08/20/2008 - Owings Mills, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Ravens will again go with Troy Smith at quarterback to start the team's third preseason tuneup against the St. Louis Rams on August 23.
Smith, who started the team's second preseason game against Minnesota, received the nod over Kyle Boller as the two battle for a starting role in the Ravens season opener with Cincinnati September 7.
Smith played sparingly in a 23-15 loss to the Vikings, completing just 3-of-5 pass attempts for 25 yards with an interception, but did lead Baltimore to its only touchdown drive on the first series. Boller also tossed a pick going 8- for-12 for 40 yards in his time under center.
Rookie signal-caller Joe Flacco out of Delaware saw the majority of snaps, completing 10-of-15 passes for 74 yards. Smith also gained 35 yards on the ground.
Boller was an efficient 11-of-15 for 102 yards as Baltimore slipped past New England, 16-15 in the team's preseason opener but also threw an interception and lost a costly fumble. Smith was 5-of-12 for 74 yards against the Patriots.
Smith saw action in four games last season, including two starts, completing 40-of-76 pass attempts for 452 yards and two touchdowns without recording an interception. The second-year player's mobility could be a factor in winning the starter's job as he also ran for a touchdown, gaining 54 yards on a dozen rushes.
<< Astros claim Castillo on waivers
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros claimed infielder Jose
Castillo on outright waivers from the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday.
Castillo is expected to report to the team Friday after being designated for
assignment
<< Sixers bring back Ratliff
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia 76ers have signed free
agent center Theo Ratliff.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but a report Tuesday in the Philadelphia
Daily News said the 35-year-old Ratliff has accepted a
<< Griffey ties Sosa on home run list
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago White Sox outfielder Ken Griffey Jr.
belted his 609th career home run on Wednesday to tie Sammy Sosa for fifth
place on the all-time list.
Griffey drilled a two-out, two-run homer in the
<< Eagles' Curtis out with sports hernia
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Kevin
Curtis will undergo surgery Thursday for a sports hernia.
Curtis suffered the injury during last Friday's preseason game against
Carolina and will "be out
Griffey hits one of Chicago's four homers in rout of M's >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ken Griffey Jr. belted his first home run in a
White Sox uniform and Nick Swisher homered for the third consecutive game, as
Chicago completed a three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners with a 15-3 rout
at U.S.
Twins activate 2B Casilla from DL >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins activated infielder
Alexi Casilla from the 15-day disabled list after Wednesday's 3-1 victory over
the Oakland Athletics.
Casilla has been sidelined since July 29 with a torn lig
Rox disable P Herges, recall P Speier >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies placed
pitcher Matt Herges on the 15-day disabled list with lower back stiffness
Wednesday and recalled pitcher Ryan Speier from Triple-A Colorado Springs.
The rost
Cards' hurler Lohse suspended >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Kyle Lohse was
suspended five games and fined an undisclosed amount on Wednesday.
Lohse was penalized for an incident in his last start on Sunday, when he threw
a pitch near th
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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