Arizona Diamondbacks at Florida Marlins Preview & Predictions

Written May 18, 2009 by Jordan Haimowitz

dbacks-marlins-preview-051809 So, maybe there is some life in the snakes after all. We watched Max Scherzer pick apart the Braves lineup Saturday night as I so easily predicted. Justin Upton was a monster from the plate and a speed demon in the field while Stephen Drew and Mark Reynolds have showed some promise over the weekend. Another bright spot for this team is their young rookie center fielder Garrardo Parra who has seem to take that starting spot for good. So the question is will this momentum carry over and lead to a winning streak? Well, when you have one of the better pitchers in baseball on the mound, it certainly helps. Dan Haren this year has been spectacular. His stats are quite comical. A win loss record of 3-4 is what he has to show for his 2.09 ERA with 56 strikeouts through 56 innings. The run support he has gotten, or lack of, has been beyond poor. While I don’t believe Arizona will be making a playoff push anytime soon. I know they are better then the 14-23 record they have accrued so far this season. Last season in two starts against Florida, Haren went 0-1 with a 2.70 ERA. Shocker, he provides a fantastic ERA but no win loss record to show for it. I like the way Upton has been playing while Parra has given them a huge energy boost. Stephen Drew is back healthy and Mark Reynolds still has some pop. The D-Backs have a good chance to win this game tonight. Monday’s baseball lines are now posted and they show the Diamondbacks -130 at the Marlins and a total of 8.5 runs.

With an 18-20 record, the Marlins look to get back on track tonight as they have lost six of their last seven games. The pitching has been putrid while their hitting has been inconsistent. As a team they are hitting a shade under .240. Jorge Cantu has eight homers and 33 RBIs but has really slowed as of late. Dan Uggla has been a bitter disappointment hitting only .187 from the plate. Hanley Ramirez has been their only guy that can be counted on, not like that’s a huge surprise as he is one of baseballs top five players. Hanley has a .354 batting average with six home runs and 20 RBIs. He was hurt for a little bit but has got his swing back in a big way. Jeremy Hermida is another player who has done much less then expected. So while the batters struggle, tonight the Marlins send Ricky Nolasco to the mound who has been unquestionably the biggest bust on this team. A guy that was predicted to be one of the National League’s best pitchers is 2-4 on the year with a 7.78 ERA. If you look at Nolasco’s numbers vs Arizona last year you’ll see a 3-0 record in three games started with a 1.61 ERA. But I urge you not to be fooled. This is not the same pitcher. When you add the fact he is going against a stud in Dan Haren, taking the Fish tonight is a risky move even thought I do expect Nolasco to pitch well.

Haimo’s Hot Notes: Arizona is 8-22 in their last 30 road games. The UNDER is 6-2 in Haren’s last eight starts overall. The Marlins are 1-8 in their last nine games when they are the underdog. In the head to head match ups, Florida is 7-2 in the last nine games while the UNDER is 8-0-2 in the last 10 games. You take a pitcher like Haren and put him on the mound to face a struggling young team it spells for a low scoring night. Nolasco has been pitiful but does have great stuff. This game has 3-2 either way written all over it. An UNDER BEST BET is advised here. I am going heavy on it. A small play on Arizona as well.

Betting Line: Arizona Diamondbacks -130/Florida Marlins +110 & O/U 8.5

Jordan’s Picks: D-Backs -130 & UNDER 8.5 (BEST BET)

Another 2-0 night like only I know how to do. Our BEST BET/UNDERDOG SPECIAL was a 12-0 drubbing as Scherzer looked like Bob Gibson dominating Atlanta all night long. We squeeze by with our small play as the Red Sox -1.5 runs held strong with a 5-3 victory while we also hit the side not game with Baltimore. So we start another week off with a lock game tonight in the Marlins/Dbacks game. It’s summer time folks, that means party time. In order to do that, money will need to be available. That’s why I am here to help. Lets keep this red hot streak fresh.

Documented MLB Record:

53-27 OVERALL

20-11 BEST BET

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