Betting before the all-star break

[Raji]

Summer vacation: Betting before the All-Star break

Sun, Jul 1, 2007By Jason Logan

When you were a kid, the last few school days before summer break were the longest of your life. Any impending vacation had you mentally checking out a couple days early.

Major League Baseball players aren’t that different. With the 2007 All-Star Game happening next Monday, the remaining schedule before the three-day break can be a grueling test of focus.

The break can be a blessing in disguise or an unwanted delay depending on a club’s situation. Teams like the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who are 33-46 and have lost six straight games, can’t wait for time away from the diamond. But a squad like the Cleveland Indians, who've won seven of their last 10 games, hate having their momentum snapped by the mid-season break.

Last year's San Diego Padres, like this year's Indians, hit their stride just in time to be interrupted by the All-Star break. The Padres strung together five consecutive wins before last year’s break only to lose their next three game following the hiatus.

“I definitely emphasize the streakiness of teams at this critical point right before the break,” says Scott Rickenbach of Covers Experts. “However, it's more than just the winning or losing streaks of teams."

In order to spot a pre-All-Star collapse, handicappers like Rickenbach look closely at a team’s final schedule as well individual pitching-hitting matchups before the time off. A team like the Milwaukee Brewers, who have won eight of their last 10 games, could be prime candidates for a letdown before Monday.

Milwaukee grabbed seven of its last eight wins at Miller Park, where it is 30-13 this year, but now must finish the week on the road (17-20). The Brewers are currently in Chicago facing the Cubs and then travel to Pittsburgh and Washington before the All-Star Game.

Quite the opposite of this is the Colorado Rockies and their easier schedule heading into the break. The Rockies have currently lost eight of their last 10 games, playing nine of those away from home. After wrapping up the series with Houston, Colorado has a chance to focus on a strong finish before the break when it plays its remaining six games at Coors Field.

The All-Star break is also one of the few times most of the players have consecutive days off to spend with family and friends. Much like the day before returning from a long road trip, the time before the break is spent planning events, making appointments and generally not thinking about baseball.

For those players lucky enough to be selected to their respective leagues’ All-Star team, the days before the showcase event are filled with accommodation arrangements and other outside distractions that can lead to poor performances on the field.

“I think (players) welcome the break physically as well as mentally,” says Rickenbach. “Psychologically it helps the players to get refreshed and refocus on the task at hand as the more critical stage of the season begins in the second half.”

The final week of the schedule before the break ends Sunday night. The All-Star Game is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday and takes place in San Francisco. The MLB schedule starts back up on Thursday with six games on the board.

Raji