Ishikawa's hit sends Giants to sweep of Arizona

Baseball Betting Lines

07/25/2010 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Travis Ishikawa knocked in the winning run in the 10th inning to lift San Francisco over Arizona, 3-2, to complete a four-game sweep.

Sergio Romo (3-3) hurled a scoreless ninth for the win and Brian Wilson did the same in the 10th to earn his 29th save.

Buster Posey continued his hot streak by going 4-for-5 with a pair of doubles and drove in a run to extend his hitting streak to 18 games. Aubrey Huff also drove in a run for the Giants, who have won eight of 10 overall.

Esmerling Vasquez (1-3) took the loss after allowing the game-deciding hit for the Diamondbacks, who got a two-run double from starter Barry Enright in the setback.

Arizona's defeat was overshadowed by a deal the club made with the Angels during the contest. Workhorse starter Dan Haren was shipped to the Halos in exchange for starter Joe Saunders, reliever Rafael Rodriguez, prospect hurler Patrick Corbin and a player to be named later.

Posey began the 10th against Vasquez with a double, and moved up on a groundout. Nate Schierholtz was intentionally walked but was caught stealing second ahead of Ishikawa's game-deciding single to right field.

Wilson turned aside the D-Backs in order in the bottom half to wrap up the game.

Posey's double drove in Huff with two down in the first, but Enright's double put the home team ahead in the home half. Gerardo Parra and Augie Ojeda both scored after hitting back-to-back two-out singles.

Edgar Renteria laced a one-out double in the San Francisco fifth and came in when Huff followed with a base hit.

Giants starter Tim Lincecum could have snapped the tie in the eighth, but he struck out swinging with runners on second and third.

Arizona then failed to push across a winning run in the ninth against Romo despite having runners on the corners with one down.

Game Notes

San Francisco has won seven of nine against Arizona this season...Haren arrived in Phoenix in an eight-player deal with Oakland prior to the 2008 season. He went 37-26 with a 3.56 ERA and five complete games in 87 starts over two-plus seasons...Saunders has gone 54-32 with a 4.29 ERA in 115 starts over five-plus years with the Angels...Lincecum allowed nine hits and two runs with five strikeouts over eight innings, while Enright yielded eight hits and two runs over six full frames...This was San Francisco's first four- game sweep of the Diamondbacks since 2003 and its first in Phoenix since 2001...Giants outfielder Eugenio Velez was placed on the 15-day disabled list Sunday with a head contusion and concussion suffered as a result of being hit by a foul ball during Saturday's game. The Giants also recalled infielder Ryan Rohlinger from Triple-A Fresno...Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval flew back home to Venezuela following Saturday's game to take care of a personal matter. He is expected to return Tuesday when Giants host Florida.

Icvholdings Baseball Betting News

<< Shin holds off Joh for first Duramed Futures win
Concord, NH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jenny Shin birdied the final hole Sunday to beat Tiffany Joh by a single stroke at The International at Concord. Shin, who won for the first time on the Duramed Futures Tour, closed with a three-under 6

<< Mariners rally past Red Sox
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Saunders' two-run single, part of six straight hits by the Mariners to start the eighth inning, lifted Seattle to a 4-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox to conclude a four-game series. Casey Kot

<< Chakvetadze titles in Slovenia
Portoroz, Slovenia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Russian Anna Chakvetadze needed just over an hour to beat Sweden's Johanna Larsson, 6-1, 6-2, to capture the title at the Slovenia Open. Chakvetadze, who won her first championship of the year

<< Pirates option Lincoln, designate Donnelly for assignment
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates optioned starter Brad Lincoln to Triple-A Indianapolis and designated reliever Brendan Donnelly for assignment following their 6-3 loss to the Padres on Sunday. Lincoln started S

<< Phillies rally to down Rockies
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jimmy Rollins drove in the tying run and scored the winning run on a wild pitch in the seventh inning as Philadelphia clipped Colorado, 4-3, in the third edition of a four-game set from Citizens Bank Pa

Dixon prevails in controversial Edmonton finish >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scott Dixon won the Honda Indy Edmonton IZOD IndyCar Series race in a bizarre and controversial finish. Helio Castroneves crossed the finish line first, but was penalized for blocking his Penske Racing teammat

Cowboys' Bryant will catch passes, not carry pads >>
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -Cowboys rookie receiver Dez Bryant says he is in training camp to catch passes, not carry somebody else's shoulder pads.The Cowboys were in pads for the first time in camp Sunday. Veteran players traditionally hand their pads to a

Raburn gets key hit to cap Tigers' comeback over Jays >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Raburn hit a go-ahead three-run double in the eighth inning to give the Tigers a 6-5 comeback victory over the Blue Jays to wrap up a day-night doubleheader and a four-game series. As a result of Friday

Marta, Milbrett help FC Gold Pride topple Freedom >>
Boyds, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two goals apiece from Marta and Tiffeny Milbrett allowed FC Gold Pride to claim a comfortable 4-1 win over the Washington Freedom at Maryland Soccerplex. Milbrett opened the scoring 18 minutes into the

Guti announces Real Madrid departure >>
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Guti officially announced his departure from Real Madrid on Sunday after 15 years at the Santiago Bernabeu. The 33-year-old midfielder debuted with Real in 1995 after joining the club as a nine-year-old, a

Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting

So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.

Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?

If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)

Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).

In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.

Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.

The Bubble Breakdown
CONFERENCE LOCKS SHOULD BE INS AT-LARGES TAKEN
(assuming no auto bid outlier)
ACC Betting Odds 6 0 5
Big East Betting Odds 5 0 4
Big Ten Betting Odds 2 2 3
Big 12 Betting Odds 3 0 2
Pac-10 Betting Odds 5 1 5
SEC Betting Odds 4 0 3
MVC Betting Odds 1 1 1
MWC Betting Odds 2 1 2
TOTAL 28 5 25

As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.

(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)

If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.

Atlantic Coast Conference

Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech

The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.

 

Work left to do:

Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.

Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).

Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.


Sportsbooks to bet on football

Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.

He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.

"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.

He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.

Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.

Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.

Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.

Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.

With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.

Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).

And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)

The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.

While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.

Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.

One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.

Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.

What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.

That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.

MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.

"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.

"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."

So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.

In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.

MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.

The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.

Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.

MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.

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