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06/07/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Playing in close games has become a habit of the Los Angeles Dodgers as of late. That wasn't the case the last time they faced the St. Louis Cardinals.
Los Angeles and St. Louis square off for the first time since last season's National League Division Series, a set swept by the Dodgers, with tonight's opener of a three-game set at Chavez Ravine.
Los Angeles is 5-2 on its current 13-game homestand, a residency that has seen the Dodgers win three games in extra innings. In fact, seven of LA's last eight games have been decided by just one run.
The Cardinals would like to keep it that close this evening. The Dodgers marched on to the NLCS last season after a 5-1 victory over the Cards on Oct. 10, a game in which they outhit St. Louis 12-6 and led by four runs after four innings.
That playoff matchup came after the Cardinals won five of seven versus the Dodgers in the regular season, including two of three in Los Angeles. The Dodgers went on to fall to the Phillies in five games in the following round.
A return to the postseason could be in Los Angeles' future they way it has played as of late. The club has won six of its last eight and trails San Diego by a half-game for first place in the National League West following Sunday's 5-4 victory over Atlanta in 11 innings.
Backup catcher A.J. Ellis was the hero thanks to a walk-off RBI single.
"This is definitely the most special," said Ellis when asked where this ranks among all the hits in his career. "The team kept giving me chances to drive somebody in and finally on my third try, I was able to get it done."
Carlos Monasterios makes his third start in a row for the Dodgers and he is 2-0 with a 1.87 earned run average in 14 games, including three starts, this season.
The rookie right-hander got a no-decision in Wednesday's 1-0 extra-inning victory over Arizona despite throwing five scoreless innings of two-hit ball without a walk. His outing was cut short, however, due to a blister that shouldn't prevent the 24-year-old from facing the Cardinals for the first time in his career tonight.
The Cardinals, who are tied with the Reds for first place in the NL Central, will look to get back in the win column tonight after Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Brewers snapped a three-game win streak. St. Louis suffered a defeat and failed to record a three-game sweep when Milwaukee's Corey Hart plated a 10th- inning run with a sacrifice fly.
Colby Rasmus and Albert Pujols homered in the loss, in which the Cardinals struck out 12 times in the game, including 10 times versus Brewers starter Manny Parra.
"You want to win every game, but the plan is to win two out of three," shortstop Brendan Ryan told St. Louis' website. "Obviously we had a chance to sweep, but shoot, good pitching is tough to beat and Parra was outstanding tonight."
Pujols remained red-hot over a seven-game hitting streak, going .458 (11 for-24) over the burst with five homers and 10 RBI. Matt Holliday, meanwhile, ran his hit streak to 10 games and is batting .421 (16-for-38) with a homer and seven RBI over his burst.
Rasmus, who has three homers over his last five games, left last night's game early due to tightness in his left calf and was replaced by Randy Winn, who made his first appearance with the Cardinals since signing on Saturday. That came just over a week after he was released by the New York Yankees.
Manger Tony La Russa has yet to select a starter for this game, but it is believed that it will be either P.J. Walters or Blake Hawksworth. Walters' last two appearances have been starts, while Hawksworth has yet to start a game in his major league career.
The right-handed Walters, who has never faced the Dodgers, pitched well in his first start on May 27 versus San Diego, throwing five shutout innings of four- hit ball in a win. However, he was tagged for seven runs on eight hits over just four frames Tuesday versus the Reds, but got a no-decision in his team's 9-8 loss and is 1-0 with a 6.23 ERA in three overall appearances on the season.
The right-handed Hawksworth was one of five pitchers used in relief of Walters on Tuesday, as he recorded the last two outs of the seventh inning while working around a hit. In two career relief outings versus Los Angeles, the 27- year-old is 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA over four innings of work.
Hawksworth was 4-0 with a 2.03 ERA in 30 outings last year and is 0-2 with a 5.14 ERA in 18 games this season.
<< Braves' trip continues with stop in Arizona
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Braves cooled off a bit out West at the start
of their 11-game road trip. A trip to Arizona to facing the struggling
Diamondbacks should be enough to get them rolling again.
National League East-leading Atlanta
<< Martinez, Red Sox invade Cleveland's Progressive Field
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Outstanding play over the past three weeks has made the
Boston Red Sox a factor once again in the American League East race. If the
team's performance against the Cleveland Indians in recent years is any
indicat
<< Astros head to Colorado hoping to continue strong stretch
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Offense hasn't been the Houston Astros' strength this
season, but they were able to swing the bats well over a recently-completed
homestand.
That has Houston looking for a sixth victory in seven games this evening, when
i
<< Reds' Cueto aims to keep win streak intact in opener vs. Giants
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cincinnati Reds starter Johnny Cueto was bailed out by an
offensive surge his last time out to keep his current unbeaten streak intact.
He'll try not to rely on the bats tonight in his first career appearance
against the San
Drosselmeyer: Not the best horse last Saturday >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Drosselmeyer won the 142nd Belmont Stakes
but the most promising colt that ran at Belmont Park was not even entered in a
stakes race.
The fourth race on the card gave horseplayers a glimpse of future grea
NBA finals are Boston bound tied at a game apiece >>
BOSTON (AP) -Chin resting in his hand, mouth barely moving as he spoke, Kobe Bryant had the look of someone who would have rather been anywhere but Staples Center.The next few nights might make him long to be back home.The NBA's best rivalry is retu
Allen's sweet stroke saves Celtics >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There is nothing more deflating for an NBA team than
watching a great shooter get a good look from the three-point line.
The ball comes off the hand and almost seems frozen in time for a second or
two before splashing thro
Rodriguez leads Independence past Sky Blue FC >>
West Chester, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Amy Rodriguez assisted on the opening goal
and tallied the winner as the Philadelphia Independence downed Sky Blue FC,
2-1, on Sunday at John A. Farrell Stadium.
Lori Lindsey opened the scoring jus
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.
Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook
Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds. The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.
Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.
Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).
Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.
World Series odds
Adam Dunn 15-1
Albert Pujols 5-1
Alex Rodriguez 12-1
Alfonso Soriano 15-1
Andruw Jones 25-1
Barry Bonds 50-1
Carlos Delgado 40-1
David Ortiz 8-1
Jermaine Dye 40-1
Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1
Lance Berkman 40-1
Manny Ramirez 20-1
Richie Sexson 40-1
Ryan Howard 6-1
Travis Hafner 20-1
Vladimir Guerrero 40-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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