Twins hope Baker can cook up win at Seattle
Baseball Betting Lines
08/27/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Scott Baker tries to win his fifth straight decision this evening when the Minnesota Twins open a three-game series against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field.
Baker was terrific in beating the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Sunday, as he scattered five hits over seven scoreless innings to run his record to 11-9 on the year to go along with a 4.63 earned run average.
"He was mixing it up," Angels catcher Jeff Mathis said after the game. "He was in and out, up and down. He kept us off balance."
Baker beat the Mariners the last time he faced them, but is just 2-3 lifetime against him with a 4.66 ERA in eight starts.
Minnesota avoided a four-game sweep at the hands of the Texas Rangers on Thursday when Francisco Liriano pitched seven innings to win his sixth consecutive decision as the Twins pounded Cliff Lee early and held off Texas, 6-4.
Liriano (12-7) surrendered five hits and two runs while fanning six batters. The left-hander is unbeaten over his last eight starts. Matt Capps pitched the final inning for his sixth save.
"When you have teams competing for the playoffs, you're going to have a lot of good starting pitching," said Twins manager Ron Gardenhire. "That's why you have a chance in your division and why you are competing -- because you pitch. I think we saw a lot of that in this series."
Delmon Young belted a three-run homer in the second inning off Lee and Jim Thome went deep in the sixth against Alexi Ogando as the Twins maintained their 3 1/2 game lead on Chicago in the AL Central. The White Sox blew out Baltimore, 8-0, Thursday night.
Seattle, meanwhile, also enters on a winning note after splitting a day/night doubleheader with the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday. After losing the opener, 5-3, the Mariners responded in the nightcap behind yet another terrific pitching performance from Felix Hernandez, who pitched into the eighth inning, while Jose Lopez went 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI to lead the Mariners to a 4-2 win.
Hernandez (10-10) limited Boston to two runs -- one earned -- on four hits and a walk in 7 1/3 innings. He also struck out nine to eclipse 1,000 for his career, becoming the third-youngest player to reach that mark.
The only pitchers younger than Hernandez, who is 24 years and 139 days old, to reach the milestone since '52 are Bert Blyleven (23 years, 121 days) and Dwight Gooden (23 years, 249 days).
"I am really happy about that," Hernandez said, "but I am [happier] to win the game." ' Matt Tuiasosopo added three hits and an RBI for the Mariners, who ended their 12-game road trip at 6-6. The trek was the team's longest since 2004.
"It was a nice win to end our longest road trip of the year," interim manager Daren Brown said. "To end up 6-6 on the trip was big, especially going into two places, New York and Boston, that are tough places to play."
Getting the call for Seattle tonight will be lefty Jason Vargas, who is 9-6 with a 3.43 ERA. Vargas was hit hard in losing to the New York Yankees on Saturday, as he allowed seven runs and eight hits in 6 1/3 frames.
"I thought it was a bit of a rough start, but after the first inning, he was really good," Brown said after that game. "Between the first and seventh innings, he was throwing as well as I've seen him throw."
Vargas beat the Twins the last time he faced them and has pitched to a 1.08 ERA in his two games (one start) against them.
Minnesota has won four of its seven meetings with the Mariners this season.
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FOOTBALL BETTING
After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.
Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.
Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.
So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.
In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.
For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.
The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.
The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.
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