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07/11/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Having Johan Santana on top of his game would go a long way towards the New York Mets achieving their goal of overtaking the Atlanta Braves for first place in the National League East. Coming off his best performance of the season, the standout pitcher will attempt to move his team closer to the top spot when he takes the mound for this afternoon's finale of a key three-game series between the divisional foes from Citi Field.
Santana has had a somewhat ordinary first half of the season, but the two-time American League Cy Young Award recipient turned in a vintage display against Cincinnati this past Tuesday. Scattering five hits and three walks, the New York ace went the distance for the first time in 2010 in his club's 3-0 triumph over the NL Central-leading Reds.
The 31-year-old held Washington to one run and fanned seven over seven innings in his previous outing, a no-decision at Washington on July 1, and appears to be over a June swoon in which he went 1-3 with a lackluster 5.96 earned run average in a four-start span. The back-to-back strong showings lowered Santana's season ERA to 3.15, while Tuesday's win improved him to 5-3 in nine home starts for the year.
"I am throwing my fastball much better and for me, that's the key," said Santana after the Cincinnati game. "That's what I'm focusing on right now -- trying to be more consistent."
Defeating the Braves has been a challenge for Santana over the course of his three-year tenure with the Mets, however. Despite a 2.25 ERA in nine career matchups with Atlanta, the Venezuelan star is just 1-5 in those games and has often been a victim of poor run support. That was again the case in a May 18 clash at Turner Field, where Santana fired seven innings of two-run ball but was stuck with a no-decision in a 3-2 New York loss.
The Mets are in sore need of another big effort out of Santana this afternoon, as they've lost the first two tests of this set and fallen five games behind the first-place Braves in the standings. New York was shut down by Atlanta's Tim Hudson on Saturday, with the All-Star hurler delivering seven shutout innings to lead the way in a 4-0 verdict.
Hudson (9-4) limited the Mets to four hits and a pair of walks before giving way to reliever Jonny Venters to start the bottom of the eighth and helped his own cause at the plate as well. He collected a pair of hits on the afternoon, including an RBI double that capped Atlanta's four-run fifth inning.
"I felt good about my start today," Hudson said after the game. "I didn't feel really great out there, but it was one of those things where I just bobbed and weaved. Guys made some good plays and had some timely double-plays that kept [the Mets] from having opportunities to score. I wasn't nearly as good as the outcome, but I'll take it."
Omar Infante, who'll be joining Hudson on the NL squad for Tuesday's All-Star Game, finished 3-for-5 with an RBI to help the Braves to their fourth straight win.
Mets starter Mike Pelfrey (10-4) lasted only four-plus innings in yesterday's loss and was reached for four runs on 12 hits, while constantly working into trouble all throughout the day.
"It's definitely not the way I wanted to finish the first half, but I'll get it turned around," Pelfrey said.
Saturday's loss became even more costly for the Mets when shortstop Jose Reyes was forced to exit the contest after aggravating an oblique injury while in the field during the seventh inning. The dynamic switch-hitter will be held out of the lineup today and will miss the upcoming All-Star Game as well.
Braves manager Bobby Cox will hand the ball to Derek Lowe for today's finale, with the durable veteran setting his sights on his 10th win of 2010. The right-hander has failed to reach the double-digit mark on three previous occasions, although he's pitched quite well in two of those starts.
Lowe is coming off a tough loss at Philadelphia on Tuesday, when he permitted just two runs and struck out six through seven innings but came out on the wrong end of a 3-1 decision. Two starts earlier, the sinker specialist twirled seven shutout innings against the Chicago White Sox before exiting with the game still scoreless.
The 37-year-old was also saddled with a loss by the Mets back on May 17, with Lowe giving up three runs and four hits in an otherwise solid seven-inning stint. He's had his problems with New York in the past, having posted a 7.01 ERA along with a 3-4 record over 14 career appearances (eight starts) against today's opponent.
Lowe is 9-7 with a 4.40 ERA in 18 overall starts this season, but comes in having lost three of his last four decisions and has notched just one win since June 7.
New York had won four of the first five meetings between these divisional rivals in 2010 prior to Friday's 4-2 loss to the Braves and swept a three-game series from Atlanta at home from April 23-25. The Braves did post a 7-2 record during the debut season of Citi Field in 2009, however.
<< First-place Tigers set sights on sweep of Twins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers have taken over first place in the
ultra-competitive AL Central and will close out a three-game set with the
Minnesota Twins at Comerica Park this afternoon.
Detroit maintained its half-game edge on seco
<< Szavay beats Schnyder again for Budapest crown
Budapest, Hungary (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Agnes Szavay of Hungary again thrilled
the home crowd by defeating Switzerland's Patty Schnyder in the final of the
Budapest Grand Prix for the second straight year.
Szavay posted a 6-2, 6-4 victo
<< Yankees PA man Bob Sheppard dies
NEW YORK (AP) -The New York Yankees say longtime public address announcer Bob Sheppard has died. He was believed to be 99.His death was confirmed to The Associated Press on Sunday by team spokesman Jazon Zillo. There were no immediate details.Sheppa
<< LeBron's 'Decision' watched by nearly 10M people
NEW YORK (AP) -The Nielsen Co. estimates that 9.95 million people watched LeBron James announce on ESPN that he's leaving Cleveland to play for the Miami Heat, making it the third-most-watched program on cable television this year.``The Decision'' t
Phillies seeking sweep of hard-fought set with Reds >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A terrific first half of the season is having an unwanted
ending for the Cincinnati Reds, who'll be out to avoid a four-game sweep at
the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies when the two postseason hopefuls square
off again th
Rays aim for series win over lowly Indians >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A four-game set and the first half of the season both come
to a close today at Tropicana Field, where the Tampa Bay Rays host the
Cleveland Indians.
Tampa Bay enters its final test before the All-Star break two games behin
Creamer still three in front after third round >>
Oakmont, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Paula Creamer rolled in a four-foot birdie putt
on the 18th hole Sunday to move three shots clear after the third round of the
U.S. Women's Open.
Creamer finished the third round Sunday morning and posted an im
Nalbandian sends Argentina past Russia in Davis Cup quarters >>
Moscow, Russia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Nalbandian gave Argentina a Davis Cup
quarterfinal victory over Russia with a straight-set triumph over Mikhail
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After Nikolay Davydenko ke
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.
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.
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