Rockies recall Escalona among numerous roster moves
Baseball Betting Lines
09/07/2010 -
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies on Tuesday recalled right-
handed pitcher Edgmer Escalona from Triple-A Colorado Springs.
The 23-year-old Escalona will look to make his debut in the majors. The
Venezuelan native was 3-5 with a 6.00 earned-run average over 57 games for
Colorado Springs this season. He was originally signed by Colorado as a non-
drafted free agent in 2004.
The Rockies also purchased the contracts of outfielder Jay Payton and catcher
Paul Phillips from Colorado Springs. In addition, Colorado designated pitcher
Taylor Buchholz for assignment.
Payton hasn't played in the big leagues since 2008 when he played in 127 games
with the Baltimore Orioles. The 37-year-old hit .323 with six home runs and 74
RBI in 116 games for the Sky Sox this season.
Phillips is making his second stint on the Rockies active roster this season.
He was with Colorado from April 27th to May 25th, and hit .294 during that
span.
Buchholz went 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA in seven games out of the Rockies bullpen
this season.
<< Broncos ink DL Vickerson, cut Smith
Englewood, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Denver Broncos bolstered their defensive
line on Tuesday by agreeing to terms with Keith Vickerson to a contract.
Details were not released per team policy.
The 6-foot-5, 321-pound defensive lineman
<< Hendrick taking different approach to Chase this year
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Team owner Rick Hendrick arguably had his
best season in NASCAR's premier series in 2009, with Jimmie Johnson, Mark
Martin and Jeff Gordon finishing 1-2-3, respectively, in points. That same
scenario won't be un
<< Nets waive F May
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New Jersey Nets have requested
waivers on forward Sean May less than a month after signing him.
May had signed with New Jersey on August 9 and suffered a stress fracture in
his left foot las
<< A's bring up Hermida
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Oakland Athletics on Tuesday selected the
contract of outfielder Jeremy Hermida from Triple-A Sacramento.
The A's signed Hermida last week after he was released by the Boston Red Sox,
and was promptly
<< Cubs' Silva activated from DL to make Tuesday start
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs activated right-hander
Carlos Silva from the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday, in time to make his
first start in over a month.
The Cubs announced on Saturday that Silva, who hadn't
Nats recall Maya for highly-anticipated debut >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Nationals recalled pitcher
Yunesky Maya from Triple-A Syracuse among a quartet of moves on Tuesday prior
to their game with the New York Mets.
Maya, a right-hander, is slated to make
Alouettes QB Calvillo expected to sit vs. Ticats >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Montreal Alouettes quarterback Anthony
Calvillo will likely not play in his club's next game with the Hamilton Tiger-
Cats on Saturday.
TSN of Canada and CFL.ca both reported on Tuesday that while
Chicago's Boquete wins WPS Player of the Week >>
Bridgeview, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Red Stars attacker Veronica Boquete
was named Women's Professional Soccer Player of the Week for Week 21 on
Tuesday.
Boquete led the Red Stars to wins in their final two games of the 2010 sea
Youzhny reaches Open quarters; Querrey ousted in five sets >>
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former semifinalist Mikhail Youzhny
was a fourth-round winner Tuesday at the 2010 U.S. Open, while Sam Querrey,
the final American in the field, was beaten in five sets by Switzerland's
Stanislas Wawrinka
Jets bring back FB Richardson >>
Florham Park, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Jets re-signed Tony
Richardson on Tuesday, just two days after releasing the veteran fullback.
He had re-signed with the team in March after blocking last season for the
NFL's t
NFL Sports Betting
NFL betting action is back! At MySportsbook, all of the pro football odds are posted for the NFC North.
Check out how we see the four teams in this cloudy division stacking up this year in the chase for the playoffs! Green Bay Packers (+125) - With QB Aaron Rodgers leading the offense and DC Dom Capers working his magic on defense, the Packers are a real force to be reckoned with.
Virtually nothing changed on this offense for Green Bay from last year to this year, save for the addition of rookie OT Brian Bulaga to the bunch. Expect more huge numbers from the Pack, and a relatively favorable schedule should get them over the hump and into the playoffs once again this season. My NFL Betting Predictions: 11-5, 1st place in NFC North Minnesota Vikings (+130) - There are still too many unknowns about the Vikes this year. There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not.
There is a huge difference between QB Brett Favre and either Tarvaris Jackson or Sage Rosenfels under center. Plus, is Favre comes back, is he really going to be able to keep his pick total under double digits again? Depth at running back looked like it might have been an issue with RB Chester Taylor fleeing in free agency, but drafting RB Toby Gerhart should pick up the difference. This defense is still suitable, but with a first place schedule, making the playoffs is going to be very tough regardless of whether #4 comes back or not. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.
Chicago Bears (+350) - The Bears are probably a bit of an overhyped team once again this year.No, we don't think it is plausible for QB Jay Cutler to have as bad of a season as he did last year, and we do think the additions of RB Chester Taylor and DE Julius Peppers are going to help immensely, but there's still something in the water in the Windy City that we aren't so sure about. Maybe Chicago finds its way to .500... but then again, maybe it doesn't. If Favre comes back, Cutler might be the worst quarterback in this division this year.
Detroit Lions (+1500) - The Lions are probably once again going to be the whipping boys for the rest of the teams in the NFC North, but they aren't just going to roll over and die once again. There is some real talent amassing on this team offensively, as the combination of QB Matt Stafford, RB Jahvid Best, WR Calvin Johnson, and TE Brandon Pettigrew should put a bunch of points on the board if the offensive line can even remotely hold up. The questions really lie on defense, where it feels like DT Ndamukong Suh is going to be trying to stop opposing teams all by himself. This year should show some marked improvement in the Motor City.
The Patriots will make NFL betting fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash. NFL Betting
To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
Sportsbooks to bet on football
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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