Rockies send flailing Padres to ninth straight loss

Baseball Betting Lines

09/04/2010 - San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Todd Helton and Carlos Gonzalez both knocked in two runs to help the Colorado Rockies send the spiraling San Diego Padres to a ninth straight loss with a 6-2 win at PETCO Park.

Troy Tulowitzki had two hits and scored two runs for the Rockies, who have won five of their last eight games. Jason Hammel (10-7) gave up two runs on six hits in 6 2/3 innings.

Adrian Gonzalez and Nick Hundley both doubled home a run for San Diego, while Jon Garland (13-10) allowed three runs -- two earned -- on seven hits and three walks over 4 2/3 innings.

The Padres are now just 2 1/2 games ahead of second-place San Francisco in the National League West. The Giants play in Los Angeles later Saturday.

Colorado climbed to within 5 1/2 games of San Diego in the division standings.

Down 3-1, the Padres picked up a run in the seventh. Chase Headley singled to open the inning, took second on a groundout and scored on Hundley's double to right field.

Hammel was lifted in favor of Joe Beimel after pinch-hitter Oscar Salazar drew a two-out walk. Beimel walked the only batter he faced in pinch-hitter Yorvit Torrealba to load the bases. Esmil Rogers came on and struck out David Eckstein to preserve the one-run lead.

The Rockies put the game away with a three-spot against San Diego reliever Luke Gregerson in the eighth. Gregerson retired two of the first three batters, but the third out proved to be elusive.

Clint Barmes walked to put runners on the corners, then Dexter Fowler reached on an infield single to plate Ryan Spilborghs. Carlos Gonzalez followed with a two-run double to right to give Colorado a 6-2 lead.

Adrian Gonzalez staked San Diego to an early lead with an RBI double in the first, but the Rockies moved ahead in the third.

Carlos Gonzalez drew a two-out walk and Tulowitzki doubled before Helton plated both runners with a base hit to right.

Colorado loaded the bases with two outs in fifth, and increased its lead to 3-1 when Spilborghs reached on a fielding error by shortstop Everth Cabrera.

Game Notes

The Padres' losing streak is the longest since the club also dropped nine straight from May 14-23, 2003...Carlos Gonzalez extended his hitting streak to 12 games...Adrian Gonzalez has hit safely in 15 of his last 16 games...Garland struck out seven batters...The Rockies are now 10-4 against San Diego this season.

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Super Bowl 2009 Betting

Super Bowl 2009 Betting propositions

Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.

Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.

Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.

If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.

Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.

By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.

In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.

So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.

While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.

There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.

In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:

SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.

XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.

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