PREMIUM
$20 TUESDAY >> Rogers' 10* MLB BEST OF THE BEST!
(MLB) Boston vs. LA Angels,
Money Line: -160.00 LA Angels (Home)
Result: Loss
Money Line: -160.00 LA Angels (Home)
Result: Loss
The set-up: The Boston Red Sox are off to the best start in club history with a 13-2 mark to open the 2018 season. The team's starting pitchers have posted a major league-best 2.06 ERA and Boston's team ERA of 2.94 ranks third-best. The Red Sox are averaging 5.93 RPG (2nd-best) plus the team's .275 BA and .795 OPS also rank 2nd-best in MLB. The Red Sox begin a three-game series Tuesday night in Anaheim against the Angels, a team with MLB's second-best best record (13-3), while leading all teams in scoring (6.44 RPG), team BA (.291) and OPS (.825). LA's 26 HRs are second-best overall and the team's pitching (3.19 ERA ranks 7th) is more than good enough, considering the way the team is hitting.
The pitching matchup: David Price (1-1, 2.40 ERA) gets the ball for Boston and the Angels' two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani (2-0, 2.08 ERA) will be on the mound for LA. Price had trouble on (injuries) and off (arguments with reporters and people in and around the organization) the field in 2017, making only 16 appearances, including 11 starts. He finished 6-3 with a 3.38 ERA, while Boston went 6-5 in his 11 starts. Price looks healthier and seems happier in 2018 and will take the mound for his fourth start of 2018 in this one. However, Price did leave last Wednesday's 10-7 loss to the New York Yankees after allowing four runs in one inning, telling reporters that he lost feeling in his fingertips on a cold night in Boston. He is 5-7 with a 3.53 ERA in 15 starts in his career versus the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani has served as the DH in seven games for Los Angeles, which is not using him on the day before and after he pitches. He has 33 at-bats as a designated hitter, batting .367 with three HRs and 11 RBI. He was supposed to take the ball Sunday but the game in Kansas City was postponed. Ohtani carried a perfect game into the seventh inning against Oakland in his last outing April 8, permitting one hit and striking out 12 in seven scoreless innings of the Angels' 6-1 victory. He also defeated the Athletics in his first major league start, allowing three runs (on a 3-run HR) and three hits in six frames.
The pick: Boston's 13-2 record is MLB's best, as is the team's plus-$1043 moneyline mark. LA is right behind them at 13-3 and at plus-$1009 vs. the moneyline. However, the Angels have the best run differential in baseball at plus-48 with the Red Sox second at plus-42. What a series it should be. Ohtani attempts to become the first Los Angeles Angels pitcher to win his first three starts since Jared Weaver in 2006 and also gets the chance to display his skills on the mound against a team other than Oakland. My bet says he moves to 3-0. Make LA a 10* play.
The pitching matchup: David Price (1-1, 2.40 ERA) gets the ball for Boston and the Angels' two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani (2-0, 2.08 ERA) will be on the mound for LA. Price had trouble on (injuries) and off (arguments with reporters and people in and around the organization) the field in 2017, making only 16 appearances, including 11 starts. He finished 6-3 with a 3.38 ERA, while Boston went 6-5 in his 11 starts. Price looks healthier and seems happier in 2018 and will take the mound for his fourth start of 2018 in this one. However, Price did leave last Wednesday's 10-7 loss to the New York Yankees after allowing four runs in one inning, telling reporters that he lost feeling in his fingertips on a cold night in Boston. He is 5-7 with a 3.53 ERA in 15 starts in his career versus the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani has served as the DH in seven games for Los Angeles, which is not using him on the day before and after he pitches. He has 33 at-bats as a designated hitter, batting .367 with three HRs and 11 RBI. He was supposed to take the ball Sunday but the game in Kansas City was postponed. Ohtani carried a perfect game into the seventh inning against Oakland in his last outing April 8, permitting one hit and striking out 12 in seven scoreless innings of the Angels' 6-1 victory. He also defeated the Athletics in his first major league start, allowing three runs (on a 3-run HR) and three hits in six frames.
The pick: Boston's 13-2 record is MLB's best, as is the team's plus-$1043 moneyline mark. LA is right behind them at 13-3 and at plus-$1009 vs. the moneyline. However, the Angels have the best run differential in baseball at plus-48 with the Red Sox second at plus-42. What a series it should be. Ohtani attempts to become the first Los Angeles Angels pitcher to win his first three starts since Jared Weaver in 2006 and also gets the chance to display his skills on the mound against a team other than Oakland. My bet says he moves to 3-0. Make LA a 10* play.
