The Sharp Report – July 13, 2014

Andrew McCutchen tied the game with a solo homer in the ninth inning Saturday night, then connected again in the 11th inning, rallying the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-5 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday night.

While there were no major moves made on the Pirates/Reds game, I highly recommend placing a futures bet on McCutchen to win NL MVP. The guy is as clutch as they come, and is only getting better as the season goes on. I know Pirates fans all over are hoping they find a way to keep this guy from getting swallowed up by one of the big market teams.

Please refer to my first post in this series for a list of recommended sites to aid you in your handicapping.

7/13 Early Moves:

Here are some lines that were hit by sharp groups early enough this morning to make this report. I have not had time to research games myself, so I am not recommending that you try to find these numbers and tail the plays at this time. These are listed to show you what has happened so far this morning, always do your own research on these before following along.

Minnesota Twins vs Colorado Rockies (Under 10)
Key Line Move @ 9:45 am EST

Los Angeles Angels vs Texas Rangers (Under 10)
Key Line Move @ 10:00 am EST

7/12 Recap:

Early Moves:

Arizona Diamondbacks vs San Francisco Giants (Under 8) – Win
Key Line Move @ 8:00 am EST

The Diamondbacks’, Wade Miley is working his way out of a rough stretch with two straight strong outings where he has allowed a total of three runs and nine hits in 14 2/3 innings.
The Giants’, Ryan Vogelsong, has lost three straight starts despite not allowing more than three earned runs in any of those games.

The combination of strong pitching and the fact that the Giants are in a terrible offensive slump made this a very attractive move to many groups, including mine.

Chicago White Sox vs Cleveland Indians (Under 9) – Win
Key Line Move @ 10:00 am EST

The White Sox’s starter, Scott Carroll, had his best start of the season on Monday, surrendering one hit in 6 2/3 scoreless innings to beat the Boston Red Sox. Carroll hasn’t allowed an earned run in nine career innings against the Indians. The Indians’ starter, McAllister is being recalled from the minors after being sent down following a May outing where he was lit up badly. He has been pitching well in the minors and the Indians are giving him another go.

The under scared me a bit here, because of the question mark surrounding McAllister and the pitiful White Sox bullpen. No play for me.

Late Moves:

New York Yankees vs Baltimore Orioles (NYY ML) – Win
Key Line Move @ 2:40 pm EST

The Yankees’ starter, Shane Greene, is making his second career start. Greene’s first career start was a very solid one, as the rookie earned his first win in the majors by allowing two runs in six innings at Cleveland on Monday.  The Orioles’ starter, Chris Tillman, allowed two runs on five hits in seven solid innings of an 8-2 win at Washington on Monday, his fifth quality start in the last six outings including seven scoreless frames in a victory at Yankee Stadium on June 22. The 26-year-old, who has a 2.74 ERA in eight home starts this year, is 5-4 with a 5.83 ERA in 11 career appearances versus New York.

This move was based solely on value, most groups believe that Shane Greene is the real deal and at +132 there was just too much value there to pass up.

San Diego Padres vs Los Angeles Dodgers (Under 7.5) – Win
Key Line Move @ 4:50 pm EST

This game features two teams in an offensive slump of late, and two pitchers very capable of pitching gems. The only things that concerned me about this move was Ian Kennedy’s record vs the Dodgers lifetime and how Paul Malholm would handle his first start in a while. Everything else pointed to a sure fire under.

The Padres’ starter, Ian Kennedy, tossed seven innings of one-run ball and struck out nine in Colorado his last time out. Kennedy is 5-5 with a 4.40 ERA in 13 career starts against the Dodgers, including 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA in two starts this season. The Dodgers’ starter, Paul Maholm, owns a 1-6 mark and 4.56 ERA in nine career games (eight starts) against San Diego, including one relief appearance this season, but has looked good since moving to the bullpen. Surely excited to be back in a starting role, a strong performance would not be surprising in this spot.

Chris Sharp is a professional sports handicapper and daily contributor to BettingSports.com. He can be found on Twitter @CSharp_Picks and on his web site IvyLeaguePicks.com.