Cards send a message in Cincinnati

Baseball Betting Lines

08/12/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the St. Louis Cardinals manage to hold on and win their second straight National League Central title, they may very well point to Tuesday as being the turning point in their season.

And, they will have Cincinnati second baseman Brandon Phillips to thank for that.

Phillips took an under the radar race and put it on the national stage with these comments to a Reds writer: "I'd play against these guys with one leg. We have to beat these guys. I hate the Cardinals. All they do is b--ch and moan about everything, all of them, they're little b---es, all of 'em.

"I really hate the Cardinals. Compared to the Cardinals, I love the Chicago Cubs. Let me make this clear: I hate the Cardinals."

Of course, his comments came with his Reds two games ahead in the standings and shortly before the two teams engaged in an important three-game set at Great American Ball Park.

St. Louis may not have been aware of Phillips' remarks before the start of Monday night's opener, but rest assured the Cards were well aware of them heading into Tuesday's tilt when a full-fledged brawl with Phillips as the catalyst broke out before a pitch was even thrown.

As if the comments weren't enough motivation for the Cardinals, the brawl seemed to energize Tony La Russa's club, who rolled to an 8-4 win that night, before completing the three-game sweep with a 6-1 win on Wednesday to move one game ahead of the Reds in the division with a little over a month and half to play.

For those keeping score, the Reds were outscored 21-8 in the series and managed a whopping nine hits in 19 2/3 innings off three St. Louis starters.

"It certainly added fuel to our fire, when you've got guys opening their mouth saying stupid stuff," said St. Louis starter Adam Wainwright, who won Wednesday's finale. "But we only use that in a positive way. It's very unprofessional to fire back. Just go out there and win the game on the field, not off the field. That's what we did this series."

Well done Mr. Phillips.

I have to admit I am tired of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry. We needed some bad blood elsewhere in the league. A St. Louis-Cincinnati rivalry is good for baseball, especially since it looks like they are going to be trading places with each other atop the Central standings from here on out.

It's obvious the two managers despise each other. La Russa and Dusty Baker have had run-ins in the past. Tensions within the division is a good thing.

By the way make sure to mark September 4-6 on your calendars as these two teams will meet again for the final time in the regular season in a three-game series at Busch Stadium.

The Reds have not finished above .500 since 2000 and have not played in the postseason since five years before that. There was no need to rattle the Cardinals' cage.

Now is this sweep going to be the death knell to the Reds' postseason hopes?

No not by a long shot. In fact when it is all said and done I think they are going to wind up winning the wild card in the National League. Take a look at the schedules the rest of the way. The loser of the Central battle most certainly has the upper hand, considering the majority of their schedule the rest of the way comes against their own division, featuring the likes of the Houstons, Pittsburghs and Milwaukees of the world. Not to mention games against Arizona and Colorado.

Now, of course, the Cardinals play essentially the same teams down the stretch, so neither team really has an advantage in that regard. Bottom line is both teams are still in pretty good shape to reach the postseason.

To Phillips' credit he stood behind his words and even his teammates were kind of behind him, chalking it up to "Brandon being Brandon". I understand what he was trying to do, but it may have backfired on him, as it appears to have fired up the wrong team.

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As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.

Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.

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Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey betting needs.

MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.