J.D. Drew opts out of contract
Baseball Betting Lines
11/10/2006 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Oft-injured outfielder J.D. Drew has decided to opt out of the final three years of his contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers to become a free agent.
The move means that Drew is forfeiting an estimated $33 million in the hopes of signing a new contract with another ball club.
Drew, 30, is a career .286 hitter with 162 home runs and 509 RBI in nine seasons with St. Louis, Atlanta and Los Angeles. He played in a career-high 146 games last season and finished with 20 homers and 100 RBI.
Injuries have been a regular part of his MLB tenure, though, and the lefty played in just 72 games in 2005 because of a broken wrist.
It looks like the Dodgers will now have to replace two of their big bats, as free agent Nomar Garciaparra is also expected to sign on with a different team.
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Erik Cole's hat trick and Cam Ward's 20 saves led the Carolina Hurricanes to a dominant 5-0 win over the Washington Capitals at the RBC Center. Eric Staal collected a goal and one assist, Scott Wal
<< Devils edge Blackhawks in shootout
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Zach Parise and Brian Gionta both
scored in the shootout and Marty Brodeur finished with 23 saves, as the New
Jersey Devils captured their third consecutive win with a 2-1 victory over the
Chicago
<< Antropov leads Maple Leafs past Bruins
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Nik Antropov had two goals and an assist to lead
the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 6-4 victory over the Boston Bruins at TD
Banknorth Garden.
Alexei Ponikarovsky had a goal and two assists and Bryan McCab
<< Fulmer names Crompton starting QB
Knoxville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tennessee head coach Phil Fulmer said
Thursday that redshirt freshman quarterback Jonathan Crompton will start on
Saturday against Arkansas.
Crompton replaced starter Eric Ainge, who aggravated an
<< Glavine and Wells file for free agency
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Veteran left-handers Tom Glavine and David
Wells were the lone players to file for free agency on Thursday.
Glavine went 15-7 with a 3.82 ERA in 32 starts this season, his fourth with
the Mets after spe
Oakland, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Baron Davis poured in 36 points and dished out nine assists as Golden State beat New Orleans/Oklahoma City, 121-116, to hand the Hornets their first loss of the season. Monta Ellis had 21 points before
Texas begins season with rout of Alcorn State >>
Austin, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Durant scored 20 points as the 21st-
ranked Texas Longhorns opened their season with a 103-44 annihilation of
Alcorn State in the opening round of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic.
A.J. Abr
Randhawa still ahead; Woods only two back >>
Shanghai, China (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - India's Jyoti Randhawa stayed atop the
leaderboard after two rounds of the HSBC Champions Tournament thanks to a
second-round, three-under 69, but Tiger Woods is lurking.
The No. 1 player in the
Sliding Oilers visit Blue Jackets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Oilers hope to halt a four-game slide tonight
when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.
Edmonton is 0-3-1 in its last four, including a 3-0 setback versus Detroit on
Wednesday. Henrik Zett
Magic, Pacers battle at Conseco Fieldhouse >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The streaking Orlando Magic will open a three-game road
trip tonight against the Indiana Pacers at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Orlando has won back-to-back games, including Wednesday's 88-87 victory over
the Seattle SuperSonics
NFL Football Betting
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting.