Davis, Tejada and Pagan help Mets crush Cubs
Baseball Betting Lines
09/05/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ike Davis finished a triple shy of the cycle, drove in three runs, and scored three runs, as the New York Mets dominated the Chicago Cubs, 18-5, at Wrigley Field.
Ruben Tejada drove in five runs for the Mets, who avoided being swept by the Cubs in a three-game series for the first time since April 23-25, 2004. Angel Pagan had three RBI for New York, which had 21 hits.
Jon Niese (9-7) went six-plus innings in the start, allowing five runs on eight hits to snap a two-start skid. The left-hander also struck out four and walked three.
Aramis Ramirez hit a two-run homer and knocked in a total of three runs for Chicago, which saw a three-game win streak come to an end. Geovany Soto also homered.
Ryan Dempster (12-10) got rocked in 4 2/3 frames, giving up seven runs -- three earned -- on nine hits to suffer his second straight loss. He also fanned five batters and walked four.
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gordon Beckham and Juan Pierre drew the go-ahead and insurance bases-loaded RBI walks as the Chicago White Sox staged a four- run ninth-inning rally to take a 7-5 decision over the Boston Red Sox in the finale
<< Bills sign TE Martin
Orchard Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Bills signed tight end David
Martin on Sunday.
Martin, an eight-year veteran, has appeared in 101 games with Miami and Green
Bay. He has totaled 152 catches for 1,519 yards and 14 touchdowns
<< Blue Jays bomb their way past Yankees
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vernon Wells and Aaron Hill both knocked in three
runs to help the Toronto Blue Jays beat New York, 7-3, and salvage the
finale of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium.
Wells hit a two-run homer in th
<< O's hold on to edge Rays
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Corey Patterson homered and drove in three
runs and Nick Markakis went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs batted in to lead
Baltimore to an 8-7 win over Tampa Bay in a back and forth affair to close a
three-g
<< Gordon's homer lifts Royals past Tigers
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Gordon hit a go-ahead home run leading
off the sixth inning, and the Kansas City Royals posted a 2-1 victory over
Detroit to salvage the finale of a three-game series at Kauffman Stadium.
The blas
Norton, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Australia's Jason Day fired a five-under 66 on Sunday to take a one-shot lead over Brandt Snedeker after the third round of the Deutsche Bank Championship. Chasing his second win of the season, and looking to ma
Orioles Tillman makes start after recall >>
Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles recalled pitcher Chris
Tillman from Triple-A Norfolk to start Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay
Rays.
The right-hander went 5 1/3 innings and was charged with three runs on si
Dolphins place CB Allen on injured reserve >>
DAVIE (AP) - Miami Dolphins cornerback Will Allen was placed on injured reserve Sunday, ending any hope the 10th-year player had of returning from mid-August knee surgery in a move that removes the most seasoned player from a young secondary.Coach T
Texans release veteran LB Clark >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Texans released veteran linebacker
Danny Clark on Sunday.
He had signed with the team as a free agent in May.
Clark spent the 2007 season with the Texans and recorded 51 tackles and one
inter
Nadal advances to fourth round at U.S. Open >>
Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top seed Rafael Nadal was an easy
third-round winner Sunday at the U.S. Open.
The Spaniard took the next step in his pursuit of a career Grand Slam,
handling Gilles Simon of France 6-4, 6-
Super Bowl XLIV Odds
Super Bowl XLIII isn't even a week old yet and oddsmakers have already released Super Bowl XLIV odds.
Despite the Pittsburgh Steelers winning Super Bowl 43, the New England Patriots are 8/1 favorites to win Super Bowl 44.
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
With their 27-23 victory over the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII, the Steelers became the latest NFL champion. But believe it or not, oddsmakers from online sports book MySportsbook.com don't have the Steelers the favorites to win Super Bowl XLIV next season.
That honor belongs to the New England Patriots, who are 8/1 favorites to win despite not even qualify for the postseason in 2008. The Pats also have a major decision to make regarding what to do with Matt Cassel, who played well in Tom Brady's (knee surgery) absence last year but is also a free agent this offseason.
Ironically, the Steelers aren't even oddsmakers second choice to win Super Bowl 44, as the Dallas Cowboys are listed right behind the Patriots at 9/1 despite not making the playoffs themselves. Clearly oddsmakers think the public will hop back on the Cowboys' bandwagon considering the immense talent they have and the opening of a brand new stadium.
After Dallas, then comes Pittsburgh at 10/1, but they share those odds with the New York Giants, who won Super Bowl XLII. The Indianapolis Colts and San Diego Chargers round out the top six teams at 12/1, while the Baltimore Ravens (14/1), Tennessee Titans (16/1), Carolina Panthers (18/1) and Philadelphia Eagles (18/1) complete the top 10.
The NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals got no love from oddsmakers as they were established as a 30/1 long shot to win next year's Super Bowl. They share those same odds with the Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – two teams that didn't even qualify for the postseason. Other long shots are the Kansas City Chiefs (100/1), Detroit Lions (100/1), St. Louis Rams (75/1) and Oakland Raiders (75/1).
To see a complete list of all the team's odds to win Super Bowl XLIV, check below.
NFL TEAM FUTURE ODDS TO WIN SUPER BOWL XLIV
New England Patriots 8/1
Dallas Cowboys 9/1
New York Giants 10/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 10/1
Indianapolis Colts 12/1
San Diego Chargers 12/1
Baltimore Ravens 14/1
Tennessee Titans 16/1
Carolina Panthers 18/1
Philadelphia Eagles 18/1
New Orleans Saints 20/1
Atlanta Falcons 25/1
Denver Broncos 25/1
Green Bay Packers 25/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 25/1
Minnesota Vikings 25/1
New York Jets 25/1
Arizona Cardinals 30/1
Chicago BearS 30/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30/1
Buffalo Bills 35/1
Houston TexaNS 35/1
Miami Dolphins 35/1
Washington Redskins 35/1
Seattle SeahawkS 50/1
Cleveland Browns 55/1
Cincinnati Bengals 60/1
San Francisco 49ers 60/1
Oakland Raiders 75/1
St. Louis Rams 75/1
Detroit Lions 100/1
Kansas City Chiefs 100/1
Odds as of: 2/2/09
Bet Super Bowl XLIV Future Odds
To visit this online sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.
FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million
In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.
And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.
Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.
So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.
Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)
The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.
As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.
The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.
In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.
Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.
And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.
So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.
There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.
So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.
And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.
There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)
Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.
Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.
Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.
So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.
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