4.4* MLB POD W/ 2* Bonus - an MLB Double Feature!

[Pick Bot]

Tough game yesterday with a loss on the Braves who were robbed by the infield fly rule. More importantly they hurt themselves with questionable coaching calls and 3 errors something nobody could have predicted from a team that was ranked 2nd in defense this year. We move onto Saturday with a two play package guaranteed backed by a full in depth analysis and .

SF/CIN U6.5 4.4* POD
I love this under not only are two of the best pitchers starting today for the respective clubs and are considered power pitchers, but both lineups are much better suited to produce vs. LHP. The Reds are 23rd in OPS and the Giants are 18th and it's not like either team closed the year hitting like crazy as the Reds scored just 2.13 runs per 9 overall in their last 10 while the Giants score 3.99.

Cueto has a 2.77 ERA on the road while Cain features a 2.03 ERA at home and both pitchers are very similar in their raw stats across the board. Both have excellent control, can strike you out, leave you on base, and neither allow a lot of HR overall or HR per fly ball. The one stat that separates them in a big way is GB%. Cain is the top of the league in least amount of GB% while Cueto is 25th in highest GB%. We took a deeper look at how each offense played against these type of pitchers.

For the Reds the stats are not very good against the Top 10 RH starters in least amount of GB%. These stats include Kyle Lohse, Ian Kennedy, Aaron Harrang, James McDonalds and I think you would agree Cain is better than all of those pitchers. In 8 total starts against the Reds this season those pitchers share a 1.49 ERA. Reds simply struggle against these type of pitchers and even more so if that RH pitcher can limit walks and HR's which something Cain absolutely can do.

The Giants on the other hand has faced 5 RH pitchers around Cueto's numbers and in those starts the pitchers have a 1.81 ERA. Those stats include games against Chris Leake, Zach Greinke, Tim Hudson, and Kevin Correia. Cueto has had a lot of success in 4 career stats against the Giants and I think we can agree he is better than the previous mentioned.

Lastly I looked at the umpire Phil Cuzzi because as we all know they control what type of game is going to be played. Cuzzi calls a game that benefits the starting pitcher. He's 15th in most strike outs per game and is among the top half of umpires in BB/game. In the NL games that he's umpired have resulted in 58% going under the total and he's under 18-7-3 in his last 28 Saturday's behind the home plate. Meanwhile the Giants are U 26-8-1 in Cains last 35 starts while the Reds are 23-8-2 in Cueto's last 33 starts.

A's +180 2* play
What could I possibly like about the A's? With Justin Verlander on the mound and the first Triple Crown winner on the Tigers side? Well it's simple there is a lot of value on the A's and we all saw how momentum and that under dog role can carry a team. Well the A's fit the bill and they have 7 lefty hitters to challenge Verlander. Oakland has scored 5.72 runs per 9 in their last 10 games to the Tigers 3.79 and their bullpen has also been dominant 1.74 over that period to the Tigers 3.00. Parker had a decent game int he beginning of the season against the Tigers and pitched well down the stretch with a 2.31 ERA in September. Oakland is 17-6 in their last 23 road games.