Ellsbury, Red Sox blast Royals
Baseball Betting Lines
08/07/2008 -
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jacoby Ellsbury went 3-for-4 with a three-
run homer and scored twice as the Boston Red Sox routed the Kansas City Royals, 8-2, in the rubber match of a three-game set.
Tim Wakefield (7-8) pitched six strong innings, holding the Royals to two runs
-- one earned -- on four hits with six strikeouts and no walks to get the
win. J.D. Drew went 2-for-4, drove in two and scored, and Jason Bay continued
to play well for his new club, going 2-for-5 and scoring twice for Boston,
which has won five of six and kept pace with the Rays in the AL East.
Tampa and the New York Yankees both also won on Wednesday. The Rays lead the
Red Sox by three games, while the Yankees trail Boston by 3 1/2 games.
The news was not all good for Boston, however, as first baseman Kevin Youkilis
exited in the first inning after he was hit by a pitch on his right hand. The
injury is listed as a right hand contusion, and X-rays were negative.
Luke Hochevar (6-10) was roughed up for five runs on seven hits in 5 2/3
innings to take the loss for Kansas City. Ross Gload went 2-for-4 and drove in
the only two runs for the Royals, who had won three straight and seven of
eight before dropping the final two of this series.
"I've got to stay aggressive in the strike zone and continue to pound it,"
Hochevar said. "I have to get better at that. That's where I'm getting hurt.
That's where it's costing us games."
The game started badly for the Red Sox, as Youkilis took a pitch to his right
hand, and then Mike Lowell lined into a double play as Boston came up empty-
handed despite loading the bases with one out in the first. Sean Casey
replaced Youkilis in the field in the home half of the inning.
The game was scoreless until the Red Sox plated three runs in the fifth. Alex
Cora singled and Drew walked before Jed Lowrie doubled to center, plating both
runners. David Ortiz then grounded a single up the middle, scoring Lowrie for
a 3-0 Red Sox lead.
Gload answered for Kansas City, though, singling in two runs in the home half
of the inning. Drew responded with a two-run single of his own, however, with
two outs in the sixth, to push Boston ahead 5-2.
Ellsbury then capped the rout with his sixth homer of the season. The fly ball
cleared the fence in center, and gave the Red Sox a six-run edge.
"I'll take a great catch any day, but a three-run homer to center, I'll take
that too," Ellsbury said. "The home run was pretty neat."
Game Notes
The Red Sox have won nine of the last 12 meetings between the teams...Billy
Butler went 3-for-4 and scored for Kansas City...Attendance was 24,294.
<< Fish, Safin advance in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fifth-seeded Russian Marat Safin and
sixth-seeded American Mardy Fish advanced, while second-seeded Spaniard
Fernando Verdasco fell in Wednesday's second-round action at the $475,000
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<< Youkilis leaves game with injured hand
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Red Sox first baseman Kevin
Youkilis left in the first inning of Wednesday's game against the Kansas City
Royals with a right hand injury after being hit by a pitch.
The injury is listed a
<< Rockies reinstate Francis from DL
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activated from the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday.
The 27-year-old lefty had been sidelined for over a month with inflammation in
his left shoulder. He w
<< Rockies/Nationals game postponed
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Wednesday's game between the Colorado Rockies
and Washington Nationals was postponed because of rain.
The teams will play a doubleheader on Thursday, with the first game scheduled
for 3:05 p.m. (et). The se
<< Report: Favre traded to Jets
Green Bay, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Green Bay Packers reportedly traded
quarterback Brett Favre to the New York Jets late Wednesday night.
The Green Bay Press-Gazette cited an NFL source as confirmation for the trade,
and it said
Favre traded to Jets >>
Green Bay, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Green Bay Packers reached an
agreement to trade quarterback Brett Favre to the New York Jets late
Wednesday night.
Though the Packers did not release terms of the trade, the Gree
Celtics to begin title defense against James, Cavaliers >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics will begin their title
defense on Tuesday, October 28 at home against LeBron James and the
Cleveland Cavaliers.
The contest is the first of two featured on the NBA's 2008-09
Self inks 10-year deal with Kansas >>
Lawrence, KS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kansas has rewarded men's basketball coach
Bill Self with a new 10-year contract worth $3 million per season.
Self guided the Jayhawks to the national championship this past spring and has
a record of 142-
Yankees place Chamberlain on DL >>
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees placed star pitcher
Joba Chamberlain on the 15-day disabled list with a stiff right shoulder
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Veteran D Hill headed to Switzerland >>
St. Paul, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former NHL defenseman Sean Hill signed a one-
year contract to play for Biel of the EHC Swiss hockey league on Thursday.
Hill played in 35 games for the Minnesota Wild last season, scoring twice with
seven as
Pacific-10 Conference odds
Teams that should be in: Stanford
 Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State
 It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do:
Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.
Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.
Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.
Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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