05/08/2008 - Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Rob Mackowiak went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer, and John Lannan tossed six strong innings, as Washington staved off a sweep with an 8-3 win over Houston.
Lannan (3-3) gave up just one run on seven hits and one walk, with three strikeouts for the Nationals, who had lost the first two games of this three- game set.
Ryan Zimmerman collected three hits, and Cristian Guzman scored three times and had a pair of hits for the Nationals, who won five of seven games against the Astros last season.
Brandon Backe (2-4) took the loss after allowing four runs on six hits in six innings, though he had three walks to nine strikeouts. Miguel Tejada, Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee each had a pair of hits for the Astros, who had 10 overall but just one for extra bases - a double from Ty Wigginton.
The Nationals took a commanding lead in the later innings. In the sixth, Guzman and Zimmerman led off with consecutive singles, and Nick Johnson walked to load the bases.
Austin Kearns delivered with a liner to center that plated two runs for a 4-1 edge. However, the Nationals' rally petered out from there, as Ronnie Belliard and Mackowiak flied out, and Wil Nieves grounded out to end the threat.
Still, two frames later, Washington's offense put up three more runs.
Kearns walked on a wild pitch from Oscar Villarreal, which also allowed Zimmerman -- who singled, and advanced to third on an error and ground out -- to sprint home.
Two batters later, Mackowiak homered to left to stake the Nationals to a 7-1 lead.
The Astros got two runs back in the home half of the eighth -- An RBI single from Lee scored Tejada, and a groundout from Wigginton with runners at the corners allowed Berkman to go home.
Guzman scored Washington's final run in the ninth, on the same sequence that Johnson grounded into a double play. Jon Rauch pitched a perfect ninth to close out the contest.
Johnson's double in the first inning plated Guzman to gave Washington, which took a 2-0 lead in the third frame on Willie Harris' solo homer.
Houston got a run back in the fourth on Hunter Pence's RBI single.
Game Notes
The Astros had an eight-game home winning streak snapped...Harris and Mackowiak each hit their first homer of the season...Washington announced Thursday that on Friday the club is expected to place a pair of catchers, Paul Lo Duca (hand) and Johnny Estrada (elbow), on the 15-day disabled list on Friday. The club is also expected to recall catcher Jesus Flores from Triple-A Columbus, and reinstate outfielder Elijah Dukes from the 15-day DL.
<< Cabrera tosses complete game as O's crown Royals
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nick Markakis homered and drove in three
runs, as Baltimore downed Kansas City, 4-1, at Kauffman Stadium.
Baltimore snapped a five-game skid on its 10-game road trip behind the right
arm of Daniel Ca
<< Treanor, Cantu power Fish past Brewers
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Treanor went 2-for-3 with a three-run homer,
and Jorge Cantu finished with a two-run shot, as the Florida Marlins beat
Milwaukee, 7-2, to sweep a three-game series with the Brewers.
Luis Gonzalez went 3
<< Rangers activate Gabbard from DL
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers activated Kason Gabbard
from the 15-day disabled list on Thursday, allowing the left-hander to start
against the Seattle Mariners.
Gabbard was placed on the disabled list on April 24 w
<< USA edges Germany at Worlds
Halifax, Nova Scotia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zach Parise's third-period power-play
goal proved to be the game-winner, as Team USA held on to defeat Germany, 6-4,
in a Group F Qualifying Round game at the 2008 World Hockey Championship.
Parise f
Sexson ejected after charging mound and throwing helmet >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Seattle first baseman Richie Sexson was
ejected in the fourth inning of Thursday's game against the Texas Rangers.
With two outs in the inning, Keith Gabbard came up and in with a fastball that
caused
Smith named head coach at Alcorn State >>
Vicksburg, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alcorn State named Larry Smith it's new
men's basketball coach Thursday.
Smith lettered for four years at Alcorn State and was part of the undefeated
1979-80 team at the school before moving on to an
Ginobili, Parker push Spurs past Hornets in Game 3 >>
San Antonio, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker each poured
in 31 points as San Antonio used a strong second half to beat New Orleans,
110-99, in the pivotal Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal series.
The Sp
Rangers blank M's >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ramon Vazquez finished 4-for-5 and Ian Kinsler
hit a two-run homer, as the Texas Rangers blanked the Seattle Mariners, 5-0,
in the finale of a four-game series from Safeco Field.
Kason Gabbard, activated f
Elite 8 NCAA Tournament Betting at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com
In what should be an outstanding Saturday of March Madness betting action, the top four teams in the South and West Regions square off in what should be extremely close match-ups. Three of the four teams are coming off extremely close games on Thursday evening, only UCLA won semi comfortably over Pitt 64-55.
Ohio State is coming off their second game in a row where in all reality they should have lost. Of course that doesn’t matter now since the name of the game is “survive and advance” but as the tournament continues, they can’t afford to keep getting down to their opponents early. Kansas also avoided a scare by holding off a scrappy Southern Illinois squad. In the third thrilling game of the evening Memphis pulled off the minor upset (+3.5) despite being the higher seed to Texas A&M.
Although the spreads are fairly small for Saturday’s games, MySportsbook.com continue to bet against the underdogs. Despite OSU’s two scares, 86% of the “betting public” feels the Buckeyes (-1.5) have what it takes to make the Final Four. In fact, so much of the early money is on OSU that the line has already moved from -1 to -1.5. In the second game of the doubleheader, Kansas and their high-powered offense are 2 point favorites as they take on UCLA and their effective defense. About 63% of the early money thus far is once again backing the favorites. If those percentages stay that high, don’t be surprised if this line moves as well. If you like Kansas (-2) you might want to jump on it early.
Memphis vs. Ohio State
Both squads were involved in thrillers on Thursday evening and should come out fired up. OSU can ill afford to get behind early like they did versus their previous two opponents (Xavier, Tennessee). Greg Oden needs to stay out of foul trouble; the Buckeyes are a completely different team when he is on the court. Memphis definitely has the athleticism and length to match-up with OSU. Of Memphis’ five leading minute earners, the shortest of the bunch is 6’5”. Each team has a very effective defense; Memphis surrenders 62.3 PPG whereas the Buckeyes give up only 61 PPG. With those type of numbers, it isn’t surprising that Memphis covered the UNDER almost 69% of the time this season. As a favorite, OSU has covered the UNDER almost 66% of the time over the last three seasons. The major concern for Memphis which is magnifies this time of the year is their brutal foul shooting (62%). This season, OSU is 17-11 ATS versus teams with a winning record and 7-2 ATS in all tournament games. Memphis has been an extremely reliable cover in tournament play in recent years with a 23-8 ATS record over the last three seasons.
UCLA vs. Kansas
In the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader, UCLA will play in a role which they are very unfamiliar with that of the underdog. Only twice this season have they been getting points from the handicappers and both times they covered. Over the last three seasons UCLA is a reliable 23-7 ATS in this unfamiliar role. UCLA has not fared well against Big 12 opponents recently going 1-7 ATS since 1997. Giving up only 59.6 PPG, UCLA will definitely look to do what they do best: keep this game as low scoring as possible. Their defense has been especially tough during the tournament. UCLA opponents have been able to muster up only 48.7 PPG while shooting a combined 34.5% from the field. UCLA definitely has a challenge at hand with a Kansas team that is capable of putting points on the board in bunches. As a team, they average 79 PPG and shoot an impressive 49.6% from the field and 39.4% from beyond the arc. During the tournament Kansas has been “lights out” from the field having shot 56.2%.
With Friday -105 juice on Basketball betting, MySportsbook.com is the place to bet on all of the “March Madness” action. Don’t forget to monitor who the public is backing at MySportsbook.com’s “Betting Trends”. By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.
To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards
Sports Betting News: Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting