Cardinals go with winless starter Suppan in Chicago

Baseball Betting Lines

07/23/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeff Suppan takes another crack at his first win of the season this afternoon when the St. Louis Cardinals open a three-game series with the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Suppan has gone 0-3 with a 4.20 earned run average in six starts with the Cardinals following his release from the Milwaukee Brewers. He had been 0-2 with a 7.84 ERA in 15 appearances with the Brewers.

The 35-year-old righty last toed the rubber on Sunday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, but did not get a decision, despite a solid performance that saw him surrender a run and five hits in six innings of his team's 5-4 win.

Suppan lost to the Cubs back on April 23 while with Milwaukee and is 6-10 lifetime against them with a 3.95 ERA in 25 starts.

St. Louis will need a big start from its veteran hurler tonight if it is going to get back in the win column following a 2-0 loss in 11 innings on Thursday to Philadelphia.

Adam Wainwright extended his scoreless innings streak to 25 after giving up six hits while fanning six in six frames for the Cardinals, who had an eight- game win streak stopped. St. Louis advanced just one runner past first base for the duration of the game and had just three baserunners overall.

"I don't worry about this loss," Wainwright said. "We won seven out of eight against two really good clubs. We should be excited about this homestand...It was just one game we lost in extra innings."

With Kyle McClellan (1-3) on to begin the 11th for St. Louis, Placido Polanco put the Phils ahead with a solo home run. They then tacked a run on later in the frame.

Chicago, meanwhile, also enters on a sour note after dropping two of three to the Houston Astros, including a 4-3, 12-inning setback in Wednesday's rubber match.

Bob Howry (1-3) took the loss after allowing two runs on a pair of hits while recording only one out for the Cubs, who have lost three of five.

Chicago, which is 11 games back of the Cardinals for first place in the National League Central, had a chance to win this one, but it stranded runners at second and third in the 11th after Derrek Lee flied out to end the frame.

"There's no secret we're in a bad spot," said Lee of the Cubs position in the standings. "We need to rack up as many wins as possible and the best way to go about that is winning series. Today we had a chance to win one and we let it slip away."

Heading to the hill for the Cubs this afternoon will be righty Randy Wells, who is 4-7 with a 4.33 ERA. Despite tossing seven scoreless innings on Saturday in Philadelphia, Wells did not get a decision in his team's 4-1 setback.

Wells, who is 0-2 in three appearances (two starts) against the Cards, has a 1.66 ERA over his past three starts, but has just one win in his last 14 outings.

St. Louis took two of three from the Cubs earlier in the season at Wrigley.

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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

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Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

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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.

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