Michael Alexander

Rating: 10 Unit MLB Total of the Year

Even though Logan Webb had been placed on the injured list because of side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine, he's expected to start Tuesday. Webb (0-1, 4.76 earned run average) will be making his fourth appearance and his third start. Webb has never faced the Phillies. The Phillies will hand the ball to Zack Wheeler (1-2, 3.00 ERA), who will be making his fourth start. After a strong opening start, Wheeler has allowed 17 hits in the last two, both losses. In Wheeler's career against the Giants, he's 2-2 with a 3.16 ERA in seven starts. Consider that the Over is 12-5-1 in Phillies last 18 after scoring 2 runs or less in their previous game.

Rating: 10 Unit NHL Game of the Year

Carolina got a strong performance from goalie Petr Mrazek (33 saves), but the addition of newcomer Jani Hakanpaa appears to have solidified the defense. In his only move at last week's trade deadline, Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell set out to find the missing piece of the team puzzle. To shore up the rear guard, Waddell traded defenseman Haydn Fleury to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for the right-handed-shooting Hakanpaa and a 2022 sixth-round draft pick. Consider that Carolina is 5-1-2 in its past eight games while Tampa Bay is 4-4-0 in that same span.

Rating: 2 Units

The Panthers topped the Blue Jackets 4-2 on Monday for their third win in four games. Columbus lost its sixth consecutive game and fell to 2-11-2 in the past 15 games. The Tuesday night contest will wrap up the teams' eight-game season series, with the Panthers now 6-0-1 against the Blue Jackets. The Panthers have won their past two games and are 3-0-1 in their past four. Columbus comes into today with losses in six consecutive games and 13 of its past 15. Consider that Columbus is 7-22 in their last 29 vs. Central.

Rating: 4 Unit NBA Total of the Day

When two teams lazy with the defense (118.1 and 118.6 ppg allowed, #28 and #30 in a 30-team league) get together and the home team is #9 in scoring offense, and the road team is fully capable of scoring a lot of points when most of its best players are playing, and was able to score 116 vs. the Kings when they recently met in Minnesota, then getting cute with an Under doesn’t seem like the way to go. Sacramento center Richaun Holmes thinks that he should receive more attention for his defense, and maybe he’s right. But his ability to play it well enough hasn’t rubbed off on his teammates, and Holmes has missed the last four games anyway, and won’t play tonight. The one guy out of five who buys into defense ain’t there.

Rating: 3 Units

We’ve mentioned this before: the Blazers have been fodder for the higher echelon teams in the Western Conference. The most recent failures were at the Clippers and Jazz on Apr. 6 and 8, 133-116 and 122-103 losses. They lost and didn’t cover here vs. Phoenix on Mar. 11, lost by 32, 5, 9 points in three straight games at Phoenix, Denver and the Lakers Feb. 22-26. After a 47-point first quarter in L.A., the Clippers still won two of the next three quarters against the Blazers. Over the last two weeks, Portland is scoring 1.12 points per possession, allowing 1.17; L.A. is scoring 1.26 per possession, allowing 1.11

Rating: 2 Units

Orlando had lost 7 of 8 before playing Houston on Sunday. In that game the Rockets improved their record to 15 and 42 and when a team loses to a club that has only won 15 games, things become a bit clearer about the talent level and the concept of competing. Despite playing the second of a back-to-back game, Atlanta beat the Magic last month and Clint Capela didn’t play. This is a much more important game for Atlanta. They are currently in the middle of the Eastern standings but still only 2 games removed from being in the precarious 7th seed. Orlando has only Detroit beat in the East. Atlanta is a well-balanced team and they defend the perimeter. The Hawks just beat Indy on Sunday behind 24 points and 25 rebounds from Capela.

Rating: 2 Units

It’s basically the same concept as last night. A low-hit, low run righthander starts for the Brewers, opposed by a pretty good righthander for the Padres who has gone 11 up, 11 down against Milwaukee batters who have faced him. Like Joe Musgrove last night, who went 7 innings but got the loss in a low scoring game (3-1), the Padres’ Chris Paddack won’t be pitching to Christian Yelich in the heart of the Brewers’ batting order. He’s injured and out. Milwaukee’s Corbin Burnes will be throwing to Fernando Tatis and his .118 batting average anchoring the heart of the Padres’ lineup. Burnes is doing his best Christy Matthewson impersonation with three 6-inning starts, allowing 2, 1 and 1 hit, a total of 0 walks and 30 Ks. Yowser. And yet, the Brewers have lost two of those games, 3-1 and 2-0. Hit the ball, why don’t you? Wait — not tonight.

Rating: 2 Units

Matt Harvey is pitching tonight for his latest team, a perennial bottom-dweller in the American League East. Apparently, they are striving to maintain their reputation and standing in the world with acquisitions such as this. Miami’s Nick Neidert has been opposed by Atlanta’s Charlie Morton and the Mets’ Taijuan Walker in his two starts. Morton is an established ace, Walker was a highly sought-after guy at the trading deadline last season whom Toronto couldn’t keep after adding him at the 2020 deadline. Walker had a 1.37 ERA in six starts for the Blue Jays after leaving Seattle, and the Mets have won 3-2 and 4-3 games in his first two starts for them. The Orioles are 1-2 when Harvey starts, and his longest stint was 5 innings with 7 hits allowed. He had a 2.74 WHIP for the Royals in 11 2/3 innings last season. He made four starts for them, three relief appearances, yet totaled only 11 2/3 innings. He could use all the support they can possibly give him but the Orioles lose their DH in a National League ballpark. Marlins who have faced Harvey are 7-for-17 against him (.390). Nobody on the Orioles has faced Neidert. Mystery man.

Rating: 2 Units

If it turns out that Matt Shoemaker is actually opposing Luzardo, well… yeah, we’ll take him instead of the (usually) better Berrios, leaving it to the baseball gods and the A’s meager .204 team BA against right-handed pitching while getting bigger odds. One of the most frustrating things about playing baseball is targeting a pitcher you don’t think will get the job done, doesn’t, yet his team wins anyway. The A’s have won Jesus Luzardo’s last two starts and we were on the other side in one of them, vs. the Dodgers. He pitched “okay” in that game, but the Dodgers’ manager Dave “We Won a World Series Despite Me” Roberts decided that some of their best hitters shouldn’t play that day. Luzardo came back six days later to groove it over the plate to Arizona batters who frequently can’t hit water from a boat yet scored 5 runs on 6 hits in 2 2/3 innings against him. The Twins are happy to be out there playin’ ball again after their most recent games were called on account of fear, with a rested and ready bullpen.