Pirates blank Braves, who fall out of division lead

Baseball Betting Lines

09/07/2010 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Delwyn Young capped a five-run seventh with a two-run homer and James McDonald tossed seven scoreless innings, as the Pittsburgh Pirates shut down the Atlanta Braves, 5-0, in the second test of a three-game series at PNC Park.

Atlanta, which has lost five of six, fell a half-game behind first place Philadelphia in the NL East standings. The Braves had been in sole possession of first since May 31.

Ronny Cedeno hit a two-run triple for the Pirates, who won 3-1 in the opener of this series. Pedro Alvarez drove in the other run.

McDonald (3-5) gave up just five hits in the process of putting the brakes on a three-start slide. The right-hander also struck out three and walked three.

Tim Hudson (15-7) allowed four runs on six hits over 6 1/3 innings to suffer the loss. He allowed an earned run versus the Pirates for the first time since August 23, 2006. Hudson fell to 5-4 lifetime against Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh broke a scoreless tie with a five-run seventh. Garrett Jones hit a one-out double to center and scored on Alvarez's two-bagger. Ryan Doumit was intentionally walked to put men on first and second before Cedeno cleared the bases with a triple to right-center field, chasing Hudson from the game.

Peter Moylan took over on the mound and struck out Chris Snyder. Eric O'Flaherty was called in from the bullpen to face pinch-hitter Young, who hit his two-run homer to left. Andrew McCutchen flied out to end the frame.

Evan Meek and Joel Hanrahan tossed a scoreless eighth and ninth, respectively, to seal the victory.

The Braves failed to score after putting men on the corners in the top of the fifth. Melky Cabrera doubled down the left-field line with one out. After Alex Gonzalez flied out, Rick Ankiel was intentionally walked. Hudson, though, popped out to end the threat.

Hudson, meanwhile, was perfect on the mound through four frames. Jones changed that in the home fifth with a leadoff single. Alvarez, though, grounded into a double play. Doumit singled before Cedeno grounded out.

Atlanta wasted another great scoring chance in the sixth. Jason Heyward singled, Martin Prado doubled, and Brian McCann was intentionally walked to load the bases with one out. Derrek Lee then grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Game Notes

There was a 43-minute rain delay prior to the start of the ninth inning...Atlanta leads the season series with Pittsburgh, 5-3...Pirates second baseman Neil Walker extended his hitting streak to 14 games...The Braves recalled pitchers Craig Kimbrel and Cristhian Martinez from Triple-A Gwinnett...The Pirates recalled pitchers Brad Lincoln and Justin Thomas, infielder Pedro Ciriaco, and catcher Jason Jaramillo from Triple-A Indianapolis. The club also selected the contracts of outfielders Alex Presley and Brandon Moss, and pitchers Brian Bass and Steven Jackson from Indianapolis.

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2007 NFL Football Betting Preview


“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.

New York Giants betting lines

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.

Dallas Cowboys betting lines

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.

Oakland Raiders betting lines

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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