A's held to two hits, but edge Angels

Baseball Betting Lines

08/04/2007 - Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joe Blanton outdueled Kelvim Escobar and pinch-hitter Travis Buck singled in the go-ahead run in the seventh inning, as the Athletics capitalized on the few scoring opportunities they had in a 2-1 victory over the Angels.

Oakland had just two hits, but managed to win for the fourth time in five games.

Blanton (9-8) scattered eight hits and walked just two across seven innings to halt a personal four-game losing streak.

Huston Street came on to pitch a scoreless eighth, and Alan Embree threw a perfect ninth for his 13th save of the season, a single-season record for an Oakland left-hander.

Escobar (11-6) gave up just two hits in seven innings, but also walked seven batters to drop his third consecutive start.

The AL West-leading Angels lost for the third time in four games and fell to 4-8 against Oakland this season.

With the game tied at 1-1, the Angels put runners on first and second in the top of the seventh, but failed to score as Orlando Cabrera grounded into a force play to end the threat.

The A's took the lead in the bottom half of the frame when they took advantage of Escobar's command problems. Mark Ellis walked to initiate the offense, and after Mark Kotsay flied out to left, Escobar issued another free pass to Marco Scutaro. Donnie Murphy then lined out to third, and it appeared Escobar might escape the inning until Buck came through with a soft single to right, scoring Ellis.

The Angels had an opportunity to answer in the eighth with the middle of their order, but Street induced a Vladimir Guerrero pop-out, then struck out Garret Anderson and got Gary Matthews Jr. to ground softly to second to end the inning.

Embree retired the side in order in the ninth.

The Angels got on the board first. Casey Kotchman led off the second inning with a double to left field, and Maicer Izturis followed with a looping single to center. Catcher Jack Mathis then plated Kotchman with a sacrifice fly to right field.

Oakland evened the contest in the sixth, finally breaking through against Escobar. Murphy drew a leadoff walk, and catcher Rob Bowen advanced Murphy to second with a sacrifice bunt. After Escobar walked Shannon Stewart, Nick Swisher grounded to first base and Kotchman fired to second for the force. Cabrera's relay throw to first was on target, but a covering Escobar botched the putout and Swisher was safe on the fielder's choice. On the error, Murphy came all the way around to score and tie the game.

Game Notes

The four-game series wraps up Sunday...Blanton's win was just his second in eight career starts (2-6) against the Angels and his first ever at home...The A's had not won a game in which they had only two hits since August 5, 1995...Jack Cust, who singled in the fourth and drew a pair of walks, had the only other Oakland hit...Seven different Angels players had at least one hit, with Izturis going 2-for-4...Matthews was 0-for-4, leaving four runners on base...Escobar's seven walks equaled a career-high.

Wwwwin365casino Baseball Betting News

<< Sabbatini leads Woods by one at Firestone
Akron, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rory Sabbatini struggled early in his round Saturday, but steadied himself and managed to post a two-over 72 to lead by one after three rounds of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. Sabbatini completed 5

<< Jones, Lilly lead Cubs past Mets
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jacque Jones collected three hits and knocked in a run as the Chicago Cubs used a six-run third inning to down the New York Mets, 6-2, in the second contest of a three-game series at Wrigley Field. Ted Lill

<< Irvin, Thomas enshrined into Hall of Fame
Canton, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Irvin, Thurman Thomas, Bruce Matthews, Charlie Sanders, Gene Hickerson and Roger Wehrli were enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Saturday night. Irvin was a three-time Super Bowl champion

<< A-Rod blasts No. 500 as Yankees clobber Royals
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Rodriguez hit career home run No. 500 as the New York Yankees downed the Kansas City Royals, 16-8, in the second of a three-game set at Yankee Stadium. Rodriguez, who turned 32 on July 27, surpasse

<< Donato Hanover captures 82nd Hambletonian
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Even-money favorite Donato Hanover repulsed a challenge by his main rival to win Saturday's $1.5 million Hambletonian at The Meadowlands. The victory was the 13th straight win by the three-y

Twins to recall LHP Cali >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins announced after their game Saturday that they will recall pitcher Carmen Cali in time for Sunday afternoon's game against Cleveland. Cali, a lefty, has a record of 0-0, with a 5

Twins edge Tribe behind strong bullpen effort >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Cuddyer drove in two runs and four Minnesota relievers combined to throw five shutout innings as the Twins edged the Cleveland Indians, 3-2, in the second of a four-game set at the Metrodome. Jaso

Walton leads by one in Kansas >>
Wichita, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Walton fired a five-under 66 Saturday to take a one-stroke lead after three rounds of the Wichita Open. Walton, who is going for his first tour title, completed 54 holes at 14-under- par 199. He is ma

Harvick wins wild one in Montreal >>
Montreal, QC Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Harvick captured Saturday afternoon's inaugural NAPA Auto Parts 200 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in wild fashion after Robby Gordon spun out the race leader. The No.21 Chevrolet crossed

Franchitti on pole in Michigan >>
Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dario Franchitti won the pole for Sunday's Firestone Indy 400 at the Michigan International Speedway. The No.27 Andretti Green Racing Honda circled the high-speed, two-mile oval in 32.9810 seconds (218.30

Football Betting Lines

The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.

Bet NFL Sports Lines

Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.

Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.

A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.

Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.

Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.

And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.

2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win

Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1

Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1

Donald Brown (IND) 5/1

Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1

Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1

Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1

Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1

Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1

Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1

Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1

Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1

Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1

Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1

Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1

Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1

Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1

Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1

LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1

Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2

Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1

Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1

Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1

Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1

Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1

Jason Smith (STL) 40/1

Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1

Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1

Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1

Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2

Pat White (MIA) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 9/1

Betting Line

To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs.

For sports betting with credit cards site go to BettingExpress.com as well.

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.