I don't post much here... mostly lurk. But tonight there's a play I want to recommend to anyone willing to give a "newbie" a chance (albeit I've been gambling for years and follow baseball religiously). It is:
Dodgers/Marlins over 8.5
Josh Johnson is starting for the Marlins after god knows how long. He's coming off 2 or 3 major arm injuries and has been rehabbing in the minors and finally made it back up. He will show serious mound rust... clocking innings in the minors just does not prepare you for major league hitters, especially when he will probably have confidence issues from being out for so long. His stuff used to be decent, but there's no way he'll ever be the pitcher he once was circa '05-'06 ish when he was healthy and showed signs of promise. I fully expect him to have a rough outing tonight. Obviously the Dodgers' bats have been a disappointment this season but this is a great spot for them... a home game against a pitcher just coming back from a major arm injury. Keep in mind Johnson made it back briefly to the majors last year and logged 4 starts while getting hit heavily to the tune of 26 hits allowed and 17 runs (14 ER) in only 15.2 innings.
On the flip side of things... Chan Ho Park is on the hill for the Dodgers and he is maybe the most likely starting pitcher in the NL to come spiraling back to earth any second. So far this year he has posted respectable, if not impressive numbers. A 2.36 ERA and 1.30 is not shabby at all, but again, this is Chan Ho Park we're talking about. This is the same guy who from 2002 to 2005 posted an ERA well above 5.00. In 2006, he had a "bounce back year" (sarcasm) by posting a 4.81 ERA in 21 starts with the Padres. This was at Petco, mind you. The Marlins have a powerful lineup that can go deep at will, and I expect the "real" Chan Ho Park to show up tonight and get rocked by the savvy Marlins lineup.
Take the over 8.5 tonight with confidence.
Dodgers/Marlins over 8.5
Josh Johnson is starting for the Marlins after god knows how long. He's coming off 2 or 3 major arm injuries and has been rehabbing in the minors and finally made it back up. He will show serious mound rust... clocking innings in the minors just does not prepare you for major league hitters, especially when he will probably have confidence issues from being out for so long. His stuff used to be decent, but there's no way he'll ever be the pitcher he once was circa '05-'06 ish when he was healthy and showed signs of promise. I fully expect him to have a rough outing tonight. Obviously the Dodgers' bats have been a disappointment this season but this is a great spot for them... a home game against a pitcher just coming back from a major arm injury. Keep in mind Johnson made it back briefly to the majors last year and logged 4 starts while getting hit heavily to the tune of 26 hits allowed and 17 runs (14 ER) in only 15.2 innings.
On the flip side of things... Chan Ho Park is on the hill for the Dodgers and he is maybe the most likely starting pitcher in the NL to come spiraling back to earth any second. So far this year he has posted respectable, if not impressive numbers. A 2.36 ERA and 1.30 is not shabby at all, but again, this is Chan Ho Park we're talking about. This is the same guy who from 2002 to 2005 posted an ERA well above 5.00. In 2006, he had a "bounce back year" (sarcasm) by posting a 4.81 ERA in 21 starts with the Padres. This was at Petco, mind you. The Marlins have a powerful lineup that can go deep at will, and I expect the "real" Chan Ho Park to show up tonight and get rocked by the savvy Marlins lineup.
Take the over 8.5 tonight with confidence.
