Baltimore Orioles at Boston Red Sox

Written April 18, 2009 by Jordan Haimowitz

red-sox-orioles The Baltimore Orioles have started the year hitting very well. They are 6-4 and have showed signs of great play to give O’s fans hope for the future. Tonight will not be their night to phrase it in simplest terms. The pitching match up is as one sided in Boston’s favor as humanly possible and after blowing 7-0 lead yesterday against the Red Sox they will face a team that I believe has found its stride. In terms of praise, Nick Markakis has emerged as one of the better players in all of baseball while second baseman Brian Roberts continues to fly under the radar as one of the most underrated players at his position. Young stud Adam Jones looks like a future star and Aubrey Huff has continued his solid play. This team should be competitive this year and will not be doormat like usual. The starter tonight for Baltimore is 32 year old Adam Eaton. I spell Adam Eaton this way, D-I-S-S-A-S-T-E-R. In Eaton’s first start this season he went 4 innings allowing 4 runs on 8 hits. Dating back to last season, Eaton hasn’t pitched into the fifth inning since July 2nd. Markakis and Roberts will need to perform impressively as they face Bostons bad boy, the ace of the staff and a guy poised for a very big game. Bet this game at Sportsbook.com, which has dime lines all baseball season long!

The Red Sox are fresh off their 10-8 win last night in a game that they came back from seven runs down. Their starter Brad penny was a mess but the bats picked up the slack. The heart, grit and determination this team showed is exactly what has led them to two championships in the past five seasons. Jason Bay has been superb, JD Drew continues to be overlooked as he always seems to get the big hit in a big spot. Varitek was a key component last night and we even saw a Mike Lowell citing as a contributor. David “Big Papi” Ortiz continues to be a non factor and Pedroia needs to get going. However, the bullpen was solid overall and this win could be what catapults The Nation to one of their long winning streaks. As they look to make it three games in a row, they send Josh Beckett to the mound who in his last start had the altercation with Bobby Abreu of the LA Angels. This year he is 1-1 in his first two starts with a 3.46 ERA. Last year he had a down year going 12-10 with an ERA of 4.03. He did not pitch well against the Orioles last season going 0-1 in three starts with a 5.60 ERA. Not relevant today. The Sox have their focus back on team baseball. They started their season a bit late but seem to be in a nice groove as of now. You can count of Manager Terry Francona reminding Beckett about his lousy stat line against Baltimore last year. Watch out birds, Boston has awoken. Adam Eaton vs Josh Beckett, is merely comical. This game is in Fenway as Yawkey Way will be buzzing all afternoon. Red Sox all night long fellas.

Haimo’s Hot Notes: Take a look at these trends. Baltimore is 3-13 in their last 16 road games. The Orioles are 2-7 in their last nine Saturday games. The Red Sox are 66-31 in their last 97 home games. Boston is 24-6 in their last 30 meetings against Baltimore when playing at Fenway Park. Last but not least, The Red Sox are 45-15 against The O’s in their last 60 meetings overall. Any questions?

Jordan’s Pick: Boston Red Sox -1.5 runs (-130) BEST BET

Another night, another big hit as the UNDER 8 runs in the Astros/Reds game went just as predicted. Cueto pitched well and Oswalt was great, the bullpens came to play overall as the bats did not show for either team. We are officially on a hot streak and now is no time to slow down. I’m ready for yet another big day, who’s with me?