Ben Burns Available Picks
May, 13 2008 7:10pm EST
MONEYLINE: Cincinnati Reds -149
WIN for +2.01 unit(s)
Florida Marlins at Cincinnati Reds
I'm laying the price with CINCINNATI. The Marlins have gotten off to a great start to the season. They lost yesterday though and I expect them to start to come back to earth, beginning with another loss this evening. Both starters are 5-1 on the season. However, while Hendrickson has a respectable 3.56 ERA, Volquez has a miniscule 1.06 ERA. He's been particularly dominant at home, going 3-0 with a 0.94 ERA. Note that the Reds won those games by a combined score of 25-3. In his last start, he blanked the Cubs through seven inninngs, recording 10 K's along the way. He leads the National League in ERA and he's second in strikeouts.
The boxscore will show that Hendrickson allowed just one run in his last game. However, a closer look reveals that he required 109 pitches to get through only 4 1/3 innings. He gave up seven hits and two walks, striking out one, but didn't factor in the decision. The game took 3 hours, 19 minutes, in large part because Hendrickson struggled. Afterwards he was quoted as saying: "I apologize to everybody for the pace of play. That was a long game. I wasn't trying to make it long. I've never really had an outing like that. Nothing was working. I was trying anything and everything, and it was a struggle..."
While Volquez will have the advantage of starting against the Marlins for the first time, Hendrickson has started against the Reds four times in the past. Hendrickson allowed a minimum of four runs in each of those starts, recording an ugly 8.83 ERA and a terrible 2.072 WHIP in those games. Hendrickson's team lost his two starts at Cincinnati by scores of 4-0 and 9-7 and he allowed 10 earned runs in 8 2/3 innings. With yesterday's win, the Reds are now a perfect 5-0 the last five home games in this series. Behind another strong start from Volquez, look for them to continue that recent homefield dominance this evening. *Game of the Month
Ben Burns Past Picks
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Boston Red Sox @ Tampa Bay Rays Tuesday July 1, 2008 7:10 pm
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Toronto Blue Jays @ Seattle Mariners Monday June 30, 2008 10:10 pm
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San Diego Padres @ Colorado Rockies Monday June 30, 2008 9:05 pm
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