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Duensing set for first start of season as Twins battle OriolesBaseball Betting Lines07/23/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) -- Brian Duensing will have a tough act to follow when the Minnesota Twins pitcher makes his first start of the season in tonight's clash with the Baltimore Orioles from Camden Yards. Minnesota took the opener of this four-game series behind a sensational performance from Carl Pavano on Thursday, with the veteran right-hander going the distance on a five-hitter to lead his team to a 5-0 triumph. Pavano (12-6) struck out four and walked just one in posting his seventh consecutive winning decision, and needed only 102 pitches to record his fourth complete game in seven starts. "I set out this offseason with personal goals," said Pavano, whose 12 wins are just one shy of the New York Yankees' CC Sabathia for the American League lead. "I wanted to go deeper into games and it feels better than good." Delmon Young continued a recent tear of his own for Minnesota, collecting two hits in three at-bats and staking Pavano to a quick 3-0 lead with a bases- clearing double in the first inning. The former No. 1 overall pick is now hitting .452 (14-for-31) with 12 RBI in eight games since the All-Star break. Michael Cuddyer added a solo homer in the victory, the Twins' fifth in their last seven tries. Minnesota moved within two games of idle Chicago for first place in the AL Central standings. Duensing will attempt to get his club a little closer to the top spot when he toes the rubber tonight. The former University of Nebraska standout has been brilliant pitching out of the bullpen this season, compiling a 3-1 record with a stellar 1.67 earned run average over 39 appearances, which prompted manager Ron Gardenhire to tab the left-hander to replace an ineffective Nick Blackburn in the Minnesota rotation. The 27-year-old Duensing did make nine regular-season starts as a rookie in 2009 and also took the ball for the Twins in their 7-2 loss to the Yankees in Game 1 of last year's AL Division Series. He pitched very well in a starting role, producing an impressive 5-1 record and a 2.73 ERA in those nine outings. Duensing stretched out for tonight's assignment by throwing four innings in relief of Blackburn against the White Sox last Sunday, and picked up the win in the Twins' 7-6 come-from-behind verdict after yielding just one run. Blackburn has registered a poor 6.53 ERA in 18 starts and was demoted to the bullpen after being reached for five runs in five innings in Sunday's test. It was the fifth time in the righty's last six games in which he allowed five runs or more. Jeremy Guthrie, the scheduled starter for Baltimore this evening, is mired in a frustrating slump as well at the moment. The right-hander comes in having dropped six consecutive decisions since his last victory, a May 25 besting of Oakland, and is a woeful 3-10 with 4.58 ERA overall in a disappointing 2010 campaign. Guthrie was sharp in his latest effort, though, limiting Toronto to one run while striking out six batters over 6 2/3 innings this past Saturday at Camden Yards. He still wound up with a no-decision to extend his winless streak to nine straight starts. One of Guthrie's three wins of 2010 did come against the Twins, however, with the former Cleveland Indians No. 1 pick permitting three runs in 6 2/3 innings during a May 8 encounter in Minneapolis. He's 2-0 with a 3.16 ERA through five career matchups with Minnesota, three of which have been starts. Baltimore owns the majors' worst record at 30-65 and has dropped six of seven to begin the second half following last night's defeat. Kevin Millwood (2-9), making his first start in more than two weeks, took the loss on Thursday after surrendering five runs in a 6 1/3-inning stint. Minnesota has won three of five meetings with Baltimore so far this season, but had lost in three straight visits to Camden Yards prior to prevailing last night.
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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. *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." About MySportsbook.com Sports Casino Poker To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Master Card needs. |
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