Tomlin shines in MLB debut; A-Rod held homerless on birthday

Baseball Betting Lines

07/27/2010 - Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Tomlin pitched into the eighth inning in his major league debut and Matt LaPorta provided enough support with two RBI, as Cleveland downed the Yankees, 4-1, in the continuation of a four-game series from Progressive Field.

Tomlin (1-0), who was filling in for the injured Aaron Laffey, baffled the Bombers over seven-plus innings. He scattered three hits and did not walk a batter while striking out two.

The young right-hander was charged with a run in the eighth after giving way to Cleveland's bullpen, but got the better of former Indians ace CC Sabathia (13-4), who gave up four runs (two earned) on nine hits and three walks in seven innings.

Sabathia lost for the first time in more than two months and was seeking his 150th career victory. The All-Star lefty had come out on top in each of his previous nine decisions and was unbeaten in 11 straight starts since falling to the Mets on May 23.

Alex Rodriguez again failed to deliver career home run No. 600 -- and on his 35th birthday. He finished 0-for-4 and has now gone without a homer in five games since hitting No. 599 versus Kansas City last Thursday.

The three-time American League MVP bounced out to short in his final at-bat with two out in the ninth representing the tying run. Chris Perez picked up his 10th save as a result as New York was dealt only its second defeat in the last seven games.

Mysportsbppk Baseball Betting News

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<< Broncos sign draft picks Beadles, Decker
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Broncos came to terms with their second and third-round draft picks, offensive lineman Zane Beadles and wide receiver Eric Decker, the team announced on Tuesday. Terms of the deals were not di

<< Caps sign Fleischmann for one year
Arlington, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Capitals inked forward Tomas Fleischmann to a one-year contract on Tuesday. The 26-year-old native of the Czech Republic notched career-highs with 23 goals, 28 assists and 51 points in

<< Big Hurt returns to White Sox as team ambassador
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time American League MVP Frank Thomas, who announced his retirement last winter, will rejoin the Chicago White Sox as a team ambassador. Thomas, who played 19 seasons in the majors, will have his un

<< Dolphins sign veteran DE Douglas
Davie, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Dolphins signed veteran defensive end Marques Douglas to an undisclosed contract on Tuesday. Douglas has spent each of the past three seasons with a different club, playing in all 16 regular se

Bautista powers Blue Jays over Orioles >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jose Bautista went 4-for-4 with a pair of home runs and knocked in five, as the Toronto Blue Jays downed the Baltimore Orioles, 8-2, in the second of a three-game series at Rogers Centre. Vernon Wells

Shields follows Garza's no-hit gem with strong outing >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One night after Matt Garza pitched the first no-hitter in Tampa Bay franchise history, the Rays used a solid outing from starter James Shields and a timely RBI double by Matt Joyce to defeat the Detroit

Mets return home, rock Wainwright and Cards >>
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Francoeur and Jose Reyes each homered as the New York Mets made a successful return to Citi Field by roughing up Adam Wainwright and the Cardinals, 8-2, in the opener of a three-game series. The Mets

White Sox rout Mariners, Floyd strong again in victory >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alexei Ramirez, Paul Konerko and Andruw Jones each homered, and Gavin Floyd threw seven scoreless frames for Chicago en route to an 11-0 annihilation of Seattle in the second meeting of a four-game series.

Tomlin wins in major league debut for Indians >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Josh Tomlin pitched into the eighth inning in his major league debut and bested former Indians ace CC Sabathia in a 4-1 Indians win against the Yankees. Tomlin was recalled from Triple-A Columbus Tues

MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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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.