Rays try again to snap slide against Red Sox
Baseball Betting Lines
09/07/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays try to avoid their fourth straight loss
this evening when they continue a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox
at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox kept their fleeting postseason hopes alive in the opener of this
set on Monday, as rookie Ryan Kalish belted his second grand slam and David
Ortiz also went deep, propelling Boston to a 12-5 win.
With this being the final series for Boston against the Rays, it's imperative
that the Red Sox sweep to continue hopes for a postseason spot. Monday's win
moved Boston within 6 1/2 games of the Rays for the wild card lead. Chicago is
six back.
Jon Lester (16-8) struck out exactly 10 batters for a third straight game, all
victories. The lefty limited the Rays to four hits and two runs over six
innings.
Ortiz and Adrian Beltre hit back-to-back homers in the first inning for
Boston, which was swept at home by the White Sox in a three-game series over
the weekend. Victor Martinez added a two-run single in the second.
"I think after the first I got in a little bit better rhythm," Lester said.
"Vick did a good job kind of controlling that. It makes pitching easier when
guys go out and score runs like we did tonight."
The Rays remained 2 1/2 games behind the first- place New York Yankees in the
AL East.
Jeff Niemann (10-6) was pounded for a third straight start. This time the
right-hander surrendered four hits and six runs over 1 2/3 frames. He's given
up 19 hits and 23 runs over his last three outings for an ERA of 20.70 in that
span.
"Command was off, big time," Niemann said. "I went into a lot of bad counts
and they were sitting on some pitches."
Hoping to turn things around tonight for Tampa will be left-hander David
Price, who is 16-6 with a 2.92 earned run average. Price won for the first
time in four starts on Wednesday against Toronto, as he held the Jays to a run
and four hits in eight innings. He also struck out seven in the win.
Price lost to the Red Sox the last time he faced them and is 2-2 in four
starts against Boston with a 3.81 ERA.
Boston will counter with Japanese right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka, who is 9-4
on the year with a 4.29 ERA. MAtsuzaka beat the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday,
as he allowed four runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings.
Matsuzaka has faced the Rays 11 times and is 2-5 against them with a 4.34 ERA.
Tampa is 10-6 against the Red Sox this season.
<< White Sox send Garcia to mound in Detroit
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Freddy Garcia tries to win his ninth straight decision as
an opposing pitcher at Comerica Park this evening when the Chicago White Sox
and Detroit Tigers continue their four-game series.
In his last nine starts as a vi
<< Sabathia goes for 20th win vs. O's in the Bronx
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - CC Sabathia tries to win 20 games for the first time in his
career this evening when the New York Yankees continue their three-game series
with the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium.
Sabathia won his sixth straight sta
<< Silva set to return as Cubs battle Astros
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cubs starter Carlos Silva displayed a lot of heart in
beginning the season 8-0 over his first 11 starts. In an odd twist, that's
exactly what has kept Silva off the mound since August 1.
Silva is scheduled to take the moun
<< Fading Angels hope to stop home slide against Indians
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With their postseason fate hanging by a thread, the LA
Angels of Anaheim look to stop a four-game home losing streak tonight in the
second portion of a three-game series versus the Cleveland Indians.
The Angels are 9 1/2 g
<< A's aim to extend home win streak over Mariners
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oakland has played well at home this season and nobody
knows that better than the Mariners. The two AL West rivals will go at it
again tonight in the second test of a three-game series from the Coliseum.
Oakland recorded i
Skidding Rangers resume set at Toronto >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers try to avoid a fifth straight loss this
evening when they continue their four-game series with the Toronto Blue Jays
at Rogers Centre.
The Blue Jays drew first blood in this series on Monday, as Verno
Hard-charging Phils continue key series with Marlins >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies have been inconsistent on offense
all year, and it was never more evident than during Monday's doubleheader
versus the Florida Marlins. That still didn't stop the club from pulling
within a half-game
Giants eye first place as they continue series in Arizona >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -Runs were hard to come by in Monday's opener of a three-
game series between the San Francisco Giants and Arizona Diamondbacks, and
another pitcher's duel could be in the works when the two National League West
foes square off
Braves seek to bounce back in second test with Pirates >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta's offense has been mostly shut down during its
current stretch of four losses in five games. That is exactly what starter Tim
Hudson has done to Pittsburgh over the last few years, though.
Hudson looks to extend a
Padres try to string back-to-back wins together against LA >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After finally being able to end a potentially-costly 10-
game skid on Monday, the San Diego Padres will try to start up a winning
streak behind their best pitcher when the National League West leaders resume
a three-game seri
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Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
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With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
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One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
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MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
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