BASEBALL MLB ARTICLES

An epidemic has seemed to be cast over the Los Angeles Dodgers. They're finding ways to lose games left and right which should be won, and as a result, they've dropped back to just 67-52 and suddenly have a real chance of not making the playoffs. The Houston Astros are the antithesis right now of the Dodgers, and they will hope to improve their 65-55 mark on TBS Sunday.... 

A crucial stretch of games that could decide the fate of the defending World Series Champion Giants continues when they visit the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first of a four-game set. The Pirates have made over bettors plenty of money lately with the over 11-3 in their last 14 home games.... 

Just one year after winning 16 games and finishing second in the American League Rookie of the Year voting, Matt Shoemaker has lost his spot in the Los Angeles Angels' rotation. Thursday is the first time there's going to be a gaping hole for Mike Scioscia to fill in the rotation after Shoemaker was optioned, which will make life really difficult on the 60-57 side going into this last clash against the 55-60 Chicago White Sox.... 

The Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs have gone in vastly different directions since splitting two meetings in Detroit in June.The Cubs went 36-23 following that series and own one of the wild card spots in the NL. The Tigers are just 25-32 and have fallen back in the AL.... 

The surging Yankees look to keep hold of the top spot in the AL East when they host the Twins in the last of a three-game set.Following a losing streak that dropped them out of first place in the division, the Yankees won four of five to reclaim the top spot over Toronto.... 

The Tampa Bay Rays continue to hang around in the American League wild card race and can help their chances by handing the AL West-leading Astros back-to-back home defeats for the first time in almost two months when the teams meet Tuesday in the second of a four-game set.... 

Joe Maddon can change his socks again.

Though the always-superstitious Maddon will have to run his socks through the laundry after his 67-49 Chicago Cubs had their nine-game winning streak snapped, there's a great chance the North Siders grab another win on Wednesday against the struggling 56-61 Detroit Tigers.... 

After a first half of the season filled with misery and horrible luck, Jon Lester has been on fire in his last five outings. He'll hope to get the red hot 67-49 Chicago Cubs back in the win column on Wednesday in the last game of a short two-game interleague series against the 56-61 Detroit Tigers.... 

It’s still August but the importance of this series between the Yankees and Blue Jays can’t be denied. The Jays used their second 11-game winning streak to move ahead of the Yankees in the AL East standings with three of those win coming last weekend in New York.... 

The Angels look to improve on their recent road struggles as they continue to battle Houston for the top spot in the AL West. It won’t be easy facing the American League’s best team. The Royals own the best record in the junior circuit and are the most profitable team in the AL thanks to a stellar home record.... 

Kansas City is still the best bet in the American League even though they gave Thursday’s series opener away and lost to the Angels for the first time in eight games. Los Angeles broke its nine-game road losing streak with that win and is staring at another L with Royals new ace Johnny Cueto on the bump.... 

The Washington Nationals look to end a slide that has them free-falling in the NL East standings. Just two weeks ago the Nats had a three-game lead in the division then a stretch of 10 losses in 14 games has them facing their largest deficit in the division.... 

To say that the Kansas City Royals are coasting towards home field advantage in the American League playoffs is an understatement. They're 68-45, and will put their 39-19 home record on the line on Sunday Night Baseball against the Los Angeles Angels.... 

In a potential playoff preview, the Angels and Royals meet in the third game of a four game set on Saturday in Kansas City with the Royals still boasting the league’s best record at 68-45.... 

The Mets are surging and have opened their lead in the NL East to three and a half games over the Nationals with a 62-52 record. Their total moneyline is now up to $975. The Pirates, on the other hand, are seven back in their division, but do have the better overall numbers at 65-46 and a $1,084 return.... 

With their losing streak reaching five games, the New York Yankees have fallen out of first place in the AL East for the first time in six weeks and their bats have gone silent with just six runs scored in the streak. The Indians go for a fifth straight win and can finish their first three-game sweep of the Yankees at home since 1970.... 

The New York Mets might be sporting a 41-18 home record, and they might be 10-games above .500 at 62-52 with a legitimate chance to win the NL East, but they have had a miserable history against the Pittsburgh Pirates, a 65-46 team which figures to put up a great fight in Flushing on Sunday.... 

The Los Angeles Angels know they are going to have to stay on their high horse if they are going to win the AL West and get into the playoffs this year. The team has lost three in a row though, and Sunday's game against the Kansas City Royals is the ninth game in nine days for a team which is just dying for a day off to help right the ship, something that isn't coming until August 24.... 

Entering play on August 2, the Toronto Blue Jays were 53-52 and were six-games behind the New York Yankees in the AL East. Ten days later, they're 62-52 and within a half-game of the 61-50 Bronx Bombers, and they've got a pivotal game at Rogers Centre coming up on Saturday which could put them in true command of this division as we head towards the last month of the campaign.... 

The teams with the two best records in the National League will resume their rivalry when the Pittsburgh Pirates try to trim their deficit in the Central Division against first place St. Louis. Not an easy task considering the Cards also own the best home record in baseball and swept the Pirates when the teams met in Busch Stadium in May.... 

Five games back in the division, the 65-44 Pirates will look to make a run at the division leading 71-40 Cardinals in the middle game of a three game set. To date, each team has been a bettors’ dream with the Cardinals sitting at a total moneyline of $2,302 and the Pirates at $1,284.... 

The Kansas City Royals still have a sizeable lead in the AL Central with a 65-44 record, but recent struggles have cost bettors. Nevertheless, KC is still sitting pretty overall with a total moneyline of $1,959 with their Tuesday opposition—the Detroit Tigers—sitting at -$359 thanks to playing two games under the breakeven point.... 

We’re starting to get down to the nitty gritty of the 2015 baseball season. From a fantasy perspective, we now have a solid idea of which players have lived up to their average draft position – ADP – and which have not.... 

The good news for the 66-44 Kansas City Royals is that their new ace, Johnny Cueto is going to be on the mound on Monday night. The bad news is that they might need him to go the distance to finish off the 54-57 Detroit Tigers.... 

And you thought the NL East was becoming interesting! The NL Central is every bit as exciting now, as the Pittsburgh Pirates have closed to within five games of the St. Louis Cardinals with another shot to cut into that lead on ESPN's Wednesday Night Baseball....