Amid trade rumors, Myers and Lilly square off in Astros-Cubs finale
Baseball Betting Lines
07/21/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two pitchers rumored to be on the trading block get
together this afternoon in the Windy City, where Ted Lilly and the host
Chicago Cubs take on Brett Myers and the Houston Astros at Wrigley Field in
the finale of a three-game set.
Lilly is 0-2 with an 8.83 earned run average in his last three starts, but
pitched well enough for the win his last time out in a 4-3 victory over
Philadelphia last Thursday. He struck out 10 batters, allowed three runs and
issued only one walk in six innings to remain at 3-8 in 16 starts to go along
with a 4.07 ERA.
The veteran left-hander, who is just 2-4 in nine home starts, has enjoyed
success against rival Houston in his career. Lilly is 7-1 with a 2.49 earned
run average in 10 starts against the Astros.
Myers will try to push his winning streak to three straight starts when he
takes the mound Wednesday. Myers hurled eight innings of one-run ball in a 4-1
win versus St. Louis on July 10, then held Pittsburgh to a pair of runs over 7
2/3 frames of his team's 5-2 victory last Thursday from PNC Park.
The right-hander, who is 7-6 in 19 starts with a 3.35 ERA, hasn't pitched so
well on the road in his first season with Houston, going 2-6 in 10 starts away
from Minute Maid Park. Myers beat Chicago in a 6-3 decision back on June 6 at
home, as he fired 6 2/3 innings of two-run ball.
He is 8-3 with a 2.63 ERA in 14 career games (10 starts) against the Cubs.
Trying to slow down Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez may be tough since the
slugger is coming off a three-homer game in last night's 14-7 blasting of the
Astros. Ramirez, who racked up seven RBI in the lopsided win, owns seven home
runs and 24 RBI this month, and has hit safely in 16 of his last 20 games.
Ramirez must have been motivated by the announcement that manager Lou Piniella
will step down at season's end. Geovany Soto got into the act with a home run
as well, while Starlin Castro posted three hits and Derrek Lee went 2-for-4
with three RBI and three runs scored.
"Watching from the bullpen and seeing the way Ramy's been swinging the bat,
going all the way back to Arizona [series July 5-7], he's been seeing the ball
well and he picked us up tonight," Cubs reliever Andrew Cashner said. "As soon
as I got up, I thought I'd be going in and I just tried to keep it close."
Cashner tossed two innings of scoreless relief to pick up his first win in the
majors and starter Ryan Dempster gave up seven runs -- four earned -- on eight
hits in five innings of work for the no-decision.
The Cubs are 4-2 on their 10-game homestand and will also host St. Louis for
three games at Wrigley Field. Piniella, meanwhile, is in his fourth season as
Cubs manager. He guided the club to a winning record in each of his first
three years, but the team is just 43-52. Piniella is the first Cubs manager in
more than 70 years to post a record of .500 or better in each of his first
three seasons with the team. He led the Cubs to NL Central titles in 2007 and
2008, but the team was swept in the Division Series both years.
Chicago has not won a World Series since 1908 and hasn't reached the Fall
Classic since 1945.
Houston has lost three of four games and had a rough night on the mound.
Starter Wesley Wright made his first career start and surrendered six runs,
one of which was earned, and six hits in 4 2/3 innings in the no-decision.
Brandon Lyon suffered the loss for permitting two runs in the eighth and Gary
Majewski was reached for five runs in the ninth.
"I wish I could have executed a little bit better in that fifth inning and
gave our team a chance to get over it and move forward, but I didn't," Wright
said. "I wish I would have made a different pitch to Ramirez. I showed him the
curveball a lot, and he got it up in the air and it just kept carrying."
Chris Johnson homered and finished with two RBI for the Astros, who scored
four runs in the second inning and took a 6-0 lead in the fourth. Carlos Lee
had two hits and an RBI in a losing outcome.
Houston has won five of eight matchups with Chicago this season, one year
after the Cubs took 11 of the 17 matchups between the two clubs.
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CFL East: Hamilton finally delivers >>
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Winless Eskimos seek win column against Blue Bombers >>
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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South
In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South. Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC. The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game. For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft. Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.
1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign? New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1. Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT. Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.
Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami
2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season. With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round. LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems. If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.
Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU
3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season. The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach. The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub. High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career. With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson.
Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season. The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age. It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot. This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.
Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas
It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season. On the clock: the NFC North
Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2
Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1
Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1
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