Willingham, who is expected to be ready for spring training, went on the 15-
day disabled list last week after suffering a medial meniscus tear in his left
knee.
He batted .268 with a .389 on-base percentage, 16 home runs and eight stolen
bases in 114 games this season.
<< Happ beats Halladay as Astros edge struggling Phillies
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Humberto Quintero's RBI single in the
seventh inning helped J.A. Happ upend his former teammates, as Houston took
another slim 3-2 victory over Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park.
Happ (4-2), who w
<< Wells powers Blue Jays past Yankees
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vernon Wells finished a double shy of hitting
for the cycle and drove in four runs to power Toronto to a 6-3 win over New
York in the last of a three-game set.
Wells finished 3-for-4 with a pair of runs s
<< Pirates beat Cardinals again behind McCutchen
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daniel McCutchen threw six strong innings
and Neil Walker hit a three-run triple as the Pittsburgh Pirates took a 5-2
win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the finale of a three-game set from PNC
Park.
<< Cahill continues Oakland's pitching prowess in win over Tribe
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Trevor Cahill pitched Oakland's 17th straight
quality start, and the Athletics shut down the Indians in a 6-1 win at
Progressive Field.
Cahill (14-5) continued his sensational season by pitching s
<< Ramirez, Marlins edge Mets
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hanley Ramirez went 4-for-5 and drove in a
run, as the Florida Marlins held on to edge the New York Mets, 5-4, in the
middle contest of a three-game series.
Logan Morrison added three hits, includin
Langley, An win in first-round match play at U.S. Amateur >>
University Place, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defending champion Byeong-Hun An and
current NCAA champion Scott Langley were both winners in first round match
play at the U.S. Amateur.
Langely, the low amateur at the U.S. Open, defeated Tim J
Wozniacki, Dementieva land in New Haven quarters >>
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki and former U.S.
Open runner-up Elena Dementieva were each second-round winners Wednesday at
the $600,000 Pilot Pen Tennis event, a final hardcourt U.S. Open tune-up.
Denmark's
Wieters, Matusz lead Orioles past White Sox >>
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Wieters collected two hits and drove in
two runs in support of seven strong innings from Brian Matusz, as Baltimore
slowed down Chicago, 4-2, in the middle session of a three-game set.
Brian Roberts
Morehead State men's hoops placed on probation >>
Morehead, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Morehead State University announced on
Wednesday its men's basketball program has been placed on probation for two
years due to major violations in recruiting.
The violation, which is related to
Guerrero's homer lifts Rangers over Twins >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vladimir Guerrero's 430th career home run
leading off the sixth proved to be the difference, as the Texas Rangers beat
the Twins for the third straight day, 4-3, at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
Guerre
Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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