Ellsbury, Red Sox blast Royals
Baseball Betting Lines
08/07/2008 -
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jacoby Ellsbury went 3-for-4 with a three-
run homer and scored twice as the Boston Red Sox routed the Kansas City Royals, 8-2, in the rubber match of a three-game set.
Tim Wakefield (7-8) pitched six strong innings, holding the Royals to two runs
-- one earned -- on four hits with six strikeouts and no walks to get the
win. J.D. Drew went 2-for-4, drove in two and scored, and Jason Bay continued
to play well for his new club, going 2-for-5 and scoring twice for Boston,
which has won five of six and kept pace with the Rays in the AL East.
Tampa and the New York Yankees both also won on Wednesday. The Rays lead the
Red Sox by three games, while the Yankees trail Boston by 3 1/2 games.
The news was not all good for Boston, however, as first baseman Kevin Youkilis
exited in the first inning after he was hit by a pitch on his right hand. The
injury is listed as a right hand contusion, and X-rays were negative.
Luke Hochevar (6-10) was roughed up for five runs on seven hits in 5 2/3
innings to take the loss for Kansas City. Ross Gload went 2-for-4 and drove in
the only two runs for the Royals, who had won three straight and seven of
eight before dropping the final two of this series.
"I've got to stay aggressive in the strike zone and continue to pound it,"
Hochevar said. "I have to get better at that. That's where I'm getting hurt.
That's where it's costing us games."
The game started badly for the Red Sox, as Youkilis took a pitch to his right
hand, and then Mike Lowell lined into a double play as Boston came up empty-
handed despite loading the bases with one out in the first. Sean Casey
replaced Youkilis in the field in the home half of the inning.
The game was scoreless until the Red Sox plated three runs in the fifth. Alex
Cora singled and Drew walked before Jed Lowrie doubled to center, plating both
runners. David Ortiz then grounded a single up the middle, scoring Lowrie for
a 3-0 Red Sox lead.
Gload answered for Kansas City, though, singling in two runs in the home half
of the inning. Drew responded with a two-run single of his own, however, with
two outs in the sixth, to push Boston ahead 5-2.
Ellsbury then capped the rout with his sixth homer of the season. The fly ball
cleared the fence in center, and gave the Red Sox a six-run edge.
"I'll take a great catch any day, but a three-run homer to center, I'll take
that too," Ellsbury said. "The home run was pretty neat."
Game Notes
The Red Sox have won nine of the last 12 meetings between the teams...Billy
Butler went 3-for-4 and scored for Kansas City...Attendance was 24,294.
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Veteran D Hill headed to Switzerland >>
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seven as
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The 2007 college football rules changes that were implemented to shorten games are now history. The NCAA rules committee did what they set out to do; games were cut by an average of 14 minutes per game last season. There were also, on average, 14 fewer plays per game. We’ll get into how that did (or didn’t) affect games in regards to the pointspread a bit later.
While the NCAA rules committee may have had the betterment of the game in mind, they'll now “turn back the clock” for next season. Two key rules have now been overturned by the NCAA committee for the 2007 season, something definitely for the better.
For those of you who may not remember what those rules actually were, let us refresh your memory.
1) The first one was actually starting the clock on a kickoff as soon as the kicker touched the ball rather than waiting until the returner touched it. The problem here was near the end of the half (or game), if the team leading was kicking off, they could milk the clock by intentionally running offsides and then re-kicking. They could run 10-15 seconds off the clock each play while taking just five-yard penalties each time. They could run the clock down and simply cause the half (or game) to end on a kickoff, keeping the opposing offense off the field. In 2007, the clock will now start when the returner touches the ball as it had before last season.
2) The second rule dealt with starting the clock after a change of possession rather than waiting until the ball was snapped. This took a lot of time off the clock throughout the game as teams changed possession, however it caused the most problems late in games (or halves). Rather than huddling up and calling a play, the offensive team would have to rush onto the field as the clock started. This was a definite disadvantage to a team that was trying to come from behind late in the game. This year the clock will start on a change of possession, after the ball is snapped.
How did those rules affect the college game last year and will it make a difference this year when it comes to the pointspread? We commonly heard two theories when it came to these changes. First, it would affect scoring negatively. Second, it would hurt favorites as they would have less time and fewer plays to cover the number.
Did the rules hurt scoring? Yes. It seemed obvious that shortening the game by what amounted to 14 plays would push scoring downward. That was the case last year. Of the 119 Division 1A teams, 69 squads scored fewer points in 2007 than they did in 2005. Just 48 teams had a higher PPG scoring average and two stayed the same. Almost 59 percent of the teams in college football last year had a lower PPG average than they did in 2005. Expect more scoring in 2007 as we revert back to the old rules.
Did the rules hinder favorites from covering the number in 2007? Not really. Last year the favorites posted an overall spread record of 336-350-16 (48.9 percent). The year before, favorites were 316-326-13 (49.2 percent). In 2004, the favorites were 316-339-2 (48.2 percent). In fact, college football favorites have been above 50 percent for the season just once in the last seven years (in 2003). Last year’s numbers fell right in line with where they have been historically.
How about big favorites? The rules must have hurt them? Maybe a little bit. Double-digit favorites last year came in at a 47.8 percent clip compare with an average of just over 50 percent over the last seven years. Since 1980, favorites of -10 or more have covered at exactly a 50 percent clip (measured over 6,716 games).
Even bigger favorites must have struggled? Not really. In fact, it was just the opposite. Favorites of three TD’s or more were 59-54-2 last year (52.2 percent). Since 2000, those same favorites (-21 or higher) hit at 51.3 percent and since 1990 came in a clip of 50.3 percent. Stepping it up a notch to four TD favorites or higher, we actually see they've covered at a much better rate last season than before. Last year, favorites of -28 or more were 31-21-1, or almost 60 percent. Historically, four-TD-or-higher favorites have come in at a 50.7 percent spot since 2000 and only 48.9 percent since 1990. The “perceived” problem with the favorites covering at a reduced rate really never came to fruition.
Bottom line is, there might be some more scoring in 2007, but no real revelations when it comes to finding any pointspread golden nuggets.
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