Dodgers send Kershaw to the hill in finale with Phillies

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08/12/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the Dodgers plan on leaving the City of Brotherly Love with a series win over Philadelphia this evening, starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw may have to do something he's never done before.

Kershaw is scheduled to pitch in Thursday's finale of a three-game series against a Phillies team he hasn't been able to beat in four career regular- season starts. He is 0-3 with a 6.64 earned run average in his career against Philadelphia, which previously beat him during last year's NLCS.

The left-hander has lost two straight starts overall and three of his last four decisions. Kershaw was last in action during Friday's 6-3 loss versus Washington and yielded six runs and seven hits in six innings. Kershaw, who fell to 10-7 in 23 starts and raised his ERA to 3.19, owns a 4-4 mark in 10 outings as the guest this season.

Los Angeles is still alive in the playoff race and sits 5 1/2 games off the NL Wild Card lead. It's also eight games behind San Diego for the top spot in the National League West Division and suffered a 2-0 loss last night after taking Tuesday's series opener by a 15-9 score. Phils starter Roy Oswalt held the Dodgers in check with seven shutout innings, while Scott Podsednik ended with a team-best three hits for the Dodgers.

Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley pitched well enough for the win, but allowed two runs with three walks and three K's to absorb his seventh loss (9-7).

"You just can't make too many mistakes in these types of games," Billingsley said after LA's three-game winning streak came to an end.

Philadelphia is in the same situation as Los Angeles and is also fighting for a playoff spot. It is tied with Cincinnati at one game behind San Francisco in the NL Wild Card standings and remained 2 1/2 games in back of Atlanta for NL East bragging rights.

Oswalt was on point in his home debut for the Phils, as he struck out five and walked two batters for the win. Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge both tossed a scoreless innings of relief, with Lidge picking up his 15th save.

"I pitched here before and I like the mound here," Oswalt said of his home debut with the Phillies. "It really wasn't too bad."

Raul Ibanez extended his hitting streak to a career-best 18 games with two hits and an RBI. Ibanez is batting .409 with four homers and 17 RBI during his run. Domonic Brown drove in the other run for the Phillies, who have won seven of their last nine games. The Phillies saw another player go down because of injury after Ross Gload exited the game with a groin problem. Veteran Mike Sweeney replaced him and could start tonight for the Phils, who are already without Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Shane Victorino.

The Phillies would like to see Joe Blanton keep the winning tradition going when he toes the rubber tonight. Blanton has posted back-to-back no-decisions and is coming off a strong start last Friday in a 7-5 win over the New York Mets. Blanton held the despised NL East foes to a pair of runs in seven innings, and remained at 4-6 in 18 starts to go along with a 5.65 ERA.

Blanton is 3-2 in nine home starts this season and will make his fifth career start against Los Angeles tonight. He is 1-0 with a 2.88 ERA in four career matchups -- all starts -- with the Dodgers.

Philadelphia took all three matchups at home in defeating Los Angeles in five games during last year's NLCS, but the Dodgers have won in three of their last five visits to Citizens Bank Park in the regular season.

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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Problem with Bears?

Chicago, IL - New Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and star linebacker Brian Urlacher shot down reports of a rift, saying they're simply not true.

"There's nothing between us," Cutler said Thursday, when he reported to training camp. "I just want to put that to rest. There never has been anything between us."

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Urlacher added: "I never said what I was quoted as saying and that's it. I have a lot of respect for Jay. I think Jay knows that."
Former Bears receiver Bobby Wade caused a stir when he told Minneapolis radio station KFAN-AM that Urlacher used a profanity while questioning Cutler's manhood during a conversation in Las Vegas last weekend. Wade, who now plays for the Vikings, said Urlacher used a profane version of the word "wimp" during the interview that had to be edited out.
go radio station WSCR-AM also reported that Urlacher had to be restrained from confronting Cutler during organized team activities.
"I wouldn't go face-to-face with Brian, anyway," Cutler said. "No, that's never happened. I've hung out with Brian away from the facility numerous times and we've always gotten along."
Urlacher, noting he was limited by a groin injury, denied the reports in an interview with the Chicago Tribune and did it again when he reported to camp.
"I didn't practice this summer, so I don't know how I would fight the guy if I didn't practice," Urlacher said. "We have no problems. I'm excited about football starting. I'm excited to have him as our quarterback."
Why would Wade say that?
"I don't know," Urlacher said. "Maybe he's jealous because we have a good quarterback now."
Cutler said the first he heard of any friction was when he got a call from Urlacher to clear the air. Urlacher, however, said he had already taken several calls from teammates wondering if the reports were true when Cutler phoned.
"He called me and I said, What's up (expletive), what are you doing?'" a grinning Urlacher said, uttering the same word he allegedly used with Wade. "It's so dumb to me that this even got to this point, but it did and then here we are."
better place after going 9-7 and missing the playoffs for the second straight year. They have a franchise quarterback for the first time in decades after acquiring Cutler in an offseason trade with Denver. But there are questions about his attitude following a fallout with Broncos management and new coach Josh McDaniels.
His critics include former Bears coach Mike Ditka and former Indianapolis and Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy, one of Smith's mentors. Smith, however, said Cutler has been a model teammate so far while denying any animosity with Urlacher.
"There's no issue with Jay and Brian, except Brian and Jay are both excited about being teammates for our club this year," coach Lovie Smith said. "No more than that. We can't spend a whole lot of time on something that isn't true. I have talked to the players. Whenever something comes out, you have to address it, but it's a non-issue."
In some ways, Cutler is getting a second chance in Chicago, an opportunity to repair his reputation.
Smith said another quarterback - Michael Vick - deserves one, although he doesn't see it happening with the Bears, who lack an experienced backup. The former Atlanta Falcons star, who served a 23-month sentence for running a dogfighting ring, said Thursday he is getting close to signing with a pro football team.
"A second chance, like everyone in society who has paid their debt to society," Smith said. "He deserves a second chance. As far as we're concerned, we like this team that we have right now."
Particularly the new quarterback.
"Me and Brian have been on a good relationship since I've been here, and I expect it to continue that way," Cutler said.

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