If there is a silver lining in this it’s that the Marlins get to play the Nationals over the next 3 games who are nearing their 100th loss of the season.  On September 9th, Florida (81-75) was 10 games out of the wild card.  The Marlins then won 9 straight to pull within 4.5 games of the Phillies. The Marlins went to Philadelphia and lost 2 of 3…not good.  Philadelphia’s wins vaulted them ahead of New York in the NL East and brought the Brewers and the Astros further into the chase.

The Marlins start a 3-game series against the league-worst Nationals (58-98) tonight before heading to take on the Mets for their final 3 regular-season games at Shea Stadium.  As bad as Washington has been this season, they have been their worst against the Marlins.  They are 2-13 against the Marlins this year and have been outscored 47-21 at Nationals Park. 

Scott Olsen (8-10, 4.20 ERA) will get the start for Florida tonight.  Olsen has won his last 2 starts after going 0-6 with a 5.74 ERA in his last 9 outings.  Olsen is 3-0 with a 3.04 ERA in 4 starts against Washington this season.

Rookie Shairon Martis (0-3, 6.23) will get the start tonight for the Nationals. Martis gave up 6 runs in 3 innings Wednesday losing to the Mets 9-7. 

So who covers the spread in tonight’s game?  It’s real easy to get the answer.  At www.fivestarpick.com you can monitor our daily plays from our homepage and see for yourself if our talent for picking MLB winners exceeds your expectations.  MLB picks are not easy, but FiveStarPick.com’s proprietary sports handicapping software program coupled with two of the top sports handicappers in the business have proven a winning combination at nearly 65% against the spread.  You owe it to yourself to become a member of our family.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com is looking hard at tonight’s matchup between the Houston Astros and the Florida Marlins.  Hurricane Ike forced the relocation of their last two games from Chicago to Milwaukee, both of which were lacluster to say the least.  Houston got no-hit by Carlos Zambrano in the opener and lost 5-0, then lost 6-1 on Monday.

The Astros hope to right the ship as hurler Roy Oswalt tries to extend his scoreless innings streak tonight at Dolphin Stadium.  The Astros (80-69) have won 34 of their last 46 games, including 14 of 15 as of last weekend.

Roy Oswalt (15-9, 3.54 ERA) will take the mound tonight for the Stros. The right-hander, who has lasted at least 8 innings in 5 of his last 6 starts, hasn’t allowed a run in 32.33 innings.  Oswalt is 5-3 with a 2.85 ERA in 10 career starts against the Marlins.

The Marlins (77-72) have been on a roller coaster ride most of the second half of the season, but they are still only 5.5 games back in the wild-card race.  Chris Volstad (4-3, 3.31 ERA) will get the start for the Marlins.  In his last outing, the rookie allowed 1 run in 3 innings for a 10-8 win over Philadelphia.  He was hit in the shoulder with a ground ball up the middle and left the game. He has never faced Houston.

So who covers the spread in tonight’s game?  It’s real easy to get the answer.  At www.fivestarpick.com you can monitor our daily plays from our homepage and see for yourself if our talent for picking MLB winners exceeds your expectations.  MLB picks are not easy, but FiveStarPick.com’s proprietary sports handicapping software program coupled with two of the top sports handicappers in the business have proven a winning combination at nearly 65% against the spread.  You owe it to yourself to become a member of our family.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com is hot on another run total as we preview tonight’s matchup between the streaking Toronto Blue Jays and the weary Chicago White Sox.  Chicago will face Toronto hurler Roy Halladay (18-5, 2.69 ERA) as they continue a 4-game series tonight at 8:10PM.  Halladay, a right-hander, has a 2.25 ERA in his last five starts. He pitched 7 innings against Tampa Bay last Friday, allowing only 3 runs.

The White Sox (80-64) lead in the AL Central was cut to one game over Minnesota when they were swept in Tuesday’s double header against the Blue Jays (78-66).  The 2 wins capped off 10 straight for Toronto which equals an all-time high and they are now only 7 games behind the Red Sox for a spot as the AL wild card. The Blue Jays haven’t lost a game against the White Sox this season and have outscored them 23-8.

Chicago has dropped three straight and to add insult to serious injury, they lost of Paul Konerko Tuesday night with a sprained MCL in his right knee.  Konerko’s leg failed when he tried to throw hard toward home plate in the 5th inning.  Konerko is quoted as saying the injury is not serious and feels he should return to play soon.

The White Sox will start Mark Buehrle (12-11, 3.98 ERA) tonight.  Buehrle has won 4 of his last 5 and pitched 6 scoreless innings Friday against the Angels.  He is 9-3 with a 2.85 ERA in 15 home starts.

So does the ‘over’ or the ‘under’ cash in tonight’s game?  It’s real easy to get the answer.  At www.fivestarpick.com you can monitor our daily plays on our homepage and see for yourself if our talent for picking MLB winners exceeds your expectations.  MLB picks are not easy, but FiveStarPick.com’s proprietary sports handicapping software program coupled with two of the top sports handicappers in the business have proven a winning combination at nearly 70% against the spread.  You owe it to yourself to become a member of our family.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com is giving its members two plays on run totals tonight.  Who you like to know who we have?  It is real easy to get the answer. Just click on any of our payment options on the homepage to get started.  You know what?  On second thought…you should actually monitor our daily plays first. Then, once our talent for picking MLB winners exceeds your expectations you can decide if you would like to become a member of our family.  MLB picks are not easy, but when you combine FiveStarPick.com’s proprietary sports handicapping software program with two of the top sports handicappers in the business and a proven winning percentage of nearly 65% against the spread, the decision becomes real easy.  You owe it to yourself to become a member of our family.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com

FiveStarPick.com is hot on another ‘run total’ in today’s matchup between the Chicago White Sox and the Boston Red Sox.  STATS, LLC at ESPN.com is providing today’s preview.

Considering how successful second baseman Dustin Pedroia has been at the plate lately, it’s no surprise the Boston Red Sox continue to roll through opponents.  Pedroia looks to build on his latest offensive outburst on Sunday when the Red Sox — winners of eight of their last 11 — try to complete a three-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox at Fenway Park.  Boston (79-56) has been outstanding in August, and its 18-8 mark is the second-best among AL teams during the month. The club clinched its fourth straight series on Saturday, pounding out 15 hits for the second night in a row in an 8-2 win over Chicago (76-59).

Mark Kotsay had three RBIs, while Jed Lowrie and Jason Bay each drove in two runs, but it was Pedroia that keyed Boston’s offensive attack with his second straight four-hit performance.  Pedroia, who leads the AL with a .327 average, has batted .423 (30-for-71) with five homers, 15 RBIs and 25 runs scored over his last 16 contests.  “You go through times in the year where you’re not very good and then you go through times when you are good,” Pedroia said. “The last couple of days I got on base every time, so it’s just one of those things.”  On Saturday, he batted cleanup for the first time in his professional career as usual No.4 hitter Kevin Youkilis missed the game due to an illness.

Adjusting the order, though, didn’t affect Pedroia’s success versus the White Sox. He has hit .382 (21-for-55) with a homer and nine RBIs in 13 career games against them, though he is just 1-for-5 versus scheduled starter Gavin Floyd.

Meanwhile, Boston — the AL’s wild-card leader — won for the eighth time in 10 games at Fenway Park, and picked up its 11th victory in its last 13 games against Chicago, which dropped its third straight and fell to 2-4 on its nine-game road trip.  “Right now, I think we’re struggling as a club,” manager Ozzie Guillen told the White Sox’s official Web site. “In my mind, we thought we’d be better the last couple of days. We weren’t.”

Still, Guillen’s club maintained its half-game AL Central lead over second-place Minnesota, which also lost Saturday.  Chicago hasn’t lost more than three consecutive games since its season-high seven-game slide from April 28-May 5.

To avoid moving closer to that mark, the White Sox turn to Floyd (14-6, 3.70 ERA), who has gone 4-0 with a 4.22 ERA in his last seven starts.  The right-hander was efficient Tuesday, holding Baltimore to two runs and four hits over eight innings — throwing 98 pitches — of an 8-3 road win. It was his team-leading 14th triumph this year after totaling eight over his first professional four seasons.  Floyd has never pitched in Boston, but beat the Red Sox on Aug. 10 in Chicago despite giving up five runs and seven hits in 5 1-3 innings of a 6-5 win.

He’ll be opposed by knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (8-8, 3.73), who will be making his second start since coming off of the disabled list due to right shoulder tightness.  On Tuesday, the right-hander lasted just five innings, but held the New York Yankees to three runs and eight hits in a 7-3 road victory.

Wakefield hasn’t pitched versus the White Sox yet this season and is 7-10 with a 5.14 ERA in 27 career appearances against them, but he has won his last three versus Chicago.  He tossed seven scoreless innings, fanning six and scattering three hits in a 14-2 rout in Chicago on Aug. 25, 2007.

So does the ‘over’ or the ‘under’ cash in today’s game?  It is real easy to get the answer.  At www.fivestarpick.com you can monitor our daily plays on our homepage and see for yourself if our talent for picking MLB winners exceeds your expectations.  MLB picks are not easy, but FiveStarPick.com’s proprietary sports handicapping software program coupled with two of the top sports handicappers in the business have proven a winning combination at nearly 70% against the spread.  You owe it to yourself to become a member of our family.  Join today and start winning tonight.

Jimmy the Geek – FiveStarPick.com