A-Rod continues quest for 600 vs. Indians

Baseball Betting Lines

07/27/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees used the long ball to come through with a win over the Cleveland Indians last night, but none came off the bat of Alex Rodriguez.

With their star slugger still stuck on 599 career home runs, the Yankees vie for a second straight victory in this four-game series when the defending world champions return to Progressive Field this evening.

Rodriguez failed in his attempt to become the seventh player in major league history to reach the 600-homer milestone in Monday's opener of this set, but the Yankees did receive round-trippers from Curtis Granderson and Nick Swisher in their 3-2 triumph over the Indians. Granderson's shot, a two-run blast off Tribe starter Jake Westbrook in the top of the eighth inning, erased a 2-1 deficit and helped give New York its fifth win in its last six contests.

Westbrook (6-7) had limited the Yankees' potent offense to one run over the first seven innings, but gave up a leadoff single to Jorge Posada in the eighth and Granderson followed with a deep drive into the right-field seats to put New York ahead.

"I don't know exactly [about] the location," said Westbrook of the pitch. "I mean, [Granderson's] a good low-ball hitter and that's what I'm trying to do is keep the ball down and get a double play -- and he hit a homer."

Granderson's homer also made a winner out of Javier Vazquez (9-7) after the Yankee starter held Cleveland to two runs and five hits over seven innings. Mariano Rivera protected the lead with a scoreless ninth to notch his 21st save of the year.

Rodriguez finished 0-for-4 and has now gone four games since hitting career homer No. 599 in a win over Kansas City last Thursday. The three-time American League MVP will continue his quest tonight, when he'll also be celebrating his 35th birthday.

"I'm not really concerned about it," said Rodriguez of reaching the mark. "It's going to come whether it's this week, or next week or next month. The important thing for me is to stay within the game, take my walks. It all comes back to the same fundamentals."

Rodriguez, as well as the rest of his Yankee teammates, will be going up against an unfamiliar opponent this evening, with the Indians tabbing Josh Tomlin to make his first major league start. The young right-hander will be taking the rotation spot of Aaron Laffey, placed on the disabled list last week due to a fatigued left shoulder.

Tomlin earned tonight's assignment by compiling an 8-4 record over 20 appearances (17 starts) with Triple-A Columbus, and his 2.68 earned run average currently ranks second-best in the International League. The 25-year- old has been a consistent winner after since being selected by the Tribe in the 19th round of the 2006 draft, having gone 51-24 over five seasons in the minors.

The Yankees bring a far more experienced pitcher into the fray tonight, with former Indians star CC Sabathia set to take on his original team. The All-Star southpaw will be taking aim at his 150th career victory when he takes the mound, in addition to trying to become the AL's first 14-game winner of the season.

Sabathia is tied with Tampa Bay's David Price for the league lead in wins and enters tonight's game having come out on top in each of his last nine decisions. The New York ace is unbeaten in 11 straight starts since his most recent loss, which took place against the crosstown-rival Mets on May 23.

He extended his remarkable win streak in the Yankees' 10-4 triumph over Kansas City on Thursday, although Sabathia wasn't at his best that night. He was touched for four runs (three earned) and gave up a season high-tying 11 hits over 6 1/3 innings, but did register nine strikeouts for the game.

Sabathia broke into the majors with the Indians in 2001 and pitched 7 1/2 seasons with Cleveland before being traded to Milwaukee midway through the 2008 campaign. He amassed a 106-71 record during his tenure with the Tribe and captured the AL's Cy Young Award after going 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA in 2007.

The 30-year-old did take on the Indians at Progressive Field once last season, and dealt his ex-club a loss with seven innings of three-run ball that night. Sabathia also recorded a pair of no-decisions in two other starts against Cleveland, including a May 29 clash at Yankee Stadium in which he permitted five runs in six innings of work.

New York took three of four games from the Indians in that late-May series at Yankee Stadium and has prevailed in eight of the last 10 clashes between the teams. In their only visit to Cleveland last season, the Yankees won three of four tests from the Tribe.

Icvholdings Baseball Betting News

<< Lackey returns to Anaheim as Red Sox take on Angels
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Lackey returns to Anaheim for the first time since leaving for Boston as a free agent when the Red Sox continue their three-game set against the Angels this evening. Lackey, who was 49-32 with a 3.72 earned run averag

<< Johnson hopes for record-setting start in Marlins-Giants tilt
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Johnson could put himself into the record books when the Florida Marlins continue their four-game series with the San Francisco Giants this evening at AT&T Park. Johnson has gone 13 straight starts without allowin

<< White Sox put home streak on line against Mariners
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox shoot for their ninth straight home win this evening, when they continue their four-game series against the Seattle Mariners at U.S. Cellular Field, After a 4-6 road trip, Chicago returned to the Wind

<< Reds seek revenge in clash with streaking Brewers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Edinson Volquez aims to start another Cincinnati win streak when the Reds visit Miller Park tonight for the second test of a four-game series with the Milwaukee Brewers. Cincinnati had beaten the Brewers six straight times

<< Cubs' Lilly to make possible showcase start against Astros
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Slumping lefty Ted Lilly faces a team against which he's had career-long success tonight, when the Chicago Cubs meet the Houston Astros in the second test of a three-game series at Minute Maid Park. In Monday's opener, Rya

Braves get another look at Strasburg >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nationals' Stephen Strasburg hasn't faced many hiccups since reaching the majors, but the 22-year-old phenom wasn't at the top of his game when he first faced the Braves. Strasburg will look for better results tonigh

Reeling Rockies return home to battle Bucs >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The suddenly-skidding Colorado Rockies welcome another struggling National League team to Coors Field tonight, when they open a three-game midweek series with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Colorado, which has lost six straight g

Penguins PA announcer Barbero dies >>
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins' longtime public address announcer John Barbero passed away Monday evening at the age of 65. Barbero had been battling a brain tumor since February 2009. "On behalf of the enti

Isles avoid arbitration with Moulson >>
Uniondale, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Islanders agreed to a one-year contract with forward Matt Moulson, avoiding an arbitration hearing that was scheduled for Tuesday. According to Newsday, the deal is worth $2.45 million. Mo

Prairie View A&M names Wilson head women's basketball coach >>
Prairie View, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Prairie View A&M University named Toyelle Wilson the head women's basketball coach on Tuesday. Wilson spent the last four seasons as an assistant with the school, but was promoted when former head

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

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