Tuesday, March 21, 2017

CenturyLink Sports Complex

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Probable Pitchers: Jake Thompson vs. Kyle Gibson

The Philadelphia Phillies visit CenturyLink Sports Complex on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 to play the Minnesota Twins in a Spring Training matchup. The probable starters are Jake Thompson for the Phillies and Kyle Gibson for the Twins.

The opening line for this matchup has Philadelphia at +105 and Minnesota at -125. The Phillies had a 78-76-8 over/under record and a 83-79-0 run line mark last season, meaning they covered 51% of the time. The Twins were 83-79-0 against the run line and had a 95-59-8 over/under record. They covered the spread 51% of the time.

The Phillies are coming off a 71-91 record in 2016, including 34-47 on the road. Starting pitcher Jake Thompson had a 3-6 record with an earned run average of 5.70 and a WHIP of 1.51. He had 32 strikeouts over his 53.2 innings pitched and he gave up 53 hits last season. He allowed 8.9 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 6.17. The bullpen last year had an earned run average of 5.05 and they gave up 556 base hits on the year. Teams hit .266 against the bullpen while being struck out 513 times and walking 218 times last season. As a team, Philadelphia allowed 9.19 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.14 batters per nine innings. They were 26th in the league in team earned run average at 4.63. The Phillies pitchers collectively gave up 1,468 base hits and 739 earned runs. They allowed 213 home runs last season and they allowed 1.3 homers per nine innings as a staff. Philadelphia as a pitching staff walked 466 batters and struck out 1,299. They walked 2.9 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.1 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.35 and their FIP as a unit was 4.35.

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As a team Philadelphia batted .240, good for 29th in the league while putting together a .250 average away from home. The Phillies held a .385 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .301 which was good for 29th in baseball. They ranked 28th in baseball with 8.06 hits per game. Cesar Hernandez is coming off a 2016 season in which he hit .294 with an on-base percentage of .371. He had 161 hits last season along with 67 runs scored and 39 runs batted in. He struck out 116 times and walked 66 times. Odubel Herrera hit .286 last year and he had an on-base percentage of .361. He totaled 167 hits while scoring 87 runs and he drove in 49. He walked 63 times and struck out on 134 occasions. The Phillies had 1,306 hits, including 231 doubles and 161 home runs. They stole 96 bases and were thrown out stealing 45 times. Philadelphia walked 424 times last season and they struck out 1,376 times as a unit. They left 1,043 men on base and had a team OPS of .685. They scored 3.77 runs per contest and scored a total of 610 runs last year.

Minnesota had a 30-51 home record and a 59-103 overall mark in 2016. With an earned run average of 5.07, Kyle Gibson had a 6-11 record and a 1.56 WHIP last season. He had 104 strikeouts over the 147.1 innings he pitched during which he gave up 175 hits. He allowed 10.7 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 4.7. Last season the bullpen had an earned run average of 4.63 and they gave up 613 base hits on the year. Teams hit .271 against the Twins bullpen while being struck out 536 times and walking 198 times last season. As a team, Minnesota allowed 10.09 hits per nine innings while striking out 7.43 batters per nine innings. They were 29th in the league in team earned run average at 5.08. The Twins pitchers as a team surrendered 1,617 base knocks and 814 earned runs last season. They gave up 221 home runs last year and they gave up 1.4 home runs per nine innings as a staff. Minnesota as a staff walked 479 hitters and struck out 1,191. They gave up a walk 3 times per 9 innings while they struck out 7.4 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.45 while their FIP as a staff was 4.57.

As a team, they batted .251, good for 21st in the league while putting together a .251 average at home. The Twins held a .421 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .316 which was good for 22nd in baseball. They ranked 17th in baseball with 8.7 hits per contest. Brian Dozier comes into this matchup after batting .268 with an OBP of .340. He had 165 hits last year along with 104 runs scored and 99 RBI. He struck out 138 times and walked on 61 occasions. Joe Mauer hit .261 in 2016 and he had an OBP of .363. He collected 129 hits while scoring 68 runs and driving in 49. He earned a walk 79 times and punched out 93 times. The Twins as a unit had 1,409 base hits, including 288 doubles and 200 homers. They had 91 stolen bases and were thrown out 32 times. Minnesota as a team walked 513 times last year and they struck out 1,426 times. They had 1,124 men left on base and had an OPS of .738. They scored 4.46 runs per game and totaled 722 runs last season.

Philadelphia Phillies Betting Trends

The Philadelphia Phillies were 78-76-8 against the over/under last season

The Philadelphia Phillies were 83-79-0 against the run line last season

Minnesota Twins Betting Trends

The Minnesota Twins were 95-59-8 against the over/under last season

The Minnesota Twins were 83-79-0 against the run line last season

Injuries to Watch

Philadelphia Phillies

No key injuries to report

Minnesota Twins

03/11/17 P Trevor May Arm out indefinitely

Tony's Pick: Take the Phillies +105

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