MLB Thursday - Andrew Albert on Astros v Mariners, Yankees v Blue Jays, Rockies v Cubs, Nationals v Padres, Verlander, Happ, Corbin

Favorite Pick of the Day:
Astros (-200) over Mariners

Revenge Pick of the Day:
Yankees (-185) over Blue Jays

Are You Sure? Pick of the Day:
Rockies (+165) over Cubs

Pick’em of the Day:
Nationals (-110) over Padres

The Skinny:
Not only would I be taking the Astros because of the Mariners’ fire sale, having Justin Verlander on the mound solidifies that thought. The Astros are 24-5 in Verlander’s last 29 road starts, 5-1 in Verlander’s last six starts after scoring two runs or less in their previous game and 8-0 in Verlander’s last eight starts vs. a team with a losing record. Yeah . . . This isn’t to say there is bad blood between JA Happ and the Blue Jays, but facing a former team can get the juices flowing. Combine that with the fact the Yankees are 5-0 in Happ’s last five road starts and the Blue Jays are 1-8 in their last nine games following a win and you have a nice recipe for a winning ticket. . . . The Cubs at home during the day, in my mind, are usually a lock. There’s no stats behind that, it’s just how my mind works. But today is a different story against the Rockies. The Rockies are 4-0 in their last four when their opponent allows five runs or more in their previous game and 6-1 in their last seven after scoring five runs or more in their previous game, both of which happened in the Cubs’ 9-8 win yesterday. . . . It seems like all the Nationals need to do to end a losing streak before it starts is send Patrick Corbin to the mound. The Nationals are 6-1 in Corbin’s last seven starts when their opponent scores five runs or more in their previous game, which the Padres did in a loss to the Phillies Wednesday afternoon. On the other hand, the Padres are 0-5 in their last five after scoring five runs or more in their previous game.