Tigers hope to reverse fortunes against Tribe

Baseball Betting Lines

06/02/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The slumping Detroit Tigers will try to reverse their recent fortunes when the American League Central's last-place team, the Cleveland Indians, invades Comerica Park tonight for the first of three straight meetings between the divisional foes.

Detroit enters this evening's clash having lost seven of its last nine games and began its current seven-game homestand by dropping three of four bouts with AL West-leading Oakland over the Memorial Day weekend. The Tigers have scored four runs or less in each of those seven defeats.

Producing offense shouldn't be much of a problem against a Cleveland club that ranks last in the AL with a 4.89 earned run average and was battered for 37 runs in its just-completed four-game series with the New York Yankees. The Tribe lost three of those contests and 11 of their last 14 overall.

Cleveland did trail 2-1 after 6 1/2 innings of Monday's game, but New York's Alex Rodriguez socked a game-breaking grand slam off reliever Chris Perez during a six-run bottom of the seventh that paved the way for an 11-2 Yankees' victory.

Indians relievers surrendered eight runs in just 1 2/3 innings of work for the game, spoiling a solid performance out of starter Mitch Talbot. The rookie pitched 6 1/3 innings and was charged with three runs on nine hits while not walking a batter.

"I was happy with the overall results," Talbot told the Indians' official site afterward. "I had to battle without my best stuff."

Jhonny Peralta went 2-for-4 with a solo homer for Cleveland, with Shelley Duncan adding a ninth-inning RBI single in a losing cause.

Detroit is coming off a 4-1 setback to the Athletics on Memorial Day, in which Oakland Trevor Cahill combined with three relievers on a seven-hitter. Austin Jackson knocked in the Tigers' only run with a pinch-hit single in the seventh inning.

The A's jumped out to a quick lead by scoring twice off Justin Verlander (5-4) in the top of the first. The Detroit ace regrouped to hold Oakland to just one more run over the remainder of his seven-inning stint, and struck out eight in the tough-luck loss.

"The first inning was a disaster for us, we gave up a couple runs," said Tigers manager Jim Leyland. "We had chances to get back in it and we didn't."

Detroit will be seeking to bounce back against a Cleveland team it's dominated as of late. The Tigers have taken four of the first five matchups in this year's season series and are 18-4 in their last 22 overall games against the Indians. They've also won 10 of their last 11 versus the Tribe in the Motor City and swept a three-game set from Cleveland at Comerica Park between April 9-11.

Jeremy Bonderman gets the ball for Detroit in the opener and attempts to continue an impressive stretch of strong starts. The right-hander has yielded two runs or less in each of his last four assignments, posting an outstanding 1.38 ERA over that span, and he's thrown at least six innings in every one of those games.

Bonderman picked up his second victory of 2010 by firing six innings of one- run ball to best Oakland on May 20, then followed up by limiting Seattle to one unearned run and five hits through seven frames this past Wednesday. He wound up taking a no-decision, however, after the Mariners scored four times against the Detroit bullpen in the eighth.

The former first-round pick has rebounded strongly after a pair of injury- shortened seasons, having recorded a 3.78 ERA over eight starts and one relief appearance and giving up only two homers in 47 2/3 innings pitched.

Bonderman is just 8-9 with a 5.68 ERA in 23 career encounters (21 starts) with Cleveland, but did beat the Indians in his season debut back on April 9 by permitting one run and just a single hit over the first five innings.

Jake Westbrook takes the mound for Cleveland tonight and makes his 11th start following his comeback from Tommy John surgery, a procedure which caused him to miss all of last season and nearly the entire 2008 campaign. The veteran righty is 2-3 with a 4.78 ERA so far this year, with both of his wins taking place on the road.

Westbrook has struggled in each of his past two starts, although both came in his home park. After allowing four runs in a five-inning no-decision versus Cincinnati on May 21, the sinker specialist was tagged for five runs in seven frames in a loss to the White Sox last Wednesday.

The 32-year-old garnered a no-decision as well in an April 11 showdown at Comerica Park, a game in which he was reached for three runs in 5 2/3 innings and struck out seven Tigers. For his career, Westbrook is 4-8 with a 5.99 ERA in 21 games (18 starts) against Detroit.

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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.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.