05/11/2008 - St. Petersburg, FL (Baseball Betting) - Carl Crawford blasted the go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays used 15 hits to beat the Angels, 8-5, completing a three-game weekend sweep.
Crawford had three hits and stole two bases, while Akinori Iwamura went 3-for-5 and scored twice for the Rays. B.J. Upton added three hits, scoring three times.
Cliff Floyd had two RBI in his first action since coming off the disabled list on Friday. Rays starter Andy Sonnanstine went five innings, surrendering five runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out three.
J.P. Howell (2-0) came on to pitch three strong innings, retiring seven straight and nine of 10 to secure the win. Tampa Bay extended its franchise- record nine-game winning streak at home and has won four straight overall. Troy Percival came on in the ninth to record his ninth save of the season.
"That's just the beginning hopefully," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "We feel pretty good about ourselves right now. I believe we're capable of playing this way consistently."
Torii Hunter had three hits and drove in two runs for the Angels. Garret Anderson had two hits and two RBI and Vladimir Guerrero added two hits and knocked in a run in defeat.
Los Angeles starter Ervin Santana lasted 5 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on nine hits and one walk. He did strike out seven and left with a one-run lead, but remained at 6-0 on the season.
"Ervin started off a little slow, picked it up, and actually got into a pretty good rhythm," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. "I thought he had to work hard to get out of some innings but he settled in and gave us a chance to win."
The Angels have dropped four straight, their longest slide since dropping six in a row, April 12-18, 2007.
Tampa Bay erased the Halo's 5-4 lead with a four-run sixth off Justin Speier (0-3).
Dioner Navarro led off with a single, but Santana retired the next two batters before being lifted in favor of Speier. Iwamura roped a double to left-center, but Navarro had to be held at third. Crawford then gave an offering a ride to the right-field seats, making it 7-5. Upton followed with a double off the center-field wall and Speier uncorked consecutive wild pitches to bring in Tampa Bay's eighth run.
The Rays jumped on Santana, getting runs in the first for the second consecutive day. Upton singled in a run, while Evan Longoria lofted a sacrifice fly, and Floyd's base hit drove in Upton.
The Angels, who had been blanked by consecutive 2-0 finals in the first two outings, broke out of their series slump in the third scoring three runs to tie the game. Jeff Mathis walked and Sean Rodriguez singled to start the inning. After two fly ball outs, Guerrero, Anderson and Hunter collected RBI base-hits.
The Rays wasted no time in regaining the lead at 5-4, posting a run in the bottom half on Floyd's second single of the day, plating Upton who led off with a base hit.
Los Angeles continued to hit in the fifth getting another two runs to take the lead. Erick Aybar started with a one-out single and Guerrero followed with a double to left. Anderson singled to right plating Aybar. but right fielder Gabe Gross gunned down Guerrero trying to score for the second out. Hunter then smoked a first-pitch fastball to the gap in right-center for a triple, scoring Anderson.
Game Notes
Los Angeles' runs in the third snapped a 25-inning scoreless streak for Rays starting pitching and a 33-inning streak for Tampa Bay hurlers at home...Los Angeles opens a seven-game homestand against the Chicago White Sox on Monday after finishing a six-game road swing at 2-4...The Rays are off to their best start in club history at 21-16...Tampa continues its homestand, opening a four-game series with the New York Yankees on Monday...Iwamura extended his nine-game hit streak for Tampa.
<< Beltran, Mets blast Reds
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Beltran hit a two-run home run and
an RBI double, and the New York Mets downed the Cincinnati Reds, 8-3, in the
rubber match at Shea Stadium.
Oliver Perez (3-3) went six innings, holding the Re
<< Rockies call up prospect Reynolds, option struggling Redman
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies sent scuffling pitcher
Mark Redman to the minor leagues on Sunday, while calling up top prospect Greg
Reynolds to start their game against the San Diego Padres.
Reynolds went 1-2 with
<< Vintage Sorenstam romps in Williamsburg
Williamsburg, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After a year filled with injury, Annika
Sorenstam proved she is back to her old form on Sunday.
Sorenstam fired a five-under 66 to cruise to a seven-shot win at the Michelob
Ultra Open at Kingsmill. Sh
<< Rockies send struggling Redman to minors
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies sent scuffling pitcher
Mark Redman to the minor leagues on Sunday, calling up Greg Reynolds to start
their game against the San Diego Padres.
The 34-year-old left-hander, who is 2-3
Twellman returns to lead New England over Chivas >>
Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Taylor Twellman scored less than 15 minutes into
his season debut Sunday and the New England Revolution defeated Chivas USA 2-1
in Major League Soccer.
Twellman missed New England's first seven matches followi
Braun leads Brew Crew past Cards >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Braun's fourth career multi-homer
game helped the Milwaukee Brewers to a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in
the third of a four-game set at Miller Park.
Jeff Suppan (2-2) gave up one run
Gagne relieved of closing duties for Brewers >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Milwaukee Brewers manager Ned Yost announced
before Sunday's 5-3 win over St. Louis that Eric Gagne had been relieved of
his closer duties and will approach the ends of games with a closer-by-
committ
Atletico Madrid pulls level with Barcelona >>
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Diego Forlan scored as Atletico Madrid edged
Deportivo, 1-0, to pull even in points with third-place Barcelona, which blew
a two-goal lead in a 3-2 loss to Mallorca on Sunday in the Spanish La Liga.
Atletic
Many fans thought it was the best side in the nation by the end of last season. This year, the polls have built on Georgia's momentum and granted it the No. 1 preseason ranking, followed by Ohio State and USC. (The Associated Press has the Buckeyes at No. 2; USA Today took the Trojans.)
"To have people believing we have one of the best teams in the nation going into this thing, it's exciting for us," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt told the AP. "I don't think anything is guaranteed, but we certainly have put ourselves in position where at least the college football world thinks we're pretty good."
Georgia Bulldogs - 9.5 wins
There's no question they're good, but the Bulldogs have one of the toughest 12-game schedules in the nation, mostly because they play in the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. Away games at No. 15 Arizona State, No. 7 LSU and No. 10 Auburn loom large, with contests between the hedges versus No. 24 Alabama and No. 18 Tennessee as well as the World's Largest Cocktail Party in Jacksonville versus No.5 Florida.
Ohio State Buckeyes - 10 wins
Like the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes also have a number of tough road contests in 2008. After two scrimmages dressed up as real games versus Youngstown State and Ohio, it's off to face USC. Other tough away games include No.13 Wisconsin in October and No. 20 Illinois in November. Granted, it should be pretty easy sledding at the Horseshoe. In fact, the only ranked team that travels to Columbus is No. 22 Penn State, in October.
USC Trojans - 10.5 wins
A similarly light schedule awaits the Trojans of Southern California, which is why the oddsmakers' total is one win more and the over is currently commanding -150 odds. Pete Carroll's troops only play three ranked teams in 2008, and all of those games are at home. After what should be an easy trip to Virginia to start things off on Aug. 30, the Trojans get two weeks to prepare for Ohio State in Los Angeles. Their two other ranked opponents, No. 21 Oregon and No. 15 Arizona State, visit in consecutive weeks to start the month of October. After that, the competition eases up. Of course, this is the same highly-touted school that lost to Stanford in 2007 and Oregon State in 2006. And don't discount the fact that USC plays its biggest rivals, Notre Dame and UCLA, back-to-back to close out the regular season. On paper, the Trojans are far superior, but motivation will be high for the Irish and Bruins, especially if their historic foes are in national-title contention.
Odds to Win the Heisman Trophy
Tim Tebow, Florida - 7/2
He won it last year, so it's no surprise he's the favorite to do it again, making him just the second player to go back-to-back. Ohio State's Archie Griffin turned the trick in 1974 and 1975, and Tebow's coach, Urban Meyer, is pretty sure his star quarterback can match the Buckeyes legend.
"There has never been anyone quite like him," Meyer told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I am very lucky to be his coach."
Chris Wells, Ohio State - 5/1
The man they call "Beanie" was a star recruit out of high school, so it's not like nobody knew who the star tailback was before he rushed for 576 yards as a freshman in 2006 and 1,609 as a sophomore. But perhaps his finest moment came last year versus Michigan when he rumbled for 222 yards and two touchdowns in the Buckeyes' 14-3 victory over the hated Wolverines.
Knowshon Moreno, Georgia - 8/1
If the Bulldogs are to live up to expectations, they'll need a huge effort from their sophomore running back. This might be the last year of college ball for Moreno, who rushed for 1,334 yards and for 14 touchdowns as a freshman, while adding 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions, so expect big things for the man from Belford, N.J.
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MySportsbook.com Favors Fighting Irish to win College Football betting odds
According to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, on January 8, the Fighting Irish faithful may be toasting their 14th national title in Arizona – Notre Dame’s first national championship in close to 20 years.
Although MySportsbook.com has listed Notre Dame as the 5-1 favorite to win thecollege football College Football betting, fans in Columbus do not need to cancel their tickets to Glendale just yet. The Ohio State Buckeyes, listed right behind the Irish at 7-1, are also heavy favorites to win college football’s most coveted prize, while West Virginia, USC and the 2007 National Champion Texas Longhorns - all listed at 8-1 – are strong contenders as well.
MySportsbook.com has also posted gambling odds on the conference championships for the ACC, Big 12 and SEC. In the ACC – it could be anyone’s title, particularly for the two schools from the Sunshine State. Florida State and Miami, both listed at 2-1, are favored to win the ACC Championship Game odds, with the ‘Noles hoping to finish in the nation’s top 10 for the first time in five years, and the ‘Canes looking to avenge their 10-7 loss against FSU in last year’s ACC Championship betting.
Moving west to the Big 12, MySportsbook.com has betting lines listing Texas as 7-5 favorites to repeat as conference champions, even though the Longhorns lost their national championship-winning quarterback Vince Young to the NFL. In the south, the Auburn Tigers – led by Heisman-hopeful senior running back Kenny Irons – have been given the best odds to win the SEC Championship odds at 5-2.
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5-1 7-1 8-1 8-1 8-1 12-1 15-1 15-1 18-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 20-1 25-1 40-1 40-1 50-1 60-1 60-1 60-1 70-1 70-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 100-1 150-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 200-1 250-1 250-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 300-1 400-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 500-1 1000-1 1000-1 40-1 |
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2-1 2-1 3-1 7-1 15-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 30-1 50-1 500-1 |
| Texas Oklahoma Nebraska Texas Tech Colorado Iowa State Texas A&M Kansas State Missouri Kansas Baylor Oklahoma State |
7-5 9-5 9-2 12-1 14-1 15-1 15-1 30-1 30-1 35-1 100-1 100-1 |
| Auburn Florida LSU Georgia Tennessee Arkansas Alabama Mississippi South Carolina Mississippi State Kentucky Vanderbilt |
5-2 11-4 4-1 6-1 7-1 7-1 9-1 20-1 28-1 75-1 100-1 300-1 |
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