Padilla flirts with no-hitter, shuts down Padres

Baseball Betting Lines

08/05/2010 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vicente Padilla, who took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, tossed the fourth shutout of his career, as the Los Angeles Dodgers blasted the San Diego Padres, 9-0, in the third test of a four game series.

Padilla (5-3) gave up just two hits, walked two and struck out nine to pick up his first shutout since April 27, 2008 when he was a member of the Rangers. The right-hander also produced at the plate Wednesday night, going 2-for-3 with an RBI and run scored.

Over his last seven trips to the hill, the 32-year-old has gone 4-1 and has allowed two runs or less each time during that stretch. Padilla also improved to 3-1 lifetime against the Padres in 18 appearances, nine of which have come in a starting role.

Andre Ethier went 3-for-5 and hit a two-run homer for the Dodgers, who have won two in a row since a six-game skid. Ryan Theriot and Scott Podsednik each had two RBI.

Megasportscasino Baseball Betting News

<< Brown helps Phils get past Florida
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Domonic Brown drove in three runs and Kyle Kendrick pitched six effective frames, as Philadelphia surged past Florida, 7-2, in the second installment of a three-game set at Sun Life Stadium. Despite a

<< Young, Twins beat Rays in extras
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Delmon Young drove in the game-winning run in the 13th inning as the Minnesota Twins took a 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in the third of a four-game set. Scott Baker gave up just three hits an

<< Carpenter deals as Cardinals double up Astros
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Carpenter worked 7 1/3 innings and Albert Pujols went 3-for-5 with a three-run home run to help the St. Louis Cardinals to an 8-4 win over the Houston Astros in the finale of a three-game set.

<< Pie, Matusz lead Orioles past struggling Angels
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Felix Pie went 3-for-4 and drove in three runs, as the Baltimore Orioles held off the Angels, 9-7, in the second test of a three-game set at Camden Yards. Luke Scott hit a two-run homer for the Oriol

<< Marte, Masterson pace Tribe over Red Sox
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Marte hit a three-run homer as part of a five-run seventh inning as Cleveland pounded Boston, 9-1, in the third installment of a four-game series at Fenway Park. Jayson Nix added a solo homer an

Berdych advances; Querrey ousted in DC >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Tomas Berdych was a second-round winner on Wednesday, while American Sam Querrey was ousted from the $1.402 million Legg Mason Tennis Classic, a hardcourt U.S. Open Series event. Berdych, wh

Dunn homers twice as Nats down D-Backs >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Dunn hit a pair of home runs to pace the Washington Nationals to a 7-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in the third of four games at Chase Field. Dunn finished with three hits and four RBI in

Jankovic bows out in California >>
Carlsbad, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Jelena Jankovic was a second-round loser Wednesday at the $700,000 Mercury Insurance Open, a hardcourt U.S. Open Series event. Russian Alisa Kleybanova took down former world No. 1 Jankovic of Ser

Young hits grand slam as Rangers crush Mariners >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Michael Young hit a grand slam and David Murphy blasted a three-run homer, as the Texas Rangers pounded Seattle, 11-6, in the middle test of a three-game series at Safeco Field. Nelson Cruz and Mitch Morelan

Alex Rodriguez hits homer No. 600 in Yankees win >>
NEW YORK (AP) -Alex Rodriguez needed exactly three years - not a day more or less - to jump from 500 home runs to 600.Reaching 700 may take a while longer. And 800 - well, too early to think about.``So much of it depends on health,'' Yankees manager

MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.


Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.