!NAME_COMMA!

After yesterday's 2-3 star-based effort, September run is now 28-12. Two picks tonight.

View past 2005 MLB picks.

Good luck today...

Big line but still good value here as Carlos Zambrano goes for the Cubbies. He's got a 3.18 overall ERA and 2.34 ERA at home this season. In his 13 home starts, he's gone 6-1 and allowed just 64 hits and 24 earned runs in 92.3 innings. He's 5-3 against the Reds with a 2.33 ERA. Eric Milton on the other hand has a 6.63 ERA and 7.14 ERA against the Cubs. The pitching is so important here since both offenses are very cold right now. Road underdogs allowing 5.3 or more runs/game on the season after allowing 3 runs or less 2 straight games are just 30-76 (28%) since 1997. They just can't keep that kind of defense up, especialy with Milton on the mound. One star on Chicago.

Who woke up the Dodgers? They've reeled off wins in five of their last six games. Don't look now but the Blue are making one last ditch effot to catch the Padres, and after last night's SD game, we can see that happening. The Dodgers were embarassed by the Rockies only a few short weeks ago and come in with much more to prove than the Green Rox. The Dodgers really cannot afford any screw ups in this series, and frankly, we expect them to sweep here. They'll need their momentum and motivation tonight with Edwin Jackson on the mound vs. Sun Woo Kim. Kim has pitched very well for Colorado but the Rockies offense, after a bit of a late season burst, has returned to horrible, especially on the road. Colorado has scored just 12 runs in their last six games including zero last night against LA. Not a good sign for the Rockies as they are just 3-17 in road games after 2 or more consecutive unders this season. They are also 10-31 on the road following a loss this year and 0-11 as a road underdog of +100 to +125. The nice little Colorado run has taken at least a break and we expect them to lose again tonight. One star on Los Angeles.