Football Betting

Phillies split DH with Marlins; pull within half-game of Braves

Baseball Betting Lines

09/06/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chase Utley and Placido Polanco each had two hits and two RBI, and Roy Oswalt won his fifth straight decision as the Phillies downed the Marlins, 7-4, to close out a day-night doubleheader and inch closer to the division lead.

Philadelphia lost the opener of the twin-bill, 7-1, thanks to Florida's Adalberto Mendez pitching six shutout innings in his major league debut, but with the win in the nightcap and Atlanta's loss to Pittsburgh earlier in the day, the club pulled within a half-game over the National League East front- runners by stopping a short two-game slide.

Oswalt (11-13) survived home-run balls to Mike Stanton, Hanley Ramirez and Cameron Maybin to get the win. The right-hander was charged with four runs on six hits and a walk to go with seven strikeouts in as many frames.

Anibal Sanchez (11-9) didn't have as much success as Mendez, surrendering seven runs on seven hits and three walks in four-plus innings for the Marlins, who had won four of five coming into this four-game series.

In the away second, Stanton gave the Marlins an early lead by crushing a payoff pitch into the second deck in left.

The Phillies responded with a five-spot in the bottom half. After loading the bases with no outs, Sanchez walked Carlos Ruiz to force in a run before Shane Victorino, who had three hits, plated Raul Ibanez with a base hit.

Though Dominic Brown was thrown out at home on the play, Polanco kept the inning alive by lacing a ground-rule double down the third base line to bring in a pair. Utley followed with a run-scoring single to left for a 5-1 game.

Oswalt walked Logan Morrison in the third in front of Ramirez before yielding a home run to the slugging shortstop, then served up a solo long ball to Maybin two innings later.

The Phillies got two of the runs back in the home fifth, as Polanco tripled off the wall in center to start the inning and raced home on Utley's single up the middle. Ibanez's one-out double made it a three-run game, and the bullpen behind Oswalt finished it off.

Ryan Madson retired three straight in the eighth after J.C. Romero walked the leadoff batter, and Brad Lidge worked around a two-out single in the ninth for his 21st save of the season.

Game Notes

This doubleheader was made necessary when the middle contest of a slated three-game set in Philadelphia on June 9 was postponed...The four earned runs were the most Oswalt has given up since his debut with the Phillies on July 30. He had allowed just one run in 21 1/3 innings coming into the game...Stanton's home run was his 17th, Ramirez now has 21 and Maybin upped his total to eight.


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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.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.