08/20/2008 - Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Kansas City Royals signed Kip Wells to a contract which will expire at the end of the 2008 season on Tuesday.
The 31-year-old Wells, who was released by the Rockies last week, missed over two months this season due to a blood clot in his right hand.
Wells, who began the season as Colorado's Opening Day starter before being moved to the bullpen, came into play Tuesday with a 1-2 record and a 5.27 earned run average in 15 games this season.
Before Tuesday, the 10-year veteran was 65-93 with a 4.64 ERA in 246 big league games since his debut with the Chicago White Sox in 1999. He has also taken the mound for the Pirates, Rangers and Cardinals.
Wells pitched in the Royals' 9-4 loss to the Indians on Tuesday, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks in 1 1/3 innings.
KC optioned pitcher Josh Newman to Triple-A Omaha to make room on the roster for Wells.
<< Royals starter Hochevar leaves games
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Luke
Hochevar left Tuesday's 9-4 loss to the Cleveland Indians with tightness in
his right ribcage.
Hochevar hurled five innings but did not return for the six
<< Joyce homers twice as Tigers rout Rangers
Arlington, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Matt Joyce hit a pair of homers and finished
with four runs driven in, as the Detroit Tigers used a nine-run seventh to
crush the Texas Rangers, 11-3, in the middle contest of a three-game set.
Edgar Re
<< Snell leads Pirates over Cards
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ian Snell mastered the Cardinal bats for
seven shutout innings and Ryan Doumit had three hits and an RBI, as Pittsburgh
took the opener of an abbreviated two-game series from St. Louis, 4-1.
Snell (5-10
<< Houston's Blum makes Brewers glum with three-run blast
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Geoff Blum's sixth-inning three-run home run
made the difference, as the Houston Astros beat Milwaukee, 5-2, in the second
of three games with the Brewers.
Brian Moehler (9-4) took the win after limiting
Padres activate Tomko from DL >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres activated pitcher
Brett Tomko off the 15-day disabled list Tuesday.
Tomko had been sidelined with a strained right elbow since July 1.
The journeyman right-hander made two
Bartoli, Mauresmo, Szavay post wins in New Haven >>
New Haven, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Third-seeded Frenchwoman Marion Bartoli,
fourth-seeded Hungarian Agnes Szavay and former world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo of
France were all winners Tuesday at the $600,000 Pilot Pen Tennis event, a
final h
This Week in Auto Racing August 20 - 24 >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - NASCAR roars into "Thunder Valley" as all
three of its national touring series race under the lights at Bristol Motor
Speedway in Tennessee this week. The IndyCar Series heads to Northern
Califor
Nolasco's near no-no allow Marlins to spear Giants >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ricky Nolasco was dominant, fanning 11 in
a two-hit shutout as the Marlins cruised to a 6-0 win over the San Francisco
Giants in the opener of a three-game set.
Nolasco (12-7) walked one in his first
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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