Dodgers to host Rockies in key divisional set

Baseball Betting Lines

05/07/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier will bring his Triple Crown numbers and late-game heroics into Friday's opener of a three- game series versus the NL West-rival Colorado Rockies at Chavez Ravine.

Ethier was at it again in last night's 7-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, helping the Dodgers salvage the finale of a three-game set. After Los Angeles closer Jonathan Broxton blew his second save and spoil John Ely's bid for his first major league win, Ethier clubbed a LaTroy Hawkins offering over the wall in center field for a grand slam and the 11th walkoff hit of his young career.

"I want to go up there in that situation, I want to end the game right there," said Ethier, who cracked four game-winning homers a year ago. "[Hawkins] threw me a fastball right down the middle. I just put an easy swing on it and it just kept going."

The lefty is tied with Arizona's Kelly Johnson for the National League lead in homers (10) and leads the NL in average (.371) and RBI (30).

Ethier's hit made a winner out of Broxton, while Ely tossed 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball and struck out seven batters.

James Loney knocked in a run in his sixth straight game and Xavier Paul ended with two hits, two runs scored and an RBI for Los Angeles, which has won four of six and improved to 4-3 on a 10-game homestand.

Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda hopes to build off an impressive outing his last time out when he toes the rubber this evening. Kuroda beat Pittsburgh on Sunday with eight innings of one-run ball and lowered his earned run average from 2.36 to 2.08. The Japanese right-hander is 3-1 in five starts but winless in his career against the Rockies, having gone 0-2 with a 7.00 earned run average in three starts.

Los Angeles is 4-1 when Kuroda takes the mound this season.

Colorado, meanwhile, will continue a nine-game road trip Friday and has won three of its last four games. It took two of three matchups with San Diego and is coming off Wednesday's 6-5 victory in 12 innings thanks to Ian Stewart's solo home run in the top of the 12th.

Manuel Corpas tossed 2 2/3 scoreless frames of relief to post the win for the Rockies, who recorded their first road series victory of the season. Starter Aaron Cook lasted five innings, allowing five runs on six hits.

"We've had a couple of rough series on the road, so to get this win was big for us, (especially) against a really good team playing good baseball right now," Rockies second baseman Clint Barmes said on the team's website. "Hopefully this will boost us to play the way we know we're capable of playing."

Barmes went 3-for-5 with three runs batted in and a run scored for Colorado, which is 3-3 on the trek and got an RBI apiece from Seth Smith and Melvin Mora.

Esmil Rogers is scheduled to make his third career start tonight for the Rockies and lost his most recent outing in a 6-1 setback at San Francisco on Saturday. The Giants pounded Rogers for five runs, four of which were earned, and five hits in four innings.

The Dominican right-hander is 0-1 with a 5.63 ERA in four games (1 start) this season and has never faced the Dodgers.

Los Angeles owned Colorado last season to the tune of a 14-4 record, including victories in seven of nine games held in Hollywood. The Dodgers have also won four of the last five encounters in this series and are 24-12 in the past 36 meetings between the NL West inhabitants.

Punteruk Baseball Betting News

<< Angels, Mariners to square off in battle of reeling clubs
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A pair of slumping American League West rivals get together tonight in the Emerald City, where the Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim collide in the opener of a three-game series at Safeco Field. The Marine

<< Bruins shoot for sweep in Philly
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Bruins will shoot for a sweep of their Eastern Conference semifinal series when they visit the Philadelphia Flyers for Game 4 tonight at Wachovia Center. The sixth-seeded Bruins are just once victory away from e

<< Brewers head to Arizona for final leg of trip
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Brewers should feel more confident about the next opponent on their 10-game road trip, as they try and continue their recent success against the Arizona Diamondbacks tonight at Chase Field. Milwaukee, which i

<< Royals turn to winless Greinke in second test with Rangers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zack Greinke takes another crack at win No. 1 when the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers continue their four-game series this evening at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. Greinke went 6-0 with a 0.40 earned run average in

<< Rays try to stay perfect vs. AL West in opener at Oakland
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Not many teams have been able to beat the Rays this year. That holds especially true for the teams out west. The Oakland Athletics, winners of two straight, will try to become the first American League West team to d

Aussie great Newcombe has skin cancer surgery >>
Sydney, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former world No. 1 John Newcombe underwent surgery to have a cancerous growth removed from the right side of his nose. "It's a cancerous growth so he (the doctor) had to cut...and finish

UConn's Calhoun receives five-year extension >>
Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of Connecticut handed longtime men's head basketball coach Jim Calhoun a five-year contract extension running through the 2014 season on Friday. The deal is effective retroactively from July

Canucks host Hawks in pivotal Game 4 >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks will try to grab a 3-1 series lead in the Western Conference semifinals when they visit the Vancouver Canucks for tonight's pivotal Game 4 battle at General Motors Place. The second-seeded Blackhawks

Penn National joins MID in Maryland Jockey Club >>
Wyomissing, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Penn National Gaming and MI Development (MID) announced Friday morning the establishment of a joint venture to own and operate the Maryland Jockey Club. The Maryland Jockey Club conducts thoroughbred

Montreal to join MLS in 2012 >>
Montreal, QC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Montreal will be the home of Major League Soccer's 19th franchise, Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber and expansion team owner Joey Saputo announced on Friday during a press confere

MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?

Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at this sportsbook “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards

About MySportsbook.com MySportsbook.com  is the largest sportsbook and casino on the planet, where millions of adult Americans bet on sports, play poker and enjoy blackjack and other casino games online in a regulated and licensed jurisdiction. Named the "Best US Sports Book" by the industry's top magazine, eGaming Review, MySportsbook.com has been leading the online gaming industry since 1996. Dwarfing its nearest competitors in the US, MySportsbook.com has been the first to achieve every significant industry milestone, from record turnover to active users to number of bets--achieving a peak of fifteen bets per second. As the US online gaming leader, the firm and it's products have been featured on CBS 60 Minutes, CNN, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, USA Today and in every major newspaper in the US.