Playoff-hopeful Phils return home to battle Brewers

Baseball Betting Lines

09/03/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Phillies All-Star second baseman Chase Utley recorded just four runs batted in during August. At the pace Utley's at so far in September, his RBI total for the month will be astronomical.

Utley and the National League Wild Card-leading Phillies are back at home following a successful road trip out West and will open a three-game series versus the Milwaukee Brewers tonight at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies swept San Diego in three games, took two of three matchups in Los Angeles, then defeated Colorado last night in a make-up game of a previous rainout.

Philadelphia rallied from an early 4-0 deficit and scored nine runs in the top of the seventh inning for a seemingly comfortable 12-7 advantage in Thursday's game. Utley, who drove in a pair of runs in Wednesday's win over the Dodgers, highlighted the seventh-inning deluge with a grand slam. He had already recorded an RBI single earlier in the frame.

Ryan Howard blasted a two-run shot for the Phillies, who have won three in a row and sit two games in front of San Francisco in the Wild Card standings. Utley ended with six RBI at hitter-friendly Coors Field.

"I imagine there are a lot of guys that have driven in a lot of runs here," Utley said on the team's site. "There's a lot of room for hits. The ball carries extremely well here. You put those two together, you're going to have some success."

The Phils also pulled within two games of NL East-leading Atlanta after the Braves were downed by the New York Mets on Thursday. Jayson Werth belted a solo homer in the seventh inning -- Philadelphia's third of the frame -- and went 3-for-5 with three runs scored.

Colorado, however, responded with three runs in the bottom half of the seventh thanks to an RBI hit from Jonathan Herrera and a two-run single by Dexter Fowler. The Phillies were able to hold the Rockies to a run the rest of the way, though, and closer Brad Lidge notched his 19th save in the ninth.

Joe Blanton started for the Phillies and allowed six runs -- four earned -- on 10 hits and two walks in 4 1/3 innings for the no-decision. Antonio Bastardo got the win with an inning of relief.

The Phillies will also host Florida for four games on the residency and will try to erase the memories of a four-game sweep at the hands of Houston the last time they played at home. Cole Hamels will take the first crack at doing that when he toes the rubber tonight.

Hamels was 0-3 in his last eight starts despite a surprisingly decent 2.83 earned run average before beating the Padres in a 5-0 win last Sunday. He hurled eight scoreless innings and allowed four hits with six strikeouts and no walks to improve to 8-10 with a 3.31 ERA in 27 starts this season.

Hamels is 4-5 in 14 home starts and defeated Milwaukee on May 16 of this season at Miller Park, where he allowed two runs in 6 2/3 innings of a 4-2 triumph. The lefty and 2008 World Series MVP is 3-2 with a 4.23 ERA in seven lifetime starts against the Brewers.

Milwaukee is just trying to play consistent baseball right now and was just swept in three games at Cincinnati. It won all three games against Pittsburgh before coming up empty against the Reds and suffered a 6-1 setback on Wednesday. Chris Narveson pitched 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball for the Brewers, but Todd Coffey absorbed the loss for giving up three runs in a six- run seventh inning.

"I didn't want (Narveson) to pitch the whole game and get a loss," said Milwaukee manager Ken Macha. "He was going to be in there in the seventh inning until he got a baserunner."

Narveson also had a team-best two hits and drove in Milwaukee's only run in the fifth inning.

The Brewers, who have lost seven of 10 games, will pin tonight's pitching duties on Chris Capuano. The left-hander is 2-2 with a 5.06 earned run average in 18 games (3 starts) this season and previously pitched in last Saturday's 8-7 win versus Pittsburgh. He was fortunate the results were in Milwaukee's favor after he gave up six runs and six hits in three innings of relief.

Capuano is 0-1 with a 3.54 ERA in four career appearances, three of which have been starts, against the Phillies.

Philadelphia swept a three-game set in Milwaukee back in May and has won five of the past seven meetings between the two ballclubs.

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MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?

Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

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 this sportsbook “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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