08/19/2008 - Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Joyce hit a pair of homers and finished with four runs driven in, as the Detroit Tigers used a nine-run seventh to crush the Texas Rangers, 11-3, in the middle contest of a three-game set.
Edgar Renteria added a solo shot for the Tigers, who have won four of their last six overall. Gary Sheffield, Miguel Cabrera and Magglio Ordonez each drove in a run in the win.
Armando Galarraga (12-4) was decent on the hill to pick up the win, as he lasted six innings and gave up three runs on six hits while fanning five and walking three.
Chris Davis had a three-run homer to account for all of the offense for Texas, which has dropped three in a row and 11 of its last 13 overall. Rangers designated hitter Milton Bradley left the game in the seventh with soreness in his left knee.
Vicente Padilla (12-7) was saddled with the loss as he gave up five runs on eight hits in six-plus innings of work.
Joyce broke a scoreless tie in the fifth, as he led the frame off with his 11th homer of the year.
Texas, though, took the lead in the sixth inning. With one gone, Bradley walked and Marlon Byrd followed with a single before Gerald Laird lined out. Davis then slapped a three-run homer to left-center on a 1-2 slider to make it 3-1.
The Tigers roared back in the seventh to put up nine runs. Carlos Guillen walked to lead off and Sheffield followed with a single. Joyce brought both of them home as he crushed his 12th homer of the year well beyond the fence in right-center. Renteria kept it going with another blast to right-center, forcing Warner Madrigal to be summoned from the bullpen.
Madrigal got Brandon Inge to go down swinging, but a walk to Curtis Granderson and a Ramon Santiago single set the table for Ordonez's RBI single. Cabrera then grounded into a force, plating Santiago but rendering Ordonez out at second. Guillen then singled and Sheffield walked to load the bases. Joyce followed with a fly ball to left-center, which dropped between Josh Hamilton and Brandon Boggs, to plate three runs and make it 10-3.
The Tigers brought 13 batters to the plate in the nine-run seventh.
Detroit tacked on a run in the ninth, as Sheffield's single plated Ryan Raburn to make it 11-3.
Game Notes
Galarraga pitched for Texas in 2007 before being traded to Detroit in February for minor league outfielder Michael Hernandez...Detroit has won all five matchups in the season series so far this year -- plating at least eight runs in all of them -- and seven straight over Texas dating back to last season...Texas is now 11 1/2 games off the pace in the AL Wild Card race...Padilla finally took the hill Tuesday after having his start pushed back twice due to muscle joint inflammation in his neck. Padilla hadn't pitched since August 9, when he allowed six runs on eight hits over four innings of a setback to Baltimore.
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Rangers' Bradley leaves game >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Texas Rangers designated hitter Milton
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left knee.
Bradley was 0-for-2 with a walk and run scored before being removed fr
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Padres activate Tomko from DL >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres activated pitcher
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The journeyman right-hander made two
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.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
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.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
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.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
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.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament odds
As of February 9, MySportsbook.com has released its coveted 2007 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament betting odds. “March Madness betting ” only a month away, the top ranked Florida Gators are favorite at 7-2 to win it all. The defending champs have not disappointed at all this season and currently have a 22-2 record and are undefeated (9-0) in SEC play. The Gators’ thrive off of their extremely balanced, experienced and versatile attack. All five starters started in last seasons National Championship game. What is most impressive with this group is their balance; the five starters all average between 10.7 and 13.6 PPG. The Gators have been on an absolute roll having won 15 straight by an average of 16.4 PPG.
Right behind the Gators are the 5th ranked UNC Tar Heels at 9-2. The Heels (21-3, 7-2) are absolutely loaded with top notch talent and are as deep as any team in the country. A concern for the Tar Heels might be inexperience. Of their top four scorers/ minute earners, three are freshmen and the other is a sophomore. The rest of the regular season, the Tar Heels play only one team that is currently ranked (Duke). Their remaining opponents do combine for an impressive 107-58 record though.
Other teams that the MySportsbook.com members seem to believe will win it all include the west coasts’ top team #2 UCLA (6-1), #3 OSU behind man-child Greg Oden (8-1), and #4 Wisconsin (10-1) behind their defense which has given up 70+ points only three times all season.
Below is a list of some of the favorites to win the 2007 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship lines. For the full list of teams and March Madness odds be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com. If you want to use your credit card to bet on college hoops or any other event, MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.
Arizona 20-1
Butler 20-1
Duke 30-1
Florida 7-2
Georgetown 30-1
Indiana 35-1
Kansas 15-1
Marquette 25-1
Maryland 40-1
Memphis 50-1
Nevada 50-1
UNC 9-2
OSU 8-1
Oregon 30-1
Pittsburgh 15-1
Texas 30-1
Texas A&M 18-1
UCLA 6-1
Wisconsin 10-1
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook betting needs.
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