Wakefield sets age record as Sox outslug Rays

Baseball Betting Lines

09/08/2010 - Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tim Wakefield became the oldest pitcher in Red Sox history to record a win and Boston belted five home runs to top Tampa Bay, 11-5, in the rubber match of a three-game series.

Marco Scutaro went 4-for-5 with a pair of homers and three RBI, while Victor Martinez, David Ortiz and Adrian Beltre also went deep for the Red Sox, who despite the win are 6 1/2 games behind the wild card-leading Rays.

Wakefield (4-10), who had lost his previous four decisions, won for the first time since July 2 against Baltimore. The knuckleball specialist, making his first start since August 25, moved to 21-6 all-time against the Rays. He allowed six hits and five runs -- four earned -- over five innings.

Wakefield, at 44 years and 37 days old, passed Dennis Eckersley as the oldest pitcher in club history to record a victory. Eckersley got his last Sox win on September 17, 1998 at Baltimore at 43 years, 349 days old.

B.J. Upton homered for a second straight night, this time a three-run blast in the second inning, but the Rays fell 2 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Yankees. New York rallied for a 3-2 win over Baltimore Wednesday afternoon.

Matt Garza (14-8), who had won his last three decisions, was tagged for nine hits and six runs in 4 1/3 frames.

Evan Longoria lofted a sacrifice fly in the opening inning and Upton's homer to left in the second moved the lead to 4-0.

In the bottom half, Ortiz walked ahead of Beltre's 27th homer of the year, his 1,001st career RBI.

Scutaro led off the third with a homer, and two outs later Ortiz went deep for the 29th time this season. The blast over the Green Monster tied the score at 4-4.

Brad Hawpe scored on Jason Bartlett's double in the fourth, but Boston went ahead for good with a three-spot in the fifth. Martinez started the frame with a homer to center. Chad Qualls came into the game with one out, but Ryan Kalish doubled home Ortiz, who walked earlier in the inning. Longoria's throwing error brought in Kalish for a 7-5 Red Sox edge.

Martinez singled in Scutaro in the sixth and the Sox tacked on three more runs in the seventh, two coming on Scutaro's 10th homer of the season. The hit came just after Lars Anderson's RBI single.

Game Notes

Wakefield went over the 130-inning mark this season, meaning he'll automatically receive a $500,000 raise to $2 million for 2011, the final season of his contract...Tampa Bay won the season series, 11-7, winning six of nine at Fenway.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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