Both Bobby Abreu and Derek Jeter are their several teams most valueable player’s in my opinion. Abreu is a large under the radar type guy and is an ex-Yankee. Might he get his retaliation in this series as the Yankees opted not to re-sign him at the close of his contract. Abreu was the catalyst for any come from behind victory for the Angels with his ability to get on base. He was 5-9 with 4 runs, 4 walks, and an RBI against the Red Sox. I don’t reckon Jeter needs any presentation, but he was 4-10 with 4 runs, 3 walks, and 3 RBI’s against the Twins. Both players I would not mind putting my sports betting advice behind with my sports picks.

The MLB lines on the series between the Los Angeles Angels and the New York Yankees show the Yankees as -167 chalk to advance to the World Series.

Pitching

The Yankees have the best overall starter in CC Sabathia, who was 12-2 since the All-Star break. After that the Yankees go to A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettite, and Joba or Chad Gaudin who was very sound down the stretch. It’s been said that New York might go to a three man rotation with Sabathia starting game 4 and game 7. Pitching on short rest would be nothing new for Sabathia as he did so on a regular basis down the stretch for Milwaukee last season in dominant fashion. However, against the Angels this year Sabathia was 0-2 with a 6.08 ERA as the Angels hit lefties very well you have to ask that if he starts three games the Angels should be able to pick up at least one win.

For the Angels it begins with John Lackey and then Jered Weaver then comes Scott Kazmir and Joe Saunders. The keys are with Weaver who has struggled on the road before, but has been steady at home. Can he pitch well as the visitor, that will be the question. Also Kazmir has a career 2.67 ERA and they may be waiting for him to slow down the left handed power bats in the Yankees line up. Starting pitching definitely goes to the Angels in this match up for me.

Bullpen advantage to the Yankees. Seems very apparent with the best closer in league history and playoff history in the closer role for the Yankees in Mariano Rivera. Yankees were ranked 14th in MLB in bullpen ERA while the Angels ranked 23rd. It seems as though the Yankees will continue to use Joba out of the pen giving them a very solid top 3 relievers in Joba, Hughes, and Rivera to close out games. However, the Angels bullpen led round one in bullpen ERA as Fuentes saved two games against the Red Sox and they collectively had 1.42 ERA giving up a total of just six base runners on 4 hits and 2 walks. The Yankees come in second with a 1.80 ERA, but foes are hitting .341 and I think the Angels who have good bats could do some damage.

Edge: Angels

Hitting

From top to bottom the Angels have potent hitters in terms of getting on base. They may not pose a power threat with home runs compared to the Yankees who have hit 71 more home runs than the Angels, but the Angels led the Majors in hitting with a .285 average.

Yankees actually are ranked second and nine points in front of the next team in the league on the list with a .283 average just two points behind the Angels. As I remarked the Yankees hit 71 more home runs and many could say it’s because of their home stadium, but they have several sluggers such as Nick Swisher who hit more home runs as a visitor opposed to at home. Yankees have the leagues highest OPS at .839 as they walked 663 times this year compared to the Angels 547.

Plainly we are considering some top-notch hitters in this series and it should be a lot of fun. Nonetheless, the edge will have to go to the Yankees. They have arguably the best post season and clutch batter ever in Derek Jeter and their power to hit a home run and change the game is throughout their batting order.

Edge: Yankees

Intangibles:

Most teams might be a little overtaken by playing at Yankee stadium in the playoffs. However, the Angels are not.  They were unphased in Boston when they came from two runs behind to win versus one of MLB’s best closers Johnathan Paplebon.

Actually the Angels are the only team in the American League with a winning record over the past nine years vs. the Yankees and the Angels were responsible for eliminating the Yankees in the 2005 playoffs.

While the Angels have the emotion and heart and the will to win this one as they are playing for their SP Nick Adenhart who died earlier this season they do not have the edge with all of the presence the Yankees have including the leadership between Jeter and Mariano Rivera. Yankees have to be charged in the fact that Alex Rodriguez finally got over his playoff slumps as he hit .455 with six RBI’s in the ALDS.

The point is he is no longer the savior in the lineup with Texeira hitting right behind him. Teixera like Abreu will be confronting his past team and it should make the series that much more fascinating.

Edge: Yankees

Pick: Yankees in 7 games I suppose it’s time for the Yankees to get back to the World Series. It will be an entertaining series when they face off against their former coach Joe Torre if the Dodgers also come through. This series will be one of the better ones of all time. I think the Angels are still not getting enough respect and they can certainly steal a game or two in New York which will make this series all that much more fascinating. If you are one to play series prices the value is certainly on the Angels side. Particularly with the success the Angels have had against Sabathia and in New York.

Pitching

As of Tuesday morning the starting pitchers have still not been declared but it looks like Cole Hamels will make the start for Philadelphia.

Overall the Dodgers have the edge as they led the Majors not only in overall ERA, but in bullpen ERA. On the flip side the Phillies were ranked 7th overall and 13th out of their bullpen. The weaknesses are distinct in the bullpen as the Phillies had a lot of questions on who would be closing out games, but those queries have all been answered if you believe Lidges 2 saves were the real deal against the Rockies.

We will probably see Wolf, Padilla, and Kershaw, and possibly Garland or Billingsley if the Dodgers decide to go to a 4 man rotation which is what squads commonly do at this point. While the Phillies will go with Hamels, Lee, Happ, Martinez, and maybe Blanton. So we have 5 probable pitchers on each side.

Dodgers SP who might struggle:

Randy Wolf – who will be the ace of the Dodgers once more gave up 6 ER in Dodgers Stadium in June to the Phillies on 6.1 innings and 8 hits. However, the Phillies are hitting just .261 off Wolf and Wolf owns left-handed hitters which the Phillies have abundance of.

Jon Garland – Phillies are hitting .309 off him and in two starts this year one, at home and once on the road, he went 11.1 IP allowing 8 ER on 16 hits.

Phillies SP who might struggle:

Joe Blanton -  Dodgers sluggers have a .295 average off Blanton in 129 AB. However, Blanton pitched solid in his 1 start vs. the Dodgers as he went 6.1 innings and gave up just 1 ER.

Edge: Dodgers

Hitting

Both of these squads have first ballot hall of famers in the center of their lineups in Manny Ramirez and Ryan Howard. It can be argued that Utley is also a Hall of Famer. Their are two extreme divergences between these teams and that is power vs. average. The Phillies are ordered #21 in average while the Dodgers are in the top 5 at #4 in the majors. Does that mean the Dodgers are the better offensive team? No, not necessarily.  Sometimes in these big games what matters is clutch hitting and a home run late in a game.

The Phillies have the edge in the power category as they have 224 HR compared to 145 for the Dodgers. I think the Dodgers have more power than many believe, but it will come into play in this series. While the Dodgers play small ball the Phillies can smash a 3 run HR for a quick offensive explosion. Small ball in my opinion does not always transform into big clutch hitting. If we are talking selective clutch hitting you have to give it to the Phillies who came from behind with 2 outs and trailing 4-2 in Game 4 to win 5-4. It was the middle of the lineup that got it done in Howard and Werth.

Edge: Even

Bench

Whenever you have two strong players coming off your pine like Jim Thome or Juan Pierre you have the two ingredients of a bench player that you require. Juan Pierre is a player that can get on base and perhaps steal a base. Jim Thome is a guy who can come in a key match up and hit a HR to tie or get your team the lead. Philadelphia on the other hand have Miguel Cairo, Ben Francisco and Matt Stairs none of which should scare the steady Dodgers bullpen.

Edge: Dodgers

Pick: Dodgers in 6 games – Look for the Dodgers to take advantage of this series when they are at home. Philadelphia’s bullpen will really damage them in this match up. The Phillies took advantage of the Rockies weakness vs. LHP and this won’t be the case against the Dodgers as LA hit .270 vs. LHP and RHP, but score +.59 more runs per 9 innings vs. lefties than RHP. Bottom line pitching wins championships and the Dodgers with their pen have the major advantage!

There are tough NLDS matchups either way for Colorado, whether it’s the Philadelphia Phillies (92-66, 7.27 units) in the East or the St. Louis Cardinals (91-68, 7.33 units) in the Central. It will help, however, if the Rockies can secure home-field advantage. They’ll need to win the division first, and then hope they finish with a better record than either Philadelphia or St. Louis. It can happen, although the Dodgers are 12-3 against Colorado this year. It looks like the Rockies will once again play the role of Cinderella in these playoffs. Just two years ago, they won the NL pennant as a Wild Card team.  Profit on this year’s playoffs when you make your bets at Bodog using their 10% bonus money!

At least we know the identities of all four NL playoff teams. The Minnesota Twins (83-76, -0.71 units) still have a chance of catching the Detroit Tigers (85-74, 0.19 units) for the American League Central crown. A tiebreaker is possible here, since the Twins lead their season series 11-7 against the Tigers. Minnesota has three games left at home against the 65-94 Kansas City Royals, although Game 2 features likely Cy Young winner Zack Greinke (2.06 ERA, 1.07 WHIP) starting for K.C. The Tigers can clinch the division by taking two of three at home from the 77-82 Chicago White Sox.

Whoever comes out on top will get to face the New York Yankees (102-57, 13.14 units) in the ALDS. They’re the big story of the regular season, overcoming early adversity to post the best record in the majors with the most potent hitting (5.65 runs per game, 241 home runs, .842 OPS). The pitching staff, which has been a concern most of this decade, is a respectable 12th in team ERA at 4.26, doubly impressive in new Yankee Stadium with its propensity for the long ball – the park factor for home runs there is 1.254, way above last year’s 0.982 at old Yankee Stadium. Watch for the Yankees to be the World Series favorites on our updated MLB futures odds.

The Boston Red Sox (92-67, 8.74 units) are your AL Wild Card representatives, and we know they’ll be facing the West-clinching Los Angeles Angels (94-65, 18.76 units) in the first round of the ALDS. It’s believed Jon Lester (3.41 ERA, 1.23 WHIP) will start Game 1 for Boston against John Lackey (3.83 ERA, 1.27 WHIP). Boston eliminated L.A. in the first round in 2007 and 2008. It doesn’t get much better than Yankees-Red Sox, but this year might be different. The Angels will have home-field advantage and are 5-4 against Boston this year, including 4-2 at Angel Stadium.

While we celebrate the elite teams, handicappers can’t forget about the most disappointing teams of 2009 – disappointing if you didn’t fade them, that is. The Washington Nationals (56-103, -31.42 units) will once again finish the season with the worst record in the majors, losing over 100 games for the second year in a row. The Cleveland Indians (65-94, -28.43 units) look like they’ll end up as the least profitable club in the American League in a season that began with legitimate hopes of winning the Central race – even noted seamhead Rob Neyer thought so.

We’ll wrap up the regular season by tipping our cap to the great individual performances of 2009. Twins catcher Joe Mauer has a batting average of .367 and will win the MLB batting title. Albert Pujols of the Cardinals has 47 home runs, three more than Milwaukee’s Prince Fielder and Mark Reynolds of the Arizona Diamondbacks. And two pitchers will go for Win No. 20 this Friday: CC Sabathia (19-7) of the Yankees and Adam Wainwright (19-8) of the Cardinals. Wainwright has a shot at the NL Cy Young, but teammate Chris Carpenter (17-4) has the name recognition and the better ERA at 2.24 to Wainwright’s 2.58. We’ll bet both men would prefer to win the World Series.

So what should you do when making bets on World Series predictions? The experts at our site look at the cold hard numbers. They aren’t paid to disagree and make arguments from each side like the guys on TV. Our only goal is to make our visitors money and the best way to do that is present the best information possible. The baseball picks and predictions on this site are well researched and will help you come out on top. One of the best things about World Series predictions from our handicappers is that they are totally free of charge. The articles posted by some of our experts will detail what they think of each squad and how they will do in relation to the expected win totals.

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It was the end of an era when Barry Zito parted across the bay to join the San Francisco Giants. The team is still loaded with talent in the rotation with Rich Harden heading the staff. Harden was hurt for much of last season but in 2005 went 10-5 with a 2.53 ERA and in 2004 was strong with a 11-7 record and a 3.99 ERA. This guy has loads of potential but needs to throw for 30 plus starts before we sign off on him on being the next great thing. Dan Haren went 14-13 with a 4.12 ERA last season and was 14-12 the year before. He will consistently produce those kinds of numbers which is weak for a number two in the American League. Esteban Loaiza was a beast back in 2003 for the White Sox, but since he has been less than stellar. Coming off a 11-9, 4.89 ERA season, he is going to have to get back on track for Oakland to have a decent chance this year. Joe Blanton gave up a lot of hits and runs last year but still finished the year off at 16-12. He is going to have to throw better this year or his wins and losses will likely be reversed. Joe Kennedy returns to being a starter after a year in the bullpen. The relievers are led by close Houston Street and potential close Duchscherer. If it goes deep into the game Oakland will always be in it.

The lineup isn’t very impressive but it’s good enough to put up a few runs. Eric Chavez is supposed to be the big stick, but his average has suffered and his power keeps him under 30 HR a year. Jason Kendall’s power is laughable and his average is dipping, wondering if he’s good enough to hold down the staff behind the plate. Dan Johnson and Bobby Crosby are both young and unproven. The outfield has Milton Bradley, Nick Swisher, and Mark Kotsay leaving them with a trio of qualified, yet not intimidating set of outfielders.

Oakland has gotten used to picking up wins without a whole lot of star power, and their fans are hoping for the success to continue. The staff is going to have to stay healthy and produce like everyone knows they can. If those five guys can hold their own then the A’s will be fine, but the team is going to go the direction that those five go.

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Who would have “thunk” it?

People are touting the White Sox to REPEAT as world champions.

That’s like dreaming the impossible dream, reaching the unreachable star, having Brad Pitt’s baby.

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Chicago’s Southsiders begin defense of the Fall Classic title they won last year — their first in 88 seasons — on Sunday night when they host the Cleveland Indians in Major League Baseball’s 2006 lid-lifter.

“They’ve pretty much kept the team together,” says Ken White, co-owner of Las Vegas Sports Consultants, the oddsmaking firm that provides numbers to most Nevada sports stores and many bookmakers throughout the world.

“Their chances to repeat are good.”

Yeah, “but if,” chimes in Mike Lineback, 2005 baseball handicapping champion Mike Lineback.

And there are a lot of “but ifs.”

“I would love nothing more than a repeat of last year’s championship,” Lineback says.

“They really look good on paper with the addition of (Jim) Thome and are definitely the team to beat in the American League (He’s still not jumping on the Yankees bandwagon).

“However, it is so hard to repeat.

“Many things have to go right and I’m sure something will break up that awesome pitching rotation of last year, such as injuries, trade or unloading some contracts.

“I predict something will happen.”

One thing that won’t occur is baseball bettors and bookmakers being caught off guard early this year like a year ago when some shops opened them as high as triple digits only to see them gradually plummet to single-digit earth.

“Everybody’s onto them now,” says Las Vegas Hilton supervisor and oddsmaker Jeff Sherman.

Indeed.

The Chisox have supplanted the New York Yankees, a perennial threat, as World Series favorites at the Stratosphere Tower.

The White Sox are 2/1 and the Yankees 3/1.

“Nobody wants to bet them at those odds,” said Eric Solomon, a Stratosphere night shift supervisor.

“We’ve been taking action on the Cubs (5/1) and Twins (10/1).

“The Cubs are always popular and we get a lot of visitors from Minnesota, a lot from the Midwest.

“We keep lowering odds on them and the players keep betting ‘em.

“Heck, the Twins have to beat the White Sox and Indians just to make the playoffs.”

The Stratosphere will offer probably the valley’s lowest baseball prices with an 8-cent line as compared to the 10-cent line at most books.

“And we’ll have 15-cent run and totals lines,” Solomon said.

Oddsmaker White sees Oakland, Seattle and the Los Angeles Angels as legitimate outsiders.

“The A’s have good players,” he said. “I like their pitching and they’ll be tough to beat.”

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This team will have a great chance to do big things with the two great starters they have up front with Roy Halladay and AJ Burnett. Both of these guys have the potential to compete for a Cy Young, but Burnett has always struggled to stay healthy. Is this the year he breaks through? Toronto certainly hopes so. Behind these two studs there is Chacin, Ohka, and Thomson. These three guys certainly aren’t big names, but they should provide enough innings to keep Toronto in contention. The bottom of the staff however rates them lower overall than both the Sox and Yanks.

In the bullpen it will be up to Ryan to close games, which he is more than capable of doing. The problem might be holding it through the late innings leading up to the ninth as the Jays do not have the deepest or strongest of bullpens. It’s a good thing that Halladay and Burnett eat up a bunch of innings so you will see a lot of complete games or at least eight inning starts out of these two.

The lineup has potential in the middle, but is weak up front and towards the end. Overbay was signed to a big extension and is a decent first basemen, and Troy Glaus has a lot of power at third. This leaves the Jays with talent at the corners but the middle is protected by Clayton and Hill, not exactly two guys who are going to scare opposing hurlers. Catching is Greg Zaun.

In the outfield Vernon Wells is a big bat who needs to put together an entire season instead of the spurts we have seen in the past. Rios hit better than .300 last year but doesn’t have a lot of power or overwhelming speed. Reed Johnson will be starting in left. This guy is young but can hit for average and has moderate power. Obviously this lineup from top to bottom has some weak spots so can the team keep up with the run production we will see from both the Yankees and Red Sox? It’s doubtful.

With all of these expectations we are finding it hard to believe that the team is going to get to the 88 win total. I’m predicting more of a 85 win season making the UNDER one of our favorite future bets of the year.

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The team has a pretty deep rotation with Sabathia, Westbrook, Sowers, Byrd, Carmona, and Lee. CC Sabathia seems to have gotten over the hump last year when he threw 28 games with a 3.22 ERA and 12-11 record. The guy also had 172 Ks in just 192 innings pitched and is finally living up to the potential he was marked as having early in his career. Jake Westbrook is a solid number two starter, even though he’s not a name everyone knows about. He had a 15-10 record last year with a 4.17 ERA. This guy is good for 30+ starts ever year so count on him staying off the disabled list. Jeremy Sowers came up in June of last year and finished with a 7-4 record and 3.57 ERA, showing a lot of potential for the future. Paul Byrd had a down year last year when he suffered through a 4.88 ERA. WE expect him to return to form this year as he had a 3.80 ERA over the last two years before that disaster. Fausto Carmona went 1-10 last year, but is young with a lot of talent. The Indians are hoping he can produce enough to win the job away from Cliff Lee. Joe Borowski will be the one called upon to come in and close the games out for Cleveland this year. This guy gets the job done and should be a good addition to the team. The setup guys are reliable, but not the most talented in the American League.

Offensively the team is very talented with Grady Sizemore, Victor Martinez, and Travis Hafner leading the way. Hafner is the designated hitter who put up 42 home runs and drove in 117 runs while hitting .308. Victor Martinez is a talented catcher who put up a .316 average with 16 homers and 93 RBIs. Grady Sizemore is a talented guy who sets the table with a .375 on-base percentage, 28 home runs and 22 stolen bases. Casey Blake isn’t the best first baseman in the league, but he hits for a decent average, plays good defense, and will drive in a decent amount of runs. Peralta, Barfield, and Marte close out the infield. You won’t see a lot of offensive production out of these guys but they’ll get the job done defensively. In the outfield the team has David Dellucci and Trot Nixon to give them decent numbers, nothing great, but both are consistent.

This team is young and grew a lot through last season’s struggles. Hafner, Sizemore, and Sabathia are the real deal and should be poised to continue the successes they had last season. If you are looking for a good surprise team, ride the Indians early and often.

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The pitching staff suffered a blow with the season ending injury to Kris Benson. He was brought in to help solidify this young rotation and now probably won’t pitch a single inning in a Baltimore uniform this year. The guys who will be in the rotation are Erik Bedard, Daniel Cabrera, Steve Trachsel, Jaret Wright, and Adam Loewen. Bedard is going to be the opening day starter. Baltimore isn’t going to dominate with any of those five guys but the rotation looks solid all the way up and down. Injuries are going to be a factor as it is with everyone, but losing a starter like Benson before the season begins kind of puts a damper on how things will begin.

In the bullpen you’ll find Chris Ray as the closer with Jamie Walker as the left-handed setup man spot. Danny Baez is a former closer who will be able to get a couple of holds in keeping the lead for Ray. Bradford and Williamson are a couple of other quality arms that will be able to keep Baltimore in games. All in all their bullpen is good enough to help this team get to the .500 mark.

The lineup doesn’t have a whole lot of star power, but they are consistent up and down with Bip Roberts and Miguel Tejada being a talented middle infield and Mora and Millar at the corners. Hernandez is a decent catcher, but the three outfielders do not have a lot of power or talent with the bat. Patterson is the center fielder but this guy hasn’t acheived even a scratch of his potential. Jay Payton and Nick Markakis are good enough to fill a spot, but both better pick up their production or Aubrey Huff is going to take their spots. Jay Gibbons is getting better and better every year and will be a talented DH.

The AL East is going to be tough for the Orioles to make a move in. They do not quite have enough talent to make the playoffs or contend with the big spending Red Sox, Yankees, and Bluejays, but this team would be enough to make a run in other divisions. The tough schedule isn’t going to help their win total, but this squad could do some damage if things play out right.

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We can’t really say enough about Scott Kazmir. This guy is going to have all kinds of potential to have a Cy Young type season on a losing team. He posted a 10-8 season last year with a 3.24 ERA, but his season was cut short due to injuries. The guy struck out 163 batters in only 144 innings and is the guy of the future for this squad. It really ends there though for Tampa as the next in line is Jae Seo, a guy who went 3-12 with a 5.33 ERA last season. You can’t do much damage in this division with a number two hurler like that. James Shield was a rookie last season who came in and went 6-8 with a 4.84 ERA, but he gave up a lot of hits and walks. We’ve never been high on Casey Fossum nor his 5.20 lifetime ERA in 110 starts. Don’t expect him to come out of nowhere and suddenly be able to get people out this year. JP Howell is a 23-year old who does have some potential, but look for him to develop later down the line, this is a learning year for him.

In the outfield Delmon Young is only 21 and has loads of potential. He hit .317 in 30 games last season and could help this team a ton offensively. Hopefully Rocco Baldelli can get a full season for Tampa because he can hit for a decent average, steal some bases and hit a couple home runs. It’s hard to believe that Carl Crawford is only 25, but he’s developing into a real All-Star. Power, speed, and average, there really isn’t anything this guy can’t do. Too bad the infield isn’t going to give them much help as Cantu and Wiggington are the only names you have probably ever heard of, and they are always used in the same breath as “terrible.”

The oddsmakers are not putting a lot of stock into this team and I supposed it’s easy from this article as to why that is. The projected win total is only 67. This means that everyone expects this team, in one of the toughest divisions in baseball, to lose almost 100 games. We are going to take the over on that just due to the fact that the offense will put up a few runs and Kazmir is going to be worth 15 or so on his own.

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