Braves hold off Mets

Baseball Betting Lines

08/09/2007 - Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chipper Jones and Mark Teixeira hit back-to- back homers, and Willie Harris robbed Carlos Delgado of a game-tying homer in the ninth to help the Atlanta Braves hold on to a 7-6 win over the New York Mets, taking two of a three-game set.

Tim Hudson (13-5) held the Mets to three runs on nine hits in six innings, fanning three and walking one. Teixeira finished 2-for-5 and scored twice for the Braves, who have won four of five. Oscar Villarreal recorded the last two outs for his first-career save.

John Maine (12-7) was roughed up for seven hits and six runs in 5 1/3 innings, striking out four and walking three. Wright finished 3-for-5 with three RBI, and Jose Reyes also went 3-for-5, scoring three times for the Mets, who have dropped three of five.

A four-run ninth-inning lead almost crumbled away, thanks to the Braves bullpen. Tyler Yates opened the ninth on the mound for Atlanta, and promptly allowed a single to pinch-hitter Ruben Gotay and a double to Reyes. Luis Castillo's groundout scored one run, and Wright followed by golfing a low fastball deep into the bleachers in left-center, pulling the Mets to within one.

Villarreal then entered for Atlanta, but Delgado greeted him with a drive to deep left. Harris saved the day for the Braves, though, leaping to snare the ball inches above the fence. Moises Alou then grounded out, ending the game.

The Braves took the lead with back-to-back home runs by Chipper Jones and Teixeira in the fifth. Hudson led off with an infield single, and Harris walked. Jones stepped in after a Kelly Johnson fielder's choice and belted a 470-foot drive to right-center, a three-run shot that put Atlanta on top. Teixeira followed with a homer to right, his fourth since coming over from Texas, and the Braves led 5-2.

The Mets shaved the deficit to 5-3 on Delgado's RBI single in the home half, but the Braves added another run on a perfectly executed safety squeeze by Hudson in the sixth. With Yunel Escobar on third and one out, Hudson bunted to the right side of the infield. Maine pounced on the ball and flipped to Ramon Castro, but Escobar slid in safely.

Atlanta added another run in the seventh when, with runners at the corners and no outs, Jeff Francoeur grounded into a double play, giving the Braves a four- run lead.

Reyes' speed paid off in the first, as he legged out an infield single, moved to second on Castillo's sacrifice bunt, and came home on Wright's single to left. Alou's RBI single in the third gave the Mets a 2-0 edge.

The Braves got one run back in the fourth, when Brian McCann singled to center, moved to third on Francoeur's base hit to center, and scored on an Andruw Jones sacrifice fly to left, narrowly beating the throw from Alou.

Game Notes

Hudson is now 93-1 with a lead of three runs or more...The Mets lost center fielder Marlon Anderson in the fourth inning with a sprained left wrist he suffered while attempting to make a diving catch on a single off the bat of McCann. Lastings Milledge replaced Anderson in the lineup...This was the fourth time the Braves have hit back-to-back homers this year, the first time involving Chipper Jones.

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MySportsbook.com : Fortune Favors Favorites in March Madness betting?

Just like Day 1 of the “Sweet 16”, Friday’s games are chock full of some of the nation’s elite.  Unlike Thursday’s games, there is a little bit more of a “Cinderella” feel as #7 seed UNLV and #6 seed Vanderbilt will attempt to move on to the Elite Eight.  With powerhouses Florida, UNC and Georgetown looking to continue their momentum against lesser known teams, it isn’t surprising that once again the “betting public” is backing most of the favorites.  As the early coin rolls in, 56% of Sportsbook.com bettors prefer Georgetown (-7.5) as they take on Vanderbilt; 84% of the early money is backing Oregon (-3) as they square off against UNLV; and a slight majority (52%) of the early cash is on Florida (-10.5) against Butler as the Gators continue their quest for another National Title. The only favorite the public don’t seem confident in is UNC, as 59% of the cash is backing the underdog Trojans (+8).

Midwest

#1 Florida vs. #5 Butler

The defending National Champs have been on a mission since last April.  Joakim Noah and Al Horford turned down millions of dollars for one reason, to REPEAT.  After a late season hiccup which saw them lose three out of four, the Gators have won six straight by an average of 20.3 points. More importantly, they covered in five of those six games.  Behind their stymie defense that yields only 56.9 PPG, Butler has been a very pleasant surprise this season.  As their 20-11 ATS record will indicate, “surprise teams” like Butler are often good bets for gamblers.  Playing in an average conference, Butler wasn’t and underdog too often but when they were, they covered (6-0 ATS).  Butler’s defense will have its hands full against a Gators offense which averages 80.1 PPG on an amazing 52.9% shooting from the field.  With Florida’s tournament experience over the last few years, it isn’t surprising that they are 5-1 ATS this season, 20-4 ATS over the last three seasons and 38-20 since 1997 in tournament action.

#3 Oregon vs. #7 UNLV

As a #7 seed, UNLV is the closest thing to a “Cinderella” we have this year.  If you bet on UNLV this season with any regularity, you most likely cashed in. Behind their guard oriented attack, the Rebels are an impressive 20-11 ATS this season.  As an underdog they covered in 8 out of their ten games which isn’t surprising since they are 52-30 ATS as a ‘dog since 1997. The Rebels have been a consistent cover during the month of March as well.  This March they are 6-0 ATS, 11-3 ATS over the last three seasons and 24-11 since 1997. Their impressive ATS trends don’t end there; versus teams with a winning record they are 15-6 ATS this season and 41-21 over the last three seasons.  Although Oregon hasn’t been as generous to gamblers as UNLV this season, they have been covering consistently as of late.  There is no question that they are playing their best ball of the season having won their last 8 straight up (SU) by an average of 14.5 points. Not surprising they covered in 7 of those games.  It is interesting to note how similar these teams are in regards to scoring and scoring defense. UNLV averages 75 PPG while giving up 66.5 PPG and Oregon scores 75.8 PPG while yielding 65.5 PPG.

East

#6 Vanderbilt vs. #2 Georgetown

“Hoya Paranoia” is officially back! After a decent start, Georgetown has rolled through the second half of the season.  Over their last 18 games, they are 17-1 SU.  They have definitely improved ATS as the season has progressed as well. After opening the season 1-4-1 ATS, the Hoyas have covered 78.3% of their games.  With their great interior play of Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, the Hoyas as a team shoot 50.5% from the field.  Like the Georgetown teams from years ago, they also excel on defense.  Hoya opponents averaged only 56.8 PPG on 38.2% shooting from the field and an extremely low 30.4% from beyond the arc.  The last stat could be of some concern to Vanderbilt considering they shoot 37.7% from long-range.  Ranking second to last in the SEC in rebounding margin, Vanderbilt will have its work cut out for them against the Hoya trees. As far as covering is concerned, Vanderbilt has been almost a “sure thing” (7-1 ATS) versus good defensive teams that allow less than 64 PPG.

#1 UNC vs. # 5 USC

The Tar Heels are as talented and as deep as any team in the country.  Going ten deep and chock full of HS All-Americans, UNC averages 86.1 PPG and scored 100+ seven times.  Led by All-American forward, Tyler Hansbrough (18.6 PPG 7.9 RPG) UNC has a very balanced attack which can kill you on the inside as well as on the perimeter.  UNC only real concern is their youth as eight of their rotation players are either sophomores or freshmen.  UNC was a reliable cover this season going 20-13 ATS.  An intriguing covering trend for the Tar Heels in recent years has been how they fared after non-conference games.  This season they are 11-3 ATS after non-conference games and over the last three seasons they are 31-13 ATS.  USC is also a pretty deep team which is loaded with swingman types.  An match-up to keep an eye on will be freshman forward Taj Gibson (12.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG) as he squares off against the AA Hansbrough.  USC has been a covering machine this season achieving a 21-10 record ATS.  They have thrived in the underdog role, having covered 10 out of 12.  When playing a team with a winning record, the Trojans are an incredible 20-6 ATS. Keep in mind, USC dedicated their season to former star to Ryan Francis who passed away before the season so as they get closer to the ultimate goal, emotion could definitely be on their side.

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 this sportsbook “Betting Trends”.  By doing so, you have the best chance of predicting a possible line change, thus getting the best value for your wager.

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