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Braves, Heyward head into DC to face NatsBaseball Betting Lines05/04/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - While fans of the Washington Nationals wait for their expected franchise player to arrive, they'll be able to get their first look at the Atlanta Braves' new phenom when the two National League East members start up a three-game series this evening. The Braves enter Nationals Park off a much-needed three-game home sweep of Houston over the weekend, with rookie sensation Jason Heyward playing a big part in the team's success. The young outfielder knocked in six runs and scored four times over the three victories, capped by a 2-for-3, three-RBI performance in Sunday's finale. Heyward also crossed the plate twice in Atlanta's 7-1 triumph and is batting .500 (7-for-14) with three homers and seven RBI over his last four games. The 20-year-old leads the Braves with seven home runs and 23 RBI this season. Atlanta also received five effective innings out of starting pitcher Derek Lowe (4-2) in its first series sweep of 2010, with the veteran hurler yielding just one run on six hits on the afternoon. The Braves were clutch at the plate as well, going 6-for-10 with runners in scoring position. "The pitching was good this series," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "The defense was spectacular, to say the least, and we did a lot of clutch hitting." The Braves now set their sights on putting an end to a seven-game road losing streak. The club has not dropped eight in a row away from home since a 10-game skid between August 31-September 14, 1996. Kenshin Kawakami will be out to halt an unwanted drought of his own when he takes the mound for Atlanta in tonight's opener. The Japanese import has lost all four of his starts thus far in 2010 and last earned a victory on August 31 of last season, when he fired six innings of one-run ball to down Florida. The Braves haven't given Kawakami a whole lot of help as of late, scoring a mere five runs over his four outings this season. Atlanta was shut out in the 34-year-old's last appearance, a 6-0 setback at St. Louis on Wednesday in which he was reached for five runs (four earned) and walked four batters over 4 1/3 shaky innings. Kawakami faced the Nationals five times -- three in a starting role -- last year in his first season in the majors and posted a 1-1 record with a 4.42 earned run average over a span of 18 1/3 innings pitched. He was 0-1 with a 5.79 ERA in a pair of starts at Nationals Park. With 2009 No. 1 overall draft choice Stephen Strasburg still honing his craft in the minors, Washington has been relying on the battle-tested Livan Hernandez to serve as the ace of the team's young pitching staff. The well- traveled right-hander has been that and more so far this season, having amassed a 3-1 record through four starts and surrendering a scant three runs over a combined 31 innings of work. Opponents are hitting a meager .176 off Hernandez, who had a lackluster 5.44 ERA in 30 starts with the Mets and Nationals a year ago. The 35-year-old was sharp once again last Tuesday at Chicago's Wrigley Field, where he held the Cubs to one run on six hits through seven innings in leading Washington to a 3-1 win. He's worked at least seven frames and allowed two runs or less in each of his first four assignments of the year. Hernandez went 2-0 with a 3.32 ERA in three starts against Atlanta last year, but generally has not had a lot of success when facing the Braves over his 15- year major league career. In 28 all-time encounters (27 starts) with Atlanta, the native Cuban is just 5-15 with a 5.27 ERA. Chipper Jones owns a .354 lifetime average (23-for-65) against Hernandez, but the longtime Braves third baseman enters tonight's tilt mired in a 1-for-24 slump that has dropped his average to .206. The Nationals return home this evening after losing back-to-back contests to division-rival Florida this past weekend, including a 9-3 defeat on Sunday. The Marlins roughed off Washington starter John Lannan (1-2) for six runs on nine hits before the left-hander was removed after five innings. "I felt good at the start, but then started missing on some pitches on the outside corner," Lannan said. "Then I made some mistakes on some balls that came back over the plate and they hit them." Lannan did drive in a run at the plate in the loss, while Ian Desmond and Adam Dunn also collected an RBI for the Nationals. The Braves won 10 of the 18 meetings between these teams in 2009, but the Nationals closed out the season with a four-game sweep at Turner Field. Atlanta did win all three tests from Washington in its last trip to Nationals Park, however, which took place from September 25-27.
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(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Utah Jazz will try to avoid falling in a 2-0 series hole when they face the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers tonight in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals at Staples Center. Los Angeles survived in Game 1 when Ko
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Dodgers welcome Brewers to Chavez Ravine >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Dodgers aim to build off their first three-game winning streak of the 2010 campaign when the reigning National League West champions begin a three-game series with the slumping Milwaukee Brewers this evening a
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Pro Football Odds : NFC SOUTH BETTING ODDSNFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North. Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with. Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win. Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year. Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City. The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash. To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs. |
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