04/18 7:05 PM  MLB   (917) TORONTO BLUE JAYS VS (918) CLEVELAND INDIANS
Take: over the total.
Reason: Your free pick for Friday, April 18th, 2014, comes in baseball as the Toronto Blue Jays and the Indians meet in Cleveland. Cleveland is a small park, great for offenses, and Toronto comes to town with an offense ranked 13th in runs scored, 14th in slugging. The problem here for the defense is starter Drew Hutchison, who has walked 8 in 14+ innings while allowing 13 hits, poor ratios. Cleveland came into this series with a losing record and the over is 18-8 in Blue Jays last 26 vs. a team with a losing record and 23-9 over on the road against a team with a losing record. Cleveland's offense is good, loaded with veteran hitters who put the ball in play, 13th in baseball in runs scored, 9th in on base percentage. The over is 16-4-2 in the Indians last 22 vs. the American League Central. Starter Justin Masterson (5.87 ERA) has not been on his game, allowing 26 base runners in 15 innings. Masterson had a second consecutive rocky outing Saturday, allowing six runs (five earned) on seven hits and five walks against the White Sox. The over is 6-0 in the Indians last 6 games vs. a right-handed starter and the team is on an 8-3 run over the total. Play Toronto/Cleveland Over the total.     

04/18 7:05 PM EST  MLB   (903) ST. LOUIS CARDINALS VS (904) WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Take: (903) NL Mound Mismatch Game of the Year: Cardinals.
The defending NL champion Cardinals are 21-8 in their last 29 vs. the National League East. Washington has home field but a struggling offense dealing with injuries. Starter Gio Gonzalez is off a terrible game, getting roughed up Sunday for six runs on nine hits (including home runs by Justin Upton and Freddie Freeman) and four walks over six innings. The Nationals are 2-5 in Gonzalez's last 7 starts vs. a team with a winning record. It won't get any easier here against a St. Louis lineup that is solid and patient. Another problem for Washington is defense, leading the majors in errors. St. Louis has ace Michael Wacha (2-0, 1.89 ERA) on the hill, with 18 Ks in 19 innings and 3 outstanding starts. The Cardinals are 7-2 in Wacha's last nine starts, 6-1 in his starts against a team with a winning record. The Cardinals are also 7-0 in the last seven meetings coming into this series, plus 4-0 in the last 4 meetings in Washington. Play the St. Luois Cardinals!      

04/18 7:05 PM EST  MLB   (915) LOS ANGELES ANGELS VS (916) DETROIT TIGERS
Take: (916) DETROIT TIGERS
Reason: Inner Circle Situational Slam: Tigers.
A pair of aces meet, in name anyway, but this is a long road trip for the sloppy Angels, 3,000 miles. The Angels are 3-9 in their last 12 vs. a team with a winning record. LA still has trouble defensively in the field with errors and lack of range. 31-year old Jered Weaver is not throwing like an ace, with an 0-2 record and a 5.79 ERA. He's now given up five home runs in his last two outings and is the owner of a 5.79 ERA this season. There are still plenty of games to play, but early returns seem to indicate that Weaver won't be able to get by with an average fastball velocity, which had not broken 86 mph this season coming into Saturday's start (85.9). The Tigers are 57-27 in their last 84 home games vs. a right-handed starter. Lefty Drew Smyly is throwing great, 6 innings with no runs allowed, 1 walk and 6 Ks. Last year he was 3-0 at home allowing opponents to hit .211. The Tigers are 45-20 in their last 65 home games vs. a team with a losing record. Play the Tigers.      

04/18 10:10 PM EST  MLB   (911) SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS VS (912) SAN DIEGO PADRES
Take: (911) SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
Reason: NL West rivalry game and this is just the kind of park and opponent Matt Cain can use to get his first win. The team is 0-3 in his three starts, but he's off a dominant game against the rival Rockies, allowing 4 hits and 1 run in 7 innings. He lost 1-0. Cain is 18-10 on the road the last three years and faces the worst offense in baseball here. He pitched great against the Padres last season and the last three years they've hit .198 off him. The Giants are 10-3 against a right-handed starter and face 26-year old San Diego righty Tyson Ross, who is still erratic, with the team 1-2 his three starts. He has walked 10 batters in 17 innings along with 16 hits. The Padres are 2-6 in Ross' last 8 home starts. The Giants are 4-0 in Cains last 4 starts vs. the Padres, so grab the visitors. Play the SF Giants.      

04/18 7:05 PM  MLB   (905) MILWAUKEE BREWERS VS (906) PITTSBURGH PIRATES
Take: (905) MLB Division Dominator Game of the Week: Brewers.
First place Milwaukee has a powerhouse offense and has been sizzling on the road. The Brewers are 10-1 in their last 11 road games, plus 11-3 against a right-handed starter. Veteran Kyle Lohse (3.05 ERA, 2-1) continues to pound the strike zone, walking 7 while striking out 21 in 20+ innings. Lohse cashed in a solid outing Sunday, allowing just four hits and one run with nine strikeouts over 8.2 innings against the light hitting Pittsburgh team. The Brewers are 11-5 in Lohse's last 16 starts. While Milwaukee is rolling, Pittsburgh is 17th in runs scored, 22nd in on base percentage and bast .231 as a team (26th), a major problem all last year. Charlie Morton has a weak defense behind him and was wild the last start. Morton's command was a bit off Sunday, as he threw just 61 of 95 pitches for strikes while issuing four walks. He didn't catch any breaks from his defense either though, as a throwing error by Tony Sanchez allowed two runs to cross in the bottom of the sixth. The Pirates are 0-6 in Morton's last 6 home starts vs. a team with a winning record. Pittsburgh ranks 18th in errors made and the Brewers are 67-29 in the last 96 meetings. Play Milwaukee!      

4/18 7:10 PM EST  MLB   (919) NEW YORK YANKEES VS (920) TAMPA BAY RAYS
Take: (919) NEW YORK YANKEES
Reason: The NY Yankees offense is better than a year ago, 4th in batting average, and 7th in slugging and on base percentage. Hiroki Kuroda (2-1, 3.86 ERA) has picked up right where he left off last year, throwing well, winning 2 in a row. Kuroda gave up four runs on six hits and three walks, while striking out five over 6.1 innings, in Saturday's 7-4 win over the Red Sox. Tampa Bay is not hitting, 26th in runs scored, 29th in batting average and 22nd in OBP. Lefty Erik Bedard has replaced Matt Moore in the rotation and goes here, off a 4-12 season with a 4.59 ERA. Play the NY Yankees.