AL Central hopefuls resume set in Motown

Baseball Betting Lines

07/12/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - American League Central foes continue to go after each other this afternoon at Comerica Park as the Detroit Tigers host the Minnesota Twins in the third test of a four-game set heading into the All-Star break.

The Twins are making a strong push to catch up to the division-leading Chicago White Sox, now just 1 1/2 games out of first place thanks to back-to-back wins over the Tigers in the first two games of this series.

Last night Minnesota used a strong pitching effort by Glen Perkins to get past the Tigers, 3-2. The starter allowed just two runs on six hits and a pair of walks over 6 2/3 innings. After that the bullpen took over, with Joe Nathan eventually closing the door with a perfect ninth for his 26th save of the campaign.

Alexi Casilla finished with three hits and a run scored for the visitors, while Nick Punto played shortstop and came up with two runs knocked in.

On the other side of the ledger Matt Joyce recorded a pair of doubles and a run scored, but failed to plate anyone himself, leaving that up to Placido Polanco and Carlos Guillen, both of whom had an RBI in the losing effort.

Armando Galarraga had some trouble with his control for the Tigers, permitting four walks and six hits to turn into two runs over 5 2/3 innings as he absorbed the loss.

Already 1-0 versus the Tigers this season in three appearances, Scott Baker tries to earn his fourth career win overall against Detroit as he takes the mound for the Twins this afternoon.

Baker, who is 3-3 in his career against the Tigers and 22-22 overall during his four-year career, threw seven shutout innings versus Boston on Monday, but failed to factor into the 1-0 setback at Fenway.

The right-hander allowed just five hits and issued a pair of walks, while striking out seven in the outing. Baker has walked no more than two in any of his appearances this season, recording a mere 14 bases-on-balls in 76 innings, compared to 64 strikeouts along the way.

As for the Tigers, they have Nate Robertson preparing to counter on the hill today. The lefty, who is 8-9 in his career versus Minnesota, is already 1-1 against the club this year, showing a lofty 7.02 ERA over the course of three games.

Robertson, who suffered through back-to-back games of 11 hits allowed, straightened himself out on Sunday when he went the distance against Seattle in a 2-1 road win. In the contest the seven-year veteran permitted just four hits, walked a pair and struck out only one in his first complete game of the campaign.

While it still sounds rather high, Robertson's ERA dropped to a season-low 5.19.

Not only has Punto been a valuable commodity in the field, he's done the trick at the plate as well with 11 hits in his last 26 at-bats, leading to five RBI in the last seven games. Not to be overlooked is Justin Morneau who is hitting .462 over the last week with a .808 slugging percentage as well.

Take away his RBI from Friday and Polanco has been nearly invisible the last six games for the Tigers, hitting a mere .167 in 24 trips to the plate. A candidate for Player of the Week in the AL, Miguel Cabrera has certainly been holding up his end of the bargain with 11 hits in the last 27 at-bats, four of those going for home runs, which have led to seven of the team's 29 RBI.

Thanks to yesterday's win, the Twins have taken nine of the 13 meetings with Detroit so far in 2008.

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Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

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