Event of the day . . .

The New York Giants aren’t the Vegas favorites to win the Super Bowl this season, but of course they weren’t considered the team to beat last season either yet they finished the campaign with a big trophy. Eli Manning and company will begin their title defense on Thursday night by playing host to the Washington Redskins (7:00pm ET, NBC).

New York has been pegged as a 4-point home favorite in this contest, with the game’s total sitting at 41 points. However, the Giants will be without two key defensive players from their Super Bowl-winning team, as DL Michael Strahan retired during the offseason and DL Osi Umenyiora is out for the season after suffering a major knee injury.

The Redskins could also be without a top defensive player, as DL Jason Taylor has been limited in practice this week because of a bruised knee. WR Antwaan Randle El has a broken bone in his hand but is still expected to play for Washington on Thursday night. QB Jason Campbell has recovered from his hamstring injury and will start.

Non-event of the day . . .

The Pirates and Reds just keeping sending starting pitchers out to the mound that make OVER bettors salivate. In the finale of their three-game series on Wednesday afternoon the Reds are scheduled to start Josh Fogg (2-7, 7.29 ERA), while the Pirates will hand the ball to Tom Gorzelanny (6-9, 6.61 ERA). Neither pitcher got a victory in August.

Also on the schedule . . .

There are only two other NL contests on a light Thursday schedule: Washington at Atlanta, and San Diego at Milwaukee. Over in the AL there’s a little more action, with four games on tap. Scott Kazmir (10-6, 3.13 ERA) will look to pitch the Rays past the Yankees in the most notable game in the Junior Circuit. As well, it’ll be the Angels at Detroit, Minnesota at Toronto, and Oakland at Kansas City.

The PGA Tour stages its third of four FedExCup playoff tournaments starting on Thursday, with the red-hot Vijay Singh pegged as the 6/1 favorite to win the BMW Championship. Sergio Garcia is next on the list at 7/1, followed by Phil Mickelson at 8/1, Jim Furyk at 12/1, and each of Ernie Els, Mike Weir, and Padraig Harrington at 15/1.

Rounding out the Thursday schedule are stand-alone games in both college football and the WNBA. On the gridiron it’ll be South Carolina at Vanderbilt. On the hardwood the Chicago Sky (winners of three in a row) will get a visit from the Seattle Storm.

News from the wire . . .

The Dodgers activated outfielder Andruw Jones from the disabled list, but it’s unlikely that he’ll see much time on the field in September . . . the Yankees activated pitcher Joba Chamberlain from the DL as well, and he’ll work out of the team’s bullpen for the rest of the season . . . embattled defenseman Bryan McCabe was finally dealt from the Leafs to the Panthers along with a draft pick for defenseman Mike Van Ryn.

Peek at the future . . .

The Phillies and the Mets begin a series in New  York on Friday night, with Brett Myers (8-10, 4.40 ERA) taking on Mike Pelfrey (13-8, 3.66 ERA) . . . there is a single college football game on the Friday schedule as well, with Navy taking on Ball State (-7.5) . . . Kyle Busch is the 9/2 Vegas favorite to win the Chevy Rock & Roll 400 at Richmond International Raceway on Saturday, with Jimmie Johnson just behind at 6/1 odds.

By T.J. Kendrick

New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays - Thursday, September 4 at 7:10 p.m. ET

Tampa Bay continues its winning ways, and much of the credit should be heaped on Scott Kazmir (10-6). The left-hander has truly come into his own this year, often dominating the competition. His 3.13 ERA is excellent and he’s over-powered hitters this season, fanning 140 batters in 126.1 innings.

Considering Kazmir’s career against New York, you have to like the Rays odds. In 10 starts (plus one relief appearance) he’s 3-4 with a glistening 2.76 ERA. He’s been especially sharp this season, going 1-1 with a 1.64 ERA in two starts. Kazmir has struck out 12 Yankees in 11 innings of work in 2008.

Offensively, Tampa Bay leaves a little to be desired. Calling the offense “bad” might be a bit much, but it certainly could be better. Either way, it seems to get the job done. But with a little more pop, MLB odds would likely always favor the Rays.

The Yankees are fighting for their playoff lives, so it’s a little disheartening to send Darrell Rasner (5-9) to the mound every five days. Rasner owns an ugly 5.08 ERA and New York has dropped four of his last five starts. The Yanks would take even a mediocre effort from him.

Rasner has faced Tampa Bay just twice in his career, both relief appearances. He faired ok, giving up a run and two hits in 4.1 innings. He did manage to whiff five batters during those games, however. Still, that’s not enough of a track record to make bettors feel better about Yankees odds.

New York hasn’t lived up to its “Bronx Bomber” nickname this season. After finishing first in American League run scoring last year, the Yankees are more middle-of-the-pack in 2008. Changes can be expected in the offseason, but that won’t help this year. Still, they have more juice than Tampa Bay.

The Rays have dropped seven of their last 10 match-ups against New York, but that shouldn’t scare you away from betting on Tampa Bay. Kamir is too good and Rasner is too bad.

For more props and odds, visit BetOnline.com. BetOnline.com is a top rated online sportsbook providing reliable sports betting to millions of online betting customers. BetOnline.com also offers MLB football betting, live MLB betting lines, props and futures.

Bowyer ended up 10th in the Pepsi 500 at Auto Club Speedway last weekend, which kept him in 12th place in the driver standings. David Ragan was 13th at Auto Club, and he sits 17 points behind Bowyer in the standings. Kasey Kahne was eighth in the Pepsi 500, and he trails Bowyer by 48 points with one race left before the Chase begins.

Jimmie Johnson visited victory lane at Auto Club, beating Greg Biffle and Denny Hamlin across the finish line. Kevin Harvick and Matt Kenseth rounded out the day’s Top 5, while Carl Edwards, Kyle Busch, Kahne, David Reutimann, and Bowyer made up the rest of the Top 10.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. wound up in 11th place at the Pepsi 500. Jeff Gordon was 15th, Jeff Burton was 17th, and Tony Stewart had to settle for a 22nd-place result.

That win was Johnson’s third of the season, and he trails just Busch (eight) and Edwards (six) on the victories list. Busch, Edwards, Johnson, Earnhardt Jr., Burton, Biffle, and Harvick have all basically locked up Chase spots. Stewart, Kenseth, Gordon, Hamlin, and Bowyer need to fend off Ragan and Kahne on the track this weekend.

Bowyer won the Crown Royal 400 at Richmond back in May, while Johnson took the checkered flag in both Richmond races last season. Earnhardt Jr. and Stewart each have three Cup wins at that track in their careers, while Gordon has two. Harvick, Kahne, Kenseth, Burton, Kurt Busch, and Ryan Newman have one win apiece.

After racing at Richmond the drivers of the Sprint Cup Series will begin their playoffs at the Sylvania 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. That race will take place just after 1:00pm ET on Sunday, September 14.

Event of the day . . .

Daisuke Matsuzaka (16-2, 2.82 ERA) is coming off his best outing of the season, holding the White Sox scoreless on two hits and two walks over eight innings of work in an August 29 win. The righthander also fanned seven in that contest. Matsuzaka has faced Baltimore twice over the past month and a half, winning both of those games.

The Orioles were expected to counter with Jeremy Guthrie (10-11, 3.57 ERA) in the series finale on Wednesday afternoon. However, Guthrie has been hit hard in each of his last two outings (giving up a combined 12 earned runs on 14 hits over 9 2-3 innings of work), and instead the team will skip his turn in the rotation this time around. Reliever Lance Cormier (2-3, 4.61 ERA) is the top candidate to start in place of Guthrie.

Baltimore has outfielder Adam Jones back in their lineup; he was activated from the disabled list on Monday, and homered in his first at-bat of that contest. Boston outfielder J.D. Drew (herniated disk in back) could return to the lineup at some point this week.

Non-event of the day . . .

It’s been a long time since Barry Zito was considered a top pitcher, and he’ll be looking to avoid his 17th loss of the season on Wednesday when the Giants play in Colorado. Zito (8-16, 5.62 ERA) was pounded for seven earned runs over just 3 1-3 innings in his last start (against the Reds). The Rockies’ starter will be Aaron Cook (16-8, 3.88 ERA).

Also on the schedule . . .

Carl Pavano (2-0, 3.27 ERA) will be looking to keep that perfect record intact when he takes the mound for the Yankees in Tampa Bay on Wednesday night. Other games on the American League schedule: the White Sox at Cleveland, Seattle at Texas, the Angels at Detroit, Minnesota at Toronto, and Oakland at Kansas City.

Ryan Dempster (15-5, 2.95 ERA) will get the ball for the Cubs when they host Houston and Randy Wolf (8-11, 4.73 ERA) on Wednesday. Rounding out the National League slate: Atlanta at Florida, the Mets at Milwaukee, St. Louis at Arizona, Philadelphia at Washington, Pittsburgh at Cincinnati, and San Diego at the Dodgers.

Finally, there’s one WNBA game on the Wednesday schedule: Minnesota at Phoenix.

News from the wire . . .

Running back Rudi Johnson will look to get his career back on track in Detroit, as the Lions signed him to a one-year deal . . . Rookie quarterback Joe Flacco will get the start for the Ravens this weekend . . . Browns quarterback Derek Anderson is expected to return from his concussion in time for the team’s Week 1 contest . . . defected Predators forward Alexander Radulov seems unlikely to return to the NHL this season.

Peek at the future . . .

Scott Kazmir (10-6, 3.13 ERA) will take on Darrell Rasner (5-9, 5.08 ERA) in the Rays/Yankees finale on Thursday . . . Vijay Singh, the winner of each of the first two FedExCup playoff events, will be the favorite to take the trophy in this week’s BMW Championship at Bellerive . . . this week’s college football schedule gets underway on Thursday night, with Vanderbilt taking on South Carolina (-10).

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New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays – 7:10 PM ET
Carl Pavano (2-0, 3.27) has made a solid return to the New York rotation after missing most of 2007 and 2008 with an elbow injury which lead to the dreaded Tommy John surgery, winning his second consecutive start by leading the Yankees to a 2-1 win at home over Toronto. Pavano scattered a run on three hits over six innings, using only 72 pitches to almost shut down the Blue Jays completely. After winning 18 games in Florida in 2004, the 32-year-old righthander has started only 21 games in three seasons with the Yankees, and one has to wonder if he will be in pinstripes next season after his spotty injury history. Pavano has a 3-2 record in six career meetings with the Rays, posting an ERA of 3.48.
Having Edwin Jackson (11-8, 3.81) as their fourth or fifth starter just shows the depth of the Tampa Bay organization, and he showed why in a 3-2 win at home over Toronto, allowing a run on six hits over seven innings. Jackson has gotten hot at the right time, winning six of his last seven starts, and he was a beast in August with a 4-1 mark and a 2.27 ERA. Even with only a 1-1 record in four starts against the Yankees this season, Jackson has a very respectable ERA of 2.59 while holding the “Bronx Bombers” to an average of .222.
Heading into Tuesday’s series opener, the Yankees had taken seven of their 12 meetings with the Rays this season, including the last two at venerable Yankee Stadium. However, the Rays have a majors-leading 52 wins at home, and there may not be a team their fans enjoy seeing lose more than the Yankees, so expect the crowd to be all over Pavano and the rest of the New York club. Bet on the Tampa Bay Rays to knock the Yankees closer to an autumn holiday with a win on Wednesday.
For more props and odds, visit BetOnline.com. BetOnline.com is a top rated online sportsbook providing reliable sports betting to millions of online betting customers. BetOnline.com also offers MLB football betting, live MLB betting lines, props and futures.

Event of the day . . .

Josh Beckett was supposed to start the opener of the Sox/Sox series for Boston on Friday, but he was scratched and Daisuke Matsuzaka was moved up in the rotation instead. That meant the Red Sox needed to find a pitcher for a spot start against the White Sox on Saturday night - and they seem to have settled on Michael Bowden for the job. Righthander Bowden will be making his Major-League debut in that contest.

The White Sox will send veteran Mark Buehrle (11-10, 3.86 ERA) to the mound on Saturday night. Chicago has managed to pick up the win in each of the lefthander’s last four starts. That includes an outing against the Red Sox back on August 8 when Buehrle gave up just a single earned run on four hits over his seven innings pitched.

Non-event of the day . . .

Hands up if you missed the WNBA during its Olympic break. Ok, hands up if you even knew the WNBA had an Olympic break. The summer’s afterthought-of-a-league has four games on its Saturday schedule, including San Antonio at Los Angeles. Also on the slate: Atlanta at Indiana, Washington at Minnesota, and Houston at Sacramento.

Also on the schedule . . .

Francisco Liriano (4-3, 3.83 ERA) will be looking to continue his impressive comeback when he pitches in Oakland for the Twins on Saturday night. Also on the American League schedule: Toronto at the Yankees (at 1:05pm ET), Baltimore at Tampa Bay, Seattle at Cleveland, Kansas City at Detroit, and Texas at the Angels.

Over in the National League the top pitching matchup is in Arizona, where it’ll be the Dodgers’ Chad Billingsley (12-10, 3.15 ERA) vs. the D-Backs’ Dan Haren (14-6, 3.10 ERA). Rounding out the NL slate: Philadelphia at the Cubs, Milwaukee at Pittsburgh, St. Louis at Houston, Atlanta at Washington, the Mets at Florida, San Francisco at Cincinnati, and Colorado at San Diego.

Finally, college football stages its first Saturday of wall-to-wall action, with No. 1 Georgia playing Georgia Southern in an expected blowout. Other notable matchups for the day include Hawaii vs. No. 5 Florida (-34.5), No. 24 Alabama vs. No. 9 Clemson (-4.5), No. 20 Illinois vs. No. 6 Missouri (-8.5), and No. 3 Southern California (-19.5) vs. Virginia.

News from the wire . . .

Outfielder Mark Kotsay made his debut for the Red Sox on Thursday, collecting one hit in four at-bats . . . the Blue Jays have sent veteran outfielder Matt Stairs to the Phillies and recalled top prospect Travis Snider . . . Tight end Todd Heap returned to action for the Ravens on Thursday . . . Colts head coach Tony Dungy fully expects quarterback Peyton Manning to be ready to play for the team in its season opener next week.

Peek at the future . . .

The Sunday night baseball game this week is Los Angeles at Arizona, with Derek Lowe (10-11, 3.81 ERA) facing Brandon Webb (19-5, 2.96 ERA) . . . Coverage of the Pepsi 500 at Auto Club Speedway begins at 7:00pm ET on Sunday . . . the Giants are listed as 3.5-point home favorites against the Redskins in next Thursday’s NFL kickoff game.

Philadelphia Phillies at Chicago Cubs – 3:55 PM ET

Brett Myers (7-10, 4.49) tossed his second straight shutout in a 5-0 win over the Dodgers at home, throwing a nine-hitter over seven innings, along with eight strikeouts and three walks. The 28-year-old righthander got off to a 3-9 start and was promptly sent to the minors, but has come back with renewed confidence. In his seven starts since coming back to the majors, Myers has allowed only nine runs, given up a pair of homers, and has posted a 4-1 record. One of Myers’ best outings of the season came against the Cubs, as he scattered three runs on five hits over eight innings to lead the Phillies to a 5-3 win at home.

Ted Lilly (13-7, 4.23) has become the forgotten man in the Chicago rotation with Carlos Zambrano, Rich Harden and Ryan Dempster on board, but the 32-year-old southpaw has been as crucial to the Cubs’ World Series odds as anyone. He claimed his second win in three starts during a 12-3 rout at Pittsburgh, giving up three runs on seven hits over seven innings, while striking out seven with a single walk. If there is a negative from this outing, it is that Lilly gave up a pair of homers to the Pirates, but those were his only two mistakes of the game. Lilly was pelted in his last start against the Phillies, lasting just 4 1/3 innings, allowing five runs on seven hits as the Cubs fell 7-1 in Philadelphia.

The Cubs used a late rally to take the opener of this four-game set by a 6-4 scoreline, scoring five runs in the bottom of the eighth inning behind Aramis Ramirez’s grand slam. Expect more fireworks in this one, and it will be up to Lilly and Myers to minimize the damage. Lilly has a slight edge in the pitching match-up, so bet on the Chicago Cubs to take one more step towards the playoffs with a win on Saturday.

For more props and odds, visit BetOnline.com. BetOnline.com is a top rated online sportsbook providing reliable sports betting to millions of online betting customers. BetOnline.com also offers MLB football betting, live MLB betting lines, props and futures.

Event of the day . . .

The Dodgers and Diamondbacks have both played so poorly lately that they’ve actually given the lowly Rockies some hope in the NL West division race. Still, at least one of those clubs will be able to pick up some wins on the weekend in their division clash.

Hiroki Kuroda (7-9, 3.87 ERA) will get the road start for Los Angeles on Friday night. The Dodgers are 4-6 in Kuroda’s last 10 trips to the mound, but the righthander has been effective in August (giving up just one earned run in four of five starts). Last time out, against the Phillies, Kuroda gave up just one run on two hits over his six innings.

Countering for the Diamondbacks will be Doug Davis (5-8, 4.63 ERA). Arizona is only 2-8 in Davis’ last 10 starts, with the lefthander going 2-5 with three no-decisions over that span. Davis was beaten by the Marlins in his last outing, surrendering three earned runs on seven hits over seven innings (while walking none and striking out eight hitters).

Non-event of the day . . .

If the Nats are going to avoid having the worst record in the NL this season they’re going to have to beat teams like the Braves, who are just above them in the NL East standings. Washington will send Odalis Perez (5-10, 4.21 ERA) to the mound at home against Atlanta on Friday, with the Braves going with Jorge Campillo (7-6, 3.37 ERA).

Also on the schedule . . .

Other National League games on Friday: Philadelphia at the Cubs, Milwaukee at Pittsburgh, the Mets at Florida, San Francisco at Cincinnati, St. Louis at Houston, and Colorado at San Diego. Over in the American League it’ll be the White Sox at Boston, Seattle at Cleveland, Kansas City at Detroit, Toronto at the Yankees, Baltimore at Tampa Bay, Minnesota at Oakland, and Texas at the Angels.

The PGA Tour’s second playoff tournament, the Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston, gets underway on Friday morning and continues through Monday. Phil Mickelson remains the 6/1 Vegas favorite to win the tournament, with Sergio Garcia at 8/1. Padraig Harrington (10/1) and Vijay Singh (12/1) are the other top contenders.

There are six pigskin matchups spread over three leagues on Friday night. The NFL concludes its preseason schedule with three games: San Diego at San Francisco (-2), Oakland at Seattle (-3), and Denver at Arizona (-3). Meanwhile, the college football season continues with Temple (-7) at Army, and SMU at Rice (-3.5). And finally, it’s Montreal (-5) playing host to British Columbia in Canadian Football League action.

Friday’s sports schedule then concludes with three WNBA contests in the early evening: Washington hosts Chicago, Connecticut visits Atlanta, and New York is at Detroit.

News from the wire . . .

Cardinals starting pitcher Chris Carpenter has been throwing bullpen sessions, but it’s unknown when he’ll be able to return to the team . . . Colts center Jeff Saturday is expected to miss at least the next six weeks with ligament damage in his knee . . . Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman has decided to play football this season.

Peek at the future . . .

Chad Billingsley (12-10, 3.15 ERA) and Dan Haren (14-6, 3.10 ERA) are scheduled to take the mound in the Dodgers/Diamondbacks matchup on Saturday . . . Carl Edwards is the 5/1 favorite to win the Pepsi 500 on Sunday night, with Kyle Busch just behind him on the Vegas odds list at 6/1 . . . the first game of the National Football League’s regular season is next Thursday night, with the Giants playing host to the Redskins.