BoSox begin tough set with AL West-leading Texas
Baseball Betting Lines
08/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Both the Red Sox and Rangers are coming off late-inning losses, but Texas has a little more room for error than Boston.
Boston will try to make up ground in its race for a playoff spot this evening when it visits first-place Texas and Rangers Ballpark at Arlington for the first time this year in the first of three straight games.
The Red Sox looked like they would carry a four-game winning streak into this series, but instead starter John Lackey allowed a leadoff homer to the Blue Jays' Jose Bautista in the ninth inning of Thursday's finale of a three-game series, and closer Jonathan Papelbon went on to allow three more runs in a stunning 6-5 loss for his sixth blown save of the season.
Jed Lowrie and David Ortiz both homered in the loss, with Ortiz notching his 25th homer of the season. He became just the third player in Boston history to reach that mark in at least seven seasons, joining Hall of Famers Ted Williams and Jim Rice.
"News to me," Ortiz told Boston's website of reaching the milestone. "Not bad, huh?"
Victor Martinez added two hits and an RBI for the Red Sox, who fell to 4-3 on a 10-game road trip. They trail the Yankees by six games for first place in the American League East and are four back of the wild card-leading Rays.
The Red Sox hope to rebound tonight behind Josh Beckett, who went 2-0 with a 2.18 earned run average over his first three starts off the disabled list before getting pounded by the Yankees last time out. The right-hander was charged with seven runs, 11 hits and two walks over just 4 2/3 innings, falling to 3-2 on the season with a 6.21 ERA.
Beckett, 30, faced Texas on April 21 and got a no-decision after yielding seven runs on seven hits and five walks over seven innings. He is 2-2 with a 4.82 ERA in six career starts versus the Rangers.
Texas looked as though it would give Boston a hand on Wednesday, but it blew a one-run lead to the Yankees and dropped a 7-6 decision. It marked the Rangers' third loss in four games, though they still lead the AL West by 7 1/2 games over the Angels.
Michael Young hit an early home run and both David Murphy and Mitch Moreland drove in two runs for the Rangers. Josh Hamilton added three hits, two runs scored and an RBI.
Cliff Lee lasted just 6 1/3 innings, snapping his string of at least eight innings pitched at 10 straight starts, and allowed four runs while striking out 11.
"I felt like I was running out of gas there," Lee said. "It was a hot day and they made me work quite a bit. I was still making pitches, but they weren't located as well as I would like."
The Rangers, who had their sale to a group led by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan approved by Major League Baseball on Thursday, send Tommy Hunter to the hill this evening.
Hunter posted eight straight winning decisions over his first 10 starts before taking a loss to the Angels on July 30, allowing eight runs over three innings. However, he bounced right back into the win column last Thursday, working around eight hits over 6 1/3 scoreless innings in Seattle.
The 24-year-old righty is pitching to a 3.01 ERA this year and is 6-0 with a 2.53 ERA in seven home games this year. Hunter beat Boston on July 15, giving up two runs over 6 2/3 innings, and is 2-1 with a 7.53 ERA versus them lifetime.
The Rangers have won four of seven over the Red Sox this year and were victorious in five of six meetings at home last season over Boston.
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coming off a devastating loss that dealt a serious blow to their postseason chances, the Los Angeles Dodgers will need to bounce back quickly when they head to Turner Field tonight for the first of four consecutive matchups w
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former first-round draft pick Joe Saunders makes his fourth
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Washington to begin a three-game weekend series at Nationals Park.
The 12th overall pick of
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals may have some bad blood boiling from a skirmish with their most recent opponent, but the team's most storied rival will be next on the docket when the current National League Central leaders return to
Rockies return home to battle Brewers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies could really use a boost to their
sagging playoff hopes as they return home for a weekend series. The Milwaukee
Brewers may provide just what they need.
The Rockies hope to continue their longstanding
Phils' Hamels faces Mets again at Citi Field >>
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with the Phillies' furious rally on Thursday night, New York figures to have
its han
Giants open big set with first-place Padres >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top two teams in the National League's West Division
will collide in a key three-game series that begins tonight at AT&T Park,
where the hometown San Francisco Giants will attempt to close the gap on the
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Right-hander Brett Myers can extend a commendable streak
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Colts give the ‘D’ its due
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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