Burrell blasts Giants over Dodgers

Baseball Betting Lines

07/31/2010 - San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pat Burrell smacked a two-out, two-run homer off Jonathan Broxton in the eighth inning to help the Giants steal a 2-1 decision over the Dodgers in the second meeting of a three-game series.

Hong-Chih Kuo plunked Buster Posey with two outs in the eighth and was promptly pulled for Broxton (3-3), who battled back from a 3-0 count to Burrell before serving up a payoff fastball that was redirected over the left- field wall for the go-ahead score.

Guillermo Mota (1-3), who struck out Rafael Furcal and Matt Kemp to strand two runners in the eighth, finished off San Francisco's fourth win in five games with a 1-2-3 ninth, sending Los Angeles to its fourth straight loss.

Burrell's blast spoiled a terrific start for Chad Billingsley, who pitched on three day's rest and allowed just two hits and two walks while fanning five over 6 2/3 scoreless innings.

Barry Zito also received a no-decision, as the veteran lefty gave up one run on Casey Blake's homer over seven innings, scattering three hits and two walks to go with six punchouts.

Both starters were on cruise control until the seventh, which Blake opened by taking a high-and-in fastball over the left-field wall.

Kuo relieved Billingsley with two outs and one on in the seventh and gave up a pinch-hit single to Aaron Rowand. A wild pitch put both runners in scoring position, but Kuo fanned Andres Torres to end the threat.

Game Notes

Billingsley, who has thrown 21 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings, was 0-2 with a 22.50 earned-run average in two previous starts on less than four day's rest...Kuo's scoreless streak ended at 16 2/3 frames...The Giants finished July with a 20-8 record, their first 20-win month since September 2000...Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier did not play, as he flew back to Los Angeles to witness the birth of his second child...Clayton Kershaw's five-game suspension ends on Sunday and he will toe the rubber against San Fran's Matt Cain...The Dodgers got several reinforcements at the trade deadline Saturday, netting starter Ted Lilly and infielder Ryan Theriot from the Cubs and reliever Octavio Dotel from the Pirates...The Giants added bullpen help in the form of Ramon Ramirez from the Red Sox and Javier Lopez from the Pirates.

Sprotsillustrated Baseball Betting News

<< Hahn, Chappell share lead at Cox Classic
Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - James Hahn fired a seven-under 64 and Kevin Chappell had a three-under 68 to share the third-round lead Saturday at the Cox Classic. They finished 54 holes on the Champions Run course at 17-under 196 to take a o

<< Hanigan, Arroyo lead Reds past Braves
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Hanigan delivered the tie-breaking two- run double in the seventh inning, and Bronson Arroyo tossed seven sturdy frames in Cincinnati's 5-2 win over Atlanta in the middle tilt of a three-game set.

<< A Little Warm is hot horse in Jim Dandy Stakes
Saratoga Springs, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A Little Warm, ridden by John Velazquez, took the lead in mid-stretch on his way to winning Saturday's $500,000 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga Race Course. The 1 1/8-mile contest is the

<< Sunderland signs Richardson to extension
Sunderland, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sunderland signed midfielder Kieran Richardson to a contract extension through the 2012-13 season on Saturday. Richardson, 25, joined Sunderland from Manchester United in 2007 and has made 85 appea

<< Giants agree to terms with second-round pick Joseph
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Giants have reportedly agreed to terms on a contract with defensive tackle Linval Joseph. Joseph was selected 45th overall by the Giants in this year's draft. The Star- Ledger reports t

Yanks, Phils set themselves up for a rematch >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - I guess the Houston Astros and Cleveland Indians really enjoyed last year's World Series. After the Astros paid the Philadelphia Phillies to basically take Roy Oswalt off their hands, Houston general manager Ed Wade

Couples joins Langer in lead at U.S. Senior Open >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hometown favorite Fred Couples fired a five- under 65 Saturday to grab a share of the lead after three rounds of the U.S. Senior Open. Second-round leader Bernhard Langer birdied the 18th hole to card a t

Boston calls up Kalish; designates Hermida for assignment >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox designated outfielder Jeremy Hermida for assignment to make room on the 25-man roster for outfield prospect Ryan Kalish, who was recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket. Kalish was immediately ins

Ortiz's late heroics helps BoSox slip past Detroit >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - David Ortiz provided some late-game dramatics yet again, belting a game-winning three-run double in the ninth inning to lift the Red Sox to a 5-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers. Ryan Perry, who came into t

Hamilton scratched from Rangers' lineup >>
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -Major league batting leader Josh Hamilton was scratched from the Texas Rangers' lineup Saturday night because of patella tendinitis in his right knee.Hamilton, hitting .362 with 23 homers and 75 RBIs, started in center field in

Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.