Valentin's RBI single in the 12th leads Reds over Brewers

Baseball Betting Lines

07/24/2007 - Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pinch-hitter Javier Valentin's run-scoring single in the 12th inning gave the Cincinnati Reds a 2-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in the opener of a four-game set at Great American Ball Park.

Grant Balfour started the frame for Milwaukee and immediately struggled with his control, walking Jeff Conine and Pedro Lopez. David Ross then laid down a bunt and Balfour attempted to get pinch-runner Norris Hopper at third, but his throw was not in time. Valentin then stepped up to the plate and drove the first pitch he saw from Balfour into right field to win it for the Reds.

Cincinnati starter Aaron Harang, who was activated from the bereavement list prior to the game, was brilliant, allowing just one run on seven hits through 10 innings. Harang also struck out 10 while not issuing a walk in the no decision.

Chris Capuano, who came into the game losing his last six decisions, started for Milwaukee and was just as good as Harang. The left-hander went eight strong frames, giving up only one run on seven hits to go along with seven strikeouts and no walks.

Ross finished 2-for-4 with a home run for the Reds, who ended a three-game losing streak. Jared Burton (1-1) picked up his first-career victory after retiring the only two batters he faced in the top of the 12th inning.

Ryan Braun collected three hits including a home run for the Brewers, who have three losses over their last four games. Balfour (0-2) absorbed the loss while Prince Fielder had two hits.

After two scoreless innings, Ross gave Cincinnati the lead after launching a home run over the wall in center to lead off the home half of the third.

Braun answered for the Brewers and tied things at 1-1 after hitting a lead-off homer in the fourth.

After Braun's homer, Harang retired 17 straight Milwaukee hitters before Braun poked a single to left with two outs in the ninth. Fielder followed with a base hit to right to put runners on the corners. Harang, though, kept Milwaukee off the board as he got Johnny Estrada to ground out weakly to first to end the threat.

The Brewers threatened again in the 10th as Kevin Mench and Craig Counsell hit back-to-back singles with one out. Harang battled back and got pinch-hitter Tony Graffanino to pop out to second and Corey Hart to strike out to end the inning.

David Weathers started the 11th for Cincy and quickly loaded the bases. The veteran reliever, though, got Estrada to ground into a double play with the first out coming at home to keep the game tied. Geoff Jenkins was then hit by a pitch to fill up the bases again, but Weathers managed to get out of the jam as he got Mench to fly out for the third out of the inning.

Game Notes

Harang, who threw 121 pitches, has gone 13 straight starts without a loss. He also became the second pitcher in the majors this season to throw 10 innings, joining Toronto's Roy Halladay. The last Reds pitcher to toss 10 innings was Rick Mahler, who did it August 30, 1989...Milwaukee went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left nine runners on base.

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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.

It's less than a month until the NHL hockey betting season opens at MySportsbook.com and preparations are underway for another battle in the race to hoist Lord Stanley's mug in 2007.

As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.

Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.

Always a threat are the Ottawa Senators, with newly acquired goaltender Martin Gerber from the Stanley Cup champion ,Carolina Hurricanes. The Sens are second best in the rankings at a 7-1 bet, and odds makers at this sportsbook are optimistic that the Ottawa squad will fare better than last season's Eastern Conference semi-final upset to the Buffalo Sabres.

Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey betting needs.