Indians invite Lewis, Accardo to camp
Baseball Betting Lines
01/19/2012 -
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians signed outfielder Fred
Lewis and pitcher Jeremy Accardo to minor league contracts with invitations to
the team's spring training camp.
Lewis, a second-round draft pick by the San Francisco Giants in 2002, batted
.230 with three home runs and 19 runs batted in last season, when he played in
81 games in his first year with the Cincinnati Reds. For his career, Lewis is
a .267 hitter with 27 homers, 136 RBI and 53 stolen bases in 517 games over
six seasons with the Giants, Blue Jays and Reds.
Accardo, 30, spent his 2011 season splitting time between the Baltimore Orioles and Triple-A Norfolk. He appeared in 31 games with the Orioles and
posted a 3-3 record in 37 2/3 innings with an earned run average of 5.73. He
went 1-1 with a 2.16 ERA in 26 appearances with Norfolk, with 27 strikeouts in
33 1/3 innings.
In seven seasons in the majors with the Giants, Blue Jays and Orioles, Accardo
holds a 10-20 record in 235 appearances with 38 saves and a 4.22 ERA.
<< No sharing expected in Lecomte Stakes
New Orleans, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The annual drive to the Kentucky Derby is
well underway and Saturday at Fair Grounds Race Course the Louisiana section
of the highway commences with the $175,000 Lecomte Stakes.
The mile and 70 yard e
<< Kaiserslautern acquires Wagner from Bremen
Kaiserslautern, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kaiserslautern signed former Bayern
Munich striker Sandro Wagner on loan from Werder Bremen on Thursday, although
he will not face his former club Saturday.
Wagner, 24, joins on a 1 1/2-year loan,
<< Freiburg adds defender Guede
Freiburg, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Freiburg signed defender Karim Guede from
Slovan Bratislava on Thursday, as the struggling Bundesliga side continued its
winter makeover.
The German-born Guede was a regular for Slovan from 2010-11, and i
<< Georgia State set for CAA debut in 2012
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Georgia State announced on Thursday a 2012
football schedule highlighted by the Panthers' first season in CAA Football
and a non-conference game at the University of Tennessee.
When Georgia State kicks off its
<< Blackburn adds Modeste on loan from Bordeaux
Blackburn, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blackburn signed striker Anthony Modeste
on loan from French side Bordeaux on Thursday for the rest of the Premiership
season.
Modeste, 23, has 13 goals in 52 Ligue 1 appearances for Bordeaux, but has j
Griffin, Luck among 65 early-entry draft candidates >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III and
runner-up Andrew Luck are among a record 65 players who have been given
special eligibility for April's NFL Draft.
The old mark of 56 early-entry candidate
Predators claim Yip off waivers >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Nashville Predators claimed forward
Brandon Yip off waivers from the Colorado Avalanche and activated forward
Jerred Smithson from injured reserve.
The 26-year-old Yip has played in just 10 gam
Vikings name Alan Williams defensive coordinator >>
Eden Prairie, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vikings have hired Alan Williams to be
their new defensive coordinator, the team announced Thursday.
Williams spent the last 10 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts as a defensive
backs coach. Viking
McNeese State CB Jackson, former prep standout, enters draft >>
Lake Charles, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - McNeese State cornerback Janzen Jackson
has declared for the 2012 NFL Draft as a junior-eligible prospect.
He was one of a record-setting 65 underclassmen who have been ruled
eligible for the draft, which
Westbrook signs extension with Thunder >>
Oklahoma City, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook has
signed a multi-year contract extension.
Financial details were not immediately available.
Westbrook is in his fourth season with the Thunder, who made him th
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
New York Giants betting lines
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Dallas Cowboys betting lines
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
Oakland Raiders betting lines
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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