Latos tries to end Padres 10-game slide in meeting with Dodgers
Baseball Betting Lines
09/06/2010 -
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) -- Mat Latos' quick emergence into a frontline pitcher is a
big reason why the San Diego Padres have stood atop the National League West
for the majority of the 2010 campaign. With his team mired in by far their
worst stretch of the season, the talented youngster will try to play the role
of stopper when the slumping Padres begin an important three-game series with
the Los Angeles Dodgers tonight at Petco Park.
San Diego had owned a seemingly-comfortable 6 1/2-game lead on second-place
San Francisco in the division standings as of August 25, but the margin has
dwindled down to a single game due to an untimely 10-game losing streak that
was extended with Sunday's 4-2 setback to Colorado. It's the club's longest
skid since it dropped a franchise-worst 13 in a row from May 8-21, 1994.
"We've got to turn this around cause there is a lot of baseball yet to be
played," said San Diego manager Bud Black after yesterday's game. "I've said
it before, it's in us cause I've seen it, but we haven't done it the last 10
games."
While the Padres are still in good position for making the playoffs, history
isn't on their side. Only two teams -- the 1951 New York Giants and 1982
Atlanta Braves -- have advanced to the postseason after losing 10 straight
contests or more that year.
San Diego had tied Sunday's tilt at 2-2 on Miguel Tejada's two-run homer in
the bottom of the sixth inning, but the Rockies went back in front on Melvin
Mora's two-RBI single off reliever Tim Stauffer (3-3) in the top of the
seventh.
Stauffer recorded just one out after taking over for starter Clayton Richard,
who limited Colorado to two runs -- one earned -- while throwing 100 pitches
over the first six innings.
Tejada finished 3-for-4 for San Diego, which mustered only seven hits as a
team and has totaled a mere 23 runs over the course of its losing streak. The
Padres have scored two times or less in seven of those defeats.
Latos hasn't needed a whole lot of support as of late, however, as the right-
hander has yielded two runs or fewer in each of his 14 starts and has amassed
an 8-1 record with a stellar 1.51 earned run average over that span. He's
struck out an impressive 104 batters in 89 1/3 innings during that time period
as well.
The 22-year-old hasn't won in either of his past two starts, but was able to
keep the Padres in both games before they eventually lost. He held
Philadelphia to one run in a seven-inning no-decision on August 27, then
permitted one run and four hits while fanning 10 Arizona hitters in just six
innings against the Diamondbacks this past Wednesday.
Latos, whose 2.25 ERA for the season is tops in the NL at the moment, hasn't
had much luck in past matchups with the Dodgers as well. He's 0-2 in three
lifetime starts against Los Angeles despite an overall ERA of 3.21, and was
handed a tough 2-1 loss at Dodger Stadium on August 3 after surrendering a
pair of runs in six innings.
Los Angeles is in a bit of a rut of its own as well, having lost six of its
last eight tilts to all but kill the team's postseason hopes. The Dodgers also
had trouble generating offense in their last game, managing only three hits
off Jonathan Sanchez and two San Francisco relievers in Sunday's 3-0 defeat to
the Giants.
The Dodgers struck out a total of 13 times on the evening, with Sanchez
racking out nine punchouts over the game's initial seven innings.
"Sanchez was electric and threw a lot of strikes," said Los Angeles manager
Joe Torre. "We've put pressure on our starters because we've given them
nothing to work with."
Hiroki Kuroda (10-12) did pitch well for the Dodgers in a losing cause,
lasting eight innings and permitting three runs on six hits while registering
eight strikeouts. The Japanese righty had allowed just one run over his first
six frames before giving up a two-run homer to Juan Uribe in the seventh.
The Padres will have a good chance of ending their slide if Dodgers scheduled
starter Vicente Padilla repeats his most recent performance. Against NL East-
leading Atlanta on August 15, the veteran was tagged for eight runs and eight
hits before exiting after 4 1/3 innings of his team's 13-1 loss. Padilla was
placed on the 15-day disabled list the following day due to a bulging disc in
his neck.
The right-hander acquitted himself awfully well in an August 4 clash against
the Padres, though, with Padilla striking out nine San Diego batters while
firing a two-hit shutout at Dodger Stadium that night. The effort improved him
to 3-1 with a 2.88 ERA in 18 lifetime appearances against the Padres, nine of
which have been starts.
Los Angeles has won seven of its 12 meetings with the Padres this season and
are 4-2 in games played at Petco Park between the teams in 2010.
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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies
It's that time of year folks. Betting on American Idol Season 9. And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below. With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.
No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.
Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.
Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.
Odds to Win
There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.
All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.
A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.
Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.
Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol.
Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.
If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.
Elimination Props
Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.
Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.
Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups
The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.
Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.
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