Stuttgart signs Audel from Valenciennes
Soccer Betting Lines
08/10/2010 - Stuttgart, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stuttgart acquired Johan Audel from French club Valenciennes and signed him to a four-year deal.
Audel, a striker/winger, scored seven goals in 26 Ligue 1 appearances one year ago for Valenciennes.
"Johan has the qualities that we are looking for. We're confident he'll find his feet very quickly at VfB and in the Bundesliga," said Stuttgart sporting director Fredi Bobic.
Mainz, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mainz sealed the signing of veteran goalie Martin Pieckenhagen on a one-year contract Tuesday. Pieckenhagen spent the last five years at the first-team goalie at Dutch club Heracles. Mainz signed Piecken
<< Federer, Soderling, Berdych move on; Roddick pulls out in Toronto
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Third seed Roger Federer, French Open finalist
Robin Soderling and Wimbledon runner-up Tomas Berdych were second-round
winners at the $2.43 million Roger Cup, an ATP Masters event. Former champion
Andy Roddick pul
<< Celtics waive Wallace, paves way for retirement
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Celtics on Tuesday waived forward
Rasheed Wallace, paving the way for the veteran's retirement.
Wallace, who will turn 36 in September, had two years remaining on his three-
year, $18.9 million c
<< Real wants for more road success at Philadelphia
Chester, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Salt Lake has just one loss in its last 14
matches and the defending Major League Soccer Cup champions could overtake the
Los Angeles Galaxy in the Western Conference with two wins this week.
L.A. seized c
<< N.Y., Henry set for huge match against Toronto
Harrison, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Red Bull New York should have Thierry Henry in
the starting lineup Wednesday against Toronto FC, but Rafael Marquez will miss
the Major League Soccer match while on international duty with Mexico.
New York's t
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones left Tuesday's game against Houston in the bottom of the sixth with an apparent leg injury. Jones was hurt making a spectacular defensive play to throw out Hunter Penc
Hellickson impressive again, Rays shut down Tigers >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jeremy Hellickson tossed seven scoreless
innings in his second major league start, as the Tampa Bay Rays dominated the
Detroit Tigers, 8-0, in the second test of a three-game series at Comerica
Park.
Father of Indiana player killed in plane crash >>
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) -Indiana tight end Paul Phillips has left campus to be with his family after his father was killed and one of his brothers survived the Alaskan plane crash that killed ex-U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens.Bill Phillips Sr. was one of five
Pelfrey strong on mound as Mets edge Rockies >>
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Struggling right-hander Mike Pelfrey tossed
seven scoreless innings and Jose Reyes knocked in the only run of the game
with a sacrifice fly in the seventh, as the New York Mets beat Ubaldo Jimenez
and th
Marlins dominate Strasburg, Nationals >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dan Uggla homered and drove in four runs,
and the Florida Marlins pounded Stephen Strasburg in the rookie's return to
the rotation, part of an 8-2 win over the Nationals.
Hanley Ramirez doubled three
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Horse Betting
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.