2010 MLB Series - Leaders Focus on World Series Run

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If you’re a “due factor” bettor, you might be smiling this week after National League won the 2010 Midsummer Classic for the first time in over a decade. “Over” bettors might not be so happy, as the game featured some impressive pitching.

Baseball Betting: Injuries Impact Top Contenders

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There’s been a bit of an injury outbreak the past few days on the baseball diamond. So the sports betting public is going to want to keep an eye on rosters as we head toward the All-Star break. Atlanta Braves right fielder Jason Heyward was having quite a season before he suffered a left thumb injury. He knicked it up about six weeks ago, but tried to play through the injury before being placed on the 15-day disabled list (DL) on Monday. The rookie RF was batting .251 with 11 homers and 45 RBIs through 71 games – tops amongst rooks in the National League (NL). Heyward’s stint on the DL is estimated to end around the All-Star break, but don’t bet on seeing him at the Midsummer Classic despite being the second-highest vote-getter in All-Star balloting for NL outfielders Heyward doesn’t seem to mind though, telling reporters that the Braves are “doing the best thing” by holding him out and he’s probably right. The Atlanta Braves currently sit in top spot in the NL East, 1.5-games up on the New York Mets and at the moment, online sportsbooks have them as the odds-on favorite to win the division at +100. You can check all the baseball betting odds Weekend Baseball Betting Action: So how will the Braves fare without Heyward? Heading into the weekend, the Braves begin a three-game home set against the division rival Florida Marlins and seeing as their opponents are in the lower part of the NL East standings (second-last) Atlanta has a chance to distance themselves from the Mets. However, the Braves haven’t been all that sharp in their last nine home games against the Marlins, going only 3-6 straight up. Over/Under Alert: In the last eight overall matchups between these two, there have been 7 Overs and 1 Under, in fact the last five overall games between the Braves and the Mets have all gone Over the total. Philadelphia Phillies: The two-time defending NL champion Philadelphia Phillies won’t be three-timers if they keep piling up bodies on their disabled list – they are currently 3.5 back of the Atlanta Braves for the division lead. Already with five bodies in the sick bay, the Phillies recently added starting infielders Placido Polanco (elbow) and Chase Utley (right thumb) to the walking wounded. Worse yet, according to reports, the ball club doesn’t know exactly when the two will return – MLB.com has Utley and Polanco both set to return “possibly in mid-July.” The Phillies aren’t far behind the Atlanta Braves in terms of NL East futures betting, currently listed by sportsbooks at +125 to take the division and are both +330 and +750 to win the NL pennant and World Series respectively. The Philadelphia Phillies are in Pittsburgh to play the Pirates currently, with Game 2 of 4 set to go on Friday. The ageless one, Jamie Moyer takes the mound and in his last 10 starts, there have been 3 Overs and 7 Unders. Keep an eye on the injury situation for these contenders as you look for your daily baseball bets. Enjoy all the weekend action and Happy Independence Day.

Early Surprises in 2010 MLB Season

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A month into the new baseball season and we have a few surprises developing. In the Big Apple, the New York Yankees are challenging for the American League East lead…that doesn’t fall into the “Surprising” category…but across town, the New York Mets are fighting the Philadelphia Phillies for the National League East division, which is. Yes, it’s still early, but they have had a decent start to the season. Online sportsbooks currently have the Metropolitans at +400 to win the NL East division. The Mets, who have played second fiddle to the Yankees since the glory days of Hernandez, Dykstra, et al, were sitting in fourth place in the NL East at this time last year, with a 10-13 record and plenty of doom and gloom surrounding the team. As of this past Sunday, they are 14-11 and a half game behind Philadelphia. They start a series with the Reds in Cincinnati to kick-off the week. People have been cashing in on the Mets in their last 10 games, as they’ve booked an impressive 8-2 mark. However, they have struggled on the road, going 3-9 in their last 12 away from home. John Maine is slated for the Tuesday night start. As his last 11 road starts have not produced many winning tickets. He (and the team) have stumbled to a 2-9 mark in those games. You can check the updated odds for this game on Monday night – Baseball Odds San Diego Padres: The San Diego Padres are a bit of surprise team as well, currently leading the NL West (as of Sunday, they’re 1.5 games up on the San Francisco Giants). Despite the early division lead, the Padres are still longshots to hang on a win the NL West, listed currently at +1100 at most online sportsbooks. But the sports public is starting to take notice, as Brian Taylor, manager at SPORTSBETTING.com reported decent action on San Diego “to win the division” this past week. The Padres will host the Colorado Rockies in their next series. San Diego have certainly been impressive in their last 16 games overall, with a record of 13-3, and even more so in their last 10 home games, going 9-1 in front of the home town fans. Over/Under Notes: In San Diego’s last 11 games head-to-head vs. the Colorado Rockies, the Under has been money. There have been only 2 Overs, but the Under has cashed in 9 times. The early action is on the visiting Rockies for the Monday start. They are a road favorite, and 68% of the volume is on the visitor. Boston Red Sox: While the Padres and Mets are off to good starts, the Boston Red Sox have struggled so far in 2010. The BoSox are fourth in the AL East and start a series with the Los Angeles Angels, who are also struggling as well, sitting near the bottom of the AL West. In the BoSox’s last 11 games against the Angels at Fenway, they are an ugly 3-8 SU. Will the San Diego Padres and New York Mets maintain their respective positions in their divisions? Will the Boston Red Sox move back to the top of the AL East? We’ll be watching as these and more storylines unfold on the young baseball season. Good luck with the plays today. You can check all the updated Baseball Odds

2010 NEW YORK METS PREVIEW

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The New York Mets were probably the most disappointing team in all of Major League Baseball in 2009. Despite boasting one of the highest payrolls in baseball, the Mets suffered a ton of injuries and bumbled to a terrible 70-92 record, barely edging the lowly Nationals to stay out of the basement of the NL East.

Report: Barajas signs one-year deal with Mets

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Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com reports that the Mets have signed catcher Rod Barajas to a one-year, $1 million contract. He can make another $1 million in "easily-attainable" incentives, according to Rosenthal. The 34-year-old Barajas immediately becomes the favorite to start behind the plate in Queens. He batted just .226/.258/.403 last season, but smacked 19 homers and racked up 71 RBI. Hey, at least it's not Omir Santos.

Why is Baseball Forcing the Florida Marlins to Spend? They’re Successful.

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When John Henry stamps his foot, Bud Selig calls to attention. The Red Sox owner complained last month about teams misusing revenue sharing funds. Baseball appears to be stepping in. According to a press release, MLB, the Players Association and the Florida Marlins affirmed that the Marlins will continue to follow Article XXIV(B)(5)(a) of the Basic Agreement. They will spend the money they receive from revenue sharing on baseball.

Mets finalize four-year contract with OF Bay

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Mets signed OF Jason Bay to a four-year, $66 million contract with a $17 million vesting option for 2014. The deal will pay him an $8.5 million signing bonus and comes with a full no-trade clause. He'll earn $6.5 million in 2010 and $16 million from 2011-2013. The option for 2014 would become guaranteed if Bay makes 600 plate appearances in 2013 or 500 PAs in both 2012 and 2013. It's a fine deal for a team like the Mets, who can afford the hefty contract. Bay, 31, hit .267/.384/.537 with 36 home runs, 119 RBI and 13 stolen bases in 531 at-bats last season and will add some necessary "pop" to the Mets' lineup.

Met Fans can Rejoice: Mets agree to Terms with Jason Bay pending physical.

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Roy Halladay will not accept in-season trade

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Steelers to give up 3 Super Bowl Titles to less fourtunate teams

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Pittsburgh, PA. The Super Bowl XLIII Champion Pittsburgh Steelers, the only team to win six titles, will soon be losing half of those trophies. After a meeting between NFL Commissioner Rodger Goodell and President Barack Obama, Obama decided to redistribute half of their Steeler Super Bowl victories and trophies to less fortunate teams in the league.

Yankees targeting CF Granderson

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"In a cost-cutting frame of mind, the Tigers have let teams know Curtis Granderson could be had for the right package, an NL executive told The Post. The Yankees will almost certainly push to the front of the line when it comes to Granderson. He obviously would be an upgrade on the Melky Cabrera/Brett Gardner duo. In addition, the Yankees could quickly face a need to restore lefty power if Johnny Damon and/or Hideki Matsui leave to free agency. Granderson hit a career-high 30 homers last season, the fourth most by an AL lefty. Brian Cashman met with Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski at the GM Meetings, which concluded yesterday, but it is not believed the two did any more than discuss needs and available players. However, they have a good relationship and have made significant trades before.

Betting Baseball - The Playoff Race

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Betting baseball, the playoff race at betrepublic.com offers winning baseball picks nfl betting kicks in & Major League Baseball pennant races starts at betrepublic

Do the mets have to rebuild there franchise

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Surgery an option for Mets SS Reyes

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Santana OUT

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Johan Santana has been scratched from his scheduled start Tuesday due to elbow discomfort. Manager Jerry Manuel made the announcement after Monday's loss to the Phillies. It sounds like the Mets are hoping it's a short-term issue right now, but with the club having little left to play for, it's possible that he'll be shut down for an extended period of time. He'll be examined on Tuesday.

Phils' Bruntlett turns unassisted triple play

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Eric Bruntlett turned an unassisted triple play in the bottom of the ninth inning of a 9-7 game to beat the Mets on Sunday. The Phillies started the inning with two errors and a third near-error, the latter two of which were by Bruntlett himself. However, the Mets sent the runners on a 3-2 count and Jeff Francouer lined it right to Bruntlett as he was covering second base. He then stepped on second and tagged Daniel Murphy for the 14th unassisted triple play in baseball's regular season history and the first since Asdrubal Cabrera last season.

Report: Sheffield threatening to leave Mets

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According to the New York Post, Gary Sheffield asked for a contract extension from the Mets Thursday and was denied. Sheffield is now threatening to leave the team and, according to reports, might soon be released. Things had been running smoothly in New York until Sheff made a couple of curious comments on Tuesday night in reaction to trade rumors. "Based on what I know now, no, I do not think I will be here," he said that night. "But if I am sent to a team that I don't want to play for, I would go home." He was scratched from the lineup Thursday night.

Should the Mets just drop Delgado?

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all these injuries and quirks

Yankees FINALLY get 1

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Yanks chase floundering Smoltz in 4th to beat Red Sox for 1st time in 10 games

Parnell now a starter for NY

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According to Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post, Bobby Parnell has officially been added to the Mets' starting rotation. Parnell will take start Saturday against the Padres. He's filling in for Jon Niese, who was placed on the 60-day disabled list Thursday with a torn right hamstring. Parnell, a 24-year-old right-hander, was 10-6 with a 4.30 ERA in 24 starts last season for Double-A Binghamton. He has a 3.74 ERA and a 38/22 K/BB ratio in 45 2/3 innings of relief this year for the Mets.