O's, Yanks open set in the Bronx

Baseball Betting Lines

09/06/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees have to be wondering which A.J. Burnett will show up this afternoon when they open a three-game series with the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium.

After an awful August that saw him go 0-4 with a 7.80 earned run average, Burnett opened his September slate with a win over the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday, as he allowed three runs and six hits in six innings. It was his first victory since beating Cleveland on July 28 and upped his record on the year to 10-12, while lowering his ERA to 5.15.

"It is a good win for me, but my numbers are not important. I'm trying to get some good momentum in this last month," said Burnett.

Burnett has pitched well against the O's this season, going 2-1 in three starts with a 1.64 ERA. For his career, he is 11-3 against them with a 4.47 ERA in 16 starts.

The Yankees had Alex Rodriguez back in the lineup on Sunday, but were denied a sweep in the finale of their three-game series with the Toronto Blue Jays, falling 7-3.

The loss halted the Yankees' season-high eight-game winning streak, but they maintained their 2 1/2 game lead over Tampa Bay in the AL East after the Rays were beaten by Baltimore on Sunday.

Phil Hughes (16-7) was tagged for six runs and seven hits in six innings in the loss for the Yankees

The Orioles, meanwhile, helped out the Yankees on Sunday, as Corey Patterson homered and drove in three runs and Nick Markakis went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs batted in to lead Baltimore to an 8-7 win over Tampa Bay. Brian Roberts went 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored and an RBI for the Orioles, who took the last two games and have won six of their last nine.

Alfredo Simon (4-2) got the win in relief with a scoreless inning and Koji Uehara fanned two in retiring the side in order in the ninth to earn his sixth save.

Today, Baltimore will hand the ball to left-handed rookie Brian Matusz, who has won his last three starts. Matusz beat the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday, holding them to a pair of runs and six hits in six innings to improve to 7-12 on the year to go along with a 4.72 ERA.

Matusz has lost all three of his starts to the Yankees this season, but has pitched to a 2.41 ERA in those outings. In four career starts against them he is 1-3 with a 2.10 ERA.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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