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04/22/2009 - Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gary Matthews Jr. doubled in the winning run in the eighth inning and added a sacrifice fly, as Los Angeles held on to defeat the Detroit Tigers, 4-3, in the opener of a three-game series at Angel Stadium.
Torii Hunter clubbed a solo homer and Erick Aybar also drove in a run for the Angels, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Bobby Abreu had two hits and scored a run.
Jered Weaver tossed seven solid innings for the Halos, allowing three runs on seven hits and recording six strikeouts, but came away with a no-decision. Jose Arredondo (1-0) got the win after hurling a scoreless eighth. Brian Fuentes overcame some wildness in the ninth to notch his third save.
Curtis Granderson belted two homers and Carlos Guillen collected three hits for the Tigers, who lost for just the third time in their last nine outings.
Brandon Lyon (1-2) was saddled with the loss after giving up a run on two hits in two innings of work. Armando Galarraga started for Detroit and allowed three runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and three walks over five full frames.
"Armando wasn't in sync for most of the game," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We just didn't do much with Weaver. We had a chance to win the game, but we didn't get it done."
The home team pulled ahead in the eighth. Hunter drew a walk to begin the inning and took second on a fly out by Kendry Morales. After Mike Napoli grounded out, Matthews delivered with an RBI double that bounced off the wall in center.
Fuentes was called on to protect the 4-3 lead and gave up a single to Guillen to lead off the ninth. However, pinch-runner Josh Anderson was picked off and pinch-hitter Adam Everett went down swinging. The southpaw then hit Gerald Laird with a pitch and walked Brandon Inge before he caught Ramon Santiago staring at strike three.
"It always feels good to get big hits," Matthews said. "I never faced him before. It was a fastball in the middle of the plate and I just try to keep it as simple as possible. My emotions spilled out tonight. It was great to get this win."
Granderson led off the game by launching Weaver's third pitch over the center field wall. It was his 18th career leadoff home run. Detroit scratched out another run in the second inning when Inge singled in Guillen.
The Angels got a run back in the home half and were threatening for more. Morales singled and Napoli walked to open the frame, and a fly ball off the bat of Matthews advanced Morales to third. Aybar then drove in a run with a base hit and Chone Figgins lined a single to load the bases for Howie Kendrick, who grounded into a force out at home. Galarraga then retired Maicer Izturis on a grounder to avoid further damage.
Granderson homered leading off the third and Matthews hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom half.
Hunter went deep with two gone in the fifth inning to tie the game at three.
Game Notes
Angels manager Mike Scioscia was ejected in the sixth by home plate umpire Tim Timmons...The Angels were 6-3 versus Detroit last season...Los Angeles left eight men on base, while the Tigers stranded six.
<< Sharks avoid 3-0 hole, top Ducks in Game 3
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Patrick Marleau's power-play goal in the third
period provided the difference, as the San Jose Sharks saved their Western
Conference quarterfinal series with a 4-3 win over Anaheim in Game 3.
The top-seed
<< Seattle, Washburn continue strong start against Rays
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jarrod Washburn tossed seven strong innings to
earn his third win in as many starts to open the season, as the Seattle
Mariners opened a three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays with a 4-2 win
at Safe
<< Roy scores 42 as Blazers even series with Rockets
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Roy put the Trail Blazers on his
back, netting 42 points, to carry Portland to a 107-103 victory over Houston
in Game 2 of their Western Conference quarterfinal series at the Rose Garden.
Roy,
<< Astros end Dodgers' winning streak at eight games
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Miguel Tejada batted 2-for-5 with a double and
three runs batted in, as the Houston Astros topped Los Angeles, 8-5, snapping
the Dodgers' eight-game winning streak.
Carlos Lee hit a two-run homer as part of
Helton, Rockies edge D-Backs >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Todd Helton went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer,
as the Colorado Rockies hung on to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 9-6, in the
second game of a three-game set at Chase Field.
Helton had three RBI and three r
Mutombo says his career is over >>
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Houston Rockets center Dikembe Mutombo told
Houston media outlets his career his over after suffering a knee injury in the
team's playoff game against the Trail Blazers on Tuesday.
In the first quarter of
Report: Rose to be named season's top rookie >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bulls have called a news conference
for this afternoon, when it's expected guard Derrick Rose will be named the
NBA's Rookie of the Year.
A Chicago native, Rose was drafted first overall by th
Hawks aim for 2-0 edge in series with Heat >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Heat hope to bounce back from an awful
performance in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinals series with
the Atlanta Hawks when the two teams resume the set at Philips Arena tonight.
Josh
Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."
When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules.
The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.
The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.
“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”
The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.
“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”
The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.
“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”
Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.
“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."
So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?
“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.
Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.
Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.
Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.
“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.
Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.
The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.
“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.
Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.
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Chicago, IL - New Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and star linebacker Brian Urlacher shot down reports of a rift, saying they're simply not true.
"There's nothing between us," Cutler said Thursday, when he reported to training camp. "I just want to put that to rest. There never has been anything between us."
Urlacher added: "I never said what I was quoted as saying and that's it. I have a lot of respect for Jay. I think Jay knows that."
Former Bears receiver Bobby Wade caused a stir when he told Minneapolis radio station KFAN-AM that Urlacher used a profanity while questioning Cutler's manhood during a conversation in Las Vegas last weekend. Wade, who now plays for the Vikings, said Urlacher used a profane version of the word "wimp" during the interview that had to be edited out.
go radio station WSCR-AM also reported that Urlacher had to be restrained from confronting Cutler during organized team activities.
"I wouldn't go face-to-face with Brian, anyway," Cutler said. "No, that's never happened. I've hung out with Brian away from the facility numerous times and we've always gotten along."
Urlacher, noting he was limited by a groin injury, denied the reports in an interview with the Chicago Tribune and did it again when he reported to camp.
"I didn't practice this summer, so I don't know how I would fight the guy if I didn't practice," Urlacher said. "We have no problems. I'm excited about football starting. I'm excited to have him as our quarterback."
Why would Wade say that?
"I don't know," Urlacher said. "Maybe he's jealous because we have a good quarterback now."
Cutler said the first he heard of any friction was when he got a call from Urlacher to clear the air. Urlacher, however, said he had already taken several calls from teammates wondering if the reports were true when Cutler phoned.
"He called me and I said, What's up (expletive), what are you doing?'" a grinning Urlacher said, uttering the same word he allegedly used with Wade. "It's so dumb to me that this even got to this point, but it did and then here we are."
better place after going 9-7 and missing the playoffs for the second straight year. They have a franchise quarterback for the first time in decades after acquiring Cutler in an offseason trade with Denver. But there are questions about his attitude following a fallout with Broncos management and new coach Josh McDaniels.
His critics include former Bears coach Mike Ditka and former Indianapolis and Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy, one of Smith's mentors. Smith, however, said Cutler has been a model teammate so far while denying any animosity with Urlacher.
"There's no issue with Jay and Brian, except Brian and Jay are both excited about being teammates for our club this year," coach Lovie Smith said. "No more than that. We can't spend a whole lot of time on something that isn't true. I have talked to the players. Whenever something comes out, you have to address it, but it's a non-issue."
In some ways, Cutler is getting a second chance in Chicago, an opportunity to repair his reputation.
Smith said another quarterback - Michael Vick - deserves one, although he doesn't see it happening with the Bears, who lack an experienced backup. The former Atlanta Falcons star, who served a 23-month sentence for running a dogfighting ring, said Thursday he is getting close to signing with a pro football team.
"A second chance, like everyone in society who has paid their debt to society," Smith said. "He deserves a second chance. As far as we're concerned, we like this team that we have right now."
Particularly the new quarterback.
"Me and Brian have been on a good relationship since I've been here, and I expect it to continue that way," Cutler said.
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