2014 MLB Playoffs
American League Championship Series Game One
Kansas City Royals at Baltimore Orioles
Best of Seven Series Format: 2-3-2
Series Price: Orioles -135 / Royals +115 (odds courtesy of 5Dimes Sportsbook)
Oriole Park at Camden Yards – Baltimore, Maryland
Friday, October 10, 2014, 8:07 pm Eastern, TV: TBS
Opening Line: Baltimore (Chris Tillman) -125 / Kansas City (James Shields) +115
Current Line: Baltimore -128 / Kansas City +118
Opening Total: over 7 -110 / under 7 -110
Current Total: over 7 -110 / under 7 -110
Opening Run Line: Orioles -1 1/2 -110 / Royals +1 1/2 -110
Current Run Line: Orioles -1 1/2 +160 / Royals +1 1/2 -190
Continue reading “MLB ALCS Game One Betting Preview: Kansas City Royals at Baltimore Orioles”
Minnesota still leads the AL Central division by 3 1/2 games despite being in a position of getting swept for the first time since dropping three straight at Milwaukee from June 22-24. It’s the first time that the Twins have lost three straight games since July 7-10 when the club lost four in a row. The Twins had won 21 of 27 before arriving in Arlington, but the offense has managed to produce just six runs in this series. “We were swinging good coming into this series, but they’ve pretty much shut us down,” said Jason Kubel. The three losses to the Rangers in this series has now dropped the team a half-game behind them in the standings, which would be important in establishing home-field advantage in the playoffs. The club is still 14-8 in August (+510) and come in with a 25-18 mark against left-handed starters (+540). The Twins have also posted a .273 batting average against southpaws this season, which is the second highest average in the AL.
Minnesota has run into some problems in the first two games of this four-game set in Arlington, almost getting no-hit on Monday night and then falling by a 4-3 score last night to see its lead drop to 3 1/2 games in the AL Central. The series definitely has a playoff feel and manager Ron Gardenhire knows the importance of these situations during the regular season by saying, “We missed a play in the outfield and it ended up costing us again. That’s the difference in this ballgame.” The Twins are still a solid 17-8 against the AL West this season and 14-8 this month (+510). Beginning tonight, the club has 11 more games against the division, with six occurring this week. Minnesota has also performed well against left-handed starters this season, producing a 25-18 mark in 2010 (+540) and a 82-76 record over the last three seasons (+30).
Detroit picked up a 3-2 comeback victory on Saturday night over the White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field and giving the team a chance to end a streak of 10 straight road series losses. The win in the second game of the series was also just the club’s second win in 15 road games. “I’ve been around this game long enough to know we’ve got to start putting something together,” Brandon Inge said. The offense is led by 1B Miguel Cabrera in games away from Comerica Park, as he is leading the American League with a .345 road batting average. The Tigers are now 19-26 against division opponents this season and the total stands at an even 21-21 O/U in those contests. The club is a dismal 6-16 on the road when the total is 9 to 9.5 in 2010 and 36-58 in this situation over the last three years (-2,100).
Chicago picked up a 4-1 victory in yesterday’s contest over the Tigers, as the team has won eight of its last 10 games. The White Sox currently hold a 1.5-game lead over the Twins in the division and are eight games ahead of the Tigers. The club holds a 5-2 season series advantage over today’s opponent, outscoring them by a 43-21 margin. Offensively, the team is batting .300 and the pitching staff has recorded a 3.05 ERA against the Tigers this season. The White Sox are 9-1-1 in the last 11 season series versus their division rivals. Even more impressive, the South Siders are 31-19 in their last 50 games at Comerica Park. Chicago is 22-12 in day games this season, which is the fourth-best record in the league and the total is 18-16 O/U in those contests. The team is 18-21 against the AL Central division in 2010 (-7000 and 96-88 over the last three years (-80).
Chicago opens up a four-game series with a day-night doubleheader against the Tigers on Tuesday. The White Sox haven’t been very successful against divisional opponents this year, posting a 17-20 mark (-700) and the total is 16-18 O/U in those games. The team did finish its last homestand with a 6-1 record and are 20-2 over their last 22 games at U.S. Cellular Field. “We are playing good baseball all over,” said reliever Matt Thornton. Chicago has compiled a dominating 35-12 record since June 9, helping to erase a 9.5 game deficit in the divisional race in the process. It must not be lost that the White Sox are just an even 25-25 on the road this season (+390) and 96-118 away from Chicago the last three years (-1,080).
