A-Rod held out of Saturday's lineup, likely to miss extended time

Baseball Betting Lines

08/21/2010 - Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Rodriguez is not in the Yankees' starting lineup for Saturday's game versus Seattle and will likely be out at least through the weekend while battling a lingering calf strain.

Rodriguez returned to New York's lineup on Friday against the Mariners after a three-game absence and was pulled for a pinch-hitter after just one at-bat with tightness in the calf area.

Manager Joe Girardi told the New York Post Saturday that his slugger is not expected to play the remainder of the weekend set with Seattle and could sit for most if not all of a three-game series in Toronto to follow. He added that a DL stint remains unlikely.

Rodriguez has swatted 21 home runs and knocked in 97 runs this year while holding a .265 average through 112 games. His 97 RBI stands second in the majors entering Saturday's slate of games.

Eduardo Nunez is getting his first-ever starting nod at third base Saturday in Rodriguez's stead.

Slost Baseball Betting News


<< Hanson moves four clear at Czech Open
Celadna, Czech Republic (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Peter Hanson caught fire on the back nine Saturday en route to a five-under 67, which gave him a four-stroke lead after three rounds of the Czech Open. Hanson completed 54 holes at 12-under-par 204.

<< Alabama tops preseason AP football poll
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide are still at the top of the college football world as the top- ranked team in the preseason Associated Press poll, which was released Saturda

<< White Sox, Royals set to play two in Kansas City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After falling into second place in the American League Central standings with a rough stretch over the past few weeks, the Chicago White Sox hope a series of games against the non-contending Kansas City Royals will enable the

<< Padres seek to get back in win column versus Brewers
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres can restart a win streak and restore their previous bulge in the National League's West Division tonight when they visit the Milwaukee Brewers in the middle game of a three-game series at Miller Park.

<< Marlins continue home series against Astros
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Florida Marlins can continue a recent run of home dominance against the Houston Astros tonight when the two teams meet in game two of their three-game weekend series at Sun Life Stadium. The host Marlins won the opener

Detroit Lions 2010 Season Preview >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - An X marks the spot through the scope of a high-powered military sniper rifle. Four or five wins are what the Detroit Lions should be realistically aiming for in 2010 under second-year head coach Jim Schwartz. The Lions, w

Hamilton hammered by Hearts >>
Hamilton, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hamilton was on the wrong end of a 4-0 scoreline for the second successive weekend, this time losing to Hearts at New Douglas Park on Saturday. Calum Elliot scored the opener and the final goal fo

Bolts' Lecavalier to undergo knee surgery >>
Tampa, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tampa Bay Lightning center Vincent Lecavalier will undergo minor surgery on his left knee on Tuesday. The arthroscopic procedure will be performed by Lightning Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Ira Guttentag at the

Phillies reinstate Howard from DL >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies reinstated first baseman Ryan Howard from the 15-day disabled list on Saturday. Howard suffered a left ankle sprain sliding back into second base in an August 1 extra-inning win o

Walcott helps Arsenal batter Blackpool >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Theo Walcott scored a hat trick as Arsenal rolled to a 6-0 win over Blackpool at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday. The promoted side was coming off of a 4-0 win over Wigan in its first game, but things

What Is the Point Spread?

What are Sports Betting Point Spreads?

In any football or basketball game (the main sports that use point spreads) there are two teams playing against each other.

Those teams, though, are rarely exactly evenly matched – meaning that typically one team has a better chance than the other to win the game. If bettors were allowed to bet on who was simply going to win the game, smart ones would obviously bet on the better team (likely winning more than 50% of the time in the process).

If winning were that easy the Las Vegas and online sportsbooks would stop taking any bets! This is where the point spread comes in: the basic function of the point spread is to balance the likelihood of each team “winning” by adjusting the final score by the point spread. After this adjustment is made you get the Against The Spread result (ATS result for short).

Let’s look at Super Bowl XXXIX, New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles. Most people believed the defending champ Patriots to be the better team – so if betting were simply based upon which team would win the game, an uneven majority of people would have wagered on New England. But, by using the point spread, the bookmakers adjusted the terms of the bet, evening the proposition so about half the people believed the Pats to be the smart bet, while the other half considered Philly to be the smart bet.

How to Read Point Spreads

New England Patriots -7 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The better team, called the Favorite, is expected to win the game and must “give” or “lay” points to the weaker team. The favorite is listed with a minus sign and the number of points they are favored by (e.g., New England -7)

In the case of our example, New England must not only win the game, but they must win by more than 7 points for Pats bettors to have a winning ATS result. An Eagles bettor wins his bet either if:

To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting and World Series odds.