Broncos deal Warren to Oakland

Football Betting Lines

08/20/2007 - Englewood, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Broncos have traded defensive tackle Gerard Warren to the Oakland Raiders in exchange for an undisclosed pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Warren spent the past two years with the Broncos after playing his first four NFL seasons with the Cleveland Browns, who made the former University of Florida standout the third overall pick of the 2001 draft.

In his two years with Denver, Warren posted 36 tackles and 5 1/2 sacks while starting all 31 games he played.

Warren has started 90 of the 91 games he has played since entering the NFL in 2001, and has 22 sacks to go along with 149 tackles.

Wrollingstone Football Betting News

<< Derby completes signing of American Lewis
Derby, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - United States international Eddie Lewis completed his move to Premiership side Derby on Monday for an undisclosed fee. The 33-year-old Lewis has signed a two-year deal with the promoted club after spen

<< White Sox hope to end freefall against Royals
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox try to put the brakes on their season-high eight-game losing streak this evening, when they open a three-game series with the Kansas City Royals at U.S. Cellular Field. Chicago extended its l

<< Twins host Mariners in matchup between streaking clubs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Seattle Mariners try to stay atop the American League wild card standings when they begin a three-game set with the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome this evening. Seattle completed a three-game sweep of the Chica

<< Defense United in quest for MLS Cup
Washington, D.C. (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - D.C. United goalie Troy Perkins started to move to his left before he realized the ball was bending the other way. Perkins couldn't change direction in time, instead dropping his hands to his hips as he st

<< Gallas sidelined three weeks with groin injury
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arsenal captain William Gallas is expected to miss the next three weeks because of a groin injury that he suffered in the team's 1-1 draw with Blackburn on Sunday. Gallas sustained the injury in the 24th

Benfica bags manager Santos after season's first match >>
Lisbon, Portugal (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Benfica fired manager Fernando Santos on Monday just two days after the club opened its season with a 1-1 draw against promoted side Matosinhos. "Benfica have reached agreement with Fernando Santos

Rudd to retire at end of season >>
Brooklyn, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While waiting out yesterday's rain, 50-year- old Ricky Rudd announced that he would retire at the end of the 2007 season. "I've been fortunate that it's something that I've loved to do, had fun doing and m

Klose to miss next game with injury >>
Munich, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bayern Munich striker Miroslav Klose will miss the team's next league contest on Saturday against Hannover because of a knee injury. Klose suffered the injury in Bayern's 4-0 thrashing of Werder Br

Gerrard among list of withdrawals for England >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard was among a list of four more players who have withdrawn from the England squad that will meet Germany in a friendly on Wednesday at Wembley Stadium. Gerrard played in

European Solheim Cup squad tabs nine players >>
Macclesfield, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Ladies European Tour announced the first nine players for its 2007 Solheim Cup team on Monday. Those nine players include two rookies and seven others that have combined for 35 previous appeara

Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.

Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.