Giants try to further close gap on West-leading Padres

Baseball Betting Lines

09/10/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The battle for National League West supremacy between the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres resumes this evening with the second installment of a four-game series from Petco Park.

The Giants drew first blood with Thursday's 7-3 win in the series opener, trimming San Diego's once-comfortable lead atop the division standings to just one game thanks to a 13-hit attack highlighted by two-run homers from veteran Aubrey Huff and rookie Buster Posey.

"This is such a big series," Huff said. "To be able to come out and get the first game is huge, you know. You lose that game, you're down three and it's a little bit deflating. But now you're back down to one. So we've got three more games here. We've got to keep rolling. If we win this and lose the rest it really doesn't mean much."

Juan Uribe and Pat Burrell both went deep for the Giants, who are also only a game behind Atlanta for the Senior Circuit's Wild Card berth as well. Huff and Freddy Sanchez finished with three hits apiece, while starting pitcher Matt Cain recorded the win with eight innings of three-run ball. Relievers Javier Lopez and Ramon Ramirez worked the ninth to preserve the victory.

San Francisco owns a 5-2 mark on their 10-game road trip against NL West foes and has won seven of its last nine games overall. It will send Jonathan Sanchez to the mound Friday night with hopes of him keeping an unbeaten streak intact. Sanchez is 2-0 in his last four starts and defeated the Dodgers on Sunday with seven shutout innings in a 3-0 win.

Sanchez reached 10 wins in a season for the first time in his career and will try to bounce back against a Padres club that beat him on August 13 at AT&T Park. In the 3-2 loss that day, Sanchez gave up three runs in 5 1/3 innings and is only 2-5 with a solid 2.88 ERA through 17 lifetime matchups (10 starts) with San Diego.

The Padres appeared to be back on track with a three-game sweep of Los Angeles following a season-high 10-game losing streak, but reverted back to their losing ways last night versus the hard-charging Giants.

Jon Garland was aiming for his 14th win of the season before he surrendered six runs on eight hits and three walks in five innings. Garland didn't get much help offensively, as the Padres ended with five hits, two of which off the bat of Ryan Ludwick.

Ludwick clubbed a two-run homer and Will Venable cracked a solo home run in defeat. Ludwick is hitting .225 with four home runs and 16 RBI in 36 games since being acquired from St. Louis in late July.

"I think it was just kind of one of those days that there were some balls that were well struck," Venable said. "It did seem like it was carrying a little more than usual."

San Diego fell to 3-4 on a 10-game residency versus division foes and is relying on starting pitcher Clayton Richard to pull the club back into the win column. Richard has a perfect track record against the Giants this season, having gone 3-0 with a 2.05 earned run average in four starts. He beat San Francisco on August 13 and is 3-1 in five career starts in this series.

Richard, however, is 0-1 despite a 1.98 ERA in his last two starts since going 5-0 over his previous six outings. He did not figure into the decision of Sunday's 4-2 loss versus Colorado, as he was reached for two runs -- one earned -- and nine hits in six frames. The lefty remained at 12-6 to go along with a 3.43 ERA in 28 starts this season.

San Diego has dominated the season series with the Giants by a 9-3 count, including a 4-2 ledger at Petco Park.

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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

American Idol Betting Odds: Season 6  

The online gambling websites are in the process of deciphering each American Idol contestant and his or her chances of winning Season 6 to come up with the early American Idol betting lines.

Tim Dalton of MySportsbook.com has been locked away in a soundproof room coming up with all the latest tallies, we are told. "American Idol has become one of the most significant betting events of the year," claims Jack Black of MySportsbook.com.  "Last year, millions were bet during the season across the globe, not just in America.

It's tough early on since we really do not have a glimpse as to how well each of these individuals will perform solo on a week-to-week basis.  It's like Week 1 of the NFL.  Pre-season means nada!

We do know the 24 finalists however.

Sanjaya Malakar is the young man whose sister failed to make it into the Top 24.  He's very low key but - unless he totally flubs - will probably win over the young girlie vote for a few weeks anyway.  He's too young to go all the way, according to Payton O'Brien. 

Brandon Rogers - Who?

Phil Stacy is the military guy who missed his daughter's birth because of the Memphis audition.  He should go a good distance.

Chris Sligh - He's got the humor and in many ways he's the Anti-American Idol much like last year's winner Taylor Hicks was.  And this is why he'll probably get pretty far in this competition.  He's chubby, white with a big curly afro....but more importantly, a great voice!  People love "real", not "real cute" to go all the way. 

"Blake Lewis should go far because of his uniqueness and looks.  He's the boy next store with a twist - he beat boxes.  But on top of this, he's a great singer, and I adore him," Payton O'Brien relayed.

A talented beat-boxer Blake Lewis was a hit during the group sing in Hollywood but Simon explained that this is a singing contest just before he told him he was “in.”

Paul Kim has caught our own roving reporter, Jenny Woo's eyes. 

"I love the fact that there is a Korean American on the show and he is bound to get more Asians tuning into the show," Woo said from her Miami Beach estate.  "There has never been a major presence of Asian-Americans on American Idol in the past.  He's a hottie with a nice voice so that should help to take him far.  Expect heavy betting action from the Asian community."

Sundance Head - He's not perfect, but he's got the personality that will take him through a few weeks, plus he's got the lineage (son of Roy Head - whose 1965 single, "Treat Her Right," hit No. 5 in the charts) 

And the others:

Rudy Cardinas
AJ Tabaldo - the 5th time is the charm
Nicolas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jared Cotter

The girls

"Melinda Doolittle has one of the best voices," says MySportsbook.com Reporter and an acclaimed dancer in her own right, Destiney Lewis.  "It is great to see a back up singer step out like she has.  The girl needs to gain more confidence but that can also be a positive.  I think she will go far."

Alena Alexander - Those tears (she never seems to stop bawling) should get her far.

"Single mom Lakisha Jones I suspect will be a pretty big favorite entering Week 1 of the competition," says Destiny Williams.  Jones is an excellent singer and down to earth.  "She'll have a wide appeal," echoed O'Brien.

Nicole Trellis - Seems to exert confidence.

Amy Krebs - a powerful singer.

Antonella Barba
Gina Glocksen
Hailey Scanardo
Jordan Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Sabrina Sloan

MySportsbook.com is offering a 20% signup bonus with an initial deposit (i.e. open your American Idol betting account with $300, receive another $60 in which to bet with). 

Last two contestants will be?

1 Male/1 Female +100 (a $10 bet pays $10 plus your initial $10)

2 Males +170 (a $10 bet pays $17 plus your initial $17)

2 Females +130 (a $10 bet pays $13 plus your initial $10)

MySportsbook.com is an online sportsbook accepts Visa Credit Cards and online sportsbook accepts Mastercard Credit Cards for easy American Idol betting lines.