Fielder leads Milwaukee hit parade in rout of Cubs

Baseball Betting Lines

08/02/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Prince Fielder recorded his first career five- hit game, drove in five runs and scored twice in Milwaukee's 18-1 drubbing of the Cubs in the first of three meetings at Wrigley Field.

The Brewers, who had scored eight total runs during their five-game skid coming in, posted a season-high 26 hits, 22 of which were singles.

Corey Hart celebrated signing a three-year contract extension on Monday by going 4-for-7 with three runs scored and an RBI, while Ryan Braun came across the plate three times and drove a pair in in a five-hit effort.

Casey McGehee went 2-for-5 with three runs scored, a homer and four RBI, and Rickie Weeks knocked in three in the rout.

Yovani Gallardo (10-5) was overshadowed by the run support, matching a season- high with 12 strikeouts while allowing just two hits, one walk and one run over a six-inning start to pick up the win.

Randy Wells (5-9) was knocked around for seven runs -- six earned -- on 10 hits in four-plus innings for Chicago, which has dropped six straight.

The Brewers had one hit over the first three innings, then erupted from there.

Braun and Fielder each singled to open the fourth and trotted home when McGehee sent one deep over the center-field wall. The next three hitters recorded singles, and Weeks drove in a pair for a 5-0 cushion.

The Cubs got their only run in the bottom half, as Starlin Castro led off with a double and later scored on an Aramis Ramirez groundout.

Wells was pulled after putting the first two hitters on in the fifth, and Justin Berg had little success in relief, walking Jim Edmonds to load the bases before Alcides Escobar singled home a run.

Ramirez's throwing error allowed McGehee to score two batters later, and Weeks notched an RBI groundout before Hart and Braun added run-scoring singles.

McGehee scored again in the sixth on an Escobar base hit off Casey Coleman, then hit a sacrifice fly following Fielder's RBI single in the seventh, pushing the margin to 13-1.

Fielder came up with the bases loaded in the eighth and greeted Brian Schlitter with a gapper to right, clearing the bases.

Braun and Fielder put the finishing touches on their five-hit games with run- scoring hits in the ninth.

Game Notes

Cubs manager Lou Piniella, in Tampa, Fla. on personal business, will return to the bench on Tuesday...Each Brewers starting position player had at least one hit...Castro had two of Chicago's four hits...Milwaukee did not match its season-high for runs (20), accomplished against the Pirates on April 22.

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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.

Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back

With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.

"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."

Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .

Get all your baseball betting lines, MLB lines and MLB team props at the My Sportbook.

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