"top_dollar" Jacob Jones's Spot

SPORTS ADVISORS

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Colorado (15-25) at Arizona (25-15)

The Rockies, who have struggled out of the gate after advancing to their first World Series last fall, trot out their one bright spot this season when right-hander Aaron Cook (6-1, 2.26 ERA) faces the Diamondbacks and their unbeaten ace Brandon Webb (8-0, 2.41) at Chase Field.

Arizona continued its dominance of the Rockies on Wednesday, holding on for a 4-3 victory after taking Monday’s opener 8-4. The DBacks are now 7-1 against Colorado this season, which is in sharp contrast to last season, when the Rockies won 10 of the final 12 series meetings, including a four-game sweep in the National League Championship Series.

The DBacks are on runs of 27-11 at home, 19-5 against the N.L. West and 7-2 on Thursdays.

The Rockies have now dropped four in a row overall and nine of their last 13. They’re in the midst of further slumps of 6-17 overall, 2-10 on the highway and 3-11 against the N.L. West, though they are 7-2 in their last nine games on Thursday.

Cook has reeled off six straight wins for the struggling Rockies, posting a 1.90 ERA during this stretch while going at least seven innings in five of those outings. He allowed one run on three hits in seven innings in Friday’s 4-2 victory at San Diego, moving to 4-1 with a 2.45 ERA on the highway this season.

Cook is 5-3 with a mediocre 5.09 ERA in 16 appearances (14 starts) against Arizona, but he has Colorado’s lone win over the DBacks this season, allowing three runs on eight hits in eight innings of a 13-5 road rout on April 13.

Webb kept his perfect record intact with last Thursday’s complete-game effort against Philadelphia, as he allowed three runs on six hits with no walks and four strikeouts in an 8-3 victory. Webb is 4-0 at home this year, but his ERA is a bit higher at 3.41. He is 10-7 with 3.69 ERA in 23 starts against the Rocks (2-0, 1.80 ERA this year), most recently allowing two runs on four hits in eight innings of an 8-2 Arizona home rout on April 11.

For Colorado, the under is on streaks of 6-2 overall, 8-1 on the road, 5-1 on Thursday and 5-1 against the N.L. West. Conversely, the trends all lean toward the “over� for Arizona, including 4-2 in the last six overall, 12-5-1 in the last 18 against the N.L. West and 5-3-2 in the last 10 at home. Finally, the total had gone high in four straight meetings between these clubs – all in Arizona, and all double-digit contests – before last night’s game stayed low.

ATS ADVANTAGE: ARIZONA and OVER

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Chicago (19-20) at Los Angeles (24-18)

The White Sox will have right-hander Javier Vazquez (4-3, 3.63 ERA) toeing the slab at Angel Stadium against fellow righty Jon Garland (4-3, 4.30) as these teams cap a four-game series.

Los Angeles outslugged Chicago for a 10-7 victory in Monday’s opener, then won a pitching duel with two runs in the eighth inning of a 2-0 victory Tuesday. On Wednesday night, though, the White Sox broke through with a 6-1 victory to halt a four-game slide. The White Sox still just 5-10 in their last 15 games.

This is the first series this season between these two teams. Chicago took last year’s season battle 5-4, including winning two of three games played at Los Angeles last May. The White Sox are now 11-4 in the last 15 clashes in Anaheim.

Vazquez, who will make his ninth start of the year, allowed four runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings Saturday as Chicago took an 8-4 victory at Seattle. That followed back-to-back one-run efforts for Vazquez, who yielded four hits in eight innings in a suspended game against Baltimore, then scattered eight hits in 7 2/3 innings but got no offensive support in a 1-0 loss at Toronto.

Vazquez, who is 2-2 with a 4.01 ERA on the road this season, is 0-1 with a 2.95 ERA in three career starts against Los Angeles, but he hasn’t pitched against the Angels since 2004 when he was with the Yankees.

Garland matched his longest outing of the year with a sterling start Friday at Tampa Bay, allowing no runs on four hits in eight innings, but neither his bullpen nor his offense could pick him up in a 2-0 loss as Rays rookie Evan Longoria belted a two-run homer off Justin Speier in the bottom of the ninth. Garland also went eight innings in the previous start, giving up one run on three hits in a 3-1 home win over Baltimore.

Garland, who is 2-2 with a bloated 6.04 ERA at home this year, spent his first eight years in the majors with the White Sox before being traded to the Angels this past offseason.

Chicago is mired in slumps of 3-9 overall on the road, 11-25 on the road against right-handed starters, 3-6 in roadies against winning teams, 6-16 against the American League West and 3-8 in Vazquez’s last 11 road starts against winning teams. However, Chicago is 4-1 in its last five on Thursdays, 6-1 in Vazquez’s last seven outings on four days’ rest, 9-3 in Vazquez’s last 12 starts overall.

The Angels are on positive runs of 4-1 at Anaheim Stadium, 5-2 against the A.L. Central, 4-1 on Thursday, 4-2 against losing teams and 62-30 in their last 92 home games against right-handed starters.

The over is 6-1 in Vazquez’s last seven starts overall, 8-0 in his last eight when pitching on four days’ rest and 5-1 in his last six on the road. Conversely, the under is 4-1 in Garland’s last five outings.

For Chicago, the under is on streaks of 12-4 overall, 11-3 on the road and 10-4 against the A.L. West. Meanwhile, L.A. carries under trends of 10-4-1 overall, 8-2-1 against the A.L. Central and 7-1-1 against losing teams. Finally, the under is 12-4 in the last 16 Angels-White Sox clashes, including 7-2 in the last nine in Anaheim.

ATS ADVANTAGE: LOS ANGELES and UNDER

NBA PLAYOFFS

WESTERN CONFERENCE

(2) New Orleans (7-3, 6-4 ATS) at (3) San Antonio (6-4, 4-5-1 ATS)

The defending NBA champion Spurs, who find themselves at elimination’s doorstep after another blowout road loss in Game 5, hope to even things up again at the AT&T Center against the Hornets, who can claim a spot in the Western Conference finals with an upset victory tonight.

On Tuesday night, New Orleans trailed by three at halftime, then outscored San Antonio 28-11 in the third quarter and coasted to a 101-79 victory as a 4½-point home chalk. David West went off for 38 points and 14 rebounds for the Hornets, who bounced back from double-digit losses in Games 3 and 4 in San Antonio. New Orleans is just 1-3 SU and ATS on the highway in the playoffs, with the winner cashing in each contest.

San Antonio, is now just 2-4-1 ATS in its last seven games dating to the first-round series win over Phoenix. However, the Spurs are 5-0 SU (3-1-1 ATS) at home in the playoffs.

New Orleans leads the season series with San Antonio 5-4 SU and ATS, and although the visitor claimed the first two battles in the regular season, the home team is now on a 7-0 SU and ATS run. Also, eight of the nine meetings this season have been double-digit blowouts, with the average margin of victory this season being 17.7 points per game.

In addition, in this rivalry, the straight-up winner has taken the cash in all nine clashes this season and is 12-2 ATS in the last 14 head-to-head contests. Finally, the favorite is 12-4 ATS in the last 16 meetings, including 5-0 ATS in this playoff series.

The Hornets are on ATS streaks of 44-21-1 overall, 4-1 on one day of rest, 13-6 against the Western Conference and 23-11 after a double-digit victory. On the negative side, though, New Orleans suffered double-digit losses on the road in Games 3 and 4 of this series and is 1-4 ATS in its last five on the highway and a lowly 1-10 ATS in its last 11 Thursday contests.

The Spurs have little to brag about at the betting window, as they are mired in ATS funks of 7-15-1 against Southwest Division rivals, 3-7 on Thursday, 3-8-1 after a SU loss and 3-9-1 after allowing more than 100 points. But San Antonio is 4-1-1 ATS in its last six at home, winning by 11 and 20 points respectively in Games 3 and 4 of this playoff series.

The over was 2-0-1 in the first three games of this series, but the last two contests have stayed low, bucking a bevy of “over� trends for both teams. The over for New Orleans is still on streaks of 8-2-1 in conference semifinal games, 6-1 on Thursday, 4-1 after scoring 100 or more points, 6-2 when catching five to 10½ points on the road and 8-3 as a road ‘dog of any price. The under, though, is 6-1 in the Hornets’ last seven games played on one day of rest and 5-1-1 in their last seven as a playoff underdog.

For San Antonio, the over is on sprees of 8-3-1 overall, 5-1 as a chalk, 4-1 as a home chalk, 5-1 after a non-cover, 6-2 when laying five to 10½ points at home, 7-2 at home against teams with a winning road record and 13-6-1 in conference semifinal contests. On the flip side, the under is 17-8-1 in the Spurs’ last 26 against the Southwest Division and 38-18 in their last 56 after a SU loss.

Finally, the over is 8-3 in the last 11 head-to-head meetings in San Antonio.

ATS ADVANTAGE: SAN ANTONIO and OVER