Tigers, Scherzer open set with Indians
Baseball Betting Lines
07/16/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Max Scherzer goes after his fifth straight winning decision
this evening when the Detroit Tigers start the second half of their season in
the first test of a four-game set against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive
Field.
Scherzer won his final two starts before the break and is 4-0 in his last five
outings. Over his last four starts spanning 27 2/3 innings, Scherzer has
allowed just three runs. He was magnificent against the Baltimore Orioles on
July 7, holding the O's to a run and six hits in seven innings to even his
record at 6-6, while lowering his earned run average to 4.61.
The 25-year-old right-hander lost to Cleveland back on May 9 in his only other
start against the Tribe, yielding five runs and nine hits in five innings of a
7-4 setback.
Detroit had its five-game winning streak stopped on the final day before the
break, and with that fell a half-game back of the Chicago White Sox for the
top spot in the American League Central. The deficit jumped to a full game
after the White Sox's victory on Thursday.
Of course, the Tigers held a 3 1/2-game edge on the White Sox at last year's
break, but stumbled in the second half before ultimately falling to Minnesota
in a one-game playoff to decide the Central.
If the Tigers are in fact going to win their first division title in 23 years
they will have to be better in the second half on the road, where they were
just 16-25 before the break.
"It's pretty simple really," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We are going to
have to do better in our division and better on the road in the second half if
we are going to stay in it."
Detroit gets a chance to improve upon that mark tonight in a place where they
have had a lot of success in recent years. The Tigers split a two-game set in
Cleveland in May, but they are 8-3 there since the start of last season, while
going 20-6 overall in the last 26 meetings.
First baseman Miguel Cabrera may have been the American League's best player
in the first half, as the All-Star entered the break tied for the league lead
in average at .342 and had the most RBI with 77. His 22 home runs were also
two off the pace of Toronto's Jose Bautista for the league lead.
Hoping to slow down Cabrera tonight will be righty Jake Westbrook, who is 5-5
on the year with a 4.75 ERA. Westbrook lost his final start before the break
on July 8 to Tampa Bay, giving up five runs and eight hits in six innings.
Westbrook, though, defeated the Tigers the last time he faced them, allowing
just a run in 7 2/3 innings back on June 1. He is 5-8 lifetime against them
with a 5.69 ERA in 22 games (19 starts).
Nobody could have used the All-Star break more than the Indians, who had
played 20 straight games to finish the first half. Cleveland, of course, is in
the midst of a rebuilding year and currently sits 34-54, 16 games back of the
White Sox.
Cleveland, which lost five of six before the break, has endured a ton of
injuries with the likes Grady Sizemore, Shin-Soo Choo and Asdrubal Cabrera all
sidelined. While Sizemore is done for the year, Choo and Cabrera are nearing a
return.
However, those injuries have paved the way for players like Carlos Santana to
come to the forefront. Santana hit .284 with five home runs and 16 RBI in 29
games since being recalled.
<< Closing birdie saves Mickelson
St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With the wind picking up, the cut
line will likely climb through Friday afternoon, and possibly into Saturday
morning, at the British Open.
Phil Mickelson birdied the 18th hole Friday to post
<< Redick stays in Orlando
Orlando, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Magic have matched the Chicago Bulls' offer
sheet for J.J. Redick, meaning the shooting guard will remain in Orlando for
the foreseeable future.
The Bulls had given Redick, a restricted free agent, a r
<< Line of Scrimmage: NFL GameChangers '10: Running Backs
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - In addition to being three people who have
never been in my kitchen, former NFL running backs Troy Hambrick, Greg Hill,
and Neal Anderson all share another important commonality - they all followed
legends.
<< Oosthuizen moves in front at St. Andrews
St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - South African Louis Oosthuizen carded
a five-under 67 Friday to move to the top of the leaderboard in the early
stages of the second round at the British Open.
His two-round total of 12-under-pa
<< Lincecum blanks Mets
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tim Lincecum shut out the Mets, becoming
the second-fastest Giants pitcher to win 50 games, as San Francisco posted a
2-0 victory in the opener of a four-game set at AT&T Park.
It took the hard-th
Reds, Rockies get second half started in Cincinnati >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two potential National League playoff teams square off
tonight when the Cincinnati Reds host the Colorado Rockies in the opening
contest of a three-game weekend series at Great American Ball Park.
The Reds enter the season
First-place Braves resume series with Brewers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With rookie sensation Jason Heyward back in the outfield
for the Atlanta Braves, things may get a bit easier for the current National
League East leaders. Tonight Heyward and the Braves will resume a four-game
series versus t
Cardinals turn to Garcia versus Dodgers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals hope that rookie starter Jaime
Garcia can duplicate what Chris Carpenter did last night when he takes the
ball Friday in the second portion of a four-game series versus the Los Angeles
Dodgers at Busch
Padres aim to extend division lead in matchup vs. last-place D-Backs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The best team in the National League West, the San Diego
Padres, will begin the second half of the season Friday against the last-place
Arizona Diamondbacks in the opener of a three-game series at Petco Park.
San Diego is
Cubs hope to build off big win in second test with Phils >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs know they have a long and difficult road
ahead of them if they are to get back into contention in the National League
Central. More games like Thursday's second-half opener should make that
journey smoother.
Brandon Roy Favorite to Win 2007 NBA Rookie of the Year
Portland TrailBlazer’s guard, Brandon Roy, is MySportsbook.com’s overwhelming favorite to win the NBA Rookie of the Year odds.
Despite missing 20 games due to an injury earlier this season, Roy has definitely put up the best numbers of his 1st year peers. In 32 games, Roy is averaging 15.3 PPG, 4.2 boards and 3.5 assists in over 33 minutes of play per game. While most rookies breakdown as the season progresses (see Morrison), Roy is only getting stronger as his playing time and scoring average has increased each month.
With 30 or so games left in the regular season, Roy isn’t a lock for the award by any means. Other rookies are putting together some pretty impressive campaigns and a few could give Roy a run for the award with increased playing time. Heading the list is first pick, Andrea Bargnani of the Toronto Raptors. Even though he has started only two games all season, Bargnani is averaging 10.3 PPPG while shooting 35% from deep.
Randy Foye of the Minnesota Timberwolves could be set to give Roy the best competition NBA Rookie of the Year betting lines. With the benching of Mike James, Foye looks like he could be the starter in the T-Wolves backcourt for the rest of the season. So far, Foye has averaged 9 PPG and 2.4 assists in just under 21 minutes per game. With his new role of starter, Foye’s numbers will definitely increase. In his first game as the new starting guard this past Sunday, Foye had 10 points; five rebounds and 8 assists. More importantly, he logged 34 minutes of playing time; his third highest run of the season.
Adam Morrison, of the Charlotte Bobcats, was the favorite early on in the season after averaging 15+ PPG through the first month of the season. Ever since his torrid start, Morrison’s point production has declined each month. This really isn’t surprising, considering at 6’8” he only weighs 205 lbs. Obviously he will need to hit the weights big time during the off-season in order to keep from breaking down in the future.
Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to bet on the NBA. With the regular season about to hit the homestretch, it is important to point out that MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.
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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
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