Free MLB Baseball Pick: San Diego Padres (-155)
Thu Apr 17 ‘08 10:05p - Click Here for MLB Odds
Jake Peavy (3-0 , 1.64 ERA), the NL’s reigning Cy Young Award winner, looks to continue his top tier performances as he goes for his fourth straight win to start his 2008 campaign this Thursday when the Padres close out a three-game series with the visiting Rockies. After getting buried 10-2 yesterday ,the Padres will be very motivated to get some redemption, and have the edge with their ace on the hill. Note: The Rockies will send Jeff Francis (0-2, 9.53) to the mound in return . Francis is fast becoming notorious for early season struggles, and has continued down that path this season, as was the case in both of his starts. Final notes & Key Trends: Francis went (1-3, 6.61 ERA in five starts) vs the Padres last year. Play on San Diego

Free MLB Pick: Washington Nationals (150)
Thu Apr 17 ‘08 7:10p - Click Here for MLB Odds
The New York Mets have taken the first two games of this series, but we are looking for the underdog Washington Nationals to avoid the sweep here.

This could be considered more of a play against Mets starter Nelson Figueroa, who does not merit this much favoritism over anyone. Yes he pitched well in his Mets debut as a starter, allowing two runs and only two hits in six innings, but keep in mind that was his first start in four years. We simply do not trust him at this big price at this point in time.

Granted, Nationals starter John Lannan got bombed by the Atlanta Braves in his last start after pitching well in his seasonal debut. However, we still consider the starting pitching matchup here a wash, which immediately makes Washington worth a look as big dogs. We expect both bullpens to get called on fairly early here, and the Nats have the deeper pen in our opinion.

The Nationals gave the Mets fits last season, in fact sweeping a three-game series here at Shea Stadium during the New Yorkers’ incredible choke at the end of the year, and we look for the Nats to salvage a game in this series at a very nice price.

MLB Free Pick: Nationals +150