MLB: Saturday's Play

Play: Toronto/Baltimore over 9 +110 (Dickey vs. Norris)

Time: 4:05 p.m. ET

Reasoning: These teams rank first and fifth, respectively, in home runs. Somehow Nelson Cruz, the major-league home run and RBI leader, has gone 10 games without either. I'm gonna do the Babe Ruth-guarantee-for-the-dying-kid-in-the-hospital-thing here and predict that he socks a homer this afternoon. Cruz will, at the very least, drive in a run. The Orioles also will have Manny Machado (who had three hits last night) in the lineup since his suspension appeal has yet to be heard. On Friday Baltimore left nine on and was 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position. The O's are not the Padres, so I am confident  that they will figure out how to plate some runs. Baltimore will face R.A. Dickey, who against the O's is 2-4 with a 4.66 ERA in 11 career appearances. Dickey has a 1.41 WHIP this season and a 1.89 mark in his last three outings. He also has a road ERA of 5.74 and has given up at least one homer in five straight starts. Bud Norris has been decent for Baltimore this season, but he has a 4.26 ERA in his last three games. And prior to his last rotation turn Norris registered four bad starts out of five. He'll see a Toronto side whose games average nine runs. Neither starter strikes out many guys, thus allowing rallies to continue. Bullpen-wise both squads are in bad shape. Jays relievers have a 4.47 ERA while their Baltimore counterparts have a 3.64 figure. Those numbers are even worse in the home-away splits. The Orioles also score a half-run more per game vs. RH. And games umpired by Mike Estabrook had averaged 9.92 runs.


Record: 104-72-6 (59.1%)
Bankroll: +95.85%