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NL Rookie Pitcher Gets All-Star SnubBaseball Betting Lines07/12/2010 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For those of you still wrapped up in Strasburg- mania, I have to regretfully inform you that he's not the pitcher referred to in the above headline. As impressive as the Nationals' rookie has been, and as much as I love his stuff, you just can't make the All-Star game with seven starts under your belt. The rookie pitcher who got the snub and has fallen under the national radar for most of the season happens to pitch in the same city where Strasburg made his name in college - San Diego. The Padres' surprising run to the top of the National League West has been helped in great part by the right arm of twenty- two year old Mat Latos. His mid-90's fastball, which explodes through the zone to complement a plus curveball and slider, has made him awfully tough to hit. After struggling in April, Latos has been nothing less than dominant, putting up a 1.44 ERA over his last thirteen starts. When you compare his numbers to Tim Lincecum and Yovani Gallardo, two of the pitchers who were named to the National League squad, it's clear that Latos deserved the nod. Latos......10-4...2.45 ERA...0.97 WHIP....193 BAA Lincecum....9-4...3.16 ERA...1.29 WHIP....232 BAA Gallardo....8-4...2.58 ERA...1.26 WHIP....224 BAA There's no doubt that Lincecum, with his back-to-back Cy Young awards, is the more attractive selection for the mid-summer classic. But, based on the numbers Latos was obviously the more deserving choice. SECOND-HALF OUTLOOK AL EAST: The Yankees are primed to eventually pull away from the Rays and Red Sox. Boston has too many injuries and not enough production from the back end of its rotation. And speaking of starting pitching, Tampa is not getting the kind of production from James Shields, Matt Garza, and Wade Davis it needs to stay in contention. The Rays must pitch well to stay within striking distance of the Yankees, because their offense is nowhere near as good as New York's is. AL CENTRAL: I think this will eventually turn into a two-team race between the Tigers and White Sox. Outside of Carl Pavano, the Twins don't have a reliable starter at this point. The White Sox suffered a tough blow by losing Jake Peavy for the season, but Gavin Floyd, John Danks, Mark Buehrle, and Freddy Garcia give Chicago the best rotation in the division. The Tigers' lineup, led by triple-crown threat Miguel Cabrera and rookie sensation Brennan Boesch, is a big reason why they trail the Sox by just a half game, but there are major question marks in the starting rotation after Justin Verlander, Jeremy Bonderman, and Max Scherzer. AL WEST: The Rangers were clearly better than the Angels before the acquisition of Cliff Lee, and following his addition should run away the with the division. NL EAST: The Braves' pitching staff sets Atlanta apart from the rest of the division. With quality throughout the starting rotation and Billy Wagner in the pen to close games, the Braves have a decided advantage over the Phillies and Mets. After Roy Halladay, Philadelphia doesn't have a reliable starter, while the Mets are banking on a lot of unproven arms and have to have concerns over Mike Pelfrey's recent struggles. NL CENTRAL: The Reds have been one of the major surprises this season as they take a one game lead over the highly-favored Cardinals into the break. I think whatever team gets the better pitching at the back end of its rotation will end up on top. NL WEST: It's a four-team race heading into the second half. The Padres are atop the division on the strength of great starting pitching and a very strong bullpen, headed by All-Star closer Heath Bell. If San Diego's pitching holds up, I have to give them the edge in the division, although it wouldn't hurt to add a quality bat to its anemic lineup. The Rockies should provide the stiffest competition, but it's hard to imagine Ubaldo Jimenez duplicating his first-half performance after the break.
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SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook BettingNFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal. A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon." It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed. The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha. So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games." Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico. To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs. |
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