Angels continue home series with Tigers

Baseball Betting Lines

04/22/2009 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will try to win back-to- back games for the first time this season, as they resume a three-game series tonight with the Detroit Tigers at Angel Stadium.

Having won back-to-back American League West titles, the Angels are off to a 5-8 start. They snapped a three-game slide in Tuesday's opener by posting a 4-3 victory.

Gary Matthews Jr. doubled in the winning run in the eighth inning, Torii Hunter clubbed a solo homer and Erick Aybar also drove in a run for the Angels. Bobby Abreu had two hits and scored a run in the victory.

Jered Weaver tossed seven solid innings for the Halos, allowing three runs on seven hits and recording six strikeouts, but came away with a no-decision. Jose Arredondo (1-0) got the win after hurling a scoreless eighth. Brian Fuentes overcame some wildness in the ninth to notch his third save.

Curtis Granderson belted two homers and Carlos Guillen collected three hits for the Tigers, who lost for just the third time in their last nine outings.

Brandon Lyon (1-2) was saddled with the loss after giving up a run on two hits in two innings of work. Armando Galarraga started for Detroit and allowed three runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and three walks over five full frames.

The Tigers turn to Justin Verlander tonight in hopes that the 2006 AL Rookie of the Year can get on track.

The right-hander is 0-2 on the season with a 7.88 earned run average over three starts and lost his last start on Friday versus Seattle. He allowed six runs (5 earned) on eight hits over 7 1/3 innings, though he did strike out eight batters for a second straight start.

Verlander, who has dropped six of his last seven decisions dating back to last season, is 0-2 with a 4.34 ERA in three career starts versus the Angels, who counter with Joe Saunders tonight.

An All-Star last season, Saunders is 2-1 with a 2.18 ERA so far in 2009. The southpaw dropped a decision to Boston on April 11, but bounced back with seven innings of one-run ball in batting Seattle on Thursday. Saunders held the Mariners to three hits and a walk while fanning three.

The 27-year-old is 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA in four career starts versus the Tigers.

The Angels were 6-3 versus Detroit last year and are 17-9 in the series over the last three-plus seasons.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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