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05/03/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The imposing starting rotation which Seattle Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik dreamt up this offseason is nearly in place.
Former Cy Young winner Cliff Lee, acquired in an offseason trade from Philadelphia, made his long-awaited debut on Friday, tossing seven shutout innings against the Texas Rangers, striking out eight. Lee, who went 4-0 with a 1.56 ERA in five postseason starts for the Phillies a year ago, is now fully recovered from an abdominal injury.
Also last week, Erik Bedard threw a 55-pitch bullpen session devoid of any setbacks and could soon be ready to begin a rehab assignment. Bedard had season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum last summer. The Mariners are hopeful Bedard can return to form after posting a 2.82 ERA in 15 starts last year before being shut down. The team is still playing it safe, targeting the end of May for his return
"He looks better than before," manager Don Wakamatsu told the team's Website.
Considering Bedard allowed two or fewer runs in 13 of his 15 starts last season, that's quite a statement.
"It looks like his arm is a little freer, and he's not putting as much stress on it," Wakamatsu continued. "We're pretty excited about that, and we think he is, too. It's one thing to get him back. The second part is to try to keep him from the injuries recurring."
Of course, Seattle still has Felix Hernandez atop the rotation. King Felix allowed five runs in Saturday's 6-3 loss to Texas, breaking a remarkable string of 18 consecutive quality starts (six innings or more, three earned runs or less) dating back to May of last season.
Doug Fister (2-1, 1.29) has shined thus far in his first full season. On Sunday, he took a no-hitter into the sixth inning against Texas and went on to allow just three hits in eight innings. However, the M's lost the game, 3-1, which has been the running theme on the young season. They also spoiled Lee's masterpiece in a 2-0 setback to the Rangers on Friday.
Even without Lee and Bedard for the season's first month, the M's starters still rank second in the American League with a 3.23 combined ERA, behind only Tampa Bay (2.64). Where those two teams differ, however, is in the win-loss column, as the Rays' starters have gone 14-3, while Seattle's starting staff is just 6-7.
Obviously, Seattle's offense has left much to be desired. Only two players are hitting above .250. Situational hitting has been virtually nonexistent. The team went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position during Saturday's 6-3 loss to Texas. Also, the Mariners have a Major League-worst nine home runs on the season, a total which is matched by five individual players across the league. Chicago's Paul Konerko has 12. Then again, maybe that shouldn't come as a surprise when the heart of the order is comprised of Franklin Gutierrez, Jose Lopez and Milton Bradley
In an interview with local reporters over the weekend, Wakamatsu said he has kicked around several potential changes with the lineup, but any help from outside the organization is ultimately up to Zduriencik.
"I think you're going to constantly look," Wakamatsu told the Seattle Times. "The way we're playing right now, we're (two games) out. If that increases, then we're going to look to do something else."
RANGERS SHAKE OFF ADVERSITY, LEAPFROG TO TOP OF AL WEST STANDINGS
Entering play today, only two games separate the first-place Texas Rangers (13-12) and the last-place Seattle Mariners (11-14) in the AL West pecking order.
Thanks to a three-game sweep of the Mariners over the weekend, Texas is now the pace-setter in the division standings. In sweeping that series, the Rangers were able to overcome seven shutout innings against Mariners' starter Cliff Lee on Friday, and eight shutout frames against Doug Fister on Sunday. All told, the Rangers have now won five of their last six, which is quite an accomplishment when you consider some of the injuries the team has had to deal with.
All-Star second baseman Ian Kinsler was activated from the disabled list on Friday after missing the first month of the season with a high ankle sprain. In his place, Joaquin Arias hit .321.
All-Star right fielder Nelson Cruz, who is hitting .323 with a team-high seven homers and 17 RBI, was placed on the DL last week with a strained right hamstring. He is expected to be out until mid-May. No worries there, as his replacement, David Murphy drove in the game-tying run in the 9th inning and the game-winning run in the 11th of Sunday's dramatic victory.
And with that, the Rangers have sent a strong message that they don't plan on bowing out when the chips are down.
ANGELS' STARTERS EYEING CONSISTENCY
Considering how tight things are in the AL West standings, it's still too early for Angels' manager Mike Scioscia to worry about his starting rotation. The starters are 9-12 with a combined 4.96 ERA, which ranks fourth-worst in the AL. The only consistent one of the bunch has been Jered Weaver (3-1, 3.19). The rest of the rotation, not so good.
Ervin Santana (1-2, 4.59), Joel Pineiro (2-3, 5.76), Joe Saunders (1-4, 5.74) and Scott Kazmir (2-1, 5.57) have all struggled to get going to this point. However, Scioscia feels it's only a matter of time before things get turned around.
"We haven't seen the level of consistency we want or expect, but that doesn't change our evaluation of what we have," Scioscia told the team's website. "We have good arms down there with really good talent. I feel confident that we will see the rotation more in line with what we saw at the end of last year, when we were really going well."
With the team headed to Boston for Game No. 4 of its 10-game road trip, sooner or later Scioscia will need to start seeing some returns from his starting rotation, which was billed as one of the team's biggest strengths heading into the season.
TIME TO WORRY ABOUT SHEETS?
When Oakland general manager Billy Beane made a play for Ben Sheets in the offseason, the hope was that he'd be getting the starting pitcher who more closely resembled a four-time All-Star, and not the one whose career has been sidetracked by injuries.
But after leaving in the fourth inning of Sunday's start against Toronto, Beane is still waiting for the former version of his new ace to show up. In just 3 1/3 innings, Sheets was charged with nine earned runs on 10 hits against the Blue Jays. He hadn't given up nine runs in a start since August 2005. He also allowed eight extra-base hits, which is believed to be an Oakland record, according to The Oakland Tribune.
Sheets' latest start followed up another ugly outing in Tampa Bay last Tuesday, in which he allowed eight runs on nine hits in just four innings of work. His ERA now stands at 7.12, not what Beane and the front office had in mind.
"My location is terrible," Sheets said after Sunday's meltdown. "You can't throw the ball in the middle of the plate in the big leagues. I don't think I could throw a ball that's not in the middle of the plate to a Little Leaguer right now. They hit the ball hard. Their outs were hard. Everything was hard.
"I wouldn't say my location's been this bad ever since my rookie year. I think if you've got stuff, you can (overcome poor location) a little more. My stuff's not bad, but it's not unbelievable either."
When you're paying someone $10 million to be a 'stopper,' that's certainly not an encouraging sound bite, particularly with the team just wrapping up a 1-5 road trip.
<< Red Stars grab first win of season
Cambridge, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Red Stars claimed their first win
of the season on Saturday at Harvard Stadium as Casey Nogueira and Cristiane
scored second-half goals in a 2-0 win over the Boston Breakers.
Following a score
<< Diamondbacks recall Valdez to start against Astros
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Diamondbacks recalled right-hander
Cesar Valdez from Triple-A Reno to make his major league debut in Monday's
series opener at Houston.
The 25-year-old Valdez went 1-1 with a 3.80 earned run a
<< NBA Playoff Preview - Orlando vs. Atlanta
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The well-rested Orlando Magic finally will get back to
work on defending their Eastern Conference championship when they kick off the
second round of the postseason against their division rival, the Atlanta
Hawks.
The se
<< Northeastern signs Coen to extension
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Northeastern men's basketball coach Bill Coen
has signed a multi-year contract extension.
Coen has guided the Huskies to a record of 66-62 during his four-year tenure,
which includes postseason appearances
British Amateur champ Manassero turns pro >>
Turin, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Italy's Matteo Manassero, who became the
youngest British Amateur champion ever last year, turned professional on
Monday in time to make his pro debut at the BMW Italian Open.
After being the you
Capps earns monthly closer honor >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington Nationals closer Matt Capps has
been selected as the Major League Baseball Delivery Man of the Month for
April.
Capps finished the first month of the season with 10 saves in as ma
Van Nistelrooy could be left out by Dutch >>
Amsterdam, Netherlands (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hamburg striker Ruud van Nistelrooy
looks set to miss this summer's World Cup in South Africa after being left out
the Netherlands' 26-man training squad for the tournament.
The 33-year-old former
Benayoun unsure over Liverpool future >>
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun is
unsure whether he will still be at Anfield next season.
The Israel international has been a popular figure on Merseyside following his
transfer from West Ham an
Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back
With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.
"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."
Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .
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BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
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