Tigers hope to stop road skid in clash with Red Sox

Baseball Betting Lines

07/30/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers are quickly falling out of contention in the American League Central. Tonight, they try to put the brakes on their 10- game road losing streak when they open a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Detroit started its seven-game road trip in disappointing fashion, as it was swept in a four-game set by the Tampa Bay Rays. The Tigers have now lost six of their last seven and have fallen six games back of the Chicago White Sox in the division.

"We got three out of four really good starts here," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "That's what you're looking for, some silver lining, but we obviously have to get more offense."

The 10-game road slide is now just three shy of the franchise-record 13-game drought set back in 1902. A trip to Boston could add to the misery, as the Tigers have lost 22 of their last 30 at Fenway.

Hoping to buck that trend for the Tigers tonight will be righty Armando Galarraga, who is 3-3 with a 4.43 earned run average. Galarraga did not get a decision on Sunday against Toronto, as he allowed three runs and six hits in seven innings of his team's 5-3 loss.

Galarraga, who will be making his first-ever start at Fenway, beat the Red Sox the last time he faced them and is 1-1 in three starts against them with a 4.50 ERA.

Boston, meanwhile, is at the other end of the spectrum, entering this series on the heels of a three-game sweep over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim that culminated with a 7-3 win at Angel Stadium.

Marco Scutaro's eighth-inning grand slam was the difference, while Josh Beckett (2-1) went seven innings in the start and was charged with three runs on five hits with a walk and five strikeouts.

"I had to manifest some energy today," said Beckett. "I felt better today than last time out. I did some good things and made some good adjustments. The most important thing is for our team to win now."

Boston has won five of its last seven.

Heading to the hill for the Red Sox this evening will be lefty Jon Lester, who is 11-5 with a 2.92 ERA, but has lost his last two starts.

Lester was perfect for 5 1/3 frames on Saturday in Seattle before Eric Patterson dropped a fly ball in center field. Lester then served up a two-run homer and he lost his perfect game, his shutout and the game all in short order.

He was charged with five runs (four earned) and four hits in 7 2/3 innings, while striking out 13 batters, absorbing the loss nonetheless.

"That's as good as stuff as we've seen all year," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona of Lester's start. "The outcome is a shame. He pitched better than the linescore will show, for sure. He had a perfect game going for half the game. Then we drop a fly ball and then he hung a breaking ball -- probably the first bad pitch he threw all night."

The last time Lester lost two in a row was in April, and he responded with eight consecutive wins over his next 11 starts.

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How long Trent Green will remain sidelined is unknown. Coach Herm Edwards said Monday he will miss a second straight start Sunday when the Chiefs host the San Francisco 49ers.

A two-time Pro Bowler, Green was going into a feet-first hook slide when he was knocked unconscious by a thunderous, head-snapping hit from Cincinnati's Robert Geathers.

Oddsmakers at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com currently have the Chiefs listed as 7-point favorites versus the 49ers.

The 49ers got beat by Philadelphia 38-24 as a 6.5-point underdog last week. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total (42.5).

Alex Smith completed 27-of-46 passes for 293 yards with a touchdown. Michael Robinson rushed for 29 yards and a pair of touchdowns on five carries.

The Chiefs lost 9-6 to Denver last week as an 11-point underdog. The combined score was well UNDER the posted over/under total (38).

Larry Johnson rushed for 126 yards on 27 carries. Damon Huard completed 17-of-23 passes for 133 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

To visit this online sports book got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.

Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards