Rangers get just enough offense to top Rays

Baseball Betting Lines

07/03/2009 - Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hank Blalock belted a two-run homer and Tommy Hunter pitched 5 1/3 strong innings to collect his first win in the majors on his 23rd birthday, as the Texas Rangers downed the Tampa Bay Rays, 3-1, in the opener of a three-game series at Rangers Ballpark.

Hunter (1-1) gave up one run on three hits with five strikeouts and three walks to collect his first win in his sixth start in the big leagues. The University of Alabama product is taking the place of Matt Harrison, who was put on the disabled list last week with biceps inflammation, in the Texas rotation. Frank Francisco retired the side in order in the ninth to pick up his 13th save.

Marlon Byrd had an RBI double for the Rangers, who has won three in a row after a three-game skid. Texas had just five hits in the contest.

Scott Kazmir (4-5) allowed three runs -- one earned -- on five hits with six strikeouts in a five-inning start for Tampa Bay, which has lost two straight after a seven-game winning streak.

B.J. Upton stroked an RBI single for the Rays, who had just three hits in the game.

The Rangers used a two-run home run from Blalock in the fourth to break a scoreless tie. Andruw Jones singled, advanced to second on Jason Bartlett's throwing error, and scored on Blalock's blast over the wall in right-center field.

Upton stroked an RBI single in the top of the fifth to cut the deficit in half. Pat Burrell singled and Dioner Navarro walked to put men on first and second with two outs. Upton then knocked in Burrell with a hit to left field.

Texas responded with a run in the home half of the inning to regain a two-run margin. Ian Kinsler grounded into a fielder's choice, but advanced to second on Ben Zobrist's throwing error. After Michael Young went down swinging, Byrd stroked an RBI double to left.

The Rangers put men on the corners with one out in the sixth, but Chris Davis and Elvis Andrus both went down swinging to end the threat.

The Rays couldn't score any runs despite putting a man on first in the sixth, seventh, and eighth frames.

Game Notes

Friday's clash was the first meeting of the season between these teams. The Rays won six of nine matchups with Texas a year ago, including four of six tilts held in Arlington...Tampa Bay is 15-6 in its last 21 games despite the loss.

Intrecasino Baseball Betting News

<< Rockies blank Diamondbacks
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jorge De La Rosa blanked the Diamondbacks through eight innings, and Joel Peralta and Huston Street finished off Colorado's 5-0 shutout of its NL West rival. De La Rosa (5-7) won his third straig

<< Moss and Vazquez lead Pirates over Marlins
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brandon Moss and Ramon Vazquez hit early home runs, and the Pittsburgh Pirates shut down Hanley Ramirez, on the way to a 7-4 win over the Florida Marlins in the opener of a three-game series. Charlie Morton

<< Mariners squeak past Red Sox in 11
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rob Johnson went 3-for-5 with three doubles, including a two-run double in the top of the 11th, to lift the Seattle Mariners past the AL East-leading Boston Red Sox, 7-6, in the opener of a three-g

<< Hoffpauir's first career hit, Pujols' slam lifts Cards over Reds
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jarrett Hoffpauir came through in a big way in his major league debut, hitting the go-ahead two-run single in the ninth inning, lifting St. Louis to a 7-4 win over Cincinnati, in the opener of a three-g

<< White Sox stay hot, upend Greinke's Royals
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Danks was dominant in 7 1/3 shutout innings, as the red-hot Chicago White Sox extended their season-best winning streak to seven games with a 5-0 blanking of the Kansas City Royals. Danks (7-6) h

Bowyer wins crash-filled Nationwide race at Daytona >>
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Clint Bowyer held off Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards in a green-white-checkered finish to win Friday's Subway Jalapeno 250 and record his first victory at Daytona International Speedway. Bowyer, the 2008

Late miscue forces 'Quakes to share points with RSL >>
Sandy, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Earthquakes and Real Salt Lake battled to a 1-1 draw in Major League Soccer action at Rio Tinto Stadium on Friday night. Arturo Alvarez scored the game's first goal for San Jose before a Chr

Report: NHL to investigate Blackhawks' qualifying offers >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks are reportedly under investigation by the NHL for failing to tender qualifying offers to several restricted free agents by the league's set deadline. According to TSN Canada, th

Kings acquire F Smyth in multi-player deal >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings boosted their offense on Friday, acquiring All-Star forward Ryan Smyth from the Colorado Avalanche in a three-player deal. Smyth, 33, tied for the Avalanche lead in points last seas

Sadowski, Giants' offense destroy Astros >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Sadowski got plenty of run support while throwing seven scoreless innings, as the Giants erupted offensively in a 13-0 whipping of the Astros. Sadowski (2-0), who made his major league debut Sunda

SPORTS BETTING: NFL Football Sportsbook Betting

NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.


That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.

A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."

It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.

The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.

So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."

Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't. Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.

Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.

Seriously.

The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.

The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.

Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."

The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.

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