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06/04/2010 - Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New England Revolution snapped a seven game winless streak in their last Major League Soccer fixture, and they are hoping it is something to build on against the Seattle Sounders FC in their next one.
"This is huge for us," Revs defender Pat Phelan said after his club's 3-2 win over Red Bull New York last weekend. "We're going to look at this as a turning point in our season. We played much better than we have in the past few games. We gave [New York] some soft goals, but on the whole, I think it was a much better performance and its always nice to end a streak like that at home."
New England will be gunning for a positive result on Saturday, because it is its last game before the extended World Cup break.
"You don't want to go on a break with a loss," Phelan said. "It's a tough place to play, although I don't think we've ever lost to Seattle, only two games, but still. They're a team that's struggling, too, a bit like New York was, a bit like we were. They're a dangerous team, but I think it's definitely possible for us to go out there and get a result."
When the Revs travel to Seattle on Saturday, they will be facing a Sounders club that is trying to get out of its own funk. The second-year MLS club has just one win in its last seven league fixtures, including consecutive losses in its last two.
"I think all the boys were fighting real hard but the way that level of the game was allowed to play there was little chances," Sounders FC midfielder Freddie Ljungberg told mlssoccer.com. after his team's most recent setback, a 1-0 loss at Colorado. "It was typical but very difficult and disappointing."
The Sounders, who are currently second-from-the-bottom in the Western table, know they need to start picking up points fast if they want to be in the playoff picture at the end of the season.
"It is never too early to think about our points so far," Sounders coach Sigi Schmidt told mlssoccer.com. "Points are worth the same now as it is in the end. It has been frustrating because I don't think we have walked off the field being an outplayed team. We just have to keep working and keep our belief in ourselves."
Seattle will be without forward Nate Jaqua, midfielder Michael Fucito, and defender Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, while midfielders Osvaldo Alonso and Peter Vagenas are doubtful, all with injuries.
The Revs will be without defender Darrius Barnes, goalkeeper Preston Burpo and forward Taylor Twellman, while goalkeeper Matt Reis is doubtful, and midfielders Nico Colaluca and Mike Videira, forward Kheli Dube, and defender Cory Gibbs are questionable.Defenders Kevin Alston and Emmanuel Osei are expected to be available.
<< Dallas, San Jose hope to enter break on good note
Frisco, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Coach Schellas Hyndman has struggled to produce
wins for FC Dallas this season but, even with two wins after 10 matches, still
has the club in good shape entering its final game before the World Cup break.
Dall
<< Crew aiming to get back in win column at Colorado
Commerce City, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Columbus Crew take their first two-
game winless streak of the 2010 Major League Soccer season into Dick's
Sporting Goods Park on Saturday night where they will take on the Colorado
Rapids.
<< Cleveland recalls P Herrmann, designates P Wright
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians have recalled right-
handed pitcher Frank Herrmann from Triple-A Columbus.
Herrmann was 3-0 with a 0.31 earned run average and a pair of saves in 19
relief outings for the Clippe
<< Armour leads Principal Charity Classic
West Des Moines, IA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tommy Armour III fired an eight-under-
par 63 on Friday to take the first-round lead of the Principal Charity
Classic.
That score matched the course record at Glen Oaks Country Club, which was
original
Oakland's Anderson lands back on DL >>
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics placed left-hander Brett
Anderson on the 15-day disabled list for the second time this season Friday.
Anderson was previously on the DL from April 25 to May 28 with left elbow
inflam
Italy's Pirlo suffers calf injury >>
Rome, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Italy midfielder Andrea Pirlo injured his calf
in Thursday's friendly against Mexico and could miss the World Cup.
Pirlo could miss up to three weeks with the injury and Italy starts defense of
its World Cup t
Staten moves in front in College Park >>
College Park, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - B.J. Staten fired a seven-under 64 on
Friday to move atop the leaderboard after the second round of the Melwood
Prince George's County Open.
Staten finished 36 holes at 11-under 131 and is one cl
Another blow for Cleveland: Sizemore out for season after surgery >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Cleveland Indians center fielder Grady
Sizemore underwent surgery on Friday and will miss the rest of the regular
season.
Sizemore was expected to be sidelined 6-to-8 weeks following the procedu
Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."
When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules.
The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.
The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.
“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”
The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.
“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”
The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.
“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”
Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.
“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."
So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?
“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.
Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.
Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.
Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.
“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.
Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.
The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.
“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.
Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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