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06/07/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Braves cooled off a bit out West at the start of their 11-game road trip. A trip to Arizona to facing the struggling Diamondbacks should be enough to get them rolling again.
National League East-leading Atlanta kicks off a four-game series tonight at Chase Field against Arizona, which hopes it has turned the corner since its horrid 10-game losing streak.
The Braves kicked off their road trip with four games versus the Los Angeles Dodgers and took Thursday's opener to stretch their winning streak to nine games. However, they then lost two of the next three versus Los Angeles, including Sunday's 5-4, 11-inning defeat.
Atlanta's Martin Prado went 3-for-6 with a homer to extend his hitting streak to 11 games, while Brian McCann also went deep for the Braves. Prado is hitting .404 (21-for-52) with seven RBI and 12 runs scored over his run.
Tim Hudson gave up four runs -- three earned -- over seven-plus frames, while Jesse Chavez allowed the winning run in the 11th inning after the Braves, who are still 20-6 since May 10, left 11 men on base.
"We had the lead but couldn't keep it," said Braves manager Bobby Cox. "We had 100 opportunities to win the game, a lot more than they did, but we couldn't get the big hit."
Atlanta owns a two-game edge over second-place Philadelphia in the NL East standings and is likely to be without Chipper Jones for a fifth straight contest tonight due to a right finger injury.
The Braves might not need Jones, considering the way they have played against Arizona as of late. They have won five of their last seven overall meetings with Arizona and six of the last nine played between the teams at Chase Field.
The Diamondbacks notched an 11-1 win at Atlanta on May 15 in the middle set of a three-game set, but the Braves responded with a 13-1 rout the following day to take the series victory.
Dan Haren suffered the loss on that day for Arizona, allowing seven runs -- six earned -- over a season-low 4 1/3 innings. He fell to 3-2 with a 6.44 earned run average lifetime against the Braves and will seek some revenge tonight.
Haren is just 5-4 with a 4.83 ERA this year, but he might have turned a corner last time out. After going 1-3 over his previous four starts with a 7.92 ERA and 10 homers allowed, he pitched eight shutout innings on Tuesday versus the Dodgers, working around seven hits without a walk and seven strikeouts.
"Every pitch I threw was 100 percent effort. I felt good. I'm starting to feel like I did in the past," said Haren after tossing a career-high 126 pitches.
The 29-year-old righty did not factor into the decision versus Los Angeles, a game his club lost 1-0 in extra innings, and he faces a Braves starter tonight in Derek Lowe that has won three straight times.
Lowe, who turned 37 last Tuesday, is 4-1 with a 2.45 ERA over his last five starts since allowing seven runs in a loss to the Phillies on May 7. He got his revenge on Philadelphia Wednesday, limiting the club to a run on six hits over a season-high eight innings while striking out a season-best seven batters.
The right-hander improved to 8-4 with a 4.44 ERA on the season and is 6-8 with a 3.68 ERA in 18 career starts versus Arizona.
The Diamondbacks will try to snap Lowe's win streak one day after a tough 3-2 loss to Colorado and Ubaldo Jimenez in the finale of a three-game series. Arizona managed just Conor Jackson's two-run homer in the eighth inning, snapping a 21-inning scoreless drought versus Jimenez while ending the hurler's personal consecutive scoreless-innings run at 33.
Arizona nearly got to Jimenez in the first inning, loading the bases on an error, walk and single. However, Chris Young hit into an inning-ending double play.
"We made a run at the end, but we missed a few opportunities early, especially in the first," Diamondbacks manager A.J. Hinch said. "We were a foot away from not only scoring first, but also making Jimenez get to maybe 40 pitches in the first inning, which changes the entire complexion of the game."
Arizona, which had won the first two contests of the series to snap its losing streak at 10 straight, set a club record with its seventh one-run game in a row as it opened a 10-game homestand.
Shortstop Stephen Drew did not play for Arizona on Sunday after suffering a right finger injury the previous night and is day-to-day.
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The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.
They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.
"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."
Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.
New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.
Not so sound on the ground
If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.
Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com
“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.
Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.
Brees says bring it on
Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.
Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.
Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.
"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."
SportsBooks ready for a shootout
Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.
“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”
New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.
The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.
“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts US credit cards
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