Angels send Santana to the hill against Mariners

Baseball Betting Lines

08/30/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hard-throwing right-hander Ervin Santana takes another step toward a career-best win total tonight when the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim visit Seattle for the opening game of a three-game series with the Mariners at Safeco Field.

Santana, who won 16 games in both 2006 and 2008, picked up his 13th win of 2010 on Aug. 19 when he allowed four hits and two runs in seven innings of a 7-2 defeat of the Boston Red Sox.

He's won five of his last seven starts, but dropped a 10-3 verdict against Tampa Bay in his last outing on Aug. 24.

The 27-year-old tossed a seven-inning gem against the Mariners on July 18 while allowing three hits and a run, but got a no-decision in a game the Angels lost, 2-1.

He split a pair of decisions against Seattle earlier in 2010, taking an 8-1 loss on May 9 and earning an 11-2 win on June 5 while combining to allow 17 hits and six runs in 12 2/3 innings.

Santana is 7-4 lifetime against the Mariners and 6-5 in 12 road starts this season.

For the Mariners, righty David Pauley makes his second career start against the Angels.

The 27-year-old, who debuted in the majors with the Boston Red Sox in 2006 and 2008, has split time between the bullpen and starting with the Mariners this season, making four straight starts since his most recent relief role on Aug. 4.

He was a 5-3 loser at Boston on Aug. 25 after allowing six hits and four runs in 5 2/3 innings, ending a two-start win streak in which he beat Cleveland and Baltimore while allowing 12 hits and six runs in 12 innings.

Pauley is winless in six home appearances -- four starts -- this season while giving up 20 hits and seven earned runs in 23 2/3 innings.

On Sunday in Anaheim, Jeremy Guthrie came within two outs of his first career shutout and Matt Wieters knocked in the lone run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning, as Baltimore posted a 1-0 victory to complete its first-ever season sweep of the Angels.

Guthrie's counterpart, Jered Weaver (11-10), pitched eight strong innings, striking out 11 and scattering five hits.

In Seattle, Luke French tossed seven strong innings to help the Mariners take a 2-1 win over the Minnesota Twins in the finale of a three-game set.

French (3-4) was charged with just one run on three hits with a walk and four strikeouts for the Mariners, who had dropped six of seven coming into the contest. Franklin Gutierrez went 2-for-3 with an RBI while Adam Moore drove in the winning run.

The Angels have won eight of their past nine games versus the Mariners to take a 10-3 edge in the season series. That includes victories in five of six at Seattle, where Los Angeles swept a three-game set from June 4-6.

Cbsspirtsline Baseball Betting News


<< White Sox hit the road to battle the Indians
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The playoff-hopeful Chicago White Sox may get an added boost to their 10-game road trip, which begins tonight with the first of three straight matchups against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. It has been report

<< FCS Season Preview: Ivy League
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ivy League football coaches like to play off the idea that there's parity within the Ancient Eight. You know the old familiar lines - that they're recruiting from within the same small pool of high school

<< 2010 World Basketball Championship update - August 30th
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Halftime: Serbia 57, Jordan 37 (Kayseri) Halftime: Croatia 44, Slovenia 39 (Istanbul) Group A: Australia vs. Germany, 12 p.m. (Kayseri) Group B: Tunisia vs. Iran, 12 p.m. (Istanbul) Group A: Angola vs. Argentia,

<< McCourt divorce trial opens in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Who owns the Los Angeles Dodgers?That's what attorneys for Frank and Jamie McCourt will argue Monday as their non-jury divorce trial begins.A Superior Court judge must decide the validity of a postnuptial marital agreement that gi

<< Coyotes and Stempniak agree to terms
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes and right wing Lee Stempniak have reportedly agreed to a two-year contract. According to the Arizona Republic, the two sides worked out terms late Sunday night and the deal will be

Skidding Cardinals aim to rebound against Astros >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals will begin the last leg of what has been a disappointing road trip tonight, when they take on the Houston Astros in the first of three straight games from Minute Maid Park. The Cardinals have lost 1

Yankees return home, open set with Athletics >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees are back in the Bronx and have some favorable matchups ahead starting with tonight's opener of a four-game series versus the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees will also host Toronto and

Cubs to honor Dawson; open series vs. Buccos >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Though the season is a lost one for the Cubs, they will still try to make Monday's opener with the Pirates a special one. Standing in the way is Pittsburgh starter Paul Maholm, who aims for a fourth victory in as many st

Giants continue string of NL West games against Rockies >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Playing against division opponents hasn't helped much for the San Francisco Giants and their quest for a playoff berth. Tonight they'll continue their tour through the familiar National League West with the first of three str

Braves carry momentum into opener with Mets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Count the Braves as fans of instant replay. After a reversed call helped Atlanta maintain a two-game edge for first place in the National League East, the Braves look to make it three victories in a row this evening in

Online Sportsbook Football Betting

The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.

New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).

The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.

Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.

Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.

Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.

The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.

Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.

The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.

Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.

However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).

The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.

Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.

In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.

Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.

Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.

MySportsbook is considered one of the finest football sportsbooks according to several surveys performed by independent industry analysts considering such factors as payout accuracy and timeliness, overall quality of website, and bettor satisfaction.

MySportsbook is a large company with strong financial backing. Considered the best sportsbook for betting football online You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your nfl football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is 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.