Gordon long ball in ninth leads Royals over Orioles

Baseball Betting Lines

07/30/2010 - Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Gordon hit a game-winning three-run homer with two outs in the ninth, and the Kansas City Royals put together a fierce rally to stun the Baltimore Orioles, 7-5, in the second of four games at Kauffman Stadium.

Alfredo Simon (2-2) came on to protect Baltimore's one-run lead in the ninth, but couldn't convert the save opportunity.

The first two Kansas City batters were quickly retired, but Rick Ankiel kept the game alive with a walk. Wilson Betemit followed with a single through the infield's right side to put runners on the corners, and Gordon ended the game by belting a Simon offering well over the wall in right field.

The homer made a winner of Blake Wood (1-2), who pitched a scoreless inning of relief.

It was Gordon's first career game-ending home run. The once highly touted third baseman was playing in just his seventh game since being recalled earlier this month. He was converted to an outfielder in the minor leagues and hit just his second home run of the season in 19 games.

Betemit finished with three hits and two RBI, while Ankiel reached base three times, drove in a run and scored twice, as the Royals snapped a five-game losing streak.

Ty Wigginton had three hits and drove in two for the Orioles, who have lost six of seven. Nick Markakis added two hits and three runs scored in defeat.

The Royals grabbed the early lead, scoring three runs in the first with two away.

With runners on second and third following a Jose Guillen fly out, Ankiel plated one with a double, and Betemit brought in two more with a base hit to right.

The Orioles managed to tie the game with single runs in three separate innings.

Felix Pie's sacrifice fly in the second got Baltimore on the board, and Markakis singled with two down in the third and scored on Wigginton's double for a one-run game.

In the sixth, Markakis led off with a walk, moved to third on Wigginton's single and scored on Luke Scott's sacrifice fly for a 3-3 score.

Yuniesky Betancourt led off the home half of the inning against Jason Berken and singled to right. Mitch Maier stepped up and doubled in the runner for a 4-3 KC lead, although the hosts couldn't push Maier across to increase the advantage.

The Orioles went ahead with two runs in the eighth.

With Kyle Farnsworth on the mound, Markakis led off with a single and quickly came around to score on Wigginton's double. Luke Scott followed with another base hit to send Wigginton to third, and Wigginton scored on the next play when Betemit committed a fielding error.

Game Notes

Home plate umpire and crew chief Wally Bell exited the game in the sixth inning with heat exhaustion and dehydration. He was replaced behind the plate by second base umpire Todd Tichenor...The Orioles went 1- for-10 with runners in scoring position and are 2-for-35 in such situations in the last five games...The season series is tied, 2-2.

Winamilliondoolers Baseball Betting News

<< Prado leaves Friday's game
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves second baseman Martin Prado left Friday's game against Cincinnati with an undisclosed injury. Prado slid somewhat awkwardly headfirst into home plate on Jayson Heyward's game-winning two-

<< Twins remain hot, sink Mariners
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jim Thome and Alexi Casilla both clubbed a two-run homer, as the streaking Minnesota Twins beat Seattle, 5-3, in the opener of a three-game series at Target Field. J.J. Hardy had two hits and score

<< Peralta homers twice in Tigers debut; Detroit tops Boston
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jhonny Peralta hit a pair of homers and drove in three in his Tigers debut, as Detroit held on against Boston's furious ninth- inning rally for a 6-5 decision in the first of three between the clubs at Fenway

<< Harrell wins MLB debut as White Sox extend home win streak
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gordon Beckham had two hits and drove in two runs to support six solid innings from Lucas Harrell in his major league debut as Chicago downed Oakland, 6-1, in the opener of a three-game set. Harrell (1-0),

<< Atlanta's Heyward comes through in extras in Cincy
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jayson Heyward delivered the game-winning two-run double in the 10th inning as Atlanta upended Cincinnati, 6-4, in the first of a three-game set. Brian McCann homered and Chipper Jones added two hits,

Record-breaking inning propels Rockies to rout of Cubs >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carlos Gonzalez went 4-for-6 with a home run, three runs scored and two RBI, as Colorado scored 12 times with two outs in a franchise record-breaking eighth inning to pull away from Chicago, 17-2, in the ope

Edmonton gets by BC for first win of season >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ricky Ray threw for 360 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and the Edmonton Eskimos outlasted the British Columbia Lions, 28-25, at Commonwealth Stadium in Alberta. Ray completed 25-of-34 pass attempts

Langer up two at Senior Open >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bernhard Langer continued his hot play Friday as he carded a two-under 68 to grab a two-stroke lead after the second round of the U.S. Senior Open. Langer, who is coming off a win last week at the S

Murray into semis in LA >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andy Murray took a first-set tiebreaker against Alejandro Falla of Colombia and took control from there for a straight victory in the quarterfinals at the $700,000 Farmers Classic tennis event. The top

Marlins beat Padres to begin weekend series >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gaby Sanchez and Cody Ross homered to lead the Florida Marlins past the San Diego Padres, 4-2, in the opener of a three- game series. Hanley Ramirez and Logan Morrison each drove in a run for the Marl

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.