TTL Edition: #72: Dollars on the Diamond
MLB & NBA Straights, Triple Play Thursday Parlay, NFL Draft Moments, & “Just Believe”
Wednesday Recap:
TTL Pod Picks (3-2):
NBA: Hornets +6 L, Pelicans +4 W
NHL: Blues ML W
MLB: Dodgers -0.5 F5 W
Wednesday Warrior: Grizzlies -2.5 L
Welcome into Edition #72 of the TTL Newsletter! Thanks for making the Crew your preferred choice for picks on this beautiful Thursday of bets! This edition is absolutely loaded with plays from today’s MLB slate, if you couldn’t tell by the title, and we threw 1 NBA pick in just to keep you guessing. It’s also the time for another Triple Play Thursday Parlay! We’re 1-3 on this Special Play since we implemented it, so play with caution, however you must know that this is the best we have felt about a TPTP so far. Make sure you stop by RMag’s Sidebar for a compilation of the funniest draft moments to get you geared up for 7pm this evening! Scroll through Colt’s Inspiration Corner for a new perspective and a reminder to believe in yourself & your journey. Don’t forget to tell all your degenerate friends about TTL so they can bankrupt these sportsbooks with us. It’s a beautiful day to place a few bets! Let’s cash some tickets!
TTL Picks
Seattle Mariners vs Houston Astros F5 -0.5 (1:10pm CST)
To kick off our straight plays on this fine Thursday, we head to Houston for some first five innings action. The pitching matchup is what we are keying in on in this one, as Yusei Kikuchi takes the mound for Seattle, while Luis Garcia takes the bump for the Astros. Kikuchi has had a rough start to the season, holding a 5.70 ERA, including five runs allowed in each of his two most recent starts. One of those starts came against these Astros, where he allowed three in the first five innings. Houston has seen solid success against left handed pitching this season as well. Garcia has shown serious promise throughout his young career. Since making his MLB debut last season, Garcia has yet to allow over three runs in any game that he has pitched. Houston’s key players have seen some success against Kikuchi, most notably Alex Bregman who is 5-11 with 3 RBI’s in the matchup. We love the ‘Stros to lock things down and jump on the Mariners early. TTL Pick: Houston Astros F5 -0.5
Toronto Raptors vs Denver Nuggets -4 (8:00pm CST)
The Denver Nuggets will host the Toronto Raptors this evening, and we love the Nugs to beat up on the overrated Raptors. Toronto is 5-2 SU over their last 7, however if you look closer, those wins are not very impressive. Those wins include the Spurs, Magic, Thunder, Cavs, and the very shorthanded Nets. Denver has not suffered much of a setback following the loss of Jamal Murray, holding a 6-1 SU record since he left the lineup for the year. Toronto has struggled in spots much like this recently, they are 1-9 ATS in their last 10 road games, and 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games against a team with a winning straight up record. Toronto has gotten the job done against the bottom half of the league, but cannot find a way to play up to the big boys of either conference. Give us Jokic and the Nuggets to lay the hammer on the Raptors. TTL Pick: Denver Nuggets -4
Colorado Rockies vs Arizona Diamondbacks -1.5 (+128) (8:40pm CST)
Colorado finally got their 1st win of the season on the road on Tuesday, but the Rocks still aren’t a team you should be backing in any spot away from Coors Field. The Rockies rank 8th in the MLB with 4.65 RPG, however they only average 2.25 RPG on the road. The Rockies are 10-9 ATRL as an underdog, but are only 2-6 ATRL as a road underdog on the season. Arizona is one of the hottest teams in baseball right now, and ranks 2nd in the MLB with 5.26 RPG. The Dbacks are averaging a whopping 5.83 RPG at home so far this season, and are 3-2 SU in their last 5 home games winning by an average margin of 5.33 runs. The Dbacks are 8-2 SU (9-1 ATRL) in their last 10 games, and even though they’ve been underdogs in all of those games, they’ve won by an average margin of 3.63 runs. The Rocks and Dbacks have met already once this year with Senzatela and Weaver on the mound for each team respectively, and the Dbacks got the victory 10-8 in Colorado. Weaver only gave up 3 ER in his start, and Arizona's bullpen has made some solid improvement since the beginning of April. Arizona has proven they are legit offensively, and now the pitching staff is starting to catch up. Take the Dbacks here to stay hot, and pick up the victory by a minimum of 2 runs. TTL Pick: Arizona Diamondbacks -1.5
Special Play Of The Day: Triple Play Thursday Parlay
Oakland A’s ML (-116) vs Tampa Bay Rays (12:10pm CST)
The Rays are sending out lefty Shane McClanahan for his 1st MLB start against the A’s today, and Oakland will jump all over him from the 1st pitch. The A’s have been solid against lefties so far this season with a batting average of .224, OBP of .314, and R/9 of 4.75. Yesterday’s loss in this series for the A’s was purely because of a pitchers duel, and they will be ready to get some runs up on the board early this afternoon. Chris Bassitt is starting to find his footing again, and his surface numbers don’t tell the full story as he’s gradually improved over his last 3 starts. 5 players in the current Rays lineup have faced Bassitt, and they are a combined 2-11 against him. The A’s will dominate McClanahan early, and Bassitt will continue to improve against a Rays offense that has been mediocre at best as of late.
Philadelphia Phillies F5 ML (-144) vs St. Louis Cardinals (12:15pm CST)
This matchup is as tight as they come, but we love the Phillies with Aaron Nola on the mound as the separation between these clubs. Nola enters with a 2.84 ERA, looking for a bounceback after an iffy start against the Rockies in his last start. His best start came a week and a half ago against these Cardinals throwing a complete game with two hits, no walks and 10 K’s. The Cardinals key players have struggled against Nola, most notably Paul Goldschmidt who is 3-14 in his career vs Nola.
LA Dodgers -1.5 (-106) vs Milwaukee Brewers (6:40pm CST)
The Dodgers are coming off an 8-0 drubbing of the Reds with Sonny Gray on the mound, and will continue to build on their new found offensive momentum off Eric Lauer who is making his 1st start of the season. Lauer has a career 4.75 ERA, and this Dodgers team is not one he should be trying to improve that number on. Trevor Bauer is taking the mound for the Dodgers and has continued his dominance into 2021. Bauer is 3-0 with 2.53 ERA, 45 K (6th in the MLB), and a 0.66 WHIP (4th in the MLB). Bauer has historically pitched well against the Brew Crew in his career. The Brewers hold a batting average of .189 against Bauer, with 32 SO, 4 BB, and only 6 runs. The Brewers will also be without Daniel Robertson, Lorenzo Cain, and Christian Yelich for this matchup, and all that combined is enough for us to scoop up the Dodgers -1.5 RL for the 3rd-leg today. In the battle of Bauer vs Lauer, it is the wise play to ride the hot hand, and the hand that has actually proven himself this season.
Triple Play Thursday Parlay: A’s ML, Phillies F5, Dodgers -1.5 (Overall Odds: +513)
RMag’s Sidebar
It is showtime tonight for the NFL’s greatest offseason day on the calendar, and for some fans it means a hell of a lot more than others. It can signify hope, or it can bring deja vu to the most tortured fan bases. Whichever side you and your fandom fall on, there is nothing better than talking NFL no matter what time of year it is. Whether it’s simply talking about a pick, what a pick or lack of a pick could mean for a team’s season, or fanbases talking their annual shit talk towards their hated rivals, nothing gets the juices going quite like football. Fans will be returning to the draft after a one year hiatus and with any hope we will get some more incredible moments like the ones featured in today’s video. Everyone talks about Pat McAfee and his draft night shenanigans at the expense of the Titans’ faithfuls, but not enough people appreciate David Akers massacre of the Dallas Cowboy fans in 2018. No matter your fandom, I hope you enjoy today’s video, and the entire 2021 NFL Draft. Cheers to football.
Colt’s Inspiration Corner
“Just Believe”
“Your mind will always believe everything you tell it. Feed it faith. Feed it truth. Feed it with love.” -Budhist Proverb. Your mind is an extremely powerful weapon, and whatever you feed it will be the direction that your life goes. If your outlook on life is negative and you possess the “I can never catch a break” mindset, then you can 100% guarantee that you most certainly will never “catch a break”. You have the power to feed positivity into your mind regardless of the current situation that you find yourself in. Your mind can move mountains, but you have to believe that you actually can.
There is one key distinction that you have to make in order to utilize your mind to its full potential. You and your mind are not the same thing. The mind has a tendency to spin out of control with negative thoughts, but you have the ability to take control of it. Your mind is simply a tool that can be used by you to achieve great things. It may be cliche, but I can promise you that whatever you choose to believe in you will accomplish. When your mind tells you that you can’t, believe that you can. When your mind tells you that you will fall, believe that you will rise. When your mind tells you that you’re not good enough, believe that you are the premier. Just believe and you will see doors opened in your life that you could have never imagined.
We all would like to have a crystal ball to see what our future holds, but unfortunately that’s not how this life works. I honestly think we aren't able to see into the future, because we wouldn’t believe our eyes even if we could. I can promise you however, that if you simply believe that you will accomplish the ultimate goal you're chasing after, it will turn out completely different and better than you could have ever expected. I can also promise you that all the situations in between now and your ultimate goal probably won’t go how you planned them to either. However, that’s the whole purpose of the journey. To remember everything it took to reach your destination and the entirely new person you’ve become in the process. There’s a large gap between where you are and where you want to be, but if you choose to believe you will find that you reach your destinations much faster than you could have ever imagined.
Daily Challenge: Today’s phrase of the day is, “I Will Believe.” No matter what this life throws at you choose to believe that you were made to overcome it. Don’t ever doubt yourself, or you will be destined for failure before you even start. There will be no failure if you just believe. “Whatever you believe, you receive.” -Gabby Bernstein ; “Believing in yourself is the first secret to success.” -unknown. Have a spectacular Thursday my friend.