Halladay aims to pitch surging Phils past Brewers
Baseball Betting Lines
09/04/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Roy Halladay goes after win No. 17 this evening, when the playoff-hopeful Philadelphia Phillies continue their three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citizens Bank Park.
Halladay has lost his last two starts, though, despite quality outings that have seen him surrender six runs in 14 innings. The Phillies, however, have provided him with just two runs in those outings.
On Monday in Los Angeles, Halladay allowed three runs and 10 hits in seven innings, but the Phillies were one-hit in the 3-0 setback to the Dodgers. The loss dropped Halladay to 16-10 on the year to go along with the second-best earned run average in the National League at 2.27. His 190 strikeouts are also one shy of Los Angeles left-hander Clayton Kershaw's NL lead.
Halladay, who is 10-5 with a 1.95 ERA at Citizens Bank Park this year, lost to the Brewers the only other time he faced them, giving up four runs and seven hits in six innings back in 2005.
Cole Hamels pulled the Phillies within a game of first place in the National League East on Friday, as the left-hander twirled seven strong innings and Carlos Ruiz drove in the game's lone run in Philadelphia's 1-0 win.
Philadelphia has now held the opposition to one run or less in five of its past seven games.
Hamels (9-10) gave up just three hits to go with seven strikeouts and three walks to pick up his second straight win. Ryan Madson recorded his fifth save of the year by throwing a scoreless ninth.
The Phillies, who have now won four in a row and seven of eight, improved to a major league best 29-12 since July 21 and closed the gap even further on the division-leading Atlanta Braves, who lost to Florida on Friday.
"When you're in first place and people are chasing you and you lose and it's close, you know exactly what's going on and where you're at," said Phils manager Charlie Manuel when asked about the Braves. "We've just got to keep on playing. But they feel us. I think they know where we're at."
Brewers starter Chris Capuano (2-3) was solid in five frames, allowing one run on four hits to suffer the hard-luck loss. He fanned four batters and walked two for Milwaukee, which has lost four straight.
Getting the call for Milwaukee this evening will be righty Dave Bush, who is 7-11 with a 4.71 ERA. Bush picked up a win against Pittsburgh on Sunday, as he allowed four runs (three earned) and seven hits in seven innings.
Bush carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning in his last trip to Philadelphia, but lost to the Phillies earlier in the season. He is 1-2 lifetime against them with a 5.40 ERA in nine starts.
Philadelphia swept a three-game set in Milwaukee back in May and has won six of the past eight meetings between the two clubs.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays own the best road record of any team in the majors this season, in part due to their success at Baltimore's Camden Yards. The postseason contenders will have their sights set on another victory over the hom
<< Braves try to bounce back in key series with Marlins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Johnson hopes for a better result than the last time
he faced Atlanta when he and the Florida Marlins continue their three-game
set with the Braves tonight at Sun Life Stadium.
Johnson surrendered just three hits and
<< Rockies try to pin ninth straight loss on reeling Padres
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres try to avoid a ninth straight loss
this afternoon, when they play the middle test of their three-game series with
the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park.
San Diego's slide continued in the opener of this s
<< Cards seek to gain further ground on first-place Reds
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Wainwright tries once again to become the National
League's first 18-game winner when the St. Louis Cardinals continue their
three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds today at Busch Stadium.
Like his team, Wainwri
<< Marquee mound matchup on tap in Angels-A's tilt
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -- This afternoon's showdown between the Los Angeles Angels
of Anaheim and Oakland Athletics may have little effect on the American League
playoff race, but fans attending the Coliseum today should be treated to a
top-notch pit
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pittsburgh lefty Paul Maholm can make it two straight wins for the Pirates and end his own four-decision skid tonight, when the Washington Nationals return to PNC Park for the middle test of a three-game weekend series. T
Tigers vie to break even in matchup with Royals >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers can pull back to .500 in the midst of a
lengthy second-half slump tonight, when they visit Kauffman Stadium for the
second of three weekend games with the host Kansas City Royals.
The Tigers won Friday's
D-Backs host Astros, shoot for fifth straight win >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Recent trade acquisition Joe Saunders tries to make it two
wins in a row for the first time since arriving in Arizona tonight, when the
Diamondbacks meet the Houston Astros in the middle matchup of a three-game
weekend series
Dodgers hoping to further cripple Giants' playoff hopes >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Cain tries to make it two straight wins against the
club that has given him more trouble than any other team in his young career
when the San Francisco Giants continue their three-game set against the Los
Angeles Dodgers
Mariners, Indians to go at it again in Emerald City >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -- The Seattle Mariners will attempt to build off an
impressive pitching performance when the American League West cellar-dwellers
take on the Cleveland Indians tonight in the continuation of a four-game
series between last-pla
Online Sportsbook Football Betting
Colts give the ‘D’ its due
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards
Football Betting Lines
The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.
Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.
Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.
A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.
Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.
Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.
Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.
And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.
2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win
Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1
Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1
Donald Brown (IND) 5/1
Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1
Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1
Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1
Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1
Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1
Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1
Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1
Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1
Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1
Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1
Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1
Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1
Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1
Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1
LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1
Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2
Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1
Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1
Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1
Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1
Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1
Jason Smith (STL) 40/1
Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1
Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1
Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1
Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2
Pat White (MIA) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 9/1
To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs.
For sports betting with credit cards site go to BettingExpress.com as well.