08/13/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - California-born left-hander Randy Wolf can stay unbeaten during his brief stint with Houston tonight, when the Astros host the San Francisco Giants in the third game of a four-game series at Minute Maid Park.
The Astros enter the game in the middle of the pack in a crowded National League Central Division, having won six straight games to climb above .500 at 60-59 overall and within 12 games of the first-place Chicago Cubs.
The Giants, meanwhile, are fourth in the NL West, trailing the Arizona Diamondbacks by an only slightly less daunting 9 1/2 games in spite of being 18 games under .500 at 50-68.
Wolf, who was acquired from the Padres shortly before the trade deadline, is 1-0 in three starts with his new club, allowing 20 hits and seven earned runs in 15 1/3 innings while walking eight batters and striking out 16.
He was 6-10 with a 4.74 ERA in 21 starts with the Padres after making just 18 starts with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2007 and 12 with Philadelphia in 2006 due to myriad arm injuries.
He allowed nine hits and three runs over 12 innings in two starts against the Giants -- both no-decisions -- earlier this season with San Diego, and is 5-4 with a 3.80 ERA in 12 lifetime starts against San Francisco.
Another recently traveled left-hander, Barry Zito, gets the call for the Giants in search of consistency.
The second-year National Leaguer has alternated wins and losses in his last four starts and is 4-5 with a no-decision in his last 10 starts stretching back to June 13.
He tossed an eight-inning masterpiece, allowing three hits over eight scoreless innings, en route to a 2-0 win at San Diego on August 2, but was touched for six hits and five runs in five innings of a 6-2 loss to the Dodgers six days later.
He allowed seven hits and three runs in a start against Houston earlier this season while getting a no-decision, and is 1-0 in two career starts against the Astros while combining to allow 11 hits and four runs in 13 innings.
On Tuesday, Lance Berkman hit a grand slam as part of an eight-run seventh inning for Houston, which took a 12-4 win over San Francisco.
Darin Erstad had two hits, including the go-ahead two-RBI single, and Miguel Tejada added three hits and an RBI as the Astros extended their winning streak to six, tying a season-high.
Roy Oswalt (10-8) won his fourth consecutive decision, throwing seven strong innings. He gave up three runs and 10 hits and three walks, while fanning four in the victory.
Tim Lincecum was throwing a gem before being struck in the right knee by a line drive, forcing him to leave in obvious pain. He threw 4 1/3 innings and gave up two runs -- one earned -- and only one hit while striking out seven and walking two.
Tyler Walker (4-7) failed to record an out in facing two batters, and allowed both to score on one hit to earn the loss.
Fred Lewis went 3-for-5 with a run scored while Randy Winn drove in two runs in the Giants' third defeat in five games.
Houston won three of four when these two clubs met in San Francisco from May 12-15.
<< Maine set for return as Mets battle Nationals
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Mets hope that John Maine can make a
successful return from the disabled list tonight, when he takes the ball in
the second test of a three-game series against the Washington Nationals.
Maine exited early in h
<< Marlins continue series with Cardinals
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies are
floundering out west in LA, the Florida Marlins are slowly climbing their way
back to the top of the division.
The Marlins will try to gain more ground on the Phillies to
<< Curlin's owner goes after Big Brown
Lexington, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Recent remarks by the trainer of Kentucky
Derby winner Big Brown have inspired Jess Jackson, majority owner of Curlin,
to seek a confrontation in the upcoming Woodward Stakes at Saratoga. Jackson
has of
<< Pirates lefty Maholm takes on Reds
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pittsburgh lefty Paul Maholm will try to continue a recent
run of quality pitching at home tonight, when the Pirates host the Cincinnati
Reds in the middle contest of a three-game series at PNC Park.
Maholm, a first-ro
Streaking Indians, slumping Orioles continue series >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Right-hander Anthony Reyes makes his second start in a
Cleveland uniform when the Indians host the Baltimore Orioles tonight in game
three of a four-game series at Progressive Field.
Reyes, who made 17 appearances
Rays try for rebound in game two with A's >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - What is becoming a lost season in Oakland has allowed the
club to get some of its younger players experience. The Athletics continue a
three-game series with the American East-leading Tampa Bay Rays tonight at
McAfee
Broncos sign DB Poole >>
Englewood, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Broncos signed defensive back
Tyrone Poole on Wednesday. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not
released.
Poole spent the 2006 season with the Oakland Raiders and appeared in 12
Brewers place Branyan on DL >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers placed third baseman
Russell Branyan on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to August 12, on
Wednesday.
Branyan, who is suffering from a right oblique strain, has appeared
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.
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