MLB Best bets

[Raji]

Texas Rangers at Oakland Athletics (-150, 9)

The Jason Kendall days in Oakland are over. The A’s traded their starting catcher of the last three years to the Chicago Cubs for catcher Rob Bowen and minor-league pitcher Jerry Blevins.

Is the deal a result of a disappointing season that has the Athletics 12 games back of the Los Angeles Angels in the AL West?

“I’d be less than honest to say otherwise,” general manager Billy Beane told the San Francisco Chronicle. “It certainly had some impact. To say that it was no factor would be disingenuous.”

Beane said 23-year-old catcher Kurt Suzuki will take over as the starting catcher. Suzuki will be an upgrade at the plate (Kendall is batting a career-low .226) but he won’t be able to handle the pitching staff as well as Kendall.

“(Kendall) does everything you could ask and more,” today’s starter Chad Gaudin said. “He’s definitely one of the reasons why I’ve been doing as well as I’ve been doing, and he’s one of the big reasons why I’ve found a home here in Oakland.”

Pick: Texas +142

Baltimore Orioles at Seattle Mariners (-156, 8)

The Angels have baseball’s second-best record but only a 2 ½-game lead over the Mariners in their division.

Seattle backers will be happy to know that Ichiro Suzuki will be back in center field tonight. The All-Star Game MVP left Sunday’s game shortly after getting hit by a 96 mph fastball above his right knee. Ichiro went 2-for-3 with a double as the club’s DH last night.

“Ichiro feels good,” Mariners John McLaren told the Seattle Times. “I felt like with everything that he’s been through for the last week with the All-Star Game and the festivities to contract negotiations, the press conference (for his contract extension), him getting hit, I thought it was a good time to let him DH and catch his breath.”

Ichiro isn’t the only hot bat in Seattle’s lineup. Third baseman Adrian Beltre and right fielder Jose Guillen are each hitting over .400 so far this month.

Pick: Seattle –156

New York Mets at San Diego Padres (-153, 7 ½)

New York’s season can be broken into two parts: 35 games with a healthy Moises Alou and 57 games without him.

The Mets averaged 5.2 runs with Alou in the lineup and only four runs since Alou went down with a quadriceps injury at the beginning of May. Only the Washington Nationals have scored fewer runs than the Mets' 226 since May 2.

Alou should be back next week if everything goes smoothly in his rehab outings but that does’t help the Mets tonight against Jake Peavy in Petco Park.

Pick: San Diego -153

Raji