Mauer, Valencia highlight Twins' demolition of Royals
Baseball Betting Lines
07/26/2010 - Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Mauer went 5-for-5 with a career-high seven RBI and Danny Valencia hit a grand slam for his first career home run, as the Twins pounded Kansas City, 19-1, in the opener of a three-game series.
Valencia was 4-for-4 with four RBI, doubling twice and scoring four times. Both he and Mauer fell only a triple shy of the cycle. Alexi Casilla knocked in three runs and scored three, while Delmon Young went 4-for-6 with an RBI as part of a season-high 20-hit attack.
The 19 runs were also a season high and came on the heels of a 19-hit, 10-4 win versus Baltimore Sunday in which Jason Kubel belted a grand slam. Kubel added two RBI in Monday's blowout.
Francisco Liriano (9-7) won his third straight start behind all the support while Minnesota has won five of six overall.
The lefty hurler blanked the Royals for seven innings of three-hit ball, fanning six without walking a batter. He's gone at least seven innings in each of his last three outings, permitting just two runs in that time.
Zack Greinke (6-10) endured a six-run first inning on the way to surrendering eight on eight hits with two walks and seven strikeouts in four forgettable frames.
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Theriot hit his first home run of the season and Carlos Silva worked five innings to push Chicago past Houston, 5-2, in the opener of a three-game set. Theriot finished with a pair of hits and Alfonso
<< In a pinch: Edmonds' HR in eighth lifts Brewers
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pinch-hitter Jim Edmonds belted the tie-
breaking home run off Bronson Arroyo with two outs in the eighth inning, as
Milwaukee edged Cincinnati, 3-2, at Miller Park.
The Brewers, winners of five in
<< Raiders sign second-round pick Houston
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Raiders have signed defensive
lineman Lamarr Houston, their second-round draft choice.
The 6-foot-3, 305-pound Houston was the 44th overall selection in the 2010 NFL
Draft out of Texas.
Hou
<< White Sox stretch home win streak to eight
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Danks tossed eight innings of one-run
ball, and Juan Pierre went 3-for-5 with a run scored and two RBI, as the
White Sox returned to U.S. Cellular Field with a 6-1 win over Seattle.
Chicago, com
<< Cubs' catcher Soto leaves game in Houston
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Cubs catcher Geovany Soto left
Monday's game against the Astros with a bruised left foot.
Soto grounded out to lead off the top of the sixth but did not come out to
take his position defe
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Haren left his Angels debut in the fifth inning after taking a line drive off his pitching arm by Boston's Kevin Youkilis. Haren, acquired by Los Angeles on Sunday in a trade with the Diamondbacks, got two
EverBank buying naming rights to Jaguars' stadium >>
Jacksonville, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jacksonville Municipal Stadium is expected
to get a new designation as EverBank is reportedly entering into a five-year
agreement for exclusive naming rights.
The Florida Times-Union reports the Jaguars
Gulbis, Tipsarevic open with wins in LA >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ernests Gulbis and Janko Tipsarevic were a
pair of seeded winners Monday in first-round play at the $700,000 Farmers
Classic tennis event.
The fifth-seeded Latvian Gulbis notched a 7-5, 7-5 win ove
Marlins' left fielder Coghlan headed for DL >>
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -Florida Marlins left fielder Chris Coghlan is headed for the disabled list with a torn meniscus in his left knee and he could need surgery.Coghlan's injury was revealed in an MRI Monday. He was hurt while delivering a pie in the
Haren injured in debut with Angels; Big Papi powers Red Sox >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Ortiz homered twice and knocked in three
runs, powering the Boston Red Sox past the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 6-3,
in Dan Haren's injury-shortened debut with his new team.
Haren (0-1), acquired by L
It's less than a month until the NHL hockey betting season opens at MySportsbook.com and preparations are underway for another battle in the race to hoist Lord Stanley's mug in 2007.
As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.
Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.
Always a threat are the Ottawa Senators, with newly acquired goaltender Martin Gerber from the Stanley Cup champion ,Carolina Hurricanes. The Sens are second best in the rankings at a 7-1 bet, and odds makers at this sportsbook are optimistic that the Ottawa squad will fare better than last season's Eastern Conference semi-final upset to the Buffalo Sabres.
Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey betting needs.
Betting Football
NFL Football Betting OnlineIs there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?
I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.
There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.
Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.
For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.
A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.
The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.
Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.
So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.
Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.
“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.
Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.
“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.
It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.
Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.
The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.
“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.
“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”
Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.
The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.
“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”
Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?
“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.