Burnett fans 10 as Jays edge Rays
Baseball Betting Lines
07/29/2008 -
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 one run on six hits with four walks for Toronto,
which has won six of seven. The right-hander matched his career-high for wins
in a season.
Matt Stairs' two-run homer in the fifth inning was the big blow for Toronto,
which made the most of its five hits.
Shields (9-7) gave up three runs on five hits in 7 1/3 innings, striking out
five with no walks to take the loss for the Rays. An RBI groundout by Carlos
Pena provided the lone run for first-place Tampa Bay, which left nine runners
on base as it lost its second straight.
The Rays, who have dropped nine of 11 on the road, were also limited to a run
in a 6-1 loss at Kansas City on Sunday.
Tampa maintained its one-game lead over the Red Sox in the AL East, as
Boston lost to the Angels, 7-5 on Monday as well.
Trailing 1-0 in the fifth, the Blue Jays jumped in front with one big swing by
Stairs. Rod Barajas led off the frame with a single to right, and Stairs
lifted a long fly ball out to straightaway center, his 11th homer of the
season.
"He's one of the toughest pitchers in the league," Stairs said of Shields.
"Whenever you can get a sinker up a little bit ... I was fortunate to barrel
it out of the ballpark and get a 2-1 lead."
B.J. Upton worked a one-out walk in the seventh for the Rays, and stole
second. Carl Crawford struck out, but the pitch from Burnett was wild,
allowing Crawford to reach first and Upton to head to third, bringing Evan
Longoria to the plate.
Longoria grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, though, ending the threat with
Toronto still holding a 2-1 lead.
"We always try to play hard, we've just got to execute," said Crawford of
Tampa's offensive struggles. "Once we do that better, I think our chances will
be better. We're just struggling to get the offense going."
Consecutive triples by Brad Wilkerson and Joe Inglett plated the third run for
Toronto in the eighth, and B.J. Ryan pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 20th save
of the season.
Tampa loaded the bases against Burnett with two outs in the first, but Jason
Bartlett grounded out to first to end that threat.
Akinori Iwamura and Upton rapped consecutive singles to start the third, and
moved up on Burnett's throwing error on a grounder by Crawford, loading the
bases with no outs. Longoria struck out, though, and Pena's groundout to first
plated Iwamura for 1-0 Rays lead. Cliff Floyd then struck out as Burnett
limited the damage to one run.
Game Notes
The Rays outhit the Blue Jays, 6-5...Tampa has scored only 48 runs over its
last 17 games (2.66 per game)...Longoria left six runners on base.
<< 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
<< Angels solve Dice-K, down Red Sox
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 ope
<< 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
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
Schnyder, Bartoli reach second round in Montreal >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ninth-seeded Swiss veteran Patty Schnyder and
former Wimbledon runner-up Marion Bartoli were a pair of first-round winners
Monday at the $1.34 million Rogers Cup tennis event.
The 29-year-old Schnyder was l
Greinke golden as Royals down A's >>
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zack Greinke struck out a career-high 11 in 7
1/3 innings, and the Kansas City Royals downed the Oakland Athletics, 4-2, in
the opener of a three-game set.
Greinke (8-7) scattered seven hits and two runs an
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
New York Giants betting lines
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Dallas Cowboys betting lines
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
Oakland Raiders betting lines
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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