Stephen Nover’s Free Sports Handicapping Picks

The Timberwolves had their fun upsetting the defending world champion Nuggets in Denver during the first two games of the series.

But that fun ended when the Nuggets regrouped to batter the Nuggets, 117-90, in Minneapolis this past Friday.

Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray showed they could get the better of the Timberwolves' defense that ranked No. 1 during the regular season. The Nuggets have their confidence back now. The Timberwolves are young, untested in the playoffs and face more pressure than usual being a home favorite.

I don't trust the Timberwolves in this role.

Arizona is going with its ace, Zac Gallen, who is off a strong outing shutting out the Reds for six innings. The Orioles are going with underrated Dean Kremer. Kremer has a 1.96 ERA in his last three starts. He's backed by a Baltimore relief corps that is deep and has the seventh-lowest ERA in the majors.

The Diamondbacks have scored fewer than five runs in 12 of their last 15 games.  

As an added bonus, Bill Miller is slated to be the home plate umpire. Miller is known for his generous strike zone with the Under cashing nearly 60 percent of the time he's been behind the plate the last two years.

I want Justin Verlander and a rested Josh Hader going for me in this matchup. Verlander had his first poor performance of the season in his last start. He'll be highly motivated going against his long-time former team.  Verlander still is a well above average pitcher who rates a strong edge on comeback-minded Jack Flaherty, who has a 4.26 home ERA. The Tigers have a bottom-10 offense. The Astros finally have begun playing better. They have a winning record in their last dozen games.