Buehrle helps White Sox complete second straight shutout of Royals
Baseball Betting Lines
08/14/2008 -
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Buehrle threw seven shutout innings, and
Jermaine Dye finished with a double and run batted in for Chicago, which shut
out Kansas City for the second game in a row, 4-0.
On Tuesday, in the opener of this three-game set, Javier Vazquez blanked the
Royals for eight innings. Buehrle (10-10) followed that performance by giving
up just five hits while walking none and striking out five. Over his past two
outings, both wins, Buehrle has allowed just one run in 14 innings pitched.
"I thought he had one of his better fastballs that he's had this season,"
White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said of Buehrle. "He wasn't dominant, but he
was darn good."
Paul Konerko and Ken Griffey, Jr. each finished 1-for-3 with an RBI for the
White Sox, who have won three of four. Chicago also maintained its half-game
lead over Minnesota in the AL Central, as the Twins beat the Yankees earlier
Wednesday.
Luke Hochevar (6-11) got tagged with the loss despite a solid start in which
he allowed three runs on five hits in seven frames. The former number one
overall pick in the 2006 MLB Draft struck out four and walked one in the loss.
Billy Butler had two of the five hits for Kansas City, which has lost six of
seven.
"I thought Luke pitched extremely well after the first inning," Royals manager
Trey Hillman said. "He really had trouble using all of his pitches in the
first. After that I thought he was outstanding. They pitched two outstanding
ballgames against us. It's hard to win when you don't score any runs."
The White Sox backed Buehrle with two runs in the first inning. Orlando
Cabrera led off with a single and went to second on Tony Pena's throwing
error. A.J. Pierzynski then sacrificed Cabrera to third, and Dye doubled to
center to bring the run in. Later, Griffey singled to plate Dye for a 2-0
lead.
Consecutive singles from Juan Uribe and Chris Getz began the home fifth,
putting runners on the corners. A ground out put them both in scoring position
for Pierzynski, who drove in Uribe with a ground out to short.
Buehrle, meanwhile, worked out of a few jams. After putting runners in scoring
position with two outs in the second, he struck out John Buck to end the
threat. In the following frame, Kansas City again had runners in scoring
position, with one out -- but Buehrle fanned David DeJesus and Jose Guillen to
escape.
The Chicago starter set the Royals down in order in the fifth, sixth and
seventh before Octavio Dotel took over for the eighth and worked a 1-2-3
inning.
Konerko's RBI single in the home eighth plated Pierzynski for the final White
Sox run, and Bobby Jenks was perfect in the ninth to close out the game.
Game Notes
The White Sox last won consecutive shutouts on April 12-13, both against
Detroit...On Wednesday, Chicago agreed to terms with infielder Gordon Beckham
on a minor league contract. Beckham was the club's first-round pick and the
eighth overall selection of the 2008 draft. The University of Georgia product
hit .411 with 28 homers and 77 runs batted in this past season...Hochevar has
lost his past three starts.
<< Mets clobber Nationals behind huge third inning
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daniel Murphy clubbed a two-run homer and
added an RBI single, as the New York Mets -- aided by an eight-run third
inning -- cruised to a 12-0 win in the second test of a three-game series
against
<< Hawpe, Rox edge D'Backs
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brad Hawpe clubbed a two-run homer in the bottom
of the eighth inning and the Colorado Rockies withstood a ninth-inning charge
from the Arizona Diamondbacks to hang on for a 6-5 win in the middle
install
<< Cardinals hang on to edge Marlins
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Troy Glaus collected a game-high four hits and
finished with an RBI and a run scored to lead the St. Louis Cardinals over the
Florida Marlins, 6-4, in the third game of a four-game set at Dolphin Stadium.
Jaso
<< D-Backs reinstate Slaten from DL, option Buckner
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Diamondbacks reinstated left-handed
pitcher Doug Slaten from the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday.
Slaten, who was placed on the DL on July 19 with a right knee strain, is 0-3
with a 4.40 earned
<< Wells' slam helps Blue Jays hold off Tigers
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vernon Wells clubbed his fifth career grand
slam and David Purcey was stellar on the hill, as the Toronto Blue Jays
staved off a late rally to edge the Detroit Tigers, 4-3, in the third
install
Blazers' G Roy to undergo surgery >>
Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Portland Trail Blazers guard Brandon Roy will
have arthroscopic knee surgery on Thursday to repair a tear in the meniscus of
his left knee, the club announced Wednesday.
An MRI taken Tuesday revealed the tear
The San Jose Earthquakes >>
Waived defender/midfielder Amir Lowery.
Oklahoma City >>
Acquired forward Joe Smith from Cleveland and forward Desmond Mason from Milwaukee in exchange for forward Adrian Griffin and guard Luke Ridnour.
Izturis leaves after injuring thumb >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim shortstop Maicer
Izturis left Wednesday's contest against the Seattle Mariners in the top of
the ninth with an injury to his thumb.
Yuniesky Betancourt hit a grounder towards
Zobrist, Rays edge A's >>
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ben Zobrist hit the go-ahead RBI double in the
seventh and the Rays took the second test of their three-game series against
the Athletics, 3-2, at McAfee Coliseum.
Andy Sonnanstine (12-6) threw his third
While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
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What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
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Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
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