C.C. Sabathia beaten by Josh Beckett, ALCS goes back to Boston

Baseball Betting Lines

10/19/2007 -

CLEVELAND (AP) -C.C. Sabathia was better, but the Cleveland Indians still didn't get his best.

Sabathia's second loss in the AL championship series forced the Indians to return to Boston where they'll have to get a win in front of Fenway Park's 37,000-plus screaming fans to reach their first World Series in 10 years.

With Fausto Carmona, Cleveland's other 19-game winner starting Game 6 on Saturday night, and a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, Sabathia was staying positive about the Indians' chances.

``I don't think we're going into Boston on a downer,'' he said. ``It doesn't matter where it is, we just want to clinch.''

The big left-hander's postseason struggles continued Thursday night as Josh Beckett outpitched him for the second time in the series. Sabathia had an opportunity to help Cleveland clinch the pennant at home, but let it slip away as the Indians lost to the Red Sox 7-1.

He promised earlier this week to give his teammates a chance to win - unlike in Game 1 when he allowed eight runs in 4 1-3 innings - and followed through on his word.

However, Beckett was simply better, striking out 11 in eight innings.

``I can live with this better than I could my last start,'' Sabathia said. ``I thought I made some good pitches. They have a tough lineup, but I felt like I was more aggressive than I was the last time and I went after them better than I did the last time.''

Sabathia struggled to find the groove that made him a Cy Young Award candidate, giving up four runs and 10 hits in six-plus innings. He walked two, hit two batters and threw a wild pitch.

It was the most hits Sabathia had allowed since he gave up 11 on July 14. He lost two straight for the first time since late July.

``He didn't bring his best stuff and he was able to battle and give us six strong innings,'' catcher Victor Martinez said.

But as Cleveland's No. 1 starter, Sabathia was expected to dominate.

The left-hander looked shaky from the start, giving up a home run to No. 2 hitter Kevin Youkilis in the first. The inning would have been worse had Franklin Gutierrez not thrown out Manny Ramirez at home to end it.

Ramirez's single off the top of the center-field wall in the third made it 2-1 and was all the Red Sox needed with Beckett on the mound.

Sabathia put runners on in every inning except the sixth.

Indians manager Eric Wedge decided to stick with Sabathia - who was over 100 pitches - in the seventh, one of the few questionable moves he's made this postseason.

Wedge said he didn't want to go to setup man Rafael Betancourt for two innings after Sabathia had his best inning. Sabathia said he was feeling fine.

``He's thrown 120 pitches before,'' Wedge said. ``It just didn't work out.''

Against the top of the Red Sox lineup in the seventh, Sabathia gave up a double to Dustin Pedroia and a triple to Youkilis.

Center fielder Grady Sizemore charged toward the gap on Youkilis' drive to right-center. He made a dive, but the ball ticked off his glove. Sabathia's whole body appeared to slump under his crooked cap as Pedroia scored.

Gutierrez was closer to the ball and it appeared he could have had an easier play.

Sabathia's postseason ERA is 8.80 after a regular season in which the 27-year-old set career bests in wins (19), ERA (3.21) and strikeouts (209).

The 6-foot-7, 290-pound lefty has insisted that he doesn't feel fatigued after a season in which he also had a career-high 241 innings and 34 starts.

The Red Sox have beaten Sabathia three times this season, including a 1-0 win at home July 24.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Matt Kenseth And Kevin Harvick Favorites To Take NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship

(September 15)—The NASCAR season has hit the homestretch with the opening event on this year’s Chase for the Cup taking place this weekend at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. With 10 races remaining to determine the Cup Series champion, leading online sportsbook MySportsbook.com today announced odds on all 10 Chase qualifying drivers capturing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.

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MySportsbook.com will offer comprehensive Nascar betting lines on every race remaining on the Nextel Cup series including driver match-ups, props and odds to win each race. For a complete list of NASCAR odds, please visit www.MySportsbook.com.

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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.