Cardinals aim to stop skid, avoid sweep against Astros
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09/01/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals are playing themselves out of postseason contention, but at least they'll be able to conclude a horrendous road trip today in the finale of a three-game series against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park.
St. Louis has lost four in a row and is 2-7 on a 10-game swing through Pittsburgh, Washington and Houston -- all teams with losing records. It has been shut out in back-to-back 3-0 losses to the Astros and fell seven games behind Cincinnati for the NL Central lead after Tuesday's defeat.
Houston scored all three of its runs in the third inning and Cardinals co-ace Chris Carpenter was saddled with the loss for allowing three runs -- two earned -- and six hits through seven innings. Jon Jay, Matt Holliday and Brendan Ryan provided the three hits for the Cardinals, who still have life in the wild card standings at four games behind Philadelphia.
"Unfortunately it's not going well for us right now," said Carpenter. "We gotta come out [Wednesday] and do everything we can and try to salvage something from this series."
The Cardinals, losers in 12 of their last 16 games, must not overlook today's opponent with the despised Reds set to invade Busch Stadium for three games over the weekend.
Jeff Suppan will be in charge of pulling the Cards to victory and is slated to take the mound Wednesday. Suppan has been on the disabled list with a groin strain and is just 1-4 in eight starts with the Cardinals. He was 0-4 in his previous five outings before besting Pittsburgh the last time out on July 31, when he delivered 5 1/3 shutout innings and five strikeouts.
Suppan, a right-hander, lost to Houston back on July 10, when he permitted four runs in 4 2/3 innings of a 4-1 loss. He is 3-8 with a 5.12 earned run average in 19 career meetings (17 starts) with the Astros.
Houston has been on a roll as of late with eight wins in its last 10 contests. It will be aiming for its second sweep of the Cardinals this season and won all three encounters with them from May 11-13 in the Gateway City.
In last night's second straight blanking of the Cardinals, starter Wandy Rodriguez hurled seven shutout innings of two-hit ball for the win and Brandon Lyon later posted his 10th save in the ninth.
"It's becoming a nice habit to say that our starting pitching did an outstanding job," said Houston manager Brad Mills. "And again, Wandy did a great job again tonight. He's been outstanding for the past two or three months."
Hunter Pence hit a two-run triple during the decisive three-run fourth inning and Chris Johnson added an RBI single two batters later.
Taking the mound for Houston this afternoon will be Nelson Figueroa and he's 1-1 with a 2.15 ERA in 11 games (3 starts) for his ballclub. Figueroa, who also made 13 appearances (1 start) for Philadelphia this season, lost his most recent start on Friday in a 2-1 defeat against the New York Mets. He allowed only two runs -- one earned -- in seven innings.
The right-hander is 2-1 with a 4.14 ERA in 12 career games (4 starts) against the Cardinals.
Houston has won nine of 14 meetings with the Cardinals this season.
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Danny Rocco has yet to picket outside NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis, but if the third Sunday in November goes like the last three years, don't doubt that he and the rest of the Liberty football team will
<< 2010 World Basketball Championship update - September 1st
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -
Group C: China vs. Russia, 9 a.m. (Ankara)
Group A: Serbia vs. Australia, 9:30 a.m. (Kayseri)
Group B: Croatia vs. Tunisia, 9:30 a.m. (Istanbul)
Group C: Ivory Coast vs. Greece, 11:30 a.m. (Ankara)
Group D: Leban
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Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Calgary Stampeders physician Dr. Vince Murphy
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The closest White Sox newcomer Manny Ramirez came to the field last night in Cleveland was the on-deck circle. Ramirez is expected to be the designated hitter in today's finale of a three-game series against the Indians at Pr
Alabama A&M linebacker to sit two games >>
Normal, AL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NCAA ruled that Alabama A&M's top returning
tackler Afu Okosun must sit out the season's first two games because he played
in one game in 2006 before he was redshirted that season.
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Dale Carlson wi
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as of l
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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.
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Matt Kenseth And Kevin Harvick Favorites To Take NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship
(September 15)—The NASCAR season has hit the homestretch with the opening event on this year’s Chase for the Cup taking place this weekend at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. With 10 races remaining to determine the Cup Series champion, leading online sportsbook MySportsbook.com today announced odds on all 10 Chase qualifying drivers capturing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.
One of the largest sportsbook sites on the Internet, MySportsbook.com currently lists the top two drivers in the point standings as the early favorites to win the Nextel Cup. Entering the Chase for the Cup with a slim five-point lead in the point standings, 2003 NASCAR champ Matt Kenseth has been made a slight favorite to win his second Cup at 7/2 betting odds. 2001 Cup Rookie of the Year Kevin Harvick has betting odds listed at 5/2 and four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon is listed at 6/1 to capture the Nextel Cup this year.
Hoping to follow in the footsteps of his legendary father who won six NASCAR titles, Dale Earnhardt Jr. stands at 8/1 to breakthrough with his first Cup victory. Staying with the family theme, MySportsbook.com lists 2005 Rookie of the Year Kyle Busch at 14/1 to succeed big brother Kurt’s 2004 NASCAR title. While Kasey Kahne was the final driver to qualify for the Chase with a third place finish last week, the oddsmakers give him a fighting chance at 10/1 mainly due to several mile-and-a-half tracks remaining on the schedule. Despite going winless on the NASCAR circuit this season, Jeff Burton enters the Chase at 5/1 to capture the Cup title. Meanwhile, rookie Denny Hamlin is 4/1 to win the championship, while veteran driver Mark Martin enters the Chase for the Cup as a 15/1 long shot to win his first NASCAR title in his 24th and final season.
MySportsbook.com will offer comprehensive Nascar betting lines on every race remaining on the Nextel Cup series including driver match-ups, props and odds to win each race. For a complete list of NASCAR odds, please visit www.MySportsbook.com.
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