Blue Jays go for fourth consecutive win in finale with Rangers

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05/16/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sporting the longest current win streak in the American League, the Toronto Blue Jays try to make it four in a row this afternoon as they entertain the Texas Rangers in the finale of a three-game set at the Rogers Centre.

Following up a rowdy series opener on Friday night, the Jays put up a more convincing defense yesterday as they logged the 6-0 victory, moving them to 9-10 at home on the season. Starting pitcher Ricky Romero went the distance for his fourth win of the campaign, allowing just five hits and walking one as he struck out 12 in the complete game effort, the first of his career. The strikeout total for Romero tied a career high as well.

Jose Bautista did most of the damage on offense for the Jays, cranking out a pair of home runs and knocking in five on three hits.

"We'll take as many [runs] as we can get," Bautista said after registering the fourth multi-homer game of his career. "We can just let that young pitching staff relax and go out and do their thing, and then our defense relaxes as well and we can just play loose."

Texas starter Scott Feldman was touched for five runs on nine hits over the course of 7 1/3 innings, falling for the fourth time in five decisions. Josh Hamilton and Michael Young combined to go 1-for-8 with seven strikeouts, yet the Rangers are still two games ahead of Oakland for first place in the American League West despite their two-game slide.

Heading to the hill for the Rangers this afternoon is Colby Lewis, who is shooting for his fourth win of the campaign. The 30-year old right-hander was last in action earlier this week when he tossed seven innings against the Oakland A's, permitting three earned runs on six hits, while striking out five in a 7-6 loss at home.

Coming into the weekend Lewis ranked third in the AL in strikeouts with 49 over his seven appearances, having registered three double-digit strikeout games already in 2010.

As for the Blue Jays, they plan to counter with Brandon Morrow today. The 25- year old right-hander suffered his third loss of the season on Monday when he lasted just 1 2/3 innings versus Boston at Fenway Park, giving up six earned runs on three hits and an unsightly six walks. Morrow has now issued at least five walks in three of his seven contests in 2010.

Morrow has also had three games in which he has failed to go beyond the fifth inning, which explains why he is being weighed down with an ERA of 6.69 at the moment. The California native has a career record of 10-15, yet opponents have batted just .229 against him since he broke into the majors.

Assuming the Toronto bats continue on their current pace, Morrow should be in for more than ample run support given that the Jays lead all of baseball in home runs and doubles with 59 and 101, respectively. The squad has a slugging percentage of .463 to lead the American League and yet the Jays are third from the bottom in the AL in terms of batting average at a mere .241.

From a pitching perspective, Toronto also ranks first in the league in strikeouts with 299 through 38 games, even though the unit carries a 4.29 team ERA at the moment as well.

The Blue Jays lead the season series with Texas by a count of 4-1 at the moment, with the team's having played to a tie in each of the previous three campaigns.

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.

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