The Bum's Major League Baseball ALCS & NLCS Chamionship Division Series Picks/Trends/News !!

[StarDust Bum]

Game 3 - Royals at Blue Jays

October 19, 2015


KANSAS CITY ROYALS (100-69) at TORONTO BLUE JAYS (96-73)

First pitch: Monday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Sportsbook.ag Line: Kansas City +155, Toronto -165, Total: 8

The Blue Jays will be looking to avoid a 3-0 series deficit when they host the Royals in Game 3 on Monday.

The Blue Jays had a 3-0 lead in Game 2, but the Royals ended up scoring six unanswered runs to win the game 6-3. David Price unraveled for Toronto in that one and his postseason struggles continue to haunt him. The Jays must now come away with a Game 3 win or they will have a gigantic hole to climb out of to advance to the World Series.

The starters for this pivotal game will be RHP Johnny Cueto (12-13, 3.46 ERA, 189 K) for Kansas City and RHP Marcus Stroman (4-0, 2.25 ERA, 27 K) for Toronto. Toronto should be confident playing on its home field on Monday, as the team is 3-1 against Kansas City at home this season. The Royals won’t be intimidated though, as they are 19-6 against the money line in October games over the past two seasons. The Blue Jays, meanwhile, are 27-8 against the money line as a home favorite of -150 to -200 this season.

2B Omar Infante (Oblique) is out indefinitely for Kansas City and RP Brett Cecil (Calf) is out for the season for Toronto.

Johnny Cueto will be looking to give his team a 3-0 lead and he will be feeling extremely confident after turning in his best performance as a Royal in Game 5 last round. Cueto pitched eight innings in that one and gave up just two earned runs with eight strikeouts and no walks. He was in complete control from the second inning on and will be looking to carry that momentum into this one on Monday.

Offensively, both SS Alcides Escobar (.321, 1 RBI in playoffs) and DH Kendrys Morales (.240, 3 HR, 8 RBI in playoffs) have stepped up for Kansas City. Escober has been getting on base at will and has three doubles in the past three games. Morales, meanwhile, is providing this team with some much needed power and will need to keep doing so the rest of the way. OF Lorenzo Cain (.259, 1 HR, 3 RBI in playoffs) has gotten a hit in every playoff game thus far, but he still hasn’t truly broken out. He’s due for a multi-hit game shortly and there’s a good chance it comes on Monday.

The Blue Jays desperately need a victory in Game 3 and Marcus Stroman will be on the mound to keep them in this series. Stroman has been big time throughout this postseason, giving up just five earned runs over his two starts (13.0 IP). Toronto could really use another quality start out of him in this one.

Offensively, DH Edwin Encarnacion (.320, 1 HR, 4 RBI in playoffs) has been the only Jays superstar that has been reliable hitting in the postseason. He will need to keep hitting while 3B Josh Donaldson (.231, 2 HR, 4 RBI in playoffs) and OF Jose Bautista (.222, 2 HR, 5 RB in playoffsI) try to find some consistency. 1B Chris Colabello (.375, 1 HR, 2 RBI in playoffs) has really stepped his game up for Toronto. If he can keep it up then it’d be a huge plus for this team.

[StarDust Bum]

Royals' Young to start Game 4 of ALCS
October 18, 2015

TORONTO (AP) Royals manager Ned Yost has chosen Chris Young over Kris Medlen as his starter for Game 4 of the ALCS.

Young has only made two starts since July 28, but they were good ones. He allowed one run in 11 1-3 innings over those two outings, with his final start coming Oct. 2.

The 6-foot-10, third-round draft pick out of Princeton in 2000 appeared as a reliever in Game 1 of the ALDS, giving up a run in four innings. Overall, he was 11-6 in 34 appearances - 18 starts - this year.

Young faced the Blue Jays once this year, a 7-5 loss on July 11. Edwin Encarnacion hit a two-run shot and Young yielded five hits and three runs over six innings. But over his 11-year career, Young has held current members of the Blue Jays to a .229 average (22 for 96) with two homers.

Medlen was 6-2 with a 4.01 ERA in 15 appearances, including eight starts, this year. He returned from Tommy John surgery on July 20 and hasn't pitched since Oct. 1.

[StarDust Bum]

LEADING OFF: Mets-Cubs at Wrigley in NLCS; KC-Jays in ALCS

October 20, 2015

A look at what's happening around the major leagues Tuesday:

WRIGGLING LOOSE

The Cubs try to close their 0-2 deficit in the best-of-seven NL Championship Series when they play the Mets at 8:07 p.m. EDT at Wrigley Field. Jacob deGrom pitches Game 3 for New York after winning both of his starts in the Division Series vs. the Dodgers. Kyle Hendricks goes for Chicago - he gave up three home runs in 4 2-3 innings of his playoff start against St. Louis.

BOOK IT

Royals righty Chris Young and Blue Jays knuckleballer R.A. Dickey are the starters in Game 4 of the AL Championship Series at 4:07 p.m. in Toronto. The Blue Jays will try to even the best-of-seven set. Young and Dickey were Texas teammates from 2003-04 and played together with the Mets from 2011-12. ''He's got a great mind. It's fun to be around guys like that who are well read and who you can have deeper conversations with,'' Dickey said of Young, who went to Princeton. ''But I'm not sure who's more well-read.'' Kidded Young: ''I mean, we've never sat down and compared reading lists or book-club lists.''

STATS

Daniel Murphy has homered in four straight playoff games for the Mets, connecting against aces Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Jake Arrieta and Jon Lester. The record for consecutive games with a postseason home run is five by Carlos Beltran. ... According to STATS, the winner of the first two games of a best-of-seven series in the baseball postseason has won it 83 percent (63 of 76) of the time.

[StarDust Bum]

Cubs focused on Game 3 of NLCS against deGrom, Mets

October 19, 2015

CHICAGO (AP) Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber and Jason Hammel played hacky sack with a baseball, and manager Joe Maddon chatted amiably with his players and staff as he made his way around Wrigley Field on Monday afternoon.

Down 2-0 to the New York Mets in the NL Championship Series, the Chicago Cubs are sticking with what worked for them during a breakthrough season.

''We'll come out tomorrow, we'll be ready to play,'' Maddon said. ''Our guys are always ready to play.''

It might not matter if the Mets continue to pitch as well as they did in New York. Matt Harvey and Noah Syndergaard shut down Chicago's powerful lineup in the first two games of the series, putting New York in an ideal position to make it to the World Series for the first time in 15 years - a quaint little drought compared to the Cubs' seven mostly empty decades since they last played in the Fall Classic.

According to STATS, the winner of the first two games of a best-of-seven series in the baseball playoffs has advanced 83 percent (63 of 76) of the time, and the Mets have Jacob deGrom heading to the mound for Game 3 on Tuesday night.

''We have a lot of confidence,'' manager Terry Collins said. ''Any night that he pitches, we've got a good chance to win.''

DeGrom is coming off a pair of impressive victories in the NL Division Series, albeit for different reasons.

The 27-year-old was dominant in Game 1 at Los Angeles, striking out 13 while pitching seven scoreless innings in New York's 3-1 win. Then he came back for Game 5 and worked six effective innings despite not having his best stuff.

The reigning NL Rookie of the Year matched Bartolo Colon for the team lead with 14 wins this year, but it was the gutsy start against the Dodgers that really cemented his place among the best young pitchers in the game.

''The second game was definitely a battle,'' deGrom said. ''I feel like it was more impressive just because it wasn't easy. When you have your best stuff, it's a lot easier to pitch.''

While deGrom has struggled in three career starts against Chicago, Harvey and Syndergaard provided a roadmap for the right-hander in the first two games of the series. Harvey and Syndergaard pounded the strike zone, getting ahead of the Cubs' young sluggers and keeping them off balance.

The Mets started the Cubs with a strike in 43 of 68 at-bats in New York, according to STATS. They threw 177 of their 274 pitches for a strike, a 64.6 percent success rate.

Those are important numbers against the patient Cubs, who finished second in the majors to Toronto with 567 walks this season. St. Louis, Chicago's opponent in the NLDS, threw a first-pitch strike 56.3 percent of the time and had a 59.9 strike percentage for the series, and the Cubs clubbed 10 homers and walked 15 times.

''I don't want our guys to change based on an umpire in the previous game, it could change in the next game,'' Maddon said. ''Regardless of the fact that the strike zone is a static or supposedly a static area, it's not. It's just depending upon the guy.

''So I prefer that we just stay with our normal patterns, and then we have to adjust sometimes during the course of the game. That's it. You just have to make adjustments, but you don't necessarily want to change,'' he said.

Bryant, who had two hits and drove in Chicago's only run in Game 2, said everyone on the Cubs just has to stick to their own approach.

''We've gotten pretty far just the way we've been going,'' he said. ''I think it's a matter of, we've hit some balls hard and they haven't been falling. That's the way baseball goes sometimes.''

While Harvey, Syndergaard and deGrom rely on their electric stuff, Kyle Hendricks, the Game 3 starter for Chicago, is more dependent on location for his success. The Dartmouth graduate threw six shutout innings in each of his last two starts of the season, but was yanked in the fifth inning of his Game 2 start at St. Louis in the division series.

Job No. 1 for Hendricks against New York is stopping Daniel Murphy, who is one away from matching Carlos Beltran's record of homering in five straight postseason games.

''He's swinging a hot bat,'' Hendricks said. ''Sometimes the best thing to do is pick your spots. See when guys are on base, when they're not, when you can pitch around him. Regardless, when he comes up, you've definitely got to be careful. You can't make any mistakes with him.''

[StarDust Bum]

The Latest: Mets' Harvey set for Game 5

October 19, 2015

The latest on the League Championship Series. The Royals and Blue Jays play Game 3 of the ALCS in Toronto on Monday night. The Mets and Cubs play Game 3 of the NLCS in Chicago on Tuesday night. Here's a look at what's happening (all times EDT):

7:00 p.m.

Blue Jays center fielder Kevin Pillar was hit on the back by a batting practice flyball off the bat of teammate Dioner Navarro. Standing on the warning track in right field, Pillar jokingly fell to the turf. He appeared to be OK.

6:11 p.m.

New York Mets ace Matt Harvey threw in the outfield at Wrigley Field, and the team says he should be fine for Game 5 if the NL Championship Series goes that far.

Harvey was hit by a comebacker off the bat of Dexter Fowler in the series opener on Saturday night. Manager Terry Collins said Monday that Harvey was ''pretty sore and pretty swelled up,'' but the right-hander came out after Collins talked and looked fine during his brief throwing session.

Harvey allowed two runs and four hits in 7 2/3 innings in New York's 4-2 win in Game 1. The Mets lead the series 2-0 heading into Game 3 on Tuesday night in Chicago.

---

5:23 p.m.

Fans in the upper deck at Rogers Centre for ALCS games between the Blue Jays and Royals are going to be drinking their beer out of plastic cups instead of cans. The Blue Jays banned can sales after fans threw them on the field during a ruckus earlier in the playoffs.

Blue Jays security and stadium operations head Mario Coutinho says beer will be poured into plastic cups starting Monday night at Game 3. The team reserves the right to cut off beer sales after the fifth inning if there are any problems.

Coutinho says the Blue Jays did an assessment of the situation with police and then talked it over with Major League Baseball. He wouldn't say how many Toronto police officers would be at Monday's game, but said the number was ''fairly high.''

''We reviewed all our staffing levels and police deployment and we're confident that was adequate,'' Coutinho said.

In the seventh inning of Toronto's Game 5 win over Texas in the ALDS, a raucous crowd turned rowdy when Blue Jays catcher Russell Martin hit Texas batter Shin-Soo Choo with his seemingly routine return throw to the pitcher, resulting in a go-ahead run for the Rangers. During an 18-minute delay to sort out the ruling, fans tossed beer cans among other garbage. Many of the cans didn't reach the field, striking fans in the seats close to the field.

---

4:20 p.m.

About an hour before batting practice starts ahead of Game 3 of the ALCS, Blue Jays relievers Roberto Osuna and Ryan Tepera were out on the field warming up - by playing soccer. The pair kicked an orange ball around in the outfield, then set up a goal. The goalie: a life-sized cutout of a left-handed batter.

Soccer has been a part of the team's pregame routine all season. Catcher Russell Martin got it kicked off.

3:47 p.m.

Hours before they hosted Game 3 of the ALCS against the Royals, the Blue Jays were busy. Toronto claimed switch-pitcher Pat Venditte off waivers from the Oakland Athletics and designated for assignment infielder Darwin Barney. Barney was not on the postseason roster.

The 30-year-old Venditte made his major league debut this season. He was 2-2 with a 4.40 ERA in 26 relief appearances for the A's.

---

2:05 p.m.

The Chicago Cubs have started their workout at Wrigley Field on the off day before Game 3 of the NL Championship Series.

It is a sunny, windy day in Chicago, and the Cubs are hoping a change of scenery will help them get back in the series against the surging Mets. New York got another homer from Daniel Murphy in a 4-1 victory over Chicago on Sunday night and is just two wins away from a trip to the World Series.

Kyle Hendricks faces Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom on Tuesday night in the first NLCS game at Wrigley since 2003.

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

Six of the more interesting college football games this weekend.....

-- Cal @ UCLA (-3)-- Bruins try to bounce back after Stanford debacle.

-- K-State @ Texas (-3.5)-- Bill Snyder wrote a letter to Kansas State students, apologizing for Oklahoma loss.

-- Texas A&M @ Ole Miss (-6)-- Both teams coming off of big losses.

-- Auburn @ Arkansas (-5.5)-- Fans of losing team in this one won't be happy.

-- Clemson (-7) @ Miami-- This game opened at Clemson, -2.5.

-- Washington State @ Arizona (-7)-- Mike Leach getting points on road.

**********

Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but.......

13) In the movie Draft Day, the QB everyone expects to be drafted first becomes a suspect because none of his teammates went to his 21st birthday party. During the Michigan State game Saturday, ABC's Chris Spielman suggested QB Connor Cook will have to explain to NFL teams why he wasn't voted a team captain by teammates.

It is unusual for a senior QB not to be a team captain.

12) Temple Owls are in the college football top 25 for first time since 1979.

11) Stanford's punter is an intern for Condoleeza Rice, who is a faculty member in Palo Alto. Ms Rice is also on the college football selection committee.

10) Sam Rosen called the Panther-Seahawk game on FOX Sunday in Seattle, then was back at his normal job Monday night, calling a Rangers game in Manhattan. Rosen is a pro's pro as an announcer, but hockey is his best sport.

9) Marcus Mariota sprained his MCL Sunday, Michael Vick has a slight tear in his hamstring. Vick's injury probably doesn't matter much, since Landry Jones is better than he is anyway, but if Vick can't play and Big Ben isn't ready, Steelers will have to sign another backup QB for Sunday in Kansas City.

8) 24-hour breakfast at McDonald's; tremendous!!!!

7) Idaho and Troy State are both in the Sun Belt Conference for football; what part of the sun belt is Idaho in? According to Mapquest, Moscow, ID is 2,541 miles away from Troy, AL. what nitwit put these schools in the same league?

6) Guy in Florida was arrested for impersonating a police officer; the genius was snagged after he pulled over a real police officer. Chaos ensued.

5) This is what the Colts' fake punt was supposed to look like; University of Maine pulled off this play to beat James Madison, 25-24.

It is a testament to how well-coached pro football is that when a team screws up as royally as the Colts did with the fake punt, that it becomes a national story.

4) Remember Louisville's basketball star Pervis Ellison? His son is a freshman at St John's and will play for new coach Chris Mullin this winter.

3) 76ers coach Brett Brown actually played college basketball for Rick Pitino at Boston U in the early 80's- that was Pitino's first head coaching job.

2) Blue Jays 11, Royals 8-- Cueto faced 17 batters; eight of them scored. Home side is now 5-0 in this round of the playoffs.

1) Eagles 27, Giants 7-- Giants went 80 yards on eight plays to open game, but for rest of the night, they gained 167 yards on 56 plays. Ugly game with seven turnovers. Primetime underdogs are now 12-6-1 vs spread this year.

[StarDust Bum]

MLB
Armadillo's Write-Up

Tuesday, October 20

American League
Royals vs Blue Jays
Young is 1-0, 0.79 in his only two starts since Sept 1 (under 2-0).

Dickey is 1-0, 1.99 in his last four starts (over 3-0-1).

Royals won ten of their last thirteen games (over 5-2 last seven).

Blue Jays lost three of last five games with KC; home side won ten of last 12 series games. Toronto is 4-4 in playoffs (over is 6-2-1 in their last nine games).

National League
Mets vs Cubs
deGrom is 3-0, 1.17 in his last four starts (under 3-0 in last three).

Hendricks is 1-0, 1.62 in his last thee starts (under 3-1 last four).

New York won six of last eight games (under 8-2-1 in last eleven).

Chicago won nine of last 11 games against the Mets (under 7-2-2), but is down 2-0 in this series; Cubs won nine of last 12 games overall (over 3-1-1 last five).




MLB

Tuesday, October 20

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Trend Report
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4:07 PM
KANSAS CITY vs. TORONTO
Kansas City is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Toronto
Kansas City is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Toronto's last 6 games when playing Kansas City
Toronto is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against Kansas City

8:07 PM
NY METS vs. CHI CUBS
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of NY Mets's last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 17 of NY Mets's last 24 games on the road
Chi Cubs are 5-0 SU in their last 5 games when playing at home against NY Mets
Chi Cubs are 9-2 SU in their last 11 games when playing NY Mets

[StarDust Bum]

MLB

Tuesday, October 20


Cubs regroup for NLCS Game 3

Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon congratulated the New York Mets on a 2-0 lead in the National League Championship Series.

"We'll be ready to play," Maddon said Monday at the team's workout at Wrigley Field. "You can't dwell on things like that, and you can't process the moment in the wrong way. I mean it sincerely, one-game winning streaks. We've talked about it before. Let's play Tuesday and see what happens, and we'll move on from there."

Maddon's young team can climb out of a hole in the best-of-seven series with a win Tuesday, but a loss would be devastating. The Mets are well-armed, sending Jacob deGrom to the mound in Game 3 to follow up stellar starts by Matt Harvey and Noah Syndergaard.

From his office Sunday the theme from "Rocky" could be heard, another of the eccentric and measured Maddon's unique approaches to motivation. On the heels of a losing streak during the season he called of batting practice and told players to simply show up ready to play, as if they were little leaguers.

It was a blunt reminder that baseball is still a game, and they shouldn't approach any losing streak with dread that might block their focus on the task at hand.

Tuesday the task is a great one. Maddon believes his job is to make them see it another way.

"For me, seriously, here's the rub: Everybody believes that you need more batting practice. We need more ground balls. We need to look at video longer. I totally disagree with that," he said. "We've been doing this since February. They've been swinging the bat constantly since February. They've been taking ground balls constantly since February. If we could relax our minds and be in the present tense and go out there and play the game that we've been practicing all year, that's what I'm looking for.

"So the point is you don't want to stretch them out over this repetitive exercise that, honestly, it's not like other sports. We've been doing this for months, and in baseball you need to go out there and be able to process the moment, not overthink it, definitely not get uptight about it. It's a tension-free kind of a game. So anything I can do to promote that, that's what I attempt to do."

Right-hander Kyle Hendricks makes the start for the Cubs in Game 3. The 25-year-old was 8-7 with a 3.95 ERA in 2015. Depending on the outcome Tuesday, Maddon is leaning toward Jason Hammel for Game 4. He said he didn't want to ask Jon Lester to come back on short rest.

"Yeah, there's pressure. It's the playoffs," said Hendricks. "There's always going to be some pressure, but you've got to let the pleasure exceed that. We've heard Joe say it a lot. I'm just going to go out and try to have fun. This is why you play the game, this is why you want the ball. So pressure in a way is sometimes a good thing."


Mets' Harvey still scheduled to pitch Game 5

Matt Harvey is still scheduled to pitch Game 5 of the National League Championship Series despite a bruised right triceps, and Harvey seems to be trying to erase the concerns of his manager.

On Monday, manager Terry Collins said he was concerned about the swelling in Harvey's right triceps, which occurred when Harvey was hit by a ball off the bat of the Chicago Cubs' Dexter Fowler in Game 1.

Collins said Bartolo Colon or Jonathon Niese might start in place of Harvey in Thursday's Game 5.

Harvey completed 7 2/3 innings in the Mets' 4-2 win, but he described his arm as "dented" by Fowler's blast.

"He's pretty sore and pretty swelled up," Collins said Monday afternoon. "He, as we sit here today, is a go. But that could certainly change in next couple of days. ... I was pretty surprised at how swelled up it was yesterday. So we certainly are going to keep a really close eye on it the next couple of days."

Later Monday, Harvey had a light throwing session in the outfield of Wrigley Field.

When asked about his arm, Harvey told the New York Daily News, "It's good." He expressed no doubt that he would be ready to pitch Friday, if needed.

Pitching coach Dan Warthen also said there was no doubt that Harvey would start Game 5.

"I don't foresee any problem with Matt going out there and pitching," Warthen said, according to ESPN.com. "He just came out to throw. A lot of guys hate to have a day off, so a lot of players will come in on a day off and just play catch. Nothing more than that."

[StarDust Bum]

MLB
Dunkel

Tuesday, October 20


NY Mets @ Chicago Cubs

Game 961-962
October 20, 2015 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
NY Mets
(deGrom) 17.159
Chicago Cubs
(Hendricks) 13.351
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
NY Mets
by 3 1/2
5 1/2
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
NY Mets
-130
No Run Total
Dunkel Pick:
NY Mets
(-130); N/A

Kansas City @ Toronto

Game 963-964
October 20, 2015 @ 4:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Kansas City
15.156
Toronto
19.203
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Toronto
by 4
10 1/2
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Toronto
-150
9
Dunkel Pick:
Toronto
(-150); Over




MLB
Long Sheet

Tuesday, October 20

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NY METS (95 - 74) at CHICAGO CUBS (101 - 68) - 8:05 PM
JACOB DEGROM (R) vs. KYLE HENDRICKS (R)
Top Trends for this game.
CHICAGO CUBS are 101-68 (+17.8 Units) against the money line in all games this season.
CHICAGO CUBS are 33-18 (+16.2 Units) against the money line when playing on Tuesday over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO CUBS are 101-68 (+17.8 Units) against the money line in games played on a grass field this season.
CHICAGO CUBS are 61-38 (+17.6 Units) against the money line in night games this season.
CHICAGO CUBS are 80-54 (+12.4 Units) against the money line against right-handed starters this season.
CHICAGO CUBS are 81-74 (+8.3 Units) against the money line after a loss over the last 2 seasons.
CHICAGO CUBS are 47-33 (+13.0 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
HENDRICKS is 31-15 (+14.1 Units) against the money line in all games over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record)
HENDRICKS is 31-14 (+15.1 Units) against the money line in games played on a grass field over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record)
HENDRICKS is 16-7 (+10.7 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record)
HENDRICKS is 11-3 (+9.5 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record)
NY METS are 95-74 (+10.4 Units) against the money line in all games this season.
NY METS are 22-9 (+11.5 Units) against the money line on the road with a money line of -100 to -125 over the last 2 seasons.
NY METS are 82-83 (+8.0 Units) against the money line in road games over the last 2 seasons.
NY METS are 94-70 (+13.5 Units) against the money line in games played on a grass field this season.
NY METS are 58-36 (+15.3 Units) against the money line after a win this season.
DEGROM is 22-10 (+9.2 Units) against the money line in all games this season. (Team's Record)
DEGROM is 7-0 (+7.0 Units) against the money line on the road with a money line of -100 to -125 this season. (Team's Record)
DEGROM is 10-2 (+9.1 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record this season. (Team's Record)
DEGROM is 9-0 (+10.2 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season. (Team's Record)
CHICAGO CUBS are 795-758 (-160.4 Units) against the money line in home games since 1997.
CHICAGO CUBS are 160-199 (-59.9 Units) against the money line when playing with a day off since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
CHICAGO CUBS is 7-2 (+4.7 Units) against NY METS this season
5 of 7 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL this season . (Under=+2.7 Units)

JACOB DEGROM vs. CHICAGO CUBS since 1997
DEGROM is 0-2 when starting against CHICAGO CUBS with an ERA of 6.46 and a WHIP of 1.696.
His team's record is 0-3 (-3.2 units) in these starts. The UNDER is 1-2. (-1.5 units)

KYLE HENDRICKS vs. NY METS since 1997
HENDRICKS is 2-0 when starting against NY METS with an ERA of 0.69 and a WHIP of 0.692.
His team's record is 2-0 (+2.0 units) in these starts. The OVER is 0-2. (-2.2 units)

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KANSAS CITY (100 - 70) at TORONTO (97 - 73) - 4:05 PM
CHRIS YOUNG (R) vs. R.A. DICKEY (R)
Top Trends for this game.
TORONTO is 97-73 (+7.5 Units) against the money line in all games this season.
TORONTO is 43-21 (+13.2 Units) against the money line in home games against right-handed starters this season.
TORONTO is 52-35 (+11.2 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
TORONTO is 28-12 (+11.9 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
KANSAS CITY is 100-70 (+21.1 Units) against the money line in all games this season.
KANSAS CITY is 45-39 (+6.6 Units) against the money line in road games this season.
KANSAS CITY is 19-7 (+13.4 Units) against the money line in October games over the last 2 seasons.
KANSAS CITY is 17-7 (+9.1 Units) against the money line when playing on Tuesday this season.
KANSAS CITY is 32-17 (+15.7 Units) against the money line in day games this season.
KANSAS CITY is 67-42 (+19.9 Units) against the money line against right-handed starters this season.
KANSAS CITY is 16-7 (+10.4 Units) against the money line in playoff games over the last 2 seasons.
KANSAS CITY is 40-27 (+9.2 Units) against the money line after a loss this season.
KANSAS CITY is 91-68 (+18.3 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
KANSAS CITY is 46-31 (+14.0 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
YOUNG is 29-18 (+14.8 Units) against the money line in all games over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record)
YOUNG is 60-50 (+18.4 Units) against the money line in road games since 1997. (Team's Record)
YOUNG is 17-9 (+10.6 Units) against the money line when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons. (Team's Record)

Head-to-Head Series History
KANSAS CITY is 5-5 (+0.6 Units) against TORONTO this season
5 of 9 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL this season . (Over=+0.7 Units)

CHRIS YOUNG vs. TORONTO since 1997
YOUNG is 2-1 when starting against TORONTO with an ERA of 4.98 and a WHIP of 1.200.
His team's record is 3-1 (+2.0 units) in these starts. The UNDER is 0-3. (-3.2 units)

R.A. DICKEY vs. KANSAS CITY since 1997
DICKEY is 4-3 when starting against KANSAS CITY with an ERA of 4.28 and a WHIP of 1.366.
His team's record is 4-4 (-0.4 units) in these starts. The UNDER is 4-4. (-0.5 units)

[StarDust Bum]

MLB

Tuesday, October 20

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Championship Series doubleheader betting preview: Royals at Blue Jays, Mets at Cubs
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The Blue Jays are -152 favorites for Game 4 of the ALCS and the Mets are -125 for Game 3 of the NLCS.

Kansas City Royals at Toronto Blue Jays (-152, 9.0)

Royals lead series 2-1

The Toronto Blue Jays have snapped Kansas City's impressive streak and attempt to even the American League Championship Series at two wins apiece when they host the Royals in Game 4 on Tuesday. Toronto posted an 11-8 victory in Game 3 to halt the Royals' string of nine straight ALCS victories, one shy of the record set by the Baltimore Orioles from 1969-73.

Troy Tulowitzki hit a three-run homer and Josh Donaldson launched a two-run blast during a six-run third inning as the Blue Jays ran out to a 9-2 lead en route to recording the crucial victory. "We desperately needed that breakout," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "You look at how the game finished up, those runs really came in handy. It wasn't an easy game, even though we had a big lead." Alcides Escobar has been a persistent force for the Royals as he went 4-for-5 and scored three times in Game 3 and is 7-for-12 with five runs in the series. Kansas City's Chris Young will be making the second postseason start of his career - he scattered four hits and struck out nine over 6 2/3 scoreless innings as San Diego defeated St. Louis in the 2006 National League Division Series.

TV: 4:07 p.m. ET, FS1, RSN (Toronto)

LINE HISTORY: The Blue Jays opened as -131 home favorites for Game 4, but have been bet up to -152. The total has remained at its opening number of 9.0.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Royals RH Chris Young (0-0, 2.25 ERA) vs. Blue Jays RH R.A. Dickey (0-0, 1.93)

The 36-year-old Young was tabbed to start over Kris Medlen because manager Ned Yost was impressed with his relief outing against Houston in the AL Division Series as he struck out seven while allowing one run and three hits in four innings. The 6-foot-10 Young has allowed just two runs and seven hits over his last 15 1/3 frames and marvels that he is even in position to start a postseason game after a lengthy pattern of injuries. "To have this opportunity, I just can't thank the organization enough for believing in me," Young said, "whether it was in the beginning of the season or here now in the postseason."

The 40-year-old Dickey never had pitched in the postseason until giving up one run and five hits in 4 2/3 innings against Texas in the ALDS. He continues to baffle hitters with his trademark knuckleball, which also tests the abilities of catcher Russell Martin. "Have you ever tried to catch a butterfly as it's floating around in the air?" Martin asked reporters. "I wish I could put a camera on my mask or something for people to see exactly what the ball's doing. It's pretty impressive."

TRENDS:

* Royals are 1-6 in their last seven meetings in Toronto.
* Blue Jays are 6-1 in Dickey's last seven home starts.
* Under is 4-0-1 in Young's last five road starts.
* Over is 10-2-2 in Blue Jays' last 14 games overall.



New York Mets at Chicago Cubs (+115, OFF)

Mets lead series 2-0

Daniel Murphy was thought to be on his way out of New York with free agency looming and prospect Dilson Herrera knocking on the door from the minor leagues, but a week of hot hitting in the playoffs is making him indispensable to his team. Murphy will try to homer in his fifth straight game when the Mets visit the Chicago Cubs for Game 3 of the National League Championship series on Tuesday.

Murphy clubbed a two-run homer in the first inning of Game 2 on Sunday off Cubs ace Jake Arrieta and has taken Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, Jon Lester and Arrieta deep in the last four games to provide plenty of support for the New York staff. “I definitely am seeing the ball well right now, so that's nice,” Murphy told reporters after blasting a first-inning homer for the second time in as many NLCS games. Chicago managed a total of three runs in the first two games but won both of its home games in the NLDS against the Cardinals and is still confident going forward. “We're looking for several one-game winning streaks and that would be kind of nice,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon told reporters. “Listen, it's never going to be easy this time of the year. They are good; we know that. We're also very good.”

TV: 8:07 p.m. ET, TBS

LINE HISTORY: The Cubs opened as +115 home dogs, were quickly bet to +111, but have settled back to the opening number. The total for Game 3 is currently off the board.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Mets RH Jacob deGrom (2-0, 1.38 ERA) vs. Cubs RH Kyle Hendricks (0-0, 5.79)

DeGrom struck out 20 in 13 total innings over a pair of NLDS starts and won them both, including the Game 5 clincher. The former Rookie of the Year has allowed a total of three runs in his last four outings with 36 strikeouts in 23 innings during that span. DeGrom has never beaten Chicago, going 0-2 while allowing a total of 11 earned runs and 17 hits in 15 1/3 innings over three career starts.

Hendricks got the nod over Jason Hammel for Game 3 and will try to bounce back after surrendering three solo home runs among four hits in 4 2/3 innings at St. Louis during the NLDS. The Dartmouth product scattered three hits and no runs in 12 innings over his final two turns in the regular season and has issued a total of two walks in his five outings. Hendricks is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA in two career starts against New York.

TRENDS:

* Mets are 10-1 in deGrom's last 11 road starts.
* Cubs are 6-1 in Hendricks' last seven starts.
* Over is 25-6-1 in Mets last 32 road games versus a right-handed starter.
* Over is 4-0 in Cubs last four home playoff games.

[StarDust Bum]

MLB

Tuesday, October 20


Royals confident Young can keep ball in park

TORONTO -- Chris Young gives up fly balls.

The Rogers Centre is a park that gives up a lot of homers.

The Toronto Blue Jays hit a lot of home runs, including three in Game 3 in their 11-8 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Monday in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series.

Even so, Royals manager Ned Yost feels that the right-hander is a good choice to pitch Game 4 against the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

"He's had good success against some of those hitters," Yost said. "His height and his deception in his delivery, his competitiveness. He had a great outing against Houston, and his last two starts (of the regular season) were really, really good. He's a good choice for us."

It will be Young's first postseason start in 2015, but he had a seven-strikeout effort over four innings in relief against the Houston Astros in the AL Division Series.

The fly-ball aspect does not concern Yost.

"If he's got the fastball and the slider going, he will be very, very tough," the manager said. "Again, every pitcher has to execute."

Young said, "You have to make good pitches, no matter where you are. I've bad games in pitchers' parks and good games in hitters' parks. The challenge is to make good pitches, execute pitches, choose the right pitches. If you do that, more often than not, you're going to have success no matter where you are."

It is nine years since Young started in the postseason and beat the St. Louis Cardinals when he was with the San Diego Padres.

He thought at that time there would be more postseason opportunities than there have been.

"Certainly, there's an appreciation for this," he said. "I'm cherishing it."


Indoor Game 4 suits Jays' Dickey

TORONTO -- The Blue Jays like hitting at Rogers Centre. R.A. Dickey likes pitching there.

The right-hander will take his knuckleball into Game 4 of the American League Championship Series on Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals. Dickey aims to even the series at two games apiece after Toronto won 11-8 in Game 3 on Monday.

The roof at the retractable stadium will be closed, and that suits Dickey fine.

"I like this stadium, I felt I can have good results here," he said. "(It is a positive) anytime that you can take out an exponent of the equation, which is the climate in my particular case, because I don't have to worry about rain or moisture or wind when they have the dome closed."

In Game 4 of the AL Division Series against the Texas Rangers, Dickey had a six-run lead when he was removed in favor of left-hander David Price with two outs in the fifth.

The move deprived him of the win, which went to Price, who worked three innings after he was brought in to deal with the left-handed bats that Texas had coming up. Manager John Gibbons did not want to let the Rangers back into the game. The strategy worked.

Dickey had a good game against the Royals the only time he faced them this season. He allowed only two hits and two walks in seven shutout innings on Aug. 2 in Toronto.

In that outing, Dickey said he tried to attack the strike zone.

"I was fortunate because they're a swinging team, and they were hitting pieces of the ball because it was moving well," he said "Hopefully, I can repeat that."

He respects the Royals.

"One of their key qualities as a team ... they spoil a lot of pitcher counts and work the count back in their favor quite a bit," Dickey said. "This is going to sound paradoxical, but it's important for me to always be pitching to contact with my knuckleball. And that means I have to be relentless in throwing strikes with it. I think it's important to me to take a shot or two out of the strike zone.

"But the great thing about the knuckleball is that it can be in the strike zone and can be just as effective as out of the strike zone because it moves so chaotically, so late. If I'm inducing a lot of weak contact, it's great."


Mets are the World Series favorites heading into Tuesday

The New York Mets are the 3/2 favorites to win this season's Fall Classic heading into Tuesday's ALCS and NLCS games, according to the Westgate LV Superbook.

The Mets lead the Chicago Cubs 2-0 in the NLCS heading into tonight's Game 3 at Wrigley Field. The Cubs are listed at 8/1.

Meanwhile the Royals, who lead the ALCS 2-1 with Game 4 this afternoon in Toronto are on the board at 2/1. The Blue Jays are 13/5.


Public backing Blue Jays in ALCS Game 4

The public is loving the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 4 of the ALCS, betting them from their opening number of -131 to their current -154.

The Jays got back into the series with an 11-8 win over the Royals Monday night and now trail two games to one.

Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey gets the call for the Jays in Game four, while Kansas City will counter with Chris Young.

[StarDust Bum]

RECAPPING MONDAY'S ACTION:

MLB: 2 - 0

CFL: 0 - 0

CFB: 0 - 0 - 0

NFL: 2 - 0 - 0

NHL: 0 - 2 - 0


MLB PLAYOFF RECORD:

*****.....................................3 - 7
double plays.............................9 - 7
triple plays...............................4 - 6
grand slam...............................4 - 1
double grand slam....................4 - 2
total.........................................7 - 6

[StarDust Bum]

Team Pitcher Open Line Movements Current Runline Scores

8:05 PM EDT

961 NEW YORK METS (R) Degrom, J -125 -111 / -110 / -109 -107 -1.5(+150)
962 CHICAGO CUBS (R) Hendricks, K 7.5u20 7.5u20 / 7.5u25 7.5u20 +1.5(-170)

TV: TBS, DTV: 247 | CLOUDY, 60% CHANCE SHOWERS. WIND OUT TO CENTER 9-14. GAME TEMP 63, RH 48%

4:05 PM EDT

963 KANSAS CITY ROYALS (R) Young, C 8.5o17 9u25 / 8.5o20 / 8.5o25 9u15 +1.5(-155)
964 TORONTO BLUE JAYS (R) Dickey, R -131 -152 / -149 / -147 -148 -1.5(+135)

TV: FS-1, DTV: 219 | MOSTLY CLOUDY, 40% CHANCE LIGHT SHOWERS. WIND LEFT TO RIGHT 9-14. GAME TEMP 61, RH 53% (ROGERS CENTRE ROOF CLOSES IN WET WEATHER)

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MLB Consensus Picks

SIDES (ATS)

Time Away Line Picks Pct Home Line Picks Pct Detail Odds

4:00 PM Kansas City +136 295 33.56% Toronto -147 584 66.44% View View

8:00 PM NY Mets -110 397 37.70% Chi. Cubs +102 656 62.30% View View


TOTALS (OVER/UNDER)

Time Away Total Over Pct Home Total Under Pct Detail Odds

8:00 PM NY Mets 7.5 194 55.27% Chi. Cubs 7.5 157 44.73% View View

4:00 PM Kansas City 9 351 61.80% Toronto 9 217 38.20% View View

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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20

Game Score Status Pick Amount

Kansas City - 4:00 PM ET Toronto -147 500 GRAND SLAM

Toronto - Over 9 500 *****

[StarDust Bum]

EVENING SELECTION:

NY Mets - 8:00 PM ET Chi. Cubs +102 500 ****

Chi. Cubs - Under 7.5 500 DOUBLE PLAY

[StarDust Bum]

RECAPPING TUESDAY'S ACTION:

MLB: 2 - 2

CFL: 0 - 0

CFB: 1 - 1 - 0

NFL: 0 - 0 - 0

NHL: 2 - 5 - 0


MLB PLAYOFF RECORD:

*****.....................................4 - 8
double plays.............................10 - 7
triple plays...............................4 - 6
grand slam...............................4 - 2
double grand slam....................4 - 2
total.........................................8 - 7