This edition of Bookie Busters is special to me; the holidays are here, and I feel like we really built something special. This article will carry us through Christmas, so cheers my friends, here's to a prosperous holiday!
Im in the zone...
Previous Plays
Celtics -11.5 1U -1.1
Warriors -3.5 1U -1.1
River first half O +5
Game over 2.5 +5
River -1 -6.1
Live over 3.5 +2
Hoff/Werder Bremen Both teams score and over 2.5 5U MAX BOMB -6.4
First half over 1.5 1U -1.1
Hoffenheim/ Bremen Game over 3 3U -3.4
Draw +330 risk 1/2 unit +350 +1.75
1U Parlay -
1B Munich ML -155
Hoff game over 3
Sixers 3rd Q over 29.5 5U +5
Bucks/Pelicans over 124.fH 5U +5
Bucks/Pelicans
3rd q over 55.5 5U MAX -5.5
Blazers -5.5 1U +1
Oklahoma City Thunder at Sacramento Kings
first half over 118.5 2U +2
+1U Midweek action was a little slow, and we caught fire in the NBA on Wednesday night.
The last article read +235.9 +1= +236.9 Not much, but a positive we will take
Here we come
New Plays
NCAA 12/21
Toledo -4 first half 1U
UPDATE
BORUSSIA DORTMUND VS BORUSSIA MONCHENGLADBACH
Game over 3 3U MAX
BTTS and over 2.5 3U MAX
Dortmund TT over 2 5U BOMB
Dortmund ML 2U
UPDATE 12/22 208 CST
Army-6.5 2U
UPDATE 507 CST
Troy+1 3U MAX
UPDATE
Pitt TT over 24.5 5U MAX
UPDATE
Parlay 1U
Bears -2 2nd half
Rams -4.5 2nd half
UPDATE 435 CST
Bears -2 2nd half 5U
Rams -4.5 5U 2nd half
UPDATE 504 CST
Pitt/NO
2nd half over 27 5 U BOMB (-120)
UPDATE
the kidney and gallbladder plays
Sea TT over 26.5 The Mamba BANGER 8U BOMB...
Over 54.5 5U BOMB
2nd half over 27 5U MAX
UPDATE 12/25 135 CST
Thunder TT over 56 first half 2U
UPDATE 425 CST
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS @ BOSTON CELTICS
first half over 115 2U
UPDATE
Halftime
Celtics TT over 112.5 5U
Lakers/Warriors
Over 228.5 5U MAX
Parlay 1U
Over 228
Jazz -3.5 First half
For any questions or comments reach me @JerryBoKnowz Twitter.
Be sure to check out my show MoneyLine with Josh Jordan on ESPN 97.5. We're on every Sunday from 10-noon, and we'll talk a lot of fantasy football and NFL gambling. Also, be sure to follow us @Moneyline975on Twitter.
It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
We have so much more to discuss. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday!
*ChatGPT assisted.
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