Saturday, April 2, 2011

MLB Preview: San Diego Padres vs. St. Louis Cardinals

The San Diego Padres and the St. Louis Cardinals will both be trying to pick up a win on Saturday when they battle at Busch Stadium.
The Padres will trot Clayton Richard out to the mound in this one. Lefthander Richard has a 0-0 record and a 0.00 ERA this season.
Richard's opponent in this one will be Jake Westbrook. The Cardinals righthander has a 0.00 ERA to go along with a 0-0 record this season.
Oddsmakers currently have the Cardinals listed as 146-moneyline favorites versus the Padres, while the game's total is sitting at 8.
In their last action, San Diego was a 5-3 winner on the road against the Cardinals. Bettors on San Diego at +165 on the moneyline collected their winnings from that game, while the total score (8) sent OVER bettors home happy as well.
Team records: San Diego: 1-0 SU St. Louis: 0-1 SU
San Diego most recently: When playing on Saturday are 6-4 Before playing St. Louis are 5-5 After playing St. Louis are 4-6 After a win are 4-6
St. Louis most recently: When playing on Saturday are 7-3 Before playing San Diego are 5-5 After playing San Diego are 7-3 After a loss are 6-4
A few trends to consider: The total has gone OVER in 9 of San Diego's last 11 games when playing on the road against St. Louis The total has gone UNDER in 6 of San Diego's last 8 games on the road San Diego is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games on the road San Diego is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games St. Louis is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games when playing at home against San Diego St. Louis is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis's last 6 games St. Louis is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
Next up: St. Louis home to San Diego, Sunday, April 3

MLB Preview: San Diego Padres vs. St. Louis Cardinals

NCAA Final Four Betting Preview- VCU Rams vs. Butler Bulldogs

Pointspread: Butler-2 ½

Over/Under: 133

This Saturday the highest combination of seeds ever to meet in a Final Four game will take place when the No.11 VCU Rams, winners of the Southwest Region take on the No.8 seed Butler Bulldogs, who won the Southeast at Reliant Stadium in Houston. Game time is set for 6:05 p.m. (ET) and it will be broadcast on CBS.

VCU was a ?last four in? team in the expanded field of 68 teams for the NCAA Men?s Tournament. The Rams quickly proved they belonged with wins over USC in the play-in game and Georgetown in the second round. They caught everyone?s attention with a 94-76 rout of No.3 seed Purdue as a 9 ½-point underdog in round three and a 72-71 OT win over No.10 Florida State in the Sweet 16 as a 4 ½-point underdog.

VCU became the basketball story of year with a stunning 71-61 upset of No.1 seed Kansas in the Elite Eight as an 11-point underdog. The heart and soul of the team, Joey Rodriguez has done an excellent job of directing the offense and Jamie Skeen and Bradford Burgess have provided the points, especially from beyond the arc where the Rams are shooting 43.8 percent.

No one expected Butler to repeat it dramatic run to the 2010 title game, but after the Bulldogs knocked-off No.1 seed Pittsburgh 71-70 in the third round as an eight-point underdog, the path to Houston was clearly staked-out. They beat No.4 seed Wisconsin 61-54 in the Sweet 16 as a 4 ½-point underdog and outlasted No.2 seed Florida 74-71 in overtime in the Elite Eight.

Matt Howard and Shelvin Mack, who both played a significant role in last year?s run, have elevated their game to an even higher level this year. Howard is averaging 16.3 points and seven rebounds and Mack is averaging 21.3 points, including putting up 30 points against Pitt and 27 in the win over the Gators.

There will be no shortage of guts and determination in this game and it is actually unfortunate that one of these teams has to lose. Butler uses its edge in experience to grind-out a win, but stick with VCU and the 2 ½-points in a game that will fittinglycome down to the final possession.

NCAA Final Four Betting Preview- VCU Rams vs. Butler Bulldogs

NCAA Final Four Betting Preview- Connecticut Huskies vs. Kentucky Wildcats

Pointspread: Kentucky -2 ½

Over/Under: 140

Two of the more storied programs in men?s college basketball will face one another in this year?s NCAA Tournament?s Final Four when the Connecticut Huskies tangle with the Kentucky Wildcats in the second game on Saturday?s schedule. Tip-off from Reliant Field in Houston is set for 8:49 p.m. (ET) and the game will be broadcast on CBS.

Connecticut comes into this game riding a nine-game winning streak that started with round one of the Big East Conference Tournament. The Huskies rolled over Bucknell and Cincinnati in the first two rounds of this tournament before making a statement with a 74-67 victory over No.2 seed San Diego State in the Sweet 16 as a two-point underdog. They then held off No.4 seed Arizona 65-63 as a 3 ½-point favorite to advance to the Final Four.

Much of the credit for the nine game run has to go to Kemba Walker, who has been absolutely spectacular over the past month. He is averaging 26.8 points a game in this tournament including a game-high 36 points in the win over the Aztecs and a team-high 20 points against the Wildcats. Freshman guard/forward Jeremy Lamb has also been key with 18.3 points a game including 24 against San Diego State and 19 against Arizona.

Kentucky?s three freshmen starters grew up in a hurry by surviving an early scare against No.13 seed Princeton with a 59-57 win as a 12 ½ -point favorite. Next the Wildcats took out No.5 seed West Virginia 71-63 as a 3 ½-point favorite. They proved they can handle the pressure of the spotlight with a 62-60 victory over No.1 seed Ohio State in the Sweet 16 as a 5 ½-point underdog. Kentucky made its way into the Final Four by grinding out a 76-69 win over No.2 seed North Carolina as a 1 ½-point favorite in the Elite Eight.

The brightest star of them all has been Brandon Knight, who hit the game-winning jumper against the Buckeyes and scored a team-high 22 points against the Tar Heels. DeAndre Liggens and Josh Harrelson have been able to add some veteran leadership to the team. These two came up huge against Ohio State with a combined 33 points.

The Huskies beat Kentucky 84-67 earlier in the season as a 4 ½-point road underdog, but that should have little bearing on this game. This time around expect a back-and-forth battle that goes down to the bitter end. Once again Walker proves to be the difference in a one or two point Connecticut victory.

NCAA Final Four Betting Preview- Connecticut Huskies vs. Kentucky Wildcats

Thursday, March 31, 2011

The Greek Offering Dime Lines for Baseball This Season!!!!! Great News for Baseball Bettors!!!

Thursday, March 31, 2011
Line Changes made within the last 15 Minutes will have a Grey background.

905	San Diego Padres	T Stauffer -R		-145		-125	+167
906	St Louis Cardinals	C Carpenter -R	-1½	+125	7	+105	-177

907	San Francisco Giants	T Lincecum -R		-240		-120	+103
908	Los Angeles Dodgers	C Kershaw -L	-1½	+200	6½	+100	-113

911	Los Angeles Angels	Jer Weaver -R	-1½	+115	8½	+105	-144
912	Kansas City Royals	L Hochevar -R		-135		-125	+134

1009	San Diego Padres	T Stauffer -R	-1½	+280
1010	St Louis Cardinals	C Carpenter -R		-340

1011	San Diego Padres	T Stauffer -R		-230
1012	St Louis Cardinals	C Carpenter -R	-2½	+190

1013	San Francisco Giants	T Lincecum -R	-1½	+170
1014	Los Angeles Dodgers	C Kershaw -L		-200

1015	San Francisco Giants	T Lincecum -R		-400
1016	Los Angeles Dodgers	C Kershaw -L	-2½	+320

1021	Los Angeles Angels	Jer Weaver -R		-300
1022	Kansas City Royals	L Hochevar -R	-1½	+250

1023	Los Angeles Angels	Jer Weaver -R	-2½	+180
1024	Kansas City Royals	L Hochevar -R		-220

951	Houston Astros	B Myers -R		+100		-105	+225
952	Philadelphia Phillies	R Halladay -R	-1½	-120	7	-115	-255

953	Pittsburgh Pirates	K Correia -R		-135			+163
954	Chicago Cubs	R Dempster -R	-1½	+115			-173

955	Arizona Diamondbacks	I Kennedy -R		-120		+100	+182
956	Colorado Rockies	U Jimenez -R	-1½	+100	8½	-120	-195

957	New York Mets	M Pelfrey -R		-140		-120	+160
958	Florida Marlins	J Johnson -R	-1½	+120	7	+100	-170

959	San Francisco Giants	J Sanchez -L		-225			+106
960	Los Angeles Dodgers	C Billingsley -R	-1½	+185	7		-116

961	Chicago White Sox	M Buehrle -L		-225		-105	+102
962	Cleveland Indians	F Carmona -R	-1½	+185	8	-115	-112

963	Boston Red Sox	J Lester -L	-1½	+145	8½	-120	-119
964	Texas Rangers	C Wilson -L		-165		+100	+109

965	Minnesota Twins	C Pavano -R		-180		+100	+121
966	Toronto Blue Jays	R Romero -L	-1½	+160	8½	-120	-131

967	Baltimore Orioles	J Guthrie -R		-130		-105	+177
968	Tampa Bay Rays	D Price -L	-1½	+110	8½	-115	-187

969	Los Angeles Angels	D Haren -R	-1½	+120	8½	+100	-139
970	Kansas City Royals	J Francis -L		-140		-120	+129

971	Seattle Mariners	F Hernandez -R		-230			+104
972	Oakland Athletics	T Cahill -R	-1½	+190	6½		-114