Castro leads home run parade as ChiSox extend home win streak

Baseball Betting Lines

07/30/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ramon Castro homered twice and Juan Pierre stroked a two-run double, as the Chicago White Sox beat Seattle, 9-5, to sweep a four-game series and extend their home winning streak to 11 games.

Paul Konerko and Carlos Quentin clubbed back-to-back home runs in the seventh inning for the White Sox, who won for the 18th time in their last 19 games at U.S. Cellular Field.

Ichiro Suzuki doubled three times and scored three runs for Seattle, which finished 1-9 against Chicago this season.

Ichiro doubled to begin the game and scored on Casey Kotchman's one-out double. Kotchman drove in Ichiro again, this time on a sacrifice fly in the third inning.

The White Sox loaded the bases with no outs against David Pauley (0-3) in the bottom of the third on two singles and a walk. Pierre then ripped a double down the left-field line to tie the game. Omar Vizquel followed with a run- scoring single and Chicago led 4-2 after Alex Rios grounded into a double play.

In the fourth, Castro homered to left field for a 5-2 advantage.

The Mariners got a run back in the sixth on a Michael Saunders RBI single, but Castro went deep again in the home half and Vizquel contributed a run-scoring single later in the inning to make it 7-3.

J.J. Putz, who had made a club-record 27 consecutive scoreless appearances, replaced Chicago starter Freddy Garcia (10-4) to begin the seventh and gave up an RBI double to Ichiro, who scored on a wild pitch to trim the deficit to 7-5.

Konerko and Quentin restored the four-run cushion by going back-to-back in the bottom of the inning. Konerko homered in all four games of this series.

Game Notes

Chicago is an MLB-best 33-11 since June 9...The White Sox recorded their first four-game home sweep of the Mariners since turning the trick from September 15-18, 1983...The Mariners have dropped eight straight road games against the White Sox...The last time the White Sox won at least 11 in a row at home was a 13-game streak from July 1-August 5, 1989 at Comiskey Park...Garcia gave up three runs on seven hits over six innings...Pauley allowed four runs and six hits in 2 2/3 innings...Konerko has 25 home runs this season.

Online-wagering-casino Baseball Betting News

<< O's edge Royals in 11 innings
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ty Wigginton hit two sacrifice fly balls, including the game-winner in the 11th, helping the Baltimore Orioles snap a five-game losing streak with a 6-5 win over the Kansas City Royals. Nick Markakis

<< Bartoli, Sharapova move on in Stanford
Stanford, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marion Bartoli and Maria Sharapova were both second-round winners in Thursday's action at the $700,000 Bank of the West Classic tennis event. The fourth-seeded and defending champion Bartoli notched a

<< Vaughan leads Senior Open by two
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bruce Vaughan carded a four-under 66 Thursday to grab a two-stroke lead after the opening round of the U.S. Senior Open Championship at Sahalee Country Club. Vaughan's lone win on the Champions Tour was

<< Young, Teagarden help Rangers beat A's
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Young finished 4-for-4 with three runs scored, and Taylor Teagarden hit a two-run homer, as the Texas Rangers defeated the Oakland Athletics, 7-4, in the rubber match of a three-game series.

<< A-Rod homereless but still helps Yanks crush Tribe in Cleveland
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Rodriguez didn't hit his 600th career home run, but drove in three runs while both Derek Jeter and Curtis Granderson added two RBI as the New York Yankees used a late burst of offense to down Clevela

Report: Saints sign first-round pick Robinson >>
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Orleans Saints have reportedly signed rookie cornerback Patrick Robinson to a five-year contract. According to the Times-Picayune, Robinson is expected to report to training camp on Friday o

Murray needs three sets to advance in Los Angeles >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Murray notched a three-set victory to advance to the quarterfinals at the $700,000 Farmers Classic tennis event. Murray, the top seed, defeated American Tim Smyczek 6-1, 4-6, 6-2, in just under

AP source: Masoli invited to visit Ole Miss >>
A person familiar with the situation says Mississippi coach Houston Nutt has invited former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli to visit campus this weekend.Masoli is expected to decide by Friday morning whether he'll visit Oxford. The person spoke t

AP source: Masoli invited to Ole Miss this weekend >>
Mississippi coach Houston Nutt has invited former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli to visit the school this weekend, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Friday.Masoli is expected to decide by Friday morning whether he

AP source: Masoli accepts invite to visit Ole Miss >>
Former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli has accepted an invitation from Mississippi coach Houston Nutt to visit the school this weekend, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press on Friday.Masoli made the decision early Friday

Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

Get free 2009 Super Bowl Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online Super Bowl betting VISA Mastercard