First-place Phils close out hard-fought set with Marlins

Baseball Betting Lines

09/08/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It wasn't easy, but the Philadelphia Phillies now lead the National League East for the first time since late May.

Cole Hamels will try to keep his squad there as he aims for a third straight victory in the finale of a four-game series with the Florida Marlins tonight at Citizens Bank Park.

The Phillies posted an 8-7 victory over the Marlins last night, and coupled with a Braves loss to Pittsburgh, moved a half-game past Atlanta for the top spot in the division. Philadelphia hadn't owned sole possession of first place since May 30.

Philadelphia trailed Atlanta by seven games for that spot on July 21, but have gone an MLB-leading 32-14 since.

"It's always good to be in first place. That's the only way to live," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said.

The Phillies built a 7-4 advantage over the Marlins thanks in part to homers from Raul Ibanez, Shane Victorino and Ryan Howard, but a sloppy top of the eighth inning allowed the Marlins to tie things.

However, Victorino singled to start the home half of the eighth, stole second and then scored on Placido Polanco's single with two outs.

Ryan Madson, who allowed the game-tying run to score on a wild pitch in the eighth, locked down the final three outs for the win, the Phillies' seventh in nine games.

Mike Stanton led off Florida's three-run eighth with a homer, his third in as many games, while Brad Davis made it a one-run game when he scored on Jayson Werth's throwing error. Emilio Bonifacio later tied things on Madson's wild pitch after previously getting to third on a balk.

Florida has lost two straight since winning five of six.

"We came back. They came back. It was one of those games," Marlins manager Edwin Rodriguez said.

Hamels comes into this start on a bit of a roll. The 26-year-old has won back- to-back starts and thrown 15 scoreless innings since an 0-3 stretch over his previous eight starts that featured a solid 2.83 ERA.

Hamels hurled eight innings of four-hit ball to beat San Diego on Aug. 29, then limited Milwaukee to three hits and three walks over seven frames on Friday, striking out seven to improve to 9-10 with a 3.18 ERA this year.

The southpaw, who has allowed one run or fewer in seven of his last 11 starts, lost his only previous start this year versus the Marlins, back on April 18, despite allowing just two runs over eight innings. He is 2-7 with a 4.26 ERA lifetime versus them.

The Marlins go with lefty Andrew Miller, who has allowed one run or less in three of his four outings this year, including two starts. He beat the Braves on Friday, holding them to just a run on seven hits and three walks over five innings while striking out six.

The 25-year-old picked up his first win since July 4, 2009 and is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA this year. He is 0-3 with a 5.16 ERA in 10 career games versus the Phillies, including five starts.

The Phillies have won five of their last six over the Marlins and lead the season series 9-5.

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MySportsbook.com: NFL draft - The NFC South


In part two of MySportsbook.com’s draft preview, we’ll take a look at a division that was extremely disappointing last season: the NFC South.  Many “experts” predicted the Panthers to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, of course they could not even make the playoffs in an extremely weak NFC.  The Saints definitely made up for the disappointing seasons of their NFC South brethren by exploding out of no where en route to the NFC Championship game.  For the avid NFL gambler, it is imperative to pay attention to the NFL draft.  Although free agency gets a ton of publicity, the successful franchises build their teams around the draft.

1. New Orleans Saints
Who would have thought this time last year that the Saints would be the favorites to win the NFC South for the 2007 campaign?  New Orleans is loaded with firepower on the offensive side of the ball but with the exodus of Joe Horn they will most likely look to draft a WR on Day 1.  Despite having the NFL’s 3rd ranked pass defense last season, the Saints will most likely upgrade their CB’s with one of their first two picks. Other possibilities for the Saints will be TE and DT.  Because of where they will be selecting (27th), the Saints could go the “best available player” route which could net a LB.

Key additions: Eric Johnson TE, Troy Evans LB, David Patten WR
Key loses: Joe Horn WR,
Team needs: CB, WR, TE, LB, DT
Possible draftees: Aaron Ross CB Texas, Darrelle Revis CB Pitt, Ted Ginn Jr. WR OSU, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Chris Houston CB Arkansas, Greg Olsen TE Miami

2. Carolina Panthers
Carolina was one of the biggest disappointments in the NFL last season.  With the signing of David Carr, expect the very first quarterback controversy to come out of Carolina if Jake Delhomme doesn’t rebound quickly from an average 2007 season. With veteran safety Mike Minter getting up there in age, they will look to draft a safety on Day 1 but probably not in the first round.  LB is another need with the loss of Chris Draft to go along with Dan Morgan’s concussion problems.  If TE Greg Olsen is still on the board, he might be too good to pass up despite their needs on the defensive side of the ball.

Key additions: David Carr QB
Key loses: Chris Draft LB
Team needs: LB, TE, S, OT
Possible draftees: Greg Olsen TE Miami, Patrick Willis LB Ole Miss, Paul Posluszny LB PSU, Levi Brown OT PSU

3. Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons were another NFC South team to have a disappointing 2007 season.  The Falcons have been plenty busy during the off season with plenty of players coming and going including a new head coach.  The Falcons were able to improve their draft position with the trade of coveted backup QB Matt Schaub.  High on the list of Day 1 needs will be a defensive end to replace Patrick Kerney and a hard hitting safety since Lawyer Milloy is nearing the end of his career.  With an additional 2nd round pick, the Falcons could attempt to trade up to acquire local product WR Calvin Johnson. 

Key additions: Joey Harrington QB, Toniu Fonoti OG, Joe Horn WR
Key loses: Justin Griffen RB, Patrick Kerney DE, Matt Lehr OG, Ashley Lelie WR, Matt Schaub QB
Team needs: DE, S, OT, WR, DT
Possible draftees: LaRon Landry S LSU, Amobi Okoye DT Louisville, Levi Brown OT PSU, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas, Alan Branch DT Michigan

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Age really caught up to the Bucs last season.  The Bucs still have plenty of household names on defense in Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice and Derrick Brooks but the one thing those three have in common is unfortunately age.  It is imperative for the Bucs to get much younger, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Despite having bigger needs on the defensive side of the ball, WR Calvin Johnson is the most likely pick if he is still available when the Bucs pick at the four spot.  This would suit Bucs’ faithful just fine as Johnson is widely considered the top talent in the draft and it is a position of need for the Bucs.

Key additions: Jeff Garcia QB, Kevin Carter DE, Torrie Cox CB, Cato June LB
Key loses: Dewayne White DE, Sean Mahan OG
Team needs: WR, LB, DE, CB (Youth on defense!)
Possible draftees: Calvin Johnson WR Georgia Tech, Gains Adams DE Clemson, Jamaal Anderson DE Arkansas

It is never too early to start betting on the NFL. Log on to MySportsbook.com to checkout all of the NFL futures for the upcoming season.  On the clock: the NFC North

Odds to win the NFC South:
New Orleans Saints 8-5
Carolina Panthers 2-1
Atlanta Falcons 12-5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9-2    

Odds to win the NFC:
New Orleans Saints 13-2
Carolina Panthers 7-1
Atlanta Falcons 20-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25-1

Odds to win the Super Bowl:
New Orleans Saints 18-1
Carolina Panthers 20-1
Atlanta Falcons 50-1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75-1

To visit this sportsbook get to MySportsbook.com for all your online sportsbook needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.