Braves turn to Hudson in opener with Rox

Baseball Betting Lines

08/23/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After two of the Atlanta Braves' young guns led the way in a one-sided victory on Sunday, the team will turn to one of its established stars in hopes of getting a three-game road series with the Colorado Rockies off to a good beginning.

Tim Hudson gets the call for Atlanta in tonight's opener and will be out to continue an outstanding string of recent starts. The veteran ace has amassed a 5-0 record along with an astounding 0.82 earned run average over his last six outings, lasting at least seven innings and yielding two runs or less on each of those occasions.

Hudson did see his five-start win streak come to an end in Wednesday's matchup with Washington, but still held the Nationals to two runs over seven innings while not getting a decision. The Braves won that game by a 3-2 count and have prevailed in eight of the All-Star hurler's last 10 trips to the mound.

The 35-year-old is 14-5 over his 25 starts this season, while his 2.15 ERA trails only St. Louis' Adam Wainwright for tops in the National League.

Hudson hasn't fared well in the past at hitter-friendly Coors Field, however. In two previous assignments at the venue, he's been tagged for 13 runs and a whopping 19 hits in just nine innings while losing both times. Overall against the Rockies, he's 3-2 with a 4.65 over five starts.

Atlanta may not have to worry about Hudson struggling if its offense performs like it did on Sunday, when the current NL East leaders banged out 13 hits and swatted four home runs in a 16-5 rout of Chicago that turned out to be the final game for Cubs manager Lou Piniella.

Rookies Jason Heyward and Mike Minor were two of the standouts for the Braves in yesterday's big win. Heyward had the first two-homer game of his big league career and finished 4-for-4 with four RBI and four runs scored, while Minor struck out 12 Chicago hitters in six innings to pick up the win.

Minor did allow an early two-run homer to Aramis Ramirez and three runs over the game's first three innings, but settled down afterward to improve to 2-0 in three starts since being promoted from the minors earlier this month.

Omar Infante also had a big day at the plate for Atlanta, which won for the ninth time in its past 12 games. The valuable utilityman, who's taken over as the regular third baseman following Chipper Jones' season-ending knee injury, went 4-for-6 with a pair of homers and four RBI while scoring four times.

Sunday's effort raised Infante's season average to .349 and extended his hitting streak to 11 games, with the 2010 All-Star batting .447 (21-for-47) with three homers over that tear.

Derrek Lee, acquired by the Braves from the Cubs earlier in the week, knocked in three runs against his former team on Sunday, with Alex Gonzalez contributing a two-RBI single to Atlanta's offensive outburst.

"We were hitting the ball really good today," Braves manager Bobby Cox said afterward. "We had some guys with great games out there today, and whenever you have hitting like that you win more often than not."

With the win, Atlanta remained 2 1/2 games ahead of Philadelphia for first place in the NL East.

Colorado received some impressive pitching from one of its rookies as well on Sunday, with youngster Jhoulys Chacin firing 7 2/3 shutout innings to lead his club to a 1-0 verdict over Arizona at Chase Field.

Chacin (6-9) surrendered just three singles and a walk while striking out nine Diamondbacks before exiting with two outs and a man on in the eighth. Joe Beimel came on to get the final out of the frame and preserve the one-run margin, with Huston Street then tossing a perfect ninth to notch his 10th save and end the Rockies' three-game losing streak.

"If [Chacin] commands his fastball like he did today, you're in trouble," Rockies manager Jim Tracy remarked after the game. "That's how good his stuff is."

Dexter Fowler ended 2-for-3 for Colorado and drove in the game's only run with a single in the top of the eighth. The hit plated Eric Young Jr., who had singled with one out and stole second to move into scoring position.

Jason Hammel will try to make it two wins in a row for Colorado when he opposes Hudson tonight, with the Rockies starter also seeking to improve his already-strong numbers at Coors Field. The right-hander is 6-1 with a 3.36 ERA over 11 home starts this season and hasn't lost in Denver since an April 26 setback to the Diamondbacks.

Hammel's last three starts have come on the road and he compiled a 1-1 record with a 4.26 ERA over that stretch. After being reached for four runs in seven innings of a loss to the New York Mets on August 12, he rebounded to limit the Dodgers to two runs and just four hits in a six-inning no-decision this past Wednesday.

The 27-year-old, who's 8-7 with a 4.36 ERA in 22 overall starts this season, also hopes to atone for a poor showing against the Braves back on April 16. In that game Hammel was battered for seven runs and eight hits before being lifted after only 1 2/3 innings, with the result raising his ERA to an ugly 12.66 in three career matchups with Atlanta. He's 0-2 lifetime versus the Braves.

Atlanta won two of three bouts in that early-season series at Turner Field and split a four-game set with the Rockies in Denver last season.

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Betting the NFL preseason

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.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

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