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09/08/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres were in serious danger of falling out of first place in the National League's West Division, but a couple of games against the fading Los Angeles Dodgers seems to have gotten the surprising squad back on track. The division leaders will try for a three-game sweep of this late-season set when the two rivals square off again this evening at Petco Park.
San Diego had seen its once-commanding lead atop the NL West shrink to only one game after losing 10 straight contests heading into this series, but has been able to rebound somewhat by earning a pair of wins over the Dodgers this week. The Padres remained just one game up on hard-charging San Francisco, though, after the Giants defeated Arizona on Tuesday.
Following tonight's tilt, the Padres will host San Francisco in a critical four-game series beginning on Thursday.
San Diego prevailed last night behind another outstanding effort from Mat Latos, with the young hurler firing seven outstanding innings to lead the way in a 2-1 decision.
Latos (14-5) yielded just one run and four hits in addition to racking up 10 strikeouts and setting a new Major League record in the process. The 22-year- old became the first pitcher in history to allow two runs or less while lasting at least five innings in 15 consecutive starts.
"I didn't know about [the record]," said Latos afterward. "It's great to be able to set a record, but my career's not going to be defined as setting one record. My career's going to be defined on my reliability."
Aaron Cunningham and Adrian Gonzalez each knocked in runs to give Latos all the support he would need, while All-Star closer Heath Bell finished off the victory by recording the game's final five outs for his 39th save of the year.
Latos outdueled Dodgers youngster Clayton Kershaw (11-10), who permitted just two runs on five hits and struck out six over seven innings in a tough-luck result.
Los Angeles mustered just five hits in suffering its fourth straight loss and eighth setback in its last 10 games. The two-time defending NL West champions are now one game under .500 (69-70) for the season and 10 behind the Padres in the standings.
"I don't know how many clubs look good losing," said Dodgers manager Joe Torre. "It's been the same situation -- we've had trouble through the middle of our batting order putting anything together offensively."
The Dodgers will be trying to prevent matching their longest losing skid of the season and hope to break out against untested Padres pitcher Cory Luebke. The rookie makes his second major league start this evening since being called up from Triple-A Portland when rosters expanded in September.
Luebke was hurt by the long ball in his big league debut, serving up a pair of two-run homers in five innings of work in a 4-3 loss to Colorado on Friday. The left-hander gave up five hits in all and walked two while striking out three.
The 25-year-old, a supplemental first-round selection by San Diego in the 2007 draft, went a combined 10-1 with a 2.68 earned run average in 19 games (17 starts) between Portland and Double-A San Antonio prior to his promotion.
Luebke will be opposed tonight by Chad Billingsley, a pitcher who's enjoyed plenty of success when facing the Padres in the past. The Dodgers' right- hander owns a 10-5 record along with an excellent 2.48 ERA over 21 career meetings (17 starts) with San Diego and has flourished at Petco Park, where he's gone 5-2 with a 2.20 ERA in 13 career visits (nine starts).
Billingsley threw six shutout innings to defeat the Padres in San Diego on July 27, but did take a loss against the Friars in Los Angeles on August 5 after surrendering three runs in another six-inning stint. He's 2-1 with a splendid 1.40 ERA in three encounters with San Diego this season, with both victories taking place at Petco Park.
The 26-year-old is coming off an outstanding effort in his most recent start as well, limiting San Francisco to two unearned runs and just two hits while fanning seven over eight sharp innings on Friday. The performance improved Billingsley to 11-8 with a 3.54 ERA in 26 mound trips this season.
These two NL West foes have split 14 meetings so far this season, as well as eight bouts held in San Diego in 2010.
<< Twins close out homestand with Royals
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins will close out another successful home
stand this evening, when the American League Central leaders take aim at a
series sweep of the Kansas City Royals at Target Field.
The Twins have gone 7-1 thus far
<< Rangers hope to lasso win over Jays up north
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers are doing their best to give away the
lead in the American League West. Luckily for them, though, nobody else seems
to want it. Tonight, the Rangers try to snap a five-game losing streak when
they co
<< Astros, Cubs wrap set at Wrigley Field
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros have to be thinking about returning home
for an extended period of time. But first they have to take care of business
in the Windy City, as the Astros shoot for a series win over the Chicago Cubs
tonight in
<< Angels try to avoid rare sweep at hands of Indians
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Angels haven't been swept by Cleveland at home in more
than a decade. They'll try to avoid that distinction tonight in the finale of
a three-game series from the Big A.
Anaheim was previously swept in this series from
First-place Phils close out hard-fought set with Marlins >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It wasn't easy, but the Philadelphia Phillies now lead the
National League East for the first time since late May.
Cole Hamels will try to keep his squad there as he aims for a third straight
victory in the finale of a fou
Struggling Braves turn to Lowe in finale with Pirates >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates sure have been enjoying their role
of spoiler in this series and are now in position to sweep the Atlanta Braves
for the first time in over 16 years.
To do that they will have to solve Derek Lowe, wh
Tigers battle Bulldogs in SEC action >>
Starkville, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - SEC action begins on Thursday in Starkville
as the Mississippi State Bulldogs welcome the 21st-ranked Auburn Tigers to
town.
Auburn opened its season last weekend with a 52-26 victory over Arkansas
State.
Ranked SEC foes lock horns in Columbia >>
Columbia, SC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Richt leads his 22nd-ranked Georgia
Bulldogs into an SEC battle with Steve Spurrier's 24th-ranked South Carolina
Gamecocks in Columbia this weekend.
"Our guys are focused on South Carolina right now," sai
American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies
It's that time of year folks. Betting on American Idol Season 9. And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below. With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.
No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.
Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.
Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.
Odds to Win
There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.
All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.
A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.
Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.
Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol.
Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.
If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.
Elimination Props
Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.
Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.
Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups
The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.
Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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