Angels and Dodgers to wrap up latest Freeway Series

Baseball Betting Lines

06/17/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kelvim Escobar will try continue his strong start to the season as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim wrap up a three-game interleague set with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the latest edition of the Freeway Series from Dodger Stadium.

Escobar, who came into the 2007 campaign with a 25-28 record in three seasons as an Angel, is off to a strong start and currently ranks sixth in the AL with a 2.89 earned run average. The veteran right-hander has yielded just 10 earned runs in 38 innings over his last five starts, with five of those runs coming in a loss to Baltimore on May 31.

On Tuesday, Escobar failed to earn a decision in a 5-3 loss at Cincinnati after allowing three earned runs and five hits over six innings of work. He walked just one while striking out a career-high 14 batters. It was the most strikeouts by an Angel since Chuck Finley fanned 15 against the Yankees in 1995.

In three career starts against the Dodgers, Escobar is 2-1 with a 2.53 ERA and 0.89 WHIP. He picked up the win against the Dodgers on May 20th, allowing just three hits over eight scoreless innings of a 4-1 triumph.

Taking the hill for the Dodgers today will be Randy Wolf, who has earned victories in five of his last six decisions. On Monday, the left-hander defeated the Mets by yielding three earned runs and nine hits over six innings in a 5-3 Los Angeles triumph.

Wolf, who is 6-2 with a 3.62 ERA in nine home starts this season, has never faced the Angels in his career.

On Saturday, Jered Weaver tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings to win his fifth consecutive decision as the Angels blanked the Dodgers, 3-0.

Weaver (6-3) yielded four hits and four walks while striking out three for the Angels, who have won three of their last four and 10 of 14.

The Angels scored all of their runs in the fifth-inning, highlighted by a Reggie Willits two-RBI single and a run-scoring hit from Howie Kendrick.

After retiring the first two batters of the fifth, Dodgers starter Jason Schmidt got into trouble. He plunked Vladimir Guerrero before Gary Matthews Jr. singled to right and Casey Kotchman walked to load the bases for Willits, who singled to right to plate Guerrero and Matthews.

Schmidt (1-4) went 4 2/3 frames, allowing three runs on five hits while walking four and striking out two for the Dodgers, who had a four-game winning streak snapped.

The Angels swept the Dodgers in a three-game set in Anaheim last month, outscoring their area rivals 19-4 in the process. However, the Angels have lost five of the last six games as the visitor in this series.

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Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

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