07/04/2008 - Chicago, IL (Baseball Betting) - Jack Cust slammed a two-run homer and Joe Blanton pitched seven solid innings in Oakland's 7-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox in the second of a four-game series.
Blanton (5-11) allowed just one run while scattering six hits and two walks for the Athletics, adding five strikeouts in the club's second straight win.
Donnie Murphy had two hits and two runs batted in, while Emil Brown and Wes Bankston each recorded three-hit nights.
"Our hitters took a good approach to Mark Buehrle, and we were able to execute," Cust said.
The aforementioned Buehrle (6-7) snapped a personal four-decision winning streak by surrendering four runs on 10 hits and three walks, as Chicago dropped its second straight following a seven-game winning streak. The White Sox gave up 17 hits, the most allowed this season by a usually stingy pitching staff. Jim Thome went 2-for-4 with the lone RBI in defeat.
Both starters held the offenses in check for the first three frames before the A's plated a pair on two pitches in the fourth. Buehrle's first offering was lined to left by Brown for a single, and Cust quickly answered with an opposite-field shot to left for his 15th home run of the year.
"I never had my stuff from the first inning on," Buehrle said. "I'm just glad I could minimize the damage."
The White Sox cut the lead in half in the bottom half, as Thome roped a two- out double to the left field wall. Carlos Quentin was on with a walk, and he came around to score when Mark Ellis didn't attempt to throw him out at the plate.
Another two-spot for the away team made it a 4-1 game in the sixth. Carlos Gonzalez scored from first on Jack Hannahan's two-out double to the right field gap. Buehrle then intentionally walked Ellis, and Ryan Sweeney rolled an RBI single up the middle. Hannahan slid past the tag of A.J. Pierzynski and was called safe, even though replays showed he may have missed touching the plate.
The A's added two more an inning later behind three straight singles off reliever Nick Masset, the last of which a broken-bat base-hit by Bankston to bring in a run. Two batters later, Murphy bounced a single in front of Quentin in left and the score read, 6-1.
Murphy doubled home another run in the ninth, and Santiago Casilla followed up Brad Ziegler's perfect eighth with one of his own in the ninth to seal the victory.
Game Notes
Buehrle is just 3-11 in 23 lifetime appearances -- 18 starts -- against Oakland...The White Sox are still an excellent 30-13 as the host this season... Oakland has won seven of its eight most recent meetings with Chicago...Oakland placed veteran reliever Keith Foulke on the 15-day disabled list Friday, retroactive to July 3, with right shoulder inflammation. To take his spot on the roster, the A's recalled left-handed pitcher Jerry Blevins from Triple-A Sacramento...Gonzalez left the game in the seventh with tightness in his right hamstring...Despite the win, the A's left 13 runners on base.
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The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
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