Friday's Betting Tips
Covers.com
Weather watch
Thunderstorms are in the forecast for the BMW Championship Friday. The forecast for St. Louis is calling for a 29 percent chance of rain in the morning, jumping to a 79 percent chance later in the afternoon. Golf bettors may want to take note with groups teeing off later in the day.
Betting notes and tips
Utah has won 20 of the last 22 meetings with Utah State and leads the overall series 77-28-4. However, the Aggies are only 6.5-point home underdogs after being tagged as 20-plus pups in previous years.
Blue Jays manager John Farrell declared that LHP Ricky Romero will skip Saturday's start against Boston in favor of his next one on Wednesday. Farrell contends that the extra rest will be a positive for Romero, who has lost 12 consecutive decisions.
Colorado has never been shut out in three consecutive games. The Rockies were blanked 1-0 in the final two games with the Braves this week. Colorado takes on Philadelphia and Cliff Lee Friday with a total of 7.5 runs.
Pirates SP A.J. Burnett has pitched 14 1-3 scoreless innings in two starts against the Cubs this season, allowing seven hits and four walks while striking out 14. The Bucs are -191 home faves versus the Cubbies with a total of 7.5 runs.
Minnesota has taken seven of 11 meetings with Cleveland this season. The Twins are -128 home faves vs. the Tribe.
The Braves went 3-for-35 with runners in scoring position in the four games against Colorado. Atlanta played under the total in all four and face a 7.5-run number against the Mets Friday.
Seattle RB Marshawn Lynch is still a question mark for Sunday’s season opener against Arizona. He was limited in practice this week due to a nagging back ailment and has suffered through back spasms since his days at Cal. The Seahawks are 1-point road favorites versus the Cardinals.
Five Things You Need to Know for Friday, Sept. 7
Atssportsline.com
Five Things You Need to Know in Sports
Want to start your sports day off right? Looking for some action and the most interesting events of the day? There is a full baseball schedule and one college game on Friday night. Here is a brief look at the top four important matchups of the day along with a glance at future odds.
1)Utah State at Utah, Romney Stadium from Logan, UT
Utah visits Romney Stadium in Logan, Utah to take on rival Utah State on Friday at 8pmET. Utah State opened with a 34-3 win over Southern Utah. The Utes are coming off a 41-0 win over Northern Colorado. Utah State will attempt to run the football with sophomore Joe Hill but Utah’s defensive line will be tough to run against, led by tackle Star Lotulelei, who won the Morris Trophy as the Pac-12’s top defensive lineman. Utah State is 2-10 ATS in their last 12 games following an ATS win, Utah is a 7.5-point favorite with a total of 52.
2)Detroit at LA Angels, Max Scherzer (15-6, 3.93) vs. Ervin Santana (8-11, 5.32 ERA)
The Tigers are just one game behind the White Sox in the AL Central. The Angels are 7.5 games behind the Rangers in the AL West and 2.5 games behind Oakland and Baltimore for the wild card spot. The Angels are the hot team, having won 8 of 9. Both pitchers are capable of throwing gems, but both are inconsistent, especially Santana. Tigers are 17-36 in the last 53 meetings in Los Angeles. The Angels opened as a -110 favorite with a total of 8.
3)Oakland at Seattle, A.J. Griffin (4-0, 2.26 ERA) vs. Felix Hernandez (13-6, 2.51 ERA)
Oakland was swept by the Angels at home. They are still tied with Baltimore (before Thursday night's results) for the wild card. Felix Hernandez is coming off a tough start, giving up 4 runs in 7 1/3 IP against the Angels. The Mariners are just 4 games below .500 but time is running out to attempt to get to postseason. Oakland is 8-1 last 9 games on Friday. Seattle opened as a -140 favorite with a total of 6.
4)U.S. Open women's semifinals
The women's semfinals start around 1pm on ESPN2 with #1 Victoria Azarenka (-225) taking on #3 Maria Sharapova (+185) in what should be one of the loudest (grunts) matches of the tournament. Heavy favorite #4 Serena Williams (-1850) is in action later on Friday afternoon against Italian underdog #10 Sarah Errani (+1250). As for the men, with #1 Roger Federer out, this should open it up for #3 Andy Murray (-215), who faces #6 Tomas Berdych (+178), who upset Federer on Wednesday night.
5)Odds to Win 2012-13 NBA Championship
The NBA season starts on October 30, so we are less than 2 months away. Miami is a big favorite but after acquiring Steve Nash and Dwight Howard, the Lakers are right behind the Heat and just ahead of the Thunder. The future odds from Bovada are listed below.
Odds to win 2013 NBA Championship
Miami Heat 9/4
Los Angeles Lakers 5/2
Oklahoma City Thunder 5/1
Chicago Bulls 12/1
San Antonio Spurs 18/1
Boston Celtics 22/1
Los Angeles Clippers 22/1
Brooklyn Nets 30/1
Dallas Mavericks 30/1
Indiana Pacers 30/1
Memphis Grizzlies 35/1
New York Knicks 35/1
Philadelphia 76ers 40/1
Denver Nuggets 65/1
Atlanta Hawks 75/1
Houston Rockets 75/1
Minnesota Timberwolves 90/1
Golden State Warriors 100/1
Orlando Magic 100/1
Phoenix Suns 100/1
Portland Trailblazers 100/1
Utah Jazz 100/1
Milwaukee Bucks 125/1
New Orleans Hornets 150/1
Charlotte Bobcats 200/1
Cleveland Cavaliers 200/1
Detroit Pistons 200/1
Sacramento Kings 200/1
Toronto Raptors 200/1
Washington Wizards 200/1