Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza 4/19/2016

by Doc's Sports - 4/19/2016

We all know that Doc's Sports expert handicapper Raphael Esparza is a huge Blackhawks and Cubs fan as a proud Chicago native, so in this week's discussion we will get his take on what he thinks about betting on both of these teams right now.

Raphael honed his craft as one of the top sports handicappers in the nation during a long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry. At one point in his career, the former Vegas Sports Informer held the prestigious position of Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013. Since then, he has been splitting his time between Las Vegas and the Big Easy in New Orleans running a successful and diverse sports investment service. The following is this week's Q&A with one of Doc's most interesting handicappers.

Doc's Sports: Tuesday night's Game 4 between the Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues is basically a must-win affair with Chicago trailing 2-1 in this best-of-seven Central Division showdown. Before this series got underway you actually picked St. Louis to win, but have you seen anything from the defending Stanley Cup Champions in the first three games that might have changed your mind?

RE: I still have my reservations with the Blackhawks, especially on offense. Corey Crawford is playing great in goal, but they are going to have to still score some goals to get past the Blues. I am looking for the series to go the distance, but I am not backing off St. Louis taking Game 7 on its home ice.

Doc's Sports: Another great matchup in the opening round of the NHL Playoffs has the San Jose Sharks up two games to one against the Los Angeles Kings heading into Wednesday night's Game 4 in San Jose. You were high on the Kings before this series started so are you still confident that they will be able to advance to the next round with three wins in the next four games?

RE: I actually have a ticket on the Kings to win this series, but I do not think I will be cashing it in. San Jose really impressed me with those first two wins on the road, and the Sharks had their chances in Game 3. I think they win Game 4 at home this Wednesday night and I am pretty sure that Los Angeles is not going to crawl out of that 3-1 series hole.

Doc's Sports : Your Chicago Bulls failed to make the playoffs this season, but another high-profile NBA franchise is making some early noise in Miami. The Heat suddenly look like a contender that could give LeBron James and his current team Cleveland a run for the money in the East. What is your take on the Heat's chances to win their conference this year?

RE: Miami was one of my sleeper teams before the playoffs began and I can easily see a matchup against Cleveland somewhere down the road. The main thing that I like about Miami is its roster depth. Chris Bosh goes down and the Heat got better. Goran Dragic is playing some of his best ball of the season and Luol Deng always played James tough when he was with the Bulls.

Doc's Sports : You liked your Chicago Cubs' chances to come out on top in the NL Central Division race and so far they have played lights out in a profitable 10-3 start. They have closed as favorites in all 13 games. However, with upcoming road series against division rivals St. Louis and Cincinnati, would you continue to go with them from a betting standpoint?

RE: I knew the Cubs would be solid all the way around, but I have really been impressed with the backend of their bullpen. Looking at the entire schedule for the rest of April, I can easily see Chicago returning plus money as a likely favorite in the majority of those games. May could be a whole other story, but from a betting standpoint I would continue to go with this team over the next two weeks.

Doc's Sports: The countdown to the 142^nd Kentucky Derby on May 7 at Churchill Downs is officially on. We know that Nyquist is the favorite to win on most sportsbook's futures odds, but can you give us one or two contenders that you have locked in on in your early handicapping efforts for this race?

RE : Right now I am approaching this race as Nyquist against the field. Even the recent winners of some of the big prep races earlier this month have been less than impressive in their winning runs, so until we get closer to post time when the field is set and the starting positions are locked in, I am focusing the majority of my handicapping efforts on the clear favorite.

Click here to visit Raphael Esparza's Insider's Page at Doc's Sports for more information on his amazingly-profitable sports handicapping picks. Also, get $60 worth of Esparza's member's picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sport Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza .

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