07/04/2008 - Los Angeles, CA (Baseball Betting) - The Los Angeles Dodgers received a boost on Friday when Andruw Jones and Nomar Garciaparra returned from the disabled list.
Garciaparra will play shortstop for the Dodgers in their afternoon contest with the San Francisco Giants, while Jones will play in center.
Garciaparra has been out since April 26 with a strained left calf, while Jones went on the DL on May 25 with torn cartilage in his right knee. Jones underwent arthroscopic surgery on the knee on May 27.
The former Red Sox shortstop Garciaparra played in only nine games before heading to the DL, as he missed time at the start of the season with a broken hand. The veteran infielder batted only .226 with a homer and five runs batted in before injuring his calf.
A 10-time Gold Glove winner, Jones was batting .167 with two home runs and seven RBI in his first year in Los Angeles when he headed to the DL. Jones signed a two-year, $36.2 million contract in the offseason after spending 12 years with the Atlanta Braves.
To clear roster spots for the two vets the Dodgers placed infielder Mark Sweeney on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right hamstring, optioned outfielder Jason Repko to Triple-A Las Vegas, and transferred infielder Rafael Furcal from the 15-day DL to the 60-day DL.
Sweeney is hitting a paltry .094 with three RBI in 60 games. Repko went 0- for-7 in a brief call-up from the minors. Furcal underwent surgery on his back on Thursday.
<< Yankees' Damon leaves game vs. Red Sox
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Yankees left fielder
Johnny Damon left Friday's game with the Boston Red Sox after suffering a
left shoulder contusion on a bizarre play in the third inning.
Boston's Kevin You
<< Padres place Barrett on DL with broken nose
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres placed catcher Michael
Barrett on the 15-day disabled list with a broken nose that may require
surgery.
Barrett left Wednesday's 8-1 loss to the Rockies after fouling a ball off
<< Martin signs with HMS for 2009
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Martin will replace Casey Mears in
the No.5 Chevrolet at Hendrick Motorsports starting with the 2009 Sprint Cup
Series season.
After two years of semi-retirement, Martin declared he is ready
<< Federer, Nadal to meet in third straight Wimbledon final
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - World No. 1 Roger Federer, seeking a
sixth straight title here, and two-time runner-up Rafael Nadal were Friday's
semifinal winners at The Championships, Wimbledon. The two superstars will
meet in
Canucks acquire Bernier >>
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Vancouver Canucks acquired forward Steve
Bernier from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a pair of draft picks on
Friday.
The Sabres will receive a 2010 second round draft pick and a 2009 third ro
Leafs agree to terms with Grabovski >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Maple Leafs signed newly acquired
centerman Mikhail Grabovski to a one-year contract on Friday.
Grabovski, 24, was obtained on Thursday from the Montreal Canadiens in
exchange for the ri
Clauson wins first Nationwide pole at Daytona >>
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bryan Clauson captured his first career
Nationwide Series pole for this evening's Winn-Dixie 250 at Daytona
International Speedway. The No.40 Chip Ganassi Racing driver circled the famed
2.5-mil
It's in the Cards: Cubs' Zambrano makes return >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano will
start Friday's matchup, the opener of a three-game set with the St. Louis
Cardinals, after a two-week stint on the disabled list with a strained right
shoulder.
Zambr
American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout
An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.
Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off. Randy was not impressed though. Paula thought he started off fantastic. "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either.
Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed. Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact. He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition.
Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula. Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.
Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next. Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential. Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell. He sang "Careless Whisper".
22 year old Chris Richardson was up next. He was listed with +1100 odds coming in. He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great.
Nick was boring and pitchy. Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week. Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition.
Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds . These of course were the early odds. He was considered original for picking an "odd song". He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night.
Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good.
Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds. Great voice and a great sense of humor. He's a real standout. Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit. Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig".
Jared Cotter followed. He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition. The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good.
22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next. "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon. Though the judges felt he performed okay. Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.
Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition. He was the last to perform. He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start.
Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys. Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
March Madness odds and printable March Madness brackets
With the field of 64/65 set, MySportsbook.com has the Florida Gators as the 4-1 favorite to successfully defend their National Championship. Men’s Division-1 College Basketball has not seen a team repeat as National Champions since Duke won back to back championships in ’91 & ‘92. After losing three out of four late in the season, the Gators are full of momentum as they won their last four games by an average of 18 points. Not surprisingly, right behind the Gators are the other three top seeds: Kansas 5-1, UNC 6-1, and Ohio State 7-1. Many consider Kansas to be the hottest team in the country, having won 11 straight. With Kansas, it is hard to ignore all of the early exits from the “dance” in recent years. With an impressive ACC Tournament, UNC ensured themselves the other top seed. UNC has about as much talent as any other team in the tournament but with a team that’s best players are primarily freshman and sophomores, could youth be a concern. Behind freshman sensation, Greg Oden, OSU will look to do what their football team failed to do just a few months earlier. OSU seems to have peeked at the right time, as they currently have a 17 game winning streak. Since the tournament field was expanded in 1985, there has never been an instance where all four #1 seeds advanced to the Final Four. It is obvious that each of the top seeds have the talent to make it through to Atlanta. But as everyone knows, when makes the NCAA Tournament so special are all of the spoilers and “Cinderella” stories that knock off the favorites on a daily basis.
Be sure to logon to MySportsbook.com to see check out all of the early lines and “March Madness” props. Also be sure to enter the “$10,000,000 Perfect Bracket Contest”. If someone has the skills to predict every winner, they will be set for life and walk away with $10,000,000. Even if no one can cash in on the Grand Prize, with a $35,000 guaranteed prize pool and a Mazda RX-8 to the first prize winner, Sportsbook.com’s bracket is a must for all “March Madness” fans.
MySportsbook.com’s odds to win the Championship and Regions:
| EAST | National Championship | Region |
| Arkansas | 300-1 | 50-1 |
| Belmont | 1000-1 | |
| Boston College | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| Eastern KY | 1000-1 | |
| George Washington | 75-1 | |
| Georgetown | 10-1 | 3-2 |
| Marquette | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| Michigan State | 100-1 | 25-1 |
| New Mexico St. | 500-1 | 200-1 |
| UNC | 6-1 | 6-5 |
| Oral Roberts | 500-1 | |
| Texas | 15-1 | 5-1 |
| Texas Tech | 200-1 | 5-1 |
| USC | 75-1 | 20-1 |
| Vanderbilt | 100-1 | 30-1 |
| Washington State | 40-1 | 15-1 |
| WEST | ||
| Duke | 50-1 | 10-1 |
| Florida A&M | 1000-1 | |
| Gonzaga | 200-1 | 40-1 |
| Holy Cross | 300-1 | |
| Illinois | 300-1 | 60-1 |
| Indiana | 75-1 | 40-1 |
| Kansas | 5-1 | 13-10 |
| Kentucky | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| Niagara | 1000-1 | |
| Pittsburgh | 40-1 | 8-1 |
| Southern Ill. | 50-1 | 12-1 |
| UCLA | 10-1 | 3-2 |
| VCU | 500-1 | 100-1 |
| Villanova | 100-1 | 40-1 |
| VA Tech | 50-1 | 15-1 |
| Weber St | 1000-1 | |
| Wright St | 1000-1 | 300-1 |
| MIDWEST | ||
| Arizona | 50-1 | 30-1 |
| Butler | 40-1 | 30-1 |
| Davidson | 300-1 | |
| Florida | 4-1 | 4-5 |
| Georgia Tech | 75-1 | 25-1 |
| Jackson State | 1000-1 | |
| Maryland | 30-1 | 6-1 |
| Miami-OH | 300-1 | |
| Notre Dame | 100-1 | 20-1 |
| ODU | 500-1 | 100-1 |
| Oregon | 40-1 | 6-1 |
| Purdue | 300-1 | 60-1 |
| Texas A&M CC | 1000-1 | |
| UNLV | 100-1 | 30-1 |
| Winthrop | 500-1 | 100-1 |
| Wisconsin | 15-1 | 7-2 |
| SOUTH | ||
| Albany | 200-1 | |
| BYU | 200-1 | 40-1 |
| Central CT St. | 1000-1 | |
| Creighton | 100-1 | 35-1 |
| Long Beach St. | 500-1 | 200-1 |
| Louisville | 40-1 | 10-1 |
| Memphis | 30-1 | 4-1 |
| Nevada | 75-1 | 35-1 |
| North Texas | 500-1 | |
| Ohio State | 7-1 | 6-5 |
| Penn | 500-1 | |
| Stanford | 200-1 | 50-1 |
| Tennessee | 100-1 | 20-1 |
| Texas A&M | 12-1 | 11-5 |
| Virginia | 75-1 | 18-1 |
| Xavier | 100-1 | 40-1 |
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