Cards place Ottavino on DL

Baseball Betting Lines

07/07/2010 - Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals placed pitcher Adam Ottavino on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to July 4, with a right shoulder strain.

Ottavino is 0-2 in five games (three starts) with an 8.46 earned-run average in 22 1/3 innings.

To fill the roster spot, St. Louis recalled pitcher Evan MacLane from Triple-A Memphis. MacLane went 5-7 with a 4.47 ERA in 17 starts with the Redbirds this season.

Wwsbgglobal Baseball Betting News

<< Report: Jets sign OL Ducasse
Florham Park, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - According to SNY, the New York Jets have signed offensive lineman Vladimir Ducasse, their second-round selection in the 2010 NFL Draft. Ducasse was the 61st overall selection in the draft and will have

<< Avs ink Yip for two years
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Avalanche signed forward Brandon Yip to a two-year contract on Wednesday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed by the club, but the Denver Post reports that it is worth $1.45 million for the dur

<< Report: Bulls land Boozer
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Bulls and free agent power forward Carlos Boozer have reportedly agreed to a five-year contract. The Chicago Tribune is citing two league sources on the pact, which ESPN reports is for $80 mi

<< Yonkers Trot has eight for Saturday
Yonkers, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eight three-year-old trotters are set for Saturday night's $573,770 Yonkers Trot, the first leg of trotting's Triple Crown. The one-mile race has a scheduled post-time of 10 p.m. (et) at Yonkers

<< Sabres bring back Lalime for one year
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Sabres agreed to terms with backup goaltender Patrick Lalime on a one-year deal on Wednesday. Lalime, who has spelled starter Ryan Miller for each of the last two seasons, went 4-8-2 with

Fan suffered fractured skull, broken foot in fall at Rangers game >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tyler Morris, the fan who fell from the upper deck trying to catch a ball during Tuesday's game between the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers, remains in the hospital with a fractured skull and broken

A's option P Ross, recall P Wolf >>
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics have optioned right- handed pitcher Tyson Ross to Triple-A Sacramento and recalled right-handed hurler Ross Wolf from the same club. Ross went 1-4 with a 5.49 earned run average

Kings ink Cousins >>
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Sacramento Kings signed center DeMarcus Cousins, the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft, on Wednesday. Terms of the deal were not released. Cousins, 6-foot-11, 270 pounds, averaged 15.1 points,

Thrashers re-sign Boulton >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers re-signed forward Eric Boulton on Wednesday. Terms of the deal were not disclosed by the club, but the Atlanta Journal- Constitution reported it is for one year and worth $650,000.

Speculation building on LeBron's decision >>
Akron, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The speculation has been building and on Thursday night at 9 p.m. (et), two-time reigning MVP LeBron James will disclose his decision of where he'll play next. Will he remain with the Cavaliers? Better yet,

College Football Betting Tips From a Pro

While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.

Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.

The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.

What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.

These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.

College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.

Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.

Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.

Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.

I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.

Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.

It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.

As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.

Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.

Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.