Martin, Kershaw help Dodgers edge Mets

Baseball Betting Lines

07/25/2010 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Russell Martin's two-out double in the eighth inning drove in the only run of the game as Los Angeles subdued New York, 1-0, to finish off a four-game set.

Clayton Kershaw (10-5) worked eight scoreless, allowing seven hits, while walking one and striking out three for the Dodgers, who have won four of their last five. Kenley Jansen earned his first career save in his second big league outing by retiring the side in order in the ninth.

Pedro Feliciano (2-5) took the loss after yielding the decisive run on two hits in his lone inning of work for the Mets, who return home after a 2-9 road trip to the west coast.

New York starter R.A. Dickey left after 5 2/3 innings with a left leg injury. He allowed two hits, did not walk a batter and struck out six.

Casey Blake singled with one out in the eighth and came into score when Martin found the alley in left-center field. Pinch-hitter Ronnie Belliard was given an intentional pass before Xavier Paul grounded out to end the inning.

Jansen got Carlos Beltran to pop out to start the ninth and then struck out Jason Bay and Ike Davis to end the game. He has struck out four of the six hitters he has faced in his first two appearances.

Andre Ethier doubled and moved to third on a wild pitch in the fifth but was left there when Blake struck out and Blake DeWitt grounded out. Ethier was the lone runner to advance that far until the eighth inning.

Game Notes

New York has dropped 15 of its last 20 road games...The Mets have been held to four runs or fewer in 15 of their last 16 contests...New York is 11-20 in one-run games, including 6-13 on the road...The Mets have been scored on first in 11 of their last 13 games...Dickey is winless in his last six starts since beating Detroit on June 23...Beltran has one hit in his last 20 at-bats, while David Wright is mired in a 3-for-26 slump after going 1-for-4...Wright has one run scored in his last 15 games and has driven in only four runs in his last 18 games...Los Angeles finished its homestand at 4-3 and opens a six-game road trip to San Diego and San Francisco on Tuesday...Kershaw improved to 2-0 in three career starts against the Mets.

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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).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

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. 

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.

Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

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