By #1 Sports
Philadelphia: The Phillies (71-57, 31-32 road) injuries and inconsistency converged in an embarrassing 4-game sweep by the Astros and Charlie Manuel’s squad is now in jeopardy of missing the post, just 1 game ahead of the Giants and 1 ½ clear of the Cardinals. 2B Chase Utley (.272, 11 HR, 41 RBI) has struggled since his return from the DL while 1B Ryan Howard (.282, 23 HR, 82 RBI) is back after missing 16 games but the timing of his return has as much to with the race as his health because the nick-nameless slugger is clearly less than 100%.
By Nevada Sharpshooter
I know the Rangers have only won 1 playoff game in their history, but don’t think they are not a serious contender to advance in the playoffs. Playoffs are about pitching and the Rangers have a better staff then people give them credit for. Let’s compare starters between the Rangers, Twins, and Yankees. The #1 starters are Rangers Cliff Lee, Yankees CC Sabathia, Twins Carl Pavano, clear advantage for Rangers and Yankees over Twins. I for one believe Lee will pitch much better when the temps come down in the fall and he has shown in the past he can shut down the Yankees. #2 starters Rangers C. Wilson 13-5 3.02 ERA, Yankees Phil Hughes 15-6 4.12 ERA, Twins F Liriano 12-7 3.41 ERA, advantage Rangers. #3 starters Rangers T Hunter 10-2 3.68 ERA, Yankees AJ Burnett 9-11 4.80 ERA, Twins Scott Baker 11-9 4.63 ERA, advantage Rangers. #4 starters Rangers C. Lewis 9-10 3.40 ERA, Yankees J. Vasquez 9-9 4.96 ERA, Twins Kevin Slowey (if healthy) 11-6 4.39 ERA, advantage Rangers. Although the Yankees and to a lesser extent Twins have an edge in playoff experience the Rangers definitely have the talent to be a serious contender to go to the World Series.
By Totals 4 U
Atlanta: The Braves (73-51, 29-34 road) smoked the Cubs Sunday, 16-5, to maintain a 2 ½ game lead over the Phillies in the East, leaving one more great run within reach for legendary Manager Bobby Cox, set to retire after the campaign.
By #1 Sports
Los Angeles: The Angels (60-59, 33-27 road) have been out of the American League race for a month and it’s time for Manager Scioscia’s crew to figure out how to get back to their 97-65 form of 2009. Without question, this lineup misses Vlad’s stick but the down season of tonight’s starting pitcher has also been key.
By High Stakes Syndicate
Arizona: The Diamondbacks (44-69, 16-37 road) bring plenty of pop to Miller Park with the National League’s 3rd-best 126 homers. 2B Johnson (.285, 17 HR, 52 RBI), 1B LaRoche (.268, 18 HR, 73 RBI), 3B Reynolds (.216, 25 HR, 69 RBI), RF Upton (.280, 16 HR, 56 RBI), and CF Young (.268, 20 HR, 68 RBI) can bust open games with one swing.
By #1 Sports
Texas: The Rangers (61-45, 25-24 road) meet the middle of a 9-game divisional road trip at the top of the West and a full 8 games clear of each the Athletics and Angels. Power hitting is certainly a strength of Ron Washington’s crew with 106 homers – not including the 10 recently-added 1B Jorge Cantu brings – and a team slugging mark of .421 but don’t overlook their ability to grind out the runs with a .275 team batting average plus 87 stolen bases led by SS Elvis Andrus’s 27 thefts.
By #1 Sports
Los Angeles: The Dodgers (54-50, 22-29 road) have been positively powerless with Manny sidelined, scoring a total of 31 runs over the 14 games since his return to the DL, posting a 5-9 mark with 4 of those wins requiring shutouts to get the victory. Reed Johnson, Xavier Paul, and Garret Anderson haven’t managed much platooning in Ramirez’s left field slot but the trade acquisition for OF Scott Podsednik (.309, 5 HR, 45 RBI) for the Royals for a pair of prospects should help.
By Totals 4 U
Florida: The Marlins (49-49, 21-23 road) come off a 7-3 home stand, taking series wins over the Nationals, Rockies, and Braves, and now hit the highway with RHP Ricky Nolasco (10-7, 4.50 ERA) on the mound. Known as a 2nd-half guy, Ricky’s grooved right now with 27 hits and 7 walks over his last 5 starts (3.41 ERA) compared to 42 strikeouts over those 34 1/3.
By #1 Sports
Oakland: The Athletics (43-46, 17-26 road) open the second half 7 ½ games behind the Rangers in the West and send LHP Gio Gonzalez (7-6, 3.79 ERA) to the hill tonight. The 3rd-year starter had fine stretches in the 1st-half with just 95 hits allowed over 107 innings but racked only a single victory over his final 6 trips as the walks (21 BB over his last 34 innings) began to pile up.
By Totals 4 U
San Francisco: The Giants (40-39, 15-22 road) have been tail-spinning to the break with 7 consecutive losses in which they have managed a total of 15. Even Manager Bruce Bochy’s envied pitching staff has been off their games with today’s starter, RHP Matt Cain (6-7, 2.93 ERA), sloppy his last 3 trips with a 0-3 mark and an 8.24 ERA. Cain has a stretch like this every season and has simply dominated the Rockies this season at 2-0 with just 1 earned surrendered over the 16 innings of a pair of starts so we suggest holding off reading more into his struggles for now.