Nats try to extend win streak against Phillies

Baseball Betting Lines

07/31/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Usually sellers around the non-waiver trade deadline, the Nationals didn't seem to impressed on Friday with the Phillies' big midseason pickup.

One day after spoiling the Philadelphia debut of Roy Oswalt, Washington will go for a third straight win this evening in the second contest of a three-game series at Nationals Park.

Hoping to make up a small deficit for first place in the National League East, the Phillies acquired Oswalt from the Astros on Thursday and gave their new right-hander the start in last night's opener.

Oswalt, though, struggled in his debut, allowing five runs -- four earned -- on seven hits over six innings of an 8-1 Washington victory.

"I came out early a little amped up, holding the ball a little tight," Oswalt said. "I didn't really start feeling better until the last two innings."

The Nationals snapped the Phillies' season-high eight-game win streak and dropped the club 3 1/2 games behind the Braves for first place in the division.

Craig Stammen earned the victory after allowing just one run -- a solo homer by Jayson Werth in the seventh inning -- and five hits over 6 1/3 frames. Josh Willingham and Roger Bernadina both had a two-run double, while Adam Kennedy collected four hits and scored twice as the Nats won for the third time in four games.

"It was a really good performance by Craig and everybody else who took the ball," said Washington manager Jim Riggleman.

While Washington is looking to win three in a row for the first time since June 8-10, the club could make more noise off the field today than on. The Nats traded their closer Matt Capps on Thursday and then dealt infielder Cristian Guzman to the Rangers before last night's game.

Guzman was hitting .282 this year with a pair of homers and 25 RBI and his exit paved the way for Kennedy to start last night. Washington could also end up dealing Adam Dunn and his 24 homers before today's deadline.

Regardless, Washington has a game to play tonight and it will be sending out a former first-round selection to the hill.

Ross Detwiler, the sixth overall pick of the 2007 draft, will make his second start of the season after returning from hip surgery. The 24-year-old didn't have a memorable season debut as he gave up five runs -- all unearned -- on three hits and three walks over 3 2/3 innings of a setback to the Brewers on Sunday.

"We did not have a good day defensively," Nationals manager Jim Riggleman said after the game. "We certainly didn't get it done today, but Detwiler has to pitch around [errors]. I thought he did a good job and minimized the damage."

Detwiler, 24, went 1-6 with a 5.00 earned run average in 15 games last season and has lost both of his previous career starts versus the Phillies, pitching to a 6.00 ERA in that span.

The Phillies will hope Joe Blanton continues to turn things around this evening. He is 4-6 with a 5.85 ERA this year and is coming off a victory over the Rockies on Monday in which he threw six innings of two-run, six-hit ball. It marked the first time in 16 starts this year that he allowed fewer than three runs in an outing.

Blanton, who has also pitched at least six innings in seven of his last eight starts, is 1-4 with a 6.62 ERA in eight road outings this year. The 29-year- old righty is also 2-3 with a 6.51 ERA lifetime versus the Nationals.

The Phillies have won four of seven over Washington this year, taking two of three at Nationals Park from April 5-8. Philadelphia is 22-6 over its last 28 meetings versus Washington and won seven of nine in D.C. last year.

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.


MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


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.