Gee wiz! Mets hurler sparkles in MLB debut

Baseball Betting Lines

09/07/2010 - Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dillon Gee was sensational in his major league debut, carrying a no-hitter through five innings, as the New York Mets topped the Washington Nationals, 4-1.

Gee (1-0) allowed just one run on two hits in seven spectacular innings, walking three and fanning four while adding an RBI single in his first at-bat for the Mets, who came into Tuesday with six losses in eight games.

The 24-year-old rookie did his best impression of the man he replaced, Johan Santana, who had his start skipped due to a pectoral strain. Ike Davis added a three-run homer in the win.

Willie Harris' homer broke up the no-hit bid, as the Nats failed again in their attempt to win four straight games this season. Washington fell to 0-7 this season after winning three consecutive contests.

The Nationals' starter also made his major league debut, albeit a less successful one. Cuban Yuneski Maya (0-1) gave up four runs on five hits and two walks in five innings.

The Mets used one swing of the bat to jump out into the lead early. Luis Hernandez singled with one out in the first inning, and Carlos Beltran followed with another base hit. Davis put New York ahead by three with his 18th home run of the year -- a shot to right.

Gee helped his own cause in his first at-bat in the second. Ruben Tejada laced a one-out double, and Gee followed with an RBI base hit to right field for a 4-0 margin.

Meanwhile, Gee was nearly flawless. He retired the first seven batters he faced until a walk to Wilson Ramos. Another seven consecutive outs followed for the rookie, before Danny Espinosa drew a two-out walk in the fifth.

Gee carried his no-hitter into the sixth, but it was quickly spoiled by Harris' leadoff homer to left. The Nationals, though, couldn't manage any more offense in the inning.

After Gee pitched a scoreless seventh, Pedro Feliciano and Bobby Parnell combined to get through the eighth without allowing a run.

Hisanori Takahashi came on for the save and allowed singles to both Ryan Zimmerman and pinch-hitter Alberto Gonzalez to put runners on the corners with one out. Pinch-hitter Ivan Rodriguez, though, grounded into a game-ending 6-4-3 double play.

Takahashi earned his fourth save.

Game Notes

The last time two starting pitchers both made their major league debut in the same game was Detroit's Rick Porcello and Toronto's Ricky Romero on April 4, 2009...This is the first instance of two starting pitchers making their major league debut in Washington since September 17, 1909...The Nationals lead the season series, 8-6.

Spoetsline Baseball Betting News


<< Cabrera exits early against ChiSox
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Detroit Tigers infielder Miguel Cabrera left Tuesday's game against the Chicago White Sox after the fifth inning with an undisclosed injury. Entering Tuesday's action, Cabrera was batting .334 with 33 home ru

<< Seahawks re-sign Babineaux
Renton, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Seattle Seahawks on Tuesday re-signed defensive back Jordan Babineaux. Babineaux, who was released by Seattle over the weekend, registered a career- high 105 tackles as the starting free safety last

<< Williams advances to the semifinals
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time champion Venus Williams advanced to the semifinals of the U.S. Open Tuesday night with a 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 win over French Open champion Francesca Schiavone. The third-seeded Williams, the las

<< Reds recall Volquez from Single-A Dayton
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds recalled pitcher Edinson Volquez from Single-A Dayton so he could be a part of the team's pitching staff down the stretch. Volquez missed most of the season after Tommy John sur

<< Garcia leaves start early
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Freddy Garcia left Tuesday's start against Detroit with what appeared to be a lower body injury. Garcia lasted two innings and allowed two runs on three hits. The 3

Reimold, Jones help Orioles down Yanks >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nolan Reimold hit a two-run home run and Adam Jones had a key two-run single to back the solid pitching of Jake Arrieta as Baltimore stymied New York, 6-2, in the second of three meetings at Yankee Stadium

Rangers continue slide, fall to Blue Jays >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vernon Wells went 3-for-3 with a pair of solo homers and Adam Lind clubbed a two-run shot, as the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the American League West-leading Texas Rangers, 8-5, in the second of a four- game se

Tigers chew up White Sox >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Justin Verlander pitched seven strong innings to lead the Detroit Tigers to a 9-1 win over the Chicago White Sox in the continuation of a four-game series. Verlander (15-8) allowed one run on five hit

Giants activate Mota from DL >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Francisco Giants activated relief pitcher Guillermo Mota from the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday. The right-hander had been out of action since August 23 with IT band syndrome in his le

Rays use five HRs to crush BoSox, climb AL East standings >>
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ben Zobrist, Jason Bartlett and Evan Longoria each homered and finished with three RBI, as Tampa Bay blasted Boston, 14-5, to gain ground on first place in the AL East. Carl Crawford went 4-for-4 with thr

Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

The 2008 NFL betting lines season is almost upon us! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join sportbook today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLIII and beyond!

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds .

MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.