The Bum's Sunday's MLB Best Bets !

[StarDust Bum]

Struggling Dodgers Visit Phillies To Open Week

UPDATE (June 3): The Phillies will switch their rotation up and start Vance Worley in Monday's contest against the Dodgers. Worley has been on the DL with elbow problems, and is expected to be on a short pitch count for the game.

Steady as she goes for Mike Scioscia and the Los Angeles Angels who wrap up an important home series with their division rivals from Texas on Sunday.

The Angels fired the first salvo in the series with a 4-2 victory Friday night. Priced as +115 underdogs, Scioscia's troops rallied from an early 2-0 hole behind Mike Trout's bat and the bullpen backed Jerome Williams' fine start to seal the deal.

Texas was again a small favorite in Game 2 on Saturday that featured a mound duel between Yu Darvish and former Rangers hurler CJ Wilson. It will be Wilson's third start against his former mates in the Angels' first five meetings this year with Texas. Those results were still pending with most outlets on the Don Best odds screen showing 7½-runs for the total.

Sunday's series-ender is set for 3:35 p.m. (ET) and pits Texas southpaw Matt Harrison against Dan Haren.

Haren has really turned things around his last two times out after a rough beginning. He didn't pitch that poorly in all of his initial nine starts, but the results still weren't there with the Angels 1-8 in those contests. A 14-K shutout at Seattle and seven innings of 1-run ball Tuesday at home vs. the Yankees point to much better times ahead for Haren and his backers.

It's going to be especially important that Haren pick up slack as the ace or stopper in the Angels rotation while Jered Weaver is on the disabled list nursing a sore back. Haren missed the Rangers in Arlington during the mid-May set, and Texas has kicked him around pretty good the last three times they've faced him (Angels 1-2, Haren 8.63 ERA).

Harrison suffered the loss in the only game the Angels won in Texas a few weeks ago. The southpaw came out for the seventh, put two runners on and left with the score tied two-all before both eventually made a full 360 around the bases and scored on sac flies in a 4-2 Halos victory.

He made his major league debut against the Angels and won that assignment back in July 2008, but the Rangers are 1-3 in his four starts vs. their lineup since then with most of his work in 2009 against them from the 'pen. This will be just his second career start at the Big A, and his other happens to be his only victory in the series since his big league debut (Sept. 2011, 6 IP, 1 ER).

Dodgers Continue Road Trip In Philly
A couple of old National League rivals get together for the first time this season on Monday when the Los Angeles Dodgers visit the Philadelphia Phillies. The 4-game series gets underway with a couple of big names on the hill and ESPN will provide coverage beginning at 7:00 p.m. (ET).

The Dodgers just embarked on a long 10-game trek that started in Colorado this weekend and will eventually take them to Seattle next weekend. Los Angeles was struggling with seven losses among its last nine games entering Saturday's match with the Rockies, and the Dodgers' lead in the NL West had shrunk to four over the Giants.

The Phillies, meanwhile, had won seven of their last nine before Saturday's clash against the Miami Marlins. They're last in the NL East, but with only 2.5-games between themselves and the front-running Washington Nationals.

Los Angeles will pin its hopes Monday on Clayton Kershaw while the Phils send Cliff Lee to the bump at Citizens Bank Park.

Lee remains winless on the season despite decent stats such as a 3.00 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP that ranked 11th among all major league hurlers when play started Saturday. The Phillies have won three of his last four assignments, however, and he has all but owned the Dodgers over his career. Dating back to his time in Cleveland, his teams are a perfect 3-0 when Lee takes the mound vs. LA and his ERA stands at 0.40 in those contests.

The Dodgers won Kershaw's first five starts of the campaign, but went 2-4 with him toeing the rubber in May, including losses for the lefty in his last two assignments. Los Angeles is 0-5 in his last five tries against the Phils, and 0-3 when he starts at CBP where he has a 6.89 ERA.

Citizens Bank Park has been unkind to the Dodgers overall since opening in 2004. The Phillies are 15-10 against LA in regular season action on the diamond, 20-10 when including 2008-09 NLCS games. Philadelphia will begin play Monday having won nine of the last 11 vs. LA.

[StarDust Bum]

MLB
Armadillo's Write-Up

Sunday, June 3

Hot pitchers
-- GGonzalez is 5-0, 2.25 in his last five starts. Hanson is 2-0, 2.00 in his last three road starts.
-- McDonald is 4-1, 1.80 in his last seven starts. Fiers won his first big league start, allowing one run in seven IP.
-- Eovaldi allowed two runs in seven IP in his first '12 start.
-- Stults is 1-1, 3.50 in his three starts this season.

-- Bard is 3-1, 4.15 in his last four starts. Hutchison is 3-1, 2.63 in his last four starts.
-- Sale is 3-0, 0.92 in his last three starts. Millwood is 3-0, 0.67 in his last four starts.
-- Haren won his last two starts, allowing one run in 16 IP. Harrison is 2-0, 1.80 in his last couple starts.

Cold pitchers
-- Zambrano is 1-1, 8.18 in his last couple starts. Blanton is 0-2, 13.17 in his last three starts.
-- Arroyo is 0-2, 5.02 in his last four starts. Houston is 0-4 when Lyles starts (0-1, 7.36).
-- White is 1-3, 6.59 in his five starts for Colorado.
-- Zito has an 8.22 RA in his last three starts. Wood is 0-1, 5.94 in three starts for the Cubs.
-- Cahill is 0-3, 4.85 in his last five starts.
-- Westbrook is 0-2, 8.55 in his last four starts. Niese is 1-1, 7.47 in his last three starts.

-- Verlander is 0-2, 4.50 in his last couple starts. Hughes has a 7.20 RA in his last four road starts.
-- Arrieta is 0-4, 8.33 in his last five starts. Moore is 0-4, 7.09 in his last five outings.
-- Milone is 2-3, 7.48 in five road starts (4-1, 1.23 at home). Former Athletic Mazzaro allowed three runs in five IP in his first '12 start; he is 12-18, 5.12 in 40 career big league starts.
-- Diamond is 1-1, 5.60 in his last three starts. Masterson is 1-2, 5.88 in his last four starts.

Hot Teams
-- Marlins won six of their last eight games. Phillies won six of their last nine games.
-- Reds won eleven of their last fourteen games.
-- Mets won eight of their last eleven games.
-- Colorado won five of its last six games.
-- Brewers won five of their last six games. Pirates won six of their last eight games.
-- Giants won five of their last six games.

-- Red Sox won six of their last seven road games. Toronto won seven of its last ten at Rogers Centre, but lost last two.
-- Royals won five of their last seven games.
-- Bronx won seven of its last ten games.
-- Minnesota won four of its last five games.
-- White Sox won nine of their last ten games. Seattle won six of their last eight road games.
-- Angels won ten of their last eleven games.

Cold Teams
-- Washington lost three of its last four games. Braves lost six of their last seven road games.
-- Houston lost their last eight games, allowing 67 runs.
-- Cardinals lost eight of their last nine road games.
-- Dodgers lost five of their last six games.
-- San Diego lost seven of its last eight games. Arizona is 6-8 in its last fourteen road games.
-- Cubs lost their last nine road games.

-- Oakland lost nine of its last ten games.
-- Detroit lost four of its last six games.
-- Indians lost six of their last eight games.
-- Orioles lost six of their last seven games. Tampa Bay lost five of its last seven games.
-- Rangers lost their last four games, allowing 38 runs.

Totals
-- Under is 15-6-1 in Miami's last 22 road games.
-- Under is 6-0-1 in Atlanta's last seven road games.
-- Over is 9-2-1 in last twelve games at Citi Field.
-- Under is 6-3 in Houston's last nine home games.
-- Over is 15-5-1 in last twenty-one games at Coors Field.
-- Seven of last nine McDonald games stayed under total.
-- Under is 11-4 in Arizona's last fifteen road games.
-- Under is 5-1-1 in Cubs' last seven road games.

-- Bard's last five starts all went over the total.
-- Last three Milone starts stayed under the total.
-- Seven of last nine Detroit home games stayed under.
-- Six of last eight Minnesota road games went over. Six of last eight Cleveland games went over total.
-- Six of last seven Baltimore games stayed under total.
-- This is ***************.com. Enjoy your Sunday.
-- Ten of last eleven Chicago home games went over the total.
-- Haren's last eight starts stayed under the total.

Umpires
-- Atl-Wsh--Favorites won seven of last eight Kulpa games.
-- Mia-Phil-- Six of last nine Eddings games went over the total.
-- StL-NY-- Eight of last ten Culbreth games went over.
-- LA-Col-- Home side won six of last seven Marquex games.
-- Pitt-Mil-- Five of last seven Cuzzi games went over total.
-- Chi-SF-- Three of last four Blaser games went over total.
-- Az-SD-- Five of last six Porter games went over the total.
-- Cin-Hst-- Under is 4-0-1 in last five Iassogna games.

-- Bos-Tor-- Underdogs won seven of last nine Winters games.
-- A's-KC-- Last six TWelke games stayed under the total.
-- Blt-TB-- Four of last five Guccione games went over total.
-- Sea-Chi-- Underdogs are 4-3 in last seven West games.
-- NY-Det-- Seven of last ten Wendelstedt games stayed under.
-- Min-Cle-- Favorites won four of last five Foster games.
-- Tex-LA-- Six of last eight Runge games stayed under total.

[StarDust Bum]

Sunday, June 3

Game Score Status Pick Amount

NY Yankees - 1:05 PM ET Detroit -178 500
Detroit - Over 8 500

Boston - 1:07 PM ET Toronto -107 500
Toronto - Under 10 500

Atlanta - 1:35 PM ET Washington -135 500
Washington - Under 6.5 500

Miami - 1:35 PM ET Miami -105 500
Philadelphia - Under 8.5 500

Baltimore - 1:40 PM ET Tampa Bay -145 500
Tampa Bay - Under 8 500

Seattle - 2:10 PM ET Chi. White Sox -175 500
Chi. White Sox - Over 7.5 500

Oakland - 2:10 PM ET Oakland +112 500
Kansas City - Under 8.5 500

Pittsburgh - 2:10 PM ET Pittsburgh +105 500
Milwaukee - Under 7.5 500

Minnesota - 3:05 PM ET Minnesota +135 500
Cleveland - Under 9 500

LA Dodgers - 3:10 PM ET LA Dodgers +113 500
Colorado - Under 10.5 500

Texas - 3:35 PM ET Texas +103 500
LA Angels - Under 8 500

Chi. Cubs - 4:05 PM ET San Francisco -142 500
San Francisco - Under 7.5 500

Arizona - 6:35 PM ET Arizona -118 500
San Diego - Under 6.5 500

St. Louis - 8:05 PM ET St. Louis -109 500
NY Mets - Over 8 500