A's hope to build a win streak versus Mariners
Baseball Betting Lines
09/08/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - At seven games off the pace in the American League West Division, time is running out on the Oakland Athletics and their hopes for a postseason berth. The A's will try to get a winning streak going tonight in the finale of a three-game series versus the Seattle Mariners at the Coliseum.
After beating Seattle in Monday's series opener, the A's dropped a 7-5 decision last night behind starting pitcher Dallas Braden. The left-hander was torched for six runs and nine hits in five innings to absorb the loss.
"It's big, just as far as perseverance is concerned. There's an old saying, 'Try hard and work hard, even when no one is looking,'" Braden said of the team battling back. "I think that flows over into what we're doing."
Kurt Suzuki and Coco Crisp both had two RBI, while Steven Tolleson finished with three hits for the A's, who have lost six of nine games and hope that first-place Texas continues to falter down the stretch. The Rangers have lost five straight.
The Athletics are 3-2 on a nine-game homestand and will send Gio Gonzalez to the hill Wednesday night. Gonzalez has won three straight starts and is 6-2 with a 2.05 earned run average in his last 10 starts. He threw six shutout innings and allowed four hits in an 8-0 triumph over the Angels last Friday, improving to 13-8 in 28 starts to go along with a 3.12 ERA.
Gonzalez is 1-0 in two starts against Seattle this season and 2-1 in seven career games, five of which have been starts, in this series.
Seattle has alternated wins and losses over its last six games and ended a six-game slide by the Bay with Tuesday's win. It set the tone with five runs in the second inning and got a home run from Adam Moore.
"We talked about putting ourselves in good offensive situations," said Mariners interim manager Daren Brown. "I thought we were able to string some hits together in the five-run inning, and I know that's something we haven't seen a lot since I've been here, but it was good to see it tonight."
Moore and Casey Kotchman both ended with two RBI, while Ichiro Suzuki recorded a pair of hits and knocked in a run for the Mariners, who got five innings of two-run ball out of winning starter Doug Fister. David Aardsma later posted his 29th save by getting the final out of the game.
Ichiro is riding a nine-game hitting streak in which he owns seven multi-hit performances.
Taking the mound for the Mariners this evening will be Luke French, who has won back-to-back and four of his last six starts. French pitched seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball in Friday's 1-0 win over Cleveland to even his 2010 mark at 4-4 in 11 games (8 starts) this season.
The left-hander recently lost to Oakland on August 11 and is 1-2 with a 5.89 earned run average in five career games (3 starts) against the Athletics.
Oakland has won six of eight meetings with the Mariners held at the Coliseum this season, as well as eight of 14 overall matchups between the two clubs.
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Florida Marlins ace Josh Johnson will miss his next scheduled start because of shoulder and back pain. Johnson was slated to pitch Friday against Washington, but the Marlins now plan to start Alex Sana
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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies
It's that time of year folks. Betting on American Idol Season 9. And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below. With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.
No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.
Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.
Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.
Odds to Win
There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.
All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.
A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.
Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.
Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol.
Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.
If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.
Elimination Props
Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.
Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.
Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups
The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.
Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.