09/08/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays head to Boston's Fenway Park tonight for the opener of the biggest series in the franchise's history, a three-game set with the defending world champion Red Sox that could go along way in deciding this season's American League East champion.
Tampa Bay currently holds a tenuous 1 1/2-game lead on the Red Sox for first place in the division, but Boston has trimmed four games off that margin over the past week. Since the calendar turned to September, the Sox have won five times in six tries while the Rays have gone just 1-5.
Boston rebounded from its only loss during that stretch, a 15-8 pounding by Texas on Saturday, with a win over the Rangers in yesterday's finale of a three-game series in Arlington. David Ortiz and Jason Bay both homered to back another strong start from Paul Byrd in the Red Sox' 7-2 victory.
Ortiz launched a two-run homer in the fifth inning and Bay added a solo blast in the seventh to power Boston to a commanding 7-0 lead. Byrd (11-11) yielded just three hits and no runs before being removed after 6 2/3 innings.
Byrd is now 4-1 with a 3.82 earned run average in five starts since being acquired by the Red Sox from Cleveland on August 12.
Boston will send out another pitcher on a good roll tonight in Jon Lester. The young left-hander has won six of eight decisions since the All-Star break and continued his season-long success at Fenway Park with this past Tuesday's win over Baltimore.
Lester worked five innings in that game and held the Orioles to one run on six hits. The effort improved the 24-year-old to an astounding 8-1 with a 2.87 earned run average in 14 home starts for the year.
He's also enjoyed success against the Rays this season, having won both of his matchups with Tampa in 2008 and allowing just two runs over a total of 12 1/3 innings. Lester is 3-0 with a 4.11 ERA in six career starts against tonight's opponent.
The 13-game winner will be facing a Tampa Bay lineup that was shut out by the Toronto staff on Sunday. David Purcey and Jesse Carlson combined for a six- hitter as the Blue Jays completed a three-game sweep of the Rays with a 1-0 decision at the Rogers Centre.
Matt Garza (11-9) was the hard-luck loser, with the Tampa righty giving up just the one run on six hits and striking out seven over seven frames.
With the Rays struggling on offense, the team will be calling upon Edwin Jackson to deliver on the mound in this evening's opener. The hard-throwing right-hander did not come through in his most recent start, when Jackson was tagged for six runs and 10 hits in just 3 1/3 innings in a home loss to the Yankees last Wednesday.
Prior to that rough outing, Jackson had allowed two runs or fewer in four straight starts and went 3-1 over that span. He's been strong on the road this year as well, bringing a 6-3 record with a 3.26 ERA in 13 away tests into tonight's tilt.
However, Jackson is 0-2 with a 6.19 ERA over his three encounters with Boston this season. In 10 lifetime appearances (7 starts) against the Red Sox, he is 2-3 with a 5.70 ERA.
The home team has dominated this year's season series between these AL East foes, with the Red Sox winning all six games against the Rays in Fenway and Tampa Bay posting the same unbeaten mark in the contests held at Tropicana Field.
Tampa Bay has lost eight straight times at Fenway Park and is a woeful 5-29 as the visitor in this series since 2005.
<< Mets closer Wagner suffers setback
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets closer Billy Wagner suffered a
further setback and could possibly be out for the rest of the season due to
his left elbow problems.
Wearing a protective sleeve on his left elbow, Wagner t
<< Forte, Bears spoil Indy's stadium-opener
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rookie Matt Forte rushed for 123 yards on
23 carries and found the end zone, while also catching three balls for 18
yards, as the Chicago Bears christened Indianapolis' brand new Lucas Oil
Stadium
<< Addai leaves Colts/Bears game
Indianapolis, IN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Indianapolis Colts running back Joseph
Addai left the club's season-opening 29-13 loss to the Chicago Bears with a
head injury.
Addai was injured early in the fourth quarter after catching a p
<< Serena wins U.S. Open
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Serena Williams outlasted Jelena
Jankovic to capture the U.S. Open title for the first time in six years.
Williams, the fourth seed, easily won the first set, but had to come from
behind to
Angels aim to reduce magic number in test with Yankees >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim attempt to reduce their
magic number in the American League West tonight against a team they've
handled well in recent years, the New York Yankees.
The Angels need any combination of three
Phillies return home to face Marlins >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Though they didn't leave New York exactly the way they
wanted to, the Phillies still made up some ground in the National League East.
Philadelphia returns home this evening to start a three-game set with the
Florida Marlins a
Astros try to solve Pirates in Houston >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Of all the teams to struggle against, the Astros just can't
seem to beat the Pirates as of late. Houston will try to find some success
against doormat Pittsburgh this evening in the opener of a four-game series at
Minute
Brewers hope to get on track in opener with Reds >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Brewers failed to capitalize on the help the Reds gave
them over the weekend, and now Milwaukee must watch out for a Cincinnati club
that is doing its best to shake up the playoff race.
The Brewers and Reds open up a t
Matt Kenseth And Kevin Harvick Favorites To Take NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship
(September 15)—The NASCAR season has hit the homestretch with the opening event on this year’s Chase for the Cup taking place this weekend at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway. With 10 races remaining to determine the Cup Series champion, leading online sportsbook MySportsbook.com today announced odds on all 10 Chase qualifying drivers capturing the NASCAR Sprint Cup Championship.
One of the largest sportsbook sites on the Internet, MySportsbook.com currently lists the top two drivers in the point standings as the early favorites to win the Nextel Cup. Entering the Chase for the Cup with a slim five-point lead in the point standings, 2003 NASCAR champ Matt Kenseth has been made a slight favorite to win his second Cup at 7/2 betting odds. 2001 Cup Rookie of the Year Kevin Harvick has betting odds listed at 5/2 and four-time NASCAR champion Jeff Gordon is listed at 6/1 to capture the Nextel Cup this year.
Hoping to follow in the footsteps of his legendary father who won six NASCAR titles, Dale Earnhardt Jr. stands at 8/1 to breakthrough with his first Cup victory. Staying with the family theme, MySportsbook.com lists 2005 Rookie of the Year Kyle Busch at 14/1 to succeed big brother Kurt’s 2004 NASCAR title. While Kasey Kahne was the final driver to qualify for the Chase with a third place finish last week, the oddsmakers give him a fighting chance at 10/1 mainly due to several mile-and-a-half tracks remaining on the schedule. Despite going winless on the NASCAR circuit this season, Jeff Burton enters the Chase at 5/1 to capture the Cup title. Meanwhile, rookie Denny Hamlin is 4/1 to win the championship, while veteran driver Mark Martin enters the Chase for the Cup as a 15/1 long shot to win his first NASCAR title in his 24th and final season.
MySportsbook.com will offer comprehensive Nascar betting lines on every race remaining on the Nextel Cup series including driver match-ups, props and odds to win each race. For a complete list of NASCAR odds, please visit www.MySportsbook.com.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts US credit cards needs.
Albert Pujols to be This Year's Home Run Champ Says Online Sportsbook
Barry Bonds is a 50-1 long shot to be this year's home run champ odds. The favorite to be this year's home run champ is none other than Albert Pujols, however.
Now that Barry Bonds is signed and in Giants camp, it is on to his pursuit of all of sports most prestigious records: the all-time home run mark. Bonds sits just 21 homers shy of tying Hank Aaron for the career mark at 755. Word out of Giants’ camp is that Bonds is the healthiest he has been in a few years. Bonds is just two seasons removed from his injury riddled 2005 campaign where he played in only 14 games and hit only 5 home runs. He did come back last year and had a solid season hitting .270 with 26 bombs. All eyes will be on Bonds this spring and summer not only because of his home run chase but his highly publicized steroid abuse allegations. If and when Bonds breaks the record, he surely will not get the positive attention one should for breaking a record that was once thought of as “unbreakable”. Despite Bonds decent season last year, he is just 50-1 at MySportsbook.com to lead the MLB in long balls this season.
Not surprisingly, the favorites to go deep the most times this season are Albert Pujols 5-1, Ryan Howard 6-1, David Ortiz 8-1 and Alex Rodriguez 12-1. With 49 homers, Pujols finished second in the National League behind Howard (58). Pujols is considered the favorite due to the consistent power numbers that he has posted since breaking into the league in 2001. Also one must consider the fact that he played in 16 fewer games then Howard did due to an injury. Howard smashed 58 homers in his first complete season of big league play en route to the National League MVP odds award. He silenced his critics by successfully hitting left-handed pitching. Howard also displayed the ability to use his power to the opposite field. Two attributes which should keep Howard amongst the league leaders in long balls for years to come. From the American League representatives, David Ortiz leads the field. Ortiz was second in the majors last year with 54 home runs. Except for 1999 when he only played in 10 games, Ortiz has improved on his home run numbers each year he has been in the majors (1997).
Be sure to log onto online sports betting site MySportsbook.com to check out the odds for who will lead the MLB in home runs this season. Below is just a sample of the players listed. With the highest credit card rates in the industry, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on baseball this summer.
World Series odds
Adam Dunn 15-1
Albert Pujols 5-1
Alex Rodriguez 12-1
Alfonso Soriano 15-1
Andruw Jones 25-1
Barry Bonds 50-1
Carlos Delgado 40-1
David Ortiz 8-1
Jermaine Dye 40-1
Ken Griffey Jr. 100-1
Lance Berkman 40-1
Manny Ramirez 20-1
Richie Sexson 40-1
Ryan Howard 6-1
Travis Hafner 20-1
Vladimir Guerrero 40-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting