Padres aiming for more mastery of Diamondbacks

Baseball Betting Lines

08/25/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres will try to stay unbeaten at home this season versus the Arizona Diamondbacks when the two National League West inhabitants continue a three-game series tonight from Petco Park.

The Padres are 7-0 this season as the host in this series and have beaten Arizona eight straight times at Petco Park. They kept the streak going with Tuesday's 5-0 victory in the series opener and got a big lift from starter Clayton Richard (12-5), who tossed six shutout innings and struck out eight for his 12th win.

"I was able to mix it up enough and throw enough strikes to keep them off balance enough and just really trust our defense," Richard said on the team's site. "Our defense has been playing great, and [I needed to] understand that if I was going to get the ball over the plate, that they were going to make the plays."

Ernesto Frieri, Joe Thatcher, Tim Stauffer and Edward Mujica combined to allow two hits the rest of the way for San Diego's bullpen.

Will Venable and Chris Denorfia each hit two-run homers and Ryan Ludwick added an RBI for the NL West-leading Padres, who have won 12 of their last 15 games and sit 5 1/2 games in front of San Francisco for the division lead. San Diego also clinched a seventh straight month of winning baseball, dating back to August of the 2009 campaign.

Padres starter Wade LeBlanc will try to keep the momentum going when he takes the mound tonight. He had a personal two-game winning streak stopped and lost for the third time in five starts his last time out. In Friday's 10-6 loss at Milwaukee, LeBlanc allowed seven runs and seven hits in only 3 1/3 innings of work to fall to 7-11 with a 3.85 ERA in 23 starts.

LeBlanc, who is 3-5 in 12 home starts, is still searching for his first career win against Arizona. He is 0-0 with a 3.38 ERA in three career starts in this series.

The Diamondbacks have dropped two in a row and six of their last eight games and received a rough outing from Rodrigo Lopez last night. Lopez was battered for all five runs and nine hits over 4 1/3 innings to fall to 5-12 this season.

Justin Upton had a hit and three walks for Arizona last night and has reached base via a hit or walk in six straight games, batting .381 over that stretch. Adam LaRoche struck out three times in four at-bats, however, after entering the game batting .304 over his last 12 contests.

"From time to time you get into periods where things just don't roll the right way," Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson said. "That appears what's going on with us now."

Taking the mound for Arizona tonight will be Joe Saunders, who is 1-3 with a 4.24 earned run average in five starts since coming over in a late July trade that sent Dan Haren to the LA Angels of Anaheim.

Saunders has dropped three straight starts and previously pitched in Thursday's 9-5 setback versus Cincinnati. He was reached for four runs for the second straight outing and gave up eight hits in six innings. The lefty is 7-13 in 25 starts with both the Angels and D'Backs this season and owns a 1-1 record with a 3.77 ERA in two career starts against San Diego.

The Padres are 9-4 against the D'Backs this season.

Wwwsend4fun Baseball Betting News

<< Red Sox, Mariners set for doubleheader at Fenway
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the Boston Red Sox are going to get back to the postseason, they are going to need Josh Beckett to start pitching like Josh Beckett. Then again they would be in even better shape if he starts to pitch like S

<< Yankees righty Hughes takes hill in Toronto
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Phil Hughes goes for win No. 16 this evening when the New York Yankees play the rubber match of their three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. Hughes won his second straight start on Thurs

<< Tigers shoot for home sweep of Royals
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers take aim at their sixth straight win this afternoon when they try to complete a three-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals at Comerica Park. The Tigers continued to roll on Tuesday, as Will Rhyme

<< Dodgers continue series in Milwaukee amid trade talk
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With rumors swirling that slugger Manny Ramirez will be put on waivers sometime this week, the Los Angeles Dodgers will try to remain focused on making a run at the playoffs in tonight's continuation of a three- game series a

<< Mets seeking second straight win over rival Marlins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets outfielder Angel Pagan seems to have broken out of his recent slump and will try to lead his team to victory again tonight in the second portion of a three-game series versus the Florida Marlins. Pagan entere

White Sox battle Orioles, seek to trim Central deficit >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox haven't been playing great baseball over the past few weeks, but were able to trim their deficit in the American League Central standings with last night's win over the Baltimore Orioles. The White So

AL West-leading Rangers continue set vs. Twins >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers seem to be cruising to their first American League West title since 1999 and C.J. Wilson is a big reason why. Tonight, the reliever turned starter goes for a 13th win when the Rangers resume

Rays' Niemann gets the call at Angel Stadium >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays got a boost on Tuesday with the return of Wade Davis. Today they hope for that same kind of lift when Jeff Niemann returns from the disabled list to face the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the fin

Phils send Halladay to hill to face Astros, Happ >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A 16-inning marathon in their last game has put a strain on the Philadelphia Phillies' bullpen. Fortunately for the two-time defending National League champions, they'll have one of baseball's premier workhorses ready to go t

Cubs shoot for sweep in DC >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs may have been shocked at first by Lou Piniella's sudden retirement, but the team appears to be handling the changing of the guard at the managerial position quite well. Chicago goes for a sweep of its init

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.

MySportsbook.com is operated by Sportingbet, a UK gambling company which is publicly traded on the AIM on the London Stock Exchange.

Sportingbet easily forms the world's largest Internet gaming company, with a truly global outreach. This also provides added transparency and accountability to this online Sportsbook and thus provides more safety and security for our customers. MySportsbook offers betting lines on all major sporting events. Our staff of almost 400 people includes clerks ready 365 days a year, 24 hours a day to care for your needs.

MySportsbook's competent, experienced managerial staff and personnel are backed by a state-of-the art sports wagering software.

We offer a 15% sign-up bonus to new customers who use Neteller for deposit and 10% bonus for all other deposit methods. Casino clients can take advantage of a 5% cash back monthly. Clients are also eligible for a 5% re-up bonus on subsequent deposits and 10% cash back on NFL losses.* Our instant-play flash casino is no-download, just click and go to a wide range of games including online Blackjack, 3-Card Poker, Craps, Baccarat, Roulette and Pai-Gow Poker, as well as a variety of slots and video poker games for the complete online casino Las Vegas experience.

My Sports book accepts all credit cards, online checks, Neteller, Firepay and bank wires. MySportsbook guarantees prompt, hassle-free payouts, as well as unparalleled individual attention from its acclaimed customer service department.

To visit this sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.