Philadelphia Phillies (-141) over Atlanta Braves
Analysis: Philadelphia southpaw Cliff Lee remains one of baseball’s elite pitchers as he is 9-2 with a 2.59 ERA and 0.96 WHIP this season, including going 3-1 with a 3.53 ERA and 1.13 WHIP at home, 7-2 with a 2.60 ERA and 0.91 WHIP at night, 4-0 with a 1.07 ERA and 0.59 WHIP versus division opponents and 1-0 with a 2.74 ERA and 0.91 WHIP over his last three starts. Lee’s elite command and control are illustrated by his phenomenal 45/6 K/BB ratio in 43.3 innings pitched at home, together with his 28/2 K/BB ratio versus division foes (33.7 IP). Lee has also enjoyed success versus the Braves against whom he is 5-4 with a career 2.74 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in eleven starts. In his last three outings against the Braves, he has allowed one earned run in 23 innings of work (24/1 K/BB ratio). Let’s also note that Lee is 4-1 with a 0.78 ERA in his last six starts against the Braves – limiting them to a .176 average in 46 innings with 56 strikeouts and three walks.
Meanwhile, Atlanta arrives in town with a scuffling offense that is batting .240 with a .310 on base percentage on the road (3.9 runs per game), including hitting .244 with a .320 on base percentage versus southpaws (4.1 runs per game) and .243 with a .310 on base percentage at night (4.0 runs per game). In contrast, Philadelphia returns home with a surging offense that is batting .337 with a .381 on base percentage over its last seven contests (5.4 runs per game). Indeed, Philadelphia has registered ten or more hits in thirteen of its last 20 games. Even better news for Philadelphia investors is the fact that Tim Hudson is 1-7 with a 5.71 ERA and 1.40 WHIP on the road and 1-5 with a 4.45 ERA and 1.23 WHIP at night this season. In his last three outings against the Phillies, Hudson has yielded a combined nine runs (8 earned) on 17 hits and 7 walks in sixteen innings. Take Philadelphia and invest with confidence.
I am a profitable 226-167-5 (57.3%) on my free sports picks after Thursday’s winner on the Colorado Rockies. Assuming you risked 1 unit per selection, a $500 sports investor would be up over $17,200 since June 7, 2007.
