Pirates try for more success against Astros

Baseball Betting Lines

07/20/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pittsburgh hasn't had much success this season, except for when it plays against Houston. The struggling Pirates shoot for their seventh straight win versus the Astros this year in the opener of a three-game series at PNC Park.

The Pirates got their season off to a promising start when they swept the Astros in Houston from April 2-4 to open the season. The club then hosted Houston from April 24-26 and took all three games of that set as well.

It was a quick turnaround for a Pirates team that lost 13 of the 16 games they played against the Astros last season. That included seven losses in 10 home games in 2006.

While the Pirates will be trying to extend a winning streak against the Astros, they will also be attempting to halt a six-game losing streak on the season. The club comes into this series having been swept in three games at Atlanta and then in three games at home against Colorado.

Against the Rockies on Wednesday, Adam LaRoche and Freddy Sanchez both homered in a 5-3 setback. Ian Snell (7-7) was tagged for five runs on five hits with six strikeouts and a walk in six innings.

Tom Gorzelanny will shoot for his fourth straight winning decision with tonight's start for Pittsburgh. The left-hander is 3-0 over his last five outings and received a no-decision on Saturday at Atlanta. On that day, Gorzelanny allowed four runs on six hits with seven strikeouts over six innings of work.

The 25-year-old is 9-4 on the year with a solid 3.24 earned run average.

Gorzelanny is just 1-3 in four career starts against the Astros while pitching to a 4.84 ERA against them. His lone victory versus Houston came this season in the left-hander's first start of the year on April 4.

Houston will send Roy Oswalt to the hill tonight. Oswalt is coming off a horrid outing that saw him allow a career-high eight earned runs (nine total) on 10 hits over 5 1/3 innings in a loss to the Cubs on July 14. The setback dropped the right-hander to 8-6 on the season with a 3.91 ERA.

The All-Star then made a relief appearance on July 17, recording the final out of the seventh inning of his club's 4-2 win over the Nationals.

The 29-year-old is 10-5 with a 2.67 ERA in 20 games (19 starts) lifetime against Pittsburgh. That includes a no-decision against the club on April 2 of this season.

Houston has lost five of its last six games and sits dead last in the NL Central. However, the club is only a half-game back of Pittsburgh for fifth place in the standings.

The Astros just lost two of three to Washington, including a 7-6 setback on Wednesday that saw Houston plate four runs in the seventh inning to get within one, only to fall short.

Mike Lamb and Luke Scott each homered and scored twice in the setback, while Jason Jennings (1-6) was tagged for seven runs on eight hits through five innings.

The loss dropped Houston to 1-5 on its current nine-game road swing.

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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.


Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value

If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture.  Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).

For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot.  The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.

TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the  drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.

"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,'  it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."

"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.

Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash.  Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win. 

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.