Will Rogers

My ROUND-TRIPPER play is on the "over" between the Rays and Padres at 8:40 EST. Tampa has won three straight after taking the opener of this interleague series by a score of 1-0 yesterday. Previous to that it took two of three at Arizona, winning the final two games of that series by scores of 7-6 and 7-4. The Padres come in revenge-minded and ready to snap their two-game slide, first losing 6-0 at the Tigers, before yesterday's 1-0 home loss. These offensse both look primed for a bounce-back performance on Saturday though facing these scheduled starters though, with Tampa handing the ball to Ryan Pepiot (1-3, 4.82 ERA), and the home side countering with Dylan Cease (1-1, 6.04.) Pepiot is off a loss to the Yanks, while Cease is off a no-decision to the Astros. I'm expecting these starters to "get the hook early," and for that to help in pushing this total over the number.

My BLOWOUT PLAY is on the LA Clippers at 6:00 EST. James Harden and Kawhi Leonard are through playing "second fiddle" to Nikola Jokic and I believe they can smell the proverbial blood in the water. Denver's offense has looked bad in all three games and frankly, the Nuggets are lucky to only be down 2-1 after holding on for the 112-110 OT win in Game 1 at home. Jokic appears visibly frustrated with the rest of his team. The Clippers though are just getting stronger with each outing. That progression continues in Game 4 at home in my opinion, so lay the points with confidence, because the Clippers are going to roll!

My ROUND ONE WESTERN CONFERENCE GAME OF THE YEAR is on the Las Vegas Golden Knights at 4:00 EST. The Knights looked great in Game 1, but have stumbled over the last two games, falling 5-2 in both Game's 2 and 3. Las Vegas is loaded with talent and I don't see the visitors panicking here. Keep your eyes on the Knights' Jack Eichel, who leads the top line for Las Vegas and who had 94 points this season. Mark Stone and Ivan Barbashev will also be difficult for the Wild to handle in my opinion. Adin Hill is expected back in net for the visitors and he should bounce back no problem after finishing 32-13-5 with a 2.47 GAA this season. Minnesota has already defied the odds by winning the last two games and while it does have talent (like Matt Boldy), I believe it's going to be Minnesota that takes a step back now with its performance in Game 4. Flip Gustavsson is 31-19-6 with a 2.56 GAA for the Wild, but I still think Hill is the correct call in this spot. There's a chance that Akira Scmid could be in net for the Knights, but that's fine with me as well. Las Vegas is the deeper, more experienced team and I expect it to finally answer back in this series after dropping the last two games. Lay the price, the Golden Knights roll!