Moyer, bullpen help Phils take down Mets

Baseball Betting Lines

07/04/2009 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jamie Moyer pitched into the seventh inning and the Philadelphia bullpen did the rest, helping the Phillies upend the Mets 4-1 in the second of a three-game series between the NL East rivals.

Moyer (7-6), in his 600th career start, picked up win No. 253, tying him with Carl Hubbell for 10th all-time among left-handers. The veteran gave up a run on five hits and a walk in 6 1/3 innings of work.

Jimmy Rollins had a two-run double and Shane Victorino went 3-for-5 with an RBI for the Phillies, who have taken the first two games of this set on the heels of a three-game losing streak.

Fernando Nieve (3-2) lasted 5 2/3 frames for New York, giving up four runs -- three earned -- on six hits and six walks. The starter also had the Mets' only RBI in the club's seventh loss in nine games. Alex Cora recorded half of the team's six hits.

The Phillies loaded the bases with one out in the first frame and opened the game's scoring on Jayson Werth's sacrifice fly.

The hosts left the bags filled in the third but got two runs across an inning later when Rollins doubled down the right-field line to bring home Pedro Feliz and Paul Bako, who singled and walked, respectively.

Nick Evans started a rally for New York with a two-out single in the fifth. Omir Santos followed with a base hit and Nieve singled to left, plating the Mets' first tally. Chase Utley made a back-handed stop on a ball hit up the middle by Luis Castillo to end the inning with Philadelphia still ahead, 3-1.

The Mets handed the run back in the sixth. Bako worked a one-out walk after David Wright couldn't come down with his foul ball down the third-base side. Nieve was pulled after walking Rollins with two away, and Pat Misch appeared to get out of the inning unscathed by getting Victorino to pop up behind the plate.

But Santos dropped the sure out, and Victorino made the Mets pay by later singling up the middle, with Bako crossing the plate after Ryan Church's throw home was well off the mark.

Moyer and three Phillies relievers combined to maintain the three-run lead through the seventh and eighth frames, and Brad Lidge worked a perfect ninth for his 15th save of the season.

Game Notes

Despite the win, the Phillies are a disastrous 15-22 on the year at Citizens Bank Park...Moyer has won three straight starts...The Phillies lead the season series 5-4 after losing 11 of the 18 meetings a year ago...The Mets' three through six hitters combined to go hitless in 16 at-bats...Feliz had three hits for the Phillies, who left 10 on base.

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Sportsbooks to bet on football

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.