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07/04/2009 - San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manny Ramirez returned from a 50-game suspension and played only 5 1/2 innings, going 0-for-3 with a walk, two groundouts and a pop out, but the rest of his Dodger teammates picked up the slack and used a five-run first inning to defeat the Padres, 6-3, in front of a partisan crowd at Petco Park.
Ramirez came to bat as the third hitter in the first inning, and the 42,217 partisan fans erupted into a mixture of jeers and applause and stood for the entire plate appearance, which ended in a seven-pitch walk. The 12-time All- Star was suspended on May 7 after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance and was subsequently banished from Major League Baseball until Friday.
"It was great, it was the best," Ramirez said after the game. "The fans in LA drove (to San Diego) to watch me, it was unbelievable."
Ramirez was lifted in the middle of the sixth for the speedy Juan Pierre, who made sure the Dodgers didn't miss a beat in the absence of their star outfielder. Pierre started all 50 games during the suspension, batting .318 with 14 doubles, 21 runs batted in, 31 runs scored, 15 walks and 20 steals.
"I don't think theres any question he's rusty," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said of Ramirez. "He really hasn't had a lot of practice, but I thought that first at-bat was pretty amazing. It shows how good of a hitter he is and how he knows the strike zone.
"I thought it would help the defense with (Pierre) out there (in the field) because he's been playing, and that's how I made the decision (to take Ramirez out)," Torre added.
During the suspension, LA went a respectable 29-21, maintaining their healthy lead atop the NL West standings. Although the record without him was solid in a weak National League, the team moved to 21-7 this season with him in the starting lineup.
"Everyone in the clubhouse is a professional hitter, and they can do a lot of great things without me," Ramirez said. "I'm there just to follow and bring my presence and make everyone feel comfortable."
Prior to the game, Ramirez offered a public apology for his actions, although he didn't delve into the details of his drug usage. He was suspended for reportedly taking the banned substance human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), a female fertility drug that can also be used as an antidote to reduce testosterone levels at the end of a cycle of steroid treatments.
Following the 0-for-3 outing, Ramirez's average dropped to .337 to go along with six homers and 20 RBI so far in 2009.
As far as his other teammates were concerned, Russell Martin and Matt Kemp each drove in a pair of runs, as LA won for the third time in its last four games. Rafael Furcal went 4-for-5 with a run scored out of the leadoff spot, and Hiroki Kuroda (3-4) earned his second win this season against San Diego after yielding three runs on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.
Jonathan Broxton earned his 20th save of the season in the win.
Adrian Gonzalez hit a two-run double, while Scott Hairston blasted a solo homer for San Diego, which has lost seven of 10. Chad Gaudin (4-7), who hurled eight one-hit, scoreless innings in Texas his last time out, was touched for six runs on seven hits, with four walks and four strikeouts, in five frames.
The Dodgers took a huge lead in the first thanks to a couple bad throws by the Padres. Furcal singled to start and moved to second on a groundout by Orlando Hudson. Ramirez, in his first plate appearance, drew a seven-pitch walk, and Ethier followed with a grounder to first.
Gonzalez was able to make the throw for the force out at second, but the throw back to first for the double play sailed wide and off the Padres' dugout. Gaudin quickly grabbed it and fired home, except that the throw was wide of the plate, allowing Furcal to score for an early lead.
Casey Blake followed with a walk, and James Loney hit an RBI single to make it 2-0. A bloop RBI single to shallow right-center by Martin gave the Dodgers a three-run edge.
LA didn't stop the offense there, as Kemp drilled a two-run double to the gap in right-center to cap the opening frame.
Martin added an RBI groundout in the third to give the Dodgers a 6-0 lead.
Hairston put the Padres on the board in the fourth on a one-out solo homer.
San Diego cut into its deficit with two runs in the sixth, knocking Kuroda out of the game. Tony Gwynn Jr. worked a leadoff walk and moved to second on David Eckstein's single. Two batters later, Gonzalez ripped a double past Kemp in center field to score both runners and make it a 6-3 game.
Guillermo Mota came in to replace Kuroda and got out of the inning without any further damage. Mota stayed in to also pitch a scoreless seventh.
Ramon Troncoso retired two of the three hitters he faced in the eighth, and Brent Leach came in to face Gonzalez, who hit a long fly ball to deep left that Juan Pierre was able to track down to maintain the 6-3 lead.
Broxton came in and set down the Padres in order to polish off the win.
Game Notes
Gwynn has hit safely in 21 of his last 25 games and is batting .301 on the season...LA began a nine-game road trip Friday against San Diego, New York and Milwaukee...Kuroda moved to 4-1 in six career starts against the Padres...LA leads the season series, 8-3.
<< Roughriders hang on to top Lions in season opener
Regina, SK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Darian Durant threw for 313 yards and had a
rushing touchdown to help the Saskatchewan Roughriders to a 28-24 win over the
British Columbia Lions in the season opener for both clubs.
Durant went 18-for-32
<< Sadowski, Giants' offense destroy Astros
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Sadowski got plenty of run support
while throwing seven scoreless innings, as the Giants erupted offensively in a
13-0 whipping of the Astros.
Sadowski (2-0), who made his major league debut Sunda
<< Kings acquire F Smyth in multi-player deal
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings boosted their offense
on Friday, acquiring All-Star forward Ryan Smyth from the Colorado Avalanche
in a three-player deal.
Smyth, 33, tied for the Avalanche lead in points last seas
<< Report: NHL to investigate Blackhawks' qualifying offers
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks are reportedly under
investigation by the NHL for failing to tender qualifying offers to several
restricted free agents by the league's set deadline.
According to TSN Canada, th
Raburn, Tigers use three-run 16th to edge Twins >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Raburn's RBI single in the 16th
proved to be the game-winner as the Detroit Tigers took an 11-9 win over the
Minnesota Twins in a 16-inning contest to open a three-get set at the
Metrodo
Twins place Slowey on DL; recall Swarzak >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Following the Twins' 16-inning 11-9 loss to
the Tigers, Minnesota placed pitcher Kevin Slowey on the 15-day disabled list
with a strained right wrist.
Slowey started on the mound for the Twins Friday bu
Giants option INF Downs; activate INF Aurilia >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Following the Giants' 13-0 win over the
Astros, the team optioned infielder Matt Downs to Triple-A Fresno to make room
for infielder Rich Aurilia, who was activated from the bereavement list.
The 25-ye
Report: Clemens' lawyer claims he passed steroid test in '03 >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens
was reportedly not among the 100-plus players who tested positive for
performance-enhancing substances in 2003, when the league conducted an
anonymo
Brandon Roy Favorite to Win 2007 NBA Rookie of the Year
Portland TrailBlazer’s guard, Brandon Roy, is MySportsbook.com’s overwhelming favorite to win the NBA Rookie of the Year odds.
Despite missing 20 games due to an injury earlier this season, Roy has definitely put up the best numbers of his 1st year peers. In 32 games, Roy is averaging 15.3 PPG, 4.2 boards and 3.5 assists in over 33 minutes of play per game. While most rookies breakdown as the season progresses (see Morrison), Roy is only getting stronger as his playing time and scoring average has increased each month.
With 30 or so games left in the regular season, Roy isn’t a lock for the award by any means. Other rookies are putting together some pretty impressive campaigns and a few could give Roy a run for the award with increased playing time. Heading the list is first pick, Andrea Bargnani of the Toronto Raptors. Even though he has started only two games all season, Bargnani is averaging 10.3 PPPG while shooting 35% from deep.
Randy Foye of the Minnesota Timberwolves could be set to give Roy the best competition NBA Rookie of the Year betting lines. With the benching of Mike James, Foye looks like he could be the starter in the T-Wolves backcourt for the rest of the season. So far, Foye has averaged 9 PPG and 2.4 assists in just under 21 minutes per game. With his new role of starter, Foye’s numbers will definitely increase. In his first game as the new starting guard this past Sunday, Foye had 10 points; five rebounds and 8 assists. More importantly, he logged 34 minutes of playing time; his third highest run of the season.
Adam Morrison, of the Charlotte Bobcats, was the favorite early on in the season after averaging 15+ PPG through the first month of the season. Ever since his torrid start, Morrison’s point production has declined each month. This really isn’t surprising, considering at 6’8” he only weighs 205 lbs. Obviously he will need to hit the weights big time during the off-season in order to keep from breaking down in the future.
Be sure to log on to MySportsbook.com to bet on the NBA. With the regular season about to hit the homestretch, it is important to point out that MySportsbook.com has the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry.
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“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
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