09/20/2008 - St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Pena drove in two runs and Scott Kazmir pitched six scoreless innings as Tampa Bay clinched a playoff spot for the first time in franchise history with a 7-2 win over Minnesota in the third installment of a four-game set at Tropicana Field.
Fernando Perez and Cliff Floyd each homered for the Rays, who have won four of five and now lead Boston by 2 1/2 games in the AL East. The Red Sox fell to the Blue Jays, 6-3, earlier Saturday.
Kazmir (12-7) scattered five hits, fanned five and walked one en route to his first win since September 4.
Denard Span and Alexi Casilla knocked in runs for the Twins, who have lost six of seven and have dropped to three games behind the first-place White Sox in the AL Central. Chicago plays at Kansas City later on Saturday.
Starter Kevin Slowey (12-11) took the loss, charged with nine hits and five runs over 4 1/3 innings. He struck out three and walked three in defeat.
Tampa jumped on top in the third. Eric Hinske led off with a single and Akinori Iwamura walked two batters later. After Jason Bartlett flied out to advance Hinske, Pena knocked in both runners with a double.
Kazmir allowed a single to Joe Mauer, a double to Justin Morneau and hit Michael Cuddyer to start the fourth, but worked out of trouble when Delmon Young's fly out turned into a double play and Brendan Harris flied out.
In the fifth, Evan Longoria's RBI double, Dioner Navarro's RBI single and Rocco Baldelli's bases-loaded walk turned a two-run edge into a comfortable five-run cushion.
Kazmir allowed back-to-back singles to start the sixth, but quickly turned that around on a double-play grounder and a line out to complete his outing.
A Perez leadoff solo shot in the home sixth made it 6-0, and Grant Balfour held the Twins off the board in the seventh.
Floyd's one-out solo homer in the home half put a seventh run on the board, and J.P. Howell hurled a scoreless eighth.
Troy Percival allowed an RBI single to Span in the ninth before being replaced by Trever Miller. He gave up a run-scoring groundout by Casilla before ending the game by inducing a foul out from Mauer.
Game Notes
The Rays became the first American League team since the 1990-91 Minnesota Twins to finish last in their division one year before clinching a playoff berth in the next...Tampa also has a chance to become the first team other than the Yankees or Red Sox to win the AL East title since Baltimore took the crown in 1997.
<< Reds edge free-falling Brewers
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Micah Owings' two-run, pinch-hit single in
the sixth proved to be the game-winner as the Cincinnati Reds downed the
struggling Milwaukee Brewers, 4-3, in the second of three games at the Great
America
<< Mack leads Utah over Air Force
Colorado Springs, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Darrell Mack scored the game-winning
touchdown with under a minute to play, as No. 20 Utah held on to defeat Air
Force, 30-23.
Mack finished with 101 yards and three scores -- all in the second h
<< Turnesa keeps lead at Viking Classic with a 66
Madison, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marc Turnesa fired a six-under 66 and remained
in the lead Saturday after three rounds of the Viking Classic.
He had some help from Will MacKenzie.
Leading the tournament by a shot, MacKenzie took a disa
<< A's edge Mariners
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daric Barton singled home Carlos Gonzalez with
the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Oakland Athletics
held on to edge the Seattle Mariners, 8-7, in the second of a three-game
series
Hornaday captures pole for Las Vegas truck race >>
Las Vegas, NV (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ron Hornaday, Jr. won the pole for Saturday
night's Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 Craftsman Truck Series race at the Las Vegas
Motor Speedway. The No.33 Chevrolet driver and defending series champion
rounded
Chicago, Busch aim to rebound at home vs. FC Dallas >>
Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Fire host FC Dallas in a Major
League Soccer fixture on Sunday afternoon at Toyota Park in an important
fixture for both teams' playoff status.
The Fire (11-8-5) are currently in third
Higgins, Mohler share lead at Senior Women's Amateur >>
Tulsa, OK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Joan Higgins and Noreen Mohler both shot even-par
71s to share the lead Saturday after the first round of stroke play at the
USGA Senior Women's Amateur.
Carolyn Creekmore, the 2004 champion, shot a two-o
Knodt leads Senior Amateur >>
Fort Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Howie Knodt carded a three-under 68 Saturday
to take a one-shot lead after the first round of stroke play at the USGA
Senior Amateur Championship at Shady Oaks Country Club.
Knodt, who missed match p
American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies
It's that time of year folks. Betting on American Idol Season 9. And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below. With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.
No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.
Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.
Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.
Odds to Win
There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.
All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.
A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.
Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.
Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol.
Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.
If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.
Elimination Props
Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.
Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.
Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups
The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.
Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.
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Players who are looking for outstanding value, extensive wagering options and inexpensive payouts will appreciate what MySportsbook.com offers. Those who are looking for perks and high bonuses would be best suited in a sportsbook geared towards the regular player.
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