Bruce's three-homer, five-RBI night leads Reds past Cubs

Baseball Betting Lines

08/27/2010 - Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jay Bruce slammed a career-best three home runs and Chris Valaika also homered to back eight innings of one-run ball from Johnny Cueto as Cincinnati crushed Chicago, 7-1, to open a three-game set at Great American Ball Park.

Bruce tied a career-high with five runs batted in during his eighth career multi-homer game while Drew Stubbs added two hits, a run scored, two stolen bases and a walk for the Reds, who have won two straight and 10 of 13 games overall since being swept by the Cardinals in three games two weeks ago.

Cueto (12-4) allowed six hits, did not walk a batter and fanned eight in helping Cincinnati push its lead over St. Louis in the NL Central to 4 1/2 games. Sam LeCure retired the side in order in the ninth to preserve the Reds' 11th win in 14 meetings with Chicago this season.

Tom Gorzelanny (7-8) was saddled with the loss after allowing a season-high six earned runs on seven hits and a pair of walks with only one strikeout in five innings for the Cubs, who had a three-game win streak halted.

Valaika doubled with one out in the first and scored when Joey Votto followed with a base hit to right field.

Bruce, batting leadoff for the first time in almost two years in the absence of Brandon Phillips, blasted a solo shot to right-center with one out in the third to give the home team a 2-0 lead.

The Cubs plated their lone run in the fourth when Xavier Nady singled with two outs and scored when Tyler Colvin followed with a double to right-center.

Bruce belted his second homer of the night, a three-run clout, to right-center with one out in the fifth to extend the Cincinnati lead to 5-1. Valaika then followed with his first big league longball to left.

The lefty-swinging Bruce connected again on a one-out smash in the seventh off Scott Maine to make it a 7-1 contest.

Game Notes

Phillips, who was hit in the right hand in Wednesday's series finale in San Francisco, does not have any broken bones but will be sidelined for an undetermined amount of time...However, earlier on Friday, the Reds did place pitcher Mike Leake on the 15-day disabled list with shoulder fatigue and recalled third baseman Juan Francisco from Triple-A Louisville...Cueto improved to 3-5 in 10 career meetings with the Cubs...Cincinnati is 59-24 when hitting a home run and 46-12 when scoring first...Chicago had a five-game road win streak snapped...Gorzelanny had allowed only seven home runs this year before being roughed up for a trio of long balls on Friday night. He is 0-3 in four starts versus the Reds this season and 3-5 in 10 career turns against them.

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American Idol Betting Season 6 Strategies  

It's that time of year folks.  Betting on American Idol Season 9.  And we have plenty of American Idol Season 6 strategies appearing below.  With the Top 24 finalists revealed, online gambling sites will be offering betting odds on each of them, including MySportsbook.com.

No other “event” has been growing as fast as wagering on American Idol. It has turned into a huge betting event with reasonably high limits and all sorts of profit-making potential for sharp bettors. Last year, MySportsbook.com experienced unprecedented traffic as a result of the American Idol betting craze.

Every week there will be odds to win American Idol, various elimination props and contestant versus contestant match-ups at the MySportsbook.com website.

Whether a fan of America’s top-rated show or watching only because of a wife or girlfriend, here are some of basic strategies to use when betting American Idol.

Odds to Win

There are a few things to consider when looking for the right win bet. First off, remember that this bet is for the long haul. Many people make the mistake of picking the performer who sang the best the previous week. This strategy leads to an underlay situation – betting a price, which is less than what it should be.

All Idol contestants struggle at some point in the competition, so you should always look for value. In last year’s competition alone, two performers who had some of the best performances early in the series were subsequently bet down to low prices - Lisa Tucker and Ace Young. After just a few weeks, Tucker had already been eliminated, while Young quickly became a huge long shot to win America’s largest talent search.

A better strategy is to look for performers who don’t necessarily get the praise from the judges, but show flashes of the talent necessary to go the distance.

Another important thing to remember when betting any contestant to win is the demographic breakdown of the voters, the viewing public and potential future CD purchasers. Unlike sporting events, American Idol is not decided on the field of play – it’s decided by the American public under the guiding influence of the shows producers.

Understand that the great state of Alabama has a mighty edge when it comes to American Idol. 

Therefore, to be successful betting on American Idol, put any personal opinions or prejudices aside and think like the majority of the voting public. Remember that the typical voter is young, female and quite often, Southern.

If a contestant cannot appeal to this demographic, no matter how much talent he or she possesses, they’ll struggle for votes. Looks, demeanor and charisma are extremely important. And it’s no coincidence that every Idol winner so far has hailed from a Southern state.

Elimination Props

Every week MySportsbook.com anticipates offering a prop on who’ll be eliminated from the show each Wednesday night. A suggestion to handicap this is to gauge an overall feel for who’s the least popular contestant left in the competition. Generally the least popular performers have recently appeared in the bottom three and will have been the target of repeated criticism from the judges.

Last year, resources included dialidol.com and votefortheworst.com. Dialidol.com measures the volume of each contestant’s voting line. While by no means a perfect science, it does give a good indication of who is generating votes and who isn’t. Meanwhile, votefortheworst.com is a site that attempts to build support for the worst competitor to keep them in the competition for ‘entertainment’ value. The site has a proven track record of keeping performers around who most feel should have been voted off a long time ago.

Contestant vs. Contestant Match-ups

The best strategy for doing well on match-ups is to assess how close either of the contestants is to being eliminated. If neither is expected to be voted off of the show in the coming weeks, the value is almost always on the underdog. If both are expecting an imminent exit in the near future, the favorite in the match-up might offer value.

Watch for American Idol betting odds on each of the contestants shortly and good luck with these American Idol betting strategies.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.

It's less than a month until the NHL hockey betting season opens at MySportsbook.com and preparations are underway for another battle in the race to hoist Lord Stanley's mug in 2007.

As cup crazy fans prepare to place their bets, one online sportsbook ,MySportsbook.com, is offering hockey betting lines on the 2007/2007 Stanley Cup , who will bring it home this upcoming season.

Despite a poor showing in last season's playoffs and the loss of Steve Yzerman to retirement, the Detroit Red Wings are early favourites at this online sportsbook with wagering odds of 6-1. The Wings will look to offensive powerhouse Pavel Datsyuk and newly appointed captain Nicklas Lidstrom to lead one of the league's most prominent franchises.

Always a threat are the Ottawa Senators, with newly acquired goaltender Martin Gerber from the Stanley Cup champion ,Carolina Hurricanes. The Sens are second best in the rankings at a 7-1 bet, and odds makers at this sportsbook are optimistic that the Ottawa squad will fare better than last season's Eastern Conference semi-final upset to the Buffalo Sabres.

Also worth noting are the defending Stanley Cup champs Carolina Hurricanes, a 10-1 bet to repeat. Behind the Canes are the New Jersey Devils, Calgary Flames, Buffalo Sabres, Philadelphia Flyers, and Anaheim Mighty Ducks all sit at 12-1. In the basement are the Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks, and St. Louis Blues who all have 100-1 odds to win.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your hockey betting needs.