Lincecum again dominant; Giants continue to pound Astros pitching

Baseball Betting Lines

07/04/2009 - San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tim Lincecum fired seven innings of three-hit shutout ball, and the Giants bats produced a second straight solid effort in a 9-0 win against the Astros.

Lincecum (9-2), fresh off being named the NL's Pitcher of the Month for June, won for the fifth time in his last six starts and for the ninth time in his last 10 decisions.

The reigning Cy Young Award winner for the Senior Circuit struck out nine, walked two and walked twice himself, scoring both times. He has now allowed two runs or less in eight of his last nine outings and has fanned at least eight batters in each of his last five starts.

San Francisco pounded out the nine runs on 12 hits one day after taking the opener to this three-game set in similar fashion, 13-0. Aaron Rowand and Randy Winn had a pair of RBI each, while Pablo Sandoval reached base four times with two hits and two walks, driving in a run in the win.

Former Giants right-hander Russ Ortiz (3-4) was tagged for nine hits and eight runs with five walks in a 5 2/3-inning start. Houston had entered the series winners in six of its previous eight but have managed just seven hits in the first two games versus the Giants.

The game was actually scoreless after 4 1/2 frames but the Giants scored twice in the fifth and broke it open with a six-run sixth. Sandoval knocked in Lincecum with a single to right to open the scoring, and Winn scored on a passed ball to close the fifth.

Lincecum walked for a second consecutive inning to load the bases with two outs in the sixth, and the Giants went on to rally for six runs. Rowand drove in two with a base hit to left and Winn doubled to right-center to plate two more. After Sandoval was intentionally walked, Chris Sampson came on but Bengie Molina greeted him with an RBI double and Nate Schierholtz followed with a run-scoring single to center.

Rich Aurilia added a sacrifice fly in the eighth to account for the final margin.

Game Notes

Houston and San Francisco are meeting for the first time since the Astros took seven of the eight meetings a year ago. Houston went 3-1 at AT&T Park in 2008...Houston's Lance Berkman doubled and walked twice in four plate appearances...San Francisco reinstated Aurilia from the bereavement list and optioned infielder Matt Downs to Triple-A Fresno prior to the game...Rowand, Molina and Juan Uribe had two hits apiece for San Francisco.

Ookmaker Baseball Betting News

<< Angels bring back Kendrick; option Rodriguez
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Angels have recalled infielder Howie Kendrick from Triple-A Salt Lake and optioned infielder Sean Rodriguez back to the club's top affiliate. The move reverses a transaction originally made on Jun

<< Posada's RBI single in 12th helps Yanks down Jays
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jorge Posada's single in the bottom of the 12th inning lifted the New York Yankees to a 6-5 win over Toronto in the second of a four-game set from Yankee Stadium. Posada also hit a homer and finished with two

<< Woods, Kim share AT&T National lead
Bethesda, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tiger Woods managed just an even-par 70 Saturday and will head into the final round at the AT&T National tied for the lead with Anthony Kim. Kim, the defending champion, shot a two-under 68 in the third ro

<< Briscoe takes Watkins Glen pole for second straight year
Watkins Glen, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Briscoe won the pole at Watkins Glen International for the second year in a row after dominating Saturday's qualifying for the Camping World GP at the Glen. Briscoe posted a new track reco

<< Nationals recall Bergmann; designate Colome for assignment
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Nationals recalled right-hander Jason Bergmann from Triple-A Syracuse and designated reliever Jesus Colome for assignment following Saturday's 5-3 win over the Braves. Bergmann

Moyer, bullpen help Phils take down Mets >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamie Moyer pitched into the seventh inning and the Philadelphia bullpen did the rest, helping the Phillies upend the Mets 4-1 in the second of a three-game series between the NL East rivals. Moyer

Williams sisters take doubles title at Wimbledon >>
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The dominating Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, won the doubles final on Saturday at Wimbledon, just hours after the sisters faced each other in the single's final. Serena and Venus needed

Punto, Twins edge Tigers >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nick Punto's RBI single in the eighth inning helped the Minnesota Twins take a 4-3 win over the Detroit Tigers in the second of a three-game set at the Metrodome. Justin Morneau went 4-for-4 wit

Padres rally past Dodgers; Ramirez homers >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Everth Cabrera went 2-for-4 with three runs batted in, as the San Diego Padres used late rallies to down Los Angeles, 7-4, in the middle installment of a three-game series. Cabrera, David Eckstein and Adr

DeLaet leads Edmonton Open by two >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Graham DeLaet posted a two-under 70 Saturday to take a two-stroke lead after three rounds of the Edmonton Open. DeLaet, who shared the second-round lead with Brady Stockton and Jim Rutledge, completed 54 hol

Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.

Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.

Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.

Memphis vs. Ohio State

Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.

UCLA vs. Kansas

In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.

With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action.  Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards