posted May 22, 2008 at 16:29 EST in MLB Betting Trends
MLB Wagering Action – Philadelphia Phillies at Houston Astros
by Eric Williams
After correctly advising the MLB baseball betting community that the Philadelphia Phillies, (26-22, 19-29 RL) were going to trounce the Washington Nationals, which they did 12-2, I am back today to give MLB bettors another winning online sports betting wager on another Phillies contest as they take on the surprising Houston Astros, (27-21, 31-17 RL) tonight in sports gambling action.
Unfortunately, after beating mediocre Nationals starters, Chris Sampson and Shawn Chacon the last two night’s the Phillies will have to face Astros staff ace Roy Oswalt, (4-4, 5.43 ERA) though Oswalt may not be at full strength after his last outing, a controversy-stirring stint that he left a game against the Texas Rangers with a hip injury and was told to continue pitching even though he suggested to the team that he shouldn’t.
"It's not a muscle strain, so that's a good thing," Oswalt told the Astros' official Web site. "I think it's more of a tendon ... I think it's just inflamed more than anything."
Oswalt will be going up against Phillies right-hander Kyle Kendrick, (3-2, 4.76 ERA) and a Phillies lineup that may be getting ready to take off as slugger Ryan Howard is beginning to finally find his stroke after homering twice against the Nationals on Wednesday for his 11th and 12th home runs of the season.
"It's huge after the first two games, where we kind of got off to a slow start with hits and runs, to be able to come out and explode the way we did," said Howard, who went 0-for-7 in the first two games. "Hopefully, we can carry it over to our next trip."
Kendrick, who threw one scoreless inning in his last start against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday before a rain delay ended his night.
Kendrick will pitch tonight’s sports betting game on three days' rest because of his short stint.
"We didn't want Kyle to sit around for five more days," Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee said.Winners of nine of their last 13 games, the Astros have the look of a legitimate contender after a rocky start.
"Early on we were just trying to find out who we are," said Cooper, whose team has won nine of 13. "Now we know who we are and we're pretty good."
Here is a look at tonight’s key trends followed by my MLB Betting Free Picks:
The Phillies are 7-0 in Kendrick’s last seven starts during game one of a series.
The Phillies are 6-1 in Kendrick’s last seven road starts.
The Astros are 4-0 in Oswalt’s last four starts as a home favorite of -110 to -150.
The Astros are 7-0 in Oswalt’s last seven starts as a favorite of -110 to -150.
The Over is 5-1 in Kendrick’s last six starts during game one of a series.
The Over is 7-1-1 in Oswalt’s last nine home starts vs. a team with a winning record.
The Astros are 6-0 in Oswalt’s last six starts vs. Phillies.
The Under is 4-1-1 in Oswalt’s last six starts vs. Phillies.
Analysis: While Roy Oswalt is an absolutely fine pitcher and the better of the two starters tonight, I’m going to take the Philadelphia Phillies to win this matchup by getting to Oswalt who may not be at totally full strength after last week’s injury, though I will admit that the Astros have looked particularly good the last few weeks.
MLB Free Picks: Phillies 5 Astros 4
08:05 PM EST MLB Odds
Kyle Kendrick - R +1½ -190
Roy Oswalt - R -1½ +160
Over 9½ EV
Under 9½ -120
National League
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