Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
08/23/2010 - Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Cubs activated catcher Geovany Soto from the 15-day disabled list among several roster moves on Monday.
The 27-year-old backstop was put on the DL on August 10 with a sprained right shoulder ligament. Over 88 games this season, Soto is hitting .288 with 15 homers and 45 runs batted in to go with a .401 on-base percentage.
Chicago also called up infielder Micah Hoffpauir from Triple-A Iowa on Monday. The 30-year-old will be making his second stint with the big club this year. He saw action in three games in early August and went 0-for-7 with four strikeouts.
The moves were made necessary when the Cubs optioned catcher Welington Castillo and outfielder Sam Fuld following Sunday's loss to Atlanta.
In other team news, the Cubs named Bob Dernier new first base coach and announced Ivan DeJesus will take over third base coaching duties from Mike Quade, who was promoted to interim manager following Lou Piniella's immediate retirement after Sunday's game.
<< Woods and Nordegren officially divorced
Panama City, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren have
divorced.
They will share custody of their two children, acording to a release posted
Monday on the golfer's website.
Lawyers for both sides confirmed th
<< Ching's hat trick earns MLS Player of the Week award
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Houston Dynamo forward Brian Ching was voted
Major League Soccer Player of the Week for Week 21 of the 2010 MLS season on
Monday.
Ching's hat trick led the Dynamo to a 4-3 victory over the Chicago Fire
<< Zenyatta maintains lead in thoroughbred poll
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time champion mare Zenyatta sits
comfortably in first-place atop the latest NTRA National Thoroughbred Poll.
The undefeated female has a 24 point lead over Blame.
Trained by John Shirreffs,
<< U.S. women to play two matches against China
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The U.S. Women's National Soccer Team will face
China twice in early October in what will be the final matches for the U.S.
team before it enters CONCACAF qualifying for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.
The
Longoria, Cano share AL weekly honors >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria and
New York Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano were named the Co-Players of the
Week for the American League for the period ending August 22.
Longoria hit 11-for-
Braves' Infante earns NL weekly honors >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves infielder Omar Infante was
named the National League Player of the Week for the period ending August 22.
Over seven games during the week, the 28-year-old batted .433, which was good
for
Astros extend partnership with Double-A Corpus Christi >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros announced a four-year
extension of the player development contract with the Corpus Christi Hooks,
the team's Double-A affiliate.
The new agreement runs through the 2016 season.
"
Dementieva wins Pilot Pen opener >>
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Two-time Grand Slam runner-up Elena
Dementieva was among Monday's opening-round winners at the $600,000 Pilot Pen
Tennis event, a final hardcourt U.S. Open tune-up.
The fourth-seeded Dementieva flew past
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting