07/04/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays will try to run their winning streak to five games this evening, when they begin a four-game series with the Kansas City Royals at Tropicana Field.
The Rays' current winning run includes a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox, which pushed Tampa Bay's lead in the American League East to three games after Thursday's off day. The Rays completed their sweep with a 7-6 victory over the Red Sox on Wednesday.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Rays are the first team other than the Yankees or the Red Sox to lead the AL East in July or later since 2000, when the Blue Jays held the top spot through games of July 6 before finishing third.
Jason Bartlett's two-run single capped a six-run seventh inning to help the Rays rally, while Evan Longoria was 3-for-4 and knocked in three runs. Carl Crawford went 3-for-4 with a walk and a run scored, while Akinori Iwamura and Carlos Pena also drove in a run for Tampa Bay, which owns the best record in baseball at 52-32.
Bartlett, though, landed on the 15-day disabled list on Thursday due to a right knee sprain suffered in the game. The 28-year-old is batting .256 with 20 RBI and 18 steals in 77 games this season, his first with the Rays.
Tampa will try to keep things going with Edwin Jackson on the hill. Jackson has posted two straight no-decisions since a loss to Florida on June 15 in which he allowed six runs. He faced the Pirates on Saturday and gave up three runs on six hits over 6 2/3 innings.
Jackson is 4-6 with a 4.33 earned run average on the season. The right-hander is also 0-1 with a 14.73 ERA in two career tests versus the Royals. That includes one start, which came on June 2 of last year. Jackson was rocked for six runs on six hits over 3 1/3 frames in that one.
The Royals counter with Brian Bannister, who suffered his first loss since May 22 last time out. He faced the Cardinals on Sunday and gave up seven runs on nine hits over 4 2/3 innings.
Bannister had given up a total of six runs over his previous three starts, going 2-0 in that span and lasting seven innings in each of those outings.
The 27-year-old is 7-7 with a 4.88 ERA on the season and defeated the Rays in his only other career start against them. On June 1 of last season, Bannister gave up just one run on two hits over eight innings against Tampa, while striking out six.
The Royals just split a four-game series with Baltimore, plating seven runs in the sixth inning of Thursday's finale to turn a four-run deficit into a 10-7 victory.
Mark Grudzielanek had four hits, scored twice and drove in a run for the Royals, while Jose Guillen added three RBI with a run scored on two hits. Billy Butler and Tony Pena Jr. each added two hits, an RBI and two runs scored in the win.
Royals outfielder David DeJesus went 1-for-5 to run his hitting streak to a career-high-tying 15 games. He is hitting .403 (25-for-62) with 16 RBI in that time.
Joel Peralta (1-2), Ron Mahay and Joakim Soria, who recorded his 23rd save of the season, combined to toss six scoreless innings in relief in Thursday's win.
Joey Gathright was held out of action for Kansas City last night after pulling his shoulder out of place while attempting an over-the-fence catch on Wednesday. Catcher John Buck, who took a foul tip to the groin Wednesday, also rested.
The Royals and Rays are meeting for the first time this season after Kansas City won four of seven last year. The clubs split four games in Tampa in 2007.
<< Dodgers should get reinforcements for latest battle with Giants
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Dodgers have had problems scoring runs for
Derek Lowe this season. However, with two big-name players set to return from
the disabled list today, that may not be a problem.
Los Angeles is expected to get
<< Diamondbacks welcome Padres to Chase Field
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NL West-leading Arizona Diamondbacks are finally back
at the .500 mark and will try to maintain their division lead tonight, when
they open a three-game series versus the San Diego Padres at Chase Field.
Arizona sits j
<< Hudson goes for Braves against Astros
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta right-hander Tim Hudson makes his fourth career
start against Houston today when the host Braves open a three-game series
against the Astros at Turner Field.
The Georgia native, who'll turn 33 in 10 days, is 1-0 i
<< Nats, Reds resume four-game set in Cincy
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Up-and-down right-hander Bronson Arroyo goes for a second
straight victory today when the Cincinnati Reds continue a four-game series
against the visiting Washington Nationals at Great American Ball Park.
Arroyo, a native
Blue Jays resume western swing with visit to Angels >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The American League West-leading Los Angeles Angels of
Anaheim will open a three-game series this evening against the Toronto Blue
Jays at Angel Stadium.
The Angels, who are five games ahead of Oakland in the divi
Report: Boyle waives no-trade clause, headed to San Jose >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Lightning have reportedly agreed
to trade veteran defenseman Dan Boyle to the San Jose Sharks.
According to TSN of Canada, Boyle waived his no-trade clause and agreed to the
deal, which is pendin
Indians designate Borowski for assignment >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians designated closer
Joe Borowski for assignment Friday, days after he blew a save against the
Chicago White Sox.
Borowski went 1-3 on the season with a 7.56 earned run averag
Federer, Nadal to meet in third straight Wimbledon final >>
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 Roger Federer, seeking a
sixth straight title here, and two-time runner-up Rafael Nadal were Friday's
semifinal winners at The Championships, Wimbledon. The two superstars will
meet in
The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
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