Brewers edge Phils

Baseball Betting Lines

04/22/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - J.J. Hardy went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, as the Milwaukee Brewers hung on to beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 3-1, in the middle installment of a three-game set at Citizens Bank Park.

Mike Cameron went 1-for-4 with a two-run double for the Brewers, who had lost three of their previous four outings. Corey Hart went 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Braden Looper (2-0) allowed five hits in a scoreless six-inning start to collect the win for Milwaukee. He also walked two in his third start of the season. Todd Coffey gave up a solo shot in the ninth, but was able to get out of a jam to pick up his second save of the year.

"Looper did a good job. Usually we hit him pretty good, but we couldn't muster any runs," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said.

Jayson Werth went 2-for-4 and had the lone run of the game for Philadelphia with a solo homer.

Joe Blanton (0-2) gave up three runs on eight hits with five strikeouts to take the loss for the Phillies, who won 11-4 in the opener of the series on Tuesday. Blanton dropped his ERA to 7.31.

Trailing 3-0, Philadelphia tried to come back in the ninth. Coffey started the frame by getting Ryan Howard to go down swinging, but allowed Werth to hit a solo homer over the center-field wall. Raul Ibanez followed with a single to left and was thrown out at second when Pedro Feliz grounded into a force out. Pinch-hitter Matt Stairs set up a first and third with two outs by stroking a single to right field. Coffey got pinch-hitter Chris Coste to go down swinging to seal the victory.

The first run of the game didn't come until the fifth when Hardy belted a homer for Milwaukee. After Cameron grounded out to begin the frame, Hardy drove a 3-2 changeup from Blanton over the wall in left. A Jason Kendall single was sandwiched between fly outs from Craig Counsell and Looper to end the inning.

The Brewers added two runs in the sixth to extend their lead to 3-0. Hart singled and Ryan Braun walked with one gone. Blanton got Prince Fielder to fly out, but allowed Cameron to stroke a two-run double down the left-field line. Hardy went down looking to end the inning.

Looper ran into a bit of trouble in the home half of the sixth, but was able to work his way out of the jam. After retiring the first two batters, Looper walked Howard and gave up an infield single to Werth. Ibanez lined out to right fielder Hart to end the frame, though.

Mark DiFelice and Carlos Villanueva retired the Phillies in order in the seventh and eighth inning, respectively.

Game Notes

Ibanez went 1-for-4 to improve his hitting streak to nine games...The last time Blanton faced the Brewers, he pitched the Phillies into the NLCS...Philadelphia won five of six versus Milwaukee last year, including a four-game sweep at home from September 11-14 that caused the Brewers to stumble down the finish and heading into the playoffs.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.

Chiefs' Treen Green out for Sunday's game

How long Trent Green will remain sidelined is unknown. Coach Herm Edwards said Monday he will miss a second straight start Sunday when the Chiefs host the San Francisco 49ers.

A two-time Pro Bowler, Green was going into a feet-first hook slide when he was knocked unconscious by a thunderous, head-snapping hit from Cincinnati's Robert Geathers.

Oddsmakers at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com currently have the Chiefs listed as 7-point favorites versus the 49ers.

The 49ers got beat by Philadelphia 38-24 as a 6.5-point underdog last week. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total (42.5).

Alex Smith completed 27-of-46 passes for 293 yards with a touchdown. Michael Robinson rushed for 29 yards and a pair of touchdowns on five carries.

The Chiefs lost 9-6 to Denver last week as an 11-point underdog. The combined score was well UNDER the posted over/under total (38).

Larry Johnson rushed for 126 yards on 27 carries. Damon Huard completed 17-of-23 passes for 133 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

To visit this online sports book got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.