09/08/2008 - (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 at Citizens Bank Park.
The Phillies entered a showdown with the first-place Mets three games back in the standings. They then took Friday's opener, and after Saturday's contest was postponed, won the first game of their day-night doubleheader on Sunday, 6-2, behind seven shutout innings by Jamie Moyer and a three-run homer from Greg Dobbs.
However, Philadelphia dropped the nightcap, 6-3, to end the season series with New York two games behind it for first place. Ryan Howard hit a solo homer, his major-league leading 40th of the season. It also marks the third straight season Howard has reached the 40-homer mark, the first Phillie ever to reach that feat.
Left-handed ace Cole Hamels was battered for five runs -- four earned -- in the loss that saw Philadelphia split a 10-game road trip. The club plays its next seven at home, where it is 39-29 this season.
The Phillies also trail the Milwaukee Brewers for the NL wild card spot by four games.
Joe Blanton starts for the Phils tonight and will face the Marlins for the first time in his career.
Acquired prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, Blanton is 1-0 with a 4.34 earned run average in nine starts with the Phillies. He has posted six straight no-decisions, and while he hasn't won since August 2, he also hasn't recorded a loss since July 9 while still with Oakland.
The 27-year-old righty lasted just four innings on Wednesday versus the Nationals, allowing four runs on six hits and three walks.
The Marlins counter with Anibal Sanchez, who is 0-1 with an 8.79 ERA in his last three starts. That includes a no-decision on Tuesday versus Atlanta in which he allowed six runs on eight hits over three innings of his team's wild 16-14 setback.
Sanchez, a 24-year-old righty, is 2-3 with a 5.54 ERA this year and 0-2 with an 8.79 ERA in three career starts versus Philadelphia. He has faced the club once this year, taking a loss in Philadelphia after giving up four runs (3 earned) on five hits over five innings on August 6.
Once contenders in the NL East, the Marlins have slipped to eight games back of first-place New York, and lost two of three in St. Louis over the weekend. That includes a 3-1 setback in Sunday's finale.
Josh Johnson took the loss -- his first of the season -- despite a solid outing. In 6 2/3 innings, he gave up three runs on seven hits. Mike Jacobs homered as part of a 2-for-3 day to provide Florida's lone run.
Florida, which plays the second half of a six-game road trip with this series, also saw catcher Matt Treanor leave in the second inning with a bruised left knee.
The Marlins hold a 7-5 edge in the season series with the Phillies, with the clubs splitting six games in Philadelphia so far.
<< Blue Jays go for ninth straight win, take on White Sox
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays remain a longshot to earn a playoff
spot, but the club is having a say as to how the postseason shapes up in the
American League with its late-season play.
The red-hot Blue Jays take aim at a ninth co
<< First-place Rays begin key AL East set with Red Sox
(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 seas
<< Schiavone, Peng win Bali openers
Bali, Indonesia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fifth-seeded Italian Francesca Schiavone
and ninth-seeded Chinese Shuai Peng were among Monday's first-round winners at
the $225,000 Commonwealth Bank Tennis Classic.
Schiavone drilled Indonesian quali
<< 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
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
A's aim to extend winning ways versus Tigers >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics have an opportunity for their first
three-game win streak in close to three months when they visit the Detroit
Tigers tonight for the first of three straight meetings between the clubs.
Oakland swept
Streaking Dodgers pay Padres a visit >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Dodgers will try to win their ninth
straight game tonight, when they begin a three-game series with the San Diego
Padres at Petco Park.
Los Angeles completed a three-game sweep of the Diamondbacks on Sunday
Giants send Lincecum to hill against Diamondbacks >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After getting swept out of first place in the National
League West, one would think a trip to San Francisco would be good for
Arizona. That is, of course, unless you have to face Tim Lincecum.
Lincecum will try to help the
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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