Bergesen strong on mound as Orioles prevail over Mariners

Baseball Betting Lines

05/12/2010 - Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brad Bergesen surrendered a run in 7 2/3 innings and Miguel Tejada drove in two runs, as the Baltimore Orioles earned a 5-2 win over the Seattle Mariners, in the second test of a three-game set at Camden Yards.

Bergesen (3-2) scattered five hits with two walks and three strikeouts to break the Orioles' three-game skid. Alfredo Simon picked up his fourth save.

Luke Scott blasted a home run in the win, while Adam Jones went 3-for-4 with an RBI.

Ryan Langerhans finished 2-for-3 and Ken Griffey Jr. drove in a run for the Mariners, who had won two straight coming in.

Ryan Rowland-Smith (0-3) remained winless after allowing three runs on seven hits in three-plus frames.

In the ninth, Koji Uehara allowed a Matt Tuiasosopo lead-off walk and a Langerhans single before he was pulled for Simon, who struck out Josh Wilson for the first out. Pinch-hitter Griffey then plated a run on a sacrifice fly. Langerhans then took second on defensive indifference, but Simon got Michael Saunders to fly out to center, ending the game.

Baltimore struck first in the third. Corey Patterson led off with a single to right and moved to second on Jones' base hit. After Nick Markakis struck out, Tejada doubled in both runners for a 2-0 lead. Tejada was then thrown out trying to score by Langerhans on Matt Wieters' single.

Scott made it 3-0 in the fourth with a lead-off bomb to right. Scott then doubled to start the sixth off Ian Snell, moved to third on Garrett Atkins' double and scored on Cesar Izturis' sac fly. Patterson then flied out for the second out, but Jones made it 5-0 with an RBI base hit to right-center.

Seattle pulled within 5-1 on a two-out RBI single from Chone Figgins in the eighth. Ichiro Suzuki scored on the play after reaching on an infield single. Will Ohman entered and gave up a Casey Kotchman single to make way for Uehara, who retired Jose Lopez on a long fly ball that was caught inches in front of the left field fence.

Game Notes

The game started after a 24-minute rain delay...Seattle has prevailed in nine of the past 13 overall meetings in the series...Suzuki has recorded a hit in 32 of last 34 games against Baltimore. He went 2-for-4...Kotchman has played 214 consecutive games without committing an error at first base...The Orioles selected the contract of outfielder Corey Patterson from Triple-A Norfolk. In order to make room for Patterson on the 40-man roster, the Orioles transferred infielder Brian Roberts from the 15-day to the 60-day disabled list (abdominal strain). Outfielder Nolan Reimold was optioned to Norfolk to make room on the 25-man roster...Seattle went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position...Tejada finished 2-for-4.

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Betting Football

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.