Angels solve Dice-K, down Red Sox
Baseball Betting Lines
07/28/2008 -
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Torii Hunter hit a three-run home run and Casey
Kotchman added a two-run blast as part of a six-run sixth inning that
propelled the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim past the Boston Red Sox, 7-5, in
the opener of a three-game series at Fenway Park.
Vladimir Guerrero went 2-for-4 and scored twice for the Angels, who have won
six straight against Boston and five of their last six overall. Juan Rivera
and Jeff Mathis knocked in a run apiece, and the Angels left just four men on
base for the game.
Jered Weaver (9-8) picked up the win after allowing three runs on six hits in
5 2/3 innings, striking out four and walking three. Francisco Rodriguez
allowed a run in the ninth, but continued his history-making pace by notching
his 44th save of the season. Rodriguez is now just 13 behind Bobby Thigpen's
single-season record with 57 games remaining.
Manny Ramirez homered and drove in three runs for the Red Sox, who have lost
three of their last four. Jed Lowrie and Jacoby Ellsbury each knocked in a
run, while David Ortiz went 2-for-4 and scored a pair of runs.
Daisuke Matsuzaka (11-2) was tagged for six runs on seven hits in five-plus
innings to lose for just the second time all season.
"I thought he was throwing the ball pretty well," said Red Sox manager Terry
Francona. "That happened in a hurry. Then he leaves the last pitch up to
Hunter and that's an exclamation point on the inning. If he makes a pitch
there, like he did earlier with the bases loaded in a similar situation, he
has shown that ability to escape. That's not what we were looking for."
Down 2-1, the Angels knocked Matsuzaka around in the sixth inning and never
looked back. Chone Figgins worked a leadoff walk, and Kotchman immediately put
Los Angeles in front with a homer to right that just evaded the reach of J.D.
Drew. Maicer Izturis followed with a double, and after Guerrero singled,
Hunter followed by launching a 2-1 change-up over the Green Monster to give
the Angels a 6-2 lead and chase Matsuzaka.
"Last year, I faced him two or three times and I still don't know much about
him," Hunter said. " We were just trying to work him, saw film and things
like. He threw strikes today and we were able to capitalize on some of the
strikes he threw."
Justin Masterson came on in relief, and with runners at the corners and one
out, Mathis executed a perfect squeeze bunt to bring in Howie Kendrick.
Boston started to chip away in the home sixth, as Lowrie stroked a ground-rule
double to right to score Ortiz and finish off Weaver's outing. Jose Arredondo
came on in relief and walked Jason Varitek to load the bases before escaping
the frame.
"Anytime they get something going, you try to diminish it as much as
possible," Weaver said. "Anybody can hurt you up and down their lineup.
They've got a lot of guys who are patient at the plate but they'll turn
aggressive on you, too. You've got to be careful, make sure you locate and
keep the ball down as much as possible in this park."
Arredondo tossed a scoreless eighth, but the BoSox continued to reel in the
deficit in the eighth when Drew doubled off Scot Shields and scored on
Ellsbury's two-out single.
Rodriguez retired the first two batters in the ninth before Ramirez homered to
left to cut the lead to 7-5. Mike Lowell then hit a towering fly ball to left,
but Garret Anderson caught it in front of the warning track to end the game.
The Angels threatened in the second when they loaded the bases with one out,
but a Rivera sacrifice fly was all the scoring they could muster.
Boston countered in the third when Kevin Youkilis worked a walk, Ortiz
scorched a double to left-center to move him to third and Ramirez plated both
runners with a single.
Game Notes
Ramirez's homer was his 20th of the season, making him just the eighth player
in major league history with at least 14 straight seasons of 20 homers or
more...Kotchman's homer was his 12th, tying a career high...The Angels
improved their major league-best road mark to 34-19 and improved to 6-1
against Boston this season...The six runs allowed in the sixth were the most
runs the BoSox have surrendered in an inning this season.
<< Orioles hit four homers in rout of Yankees
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Jones clubbed his first major league grand
slam and drove in a career-best five runs, as the Baltimore Orioles battered
the Yankees, 13-4, snapping New York's 10-game home winning streak.
Kevin Millar
<< Snell gets rare win as Pirates beat Rockies
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Doumit finished 3-for-4 with two runs
batted in, and Ian Snell threw seven solid innings to win for just the second
time in his last 18 starts, as Pittsburgh topped Colorado, 8-4, in the opener
of a th
<< Byrd helps Indians blank Tigers
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Paul Byrd and Edward Mujica combined for a
four-hit shutout as the Cleveland Indians downed the Detroit Tigers, 5-0, in
the opener of a four-game set.
Byrd (5-10) won consecutive starts for the first t
<< Findley's late winner propels RSL to victory over TFC
Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake improved to 6-0-5 at
Rice-Eccles Stadium this season with a 2-1 win over Toronto FC in a rare
Monday night Major League Soccer fixture.
Robbie Findley scored the game-winner
<< Robredo rolls; Gonzo falls in Cincy opener
Mason, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Twelfth-seeded Spaniard Tommy Robredo was an easy
opening-round winner Monday, while 13th-seeded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez was
upset at the $2.615 million Western & Southern Financial Group Masters tennis
eve
Beltre homers twice to power M's past Rangers >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adrian Beltre hit two home runs including a
solo shot in the eighth that put the Mariners ahead for good, as Seattle
topped Texas 7-5, in the opener of a four-game series.
Beltre's home run in the fi
Burnett fans 10 as Jays edge Rays >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A.J. Burnett struck out 10 over seven strong
innings, outdueling James Shields in a 3-1 win for the Toronto Blue Jays over
the Tampa Bay Rays in the opener of a three-game set.
Burnett (12-9) allowed only
Slowey blanks ChiSox as Twins gain ground >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Slowey tossed a six-hit shutout and
Denard Span homered for the first time in his career as the Twins clobbered
the Chicago White Sox, 7-0, in the opener of a big four-game series between
the AL
Marlins rally in eighth to stun Mets >>
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Uggla and Cody Ross drove in the game-tying
and go-ahead runs respectively, as the Marlins used a five-run eighth to
climb within one game of the NL East leading Mets with a 7-3 win, in the
opener
Lee, Cubs down Brewers in Central showdown opener >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Derrek Lee went 3-for-5 and drove in three,
including the go-ahead RBI double in the ninth, and the Chicago Cubs edged the
Milwaukee Brewers, 6-4, in a see-saw opener of a crucial four-game set between
the top
MySportsbook.com week 1 NFL lines
Now that the 2007 NFL schedule is finally out, it is only matter-of-course for lines on “Week 1” to follow. Of course MySportsbook.com is the first to churn out odds for the NFL’s inaugural week for the upcoming season. Expect a lot of fireworks the first Thursday night of the season as the defending champion Indianapolis Colts face off against the surprise of the 2007 season, the New Orleans Saints. These teams were ranked #1 and #3 in the NFL respectively a season ago so a high scoring affair could be in order. As of now, the Colts will be giving 6 points to the Saints; keep in mind the Saints were one of the better road teams last season going 6-3 SU and 7-2 ATS. The first Monday night of the season will again provide a “double feature”. Coming off a disappointing season, the Cincinnati Bengals will look to get back to playoffs and improve their public image as they take on the AFC North favorite Baltimore Ravens. The second game features a couple of teams that haven’t had too much success recently but each could make some noise if the NFC is as weak as it was last year as the San Francisco 49ers host the Arizona Cardinals. The most interesting game of the opening week will feature the NFC champion Bears as they hit the road to take on the NFL’s top team during last year’s regular season, the San Diego Chargers.
MySportsbook.com Week 1 odds:
Saints +6 @ Colts -6
Falcons @ Vikings (pick ‘em)
Panthers @ Rams (pick ‘em)
Broncos -3.5 @ Bills +3.5
Chiefs -1 @ Texans +1
Dolphins +3 @ Redskins -3
Patriots -5 @ Jets +5
Eagles -3.5 @ Packers +3.5
Steelers -4 @ Browns +4
Titans +6 @ Jaguars -6
Bears +6 @ Chargers -6
Lions +3 @ Raiders -3
Bucs +6.5 @ Seahawks -6.5
Giants +4 @ Cowboys -4
Ravens +3 @ Bengals -3
Cardinals +3 @ 49ers -3
Super Bowl line (2008)
NFC +6.5 vs. AFC -6.5
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Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting
So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.
Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?
If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)
Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).
In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.
Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.
As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.
(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)
If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.
Atlantic Coast Conference
Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech
 The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.
Work left to do:
Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.
Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).
Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.
For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com
Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com
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