11/13/2008 - Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire has signed a two-year contract extension that will keep him with the club through the 2011 season.
Gardenhire will begin his eighth season as Twins skipper in 2009. He has guided the club to a record of 622-512, including 88-75 in 2008. Last year's team nearly reached the postseason, losing a one-game playoff to the Chicago White Sox for the American League Central crown.
The Twins also signed Gardenhire's coaching staff to two-year contracts through the 2010 campaign -- the first year of Minnesota's new ballpark.
"Ron and his staff have done an outstanding job over the last seven years, and none was better than the 2008 season," said Twins general manager Bill Smith. "We had a lot of new players and a lot of young players, and our major league staff did a marvelous job with a changing cast of players. Continuity has been a great strength of the Twins organization for two decades. The current staff has played an important role in the design and development of the Target Field facilities, and these agreements will carry the staff into the new ballpark in 2010."
The 51-year-old Gardenhire, who was runner-up to Tampa Bay's Joe Maddon in the AL Manager of the Year voting, took over as Twins skipper before the 2002 season. He has led the team to four AL Central titles in his first seven years, posting winning records in six of those seven campaigns.
Only Tom Kelly, with 1,140 victories, has more wins than Gardenhire with the Twins.
<< Leafs continue swing with stop in Edmonton
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Toronto continues its tour of western Canada tonight, as it
visits the Edmonton Oilers and Rexall Place.
The Maple Leafs began this swing on Tuesday with a 4-3 loss in Calgary. Alexei
Ponikarovsky and Nik Antropov both sco
<< Kings, Stars cap home-and-home in Dallas
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It isn't too often that the Stars get pushed around by the
Kings. Trailing Los Angeles by one point in the standings, last-place Dallas
hosts the Kings tonight at American Airlines Center in the finale of a home-
and-home set
<< Red Wings head south to battle Lightning
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings will try to rebound from a tough loss
when they visit the Tampa Bay Lightning for this evening's test at St. Pete
Times Forum.
The Red Wings went into Tuesday's much-hyped game against visiting Pittsb
<< Pens take on Flyers aiming to extend winning streak
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins will try to extend their season-
high winning streak to five games tonight, when they welcome the Philadelphia
Flyers to Mellon Arena for another edition of this intrastate rivalry.
The Penguins had
Seeing is Believing >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Like many college football pundits, I have
watched Texas Tech put up gaudy offensive numbers over the years and chalked
it up as a gimmick offense much like Hawaii under June Jones. I had never
been a fan of
Bulls sign veteran Hunter >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bulls signed guard Lindsey Hunter
on Thursday, bringing the 15-season veteran back to the league.
Hunter spent last season with Detroit, averaging 2.4 points and 1.4 assists in
24 games. He play
NBA Southwest: Spurs need to tread water >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Since it's an odd year in the NBA, it wasn't really a
stretch picking the San Antonio Spurs to win an NBA championship.
After all, the club's last three championship rings came in 2003, 2005 and
2007.
But, any hopes of
L.A. defender Franklin named Rookie of the Year >>
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Galaxy defender Sean Franklin was
named Major League Soccer's Rookie of the Year on Thursday.
Franklin, 23, started 26 out of 27 matches and recorded one assist. He was the
Galaxys first pick -
Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Odds
Will he or won't he? Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Wade Phillips, the big question will be: Does Terrell Owens stay with the team.
Jerry Jones continues to suggest that Terrell Owens will remain with the team.
"I've said that he's back, he's here, he's under contract," Jones said. "In the interviews I've just been through (to hire a new coach), it was very clear to me how highly he's thought of and how much of an impact he had on our offensive success."
Just to be sure though, Terrell Owens cleared out his locker and removed his name plate.
Terrell Owens was among the Cowboys most productive players this past season, catching 85 passes for 1,180 yards and a league-best 13 touchdowns.
But T.O. is due a $3 million roster bonus in June, then a $5 million salary this season. Cutting him before then would save a lot of money and headaches.
Aside from the questions surrounding Terrell Owens, the oddsmakers at MySportsbook.com have concerns over starting quarterback Tony Romo's state of mind and whether he will remain a starting quarterback. It is also not known how players will adjust to new head coach, Wade Phillips.
Here are the football odds as seen at MySportsbook.com and subject to change after February 10, 2007 if not locked in prior to that date.
Arizona Cardinals 60-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Baltimore Ravens 15-1
Buffalo Bills 50-1
Carolina Panthers 18-1
Chicago Bears 10-1
Cincinnati Bengals 15-1
Cleveland Browns 100-1
Dallas Cowboys 15-1
Denver Broncos 15-1
Detroit Lions 100-1
Green Bay Packers 50-1
Houston Texans 100-1
Indianapolis Colts 6-1
Jacksonville Jaguars 30-1
Kansas City Chiefs 30-1
Miami Dolphins 40-1
Minnesota Vikings 75-1
New England Patriots 10-1
New Orleans Saints 18-1
New York Giants 20-1
New York Jets 30-1
Oakland Raiders 100-1
Philadelphia Eagles 18-1
Pittsburgh Steelers 10-1
Saint Louis Rams 60-1
San Diego Chargers 6-1
San Francisco 49ers 75-1
Seattle Seahawks 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccanneers 75-1
Tennessee Titans 40-1
Washington Redskins 50-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook credit cards needs.
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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