I would never recommend betting on baseball games. Unlike, say, football and basketball, the difference in winning percentage between the bests and worst teams is relatively small. A division winner may win just over 60% of it its game, while a last-place team might win a bit less than 40%.
photo credit: Rich Anderson
Josh Hamilton now has 17 homers.
That said, this week’s interleague matchup between Texas and Pittsburgh looks very likely to be lopsided. Basically, it’s a case of an apparently irresistible force meeting a quite movable object.
Texas has the best winning streak in the majors right now. Despite playing their last eight games on the road, they have won all of them. The combined score of those games was 45-22. Colby Lewis is pitching particularly well, but the whole staff has been solid. Scott Feldman has a pair of wins, as does rookie Alexi Ogando. Flamethrowing youngster Neftali Feliz saved three games in a row at one point. Offensively, Josh Hamilton is on fire.
Meanwhile, consider the Pirates. Although they have actually won two in a row, that was against the mediocre Indians. And that came on the heels of a ghastly 12-game losing streak. Pitching has been a real problem for the Bucs. Their team ERA is 5.16. Only Paul Maholm has been respectable among their starters; he has a 3.77 ERA along with a 4-5 record.
Throw in the fact that Texas is returning to their hitter-friendly home stadium, and I think you have all the ingredients for a few blowouts over the next few nights.
As of this writing, the Rangers are up 5-3 in the eighth inning, thanks to three home runs—including Hamilton’s 17th.. Not quite a blowout, but it could be one step toward a sweep.
