USA dominates Chinese Taipei at World Junior Baseball Championship

Baseball Betting Lines

07/27/2010 - Thunder Bay, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - For a team expecting to play right through the end of the tournament, the United States is doing a good job of preserving energy.

Phillip Pfeifer (1-0) dominated a hot-hitting Chinese Taipei squad over seven scoreless innings of two-hit ball as Team USA cruised to a 10-0 victory on Monday night at the World Junior Baseball Championship in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

It was the second straight game the U.S. has won by mercy, after blanking the Italians 10-0 in an abbreviated seven innings in accordance with International Baseball Federation rules.

After opening the tournament with a 4-2 win over Australia, the United States (3-0) appears to be hitting its stride which doesn't bode well for the other 11 countries participating in the 18-and-under event featuring some of the best young baseball talent in the world.

"No matter what team, we're going to want to win and win bad, and they're going to want to beat us," said the 18-year-old Pfeifer.

The 6'0" lefty, who went 16-0 this year en route to a third straight high school state championship with Farragut, was unhittable against a Chinese Taipei team that entered the game with a tournament-best .418 average.

"Our pitching guy told us to throw inside and once they adjusted to that, we started moving off the plate and using more off-speed to throw them off balance," said the phenom from Knoxville, Tenn.

"But when they hit me hard, my guys were there to make plays, that's what it came down to."

The truth is, he wasn't hit hard at all.

Pfeifer was perfect through four innings, utilizing a deceptive changeup and devastating curveball to freeze hitters before finishing with eight strikeouts in front of a near-sellout crowd featuring several major league scouts.

His team scored seven runs in the third inning off Chinese Taipei pitcher Chung Weng (0-1), who proved to be no match for a U.S. junior team loaded with players destined for the big leagues.

"We faced a good pitcher that left some balls up and we were able to take advantage of that," said U.S. hitting coach and former major leaguer Brian McRae.

"I think what we were able to do offensively helped [Pfeifer] because he was able to challenge the hitters and go right at them."

Weng lasted just 2 1-3 innings, giving up six hits and five runs with one strikeout, a walk and a hit batter.

After second baseman and Cleveland Indians' third round draft pick Tony Wolters doubled down the line to score catcher Elvin Soto, Francisco Lindor connected on the Americans' first home run of the tournament, hitting a rocket off the pole in left to give his team a 3-0 lead they never looked back on.

Another five straight hits, including a pair of two-run doubles from Brian Ragira (Texas Rangers, 30th round) and Christian Lopes, and the U.S. found themselves out in front 7-0 after three before handing Chinese Taipei its first loss of the tournament.

Several Americans had multi-hit games, including first baseman Blake Swihart (2-for-3 with two RBI and a homer) and Lindor, who also went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs and a stolen base.

Lindor is now 5-for-10 for the tournament, leading the team with five runs, four RBI and nine total bases.

"It felt pretty good to jump out on the pitcher," said the talented shortstop. "In the first game we didn't hit like we usually do but that's part of baseball, not every game we're going to get a lot of hits.

"I wasn't really looking for it [the home run]. In my mind I was thinking hit a line drive to the opposite side. Hopefully we keep hitting throughout the tournament like we're hitting now."

McRae said he thought his hitters were pressing a little in their first game with the Aussies but now that they're finding their groove, he thinks the sky is the limit for a junior national team that hasn't won a world title since 1999.

"I liked the fact they made adjustments and they were able to go gap to gap and stay within themselves and not try and do too much," he said. "Offensively, we know that if we can score some runs early that eases the pressure on our pitching staff.

"Our pitching is pretty damn good."

The U.S. continues its run towards the medal round on Tuesday afternoon when they take on Venezuela in Pool A action.

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Eastern Conference Playoff Betting Trends

We all know by now that the “public” loves to put their money on the FAVORITES and the OVERS.  Just by taking a quick glance at Sportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends” it appears as is this tendency will continue as far as the Eastern Conference games are concerned.  For the inaugural games of the first round, 69% of the early money is on Toronto -4.5; 59% of bettors prefer Chicago -4.5; 84% are backing Detroit -9; and 56% think Cleveland -11.5 is the way to go.  As far as TOTALS are concerned, the only UNDER the “public” is backing is the Cleveland/ Washington game in which 83% are pounding the UNDER (190).  Remember, there is no better way to predict a possible line change than by monitoring MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.   By determining who the “public” is backing, you can get the most ideal line for your bet.  For example, if you are siding with the public you better place your bet before the line moves in the wrong direction.  On the other side of the coin, if you prefer the team that the “public” is betting against; you might be able to get and extra ½ or even more by placing your bet a bit later.  Under the “Betting Trends” section, Sportsbook.com also provides plenty of statistical data and trends in order for the bettor to make the most informed pick.  Below are some extremely important trends for the first round opponents of the Eastern Conference match-ups, more can be found at MySportsbook.com

New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors

Toronto was the most reliable covering team this season with a 48-33-1 ATS record but covered the OVER only 41.5% of the time.
The last 20 times these teams have played, the TOTAL has gone UNDER 16 times.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Toronto is 33-19 ATS including 17-9 at home.
 New Jersey has covered four games in a row while Toronto has failed to cover their last four games.
When playing a team with a winning record during the second half of the season, New Jersey was just 5-13 ATS this season.
After scoring 105 points or more, Toronto has covered the OVER only 28% of the time this season. 
 
Miami Heat @ Chicago Bulls

Miami has failed to cover their last 7 games whereas Chicago has covered 6 out of their last 8 games.
Miami has covered the UNDER in four of their last five games whereas Chicago has covered the UNDER in five out of their last six.
When playing on Saturdays, Miami covered 80% of their games this season.
Away from home, Chicago is just 16-25 ATS this season.
At home, Miami covered the UNDER about 66% of the time whereas Chicago covered the UNDER about 61% of the time.
The last 13 times these teams have played each other, Chicago has covered 9 times.
In Miami’s last 11 road games, the UNDER covered 9 times. 
 
Orlando Magic @ Detroit Pistons

Detroit has covered 5 out of their last 6 games.
Away from home, Detroit is 28-13 ATS but just 14-26-1 ATS at home.
At home, Orlando covered the UNDER 64% of the time while Detroit covered the UNDER in 63% of their away games.
The last five times these teams have played in Detroit, the OVER covered each time.
Versus Eastern Conference teams, Detroit is 8-17-1 ATS at home but 17-9 ATS away.
Detroit covered the spread 5 out of the last 6 times they played Orlando.
After a Division game, Orlando covered the UNDER 87% of the time this season. 
 
Washington Wizards @ Cleveland Cavaliers

In a home game where the TOTAL is between 190 and 194.5 points, Cleveland is 9-1 ATS this season.
Washington has covered the UNDER in their last 6 games and in 8 of their last 9 games.
The last 6 times these teams have played each other, the UNDER covered each time.
When playing on 3 or more days of rest, Washington is just 18-37 ATS since 1996.
Since 1996, Washington is 28-16 ATS versus Cleveland including 11-5 over the last 3 seasons.
In their last 7 road games, Washington is 6-1 ATS.
Versus Eastern Conference teams at home, Washington is just 6-18-2 ATS. 
 
For even more betting trends for not just the NBA but for all of the major sports, log on to Sportsbook.com and click on “Trends”.  With only two months left in the NBA betting season it is important to be as well informed as possible in order to maximize your profit.  Also for all of you poker players, check out MySportsbook.com’s “WSOP Low Bid Auction”. You could be on your way to Vegas to play against the world’s best poker players for under a buck.

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