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06/01/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The good news is the Seattle Mariners have been able to score some runs here and there.
The bad news is they enter play Tuesday cemented in last place in the American League West, eight games back of the first-place Oakland Athletics. Seattle is also 5 1/2 games behind the third-place Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
The Mariners are no doubt happy to turn the page on May, a month that began with a six-game losing streak and ended with three straight defeats. Those three straight losses have underscored the fact that Seattle has managed to score at least four runs in five of its last six games. Of course, with interleague play set to begin next weekend, the M's pitchers will now be taking their hacks as part of baseball's least intimidating lineup.
Manager Don Wakamatsu sent a message with a bullpen shakeup following Monday's 5-4 loss to the Minnesota Twins. Relievers Kanekoa Texeira (5.30 ERA) and Jesus Colome (5.29) were designated for assignment after both had some major control issues in Sunday's 9-7 loss to the Angels. In their place, the team recalled left-hander Garrett Olson and right-hander Sean White from Triple-A Tacoma.
The move gives Wakamatsu added flexibility with a bullpen that has been stretched thin. According to a report on the team's website, the M's bypassed Triple-A prospects Luke French (1.76 ERA) and Steven Shell (3.00) so they could continue their development as starters rather than be thrust into a big league bullpen role.
In terms of the lineup, Wakamatsu has stopped relying on Ken Griffey Jr. (.184) and Casey Kotchman (.192) in everyday roles, instead giving more opportunities to Mike Sweeney (6 HR) and Michael Saunders. After only two months of play, it seems the M's manager has tried just about everything to jumpstart his team. Still, he's not about to give up now.
"Sometimes guys get to a point where they're pressing so much that they just give up," Wakamatsu told the Seattle Times. "And all of a sudden, there's a freedom in that. Where you stop the pressing."
NO CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION IN ANAHEIM
The mob-scene celebrations at home plate following a walk-off home run have become commonplace these days in Major League Baseball. But that has begun to change after Angels' star first baseman Kendry Morales broke his ankle in one of those celebratory scrums following his walk-off grand slam against Seattle on Saturday.
Morales was leading the team in batting average (.290), home runs (11), total bases (94) and RBI (39). He was expected to undergo surgery on Sunday, but that procedure was pushed back a week because of a high level of swelling in his fractured left ankle. He will be out of the lineup indefinitely.
"When you lose a player of Kendry's status, much like when we lost Torii Hunter and Vlad Guerrero last year, the players around them have to play at a certain level to absorb and create the production," manager Mike Scioscia said.
On Sunday, less than 24 hours after Morales' freak injury, Howard Kendrick belted a walk-off home run in a 9-7 win against the Mariners. This time around, Scioscia had put in place some guidelines for post-game celebrations. There was still a celebration at the plate, but the players waited on the grass, and there was no wild pileup.
"We were just trying to be careful that time," Hunter said. "When I saw (Kendrick) hit the home run, I saw him running around the bases and I saw everybody running out. I'm like, 'Calm down! Calm down! Wait, let him touch the plate.' And I was screaming, 'Two-jump minimum!'"
RANGERS TRYING TO STOP THE BLEEDING
Thanks to a four-game skid, the Texas Rangers (26-24) have lost their grip on the AL West lead. But that's not all they've lost.
Adding to the team's frustration is the addition of starting pitcher Derek Holland to the disabled list with a mild case of left rotator cuff inflammation. Holland (2-1, 4.19), who exited Sunday's start after 43 pitches, is expected to be shut down for about a week before he begins throwing again.
According to assistant general manager Thad Levine, the team will likely bring up Triple-A reliever Pedro Strop until Saturday, when a starter will be called up to fill Holland's spot in the rotation. That call is expected to go to right-hander Tommy Hunter, although he struggled in Monday's start for Oklahoma City, allowing five runs on 10 hits in five innings of work. Hunter is 1-2 with a 4.05 ERA in six starts with Oklahoma City this season.
In other injury news, right fielder Nelson Cruz was sent to the DL on Saturday with a torn left hamstring. He is eligible to return June 13, at which time the team hopes he can rejoin the lineup. The Rangers can ill-afford an extended period without Cruz, who was hitting .327 with 10 homers and 34 RBI in 32 games. The injury occurred while he was legging out a ground ball against the Royals on Wednesday. He was already on the DL this season from April 27-May 14 with a strained right hamstring.
A'S MISSING PRODUCTION FROM LEFT SIDE OF INFIELD
The Oakland Athletics (28-24) hold a slim one-game lead atop the AL West, despite very little production lately from third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff or shortstop Cliff Pennington.
Pennington was given the day off this past Thursday, breaking up a string of 92 consecutive starts dating back to last season. He entered Thursday in an 0- for-15 skid, having seen his batting average drop from .272 to .156 over a 20- game span.
His counterpart on the left side of the infield, Kouzmanoff, has endured similar struggles. Through the first seven games of the team's 10-game road trip, Kouzmanoff is hitting just .111 (3-for-27).
Manager Bob Geren downplayed Kouzmanoff's hitting, though he did drop him from fourth to sixth in the lineup for Monday's game.
"He's hit balls pretty good," Geren said. "Just no luck. Sometimes when you look at one week or a span of 10 days, the numbers don't exactly indicate how well they're swinging the bat."
<< Greece includes injured duo on Cup team
Athens, Greece (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Greece coach Otto Rehhagel included injured
duo Christos Patsatzoglou and Giourkas Seitaridis on his final 23-man team for
the World Cup on Tuesday.
Patsatzoglou missed most of World Cup qualifying and Seit
<< Japan includes Nakamura on final roster
Tokyo, Japan (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Japan coach Takeshi Okada trimmed his World
Cup squad to 23 players Tuesday and injured veteran Shunsuke Nakamura survived
the cut as expected.
Nakamura missed Sunday's friendly against fellow World Cup qu
<< Bryant has a chance to stamp his legacy
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It took longer than he had hoped but by
finally stepping out of Shaquille O'Neal's enormous shadow last season, many
felt Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant put the final stamp on a
brilliant basketball
<< Slovakia includes injured trio in final roster
Bratislava, Slovakia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Slovakia coach Vladimir Weiss included
injured trio Filip Holosko, Martin Skrtel and Robert Vittek on his 23-man team
for the World Cup on Tuesday.
Skrtel, who plays for Liverpool, is recovering from
Lidstrom coming back for another season >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Detroit Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom
is set to return for the 2010-11 season.
Lidstrom's contract expired at the conclusion of this past season and the Red
Wings' website said the 40-year-old vetera
Mauer continues to lead AL All-Star balloting >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer is the
top vote-getter after the second set of American League All-Star
balloting results.
The reigning American League Most Valuable Player has drawn 1
Nigeria's Anichebe cut due to injury >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nigeria striker Victor Anichebe was left
off the team's World Cup roster due to an injury, it was announced Tuesday.
Anichebe, who plays for Everton in the English Premier League, was a notable
omissio
Slovenia makes final roster cuts >>
Ljubljana, Slovenia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Slovenia coach Matjaz Kek trimmed his
World Cup roster to 23 players Tuesday, making Dejan Kelhar, Darjan Matic and
Mirnes Sisic the final three cuts.
Matjaz previously trimmed his 30-man preliminary
The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.
Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.
The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.
What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.
Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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