Basketball Betting

Get on Board with Untested Pitchers

Baseball Betting Lines

05/07/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When it comes to wagering on baseball, gamblers usually shy away from the unknown. It's easy to back the likes of Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay, but putting your money on rookies is another story.

However, don't take these inexperienced pitchers lightly. Even though most bettors have never seen them on the mound, it also stands to reason the opposition hasn't either. And that leads to a very important angle - never let a great opportunity to make money pass you by.

Some of these young pitchers have already become key members in their club's rotation while others have been used as spot starters due to injury. Whatever the case may be, their mound success has translated to a lot of green in one's wallet if he/she has been paying attention.

All in all, nine pitchers with fewer than five career starts (and less than four years experience) have combined for an incredible +1,147 units in a little over one month's worth of action. Three of the nine stand out above the rest since they have accounted for 15 of the 24 starts, but don't shy away from the others since they've accumulated a bankroll of over $400.

THE BIG THREE

The first of the five-start hurlers is Jaime Garcia. The Cardinals' fifth starter is 3-1 this season with an amazing 1.13 ERA. More importantly, since he's behind the likes of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright in the rotation, he's flown well below the radar even in his last two starts.

Garcia and the Cards were only -113 favorites at Philadelphia earlier in the week, against a pitcher in Joe Blanton who was making his first start of the year. St. Louis roughed up Blanton for 10 hits and four runs in 6 2/3 innings en route to the 6-3 road victory.

In his prior outing, Garcia and two relievers shut out the Braves, 6-0 - his second straight amazing performance at Busch Stadium. Earlier in the season, Garcia held the Mets scoreless on just one hit through seven innings.

It's still early in the season but the kid picked in the 22nd round back in 2005 has given up only five hits and zero runs in 14 home frames. Garcia is only +128 units in five starts, but until opposing hitters get the best of him, look for that total to rise in the coming months.

Cincinnati's Mike Leake came into the big leagues off one of the finest college seasons in recent memory. The righthander finished his junior year at Arizona State 16-1 with a 1.71 ERA, becoming the first starter in Pac-10 history to win back-to-back Pitcher of the Year awards.

He also damaged opposing hurlers his final two seasons, batting .325 with 15 RBI in 80 at-bats.

Stephen Strasburg received almost all the attention at last year's draft, but Leake has gotten the jump on his counterpart with five starts already on his resume. The 22-year-old has won just two of those outings but the Reds are 4-1 in those games. Furthermore, Leake has yet to lose and his ERA is a healthy 2.94.

Control was an issue early in the year with 12 walks in his first 13 2/3 innings. However, the California native has gained a better command of his pitches of late, going 20 frames with just four bases-on-balls. Leake is also helping himself at the plate, batting .364 with four hits in 11 at-bats.

All that success explains why the eighth player selected in last year's draft is +314 units.

The final starter of the bunch hurls for another team from the Midwest.

Cleveland's Mitch Talbot has not received any of the accolades heaped upon either Garcia or Leake, but has been even more effective when it comes to the gambling side of baseball.

The former Tampa Bay pitcher started slowly in 2010, allowing four runs in a 4-2 loss at Detroit but since then, he's reeled off three wins in four starts with a 2.15 ERA. That success has his backers holding $364 since his initial start on April 10.

SPOT STARTERS COMING THROUGH IN THE CLUTCH

There have been nine other starts this season from six pitchers with fewer than five career starts and less than four years experience. What might be a surprising statistic to some is that three of the six hurlers came through with victories, while two others helped their team to "W's" even though each failed to pick up the win.

Luis Atilano leads the bunch with two victories - both times as the underdog. The rookie stepped in when Jason Marquis went down with an elbow injury, and proceeded to win his first two big-league starts at +119 and +192 units.

On May 3, Cesar Valdez did the same in place of Kris Benson, giving up only one run in five innings as the Diamondbacks routed the Astros, 9-1.

One day earlier, Jhoulys Chacin allowed only one hit through seven frames, leading the Rockies past the Giants. Since Chacin squared off against Jonathan Sanchez and his 1.85 ERA, Colorado was +140 units...a nice score as a road underdog.

On May 1, Dodgers reliever Carlos Monasterios got the call in his first-ever start but was denied the victory since he was taken out after just four innings. Los Angeles knocked off the Pirates, 5-1 so even though Monasterios didn't get credit for the win, the bettors who backed Los Angeles were still rewarded with the victory.

This past Thursday night, another Dodgers rookie, John Ely, came close to picking up his first career victory, but Jonathan Broxton blew the save allowing Milwaukee to tie with two runs in the top of the ninth.

The hometown team had one more shot to break the tie and Andre Ethier came through with a walk-off grand slam home run, good for a 7-3 Dodgers win. Ely did not get credit for the "W" but once again, those who wagered on the Dodgers did.

The only starter of the six that failed to bring home the bacon was the Rockies' Esmil Rogers, who lost 6-1 as an underdog to Matt Cain and San Francisco.

Betting on the unknown might be a scary proposition, but it's been well worth it so far in 2010.