Scott Rickenbach

Rotation #903: MLB Thursday Philadelphia Phillies -153 @ Cincinnati Reds @ 1:10 ET - The Phillies have now lost B2B games for the first time since their very first two games of the season. They should have Bryce Harper back for this game after he missed the first 3 games for paternity leave. Philadelphia will bounce back with Wheeler on the mound for this one. Don't let his 1-3 record fool you. Wheeler has been great this season! He has a 0.89 WHIP and a low ERA and has been piling up strikeouts. As for the Reds Martinez, he has a 4.76 ERA and has allowed 19 hits in 17 innings. By comparison, Wheeler has allowed 21 hits in 31 innings. The Phillies team batting average is 20 points higher than the Reds this season. Also, Martinez has struggled since moving into the starting rotation after first working long relief. Each of his last two starts were day games at home and he got roughed up in both. More of the same here and the road team rolls in this one. I don't want to get burned if the Phillies win by only a run so no run line for me but that is why a reduced unit play here on the money line is the way one can roll strong on this one. Lay it! PHILADELPHIA -153

Rotation #9: NHL Thursday OVER 6 in Tampa Bay Lightning vs Florida Panthers @ 7 ET - Notice the first two games only totaled 5 goals apiece. The 2nd game only had 4 goals in regulation. The 1st game was only 1-1 going to the 3rd period. What is my point? Well the point is...why do you think this total is a 6 even though the first two games played out like that? Exactly! Don't let this line fool you. The over is the play here. With the series shifting to Tampa Bay, you are going to see a desperate Lightning team here! The Bolts should come out strong and be very potent on the attack on their home ice where they have had so many great playoff moments in recent years! However, even with Tampa Bay coming up with a huge game here, this Panthers team is so strong and so potent on the attack. I know they have changed their style a bit since the coaching change to Paul Maurice prior to last season, but this is still a Panthers team that is lethal in finding the back of net with frequency. Before this playoff series started - again a pair of tight 3-2 Florida wins so far - the Panthers team that scored 22 goals over its final 6 regular season road games. As for the Bolts, they have scored 4 goal per game in their last 9 home games. Again, I know and 100% respect that this is playoff hockey but this situation as well as this line is telling you all you need to know about the total in this one! Look for a 4-3 type battle in this one! OVER 6 in Tampa Bay

Rotation #200037: English Premier League: Thursday OVER 3 -130 in Brighton & Hove vs Manchester City @ 3 ET - With Haaland scheduled to sit out this one for City, we get some line value with this total being held down at 3 goals. The fact is Haaland has not been playing well anyway in recent matches. Let him sit. There will be a strong effort from City here on the road to keep their hopes alive of finishing first. The big Arsenal win over Chelsea means Manchester City knows they need to win to keep pace. Brighton & Hove has had a disappointing stretch of play but they are still a different club when on their home pitch. I expect them to get on the board here and, of course, City is a sizable favorite here for a reason. That is why I can not see this match ending with anything less than 3 goals though I certainly am getting involved here with the expectation of 4 or more goals! City has scored 2.6 goals per match in their last 5 meetings with  Brighton & Hove. Also, Man City has scored 46 goals in last 17 road matches across all competitions. Brighton & Hove has struggled some recently but, as noted above, they can prove to be tougher on their home pitch. In league action this season, they have scored an average of 2 goals per match and have lost only twice in 15 matches! Look for a 3-2 or 3-1 type match here. It is no accident that City is favored by 1.5 goals on the goal line for this one even with Haaland slated to miss. The hosts play better at home but also can not stop a determined City attack that will be out to prove what they can do sans Haaland. OVER 3 -130 in Brighton & Hove 

Rotation #206961: Romania Liga 1 Play-out: Thursday OVER 2.5 -120 in Universitatea Craiova vs CFR Cluj @ 2:45 ET - Since the regular season ended, Universitatea Craiova is the only club that has yet to have a draw. By the way, CFR Cluj has only one draw in their 5 matches since the end of the regular season. I like the odds on each club scoring here and I also like the odds on this one finding its way to at least a 2-1 final because there is a big push for each club to get the full 3 points in the table. Note that Universitatea Craiova has had 15 of last 17CF matches total at least 3 goals! The only ones that did not each totaled at least 2 goals! You can see why one should expect goals in this one! Also, CFR Cluj has both scored and conceded in 7 straight road matches! In those 7 away from home, CFR Cluj has seen those finals average nearly 4 goals apiece. With the home team normally dictating the pace I do expect the goals to fly here as CFR Cluj will have no choice but to try and attack and keep up in this one. CFR Cluj has a 5-1 loss and a 4-1 win in its two most recent road matches. More of the same here. OVER 2.5 -120 in Universitatea Craiova

Rotation #528: NBA Thursday Philadelphia 76ers -4.5 vs New York Knicks @ 7:30 ET - If the Knicks had Julius Randle this would like be a sweep. However, as it stands now, the Sixers might win just one game. In my mind however, this is absolutely the game that happens. Philadelphia is angry about the way the final 30 seconds of that debacle played out in New York Monday when the Sixers had a 5 point lead evaporate and there were some questionable officiating moments. In any event, Philly found a way to lose that game but there are a couple of keys here as to why the Sixers should bounce back for a huge win in this one. The extra rest is huge for Philly as Embiid still trying to recover. Having 2 full off days between games is a big plus for the Sixers to rest up both mentally and physically. Also, other than Embiid and red hot All-Star Maxey, Philly did not get enough from their players in New York. Secondary role players - those outside of Philadelphia's big 1-2 punch - are likely to be much more comfortable on their home floor. I see the Sixers getting better shooting and better overall play from some of the key supporting cast. At the same time, the determination and effort of Embiid and Maxey is going to be off the charts here. Philadelphia's backs are against the wall now and they are angry. This is a can't lose game for Philly. Of course that does not always translate to a win but in this case, per all of the above, I would say the situation strongly favors a big Philly win. The Knicks have not shot all that well either and that was in New York. But Philly is fully capable of lighting it up with hot shooting when they are at home and it will be a raucous crowd here as well. Sixers poised to win this by double digits. The 76ers are 7-2 SU the last 9 times they have entered a game off B2B losses and all 7 wins were by at least a 6 point margin! This is the Sixers Game of the Year and you should see them play one of their best games of the season with intense defense and a much stronger shooting performance on their home floor. PHILADELPHIA -4.5