Slowey blanks ChiSox as Twins gain ground
Baseball Betting Lines
07/29/2008 -
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 Central rivals.
Slowey (7-7) walked one and struck out five to win for the fifth time in six
decisions.
Justin Morneau added a two-run homer and finished with three RBI as the Twins
won their third in a row following a five-game slide. Brendan Harris tacked on
a two-run double for Minnesota, which also snapped a five-game skid against
the White Sox, and moved within 1 1/2 games of Chicago for first place in the
division.
Mark Buehrle (8-9) allowed eight hits and five runs -- four earned -- through
five innings and suffered the defeat.
"I wasn't as crisp as I've been," said Buehrle. "I got out of the first couple
of innings. I know I didn't have my command."
A.J. Pierzynski had two hits for the White Sox, who have lost back-to-back
contests following a four-game victory surge.
Nick Punto legged out an infield hit with one out in the third, and Span
followed by blasting a Buehrle pitch over the wall in right field for the
first runs of the game.
"Against the No. 1 team in the Central, getting us fired up and on the board,
it's a great feeling," said Span.
Alexi Casilla then drew a walk, and one out later Morneau clubbed his 17th
homer of the year, a shot to center.
The White Sox continued to fall apart in the fifth. Casilla reached first on
error from third baseman Josh Fields, and then Joe Mauer was safe on a miscue
from shortstop Orlando Cabrera. Morneau followed with an RBI single to center.
Harris doubled in Mike Redmond and Carlos Gomez in the eighth.
For Slowey, it was another great home start versus the White Sox. He is 2-0,
with a 5.62 ERA in two career starts versus Chicago at home, compared to 0-2
with a 12.37 ERA in two career outings versus the Sox on the road.
"He commanded both sides of the plate with his fastball," Morneau said of
Slowey. "He kept them off-balance, looked confident, worked quickly, went
right at them. He did what he wanted to do."
Game Notes
Chicago leads the season series, 7-5...Buehrle is 21-12 lifetime against the
Twins...Minnesota has won 11 of its last 13 games versus the AL
Central...Morneau has hit safely in 14 of his last 17 games...The White Sox
are 5-22 when they do not hit a home run in the game...Since being recalled on
June 30, Span is batting .342 with seven multi-hit games, 15 runs scored and
eight RBI in 23 games...Morneau drove in three-or-more runs for the eighth
time this season.
<< Burnett fans 10 as Jays edge Rays
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
<< 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
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
Maddux ends career-long 14-start winless streak against D-Backs >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Greg Maddux got his first win since May 10
and the San Diego Padres downed the Arizona Diamondbacks, 8-5, in the opener
of a three-game set at Petco Park.
Maddux (4-8) got career win No. 350 on May 10,
Big East Conference odds
Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence
 Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.
Work left to do:
Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.
Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.
DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...
West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.
Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.
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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).
Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.
A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.
Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.
"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.
De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.
The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.
The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.
De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.
Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.
But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.
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