Crashing Back Down to Earth – Marlins vs. Brewers

Florida Marlins vs. Milwaukee Brewers 8:05 ET

A pair of teams headed in opposite directions in the National League standings will hook up in yet another BetOnline Sportsbook sports betting affair when the Florida Marlins (17-15, +$230) clash with the Milwaukee Brewers (18-14, +$387) at Miller Park. After starting the season 11-1, the Fish have completely crashed back down to earth, losing 14 of their L/20. The Brew Crew strung together four straight wins last week before dropping a close game in Cincinnati, but have still won six of their L/8 to climb back into the NL Central race. Last year, the Marlins took five of the six meetings between these teams, but this will be their first meeting of 2009.

The oddsmakers are expecting a comfortable home victory tonight, as Milwaukee has been lined at -165, while the ‘total’ chimes in at 10 over -115.

LHP John Koronka will be making his first start since the 2007 season on Tuesday night for Florida. Koronka was called up to replace the injured Anibal Sanchez, and if his numbers in Triple-A New Orleans are any indicator, he may be in the big leagues for more than just a brief stay. In four starts in the minors, Koronka posted a 1.93 ERA and a whopping 17.9 K/BB ratio in 18.2 innings pitched. In his MLB career, the lefty hasn’t had much luck, as he is 8-11 with a 6.02 ERA and 1.59 WHIP. Most of that work was done in 2006 with Texas, when he started 23 games. The good news for the Marlins is that their bullpen has been fantastic this season, posting a 3.29 ERA, so should Koronka get into too much trouble, they should be able to bail him out.

Fellow LHP Manny Parra will get the ball from Manager Ken Macha on Tuesday. After five straight losses to start the season, Parra finally got the Brew Crew in the win column last Monday in his sixth start. He gave up two runs over 6.0 innings for the win. Milwaukee scored 15 runs for him last Monday; its offense had only scored 10 runs in his first five starts of the year. Parra has only faced the Fish once in his career, and he gave up two runs through 5.1 innings of a no-decision effort. Much like Florida, Milwaukee’s bullpen has been strong this season, as there is no shame in an overall 3.85 ERA.

Though both starting pitchers look like gas cans on paper, neither one is going to last too long into this game. Parra has been more effective of late after a shaky first few starts of the season, and if he can hold the Marlins to three runs over six innings or so, this ‘total’ is going to be hard to reach, as Koronka’s leash is going to be short. The Marlins have scored more than four runs in just two of their L/9. If that’s the case, it’s difficult seeing the Brew Crew put up a touchdown to beat us today.

Rose’s Recommendation: 2* Under 10 -105

(Rating Scale: 1* – 5*)