Friday Four Pack

Let's not dilly-dally. There's beer in the fridge with my name on it. All lines from Matchbook:


Washington Nationals +101, 1.01 units to win 1 unit.

Money pouring in on Phils, line hasn't moved much. What if I told you that the Washington Nationals, butt of jokes from here to Timbuktu, have a better third-order record this season than the World Series Champion Phillies. Is that something you might be interested in? Here they also have the better starter, if only slightly, and Lannan's lefthandedness should come in particularly handy against the famously lefty-happy Phillies lineup. And yet you can get a plus number on them. In Washington. With the Nats coming off a rest day and the Phils coming off extra innings. How is that possible? I dunno. Why ask why.


Cleveland Indians +152, 1 unit to win 1.52 units.

Hambone likes this number, which he thinks affords too much respect to Kazmir and the Rays. I'm iffy, but I like Injuns, so I'm on board.



Baltimore Orioles +202, 1 unit to win 2.02 units.

Nobody said it was gonna be easy to win money betting on baseball. Betting with us here requires you to put money on Adam Eaton over Zach Greinke. Ugh. Not easy to pull the trigger there. But the fact is, as awful as that matchup sounds, public perception probably exaggerates it a lot. Greinke's not gonna break Bob Gibson's ERA mark, but as long as he's getting lines that seem to suggest he will, we might as well take advantage. And Eaton's not the worst pitcher in the history of baseball. He's been mediocre but not terrible this year. Really only one terrible start. O's are worth a shot at better than 2 to 1 here.


Minnesota Twins +121, 1 unit to win 1.21 units.

I challenge you, the reader, to give me one single reason to think that this pitching matchup (Liriano vs. Hughes) favors the Yankees. It doesn't. Sure, the Yankees have the more talented offensive lineup, but I'm gonna need to see some 2009 production, not just famous names, before I think they deserve to be the favorite in a game in which the opponent has the better starter and the better bullpen. In the meantime, I'll keep fading Hughes at numbers like +121 and take my chances, thank you.