Brewers vie to stay hot against Pirates

Baseball Betting Lines

07/20/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - One day after starter Chris Capuano earned his first victory in over three years, the Milwaukee Brewers will try to extend their series winning streak over the Pittsburgh Pirates to six games this evening in the second contest of a four-game series at PNC Park.

Capuano took the hill in last night's opener and made his first start since June 3. He gave up one run -- a run-scoring triple by Ronny Cedeno -- on three hits over five innings to notch his first victory since May 7, 2007, snapping a 13-decision losing streak with a 3-1 triumph.

"I have a long view, a long perspective of baseball," said Capuano, who missed all of 2008 and 2009 recovering from Tommy John surgery. "I knew that I would eventually get more wins, but I'm just really happy I could get one with the Brewers, with this team."

Jeff Karstens didn't pitch poorly in defeat for the Pirates, holding the Brewers to just three hits. However, one was a solo home run by Prince Fielder, his National League-leading 23rd long ball of the season, and another a two-run homer by Rickie Weeks.

"I felt I had a really good rhythm, throwing strikes," Karstens said. "When I got ahead I was expanding the zone a little bit, making them chase."

John Axford secured the victory for the Brewers and Capuano with a scoreless ninth inning, earning his 12th save and Milwaukee's sixth victory in its last eight games overall.

Weeks has three homers in his last two games and is batting .400 (10-for-25) over a six-game hitting streak with seven RBI. He has a hit in both of his career at-bats versus Pirates rookie Brad Lincoln, who is 0-1 in two starts since winning his first MLB game on June 30.

The fourth overall pick of the 2006 draft, Lincoln has yielded eight runs over his last 11 innings. That includes a no-decision versus the Brewers on July 11 in which he gave up three runs on seven hits, including homers by Ryan Braun and George Kottaras, over six innings of a 6-5 setback in his first career start versus Milwaukee.

The 25-year-old righty is 1-3 with a 5.14 earned run average on the season and 0-1 with a 6.00 ERA over his first two career home starts.

Lincoln's Pirates could be without center fielder and leadoff hitter Andrew McCutchen after he sat out Monday's game due to a right shoulder injury suffered on Sunday versus Houston. Without McCutchen, Pittsburgh failed to secure a third straight win and lost for the eighth time in its last 10 games.

The Pirates have lost nine of 12 to the Brewers this year, including five of six at home, and will try to snap Dave Bush's streak of six straight starts having allowed two runs or fewer.

Bush is pitching to a 2.39 ERA in that span and beat the Pirates on July 10, holding them to two runs over 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander also recorded a win at PNC Park on April 20 with seven shutout innings and is 5-4 with a 4.28 ERA lifetime against the Pirates.

The 30-year-old, who was born in Pittsburgh, lost to the Braves last time out on Thursday despite giving up just two solo homers and seven hits total in six innings of a 2-1 setback. Bush fell to 4-7 on the season with a 4.07 ERA.

Wrollingstone Baseball Betting News

<< Marlins try to top another Rockies pitcher in south Florida
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Marlins survived a meeting with Colorado Rockies ace Ubaldo Jimenez in last night's opener of a four-game series at Sun Life Stadium. The Marlins figure to have an easier chance of matching their longes

<< Red Sox hand ball to Wakefield in Oakland
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After getting an important West Coast road trip off to a good start, the Boston Red Sox shoot for a second straight win over the Oakland Athletics when the teams continue a three-game series tonight at the Coliseum. Bosto

<< Hughes goes for 12th win in Yankees-Angels opener
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Phil Hughes takes aim at win No. 12 when the New York Yankees open a brief two-game series with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim this evening at Yankee Stadium. Hughes, the loser in last Tuesday's All-Star Game, won six o

<< Garza, Rays vie to continue success against Orioles
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Garza takes aim at win No. 11 when the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles continue a three-game set this evening at Camden Yards. Getting that win tonight shouldn't be a problem for Garza, who is 8-1 with a 2.48 ear

<< Royals try to make it two in a row over Jays
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Kansas City Royals try to string back-to-back wins together this evening, when they play the middle test of their three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals halted a six-game losing

White Sox hope to pad lead in Seattle >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox will be vying to further pad their lead atop the American League's Central Division when the resurgent club resumes a three-game series with the Seattle Mariners this evening at Safeco Field. Chica

Indians take aim at sixth straight win in middle tilt with Minnesota >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians are beginning to atone for a miserable first half of the season with a terrific start to their second. The rejuvenated Indians take aim at a sixth consecutive victory following the All-Star break whe

Black takes new deal into Padres/Braves series >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Under Bud Black, the Padres have become one of the biggest successful surprises in 2010. The San Diego manager is now reaping the rewards of that achievement. The Padres take the field for the first time since Black wa

Hurricanes sign D Carson >>
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Carolina Hurricanes agreed to terms with defenseman Brett Carson on a one-year, two-way contract on Tuesday. The 24-year-old completed his first full NHL season in 2009-10 with two goals and 12 points i

Tigers place Inge on DL >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers on Tuesday placed third baseman Brandon Inge on the 15-day disabled list with a non-displaced fracture of the fifth metacarpal on his left hand. Inge was hit on the hand by a pitch

SPORTS BETTING - Tennis is an underrated and under-utilized bettors' sport.

Ten years ago, at just about this time, I called Alan Boston in Vegas and left him a voicemail that went something like this (abridged version): "Hey Alan, Chad Millman from ESPN The Magazine calling. I want to do a book about wise guys, you in?"

A couple weeks later I got a message back (abridged version): "I don't know, maybe," Boston said. "Call me and we'll talk about it. But not later today. I got $1,000 on Andre Agassi to win the French Open at 40-1, and he's in the finals."

Here's what happened next (abridged version): Agassi won his tourney. Boston won his $40,000. I wrote sportsbook.

In the ten years since, how much has been wagered on the big-time tennis events? Put it this way: The Nevada Gaming Commission doesn't even track the number year by year because it's so small.

"Tennis makes up about one-tenth of one percent of our take," says Lucky's bookmaking boss Jimmy Vaccaro. "The last big golf major we probably had $100,000 worth of bets. In tennis, we might have written two big tickets."

Tennis' lack of popularity amongst the American bettoratti is no surprise, really. For starters, the biggest sports betting holidays -- the Super Bowl, the NCAA tourney -- are must see TV. People, at least the degenerates I know, plan vacations around watching those events in Vegas sports books.

But Wimbledon? Doesn't exactly reel in the whales. "Seriously, it's the nuts as an event," says Boston. "But who even knows when it's on?"

Here's another reason that helps explain why golf gets traction, something I call "The Bubbe Theory." My Bubbe is pushing 95 and has cataracts so bad that, to her, even the most crystalline Chicago day is mostly cloudy. But she still listens to the Cubs games, and she still calls me in a fit if she disagrees with something Rick Telander writes in the Chicago Sun Times. She's a sports fan. If she doesn't know you, you're just filling a niche. And niche players, even historically good ones like Roger and Raf, don't drive betting volume. Only the highest profile names attract square money, which inflates wagering totals like a shot of saline to the lips. Bubbe, and the public, loved Agassi, tennis' last cross-the-rubicon, mainstream draw. She also has a crush on Tiger. She's given me standing orders to put a sawbuck on the big cat whenever I walk through a sports book (or mistakenly tap into one via my Internet machine.) That explains why the Masters is getting $100K in action at some books while the four tennis majors might not get that combined this year.

This isn't a case of tennis being a difficult sport to bet. In fact, in Europe, it's probably the second most popular sport for gambling after soccer. Granted, as the WSJ football betting last week and The Mag's Shaun Assael examined in even greater depth last year, that might be because gamblers across the pond see it as an easy game to fix. But it could also be because, over there it holds the kind of sway the big two do over here.

Street corners in Spain are peppered with public courts and kids doing their best Raffy impressions. In some war torn parts of Eastern Europe poverty-stricken kids view tennis as an escape route, like football or basketball here. A couple years ago The Mag's Lindsay Berra wrote a great piece about Belgrade's Jelena Jankovic, Ana Ivanovic and Novak Djokovic. They learned the game as kids while bombs were raining down on their homeland. They practiced in drained swimming pools. Not exactly Nick Bolletierri conditions.

In the United States, casual fans think tennis is played four times a year. But on the tightly packed European continent, national interest in homegrown talent runs deep every weekend. Of the ATP's current top 20 players, only two, tennis betting and James Blake, are American. Fourteen are from Europe, representing six different countries.

No wonder fans from Lisbon to Bhudapest get jacked up for the net game, whether it's Wimbledon or a low-level tourney like the Estoril Open in Portugal (congrats to Spain's Albert Montanes for winning that one, btw). Chances are good that someone representing their flag will not only be playing, but have a shot at winning.

And that's all any bettor can ask for.

To visit this sports book go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.

American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.