07/04/2009 - Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eclipse Award winning jockey Mike Smith has regained the mount on Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird. Smith has a two- race commitment to ride the gelding starting with the West Virginia Derby on Saturday, August 1.
Smith, who rode Mine That Bird in the Preakness Stakes, replaces Calvin Borel who was relieved of his duties when he could not commit to ride the three- year-old on August 1. Smith won the Eclipse Award as champion jockey in 1993 and 1994.
"I am looking for a rider that will fit my horse best," trainer Chip Woolley said on Friday. On Saturday, Woolley indicated that an announcement would be made Sunday morning.
Borel lost the mount on Mine That Bird because he agreed to ride Warrior's Reward in the Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga on the same day as the West Virginia Derby. The Louisiana native has been the regular jockey for Warrior's Reward.
Following the Kentucky Derby victory, Borel switched to the filly Rachel Alexandra in the Preakness Stakes. Borel won the Preakness with the filly and then regained the mount on Mine That Bird for the Belmont Stakes. Borel and the gelding finished third in the final jewel of racing's Triple Crown. Smith picked up the mount on Mine That Bird for the Preakness and finished second, a length behind Rachel Alexandra.
After the West Virginia Derby at Mountaineer Park, Mine That Bird's schedule of races will be the Travers at Saratoga on Saturday, August 29 and the Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita on Saturday, November 7 with the possibility of a race between the Travers and Breeders' Cup.
<< Woodward's ninth-inning hit sends M's past Sox
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chris Woodward knocked in the deciding run in
the ninth inning as Seattle clipped Boston, 3-2, in the middle
contest of three at Fenway Park.
Russell Branyan added a pair of RBI for the M
<< Owings homers, pitches Reds over Cardinals
Cincinnati, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Micah Owings tossed 6 2/3 strong innings
and hit his third home run of the year, lifting Cincinnati to a 5-2 victory
against St. Louis in the second of three games between these NL Central
rivals.
<< McGehee misses cycle, but his big day helps Brewers crush Cubs
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Casey McGehee finished with four hits, a double
short of a cycle, and drove in five to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to an 11-2
win over the Chicago Cubs.
Mike Cameron was 2-for-3 with a three-run homer and
<< Nats rally in the eighth off Braves bullpen
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Adam Dunn hit his 300th career home run and
drove in the go-ahead run with an RBI single during a four-run eighth, as
Washington topped Atlanta, 5-3, halting the Braves' season-high win streak at
five ga
Yi shoots 61 for Jamie Farr lead >>
Sylvania, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Korea's Eunjung Yi fired a 10-under 61 and
took the third-round lead Saturday at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic.
Yi holed out from the fairway for an eagle at No. 10 and collected eight
birdies in a flaw
McNair found dead >>
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Tennessee Titans and Baltimore Ravens
quarterback Steve McNair was found dead Saturday. He was 36.
At a brief press conference Saturday, Nashville police department public
affairs manager Don Aaron con
Nationals recall Bergmann; designate Colome for assignment >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Nationals recalled
right-hander Jason Bergmann from Triple-A Syracuse and designated reliever
Jesus Colome for assignment following Saturday's 5-3 win over the Braves.
Bergmann
Briscoe takes Watkins Glen pole for second straight year >>
Watkins Glen, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Briscoe won the pole at Watkins Glen
International for the second year in a row after dominating Saturday's
qualifying for the Camping World GP at the Glen.
Briscoe posted a new track reco
Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."
When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules.
The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.
The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.
“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”
The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.
“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”
The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.
“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”
Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.
“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."
So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?
“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.
Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.
Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.
Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.
“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.
Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.
The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.
“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.
Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.
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