AL West: Angels hoping to make up ground

Baseball Betting Lines

05/18/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - As we near the quarter-post of the Major League Baseball season, it's usually a good tipping point to separate the contenders from the pretenders.

Although some may start slow, the true contenders won't be held down for long. Likewise, some of the weaker teams who start out hot will eventually come back down to Earth.

Fortunately for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (18-22), the American League West is still anybody's division. And entering play Monday, they had gained three games on first-place Texas in a span of three days. They were able to do so thanks to a three-game sweep over the Oakland Athletics at home this past weekend. Equally as important as the ground they made up, was the revival of a starting rotation that has been anything but consistent.

On Friday, Joe Saunders tossed a four-hit shutout to outlast A's starter Dallas Braden and pick up his second win of the season. In Sunday's series finale, Joel Piniero also pitched a four-hit shutout to lead the Angels to another 4-0 win. And in between those gems, Ervin Santana allowed only two earned runs in six innings during Saturday's 12-3 rout, striking out six along the way.

Now, the team will try to solve its road woes as it embarks on a seven-game road trip this week, with stops in Texas, Chicago and St. Louis. But so far that trip has started with more of the same -- a 4-3 loss to former slugger Vladimir Guerrero and the Texas Rangers on Monday night.

Guerrero went 2-for-4 in his first game against his former squad. On the season, the 35-year-old designated hitter is batting .340 with 31 RBI -- both figures which are among the Major League leaders. Of course, had he put up those kinds of numbers last year in Anaheim, he likely would've received a suitable offer to stay put.

"I wasn't healthy (last year)," Guerrero told The Orange County Register. "Unfortunately, I had no time to work out on my knees and shoulder because I had surgery the year before. It was a struggle."

Without question, if the Angels are to tackle their problems on the road during this trip, the starting rotation must continue to deliver. At the very least, things are headed in the right direction.

Through the first 30 games of the season, the Angels starters had combined for a robust 5.59 ERA. In the 10 games since, they've posted a 2.03 ERA.

All told, the Angels entered Tuesday just 3 1/2 games off the pace in the division.

RANGERS ENJOYING HOME COOKING

Of all the AL West squads, the Angels aren't alone in their struggles on the road (6-11). Oakland is just 5-13 away from home, while the Texas Rangers are 7-11 in opposing ballparks. However, the difference is that Oakland and Texas are both 14-7 at home.

With Monday's 4-3 win over L.A., the Rangers improved to 7-1 at home so far in the month of May. Meanwhile, they've lost their last five road games. Texas will continue its homestand with another tilt against Angels tonight, followed by a two-game set with Baltimore and then a three-game interleague series with the Chicago Cubs this weekend.

Considering none of those teams are above .500, the Rangers could be in line to create some separation in the division if they continue to take care of business at home.

A'S ROTATION FACING A POTENTIALLY HUGE LOSS IN DUCHSCHERER

A's right-hander Justin Duchscherer has seen his promising career become sidetracked by both physical and mental ailments, and the latest setback is threatening his 2010 season.

Duchscherer, who missed all of last season after undergoing elbow surgery and later fighting clinical depression, will find out this week if he needs season-ending hip surgery. In a report on the team's website, Duchscherer said that he has a femoroacetabular impingement, caused by the hip ball and socket rubbing together and creating friction. He'll soon meet with orthopedist Thomas Byrd in Nashville to determine whether he'll need surgery. The recovery timetable for such a procedure is generally 4-6 months.

Duchscherer had been scheduled to return from the disabled list and start Saturday's game against the Angels, but he wound up being a game-time scratch. By Sunday, he was back on the disabled list.

"My goal is to try to do whatever I can so that I can pitch this year, and then at the end of the season have it addressed," Duchscherer said. "But sometimes what we want and what actually happens doesn't coincide."

Through five starts this season, he had gone 2-1 with a 2.89 ERA before his bothersome hip landed him on the DL May 7.

STILL NO SIGNS OF LIFE FOR M'S OFFENSE

By now, it's looking more and more likely that the Seattle Mariners' (14-24) offense may never recover from its early-season slump, which is reaching historic proportions. Seattle continues to rank at the bottom of the league in virtually every offensive category.

Remarkably, the team has been held scoreless during the first three innings of every game since May 1, which is a span of 10 games. Let that stat marinate for a second -- it's basically the equivalent of letting the other team bat and playing only defense until the fourth inning.

So with that, the onus becomes even greater on the starting rotation to put up as many zeroes as possible. Cliff Lee has certainly done his part, having posted a 2.08 ERA with 25 strikeouts and only one walk in his four starts. Doug Fister (3-1, 1.72) and Jason Vargas (3-2, 2.93) have also impressed. Felix Hernandez had allowed 13 runs over his previous two starts, before holding Baltimore to one run over seven innings last Thursday.

The Mariners are hoping he can build on that when he opposes Ben Sheets tonight in Oakland. If not, and the offense continues to stumble, things are bound to get ugly quick in Seattle.

Gamingfrenzi Baseball Betting News

<< Quentin, White Sox take down Tigers
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Quentin went 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored as the Chicago White Sox took a 6-2 win over the Detroit Tigers in an abbreviated two-game series. Juan Pierre had two RBI and two runs scored wh

<< U.S. splits singles matches with Spain
Dusseldorf, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States and Spain split a pair of singles matches Tuesday at the ATP World Team Championship, a final clay-court French Open tune-up. Robby Ginepri was called on by the U.S. to

<< Snow Chief dies from heart attack
Paso Robles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former champion thoroughbred Snow Chief has died at the age of 27 from an apparent heart attack. The 1986 Preakness Stakes winner died on Saturday at Eagle Oak Ranch. Snow Chief was bred and co-owned by C

<< Razzano moves on in Strasbourg
Strasbourg, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Third-seeded French crowd favorite Virginie Razzano highlighted Tuesday's opening-round winners at the $220,000 Strasbourg International, a final French Open tune-up. Razzano held off Taipei's Ka

<< Blue Jays homer four times in rout of Twins
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aaron Hill smacked a three-run home run as the Toronto Blue Jays dominated the Minnesota Twins, 11-2, to split a two-game set. Lyle Overbay went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and three RBI, Vernon

Cudicini signs one-year deal with Tottenham >>
Portsmouth, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Chelsea goalie Carlo Cudicini has signed a new one-year contract with Tottenham. The Italian has been sidelined for the last six months after being involved in a motorbike accident which resu

Onyewu to play one year at AC Milan for free >>
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - AC Milan has handed United States defender Oguchi Onyewu a one-year contract extension after he agreed to play for them for free. The 29-year-old made just one appearance for the Rossoneri this season b

Cologne releases midfielder Maniche >>
Cologne, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cologne has released veteran midfielder Maniche following a disappointing Bundesliga season. The RheinEnergieStadion outfit flirted with relegation before finally finishing 13th in the final ta

Votto, Reds use ninth-inning rally to down slumping Brewers >>
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joey Votto capped a ninth-inning rally with a game-winning single off the wall in right field, and the Reds scored three times off embattled Brewers closer Trevor Hoffman to take a 5-4 win and earn a short t

World Cup 2010 Preview: Germans eye fourth title >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joachim Loew inherited Germany's coaching job just days after the 2006 World Cup ended, and ex-manager Juergen Klinsmann left his former assistant four newly-unearthed stars. Philipp Lahm, Per Mertesacker

It's less than a month until the NHL hockey betting season opens at MySportsbook.com and preparations are underway for another battle in the race to hoist Lord Stanley's mug in 2007.

As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.

Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.

Always a threat are the Ottawa Senators, with newly acquired goaltender Martin Gerber from the Stanley Cup champion ,Carolina Hurricanes. The Sens are second best in the rankings at a 7-1 bet, and odds makers at this sportsbook are optimistic that the Ottawa squad will fare better than last season's Eastern Conference semi-final upset to the Buffalo Sabres.

Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey betting needs.

Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament odds  
As of February 9, MySportsbook.com has released its coveted 2007 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament betting odds. “March Madness betting ” only a month away, the top ranked Florida Gators are favorite at 7-2 to win it all. The defending champs have not disappointed at all this season and currently have a 22-2 record and are undefeated (9-0) in SEC play. The Gators’ thrive off of their extremely balanced, experienced and versatile attack. All five starters started in last seasons National Championship game. What is most impressive with this group is their balance; the five starters all average between 10.7 and 13.6 PPG. The Gators have been on an absolute roll having won 15 straight by an average of 16.4 PPG.

Right behind the Gators are the 5th ranked UNC Tar Heels at 9-2. The Heels (21-3, 7-2) are absolutely loaded with top notch talent and are as deep as any team in the country. A concern for the Tar Heels might be inexperience. Of their top four scorers/ minute earners, three are freshmen and the other is a sophomore. The rest of the regular season, the Tar Heels play only one team that is currently ranked (Duke). Their remaining opponents do combine for an impressive 107-58 record though.

Other teams that the MySportsbook.com members seem to believe will win it all include the west coasts’ top team #2 UCLA (6-1), #3 OSU behind man-child Greg Oden (8-1), and #4 Wisconsin (10-1) behind their defense which has given up 70+ points only three times all season.

Below is a list of some of the favorites to win the 2007 Men’s NCAA Basketball Championship lines. For the full list of teams and March Madness odds be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com. If you want to use your credit card to bet on college hoops or any other event, MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.

Arizona 20-1

Butler 20-1

Duke 30-1

Florida 7-2

Georgetown 30-1

Indiana 35-1

Kansas 15-1

Marquette 25-1

Maryland 40-1

Memphis 50-1

Nevada 50-1

UNC 9-2

OSU 8-1

Oregon 30-1

Pittsburgh 15-1

Texas 30-1

Texas A&M 18-1

UCLA 6-1

Wisconsin 10-1

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook betting needs.