MLB Betting: These Men Could Ruin Your Life

READ MORE: Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros, MLB, Umpires", World Series Betting

We know the umpires are bound to ruin this series for the Astros. Maybe a blown called third strike, or a questionable foul ball, or perhaps even a misinterpreation of the rules regarding the amount of facial hair legally allowed on one ball club will ultimately stick a flaming trident into the resilient Astros(TOD). But it’s bound to happen. This has become an umpire’s series. Hence, tonight’s game 3 home plate umpire Jerry Layne’s scouting report is worth a look:

“Layne will handle second base in Game One, and take over home plate for Game Three. Layne’s strike zone is inconsistent, and his hot temper has a tendency to turn a bad situation into a disaster.”

The under is 5-1-2 in games that Layne has umped behind the plate against the White Sox and 5-1 in his last six against the Astros. So, we can reasonably see that with an under of 7 sitting on the board right now, a nice 4-2 game is in store for us. However, if we get to game 6, when umpire Angel Hernandez steps behind the plate, well, look out:

“Yuck.not a good umpire. His strike zone has the consistency of a pair of dice, and his bad attitude doesn’t help matters. Nothing is more scary than betting a game where Angel is behind the plate. You simply have no idea what is going to happen when he calls balls and strikes. Hernandez is the first Cuban-born umpire in the majors, so he does have something going for him. He’ll handle Game Six behind the plate. Joe West will be the first base umpire for that game, so be prepared for some type of controversial play that will decide the game and the series.”

Oof. Well, we’re thinking that this definitely means it’ll go six games—and end tragically for the Astros. Maybe -175 on Oswalt tonight isn’t a bad play after all?

Scouting The World Series Umpires [Eye On Gambling]