Cardinals start series in Atlanta

Baseball Betting Lines

09/09/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When St. Louis and Atlanta last met in April, the Cardinals ran away with a four-game sweep at Busch Stadium. They will attempt to do that again in the first of four consecutive matchups tonight from Turner Field.

The Cardinals had lost three in a row to Atlanta before sweeping a four-game series from April 26-29, and are currently fighting for their playoff lives. St. Louis dropped the final two portions of a three-game series at Milwaukee and suffered an 8-1 setback in Wednesday's finale, as starter Jaime Garcia was roughed up for seven runs and seven hits in four innings.

Albert Pujols ended with a team-best two hits, including a home run in the first inning, for the Cardinals, losers in 11 of their last 15 games. The Cards are still six games behind Cincinnati for the National League Central lead and sit 6 1/2 games off the pace in the wild card race.

"It was kind of a weird night for us," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "We're getting shut down pretty regularly now."

La Russa's club is 1-2 on a seven-game road trip and has lost seven of its last eight contests as the visitor. Speaking of losses, Cardinals co-ace Adam Wainwright will try to stop a personal four-game losing streak when he takes the mound this evening. He had won three starts in a row before his recent slide and is coming off Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Reds in which he yielded five runs -- two earned -- and seven hits over five innings.

Wainwright fell to 17-10 in 29 starts to go along with a 2.34 ERA. The All- Star righty is also 6-8 in 15 starts away from Busch Stadium this season. He beat Atlanta during the four-game sweep on April 29, hurling six innings of three-run ball in a 10-4 victory. Wainwright is 5-0 with a 2.00 ERA in eight career matchups (5 starts) with the Braves.

Atlanta is hoping a return home will cure its recent woes, despite salvaging the finale of a three-game in Pittsburgh with Wednesday's 9-3 victory.

Derek Lowe has won all 10 of his career starts against the Pirates after he held the hosts to just a run on eight hits in six innings. Lowe also had a hit and two runs scored, while Martin Prado, Derrek Lee and Alex Gonzalez each drove in a pair of runs for the current wild card-leading Braves, who had lost three straight and five of six games before the six-run triumph.

"I felt good," Lowe said. "There was never any issue of any pain and the game pretty much came down to one pitch in the first inning. We got three runs and they came back and loaded the bases, and it came down to the pitch to Ryan Doumit and I was able to make it and then we just kept piling on."

The Braves' recent slump allowed Philadelphia to take back the top spot in the NL East, as the Phillies hold a half-game lead over Atlanta for division bragging rights. Atlanta is two games in front of San Francisco for the final postseason berth in the Senior Circuit.

Atlanta will also host Washington for three games in Dixie and is an impressive 49-19 at Turner Field this season. It will send Jair Jurrjens to the mound Thursday and he's 4-0 with a 3.38 ERA in his last seven starts. He threw seven shutout innings and gave up three hits in Saturday's 2-0 win at Florida, improving to 7-4 in 18 outings this season.

Jurrjens lost to the Cardinals in late April and is 1-3 with a 3.27 ERA in four career starts against them. The right-hander, however, will put his 6-0 home record on the line tonight.

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FOOTBALL BETTING

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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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.