10/31/2008 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz and Chicago Cubs closer Kerry Wood were among 42 players to file for free agency Friday.
The 20-season veteran Smoltz has spent his entire career with the Braves, starting in 1988. He appeared in only six games this past season before undergoing shoulder surgery.
Wood, 31, has played 10 seasons with the Cubs and saved 34 games this season. He went 5-4 overall with a 3.26 earned run average in 65 games.
The New York Mets had the most players file Friday with six: pitchers Tony Armas, Jr., Luis Ayala, Pedro Martinez and Ricardo Rincon, along with outfielder Moises Alou and second baseman Ramon E. Martinez.
Other notable players who filed Friday are Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling, Los Angeles Dodgers infielder Nomar Garciaparra, Oakland Athletics designated hitter Frank Thomas, San Diego Padres pitcher Mark Prior and Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Rocco Baldelli.
<< Redskins' Moss questionable for Week 9; Taylor out
Landover, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss is
questionable for Washington's game this Monday against the Pittsburgh
Steelers with a bothersome hamstring.
Moss sat out of practice the entire week
<< Chiefs RB Johnson suspended for Week 10
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kansas City Chiefs running back Larry
Johnson was suspended by the league without pay for the team's road game
against the Chargers in Week 10.
Johnson, who is facing a pair of simple assault c
<< Broncos' backfield questionable heading into Sunday
Englewood, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Broncos backfield is looking
thin for Sunday's matchup against the Miami Dolphins, with running backs
Selvin Young, Michael Pittman, Ryan Torain and Andre Hall nursing injures and
all fou
<< RSL, Chivas USA square off at Rio Tinto
Sandy, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake has waited four long years for
this moment.
Finally, in its fourth season in Major League Soccer, the Salt Lake City club
earned a spot in the league's playoffs. It will kick off its posts
Diamondbacks pick up 2010 option on Rauch >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Diamondbacks have exercised the
2010 contract option on pitcher Jon Rauch, the club announced Friday.
Rauch, who was acquired by Arizona in a July 22 trade with Washington, posted
a 4-8 record
Bean moves in front at Schwab Cup Championship >>
Sonoma, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Bean posted a six-under-par 66 on Friday to
move atop the leaderboard after two rounds of the Charles Schwab Cup
Championship.
Bean finished 36 holes at 10-under 134 and is one clear at Sonoma Gol
Gordon wins pole at Texas for the first time >>
Ft. Worth, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Gordon has yet to win at the Texas Motor
Speedway, but Friday the four-time Cup champion finally captured his first
pole here, taking the top starting spot for the Dickies 500. The No.24
Hendric
Palmer leads suspended Ginn sur Mer Classic. >>
Palm Coast, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Palmer only needed a one-under 71 on
Friday to grab sole possession of the second-round lead of the Ginn sur
Mer Classic.
Palmer finished 36 holes at six-under 138 and is one clear
Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Odds
Will he or won't he? Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Wade Phillips, the big question will be: Does Terrell Owens stay with the team.
Jerry Jones continues to suggest that Terrell Owens will remain with the team.
"I've said that he's back, he's here, he's under contract," Jones said. "In the interviews I've just been through (to hire a new coach), it was very clear to me how highly he's thought of and how much of an impact he had on our offensive success."
Just to be sure though, Terrell Owens cleared out his locker and removed his name plate.
Terrell Owens was among the Cowboys most productive players this past season, catching 85 passes for 1,180 yards and a league-best 13 touchdowns.
But T.O. is due a $3 million roster bonus in June, then a $5 million salary this season. Cutting him before then would save a lot of money and headaches.
Aside from the questions surrounding Terrell Owens, the oddsmakers at MySportsbook.com have concerns over starting quarterback Tony Romo's state of mind and whether he will remain a starting quarterback. It is also not known how players will adjust to new head coach, Wade Phillips.
Here are the football odds as seen at MySportsbook.com and subject to change after February 10, 2007 if not locked in prior to that date.
Arizona Cardinals 60-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Baltimore Ravens 15-1
Buffalo Bills 50-1
Carolina Panthers 18-1
Chicago Bears 10-1
Cincinnati Bengals 15-1
Cleveland Browns 100-1
Dallas Cowboys 15-1
Denver Broncos 15-1
Detroit Lions 100-1
Green Bay Packers 50-1
Houston Texans 100-1
Indianapolis Colts 6-1
Jacksonville Jaguars 30-1
Kansas City Chiefs 30-1
Miami Dolphins 40-1
Minnesota Vikings 75-1
New England Patriots 10-1
New Orleans Saints 18-1
New York Giants 20-1
New York Jets 30-1
Oakland Raiders 100-1
Philadelphia Eagles 18-1
Pittsburgh Steelers 10-1
Saint Louis Rams 60-1
San Diego Chargers 6-1
San Francisco 49ers 75-1
Seattle Seahawks 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccanneers 75-1
Tennessee Titans 40-1
Washington Redskins 50-1
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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined
Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.
"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."
Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)
According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.
As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).
Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.
Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at
17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.
*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007
New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers
By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.
"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."
While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."
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