08/29/2008 - Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jon Garland persevered through eight innings, and Juan Rivera had a go-ahead three-run double, as the Los Angeles Angels came from four runs down to beat Texas, 7-5, in the opener of a four-game set.
Garland (12-8) gave up four runs in the first inning, but finished with five runs allowed on eight hits and a walk, with three strikeouts. Francisco Rodriguez threw a scoreless ninth to nail down his 51st save of the season.
Torii Hunter went 3-for-3 with a double and two runs scored, while Mark Teixeira added a solo home run for the Angels, who have won four of six.
Brandon McCarthy was solid in a six-inning start for Texas, as he allowed just two runs -- one earned -- on six hits and a walk with two strikeouts. But after Joaquin Benoit tossed a scoreless frame of relief, Jamey Wright (6-6) lasted just one-third of an inning and was tagged with four runs on two hits and two walks to absorb the loss.
Milton Bradley slugged a three-run homer, and Chris Davis added a solo shot as part of a two-hit, two-RBI day for the Rangers, whose three-game win streak was snapped.
Texas built up a 5-2 lead through seven full innings, but the Rangers' bullpen melted down in the bottom of the eighth. Wright got the first out, but then surrendered a singles to Vladimir Guerrero and Hunter before a Garret Anderson walk loaded the bases.
Wright dealt a walk to Mike Napoli to force in a run, and was then removed for Warner Madrigal, who got Brandon Wood to pop up for the second out. But Rivera stepped up and blasted the ball off the wall in center field, clearing the bases to vault the Angels into the lead at 6-5.
Chone Figgins followed with a single, then stole second to put runners in scoring position. Reggie Willits' infield single plated Robb Quinlan, who pinch-ran for Rivera. Bill White came on in relief and got Texas out of the inning.
Rodriguez entered for Los Angeles and gave up a one-out single to Jarrod Saltalamacchia, then hit pinch-hitter Brandon Boggs. However, Michael Young grounded into a double play to end the contest.
The Rangers hung four runs on the scoreboard in the first inning. Young and Hamilton hit consecutive singles with one out before Bradley's blast to center made it a 3-0 game. Later in the frame, Marlon Byrd singled, Nelson Cruz walked and Davis doubled in a run to put Texas up by four.
The Angels got one run back in the home third, on Teixeira's two-out solo homer, but Davis' solo shot in the top of the fourth restored the Rangers' four-run edge. Hunter scored on Anderson's double in the sixth, thanks to a Cruz error, to bring Los Angeles within three.
Game Notes
The Angels left nine runners on base, while the Rangers stranded six...Los Angeles extended its lead in the AL West over second-place Texas to 16 games.
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Brodie Croyle completed three of four passing atte
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Ben Wooster caught six passes for 9
<< Ramirez keeps Cubs rolling with late-inning slam against Phils
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Field.
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Titans edge Pack in preseason finale >>
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Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."
When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules.
The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.
The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.
“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”
The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.
“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”
The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.
“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”
Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.
“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."
So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?
“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.
Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.
Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.
Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.
“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.
Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.
The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.
“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.
Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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