Angels play long ball, spoil Pudge's Yankee debut
Baseball Betting Lines
07/31/2008 -
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Torii Hunter, Juan Rivera and Vladimir
Guerrero all blasted three-run homers as the LA Angels of Anaheim routed New
York, 12-6, in the opener of a four-game set at Yankee Stadium.
Chone Figgins and Garret Anderson both finished 4-of-5 for the AL West-leading
Angels, who pounded out 18 hits en route to winning their fourth straight and
for the eighth time in nine games. Mark Teixeira added his first two hits in
an Angels uniform after being acquired earlier in the week from the Atlanta Braves.
"I think we pressured these guys all night tonight," Angels manager Mike
Scioscia said. "That's what you need to do. We did a lot of good things on the
bases, good things at the plate and home runs were definitely a part of it
tonight."
Jon Garland (10-6) allowed three runs on seven hits in six innings to pick up
the win.
Bobby Abreu and Xavier Nady homered for the reeling Yankees, who have dropped
four of their past five games and are now 4 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay in the
AL East.
Catcher Ivan Rodriguez, making his New York debut after being acquired for
reliever Kyle Farnsworth on Wednesday, finished 1-for-3.
Andy Pettitte (12-8) was touched for nine runs on 11 hits in just 5 1/3
innings.
"I didn't keep anybody off base," Pettitte said. "I didn't keep guys who have
little power in the ball park. I didn't do anything right tonight. I was
terrible tonight."
The Angels jumped all over Pettitte with six runs in the third. Figgins led
off with a single up the middle and, after Erick Aybar grounded out to third,
Teixeira got on with an infield single to short. Guerrero's deep fly to left
chased Figgins to third and Teixeira followed by swiping second setting the
stage for Hunter, who crushed his 18th homer over the wall in right-
center.
"We actually worked the count," Hunter said. "Early on this season we were one
of the teams that swung at everything. In the last week or so we've been
working the count."
Pettitte continued to struggle from there, giving up consecutive singles to
Anderson and Howie Kendrick before Rivera, a former Yankee, blasted his sixth
home run of the season deep over the fence in left.
The Yankees finally got to Garland in the fourth when Abreu slammed a one-out
solo homer just over the wall in right. It was the third home run in two games
for Abreu.
New York added another run in the fifth when Melky Cabrera slapped a two-out
triple to right and Johnny Damon followed with an RBI single. Meanwhile,
Guerrero misplayed Damon's hit in right and the veteran advanced all the way
to third but Garland wiggled out of further trouble by getting Derek Jeter to
ground out.
The Angels got both of those runs back and more in the sixth. Jeff Mathis
laced a double into the gap in right-center and Figgins followed with a run-
scoring single off the glove of Alex Rodriguez at third. After Figgins swiped
second and Pettitte walked Aybar, Yankees manager Joe Girardi finally pulled
the plug on the struggling left-hander and went to Chris Britton.
Britton, who was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre before the game,
managed to get Teixeira to pop out but Guerrero followed by belting yet
another three-run homer over the wall in left to make it a 10-2 game.
Nady's leadoff homer in the seventh, his second as a Yankee, drew to New York
to within 10-3. Later in the inning, Rodriguez was thrown out at home trying
to score on Damon's hard liner to the mound that was dropped by Darren Oliver.
Home plate umpire Ed Hickox called Rodriguez out, even though replays showed
otherwise.
"He said I didn't touch the plate," Rodriguez said. "I touched the plate with
my left hand. Other guys were telling me they saw the replay and that I was
safe. It's part of the game."
The Angels kept pouring it on in the eighth, however. Figgins led off with a
single and quickly scored on an Aybar triple. Teixeira then followed with a
run-scoring single.
New York tacked on three runs in the ninth off the Angels bullpen. Nady,
Wilson Betemit and Cabrera led off the frame with three consecutive singles
and Damon forced in a run by drawing a walk. Jeter and Abreu followed with
back-to-back RBI grounders to account for the final margin.
Game Notes
The six-run third for the Angels tied their best inning of the year...Yankees
reliever Edwar Ramirez was suspended for three games and fined an
undisclosed amount of money for throwing at the head of Baltimore first
baseman Kevin Millar during the seventh inning of Wednesday's game. Ramirez
has elected to file an appeal and was available for New York...The Yankees
made a minor deal before the game sending slick fielding shortstop Alberto
Gonzalez to the Washington Nationals in exchange for minor-league pitcher
Jhonny Nunez. The 25-year-old Gonzalez, who played in 28 games during a pair
of stints with the Yankees this season but was just 9- for-52 at the plate.
Nunez, 22, appeared in 26 games (17 starts) combined with Single-A Potomac and
Double-A Harrisburg this season, going just 2-8 with a 4.85 ERA...The Yankees
also signed veteran pitcher Victor Zambrano to a minor league deal. The right-
hander was last in the major leagues in 2007, when he pitched in 13 games for
Toronto and Baltimore.
<< Welcome Back Sanchez! Marlins hurler dazzles Rockies
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeremy Hermida drove in two runs and scored
three, and Anibal Sanchez was sharp in his 2008 debut, as the Florida
Marlins walloped the Colorado Rockies, 12-2, in the opener of a four-game set
at Dolp
<< Beltre, Dickey lead M's past Rangers
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adrian Beltre homered and drove in three
runs, and R.A. Dickey threw into the eighth inning to beat his former team,
as the Mariners topped Texas, 8-5, earning a split of a four-game series.
Dickey (
<< Overton leads by two in Reno; Wie shoots 73
Reno, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Overton fired a seven-under 65 Thursday to
take a two-stroke lead after the opening round of the Reno-Tahoe Open at
Montreux Golf and Country Club.
Brian Davis, a two-time winner on the European T
<< Angels play long ball to down struggling Yankees
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Torii Hunter, Juan Rivera and Vladimir
Guerrero all blasted three-run homers as the LA Angels of Anaheim routed New
York, 12-6, in the opener of a four-game set at Yankee Stadium.
Chone Figgins and G
<< Sammons slams Braves past Cardinals
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clint Sammons hit his first career homer and
drove in three runs, as the Atlanta Braves avoided a four-game sweep with a
9-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.
Sammons, who was called up from the mi
Oh Ana! Ivanovic bounced at Rogers Cup >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ana Ivanovic didn't know what hit her
Thursday at the $1.34 million Rogers Cup, falling in stunning fashion to 17-
year-old Austrian Tamira Paszek in third-round action.
The French Open champion c
Twins rally for ugly win, pull within half-game of White Sox >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justin Morneau and Jason Kubel both hit
three-run homers, as the Minnesota Twins scored seven times between the
seventh and eighth innings to steal a 10-6 ugly victory over the White Sox,
climbin
Webb gets 15th win; Dodgers offense flusters with Manny on the way >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Snyder drove in the go-ahead run in
the seventh and made a diving tag to preserve the lead in the eighth, as
Arizona came away with a 2-1 victory over Los Angeles on the day the Dodgers
pulled
Ray, Eskimos pay homage to Tucker, down Lions >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ricky Ray threw for a fourth quarter touchdown
and ran for another score in the final period, as the Eskimos rode the
emotional return of Jason Tucker to Edmonton in a 35-24 victory over the
British
A's bring Barton back from DL >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics activated first baseman
Daric Barton from the 15-day disabled list Friday.
Barton had been placed on the DL on July 19 due to a neck strain. In 36 games
with Oakland, the infielder was
Sportsbooks to bet on football
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson
JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.
Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.
MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .
''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''
Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.
He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.
''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''
Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.
Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.
With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.
Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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