11/03/2008 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Francisco Rodriguez was one of 19 players that filed for free agency Monday.
"K-Rod" will likely command a substantial contract after arguably the single greatest season by a reliever. Rodriguez, 26, recorded a single-season record 62 saves for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim a season ago with a 2.24 earned-run average. He finished with seven blown saves in 76 appearances.
In seven seasons -- all with the Angels -- the right-hander is 23-17 with 208 saves and a 2.35 ERA in 408 career appearances.
The Los Angeles Dodgers' Rafael Furcal was among three veteran shortstops filing free agent papers on Monday. An injured back cost Furcal a majority of the 2008 season, but when healthy, the 31-year-old hit .357 with five homers and 16 RBI in 36 games.
Detroit's Edgar Renteria, San Francisco's Omar Vizquel and Milwaukee's Craig Counsell were the other shortstops deciding to test the market.
<< Texans QB Schaub out with MCL injury
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Texans quarterback Matt Schaub will miss the
next few weeks after injuring the medial collateral ligament in his left knee
in Sunday's loss at Minnesota.
Sage Rosenfels, who replaced Schaub in the second
<< Rams wideouts Bennett, Hall done for season
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis Rams head coach Jim Haslett
announced on Monday that wide receivers Drew Bennett and Dante Hall will both
be placed on injured reserve soon, ending their seasons.
Bennett has yet to reco
<< Royals retain Olivo
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Kansas City Royals announced Monday
that they and catcher Miguel Olivo have picked up their mutual options for the
2009 season.
The 30-year-old Olivo batted .255 with 12 home runs and 41 RBI in 84 g
<< Rangers name Mike Maddux pitching coach
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Texas Rangers named Mike Maddux pitching
coach on Monday, while also announcing that Andy Hawkins, who finished the
2008 campaign as the Rangers pitching coach, will remain on the staff as
bullpen
Semin, Lundqvist and Weber named top players for October >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington Capitals left wing Alexander Semin,
New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist and Nashville Predators
defenseman Shea Weber were selected as the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the month
of Octo
Detroit QB Orlovsky sprains thumb >>
Allen Park, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Lions could have a new
quarterback under center for Sunday's home game against Jacksonville. Whether
or not that's Daunte Culpepper remains to be seen, but with Dan Orlovsky
sufferi
Miller leads Sabres to blanking of Devils; Brodeur sidelined >>
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Miller posted his second straight shutout
as the Buffalo Sabres topped the Martin Brodeur-less New Jersey Devils, 2-0,
at the Prudential Center.
Miller stopped all 24 shots he faced for the ninth s
Pistons cap busy day with blowout of Bobcats >>
Charlotte, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Richard Hamilton led a short-handed Pistons
squad with 19 points as Detroit notched a 101-83 victory over the Charlotte
Bobcats to cap a busy day for the franchise.
Hamilton was 9-of-18 shooting from
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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