Marlins rout Reds behind Uggla's offense

Baseball Betting Lines

07/21/2007 - Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Uggla went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBI as the Florida Marlins pounded the Cincinnati Reds, 10-2, in game two of a four-game series.

Scott Olsen (8-7), who had served a two-game suspension laid down by Marlins general manager Fredi Gonzalez for insubordination and conduct detrimental to the team, got the win as he gave up just two runs on four hits in seven innings.

The penalty stemmed from an incident occurring after Olsen argued with the manager when he was lifted from his last start, a 5-3 defeat of Washington on July 15.

Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run home run and drove in three, Miguel Olivo added a two-run homer and Hanley Ramirez had three hits and drove in a pair for the Marlins, who had lost three of four.

Jeff Conine and Brandon Phillips each hit homers while Kyle Lohse (5-12) got pounded for seven runs -- four earned -- on eight hits in 6 2/3 innings for the Reds, who had a season-high four-game winning streak stopped.

The Marlins took a 3-0 lead in the third. Alfredo Amezaga started off the inning with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt from Olsen. Ramirez then brought home Amezaga with a double to right. After Uggla lined out, Cabrera blasted a shot into the left field stands.

The Reds got one back in the fourth as Conine hit a two-out home run to left and make it a 3-1 game.

Uggla gave Florida a 4-1 lead in the sixth as he led off the frame with his 18th homer of the year. Cabrera followed with a shot to right that Norris Hopper appeared to have a beat on, but a fan reached over the wall and grabbed the ball. The umpires ruled Cabrera out on the play.

Cincinnati got the run back in the seventh as Phillips hit a home run into the left field stands.

Florida, though, plated three more runners in the bottom of the seventh for a five-run lead. Uggla punched a two-out double to center to score Olivo and Amezaga. After Jared Burton took the mound, Cabrera punched a single to center to plate Uggla for a 7-2 advantage.

The Marlins continued to punish Cincinnati's pitchers in the eighth inning. Olivo hit a two-run home run, a batter later Todd Linden hit a triple off the center field wall and Ramirez followed with an RBI double.

Game Notes

Florida outhit Cincinnati, 12-6...Before the game, the Reds activated pitcher Bill Bray from the 15-day disabled list and optioned him to Triple-A Louisville...Florida outrighted pitcher Wes Obermueller to Triple-A Albuquerque...Cabrera has 69 RBI on the season...Attendance was 15,313.

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Football Betting

NFL Football Betting Online

The San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago.

Thursday, August 21

NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37

NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007
KEY NFL BETTING TREND: SF has lost its last seven SU on pre-season road

In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points.

Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season):

* SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU
* SF has covered three of its last 11 games
* SF has lost six of its last seven road games SU
* SF has covered one of its last seven road games
* CHI has covered five of its last eight games
* CHI has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* CHI has covered four of its last 13 home games
* SF has lost its last seven pre-season road games SU
* CHI has covered two of its last seven home pre-season games

Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp.

Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled.

Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too.

That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm.

Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds.

CHICAGO -3 (-120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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