I look for a slug fest tonight between the Los Angeles Angels and the Kansas City Royals. This is a battle between two of the best lineups in baseball from top to bottom.

The Royals may cover this OVER by themselves as they tee off against Los Angeles’ Joe Blanton. The right-hander has been atrocious in 2013, going 0-7 with a 6.62 ERA and 1.967 WHIP through nine starts.

Blanton is also 0-2 with an 8.04 ERA and 2.106 WHIP in his last three starts. That includes a start against Kansas City on May 13th just 11 days ago. Blanton surrendered seven earned runs and 12 hits over 4 2/3 innings of a 4-11 home loss to the Royals.

While Ervin Santana has posted solid numbers this season, he’s at a big disadvantage being a former Angel. Los Angeles has the perfect scouting report on him. Plus, Santana has struggled of late, going 0-2 with a 4.19 ERA in his last three starts.

Los Angeles is 37-16-2 to the OVER in its last 55 games overall. The Angels are 12-2 to the OVER vs. an excellent bullpen whose ERA is 3.00 or better this season. Kansas City is 59-39 to the OVER vs. an average bullpen whose ERA is 3.75 to 4.50 over the last 3 seasons. Bet the OVER in this game Thursday.

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With Chicago surprisingly down two games to one in this series, the pundits-the linesmakers and public now believe the mighty Blackhawks will be set to bounce back and tie this series. I , on other hand take a contrarian look at this tilt, and feel that Motown will once again come out flying and make things difficult for the Hawks. The Hockey town USA crew may have not dominated or out skated Chciago in game 3, but they played virtually mistake free hockey. You have to rememeber the Blackhwaks never really had any prolonged slumps during this shortened season, so dont be surprised if its now slump time and this series continues to spiral downwards and turns into a major fiasco for Chicago hockey fans and the franchise vs a Wings side that must not be underestimated.Detroit has won seven consecutive home playoff games against Chicago and betting number 8 is on the way. Final notes & Key Trends: Red Wings are 35-17-1 in their last 53 home games vs. a team with a road winning % of greater than .600 and 355-158-16 in their last 529 home games.Blackhawks are 1-4 in their last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning home record. Coach Quenville of Chicago is 0-5 all-time series against the Red Wings in the postseason.

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The Rangers haven’t been swept in a series at home since July of 2010, so it’s understandable that they’re listed as the favorite in Wednesday’s series finale against the A’s.

That doesn’t mean that I agree with the line, however.

Oakland has caught fire once again, reeling off five straight wins to pull within 4.5 games of the A.L. West-leading Rangers.

Over their last 10 games, the A’s pitching staff has really picked up the pace, particularly their bullpen, as they’ve posted a collective 1.59 ERA over that stretch.

Meanwhile, the Rangers staff is ravaged by injuries with Alexi Ogando, Matt Harrison, Neftali Feliz, Colby Lewis, and now Nicholas Tepesch sidelined. That’s forced them to give journeyman minor leaguer Ross Wolf an emergency start on Wednesday.

The A’s will hand the ball to a rejuvenated Jarrod Parker, who is coming off back-to-back strong outings, allowing only seven hits and four earned runs over 13 1/3 innings pitched against the Mariners and Royals. Oakland went a perfect 3-0 in Parker’s three starts against the Rangers last season.

The Rangers have yet to lose three games in a row this season, but that’s not a sustainable trend. The A’s are a confident bunch right now, and I look for them to find a way to get it done again on Wednesday afternoon in Arlington. Take Oakland (1*).

Not including another easy complimentary winner, I was 4-1 on Tuesday. That included a 12-0 blowout winner with the Angels over the Mariners.

While the price is admittedly a little steep, all signs indicate that the Angels should have the edge again this evening.

Wilson should be pleased to be opposed by someone other than Chris Sale. He’s been matched up against Sale each of his last two starts. He pitched well in both those games but was outduelled by Sale, who didn’t allow a run in either game.

Wilson, who is 12-5 vs. Seattle, has now allowed three or fewer earned runs in seven straight games. Be sure to take advantage of Ben Burn’s premium MLB picks for May 22nd 2013 at Touthouse.com.

Wilson figures to finally get some run support here as Maurer is 2-5 with a 5.75 ERA. He averages five innings per start, allowing a home run per outing. He’s walked eight batters in his last three starts, a span of 15 innings. Opposing batters are hitting .295 against him for the season.

The Angels bullpen is well-rested. Not only did LA get eight complete innings from Williams last night, the previous day was an off day. On the other hand, the M’s played an extra inning game Monday, then traveled across the country. They also only got 3 2/3 innings out of Harang, last night’s starter.

The Angels also have a far better (and hotter) lineup, one which exploded for 15 hits last night.

With yesterday’s victory, the Angels are now 14-7 the last 21 times they were a host in this series. Consider laying the wood.

The Detroit Tigers should be a heavier road favorite over the Cleveland Indians tonight. Given the advantage the Tigers have on the mound in this one, I like their chances of a blowout victory.

Detroit will give the ball to the electric Max Scherzer. The right-hander has gone 5-0 with a 3.98 ERA and 0.994 WHIP with 68 strikeouts over 54 1/3 innings this season. Scherzer is a superb 1-0 with a 1.23 ERA and 0.818 WHIP in three road starts this year.

Corey Kluber is no match for Scherzer. The right-hander is 3-2 with a 5.40 ERA and 1.4143 WHIP in four starts and two relief appearances. Kluber is also 1-2 with a 7.71 ERA and 1.714 WHIP in his last three starts, and 1-2 with an 8.04 ERA and 1.914 WHIP in three career starts against Detroit.

The Tigers are 5-0 in Scherzer’s last 5 starts with the total set at 7.0-8.5. Detroit is 20-8 in Scherzer’s last 28 starts overall. The Indians are 1-7 in Kluber’s last 8 home starts, and 0-5 in his last 5 starts as a home underdog. Bet the Tigers Tuesday.

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After the Dodgers took Game 1 in Milwaukee, breaking out of a three game slump, they have another favorable matchup tonight. Zack Greinke is back off the DL, and he looked pretty good in his first start since his return.

Greinke (2-0, 1.62 ERA) allowed a single run on five hits over 5 1/3 innings in a 3-1 win over Washington in his first start off the DL. He’s now allowed only three runs in three starts so far this year, and the Dodgers have won all three games.

You could say that he likes pitching at Miller Park, he’s won 15 straight starts in his former home ballpark.

The Dodgers will get another look at Hiram Burgos, who they already beat earlier this year. Burgos has lost consecutive starts, and he’s winless in his last four outings. He was really torched by the Reds in Cincinnati on May 11, allowing 12 runs in just three innings.

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The Dodgers got some offense from Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier yesterday, and they should be able to get a few runs on Burgos tonight.

The Red Sox are showing some great value as a small road favorite against the Twins. Boston has won the first two games of this series and four straight overall. The Red Sox are swinging the bats extremely well right now, averaging 5.3 runs over their last 7 games. Minnesota on the other hand has lost four straight and six of their last 8 overall.

Both teams send out a starter who has struggled of late, but I don’t think there’s any question that Boston has the better of the two in John Lackey, at least when it comes to previous performance against opponent. Lackey has allowed two or fewer earned runs in each of his five starts vs the Twins. Minnesota’s Pedro Hernandez has made two career starts against the Red Sox and both have been a complete disaster. He’s allowed 14 runs on 19 hits in just six innings of work. He allowed 6 runs on 7 hits in just 2 innings of work against Boston earlier this month (5/8). Given how these two teams are playing right now, there’s simply too much value to not place a small wager on Boston this afternoon. BET THE RED SOX!

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After losing two out of the first three games in this series, the Detroit Tigers want a win in Game 4 to square it up. I’ll back them at an excellent price tonight with Doug Fister on the mound.

Fister has been dominant all season, and he deserves more respect from the books as a result. The right-hander is 5-1 with a 3.06 ERA and 1.180 WHIP through eight starts this season. Check out ALL of Jack Jones’ premium MLB picks for May 19th 2013 on our expert sports picks page at Touthouse.com

The Tigers are 37-15 in their last 52 games vs. a starter with a WHIP less than 1.15. Detroit is 5-0 in Fister’s last 5 starts with a total set of 9.0 to 10.5. Bet the Tigers Sunday.

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The Rays have taken the first two games of this series in a pair of slugfests. I look for things to settle down considerably on Sunday as we have a fine pitching matchup between Matt Moore and Chris Tillman. I’ll grab the insurance run with the Orioles as they aim to avoid the sweep.

It’s not as if the Rays were on fire heading into this series, having dropped back-to-back games at home against the Red Sox. They’ve been an inconsistent offensive club for much of the season, and I don’t expect that to change now. Off a pair of explosive games at the dish, look for them to show some regression on Sunday afternoon.

Rays starter Matt Moore has posted a perfect 8-0 team record in his first eight starts this season – a stark contrast to what we saw from him early in last year’s campaign. He hasn’t exactly been dominating the opposition lately, however, as he’s issued 10 walks and allowed four home runs in his last three starts, spanning 16 innings of work. He was on the hill for a 6-2 win here in Baltimore earlier this season, but had lost his previous two outings at Camden Yards – both coming last season.

Chris Tillman will counter for the Orioles. He’s quietly enjoyed a fine start to the 2013 season, having gone 3-1 with a 3.40 ERA. It’s easy to forget that this was a guy that went 9-3 with a sub-3.00 ERA a year ago. Over Tillman’s last five starts, he’s allowed only seven earned runs in 33 2/3 innings pitched. While he’s come up empty in his last two starts against the Rays, the Orioles are still 2-1 in his last three outings against them here in Baltimore.

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The Orioles bullpen has been shaky lately, a big reason why I’m willing to lay the extra juice to get an insurance run on Sunday afternoon. With that being said, it’s not as if the Rays ‘pen has been lights out, posting a collective 4.05 ERA on the road this season. Look for a tight game all the way, with the O’s doing whatever they can to avoid the sweep. Take Baltimore +1.5 runs (1*).

This is a Free play on the Oakland Athletics.

The A’s won Game 1 in a pitcher’s duel between James Shields and Jarrod Parker. Adam Rosales hit an eighth inning home run to seal the deal for Oakland, as they came from behind for the victory.

Oakland will send Tommy Milone to the mound in Game 2, and he’s coming off a loss to Seattle his last time out. Tommy has always been a better pitcher in his home park, and this season is no exception, posting a 2.63 ERA at O.co Coliseum compared to a 4.93 ERA on the road. He’s also been good against the Royals, posting an ERA of 1.20 in his last two starts.
Kansas City will hand the ball to Ervin Santana, who’s been slipping up after a good start to the season. Santana (3-2, 2.79 ERA) allowed four runs on eight hits over 6 1/3 innings in a 4-2 loss to the Mets his last time out. Prior to that he took the decision in a 4-3 loss to Baltimore.

Yoenis Cespedes is 2-for-6 lifetime versus Santana, but both of those hits went out of the ballpark. John Jaso also hasn’t been fooled, he’s 7-for-14 with a home run versus the veteran right-hander.

Oakland appears to have quite a favorable matchup here at home, and the price is very reasonable.

Take the A’s. Be sure to take advantage of all of Jesse Schule’s expert MLB picks for May 18th 2013 at Touthouse.com, Handicapperspicks.com and Accuwager.com