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07/03/2009 - Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hank Blalock belted a two-run homer and Tommy Hunter pitched 5 1/3 strong innings to collect his first win in the majors on his 23rd birthday, as the Texas Rangers downed the Tampa Bay Rays, 3-1, in the opener of a three-game series at Rangers Ballpark.
Hunter (1-1) gave up one run on three hits with five strikeouts and three walks to collect his first win in his sixth start in the big leagues. The University of Alabama product is taking the place of Matt Harrison, who was put on the disabled list last week with biceps inflammation, in the Texas rotation. Frank Francisco retired the side in order in the ninth to pick up his 13th save.
Marlon Byrd had an RBI double for the Rangers, who has won three in a row after a three-game skid. Texas had just five hits in the contest.
Scott Kazmir (4-5) allowed three runs -- one earned -- on five hits with six strikeouts in a five-inning start for Tampa Bay, which has lost two straight after a seven-game winning streak.
B.J. Upton stroked an RBI single for the Rays, who had just three hits in the game.
The Rangers used a two-run home run from Blalock in the fourth to break a scoreless tie. Andruw Jones singled, advanced to second on Jason Bartlett's throwing error, and scored on Blalock's blast over the wall in right-center field.
Upton stroked an RBI single in the top of the fifth to cut the deficit in half. Pat Burrell singled and Dioner Navarro walked to put men on first and second with two outs. Upton then knocked in Burrell with a hit to left field.
Texas responded with a run in the home half of the inning to regain a two-run margin. Ian Kinsler grounded into a fielder's choice, but advanced to second on Ben Zobrist's throwing error. After Michael Young went down swinging, Byrd stroked an RBI double to left.
The Rangers put men on the corners with one out in the sixth, but Chris Davis and Elvis Andrus both went down swinging to end the threat.
The Rays couldn't score any runs despite putting a man on first in the sixth, seventh, and eighth frames.
Game Notes
Friday's clash was the first meeting of the season between these teams. The Rays won six of nine matchups with Texas a year ago, including four of six tilts held in Arlington...Tampa Bay is 15-6 in its last 21 games despite the loss.
<< Moss and Vazquez lead Pirates over Marlins
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Moss and Ramon Vazquez hit early home
runs, and the Pittsburgh Pirates shut down Hanley Ramirez, on the way to a 7-4
win over the Florida Marlins in the opener of a three-game series.
Charlie Morton
<< Mariners squeak past Red Sox in 11
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rob Johnson went 3-for-5 with three doubles,
including a two-run double in the top of the 11th, to lift the Seattle
Mariners past the AL East-leading Boston Red Sox, 7-6, in the opener of a
three-g
<< Hoffpauir's first career hit, Pujols' slam lifts Cards over Reds
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jarrett Hoffpauir came through in a big way
in his major league debut, hitting the go-ahead two-run single in the ninth
inning, lifting St. Louis to a 7-4 win over Cincinnati, in the opener of a
three-g
<< White Sox stay hot, upend Greinke's Royals
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Danks was dominant in 7 1/3 shutout
innings, as the red-hot Chicago White Sox extended their season-best winning
streak to seven games with a 5-0 blanking of the Kansas City Royals.
Danks (7-6) h
Late miscue forces 'Quakes to share points with RSL >>
Sandy, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Earthquakes and Real Salt Lake
battled to a 1-1 draw in Major League Soccer action at Rio Tinto Stadium on
Friday night.
Arturo Alvarez scored the game's first goal for San Jose before a Chr
Report: NHL to investigate Blackhawks' qualifying offers >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks are reportedly under
investigation by the NHL for failing to tender qualifying offers to several
restricted free agents by the league's set deadline.
According to TSN Canada, th
Kings acquire F Smyth in multi-player deal >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings boosted their offense
on Friday, acquiring All-Star forward Ryan Smyth from the Colorado Avalanche
in a three-player deal.
Smyth, 33, tied for the Avalanche lead in points last seas
Sadowski, Giants' offense destroy Astros >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Sadowski got plenty of run support
while throwing seven scoreless innings, as the Giants erupted offensively in a
13-0 whipping of the Astros.
Sadowski (2-0), who made his major league debut Sunda
Michael Vick is back, Brett Favre isn't and the NFC East remains the best division in the NFC, maybe in all of football.
As players start to gather for the start of another season, some things change and some stay the same in the world of the NFL.
The NFC East has been the dominant division in the National Conference for a while, despite limited playoff success, save for the New York Giants surprise Super Bowl win two seasons ago.
Hell, there's a generation of kids in Texas who have never seen the Cowboys win a playoff game (last win was in 1996).
But collectively, the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys and Redskins (well, maybe not so much the Redskins) are as good as a division gets in an NFC conference that has struggled to stay competitive with the AFC side.
Sports bettors have both acknowledged the NFC East's dominance, as one glance at the NFL future odds menu will show.
Looking over the NFL betting odds at online sports book MySportsbook.com we see the top three teams listed to win the NFC Championship are all from the NFC East:
Dallas Cowboys - 7 - 1
Philadelphia Eagles - 13 - 2
New York Giants - 9 - 2
Slotting in behind these three are two teams from the NFC North: the Minnesota Vikings (15-2) and the Chicago Bears (10-1).
Again, despite the lack of recent playoff success, the Dallas Cowboys are popular with the sports betting community, as they hold 14% of all the money wagered on who will win the NFC Championship.
So far, the New York Giants are the bettors' favorite to represent their conference in the Super Bowl, as they have 24% of the overall NFC Championship betting volume.
And what about the Philadelphia Eagles? For the most part, the Eagles had a very productive offseason, the kind that could bring them back to the top.
They had a good draft adding the likes of WR Jeremy Maclin and RB LeSean McCoy.
Unfortunately, the team received a blow when long-time defensive coordinator Jim Johnson passed away on Tuesday.
But this team will make a real run at the division title this year. Going into the regular season, Philly is listed at +240 to win the division.
Last season the Eagles were 9-6-1 SU and 10-6 ATS.
Teams from the NFC East will play teams from the AFC West in the regular season and the Eagles haven't really been a good bet in the last 20 games against the likes of San Diego, Oakland, K.C. and Denver, only going 8-12 ATS.
Two seasons removed from that Super Bowl title, the New York Giants see themselves listed as the odds-on favorite in NFC East championship futures at +162.
Plaxico Burress is gone and with him all the bad publicity surrounding the gun in the sweatpants incident, but can they replace him in the offense?
Last season the Giants were a very reliable bet going 12-4 ATS.
In the Giants' last 20 games against fellow teams from the NFC East; they are 13-7 ATS.
Dallas is listed at +240 to win the division.
Dallas went 9-7 SU and 7-9 ATS last season and with the amount of talent the Cowboys have, a similar performance won't do.
The Cowboys have been atrocious against divisional rivals, going 6-14 ATS in their last 20.
The Washington Redskins are longshots to win the division at +550.
Visit MySportsbook.com for free sportsbook odds RSS feeds go to MySportsbook.com for all your betting football needs.
El Duque expected to throw Tuesday
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- New York Mets pitcher Orlando Hernandez, sidelined at spring training because of arthritis in his neck, is expected to resume throwing on Tuesday.
Hernandez received a cortisone shot Thursday after leaving camp and returning to New York to have his neck examined. The 41-year-old right-hander is penciled in as the team's No. 2 starter behind Tom Glavine.
El Duque's health is a major issue for the Mets, who won the NL East in 2007 and came within one victory of the World Series. Their aging and unsettled rotation is a big question mark this year.
MySportsbook.com has the Mets as -110 favorites to repeat as NL East champions odds.
Hernandez went 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season, including 9-7 with a 4.09 ERA in 20 starts after the Mets acquired him from Arizona in late May. But he missed the playoffs because of a torn calf muscle.
New York already is without Pedro Martinez, out until at least midseason following rotator cuff surgery. Among those competing for starting jobs are prospects Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber and Jason Vargas, plus veterans Chan Ho Park, Jorge Sosa and Aaron Sele.
Notes: Mets manager Willie Randolph is excited about two new utility players he could have on his bench: Damion Easley and David Newhan. ''Their value is really all over the place,'' Randolph said. Easley can play anywhere in the infield and could be used as an emergency outfielder, though Randolph said he would prefer to keep the veteran in the infield. Newhan, meanwhile, can play second base, third or any outfield position for the Mets. ''I love versatility,'' Randolph said. ''I love guys that can give me options when I need them to step in.''
Additional baseball lines and World Series odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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