Dear Kevin Kouzmanoff,

Thank you for going 0-for-3 last night after I lauded you as a can’t-miss pick in yesterday’s Beat the Streak Report.

It must have been really tough to eschew all the sparkling stats and
momentum you had going, just to eliminate the small ounce of
respect I once trotted around Streakland with.

You demonstrated incredible discipline in each of your hit-free
at-bats, conveniently forgetting the swing that brought you a 15-game
hitting streak, the hunger that resulted in a 21-for-42 10-game span,
and the infallible memory which triggered a 5-for-10 lifetime average
vs. opposing pitcher Ryan Dempster, just so that I now have less street
cred than the Jonas Brothers.

Much thanks. I look forward to you hitting for the cycle tonight against Randy Wells.

Sincerely,

Dave

Time for Thursday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? Josh Hamilton: 12-game hitting streak, .458 AVG (27-for-58) for June; has never faced opposing Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco.

? Andre Ethier: .368 AVG (7-for-19) lifetime vs. Reds starter Bronson Arroyo

? Adrian Beltre: .429 AVG (15-for-35) last 5 seasons vs. D-backs starter Dan Haren

? Marlon Byrd: .375 AVG (6-for-16) since ’05 vs. A’s starter Dallas Braden

? James Loney: .471 AVG (8-for-17) lifetime vs. Reds starter Bronson Arroyo

? Matt Kemp: .455 AVG (5-for-11) lifetime vs. Reds starter Bronson Arroyo

? Ichiro Suzuki: Has hit safely in 20-straight Interleague games; the longest active Interleague hitting streak.

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Delmon Young: 1.000 AVG (3-for-3) lifetime vs. Rockies starter Ubaldo Jimenez.

I double-dog dare you.

You’ll thank me later …

? Dustin Pedroa: .000 AVG (0-for-7) lifetime vs. D-backs starter Dan Haren

? Raul Ibanez: .154 AVG (2-for-13) since ’05 vs. Yankees starter Andy Pettitte

? Chase Utley: .142 AVG (1-for-7) since ’05 vs. Yankees starter Andy Pettitte

Leaderboard time!

“fromomma”‘s status as this game’s bee’s knees is well intact, as our
fearless leader upped his/her streak to 34 games last night thanks to
Alex Rios’ 2-for-4 performance.

“fromomma” is officially 59.6 percent on the way to the $3 million dollar grand prize, and you know what that means …30,000 MEGA tickets! Woo-hoo!

Not far behind “fromomma” is “dick.george”, who also rode Rios
to a 33-game streak. So it looks like we’re in a good place here,
people.

In Survivor news, a 6-2 Red Sox win over the D-backs last night
resulted in “brentandcam” upping his/her/their streak to an incredible
29 games.

Eight more successful consecutive picks and “brentandcam” will become
eligible to win $10,000 and a trip to the 2011 All-Star Game (assuming
no one else passes him/her/them).

But with Dan Haren taking the mound tonight for the D-backs,
I’m thinking “brentandcam” look outside of Beantown for the sure
victory.

Top MLB streakers

? Vladimir Guerrero: 12 games

? Josh Hamilton: 12 games

? Jose Guillen: 11 games

? Jeff Mathis: 10 games (DL)

? Robinson Cano: 9 games 

Streakers successfully went back to the well once again yesterday,
as Ichiro Suzuki (10.5 percent) and Albert Pujols (7.3 percent) were
Tuesday’s most popular selections for the second consecutive day.

After a couple tumultuous months, we’re really starting to look like a family once again.

Anyway, Justin Morneau was the day’s biggest Debbie Downer,
uppercutting 3.9 percent of our users’ streaks and watching them make
fatalistic plunges onto a bed of spikes with an 0-for-4 night.

And with that said, I’d like to officially announce that I am fully on
board with whatever Kevin Kouzmanoff has got going on right now.

Kouz is currently rocking a 15-game streak, is batting a cool
.500 (21-for-42) over his last 10 games, is 4-for-8 lifetime vs.
tonight’s opposing pitcher Ryan Dempster, and arguably has the coolest
nickname (Krushin’ Russian) over any athlete not named Siphiwe
Tshabalala (ya know, the guy who scored for South Africa last week vs.
Mexico).

I know it may be reckless, but I’m putting my one-game streak on the line with the Kouz. Please don’t try to stop me.

Who’s with me?

Time for Wednesday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? Kevin Kouzmanoff: 15-game hitting streak, .500 AVG (4-for-8) lifetime vs. Cubs starter Ryan Dempster

? Placido Polanco: .500 AVG (4-for-8) since ’05 vs. Yankees starter A.J. Burnett

? Casey McGehee: .429 AVG (3-for-7) lifetime vs. Angels starter Joel Pineiro

? Miguel Cabrera: .344 AVG (11-for-32) since ’05 vs. Nationals starter Livan Hernandez

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Jason Kendall:
.308 AVG (4-for-13) since ’05 vs. Astros starter Roy Oswalt. I’d
potentially touch this one but for the fact I took a lifetime oath to
never select Jason Kendall in BTS upon taking this job. Whoops.

You’ll thank me later …

? Jayson Werth: .143 AVG (1-for-7) lifetime vs. Yankees starter A.J. Burnett

? Adrian Beltre: .222 AVG (4-for-18) since ’05 vs. Diamondbacks starter Rodrigo Lopez

? Prince Fielder: .235 AVG (4-for-17) lifetime vs. Angels starter Joel Pineiro

Leaderboard time!

A rare Michael Young 0-fer dashed the hopes and dreams of “Raysball8455″, whose 32-game streak was vaporized.

This means that “fromomma” stands alone atop the leaderboard
with a swanky 33-game streak, tying “olifante” with the longest streak
of the season behind BTS heartthrob “cruj” (36).

As predicted yesterday, “brentandcam” picked the Red Sox to defeat the
D-backs in Survivor. After an Ian Kennedy AL East meltdown (where have
we seen that one before?), our leader now stands strong with a 28-game
streak.

Nine more successful consecutive picks and
“brentandcam” will become eligible to win $10,000 and a trip to the 2011
All-Star Game (assuming no one else passes them).

That doesn’t sound too awful.

Top MLB streakers

? Kevin Kouzmanoff: 15 games

? Sean Rodriguez: 15 games

? Vladimir Guerrero: 12 games

? Josh Hamilton: 11 games

? Delmon Young: 11 games 

 

Sometimes there’s just nothing like good old fashioned home cooking.

After weeks of consistently getting burned by former Beat the Streak stalwarts, Ichiro Suzuki and Albert Pujols, streakers worldwide went back to the hand that used to feed them for Monday’s Interleague, four-game schedule of doom.

Pujols (26.0 percent) and Suzuki(13.9 percent) were far and away the two most popular selections for the dreaded slate, and rewarded their old faithful by each lacing hits in spades, combining to go 5-for-7 for the evening.

Albert, Ichiro, it’s just so nice to have you two back and playing nice with the others. We’ve missed you both just so, so much.

But now, things get more interesting. Our two leaders entering the night, “BsblGeenus” and “ecurryjmp2″, each put their hopes and dreams in the hands of …Aubrey Huff, who was who we thought he was, and went 0-for-2 to snap both of our leaders’ streaks.

How each of our two leaders put their $3 million meal tickets in the hands of a guy who hit .241 last season and was slated to bat against a pitcher (Chris Tillman) who he had never faced before is absolutely, positively beyond me.

I know Ichiro and Pujols have burned streakers all season long, but I know I’d sleep better at night knowing that one of those two future Hall of Famers snapped my multi-million-dollar hopes, and not Aubrey Huff.

Sorry, I just couldn’t resist.

Time for Tuesday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? Manny Ramirez: .545 AVG (6-for-11) lifetime vs. Reds starter Aaron Harang

? Russell Martin: .545 AVG (6-for-11) lifetime vs. Reds starter Aaron Harang

? Marlon Byrd: .400 AVG (4-for-10) lifetime vs. Athletics starter Trevor Cahill

? Curtis Granderson: .417 AVG (5-for-12) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Roy Halladay

? Placido Polanco: .326 AVG (14-for-43) lifetime vs. Yankees starter CC Sabathia

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Rafael Furcal: .467 AVG (7-for-15) lifetime vs. Reds starter Aaron Harang. The moral of the story is, I like picking against Aaron Harang.

You’ll thank me later …

? Torii Hunter: .091 AVG (1-for-11) lifetime vs. Brewers starter Dave Bush

? Austin Kearns: .167 AVG (2-for-12) lifetime vs. Mets starter Johan Santana

? Robinson Cano: .208 AVG (10-for-48) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Roy Halladay

Leaderboard time!

Our new leaders are “Raysball8445″ and “fromomma”, who each have 32-game streaks and are 56.1 percent on their way to buying enough Silly Bandz to cover the entire state of Texas.

Just because they can.

Moving on to Survivor, “brentandcam” are/is now at 27 games thanks to Adam Wainwright and the Cardinals.

And with Roy Halladay and CC Sabathia facing off against each other, basically squashing the chances of a Yankees or Phillies selection, and David Price facing a Braves squad that sits 10 games over .500, tonight’s choice will not be easy. I’m thinking Red Sox (Clay Buchholz) vs. D-backs (Ian Kennedy) might be the top choice.

Top MLB streakers

? Brandon Phillips: 15 games

? Kevin Kouzmanoff: 14 games

? Sean Rodriguez: 14 games

? Jorge Cantu: 12 games

? Julio Borbon: 11 games

? Shin-Soo Choo: 11 games

? Vladimir Guerrero: 11 games

Top selection Robinson Cano’s 1-for-3 afternoon pushed the fast forward button on 15.1 percent of streaks nationwide on a crazy, not-so-lazy Sunday that saw seven players launch two home runs a piece, which I’m pretty sure is the final sign of the apocalypse for all Home Run Beat the Streak players.

But enough with the small talk, we have some serious business to address.

Today we are faced with perhaps the most challenging Beat the Streak day on the 2010 calendar.

Not only are we still in the midst of Interleague Play, where hitters are facing unfamiliar opposing pitchers (advantage pitchers), but there are only four games scheduled, slicing away almost three quarters of our player pool.

And while former BTS stalwarts Albert Pujols and, gulp, Ichiro Suzuki are primed for the taking, 2010 BTS reliables like Cano, Miguel Cabrera and Vlad Guerrero each have the day off.

I’m fully aware that the picks below are not for the weak minded.

Today is the day we separate the double decker tacos from the hard shelled.

Time for Monday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? Adam Jones: Eight-game hitting streak; .302 AVG for June.

? Aaron Hill: .364 AVG (4-for-11) lifetime vs. Padres starter Jon Garland

? Carlos Gomez: .500 AVG (4-for-8) lifetime vs. Angels starter Joe Saunders

? Erick Aybar: .422 AVG (19-for-45) over last 10 games.

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Juan Rivera: .364 AVG (4-for-11) lifetime vs. Brewers starter Randy Wolf. Last two starts for Wolf: 0-2, 13 ER, 15 H, 10.32 ERA. Don’t mind if I do …

You’ll thank me later …

? Miguel Tejada: .000 AVG (0-for-7) lifetime vs. Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez

? Matt Wieters: .167 AVG (6-for-36) for June; .235 season AVG;

Leaderboard time!

“BsblGeenus” and “ecurryjmp2″ each survived the weekend and are now riding stellar 32-game streaks.

That means that they are officially 56.1 percent on their way to buying (roughly) 84 billion of those insanely annoying World Cup vuvuzelas thingies and obliterating mankind ’til kingdom come.

In Survivor news, “brentandcam” are still at it, upping his/her/their streak to 26 games by correctly predicting a Yankees win over the Orioles. Apparently, there is no rule voiding any picks when a team faces Kevin Millwood (0-9, 5.16 ERA).

This needs to change.

Top MLB streakers

? Brandon Phillips: 15 games

? Kevin Kouzmanoff: 14 games

? Sean Rodriguez: 14 games

? Jorge Cantu: 12 games

? Julio Borbon: 11 games

? Shin-Soo Choo: 11 games

? Vladimir Guerrero: 11 games

And now I eat humble pie.

In yesterday’s BTS Report, I eschewed my instincts and soliloquized how Ichiro Suzuki was a primo selection for Thursday’s action despite a recent 1-for-11 stretch.

I wiped the slate clean with the Mariners catalyst. I forgave the man for all his previous transgressions and 0-fers and put together some stats that on paper made him look as pristine as ever.

I even put my modest five-game streak on the line and I like to think I had something to do with Ichiro being the day’s most popular selection, as 12.4 percent of all users also came along for the ride.

So how does my metaphorical olive branch get rewarded?

With a cold-blooded 0-for-4 performance against the new Legion of Doom tag team that is Tommy Hunter and Darren Oliver, that’s how.

Sometimes this game just makes you want to cry.

Let’s just get to the weekend picks, OK?

Oh, hello there …

Friday

? Hanley Ramirez: .421 AVG (8-for-19) lifetime vs. Rays starter James Shields

? Jason Bay: .500 AVG (6-for-12) lifetime vs. Orioles starter Jeremy Guthrie

? Alfonso Soriano: .444 AVG (6-for-16) lifetime vs. White Sox starter Jake Peavy

Saturday

? Matt Holliday: .357 AVG (5-for-14) lifetime vs. Diamondbacks starter Dan Haren

? Fred Lewis: .857 AVG (6-for-7) lifetime vs. Rockies starter Jason Hammel

? Adrian Gonzalez: .714 AVG (5-for-7) lifetime vs. Mariners starter Cliff Lee

Sunday

? Paul Konerko: .571 AVG (4-for-7) since ’05 vs. Cubs starter Ted Lilly

? Kelly Johnson: .444 AVG (4-for-9) lifetime vs. Cardinals starter Chris Carpenter

? Orlando Cabrera: .348 AVG (8-for-23) since ’05 vs. Royals starter Zack Greinke

Feeling kinda spicy?

Friday

? Casey Blake: .450 AVG (9-for-20) lifetime vs. Angels starter Joel Pineiro. Blake is 0-for-6 since returning from a five-game absence with back spasms. Next!

Saturday

? David Eckstein: .333 AVG (4-for-12) lifetime vs. Mariners starter Cliff Lee. Yes, the same Cliff Lee who has a 2.77 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. Next!

Sunday

? Russell Martin: .412 AVG (7-for-23) lifetime vs. Angels starter Jered Weaver. Weaver was blasted for 12 hits and six earned runs vs. an unimposing A’s lineup last time out. We have a winner! Show the great people what they’ve won …

You’ll thank me later …

Friday

? Torii Hunter: .100 AVG (1-for-10) lifetime vs. Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley

? Prince Fielder: .111 AVG (1-for-9) lifetime vs. Rangers starter Rich Harden

Saturday

? Dustin Pedroia: .188 AVG (3-for-16) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Joe Blanton

? Manny Ramirez: .159 AVG (7-for-44) lifetime vs. Rays starter Scott Kazmir

Sunday

? Andre Ethier: .143 AVG (2-for-14) lifetime vs. Angels starter Jered Weaver

? Placido Polanco: .067 AVG (1-for-15) lifetime vs. Red Sox starter Tim Wakefield

Leaderboard time!

The three streakers atop our leaderboard — ya know, the people who actually know what they are doing — guffawed at my Ichiro selection and went with Vlad Guerrero, who’s bat has been made of molten lava lately.

On cue, Vlad rocketed two hits and our leaderboard remains in tact.

So the following threesome now possess 29-game streaks and are 50.9 percent on their way to buying a college athlete for USC:

? BsblGeenus

? dyno11Mike

? ecurryjmp2

Meanwhile, in “Survivor”, “brentandcam” continued to roll by correctly predicting a Reds victory over the Giants.

“Brent” and “Cam”‘s 22-game streak looked to be in serious jeopardy until the Reds put up a three-spot in the bottom of the eighth to win their 12th game of the season in their final at-bats.

Incredible.

Top MLB streakers

? Brandon Phillips: 13 games

? Kevin Kouzmanoff: 11 games

? Sean Rodriguez: 11 games

? Chris Coghlan: 10 games

? David DeJesus: 10 games

? Jeff Mathis: 10 games (DL)

 

It was Gravy Train Wednesday in Streakland, as each of the Top 10 most popular selections laced hits to extend the streaks of about 55 percent of the universe combined.

Robinson Cano was once again the master of this hit ceremony, going 3-for-4 against Chris Tillman and the Orioles bullpen to single-handedly push forward 16.8 percent of all streaks.

Who will our walking-on-sunshine Streakers be banking on for Thursday?

Dare I say I will be selecting Ichiro, Mr. Harbinger of Doom?

That’s right, I’m going with Ichiro for tonight, hear me out.

Despite his recent back-to-back 0-fers which obliterated streaks across the nation and destroyed friendships everywhere, he’s still batting a blistering .382 (13-for-34) on the month.

Furthermore, he’s flashed incredible bounce-back ability, responding to his previous two-game hitless streaks on the year by putting together streaks of six, three and ten.

Oh, and he’s a lifetime .462 hitter against opposing pitcher Tommy Hunter.

Who’s with me?

Viva la Ichiro!

Time for Thursday’s picks

? Ichiro Suzuki: .462 AVG (6-for-13) lifetime vs. Rangers starter Tommy Hunter

? Kosuke Fukudome: .500 AVG (12-for-22) lifetime vs. Brewers starter Dave Bush

? Vladimir Guerrero: .500 AVG (5-for-10) lifetime vs. Mariners starter Ryan Rowland-Smith

? Carlos Guillen: .455 AVG (5-for-11) lifetime vs. White Sox starter John Danks

? Ryan Theriot: .355 AVG (11-for-31) lifetime vs. Brewers starter Dave Bush

? Evan Longoria: .571 AVG (4-for-7) lifetime vs. Blue Jays starter Brett Cecil

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Ryan Sweeney: .533 AVG (8-for-15) lifetime vs. Angels starter Ervin Santana. I’m not messing with Santana. Not now.

You’ll thank me later …

? Billy Butler: .080 AVG (2-for-25) lifetime vs. Twins starter Scott Baker

? Brandon Phillips: .100 AVG (1-for-10) lifetime vs. Giants starter Todd Wellemeyer

? Bobby Abreu: .100 AVG (1-for-10) lifetime vs. Athletics starter Trevor Cahill

Leaderboard time!

Robinson Cano and Joe Mauer each laced hits last night, which means our the following three BTSers remain atop our leaderboard with 28-game streaks:

BsblGeenus

dyno11mike

ecurryjmp2

Only 29 more to go. Yeah, uh, good luck with that …

Top MLB streakers

? Brandon Phillips: 12 games

? Jeff Francoeur: 11 games

? Jeff Mathis: 10 games (DL)

? Kevin Kouzmanoff: 10 games

? Sean Rodriguez: 10 games

? Carlos Lee: 10 games

One day after getting taken to the slaughterhouse by Ichiro Suzuki’s 0-fer, 20 percent of our streakers regrouped and put all their eggs in the Robinson Cano basket; a fantastic basket to be in.

On cue, Cano delivered in spades, going 3-for-4 off Kevin Millwod and the Orioles, just as predicted right here yesterday.

Unfortunately, not everyone was so sagacious, as a combined 13.8 percent of streakers did not pass Go or collect $200, thanks to hit-free performances from Ryan Braun, Ichiro and Miguel Cabrera — the day’s second, third and fifth most popular choices, respectively.

Now, at this point, I’d like to address the bevy of e-mails that have rampaged through my inbox:

No, you cannot select Stephen Strasburg in Beat the Streak.

In other streak news, “brentandcam” upped their Survivor run to 21 games after correctly picking the Rays, who downed the Blue Jays 9-0 behind Jeff Niemann’s complete-game shutout.

16 more correct selections and “brentandcam” will be $10,000 richer and will be joyriding all the way to the the 2011 All-Star Game in Phoenix, Ariz.

I’m just so happy for him/her/them.

Time for Wednesday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? Billy Butler: .435 AVG (10-for-23) lifetime vs. Twins starter Carl Pavano

? Russell Martin: .438 AVG (7-for-14) lifetime vs. Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright

? Jose Lopez: .538 AVG (7-for-13) lifetime vs. Rangers starter C.J. Wilson

? Matt Holliday: .500 AVG (7-for-14) lifetime vs. Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda

? Erick Aybar: .381 AVG (8-for-21) lifetime vs. Athletics starter Dallas Braden

? Jason Kubel: .412 AVG (7-for-17) lifetime vs. Royals starter Kyle Davies

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Yuniesky Betancourt: .385 AVG (5-for-13) lifetime vs. Twins starter Carl Pavano. Ya know, I’ll give Betancourt the Feldmania stamp of approval on this one. He’s batting .285 on the year and has hit safely in six of his last seven games. Ahthankyou.

You’ll thank me later …

? Justin Morneau: .063 AVG (1-for-16) lifetime vs. Royals starter Kyle Davies

? Kurt Suzuki: .083 AVG (2-for-24) lifetime vs. Angels starter Joe Saunders

? Jorge Cantu: .150 AVG (3-for-20) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Roy Halladay

? Carl Crawford: .167 AVG (2-for-12) lifetime vs. Blue Jays starter Shaun Marcum

Leaderboard time!

Dustin Pedroia’s 0-fer put the kibosh on “SLaGFYmanny”‘s 26-game game streak, which means our leaderboard is down to three:

BsblGeenus

dyno11mike

ecurryjmp2

Best of luck. May your Wednesday be chalk full of Justin Masterson implosions, John Lannan hit fiestas and Kenshin Kawakami breakdowns.

Top MLB streakers

? Elvis Andrus: 13 games

? Martin Prado: 12 games

? Jeff Francoeur: 11 games

? Brandon Phillips: 11 games

? Jeff Mathis: 10 games (DL)

? Jeff Keppinger: 10 games

Let’s pretend Monday never happened, OK?

In the biggest single-handed slaughterfest of the season, Ichiro Suzuki’s 0-for-3 performance against Scott Feldman and the Rangers, ransacked the streaks of 20.3 percent of the universe.

Why such an astounding amount of streakers would pick Ichiro when he entered Monday a career .272 hitter against (cousin?) Scott is beyond me, even considering Suzuki’s .462 clip for June.

And just to pour molten lava on our pulsating wounds, Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, Michael Bourn, Kevin Youkilis and Alfonso Soriano — the day’s third, fifth, seventh, ninth and 10th most popular selections, respectively — each went hitless to snap a combined 16.5 percent of streaks.

This is not a good thing.

I’m not sure when, but some how, some way, I know we can get past this.

Hey look, Kevin Millwood is pitching tonight!

There, I feel better already …

In other streak news, “holidave” made it seven in a row by selecting Mark Reynolds in Home Run Beat the Streak.

Seven days, seven correct homer predictions. That’s pretty incredible.

Four more days of correct selections and “holidave” wins $10,000.

Not too shabby.

Also, we have some excitement going on in Survivor, as “brentandcam” and “charfdorn” each have 20-game streaks going, marking the highest streaks of the season.

17 more correct selections to win $10,000 AND a trip to the 2011 All-Star Game in Phoenix, Ariz.

Very exciting stuff.

Time for Tuesday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? Ryan Braun: .491 AVG (8-for-19) lifetime vs. Cubs starter Ted Lilly

? Ryan Howard: .444 AVG (8-for-18) lifetime vs. Marlins starter Chris Volstad)

? Ichiro Suzuki: .414 AVG (12-for-29) lifetime vs. Rangers starter Colby Lewis

(other picks)

? Matt Holliday: .500 AVG (7-for-14) lifetime vs. Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda

? Jorge Cantu: .500 AVG (6-for-12) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick

? Alberto Callaspo: .455 AVG (5-for-11) lifetime vs. Twins starter Kevin Slowey

Feeling kinda spicy?

? Luke Scott: .600 AVG (6-for-10) lifetime vs. Yankees starter Phil Hughes. That’s the good news. The bad news is that Scott is hitless in four of his last eight games. Check please!

You’ll thank me later …

? Billy Butler: .091 AVG (1-for-11) lifetime vs. Twins starter Kevin Slowey

? Chase Utley: .143 AVG (2-for-14) lifetime vs. Marlins starter Chris Volstad

? Justin Morneau: .192 AVG (5-for-26) lifetime vs. Royals starter Zack Greinke

? Hanley Ramirez: .222 AVG (4-for-18) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick

Leaderboard time!

Yeah, you know all those users who were tied atop the leaderboard with 30-game streaks yesterday? They all picked Ichiro. Whoops!

That means that our new leaders are a foursome carrying still-pretty-stellar 26-game streaks:

BsblGeenus

SLaGFYmanny

dyno11mike

ecurryjmp2

Best of luck. May your Tuesday be rich with a Kevin Millwood shellacking, a Brian Moehler hit buffet and a Vin Mazarro meltdown.

Top MLB streakers

? Vernon Wells: 14 games

? Elvis Andrus: 12 games

? Martin Prado: 12 games

? Freddy Sanchez: 11 games

? Jeff Francoeur: 10 games

? Jeff Mathis: 10 games (DL)

? Brandon Phillips: 10 games

 

With the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft set for Monday night, it’s time for an all-Draft edition of the Beat the Streak Report.

Why not, right?

I mean, I know as aspiring multi-millionaires you’ve been doing your due diligence on Bryce Harper for years, just to see how viable of a BTS option he’ll be in 2013, right?

And I double-know you’re all jonesin’ to see if there’s any correlation between being a top Draft pick and being a top BTS pick, right?

Exactly.

Time for Monday’s picks

Oh, hello there …

? 2005 No. 1 Pick Justin Upton: .625 AVG (5-for-8) lifetime vs. Braves starter Derek Lowe (1991 No. 214 Pick)

? 2000 No. 1 Pick Adrian Gonzalez: .294 AVG (5-for-17) lifetime vs. Phillies starter Cole Hamels (2002 No. 17 Pick)

? 1999 No. 1 Pick Josh Hamilton: .308 AVG (4-for-13) lifetime vs. Mariners starter Cliff Lee (2000 No. 105 Pick)

(other picks)

? 1999 No. 57 Pick Brandon Phillips: .400 AVG (4-for-13) lifetime vs. Giants starter Barry Zito (1999 No. 9 Pick)

? 2004 No. 15 Pick Stephen Drew: .484 AVG (15-for-31) lifetime vs. Braves starter Lowe.

? 1995 No. 8 Pick Todd Helton: .500 AVG (11-for-22) lifetime vs. Astros starter Wandy Rodriguez*

Feeling kinda spicy?

? 1990 No. 1 Pick Chipper Jones: .300 AVG (3-for-10) lifetime vs. D-backs starter Dan Haren (2001 No. 72 pick). That’s a 71-pick difference! Come on!

? 1992 No. 1 Pick Pat Burrell: Zero at-bats lifetime vs. Reds starter Johnny Cueto*. Cueto wasn’t even drafted! How good could this guy possibly be …?

* = International free agent

Ohhhhh …

You’ll thank me later …

? 2004 No. 64 Pick Dustin Pedroia: .167 AVG (1-for-6) lifetime vs. Indians starter Fausto Carmona*

? Vladimir Guerrero*: .167 AVG (4-for-24) since ’05 vs. Mariners starter Lee

? Orlando Cabrera*: .103 AVG (3-for-29) lifetime vs. Giants starter Zito

Leaderboard time!

Sunday’s top six options each laced hits to help extend the streaks of about 35 percent of the BTS universe combined.

Robinson Cano, who saw his 17-game streak snap on Friday, was back in his just-ate-a-star, now-I’m-sparkling Invincible Mario mode, going 3-for-4 to advance 10 percent of our aspiring entrepreneurs to the next level; perhaps Bowser’s castle.

Anyway, we headed into the weekend with a six-way battle atop the leaderboard. We said auf wiedersehen to “lisaacco17″ on Friday, but the rest survived, leaving the following fivesome atop our leaderboard with stellar 30-game streaks:

? bathetruth

? jshoreyinsurance

? khouryboysan

? scan15

? steveellis24

Each of these villagers of Streakville are officially 52.6 percent on their way to the big bucks! Big bucks! No whammies!

Top MLB streakers

? Vernon Wells: 14 games

? Elvis Andrus: 12 games

? Martin Prado: 11 games

Five players tied with 10-game streaks.

Can’t stop, won’t stop.

Residents of Streakville are either getting smarter or baseball hitters are just getting better, because the Beat the Streak gravy train was flying down the speedway in top gear yesterday.

Thanks to hits from each of the top eight selections, an approximate 55 percent of our residents extended their streaks, making their truffled lobster tail dreams all the more realistic.

Can you even put truffles on lobster tail? I don’t know, but I’m guessing if you had $3,000,000 you could find out pretty easily.

Anyway, Robinson Cano extended his streak to 17 games with a first-inning double off Kevin Millwood. Cano will look to keep it rollin’ tonight against Brett Cecil and the Blue Jays bullpen.

Oh, did I mention Cano is 4-for-5 lifetime against Cecil?

Who said this game wasn’t easy?

On to the weekend picks.

Oh, hello there …

Friday

? Robinson Cano: 17-game hitting streak; .800 AVG (4-for-5) lifetime vs. Blue Jays starter Brett Cecil

? Johnny Damon: .563 AVG (9-for-16) lifetime vs. Royals starter Bruce Chen

? Stephen Drew: .462 AVG (13-for-32) lifetime vs. Rockies starter Aaron Cook

? Carlos Lee: .382 AVG (21-for-55) lifetime vs. Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano

Saturday

? Miguel Cabrera: .571 AVG (8-for-14) lifetime vs. Royals starter Luke Hochevar

? Billy Butler: .414 AVG (12-for-19) lifetime vs. Tigers starter Justin Verlander

? Ichiro Suzuki: .340 AVG (17-for-50) lifetime vs. Angels starter Ervin Santana

Sunday

? Derrek Lee: .517 AVG (15-for-29) lifetime vs. Astros starter Brett Myers

? Jose Reyes: .400 AVG (14-for-35) lifetime vs. Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco

? Matt Holliday: .429 AVG (6-for-14) lifetime vs. Brewers starter Dave Bush

Feeling kinda spicy?

Friday

? Chris Snyder: .591 AVG (13-for-22) lifetime vs. Rockies starter Aaron Cook

Saturday

? Ryan Doumit: .467 AVG (7-for-15) lifetime vs. Giants starter Todd Wellemeyer

Sunday

? Yuniesky Betancourt: .474 AVG (9-for-19) lifetime vs. Tigers starter Jeremy Bonderman

You’ll thank me later …

Friday

? Lance Berkman: .147 AVG (10-for-68) lifetime vs. Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano

? Ryan Braun: .226 AVG (7-for-31) lifetime vs. Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright

Saturday

? Brian McCann: .111 AVG (1-for-9) lifetime vs. Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley

? Nick Markakis: .211 AVG (8-for-38) lifetime vs. Rex Sox starter Jon Lester

Sunday

? Derek Jeter: .125 AVG (1-for-8) lifetime vs. Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow

? Josh Hamilton: .167 AVG (2-for-12) lifetime vs. Rays starter Matt Garza

Leaderboard time!

All six of our leaders are walking with a hop in their steps today, as each of their selections collected hits.

27-game streaks are nothing to scoff at, folks. I have a feeling one of these six will be around for a long time …

? bathetruth

? jshoreyinsurance

? khouryboysan

? lisacco17

? scan15

? steveellis24

May the best streaker win.

Top MLB streakers

? Robinson Cano: 17 games

? Vernon Wells: 11 games

? Daric Barton: 10 games

? Jose Lopez: 10 games

? Jeff Mathis: 10 games (DL)