2007 RECORD: <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com
ffice:smarttags" /><st1:date Month="4" Day="2" Year="2000"><st1:date Month="4" Day="1" Year="2000">4-2-0</st1:date></st1:date> +2.1 Units<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o
></o>
Disappointing loss yesterday. The Giants squandered loads of offensive opportunities with double-plays, deep flyouts and untimely strikeouts. Nevertheless, there are no excuses here. At this crucial juncture of 67% winners (my goal for this season), I am reverting to my secret weapon; the Royals on the road.
<st1:date Month="4" Day="11" Year="2007">4/11/2007</st1:date> <st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City> Royals (G. Meche) @ <st1:City><st1lace>Baltimore</st1lace></st1:City> Orioles (Steve Trachsel)
PLAY ON: KC ROYALS (MoneyLine, +110) To Win 1 Unit <o></o>
<o> </o>
<st1:date Month="4" Day="11" Year="2007"></st1:date><st1:City><st1lace></st1lace></st1:City><st1:City><st1lace></st1lace></st1:City>My play on <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> tonight is based on an emotional/motivational situation that will propel <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> to victory. There is no real way to vindicate this play through analysis of raw talent, but that has always been a lesser contributor to my handicapping philosophy. So, lets begin by analyzing the Royals mindstate coming into this game. <o></o>
<o> </o>
The Royals know they need to bear down tonight against a notorious pitcher in Steve Trachsel. They most recently lost a game to Gustavo Chacin, and consciously know that they have to be on top of their game tonight to achieve victory. On top of this is the fact that Trachsel is a guy they can hit. He allows weak teams to get motivational hits, walks and runs. His stuff is not overpowering, and he is certainly not too tall a task for a <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> team that dropped seven runs on Curt Schilling and the Red Sox on opening day. The Royals have young and hungry players. They want some respect, and are constantly looking to prove to themselves that they can hit up a reputable pitcher like Steve Trachsel. These are the games that bad teams get excited about because they have a tall task in front of them, but have the ability/opportunity to get it done. This is the perfect mindstate for a young team to perform at optimum level.<o></o>
<o> </o>
For the Orioles, the Royals represent nothing. They face an overpaid, scrub-esque pitcher in Gil Meche that they could give two shits about. While every win is important to a team like <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Baltimore</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>, a win tonight over the Royals doesn’t prove anything. Imagine you’re a baseball player with 162 games ahead of you—are you going to be pumped up for every single game? The obvious answer is no. You know you have the ability to beat this team in a series, and you know you have the ability to annihilate Gil Meche, so why play hard? Subconsciously, and maybe even consciously, this is what’s going through the Orioles players minds tonight. They have only scored 2 runs in their last two games, and tonight they will come in thinking they’re going to pump up their Batting Averages against this weak team. They’re going to swing at pitches out of the zone, they’re going to lack focus and discipline, and before they know it, the game will be over. This is the very reason why teams like the Yankees EVER lose to a lowly team like the royals. It comes down to a complete lack of focus and interest. <o></o>
<o> </o>
So, now that we’ve established a very advantageous emotional/motivational edge for <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>, it comes down to an even-enough talent disparity for the Royals to pull the game out. <o></o>
<o> </o>
Gil Meche just got a huge contract. Will he live up to it? Probably not, but that doesn’t mean the Royals higher-ups didn’t see something promising enough to offer him $55 million dollars. Meche has the ability to throw shutout baseball, or get blown out. With him, there’s really never been an inbetween. Off the bat, one promising feature for Meche this season has been his ability to limit his walks. Meche has only walked 3 batters in 18 innings against formidable opponents in <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Detroit</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> and <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Boston</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>. While he did get up in <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Detroit</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>, he knows he will have to pitch well tonight in order to compete with Steve Trachsel. Aside from his sizable contract is the line on this game. A meager +110 line hints towards a significant respect for Meches talent by the Vegas oddsmakers. They see something in Meche that has prompted them to keep a terrible Royals road team at only +110. In fact, the line has moved backwards from +115 to +110, which in many cases indicates smart money being bet early on <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>. Vegas oddsmakers and KC Royals talent scouts have a lot more knowledge than I do, so I’m willing to hedge that Meche will pitch the way he did against Boston facing a much less talented team in Baltimore tonight. <o></o>
<o> </o>
The Royals have been hot their last two games, recording twenty hits and ten runs in their last two road games. They have a number of talented prospects in Alex Gordon and Esteban German, as well as powerful veterans like Mike Sweeney and Reggie Sanders. I am, by no means, touting this lineup to be particularly impressive, but they are not incompetent, especially against Trachsel.<o></o>
<o> </o>
All in all, there is nothing from a talent-standpoint that would solely dictate a play on <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>. The winning ticket lies in the emotional advantage for KC, and it will be evident in tonights result.<o></o>
<o></o>
Good Luck...<o></o>
<o></o>
Chase<o></o>
ffice:smarttags" /><st1:date Month="4" Day="2" Year="2000"><st1:date Month="4" Day="1" Year="2000">4-2-0</st1:date></st1:date> +2.1 Units<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>Disappointing loss yesterday. The Giants squandered loads of offensive opportunities with double-plays, deep flyouts and untimely strikeouts. Nevertheless, there are no excuses here. At this crucial juncture of 67% winners (my goal for this season), I am reverting to my secret weapon; the Royals on the road.
<st1:date Month="4" Day="11" Year="2007">4/11/2007</st1:date> <st1:City><st1
lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City> Royals (G. Meche) @ <st1:City><st1lace>Baltimore</st1lace></st1:City> Orioles (Steve Trachsel) PLAY ON: KC ROYALS (MoneyLine, +110) To Win 1 Unit <o
></o><o
> </o><st1:date Month="4" Day="11" Year="2007"></st1:date><st1:City><st1
lace></st1lace></st1:City><st1:City><st1lace></st1lace></st1:City>My play on <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> tonight is based on an emotional/motivational situation that will propel <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> to victory. There is no real way to vindicate this play through analysis of raw talent, but that has always been a lesser contributor to my handicapping philosophy. So, lets begin by analyzing the Royals mindstate coming into this game. <o></o><o
> </o>The Royals know they need to bear down tonight against a notorious pitcher in Steve Trachsel. They most recently lost a game to Gustavo Chacin, and consciously know that they have to be on top of their game tonight to achieve victory. On top of this is the fact that Trachsel is a guy they can hit. He allows weak teams to get motivational hits, walks and runs. His stuff is not overpowering, and he is certainly not too tall a task for a <st1:City><st1
lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> team that dropped seven runs on Curt Schilling and the Red Sox on opening day. The Royals have young and hungry players. They want some respect, and are constantly looking to prove to themselves that they can hit up a reputable pitcher like Steve Trachsel. These are the games that bad teams get excited about because they have a tall task in front of them, but have the ability/opportunity to get it done. This is the perfect mindstate for a young team to perform at optimum level.<o></o><o
> </o>For the Orioles, the Royals represent nothing. They face an overpaid, scrub-esque pitcher in Gil Meche that they could give two shits about. While every win is important to a team like <st1:City><st1
lace><st1:City><st1lace>Baltimore</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>, a win tonight over the Royals doesn’t prove anything. Imagine you’re a baseball player with 162 games ahead of you—are you going to be pumped up for every single game? The obvious answer is no. You know you have the ability to beat this team in a series, and you know you have the ability to annihilate Gil Meche, so why play hard? Subconsciously, and maybe even consciously, this is what’s going through the Orioles players minds tonight. They have only scored 2 runs in their last two games, and tonight they will come in thinking they’re going to pump up their Batting Averages against this weak team. They’re going to swing at pitches out of the zone, they’re going to lack focus and discipline, and before they know it, the game will be over. This is the very reason why teams like the Yankees EVER lose to a lowly team like the royals. It comes down to a complete lack of focus and interest. <o></o><o
> </o>So, now that we’ve established a very advantageous emotional/motivational edge for <st1:City><st1
lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>, it comes down to an even-enough talent disparity for the Royals to pull the game out. <o></o><o
> </o>Gil Meche just got a huge contract. Will he live up to it? Probably not, but that doesn’t mean the Royals higher-ups didn’t see something promising enough to offer him $55 million dollars. Meche has the ability to throw shutout baseball, or get blown out. With him, there’s really never been an inbetween. Off the bat, one promising feature for Meche this season has been his ability to limit his walks. Meche has only walked 3 batters in 18 innings against formidable opponents in <st1:City><st1
lace><st1:City><st1lace>Detroit</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City> and <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Boston</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>. While he did get up in <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Detroit</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>, he knows he will have to pitch well tonight in order to compete with Steve Trachsel. Aside from his sizable contract is the line on this game. A meager +110 line hints towards a significant respect for Meches talent by the Vegas oddsmakers. They see something in Meche that has prompted them to keep a terrible Royals road team at only +110. In fact, the line has moved backwards from +115 to +110, which in many cases indicates smart money being bet early on <st1:City><st1lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>. Vegas oddsmakers and KC Royals talent scouts have a lot more knowledge than I do, so I’m willing to hedge that Meche will pitch the way he did against Boston facing a much less talented team in Baltimore tonight. <o></o><o
> </o>The Royals have been hot their last two games, recording twenty hits and ten runs in their last two road games. They have a number of talented prospects in Alex Gordon and Esteban German, as well as powerful veterans like Mike Sweeney and Reggie Sanders. I am, by no means, touting this lineup to be particularly impressive, but they are not incompetent, especially against Trachsel.<o
></o><o
> </o>All in all, there is nothing from a talent-standpoint that would solely dictate a play on <st1:City><st1
lace><st1:City><st1lace>Kansas City</st1lace></st1:City></st1lace></st1:City>. The winning ticket lies in the emotional advantage for KC, and it will be evident in tonights result.<o></o><o
></o>Good Luck...<o
></o><o
></o>Chase<o
></o>
