Westbrook gets first win in two years as Tribe beat KC

Baseball Betting Lines

05/11/2010 - Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jake Westbrook posted his first victory since April 2008 with six solid frames, as Cleveland blitzed reeling Kansas City, 8-2, at Kauffman Stadium.

Westbrook (1-2), who missed most of the last two years recovering from Tommy John surgery, yielded just one run on five hits with two strikeouts and two walks.

Russell Branyan hit two home runs with three hits and three runs batted in and Austin Kearns scored three times and drove in a run for the Indians, who have won two straight after five straight loses.

Brian Bannister (1-3) gave up four runs on six hits with six strikeouts and three walks over six innings to take the loss. Billy Butler drove in both Royals runs in defeat. Kansas City has lost six games in a row.

Wwwpassthison Baseball Betting News

<< Mets rally to clip Nats behind six-run eighth
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Carter's first hit as a Met was a big one, driving in the go-ahead run during a six-run eighth, as New York rallied to down Washington, 8-6, in the middle contest of a three-game set. Carter, acquire

<< White Sox use five-run fifth to beat Twins
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alexei Ramirez and A.J. Pierzynski both stroked two-run doubles in a five-run fifth inning, as the Chicago White Sox defeated Minnesota, 5-2, in the opener of a brief two-game series at Target Field.

<< Dice-K strong as Red Sox stay hot in Beantown
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Daisuke Matsuzaka threw seven strong innings as the Boston Red Sox downed the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-1, in the second of a three-game set at Fenway Park. Matsuzaka (2-1) gave up just one run on three hits w

<< Cueto dominates Pirates in Reds' fourth straight win
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Johnny Cueto was utterly dominant during a one-hit, complete game in Cincinnati's 9-0 blanking of Pittsburgh in the second of three games from PNC Park. Cueto (2-1) struck out eight with no walks

<< Walsh named new Centenary coach
Shreveport, LA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Centenary has named Adam Walsh its next men's head basketball coach. Walsh takes over for Greg Gary who resigned last week after two seasons at the helm. Walsh had been an assistant for the Gents the l

Celtics crush Cavs to take series lead >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ray Allen went 6-of-9 from three-point range en route to 25 points, and the Boston Celtics used a balanced scoring attack and a strong defensive effort to rout the Cleveland Cavaliers, 120-88, in Game 5 of th

Astros use late rally to down Cardinals >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hunter Pence homered and finished with two runs scored, as the Houston Astros downed the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-3, in the opener of a three-game series at Busch Stadium. Lance Berkman also homered, while

Glaus, Hinske lead Atlanta to rout of Brewers >>
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Troy Glaus and Eric Hinske each drove in three runs as Atlanta clobbered Milwaukee, 11-3, in the second of a three-game series. Brian McCann and Jason Heyward each had two hits, scored three times and dr

Angels RHP Stokes lands on DL >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Angels have placed reliever Brian Stokes on the 15-day disabled list with right shoulder fatigue and recalled pitcher Bobby Cassevah from Triple-A Salt Lake. Stokes has pitched to a 7.31 earned run av

Blackhawks thump Canucks to reach conference finals >>
Vancouver, BC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Troy Brouwer opened the scoring two minutes into the second period and four other Chicago forwards scored throughout the contest, as the Blackhawks used a balanced offensive attack to advance to the Western

How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.

While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.

For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.

1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.

2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of online football betting possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.

How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.

Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.

Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.

How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).

Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.

Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on college football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.