TOP: 0in; BORDER-BOTTOM: #ece9d8">

Home<O></O>


2-0

0.95
19.0
11
4
2
28
7
1<O></O>​

​

</TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ece9d8; PADDING-RIGHT: 2.25pt; BORDER-TOP: #ece9d8; PADDING-LEFT: 2.25pt; BACKGROUND: white; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0in; BORDER-LEFT: #ece9d8; PADDING-TOP: 0in; BORDER-BOTTOM: #ece9d8">

Day<O></O>


1-0

1.50
12.0
4
4
2
19
7
1<O></O>​

​

</TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ece9d8; PADDING-RIGHT: 2.25pt; BORDER-TOP: #ece9d8; PADDING-LEFT: 2.25pt; BACKGROUND: white; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0in; BORDER-LEFT: #ece9d8; PADDING-TOP: 0in; BORDER-BOTTOM: #ece9d8">

Night<O></O>

1-2

7.83
23.0
32
21
20
26
5
2<O></O>​

</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>​

Cliff Lee a bit hard luck of late, but pitching well and worth a shot against Verlander at night, on the road. Verlander outdueled Lee in Detroit a couple days ago, but last season he was 0-3 at Cleveland and 1-5 against Cleveland overall. Also, Cleveland is 4-1 this season in game 1's after a loss. Detroit just 2-7 in game 1's (1-2 after a loss).

 

[hexguru]

Not interested in the arguing aspect between you guys but don't mind some productive debate. The Yanks have dropped 5 in a row. Rivera has been used back to back games and probably will be unavailable tomorrow and he is a far cry from what he once was. Molina got injured tonight and may miss tomorrow leaving the Yankees with a weak hitting third string catcher from Triple A. As bad as Guthrie has been the last few starts, his numbers are actually better than Sabathia's of late. There is only one way to play this game at the line posted. Could it lose? Sure. But if they played this game 100 times based upon current factors, do I think the orioles would win more than 39 times? ABSOLUTELY!

at this price, for me it is a no play...and the x factor is arod may return to the lineup, though he may not be productive off the bat might help the teams confidence and can only help tex...

 

[E.T.G.]

Arod will be back tomorrow...What a circus that will be

 

[CapTwo]

Forget the first half under. This is the 3rd time the teams have seen both pitchers. See much equality here with the Dodgers upper 50's favorites at most so great positive value just with the side.

:shake:

Really think the play there is LAD -0.5 1H, or nothing.

Dodger pen is taking it in the ass right now and blew a 6-0 lead, with the nats threatening to take the lead now. Woudl not want any involvement w/ Full 9 tomorrow. Kershaw went 4 yesterday and wolf went 6 today, but have already used troncoso ohman and wade, and game is still going on.
Being a 6-6 game, broxton will likely come in to close tonight as well. So not sure about his availabity tomorrow although he could likely throw an inning.

Back to the game at hand, bills numbers against SF are excellent while zito has really been hit or miss againt LAD.
given up 3,6, 1, 5, 2, and 4 runs in his L6.
as far as splits- bills 3-0 2.70 ERA at home, Zito 0-2 10.00 ERA on road. one of them being in LA where he walked 4, lasted 5 innings, only 4 hits but 6 ER's

 

[hexguru]

Manager Melvin out in Arizona

Comment Email Print Share<SCRIPT type=text/javascript> var stobj = SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title:"Slow%20start%20costs%20Diamondbacks\'%20Melvin%20his%20job", url:"http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4150536", published: "2009-05-07" }); stobj.attachButton(document.getElementById("espnstlink")); </SCRIPT>
<CITE class=source>Associated Press
</CITE>
<!-- end mod-article-title --><!-- begin story body -->PHOENIX -- The Arizona Diamondbacks fired Bob Melvin on Thursday, hoping a new manager will be able to get the most out of their talented core of young players.
The Diamondbacks said they will select Melvin's replacement at a Chase Field news conference on Friday afternoon, before they meet Washington in the opener of a six-game homestand.

[+] Enlarge <CITE>Kirby Lee/Image of Sport/US Presswire</CITE>Bob Melvin has been fired by the Diamondbacks.



The 47-year-old Melvin's firing comes after a disappointing start by the Diamondbacks, who entered Thursday 8½ games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West. Melvin, who went 337-340 in four-plus seasons, had one year left on a contract he received after being the 2007 NL Manager of the Year.
"This is a difficult decision, but I feel that our organization needs to move forward with a new voice," general manager Josh Byrnes said in a statement.
Hitting coach Rick Schu also was fired, and pitching coach Bryan Price resigned.
Melvin's stock rose when he guided a youthful but talented group to the NL West title two years ago. He was dismissed because many of the same players have failed to live up to expectations based on that season, when the Diamondbacks posted an NL-best 90-72 record despite being outscored by 20 runs across the season.
Justin Upton, Arizona's 21-year-old right fielder, is off to a solid start, but some of the team's other young players have struggled. Conor Jackson went 1-for-3 in Arizona's 4-3, 10-inning loss at San Diego on Thursday and is batting .191 on the year. Mark Reynolds has struck out 36 times in 102 at-bats.
"We're counting on everybody to develop further," Melvin said in an interview before the season. "We don't rely on one guy to hold up the brunt of this thing. We expect them all to develop and score more runs."
Arizona's few veterans also did little to help Melvin.
Eric Byrnes is hitting .139 in the second year of a three-year, $30-million contract. Melvin this week decided to bench Chad Tracy, who is hitting .221.
Speculation about Melvin's future grew with every 1-2-3 inning by the Diamondbacks' hitters. Arizona entered Thursday with a .225 batting average, by far the worst in baseball.
Team president Derrick Hall, speaking on KTAR on Thursday morning, called the team's play "unacceptable."
Making matters worse for Melvin, the Diamondbacks have been beset by injuries.
Ace Brandon Webb went on the disabled list with a shoulder injury shortly after his opening day start and has yet to return. Then Stephen Drew went on the disabled list with a strained left hamstring. Reliever Tom Gordon, acquired over the winter to shore up the bullpen, is already on his second DL stint.
This is the second time in their 12-year history that the Diamondbacks have changed managers in midseason. In 2004, the Diamondbacks fired Bob Brenly after a 29-50 start and replaced him with Al Pedrique on their way to a franchise-worst 51-111 record.
That disaster paved the way to Melvin's return to Arizona, where he had served as Brenly's bench coach on the 2001 World Series champions.
Melvin's hiring as the Diamondbacks' manager came under bizarre circumstances. The club had selected Wally Backman as manager, but Backman was dismissed four days later following revelations he had been arrested twice and struggled with financial problems.
Arizona then turned to Melvin, who was out after two seasons in Seattle, where he went 156-168.
Melvin made an immediate impact in the desert. He led the 2005 Diamondbacks to a 77-85 record, a 26-win improvement.
Two years later, the Diamondbacks made a surprise run to the NL West title despite scoring 20 fewer runs than they allowed -- a fact that led many to praise Melvin's ability to squeeze the most out of his lineup.
Melvin was honored as the 2007 NL Manager of the Year, and soon after the club extended his contract through 2010.
"I am grateful for all the success and memories associated with Bob," Byrnes said. "Bob has done great things for this organization. Having worked with him for nearly four years, I have a great deal of respect for his character and skills."
Arizona opened its NL West title defense last spring by bolting to a 20-8 record. But after leading the division for most of the season, the Diamondbacks faltered and were caught in the stretch by a Los Angeles Dodgers squad energized by the arrival of slugger Manny Ramirez.
The Diamondbacks came into this season expecting to make another run at the division title.

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press
<!-- end story body -->

 

[tbone14]

the last grand salami to go Under was on 4/26. since then, 5 overs, 2 pushes, and 4 canceled bets due to rainouts.

 

[C-MAN]

Baker -151 against anyone? Jakubauskas has been inconsistent, but his numbers are better on the road and his best start of 4 this season since becoming a starter was his lone away start at CWS (8ip, 2h, 2er, 4k, 1bb). He pitched 2 scoreless innings earlier this year in Minny. Seattle ML for me.

 

[GameHunter]

Initial Thoughts:

SD-Hou: Houston is a bad baseball team and despite SD's difficulties against lefties, the price is ridiculous and Gaudin is more than capable.

Fla-Col: Hammel isn't an overpowering strikeout pithcer and isn't a crafty veteran...two things the Fish struggle with. He's allowing 1.72 runners per inning. Can only play the Fish or OVER.

SF-LAD: The price is ridiculous. Zito has been solid of late. The Dodgers have distractions and their bullpen imploded on Thursday night. Yes, Billingsley has been tough agains the Ginats in two starts this season, but I'd have to think they can figure out a way to get some runs in their 3rd time in a month facing him.

NYY-Balt - Mariano Rivera probably isn't available. CC has thrown 21 1/3 innings his L3 and allowed 20 hits and 16 runs. Guthrie has thrown 19 hit innings his L3 and allowed 20 hits and 12 runs. The Yanks have lost 5 straight and is 7-8 on the road. The O's have won 3 of 4 and is 9-8 at home. Molina could miss for the Yanks leaving them with a 3rd string weak hitting catcher from Triple A. I only hope ARod makes it back so the media circus can cause huge distractions. How are the Yanks laying this type of number right now the way they are playing?

TB_Bos - Shields implodes at Fenway. Just need to see if Ortiz, Youk and ELsbury are playing. Penney's fast ball was popping last out at the Trop.

Det-Cle: Cliff Lee has been outstanding his L4. Rematch of game over the weekend. Verlander is inconsistent but when on he is dominant. he has struggled at the jake in the past. It's the tribe or UNDER.

Sea-Minn: - Baker looked sharper last out but still fell apart in the 6th and that was against the Royals, who he owns. Jakubauskas has been lit up as teams get scouting reports on him and he isn't used to throwing the amount of pitches he has been throwing. OVER?

Tex-CWS: COntreras was broguth back way to quickly and no way Harrison stymies the Pale Hose a 2nd time in a row. OVER.

 

[tuck321]

There might be an even better bet than a side in both those games. Over there. Over there. Send the word over there We're going over and we won't be back till its over over there. Think that song plays in Colorado as well.

 

[C-MAN]

Toronto hitting .365 against LHP last 10. Richmond pitching great - 4 quality starts in a row but throwing a lot of pitches. Outman has not been bad, but has bounced back and forth from starter to bullpen to starter and numbers are worse at home and at night. Tor 6-4 in game 1's and 2-0 after a loss. Oak just 2-8 in game 1's and 0-4 after a win.

 

[HereWeGo]

Good to see you here GH....it's about time you ditched that other Romper Room site.

 

[tuck321]

Very simply the best value on the board.

 

[CapTwo]

Good to see you here GH....it's about time you ditched that other Romper Room site.

FWIW, i think hes posting on both.

but doenst matter, this is discussion.

:shake:

 

[BetCrimes1984]

sequential total results for TBY/BOS games this season:

U-O-U-O-U-O-U....?

 

[gsro]

i really don't think boston forgot about what the rays did to them in the trop, rarely do you see a boston team dogged at fenway but like mentioned above we'll see depending on lineups, possibly an over play here

i'm leaning to the nationals ml..zona just fireed their head coach, martis' last start was a stepping stone for him, and petit, well petit is mediocre in my eyes

 

[RetroVK]

i'm leaning to the nationals ml..zona just fireed their head coach, martis' last start was a stepping stone for him, and petit, well petit is mediocre in my eyes

thinking the same ... dont know if i like the late game followed by travel though...that would be my concern... that and the nats have just 20 ab against Petit.

 

[joba_rules]

Hi Emp,just wanted you to know i was not bullshitting you

 

[tuck321]

Arizona screwed up today. I think over last year and this year coming home they are 13-1 in the first home game. Usually Dan Haren pitched but they used him to lose in Padres. Still it is a strong pattern and will keep me off the game.