Matthews' double lifts Angels over Tigers

Baseball Betting Lines

04/22/2009 - Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gary Matthews Jr. doubled in the winning run in the eighth inning and added a sacrifice fly, as Los Angeles held on to defeat the Detroit Tigers, 4-3, in the opener of a three-game series at Angel Stadium.

Torii Hunter clubbed a solo homer and Erick Aybar also drove in a run for the Angels, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Bobby Abreu had two hits and scored a run.

Jered Weaver tossed seven solid innings for the Halos, allowing three runs on seven hits and recording six strikeouts, but came away with a no-decision. Jose Arredondo (1-0) got the win after hurling a scoreless eighth. Brian Fuentes overcame some wildness in the ninth to notch his third save.

Curtis Granderson belted two homers and Carlos Guillen collected three hits for the Tigers, who lost for just the third time in their last nine outings.

Brandon Lyon (1-2) was saddled with the loss after giving up a run on two hits in two innings of work. Armando Galarraga started for Detroit and allowed three runs on seven hits with four strikeouts and three walks over five full frames.

"Armando wasn't in sync for most of the game," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "We just didn't do much with Weaver. We had a chance to win the game, but we didn't get it done."

The home team pulled ahead in the eighth. Hunter drew a walk to begin the inning and took second on a fly out by Kendry Morales. After Mike Napoli grounded out, Matthews delivered with an RBI double that bounced off the wall in center.

Fuentes was called on to protect the 4-3 lead and gave up a single to Guillen to lead off the ninth. However, pinch-runner Josh Anderson was picked off and pinch-hitter Adam Everett went down swinging. The southpaw then hit Gerald Laird with a pitch and walked Brandon Inge before he caught Ramon Santiago staring at strike three.

"It always feels good to get big hits," Matthews said. "I never faced him before. It was a fastball in the middle of the plate and I just try to keep it as simple as possible. My emotions spilled out tonight. It was great to get this win."

Granderson led off the game by launching Weaver's third pitch over the center field wall. It was his 18th career leadoff home run. Detroit scratched out another run in the second inning when Inge singled in Guillen.

The Angels got a run back in the home half and were threatening for more. Morales singled and Napoli walked to open the frame, and a fly ball off the bat of Matthews advanced Morales to third. Aybar then drove in a run with a base hit and Chone Figgins lined a single to load the bases for Howie Kendrick, who grounded into a force out at home. Galarraga then retired Maicer Izturis on a grounder to avoid further damage.

Granderson homered leading off the third and Matthews hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom half.

Hunter went deep with two gone in the fifth inning to tie the game at three.

Game Notes

Angels manager Mike Scioscia was ejected in the sixth by home plate umpire Tim Timmons...The Angels were 6-3 versus Detroit last season...Los Angeles left eight men on base, while the Tigers stranded six.

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.


Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Odds

Will he or won't he?  Now that the Dallas Cowboys have a new head coach in Wade Phillips, the big question will be: Does Terrell Owens stay with the team.

Jerry Jones continues to suggest that Terrell Owens will remain with the team.

"I've said that he's back, he's here, he's under contract," Jones said. "In the interviews I've just been through (to hire a new coach), it was very clear to me how highly he's thought of and how much of an impact he had on our offensive success."

Just to be sure though, Terrell Owens cleared out his locker and removed his name plate.

Terrell Owens was among the Cowboys most productive players this past season, catching 85 passes for 1,180 yards and a league-best 13 touchdowns.

But T.O. is due a $3 million roster bonus in June, then a $5 million salary this season. Cutting him before then would save a lot of money and headaches.

Aside from the questions surrounding Terrell Owens, the oddsmakers at MySportsbook.com have concerns over starting quarterback Tony Romo's state of mind and whether he will remain a starting quarterback.  It is also not known how players will adjust to new head coach, Wade Phillips.

Here are the football odds as seen at MySportsbook.com and subject to change after February 10, 2007 if not locked in prior to that date.
Arizona Cardinals 60-1


Atlanta Falcons 50-1


Baltimore Ravens 15-1


Buffalo Bills 50-1


Carolina Panthers 18-1


Chicago Bears 10-1


Cincinnati Bengals 15-1


Cleveland Browns 100-1


Dallas Cowboys 15-1


Denver Broncos 15-1


Detroit Lions 100-1


Green Bay Packers 50-1


Houston Texans 100-1


Indianapolis Colts 6-1


Jacksonville Jaguars 30-1


Kansas City Chiefs 30-1


Miami Dolphins 40-1


Minnesota Vikings 75-1


New England Patriots 10-1


New Orleans Saints 18-1


New York Giants 20-1


New York Jets 30-1


Oakland Raiders 100-1


Philadelphia Eagles 18-1


Pittsburgh Steelers 10-1


Saint Louis Rams 60-1


San Diego Chargers 6-1


San Francisco 49ers 75-1


Seattle Seahawks 20-1


Tampa Bay Buccanneers 75-1


Tennessee Titans 40-1


Washington Redskins 50-1

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