Galaxy look to stifle surging Wizards
Soccer Betting Lines
08/27/2010 - Carson, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Galaxy host the Kansas City Wizards in a Major League Soccer fixture at The Home Depot Center on Saturday night.
The Galaxy (13-4-4) still sit atop the league with 43 points, but have struggled recently, going 1-2-1 in their last four.
The team jumped out to a big lead at the beginning of the season, but has been coming back to earth recently, with the Eastern leading Columbus Crew only three points back.
"We've just got to tighten up the screws, I guess," L.A. forward Edson Buddle told mlssoccer.com. "We have some time to get things right before the playoffs."
The Galaxy will have that opportunity, with six of their last nine league fixtures at home.
"Time is now for us to start establishing The Home Depot Center as a place where no team wants to come and play," Galaxy veteran Chris Klein told mlssoccer.com.
The Wizards (6-9-5) are in the opposite situation. They started the season very slowly, but are on a tear as of late, going 3-1-2 in their last six.
The team is coming off a 4-1 thumping of the New England Revolution in its last league fixture, and hopes to build off it on the road on Saturday.
"This is good for a number of reasons," Kansas City coach Peter Vermes said after the win. "It puts us three points closer to a playoff spot. It also gets us back into the dance. We're pushing the envelope a little bit. Like I said, performances are one thing, and results are another. We've had a lot of good performances as of late, if you look at our last six games. It's all about us finishing our chances."
The Wizards will be without midfielder Zoltan Hercegfalvi, while the Galaxy will be without midfielder David Beckham, both because of injuries. Galaxy defenders Todd Dunivant and Gregg Berhalter are also listed as questionable on the team's injury report.
Newcastle, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Newcastle signed Ivory Coast defensive midfielder Cheick Tiote from Dutch side FC Twente on Friday. The 24-year-old Ivory Coast international passed a physical and the deal was sealed after he
<< Blackpool signs Varney on season-long loan
Blackpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blackpool signed striker Luke Varney on
a season-long loan deal from Derby County on Friday.
Blackpool has the option to sign the 27-year-old on a permanent basis at the
end of the deal.
"He is a
<< Reds place P Leake on DL
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds placed right-hander Mike
Leake on the 15-day disabled list Friday with right shoulder fatigue.
Leake, whose move is retroactive to August 25, has an 8-4 record with a 4.23
earned run
<< West Brom signs Fortune from Celtic
West Bromwich, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Bromwich acquired stikrer Marc-
Antoine Fortune on Friday from Scottish club Celtic.
Fortune played at West Brom earlier in his career while on loan from Nancy and
returns to the Premier League
<< Schalke signs Romania winger Deac
Gelsenkirchen, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Schalke signed Romania winger
Ciprian Deac from CFR Cluj to a three-year contract on Friday
Deac, 24, helped CFR Cluj win two Romanian titles and can play on the left and
right of midfield.
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fulham signed Mexican defender Carlos Salcido from PSV Eindhoven on Friday and signed him to a three-year contract. Salcido, 30, played every minute for Mexico at the recent FIFA World Cup in South
Inter remains the team to beat in Serie A >>
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Inter Milan has dominated Serie A over the
past four seasons, and after a summer transfer period that has been extremely
uneventful, the Nerazzurri will enter the season as favorites to retain their
title.
Blackburn signs striker Mwaruwari >>
Blackburn, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Blackburn signed former Manchester City
and Portsmouth striker Benjani Mwaruwari to a one-year contract Friday.
Mwaruwari, 32, was signed on a free transfer. The Zimbabwe international was
released by
Bordeaux signs Tunisia midfielder Ben Khalfallah >>
Bordeaux, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bordeaux signed Tunisia midfielder Fahid
Ben Khalfallah from Valenciennes on Friday.
Ben Khalfallah, 27, signed a four-year contract with Bordeaux, which needed to
replace playmaker Yoann Gourcuff in mi
Canada Basketball sets roster for Worlds >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Canada Basketball announced Friday its final
12-man roster for the 2010 FIBA World Championship.
The roster includes NBA players: Joel Anthony of the Miami Heat and Andy
Rautins of the New York Knicks.
SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting
NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts MasterCard needs.
Football Betting Lines
The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.
Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.
Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.
A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.
Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.
Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.
Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.
And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.
For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.
2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win
Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1
Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1
Donald Brown (IND) 5/1
Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1
Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1
Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1
Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1
Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1
Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1
Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1
Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1
Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1
Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1
Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1
Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1
Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1
Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1
LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1
Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2
Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1
Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1
Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1
Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1
Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1
Jason Smith (STL) 40/1
Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1
Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1
Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1
Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2
Pat White (MIA) 30/1
Field (Any Other Player) 9/1
To visit this sports betting site go to BettingExpress.com for all your football betting lines needs.
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