05/10/2008 - (Baseball Betting) - Greg Maddux will try again for career win No. 350 when he leads the San Diego Padres tonight in the second test of a three-game series versus the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park.
Maddux has lost two straight starts and is 0-3 with a 5.54 ERA in his previous four trips to the hill. In his last attempt at win No. 350 on Sunday at Florida, Maddux was reached for five runs -- four earned -- and 11 hits in 5 2/3 innings of a 10-3 setback at Dolphin Stadium.
The veteran right-hander and future Hall of Famer is 2-3 with a 4.09 ERA in seven starts this season. Maddux is 14-8 with a 4.14 earned run average in 27 career appearances against Colorado.
San Diego continued its struggle with Friday's 4-2 loss to the Rockies in the opener of this set. It has dropped five straight, seven of eight and 18 of the last 22 games to remain last in the NL West division. The Padres will try to avoid losing six straight for the first time since an eight-game skid from July 17-26 of the 2005 season.
Brian Giles hit an RBI double and Kevin Kouzmanoff had a solo home run in defeat. Padres ace Jake Peavy suffered the loss after he was touched for three runs on seven hits in six frames.
Garrett Atkins went 3-for-4 with an RBI for Colorado. Brad Hawpe ended 1-for-4 with a pair of RBI and Matt Holliday added a solo homer and scored twice, as the Rockies posted their third straight win and opened a six-game trip on a good note.
Aaron Cook got the win after he pitched seven innings and only yielded one run on three hits. Brian Fuentes earned his fourth save of the year despite giving up a solo homer to Kouzmanoff in the ninth.
Ubaldo Jimenez gets the nod for the Rockies on Saturday, and he is 1-2 with a 5.82 ERA in seven starts this season. He has registered four straight no decisions and is 0-1 over the past five trips to the hill.
Jimenez last pitched on Monday versus St. Louis and did not factor in the outcome of a 6-5 setback. He yielded four runs -- three earned -- and seven hits in five innings of work.
Jimenez lost to the Padres on April 15 this season, allowing six runs -- two earned -- in 4 2/3 frames of a 6-0 loss at Petco Park. The righty is 1-1 with a 2.55 ERA in three career starts against San Diego.
Colorado won two of three games against the Padres from April 15-17 at Petco Park. The Rockies have won eight of the nine most recent matchups in the series.
<< Friday's NHL Playoff Sum
Philadelphia 2 0 0-2Pittsburgh 3 1 0-4First Period-1, Pittsburgh, Sykora 5 (Malone, Malkin), 6:19. 2, Philadelphia, Richards 5 (Umberger, Coburn), 8:30. 3, Philadelphia, Richards 6 (Lupul, Umberger), 12:50. 4, Pittsburgh, Crosby 3 (Hossa), 14:11
<< Friday's NHL Playoff Summary
Philadelphia 2 0 0-2Pittsburgh 3 1 0-4First Period-1, Pittsburgh, Sykora 5 (Malone, Malkin), 6:19. 2, Philadelphia, Richards 5 (Umberger, Coburn), 8:30. 3, Philadelphia, Richards 6 (Lupul, Umberger), 12:50. 4, Pittsburgh, Crosby 3 (Hossa), 14:11
<< Rollins has big night in return from DL
Freddy Sanchez lifted the Pittsburgh Pirates to another dramatic win with a ninth-inning RBI single. Rickie Weeks stopped Milwaukee's six-game losing with a big hit of his own in the Brewers' last at-bat.And Jimmy Rollins stole the spotlight from bo
<< Red-hot Berkman hits Astros past Dodgers
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Lance Berkman belted a two-run homer and
Carlos Lee also drove in two runs in Houston's 7-1 win over the Los Angeles
Dodgers in the opener of a three-game series.
Berkman, who had three hits, has 16 i
Red Wings aim for 2-0 lead against visiting Stars >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top-seeded Detroit Red Wings will try to take a two
games to none lead in the Western Conference finals tonight, when they welcome
the Dallas Stars for Game 2 at Joe Louis Arena.
The Red Wings came out with a strong pe
Roddick, Stepanek retire, sending Djokovic, Wawrinka to Rome final >>
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Third-seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic and Swiss
Stanislas Wawrinka advanced to the final of the $3.5 million Italian Masters
Saturday after both their semifinal opponents retired.
Sixth-seeded American Andy
Carlisle gets four-year deal to coach Mavs >>
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rick Carlisle has come to terms on a four-year
contract to become head coach of the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavericks website posted a story late Friday night that confirmed the
signing, which is expected
Mets, Reds to play two at Shea >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Johan Santana gets the nod for the New York Mets tonight,
when he takes on the Cincinnati Reds in the first game of a doubleheader at
Shea Stadium.
Friday's opener of a three-game series between the Reds and Mets was
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers SPORTS TRASH TALK
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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