Thursday's Betting Tips
Covers.com
Weather to watch
Cincinnati Reds at Chicago Cubs: A 60 percent chance of thunderstorms throughout the evening. Winds are expected to blow in from right field at 15 mph.
New York Yankees at Detroit Tigers: A 70 percent chance of rain for this afternoon tilt.
Who’s hot?
The Baltimore Orioles have won five straight and eight of 10. The Orioles have collected 60 wins so far this season compared to 69 all last year.
Who’s not?
The Chicago Cubs were swept for the ninth time Wednesday with a 2-0 loss to the Padres. Chicago has been outscored 40-16 during its eight-game losing streak.
Key stat
24- The number of games the Pittsburgh Pirates have won by a single run this season (MLB best). Pittsburgh is 54-1 when leading after seven innings, and closer Joel Hanrahan leads the National League with 33 saves.
Game of the day
San Francisco Giants @ St. Louis Cardinals (-134, 7.5)
Injury that shouldn’t be overlooked
Chicago White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko suffered a mild concussion in Tuesday night's game against the Royals. He was held out of Wednesday's contest and will be re-evaluated on Friday. Konerko is batting .318 with 18 home runs and 54 RBIs in 101 games this season.
Notable quotable
"Why not legalize sports betting? When it’s regulated, it’s safer. There’s no hanky-panky.” –Sacramento Kings owner Joe Maloof.
Betting news and notes
Blue Jays hurler Henderson Alvarez has yet to figure out the Rays, going 0-3 with a 5.68 ERA in three career starts against them. Tampa Bay has homered six times off Alvarez in just 19 innings.
Santiago Casilla is no longer San Francisco’s closer after blowing five of his last 10 save opportunities. Right-hander Sergio Romo and southpaws Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez will share the duties.
The Orioles are expected to call up prized prospect Manny Machado from Double-A Bowie prior to Thursday's contest with the Royals. Machado is the third overall pick of the 2010 amateur draft.
Cincinnati manager Dusty Baker said that first baseman Joey Votto , who has been taking batting practice and running sprints, still needs to practice sliding before he can be activated from the disabled list.
Five Things You Need to Know for Thursday Aug. 9
ATSSportsline.com
Want to start your day off right? Looking for some action and the top events of the day? Ready for some football as Week One starts tonight? Here is a brief look at the top four important matchups of the day along with a glance at future odds.
1)Denver at Chicago, NFL Preseason Week 1, 8:30pmET, Soldier Field
Peyton Manning makes his debut for the Broncos against the Bears. Jay Cutler is back and healthy for the Bears. But those guys will see very little action as this week, it's all about the backups. Chicago found a pretty good backup in Jason Campbell. Chicago is 6-1 OVER in Week One. Chicago is a 3-point favorite and the total is 34.5.
2)Washington at Buffalo, NFL Preseason Week 1, 7pmET from Ralph Wilson Stadium.
Robert Griffin III (RGIII) makes his debut for Washington, who may have found their first franchise quarterback since Joe Theisman. Buffalo had a very good offseason, adding DEs Mario Williams and Mark Anderson. Buffalo is 3-0 ATS as a home dog in the preseason. Washington is a 2-point favorite and the total is 34.5.
3)Green Bay at San Diego, NFL Preseason Week 1, 8pmET from Qualcomm Stadium
This probably wasn't the wisest choice for the ESPN to choose this game. In the regular season, this would be a high-scoring game. Aaron Rodgers will hope to do what Dree Brees did in the Hall of Fame Game. That's go right down the field and score on the first drive and leave. That's assuming he plays. There are already 17 Packers out for this game due to injury (or rest). Green Bay is 11-5 ATS L16 in preseason. San Diego is a -1.5-point favorite and the total is 38.
4)NY Yankees at Detroit, Hiroki Kuroda (10-8, 3.19 ERA) vs. Doug Fister (6-7, 3.52 ERA)
Day baseball in Detroit. Nothing beats it. Both teams are underachieving considering their talent. Maybe the Yankees are right where they should be, which is trying to hold onto the AL East over Baltimore and Tampa Bay. They need a good outing from Kuroda, who was a nice pickup. Fister tries to keep his team in the game without being spectacular. Detroit is 7-3 last 10 at home vs. Yankees. Detroit opened as a -125 favorite and the total is 9.
5)Odds to win the Super Bowl
The first week of preseason play is here so now is the time to take a look at the latest Super Bowl Odds from Bovada. No major changes lately as Green Bay and New England have been favorites since last year, but San Francisco has snuck up to the third spot at 10-3 after being a non-factor in the odds last year.
Odds to win the 2013 Super Bowl XLVII
Green Bay Packers 6/1
New England Patriots 13/2
San Francisco 49ers 10/1
Houston Texans 12/1
Philadelphia Eagles 12/1
Chicago Bears 16/1
Denver Broncos 16/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 16/1
Baltimore Ravens 18/1
Dallas Cowboys 18/1
New Orleans Saints 18/1
New York Giants 18/1
Detroit Lions 22/1
Atlanta Falcons 25/1
San Diego Chargers 25/1
New York Jets 28/1
Carolina Panthers 35/1
Cincinnati Bengals 40/1
Kansas City Chiefs 45/1
Buffalo Bills 50/1
Seattle Seahawks 50/1
Tennessee Titans 50/1
Arizona Cardinals 60/1
Washington Redskins 60/1
Oakland Raiders 65/1
Miami Dolphins 75/1
St. Louis Rams 75/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75/1
Cleveland Browns 150/1
Indianapolis Colts 150/1
Minnesota Vikings 150/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 200/1
ATSSportsline.com has been providing winning sports picks since 1992. Want more from ATS Consultants? Click Free Picks to get daily winners delivered directly to your inbox with no obligation!