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Sports Interaction betting analyst Frank Doyle makes his picks for the Friday Major League matchups.
Back in April, when bettors were sated with college hoops and thinking about the summer pastime, there were three pitchers to follow: Greinke, Lincecum and Halladay. It's high summer now, and that list is down to one solid gold prospect.
Toronto's Roy Halladay has the best record in the Major Leagues with ten wins, one loss, and an ERA of 2.52. Toronto is struggling a little in an intensely competitive division, but Halladay is the Blue Jays' No 1 guy.
On Friday, Florida visits the Rogers' Center in an interleague game and Ricky Nolasco, 2-6, 8.17 ERA, is the man on the hill for the fish. Halladay's only start against Florida was a loss but that looks likely to even up come Friday. Sports Interaction will be offering him at a short price, but it's still worth taking.
The Mets visit the Bronx for the interleague weekend and they look very much like clubs travelling in different directions. For all the abuse he gets in the fall, Alex Rodriquez proves his worth in summer after summer, and the improvement in the Yankees is clear for all to see since he returned. The Mets are just good enough to break your heart. Just like any year, really.
On Friday, the Mets' John Maine, 5-4, 4.52 ERA, pitches against the Yankees' Joba Chamberlain, 3-1, 3.79 ERA. Sports Interaction will make the Yankees favorites in this, and they'll be worth it.
The most interesting duel of the Friday night slate is in San Francisco, when Oakland's Vin Mazzaro, 2-0, 0.00 ERA, pitches against the Giants' Tim Lincecum, 5-1, 2.96 ERA. Lincecum is a stellar talent with that funky action and Sports Interaction will make the Giants favorites, but I think the A's can do it.
Mazzaro is a rookie and all rookies get shelled at some stage but the Athletics have scored sixteen more runs in the past month than the Giants, and I think that's got to count. I'm going with the kid on this one, Lincecum to suffer his second loss and Roy Halladay to remain the king of hurlers. For this weekend at least.
