Rockies try to pin 10th straight loss on reeling Padres

Baseball Betting Lines

09/05/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres try to avoid their worst losing streak in more than 16 years this afternoon when they play the finale of their three- game series with the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park.

San Diego has been baseball's best story this season, but is mired in its worst losing streak since May of 2003 and has seen its lead atop the National League West trimmed to just two games over the San Francisco Giants.

"We have to get the confidence back," manager Bud Black said. "We have to get that swagger back."

The skid continued on Saturday, as Todd Helton and Carlos Gonzalez both knocked in two runs to help Colorado to a 6-2 win. Another loss today would give the Padres their first 10-game slide since a franchise-worst 13-game skid from May 8-21, 1994.

Troy Tulowitzki had two hits and scored two runs for the Rockies, who have won five of their last eight games to pull within 5 1/2 games of the Padres in the division.

Jason Hammel (10-7) gave up two runs on six hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Adrian Gonzalez and Nick Hundley both doubled home a run for San Diego, while Jon Garland (13-10) allowed three runs -- two earned -- on seven hits and three walks over 4 2/3 innings.

"We need to turn (things) around," Hundley said. "We're a play away every single game or a hit away or a defensive play away from winning games. We're finding ways to lose instead of finding ways to win. Until we figure out how to make that one play, get that one big hit, we're going to continue to struggle."

Only two teams in baseball history have endured losing streaks of at least 10 games and still reached the postseason. The 1951 New York Giants lost 11 in a row but still won the NL pennant and the 1982 Atlanta Braves dropped 11 straight but won the NL West.

Over the course of the streak the Padres are hitting .216 with 21 runs scored, while the pitching staff has posted a 5.29 ERA. The team has also been outscored, 51-21, during the current drought.

Hoping to get the Padres back on track this afternoon will be lefty Clayton Richard, who has just one loss in his last six decisions. However, that one loss came in his last trip to the hill last Sunday against Philadelphia, which reached him for four runs (two earned) and four hits in 7 2/3 innings to drop him to 12-6 on the year to go along with a 3.50 ERA.

Richard did not get a decision the last time he faced the Rockies and is 1-1 in six starts against them with a 4.79 ERA.

Colorado, meanwhile, will pin its hopes on lefty Jorge De La Rosa, who is 5-4 with a 4.26 ERA. De La Rosa did not get a decision on Monday in San Francisco, but pitched well, surrendering a run and four hits in seven innings of his team's 2-1 win. He also struck out nine in that effort, but also walked four.

De La Rosa has faced the Padres 12 times (eight starts) and is 1-2 against them with a 5.48 ERA.

Colorado has won 10 of its 14 meetings with the Padres in 2010, including wins in six of the eight matchups in San Diego.

Wwcdnow Baseball Betting News

<< Giants, Dodgers play rubber match at Chavez Ravine
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hiroki Kuroda nearly threw a no-hitter in his last trip to the hill. Tonight, the Los Angeles Dodgers will settle for a win, as they play the rubber match of their three-game set against the San Francisco Giants at Dodgers St

<< Wilson, Rangers hope to avoid sweep in Minnesota
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hoping to avoid a series sweep at the hands of the Minnesota Twins, the Texas Rangers may have the right pitcher on the mound today to accomplish that goal. C.J. Wilson will attempt to register his eighth consecutive winni

<< Jimenez holds off Molinari to win European Masters
Crans Montana, Switzerland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After nearly coughing up a six- stroke lead, Miguel Angel Jimenez birdied the 17th hole Sunday to fend off Ryder Cup teammate Edoardo Molinari and win the European Masters. Jimenez closed w

<< A's try to break out the brooms on Angels
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim haven't been swept in a series of at least three games by the Oakland Athletics in more than six years, partly due to the success Ervin Santana has produced against the team's American League

<< Cubs, Mets conclude series at Wrigley
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs try to continue their resurgence under interim manager Mike Quade this afternoon when they go for a sweep in their three-game series with the New York Mets at Wrigley Field. The Cubs improved to 8-3 under

Happ goes for Astros in the desert >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Newly-minted Astro lefty J.A. Happ can make it five wins in seven decisions with Houston today when they visit Chase Field to close out a three-game weekend series with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona won Friday's opener

Reds, Cards close big series in St. Louis >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It is starting to appear as if the Cincinnati Reds are headed towards their first National League Central title since 1995. Today, they try to put even more distance between themselves and the St. Louis Cardinals, as they

King Felix goes for M's in series capper with Tribe >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Felix Hernandez will attempt to atone for a recent loss to the Cleveland Indians and help the Seattle Mariners earn a split of a four- game series with that above-mentioned opponent when the ace pitcher toes the rubber this a

Orioles recall Tillman to make start >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles recalled pitcher Chris Tillman to start Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Tillman last pitched in the majors on July 19, when he gave up eight runs in 2 2/3 innings to the Rays

Davies wins for third time in Austria >>
Wiener Neustadt, Austria (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Laura Davies carded a two-under 70 Sunday to earn a one-stroke win at the Uniqa Ladies Golf Open. Davies, who won this title for the third time, finished at 11-under-par 205. The victory was Davi

Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.


Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.