Suddenly surging Astros sweep catatonic Cards
Baseball Betting Lines
09/01/2010 -
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hunter Pence hit a three-run homer as part of a
four-run fifth inning, as the Houston Astros completed a three-game sweep of
the St. Louis Cardinals with a 5-2 win at Minute Maid Park.
Michael Bourn added a single, RBI and run scored for Houston, which has won
nine of its last 11. Carlos Lee chipped in with a sacrifice fly.
Nelson Figueroa (4-2) took the win after throwing five innings. The veteran
yielded two runs on six hits, walked three and struck out one. Brandon
Lyon worked a perfect ninth inning to record his 11th save of the season.
Matt Holliday accounted for the offense with a two-run homer for the
Cardinals, who have dropped five straight and went 2-8 on their 10-game road
trip. St. Louis fell 7 1/2 games behind Cincinnati for the top spot in
NL Central. The Reds host Milwaukee later Wednesday.
Jeff Suppan (1-7), fresh off the 15-day disabled list from a groin injury, was
making his first start since defeating Pittsburgh on July 31. In this one, the
right-hander allowed four runs on three hits walked four and fanned a batter
in five frames.
St. Louis opened the scoring in the first as Skip Schumaker led off the game
with a double, but was erased on Aaron Miles' fielder's choice. Two batters
later Holliday clubbed a two-run shot to left.
The Cards left the sacks full in the third, before Houston responded with four
in the fifth to go in front for good. With runners on first and third and one
out, Bourn's deep sac fly to center got the Astros on the board. After
Jeff Keppinger walked, Pence's three-run homer just inside the left-field foul
pole made it 4-2.
Lee's sac fly in the seventh brought in Bourn to give the hosts a three-run
cushion.
Four Astros relievers combined to work three scoreless innings and Lyon threw
a perfect ninth to polish off the win.
Game Notes
Houston has now won 10 of 15 meetings with the Cardinals this season...Suppan
fell to 3-9 in 20 career meetings -- 17 starts -- against Houston...Figueroa
improved to 3-1 in 13 career games -- five starts -- versus St. Louis...Bourn
extended his hitting streak to 11 games.
<< Big South announces four-year extension with Stony Brook
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Big South Conference announced on
Wednesday a four-year extension of a football agreement with associate
football member Stony Brook.
"Stony Brook has been an outstanding football mem
<< Stony Brook extends Big South contract
Charlotte, N.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ending speculation that Stony Brook's
football program might move to another conference, the Big South Conference
Council of Chief Executive Officers unanimously approved a four-year associate
football members
<< BoSox make moves with roster expansion
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox made several moves for
the September 1 roster expansion.
The club reinstated infielder Eric Patterson and catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia
from the 15-day disabled list and recalled pi
<< Rangers reinstate Kinsler, Guzman from DL
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers reinstated second baseman
Ian Kinsler and infielder Cristian Guzman from the 15-day disabled list on
Wednesday.
Kinsler has been sidelined since going on the DL July 29 with a left
<< Big Ten set to announce realignment
Bristol, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Big Ten is set to announce its divisional
realignment Wednesday evening and early reports have the controversial split
of longtime rivals Michigan and Ohio State in place.
According to an earlier report
Celtics bring back Delonte West >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics have signed free agent guard
Delonte West.
Terms of the deal were not released, but the Boston Herald reports it is a
non-guaranteed contract for the upcoming season.
West was an origi
Royals catcher Kendall to have shoulder surgery >>
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -Jason Kendall, who had been the Kansas City Royals starting catcher in 118 of their first 132 games, will undergo shoulder surgery Friday in Los Angeles for a torn right rotator cuff.Royals manager Ned Yost said the recovery t
Devils GM weighs in on Kovalchuk deadline >>
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New Jersey Devils general manager Lou
Lamoriello issued a statement on Wednesday, addressing the National Hockey
League's decision to extend the deadline on accepting a new contract for free-
agent f
Report: Sharks to sign former 'Hawk Niemi >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Sharks are set to sign former
Chicago Blackhawks cast-off goaltender Antti Niemi to a one-year, $2 million
contract, according to multiple reports in both cities.
The cash-strapped Blackha
Venus reaches third round at U.S. Open >>
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time champion Venus Williams was
among Wednesday's second-round winners at the U.S. Open.
The third-seeded former world No. 1 Williams got past Rebecca Marino 7-6
(7-3), 6-3 at Ashe Stadium. The po
What Is the Point Spread?
In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.
Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).
If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).
Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.
How to Read Point Spreads
New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles
The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)
In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:
- Philly wins the actual game by any amount of points
OR
- Philly loses the game by less than 7 points.
-
There was also the possibility that the final score could land exactly on the spread number (for example, the Pats winning 28-21 when -7), which is called a “push” or “no action” and a refund is then issued to bettors of both teams.
The same game with the same point spread can be considered from the weaker team’s perspective: The Underdog (Philly in the case of our example) is not expected to win the game and online football betting thus receives or “gets” points given by the stronger team. When a game is stated from the underdog’s perspective the team is listed with a plus sign and the number of points they are underdogs by:
Philadelphia Eagles +7 vs. New England Patriots
Keep in mind that Philadelphia +7 and New England -7 is the same point spread on the same game, simply stated differently. The first is from the underdog’s perspective; the later is from the favorite’s.
For Those Who Like to Consider Things Mathematically
Not a must, but for some a mathematical approach is insightful. You can determine the ATS winner by either:
- Subtracting the point spread from the favorite’s score (thus the minus sign before the number) and then compare to the underdog’s score
OR
- Adding the point spread to the underdog’s score (thus the plus sign before the number) and then compare to the favorite’s score
Let’s look at the actual result of Super Bowl XXXIX: New England 24 Philadelphia 21
The favorite, New England, won the game but not by more than the point spread they were favored by (7), so the ATS result was a LOSS for Pats bettors.
Looking at it from the underdog’s perspective, Philly did not win the game, but they lost by less than the point spread (7), so the ATS result was a WIN for Eagle bettors.
Mathematically considered, 24 for the favorite Pats minus 7 equals 17, which is less than the 20 the Eagles scored, so the underdog Eagles win the ATS result (or you could figure 20 plus 7 equals 27 for the Eagles, which is more than 24 for the Pats).
Emily’s boyfriend understood the point spread and wagered $100 on the Eagles at +7. The Eagles may not have gotten a Super Bowl ring, but since they won the ATS result Emily’s boyfriend cashed his bet – giving him money to take her out to a nice dinner.
And now hopefully you understand how to read point spreads, putting you one step closer to joining the fun of sports betting.
To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.
MySportsbook is considered one of the finest football betting sportsbooks according to several surveys performed by independent industry analysts considering such factors as payout accuracy and timeliness, overall quality of website, and bettor satisfaction.
MySportsbook is a large company with strong financial backing. Considered the best sportsbook for betting football online You will find their customer service is second to none and their web site is extremely user friendly and easy-to-use. All major professional sports games are available. Once you signup with MySportsbook, you may never use another online sportsbook again.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs.
|