Injury-riddled White Sox resume set in Detroit

Baseball Betting Lines

09/08/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Injuries are starting to pile up for the Chicago White Sox.

Today, the short-handed White Sox will continue their push towards the postseason, as they play the third installment of a four-game series against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.

With Paul Konerko (back) and Gordon Beckham (hand) already sidelined, the White Sox lost two more players on Tuesday, as starter Freddy Garcia was forced to leave the contest after just two innings with a stiff back, then Manny Ramirez was removed in the eighth inning after getting hit in the hand with a pitch.

Ramirez's injury is not considered serious and he is questionable for tonight's contest, while the White Sox also expect to have Konerko back. Beckham was a late scratch on Tuesday, though, and will likely miss the rest of this series.

It didn't matter who was in the White Sox lineup on Tuesday, however, as Justin Verlander pitched seven strong innings to lead Detroit to a 9-1 win. Verlander (15-8) allowed one run on five hits with seven strikeouts for the Tigers, who bounced back from a 10-inning loss in Monday's opener and won for the fourth time in their last six games overall.

Brandon Inge belted a three-run homer and Johnny Damon added a two-run blast in the victory. Jhonny Peralta recorded two RBI for Detroit.

"When he is spotting his breaking ball, he is very good," said Chicago's Mark Teahen. "Even though he didn't use his best fastball today, when he is getting his breaking stuff over the plate, it's very tough to hit against him."

Garcia (11-6) was dealt the loss with a line that showed two runs allowed on three hits. Lucas Harrell provided four innings of long relief and was charged with four runs -- none of which were earned -- on six hits with two strikeouts and three walks.

"I have no idea what I've got," said Garcia, who has left his last two starts with back stiffness. "I was warming in the bullpen fine, and the game [was] different. When you throw in the bullpen, you go 70 percent. But when you go in the game, you want to go harder. Obviously, I wasn't able to do it."

Juan Pierre posted two hits and scored the only run for the White Sox, who had a seven-game winning streak stopped and fell 4 1/2 games behind AL Central- leading Minnesota. The Twins defeated the Royals on Tuesday.

"Well, I will take 7-1 again and see what happens," Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen said. "That's part of the game. We all know that Minnesota is playing well now. They've got a good ballclub, but like I said, I will take 7-1 and take a chance with that."

Chicago wasn't the only team with an injury concern, as Detroit's Miguel Cabrera lasted six innings but felt soreness in his shoulder. He is listed as day-to-day.

Getting the call for the White Sox tonight will be lefty John Danks, who is 13-9 with a 3.56 ERA and will be pitching on three days' rest. Danks won for the sixth time in his last eight decisions on Saturday in Boston, as he allowed a run and six hits in seven innings.

Danks tossed seven scoreless innings to beat the Tigers back in June and is 3-3 with a 3.58 ERA in nine starts.

Detroit, meanwhile, will counter with righty Jeremy Bonderman, who is 7-9 with a 5.25 ERA. Bonderman did not get a decision on Friday in Kansas City, as he surrendered four runs and seven hits in 7 1/3 innings of his team's 9-5 win.

Bonderman lost to the White Sox back on August 13 and is 6-11 in 18 starts against them with a 4.81 ERA.

Chicago is 5-2 in Detroit this season.

Lottoballls Baseball Betting News

<< Orioles aim for rare sweep of Yanks in the Bronx
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles have been the worst team in the American League all season. Today, though, the Orioles will have a chance to do something against the best team in baseball that they haven't done in more than 2

<< Red Sox, Rays ready for rubber match at Fenway
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tim Wakefield gets the call on short notice this evening when the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays play the rubber match of their three-game series at Fenway Park. After getting blown out in the opener of this set

<< Mets to wrap up long trip with matinee against Nats
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Apparently, winning four straight games just isn't the Washington Nationals' thing. After failing to win more than three games in a row for the seventh time this season, Washington instead seeks a series victory over the N

<< Stampeders and Eskimos meet for second time this week
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Friday night brings out the best and the worst in the Canadian Football League as the slumping Edmonton Eskimos entertain the high-flying Calgary Stampeders in a Western Division showdown at Commonwealth Stadium.

<< Lions seek second straight upset in clash with Argos
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fresh off a huge upset win against the Montreal Alouettes, the British Columbia Lions shoot for back-to-back victories for the first time in 2010 as they entertain the Toronto Argonauts on Saturday afternoon at

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

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

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

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

Rockies continue late playoff push against Reds >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With the Colorado Rockies making a belated push for a playoff spot, Carlos Gonzalez has been enhancing his credentials for a possible National League MVP Award with his performance over the past few weeks. Gonzalez puts a

Betting Football

NFL Football Betting Online

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.

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.