Five Things You Need to Know for Tues., Sept. 18
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Five Things You Need to Know in Sports
Want to start your sports day off right? Looking for some action and the most exciting matchups of the day? There are four key baseball games with playoff implications on tap. Here is a brief look at the top four important matchups of the day along with future odds.
1)Texas at LA Angels, Ryan Dempster (6-1, 4.11 ERA) vs. Jered Weaver (17-4, 2.74 ERA)
This is the first game of a three-game series. Ryan Dempster takes the mound for the Rangers against the ace of the Angels, Jered Weaver for the Angels. The Angels are 2.5 games behind Baltimore for the final wild card spot. The Rangers have a 7.5 game lead over the Angels and a 3 game lead over Oakland in the AL West. Rangers are 1-7-1 Under last 9 Tuesday games. The Angels opened up as a -140 favorite with a total of 7.5.
2)Oakland at Detroit, A.J. Griffin (6-0, 1.94 ERA) vs. Max Scherzer (16-6, 3.77 ERA)
The Tigers are in trouble right now. They are 3 games behind the White Sox in the AL Central after losing a make-up game on Monday afternoon, 5-4 in Chicago. The wild card is an extreme longshot for the Tigers, who would have to vault over the Rays and Angels. Oakland ha a slim lead over Baltimore for the top wild card after taking 2 of 3 at home from the Orioles. Detroit is 3-13 Under last 16 at home. Detroit opened as a-135 favorite with a total of 9.
3)Baltimore at Seattle, Wei-Yin Chen (12-9, 4.00 ERA) vs. Erasmo Ramirez (1-1, 1.53 ERA)
The Orioles are coming off losing 2 of 3 at Oakland, but they still have the second wild card spot in the AL and are just one game behind the Yankees in the AL East. Chen has been the biggest surprise for the O's coming from Taiwan. Ramirez is another rookie pitcher with great stuff, though Seattle has nothing to play for now that they are 7 games under .500. Baltimore is 15-7 last 22 overall. Baltimore opened as a -120 favorite with a total of 7.0.
4)LA Dodgers at Washington, Aaron Harang (10-8, 3.01 ERA) vs. Jordan Zimmerman (10-8, 3.01 ERA)
The Dodgers are just one game behind the Cardinals in the NL wild card race. Washington is 5.5 games ahead of the Braves before Monday's results. They were swept by the Braves over the weekend, but they can't afford to get lax as their remaining schedule is the toughest of all the contenders. Zimmerman has to come through in the clutch for the Nats. Washington is 9-3 in Zimmerman's last 12 starts. Washington opened as a -145 favorite with a total of 8.0.
5)Odds to win the 2013 Super Bowl
Week two is now in the books and there's another new favorite to win the Super Bowl. After the Patriots lost to Arizona and with the Packers now at 1-1, the San Francisco 49ers are the latest favorite to win Super Bowl XLVII from Bovada.
Odds to win the 2013 Super Bowl XLVII
San Francisco 49ers 5/1
Houston Texans 6/1
New England Patriots 13/2
Green Bay Packers 7/1
Philadelphia Eagles 12/1
Denver Broncos 14/1
Baltimore Ravens 15/1
Atlanta Falcons 16/1
Chicago Bears 18/1
San Diego Chargers 20/1
New York Giants 22/1
Pittsburgh Steelers 22/1
Dallas Cowboys 25/1
New Orleans Saints 35/1
Detroit Lions 40/1
New York Jets 40/1
Carolina Panthers 50/1
Seattle Seahawks 50/1
Washington Redskins 50/1
Arizona Cardinals 60/1
Cincinnati Bengals 66/1
Buffalo Bills 75/1
Indianapolis Colts 100/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 100/1
Kansas City Chiefs 150/1
Miami Dolphins 150/1
Oakland Raiders 150/1
Minnesota Vikings 200/1
St. Louis Rams 200/1
Tennessee Titans 200/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 300/1
Cleveland Browns 400/1