05/09/2008 - (Baseball Betting) - The NL East-leading Florida Marlins will try to extend their current winning streak to a season-high five games tonight, when they begin a seven-game road trip with the first of three straight meetings with Washington at Nationals Park.
Florida has won four in a row and completed a three-game sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers at Dolphin Stadium with a 7-2 victory on Thursday. Matt Treanor finished 2-for-3 with a three-run homer and Jorge Cantu added a two- run shot to lead the way.
Luis Gonzalez went 3-for-3 and Hanley Ramirez had two hits and an RBI for the Marlins, who outscored the Brewers 16-4 in the series and sit one game ahead of Philadelphia in the division standings.
Marlins starter Mark Hendrickson gave up one run on seven hits, but lasted just 4 1/3 innings. Logan Kensing then pitched 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief for the victory.
Florida will also visit Cincinnati for four games at Great American Ball Park on the current trek.
Ricky Nolasco gets the nod for the Marlins tonight and is 1-3 with a 6.10 ERA in seven games (5 starts) this season. Nolasco is 0-3 in his previous four outings, and was pounded for six runs and 10 hits in 4 2/3 innings of work during a 7-2 loss versus San Diego on Saturday.
Nolasco, a right-hander, has enjoyed success against the Nationals in his career, having gone 3-1 with a 4.37 ERA in six games (four starts).
Washington put the brakes on a two-game slide with an 8-3 victory over the Houston Astros on Thursday in the finale of a three-game set at Minute Maid Park. Rob Mackowiak went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer and starter John Lannan tossed six strong innings, giving up just one run on seven hits and one walk with three strikeouts.
Ryan Zimmerman had three hits and Cristian Guzman scored three times as the Nats won for the seventh time in 10 tries.
Tim Redding will take the mound for Washington on Friday and is 4-2 with a 3.20 ERA in seven starts. The righty last toed the rubber on Sunday versus Pittsburgh and recorded the win with 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball.
Redding is 1-1 in two starts against Florida in 2008, and owns a 4-1 mark with a 2.68 earned run average through seven career appearances versus the Marlins.
Florida is 5-1 so far against the Nationals this season, with a 3-0 record at Nationals Park.
<< A pair of aces to highlight Padres-Rockies opener
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A solid pitching matchup is on tap tonight at Petco Park,
where Jake Peavy will lead the San Diego Padres against Aaron Cook and the NL
West-rival Colorado Rockies.
Peavy is 4-1 with a 2.22 earned run average in seven
<< Reeling Brewers return home to face Central-leading Cards
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers are back at home after a lengthy road
trip, and they will try to stop a six-game slide tonight in the first of four
straight games versus the St. Louis Cardinals at Miller Park.
Milwaukee went 2-7 o
<< Tribe hopes to solve its struggles at Progressive Field
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Beginning tonight against Toronto, the Cleveland Indians
will play each of their next seven games at home.
While that usually is a blessing for any team, the Indians are just 8-11 at
Progressive Field. Last weekend, they w
<< 2008 All-NBA Teams List
F - Kevin Garnett, Boston (118), 612F - LeBron James, Cleveland (117), 610C - Dwight Howard, Orlando (86), 546G - Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers (127), 635G - Chris Paul, New Orleans (124), 629Second TeamF - Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas (1), 189F - Tim Duncan, S
O's try to continue dominance of KC >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles will attempt to maintain their
recent dominance of the Kansas City Royals when the two teams continue a four-
game series tonight at Kauffman Stadium.
Baltimore has now won 10 straight encounters wit
Red Sox make trip to Metrodome >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The defending world champion Boston Red Sox make their lone
regular-season visit to the Metrodome this weekend, when the American League
powerhouses start up a four-game series with the Minnesota Twins that begins
this evenin
D'Backs, Cubs start series at Wrigley >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of playoff hopefuls get together for a three-game
series that begins this afternoon at Wrigley Field, where the Chicago Cubs
host the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first meeting between the teams since
last year's Natio
White Sox start trip at Safeco >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago White Sox start up a 10-game road trip with
tonight's visit to Seattle's Safeco Field, where the club will begin a three-
game series with the badly-struggling Seattle Mariners.
Seattle has dropped eight of it
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Sports Betting News: Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting