IT'S a another busy sports day with the likes of World Championship snooker, IPL cricket and tennis dominating the schedule.
I'm afraid The Crucible's pretty much passed me by this year and we're at the quarter-final stage with Barry Hawkins facing Dominic Dale and Mark Selby meeting Alan McManus.
The only player I want to watch these days is Ronnie O'Sullivan and I wonder how many other people feel that way.
As usual put up your sports tips and chat here but it looks a quiet one on the US front.
In December 2020 we sadly 
Rusty’s MLB Tuesday 29/04 plays:
5* COL Rockies /w Chatwood ML (19/20)
4* BAL Orioles /w Tillman -1.5 RL (31/20)
4* BOS Red Sox /w Lackey -1.5 RL (23/20)
4* Great Pitching, Poor Batting double:
– KC Royals /w Vargas ML (100/137)
– DET Tigers /w Verlander ML (100/139)
Pays 2/1
The double counts as a single pick as that’s the way I played it. Also – I put a bit extra on COL Rockies.
Good luck :)
Also, Rusty, 4 selections tonight? Played as 4 “singles”
Mr. F, quote on the US front only if you ignore baseball. I know know how much you love baseball. I know you play catch and ball in your spare time and shoot hoops with scrambled paper at your job with Daily Record. :D
Buddah bless your selections tonight rusty :)
Namaste :)
I’m on Neil Robertson to win the World Championship. He’s hit form at the right time and his break building is so much better than in previous years. Trump has been lacklustre and Robertson should be able to see him off with ease. Then the challenge will really come when he will probably meet Selby in the Semis and Ronnie in the Final. On Current form he’s playing better than both of them but a lot can change in the space of a week.
I got Robertson last night at 4/1 (Currently 7/2)
I think there is always an element of risk betting in April, with the slow starters warming up along with the weather slowly coming around. That said, this season seems more unpredictable than most in recent memory – Brewers smashing the NL Central, and Harang pitching like Cy Young after 6 or seven very average seasons, to name a few anomalies.
Bumgarner was terrible, especially against a team he owns who also happen to be one of the worst offensive teams in the NL!!
3 great picks you have there for great odds (love the -1.5 run line) I will definitely be on those.
I have a feeling the Yankees are going to pile on big CC’s back and ride him for an easy win tonight, after his last 2 dominant outings against rivals. Also Young looks like he could be lit up at any minute with his injury struck past and with Seattle’s offence being considerably less formidable than the “Evil Empire’s”, a NYY -1.5 win at 2.1 looks good value. (Cue Seattle winning 10-1!).
Jaseos, completely agree. It’s been a bit of a shocker. Once the anomalies settle, I see my hit rates increasing. I’m expecting a very profitable long-term in the MLB.
On the Yankees game, I’m not a big fan of Sabathia. I think it’s one of those probable upset games as Mariners have been finding a bit of rhythm. A notable factor in the upset is Robinson Cano’s return to the Bronx. In trueness, I think it’s going to be a close one where a Mariners +1.5 Run Line might be a smart bet. I mostly speak with my wallet though, Yankees have not been good to me.
Rusty, you could well be right. CC is one of those frustrating pitchers who, as you mentioned, is likely to pitch amazingly in the pressure cooker atmosphere of Fenway and then give up a bucket-load against a Houston-type team!!
I guess I am going with what I saw him do against Boston last time out, over what he is capable of doing anytime against an average line-up (Cano excepted of course), melt-down.
Think I will just stick to your picks.
Jaseos, Mets and Braves look good tonight too and I’m still considering them. Any thoughts?
Braves look great value despite Fernandez opposing them. They are solidly built in all areas, pitching, batting and def. They are capable of beating any ace any time(as my Reds found out when they faced Cueto). Look at it this way, I would rarely bet against them.
NYM@PHI – This should be close with Phils just edging it. I just think Phillies odds are too short to bet on at 1.64. Saying that, 2.39 for the Mets sure looks tempting
What is your take?
Avoid both or small stakes on Mets would be my thought ;)
Is MiniDuffman clueless or pure stupid?
For a start I backed Robertson heavily at the start at odds of 10/1 as personally he is the most consistent player on the circuit
However , how can you say the challenge will come from mark Selby who arguably has had the worst season in recent years… Moreover trump who is gradually coming back to form and has a better record than Selby this season
You make me laugh you back robbo now at 3/1 when you could have had 10/1 pre tournament?!? Other than the loss of junhui (in the other side of the draw) the vast majority of top seeds has proceeded as expected
To be honest, I never looked at the odds pre-tournament, so I apologise for not being on the ball with my own bets. I got 4/1 actually but I’ll admit 10/1 to 4/1 is a big jump. If he wins it’s still profit though.
I don’t think Trump is playing well enough at the moment to challenge Robertson, whereas I think Selby will put up more of a challenge. I did say i’m backing Robertson, so I don’t expect Selby to beat him.
I appreciate you putting your thoughts forward but if you could refrain from insulting me that would be great.
Miniduffman, I am sure plenty people who backed Robertson did so well after the tournament started mate. If he makes the final 4/1 is a cracking bet.
MiniDuffman,
What I was getting at was you are talking like you are a massive follower of the game and hardly any of the points are valid “robertsons just hit form” he’s been on it all season but if anything his form going into the tournament has actually been poor
Sorry if it came across like that. I’m no expert but it’s not as if I know nothing about it. Regarding the comments of Robertson hitting form, I know in recent tournaments he hasn’t been playing well but he started the World Championship well and it’s in the tournament that you want to be hitting your form.
How about that 2nd Quarter from the Hawks Rusty!? Daaaymn.
honda, indeed 4 plays.
Jordan, aye, been a really entertaining playoff season!
Jaseos, I take back my stand against Yankees! I would play them in the Run Line tonight. I’ve decided to stay within my initial selections on the other games though. I’m also steering clear of Warriors @ Clippers. No no game tonight. I do like Wizards @ Bulls Over 183.00 at 10/11 though.
Haha Rusty, you convinced me against them!
After further delving into Chris Young’s stats, it appears he is definitely a Homer and does not tend to like the road – I suppose it would have a lot to do with spending most of your career in San Diego’s pitching friendly park.
I will keep stakes lower than I was intending and will put them in a very small 4-fold with your other selections.
Wells Fargo Championship May 1st-4th
Each Way Rickie Fowler 33/1 Stanjames 1/4 odds 6 places
Each Way Hunter Mahan 50/1 Boylesports 1/4 odds 5 places
Each Way Jason Kokrak 80/1 Betvictor 1/4 odds 5 places
Each Way Robert Allenby 250/1 Coral 1/4 odds 5 places
Horse racing thread is THAT way >>>>
Will be on your picks Rusty, your little chat with Jaseos convinced me :)
Going for an nba treble tonight and back on the betting. I usually avoid the early playoff games as find them harder to predict
Wizards +4
Clippers -7
Thunder -7
Pays around 6/1
Good luck all
That’s easy to follow stueyd Im on that Thanks in anticipation
Any idea why the Orioles game has been removed from bet365?
honda, it’s been postponed… f…
Rain? That Clippers guy banned for life and fined 1.5m. Not enough punishment if you ask me! Should be left broke!
honda, yeah so unfortunate… I was almost certain Orioles were going to blow out Pirates tonight and at a damn good price too.
Agreed about sterling… he’s learnt his lesson now we can hope…
With that news, I’m expecting Clippers to have an emotional burst in the first half. Taking Clippers first half may be an ideal bet.
Meant to say, atleast left broke and dropped off at the nearest suburb that is predominately of a black ethnicity
Really considering Clippers on the spread at -4 first half at 10/11.
Rusty, just wondering if you have you looked at, and dismissed LAA tonight?
I initially dismissed them due to Weaver’s bad start to the season but in his last 2 starts, @DET and @WSH (not gimme games!), he only gave up a single run per game over 6 inns.
LAA have had a slow start but their previous 4 series were tough – @NYY, @WSH, @DET and home to the A’s.
LAA win @1.76
LAA win -1.5 @2.55
Would really appreciate your view on this one because I am tempted now the O’s game has been washed out.
Jaseos, I did have LAA on my short-list but it felt a bit more unpredictable than the others. Good shout though. As I mentioned, I had Mets over Phillies on mind as the other pick, and did later consider adding them as the replacement for the postponed game. Thank you for your inputs, it’s so nice to pick brain with another Baseball fan and makes selecting gems easier. Hope you’re here to stay for the long run :)
Rusty, what time is it where your at?
honda, no idea when you asked this but I am GMT+10 :)
I’ve decided to play all your picks with a flat £10 stake Rusty, from today onwards. Thank you for your research and effort posting your picks every day. I’ve seen Honda is going to be tracking your bets but do you play all your picks the same? As in, does a 5* get the same stake as a 3* or does the higher star get more on it? Sorry for asking if it’s already be answered on a previous thread.
Hoosha, I do play them all the same indeed, but I do occasionally feel a pick more and mention that I’ve played a bit extra on a certain pick as was the case today with COL Rockies where I played double Max Stakes on the Money Line.
Rusty I’m planning on just taking your 5* COL Rockies pick as a super single. Looking at the money line odds on 365, and they have COL at 1.95 and also ARI at 1.95.
Sorry I’m I’m being stupid, but I’ve never seen that before. Are the two teams meant to be the same odds on the money line?
Mike, yes they are. You see that in more us sports
Ah ok, thanks Mr Orange, hadn’t spotted it before. Cheers for the reply :)
Mike J, it’s one of the reasons why I love betting on American Sports, since in most of the sports they try there hardest to avoid a tie, you know with the inclusion of OT.
They often give good straight money line wins, when there’s only two outcomes either you win or lose, fair enough in American Football a game can be tied but only after the extreme which I believe is two periods of OT and the chances of it happening in terms of before a game kick off is like below 1%. Also factor in when a team goes down a touchdown the odds shoot up tremendously, when the likes of the Patriots, Broncos, Seahawks and 49ers go down 2 scores and it’s still the 1/2/3 quarters you can sure as hell bet that they will win.
Warriors Handicap +7? With everything that’s happened this week, its either going to bust the Clippers or light a fire under them. Either way the Warriors will be looking to make matters worse. Think +7 is waaaay to kind to us.
Got the Grizzlies @ 3.75! Putting in work! Hold it boys!
Grizzlies and Warriors +7 double. Could be a good evening/morning :)
Jordan, Grizzlies at it again. :) I should have stuck with my thoughts on them I laid down this week and played it.
Couldn’t believe it mate. They just had to hold the ball for 10 seconds. But no…Overtime it was…
Well done on your Baseball picks mate. Top stuff.
Don’t know if we can call this a clean sweep Rusty? There was one void :)
Mr. Orange, I was really disappointed that it was postponed as it was one of my favourite picks and certain it would have put the icing on an actual clean sweep, but you are right in that it’s not exactly ‘clean sweep’. Only 4 selections with 2 as a double. ;)
Rusty’s MLB Tuesday 29/04 plays:
5* COL Rockies /w Chatwood ML (19/20) WON
4* BAL Orioles /w Tillman -1.5 RL (31/20) POSTPONED
4* BOS Red Sox /w Lackey -1.5 RL (23/20) WON
4* Great Pitching, Poor Batting double:
– KC Royals /w Vargas ML (100/137) WON
– DET Tigers /w Verlander ML (100/139) WON
Pays 2/1 WON
Cool finish gentlemen. That should get us back on track after all the 50/50’s. :)
Haha, thanks Rusty!
Well not a bad night and 2 from 3 on the NBA selections. Let’s hope for better luck next time
Well done Rusty!
Thanks rusty you are the man that’s covered JBs tips!! Love read your tips especially with another baseball/ basket ball fan to bounce off!!
Cheers gentlemen. :)
Shortlist for tonight:
LA Angels /w Wilson
DET Tigers /w Scherzer
OAK Athletics /w Chavez
ATL Braves /w Harang
WAS Nationals /w Zimmermann
KC Royals /w Ventura
Thoughts welcome.
Well done last night rusty and thanks :) I am going to not include the postponed game in the results if thats ok :)
cheers bud, yes sure. I don’t know how it could be included anyway. A postponed should go as a no play. Cheers for the work ;)
Its no problem :) obviously I could put 1 pt stake 1pt returned but will just leave it out as its easier :)
Morning everyone. Today is the day that ATLETICO Madrid play Chelsea. Not sure if I have mentioned before but I am season ticket holder in the frente at ATLETICO madrid.
One of the huge hates for Atleti fans is being called ATHletico.
Please, please, please can we have a day free of people calling us Athletico!! It might seem a little thing but it really does bug the s&@t out of all of us supporters.
standing by for a million Athletico posts now :(
I have Atletico to win the Champions League at 12/1 with a third of the odds to reach the final. Also have them at 7/2 to win La Liga and a small double. C’mon ATLETICO :)
I didn’t know there were other Atletico Madrid fans around. Yeah, I don’t get why people say Atletico like that.
As many regulars may be aware, I tipped Atletico to go all the way very early in the season. We’ve come a long way.
If we qualify tonight, I’m going to the final in Lisbon! Speaking of which, the stage is really set for Mourinho… win the champions league in your own home with the team you’ve become a legend. Scary factor.
Add to that; against Portugal’s golden son.
Brilliant tipping Rusty!
I had them as singles along with the Angels ML (not the DET and KC ones unfortunately) so a good night although my 4-fold lost for small stakes – CC breezes through Seattle for 4 innings then does his patented blow-up in the 5th – Commentators said he was 8-0 vs Seattle too!!
Will get digging into some stats later this afternoon.
thanks for the colorado tip rusty
Thanks Rusty, it appears I picked a great day to start following ha. Thanks man. And cheers for the reply, I’ll do the same as you do when you out more on a bet. Looking forward to tonight’s games.
Hi Rusty. I really like the Washington and Detroit picks from your shortlist and have added one more of my own. Would you mind running the rule over these my good man
WSH@HOU
Washington’s Zimmerman is a much better pitcher than he is showing so far this season and he shouldn’t have to be on top form tonight to beat a poor Houston outfit.
A WSH win @1.70 looks generous despite a Harper-less Washington line-up
DET@CHW
Scherzer had an unbelievable season last year with Detroit with a 21-3 record and looks to have picked up where he left off. Noesi on the otherhand is just horrible. He is currently at his third club in 2014 and hasn’t started a game all season. His ERA is a mammoth 11.47 and he has to face Cabrera, the best hitter on the planet!
A Detroit win @1.56 (-1.5 @1.86). Surely an absolute banker… right???
MIL@STL
One other I have a feeling on that is not so much backed up with stats is St.Louis beating Milwaukee.
Several things stand out for me; Miller is a very good, young arm for STL. The Brewers are, at the moment, the luckiest team in baseball with a record of 20-7 that should be 17-10 and the Cards should be 15-13 (look up “pythagorean”). Finally, I just can’t see St.Louis getting swept by the Brew-crew in their own back yard!
STL to win @1.66 (or a very good price at -1.5 @2.50).
Jaseos, I skipped Nationals… too much uncertainty there. Detroit most definitely looks like a banker. They won yesterday and they’ve got Sherzer on the mould today! They’re in full gear! and I’d rarely say this but I’m not sure about Cardinals, the Brew Crew have been hot. Scary good batting and today have the trusty Garza starting. I hope you like my final selections. :)
MLB Wednesday 30/04 plays:
4* DET Tigers /w Sherzer -1.5 RL (10/11)
4* SF Giants /w Hudson -1.5 RL (5/4)
4* KC Royals /w Ventura -1.5 RL (8/5)
4* TB Rays /w Archer ML (20/21)
NBA Wednesday 30/04 play:
4* TOR Raptors -3.5 (10/11)
Even stakes. Lets do this! :)
Cheers Rusty. On them.
5 today sir :)
honda, I was sitting on 4 but Raptors were staring at me all day and I love it just as much. Cheers sir :)
No problem sir :) I know you got some multiples going on ;)
honda, how do you know that? are you in my account… the heck :) but I do yes, I played my selections deeper in the Run Line to over or close to 2/1 as a fun small stakes yankee.
Jordan, not crazy at all. I would take Dallas and Blazers on the spread too. Aldridge could tear it up offensively again. Good picks.
That’s what I’m hoping. That and the fact 4 of the last 5 have been decided by 5 or less points. Blazers on fire offensively and they’ll hopefully end the series tonight! Good luck mate!
Have you put anything on Atletico? Not sure whether to stay clear. That usually means you should haha
Jordan, I put my hopes and dreams on it… and a bit of money. :)
I’m going to leave it alone. Too much at stake for both teams as somebody mentioned before. An all Madrid final or Mourinho winning it in his home country? No thanks. All the best tho!
Cheers Rusty.
I just think the whole “Brewers being a legitimate threat to the play-offs” is premature. They are riding their luck big time, winning a large amount of games by a single run. They ranked 13th and 14th in team runs and average respectively and their pitching is not as good as their early numbers suggest… There will be a drop off and I suspect is will be tonight with the Cards going all out to avoid the sweep.
I was going to mention the SF pick but completely forgot. Hudson is quality, very consistent and should have no problems against the struggling rookie San Diego will run out.
I will of course be on your picks and go for a small stake with STL. They look like easy money but just wondering how you came to choose TB to win at Boston, I really couldn’t split them?
Jaseos, I think you are right about the Brewers pitching but their batting have been quality. Totally agree about the play-off bid being premature as well. I’ve been able to ride their form well if you check my previous tips as they’ve served me well as underdogs thus leading to ‘speaking with my wallet’ again :) Still, I would definitely take and recommend STL. I think I might go small stakes on them myself. In regards to Rays, I always look at pitchers first, I analyze the f*** out of them before any other factor and I really like Archer tonight and really see the Rays bounce back tonight as the underdog. Cheers :)
Jaseos, I think you are right about the Brewers pitching but their batting have been quality. Totally agree about the play-off bid being premature as well. I’ve been able to ride their form well if you check my previous tips as they’ve served me well as underdogs thus leading to ‘speaking with my wallet’ again :) Still, I would definitely take STL. I think I might go small stakes on them myself. In regards to Rays, I always look at pitchers first, I analyze them before any other factor and I really like Archer tonight and really see the Rays bounce back tonight as the underdog. Cheers :)
Re: Double Post. My initial comment didn’t go through and I assumed it was because of the f word (even though I censored it myself) so I tried reposting. Seems the sites overloading tonight :)
Taking your Raptors -3.5 and call me crazy but I’m taking Dallas +6.5 and the Blazers +5.5. Think the +5.5 for the Blazers is quite generous to say the Rockets only seem to play for the first 3 quarters.
Trixie pays 6/1.
Spot on Rusty. Great advice for any baseball bettors out there… good pitching will ALWAYS beat good batters.
Rusty, what would you say to a small stakes acca of Nationals, Giants, Rockies and Braves on the moneyline? Got a chance?
Dallas +6.5 @ 10/11 *WIN* JUST 110-109!!!!
Ahhhhh choked in the 4th. Raptors -3.5 *LOSE*
And they bust the trixie. 20 point lead in the start of the 4th. P*ssed off is an understatement but a brave effort from the Nets.
Good stuff again Rusty, just a shame a 9th inning homer let us down for the SF -1.5.
Just had that feeling that STL wouldn’t let the Brewers leave town with the brooms waving – They were smashed!!
I had 4 winners out of 5 yesterday, with good odds, thanks to your help Rusty.
STL -1.5: WIN @2.50
DET -1.5: WIN @1.86(printing money there!)
WSH ML: WIN @1.70
KCR -1.5: WIN @2.56
SFG -1.5: LOSE
I put £10 on each selection and made £36.20 profit.
That is 2 great days in a row (is it always this easy!!)
Jaseos, it was actually a really good night indeed! KC Royals brought it home at such high odds that it covered the stakes of 3 different picks. Now that’s a single to play! As you said picking DET Tigers were like printing money… Rays match postponed and Giants slip up to only win by 1 which was a bit disappointing. Good shouts on Nationals and Cardinals too. Never in doubt ;) The best days of this website have been seen with teamwork.
Great tipping guys, anything for tonight guys?
Apologies for the long post, please just ignore if you are not interested in baseball!
A few thoughts on tonight’s MLB action. Any opinions and pointers from Rusty or anyone, is much appreciated:
ATL (Santana)@1.80 ML or -1.5 @2.30
Apart from a minor blip last time out, Santana has been lights-out this season and should look to continue this trend again tonight against Miami. Miami’s pitcher, Alverez, does not like facing the Braves. He faced them 4 times last season and Miami lost 3 of them (21 innings pitched, giving up 13 earned runs).
Let’s not forget that Atlanta are a superior team and in the last 2 games, have faced the best pitchers that Miami have – They will be really determined not to get swept against a divisional rival today!
MIL (Estrada) ML @2.08
I know I slated the Brewers quite a bit yesterday but that was against one of baseball’s elite teams. Today they are in Cincinnati against my team, The Reds and Homer Bailey.
I have good inside knowledge of the Reds as I try to watch every game. At the moment they are not hitting well at all, with a terrible bullpen, due to injuries.
Bailey has it in him to be an all-star pitcher (he has 2 career no-hitters!!). However this season he has not pitched well at all. The good news for the Reds is that it is his location that is off and not his Stuff – he is middling too many key pitches.
Unless the Reds’ bats get hot, Bailey sorts his location and avoids using the ‘pen, there will only be one winner and @2.08, the Brew Crew look a decent prospect.
Jaseos would you be confident of putting both ML in a double?