Announcement

**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 12:10 AM

Daily Sports Roundup

Wednesday, July 15

Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: Major League Baseball's top stars travel back to their teams, while the WNBA takes the spotlight with 10 squads in action.

Meeting up on the diamond . . .

Major League Baseball gets one more day off on Wednesday before beginning the second half of its season on Thursday night. There are just two American League matchups on Thursday night, with Seattle at Cleveland and the Angels at Oakland. The National League offers a bigger Thursday slate, with a half-dozen contests: the Cubs at Washington, the Mets at Atlanta, Milwaukee at Cincinnati, Philadelphia at Florida, Colorado at San Diego, and also Houston at the Dodgers.

Rounding out the Roundup . . .

The WNBA offers up a full slate of games on Wednesday, with San Antonio at Washington, Atlanta at Minnesota, Sacramento at Phoenix, Detroit at Seattle, and Chicago at Indiana. The Fever ran their record to a league-best 9-2 on Friday night, getting 11 points and seven boards from Tammy Sutton-Brown in an 83-54 road win over Chicago. Shyra Ely led the way for the Sky with 12 points off the bench in that loss to the Fever, and Candice Dupree had eight rebounds.

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**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 12:11 AM

Six-pack for Wednesday

-- Blake Griffin had 27 points, 12 rebounds in his summer league debut for the Clippers, who are thinking of bringing in Allen Iverson to team with Baron Davis and Eric Gordon in the backcourt.

-- How would you like to coach a team with Davis/Iverson as guards? They might as well hire Jim Riggleman as bench coach, so he can take Mike Dunleavy's place when he gets fired.

-- Matt Cassel signed a six-year, $63M contract with the Chiefs, not bad for a guy who never started one single game in college, and didn't make the playoffs in his only season as an NFL starter.

-- Tennessee Vols lost their leading returning WR when Austin Rogers tore his ACL- they've now lost four of their top five WRs from 2008.

-- Rumors are the Nationals want to bring Bobby Valentine in as their new skipper; Miller Huggins couldn't win with this team. Good luck.

-- ESPN Sunday Night Baseball is on at 6:00 this week, so they can show their stupid ESPY show at 9:00. That also means there won't be any 4:00 games on Extra Innings package, because ESPN has exclusive timeslot for Sunday Night Baseball. Just terrific.

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Wednesday's List of 13: Tell your statistics to shut up.........

13) So far this baseball season, 387,766 pitches have been thrown in big league baseball games, an average of 294.6 per game. Each batter sees an average of 3.82 pitches per plate appearance.

12) An average of 9.25 runs have scored in each game so far this year.

11) A total of 9,343 batters have walked this season, with 17,873 hitters striking out-- that means 27,216 batters (26.8%) didn't put the ball in play, and thats not counting hit batsmen or catchers' interference.

10) If you put $100 on every favorite in games Chuck Meriwether was behind the plate, you'd be $1,220 ahead this season.

9) But if you put the same $100 on every favorite when Jim Joyce was behind the plate, you'd be out a cool $1,005.

8) If you like to play baseball totals, 661 games have stayed under the total, 594 have gone over. By the way, if you live anywhere in western New York, Chubby Checker is giving a free concert Wednesday out at Fingerlakes racetrack in Canandaigua. Just thought you'd like to know.

7) As for umpires whose games generally stay under the totals, here is the list of guys for that so far this season-- Fletcher 14-3, Gorman and Runge, both 12-4, and Barrett 12-5.

6) If you're looking for umpires whose games generally go over the total, these are those guys so far this season: McClelland 12-5, Crawford 9-4 Cooper 13-6 and Marsh 12-7.

5) As far as walk/strikeout ratios, umpires who have lot more walks than they do strikeouts are: Marsh (.700), Crawford (.677), Iassogna (.661), Barksdale (.655) and Joyce (.625).

4) Umpires who have lowest walk/strikeout ratios are: Campos (.386), Miller (.390), Dimuro (.420), Darling (.443) and Cederstrom (.455).

3) Switching to pitchers, these starters get highest percentage of swings and misses on the strikes they throw: Harden (24.3%), Richmond (20.5) Vazquez (20.1), Paulino (20.0), Danks (19.4) and Billingsley (19.2).

2) These starting pitchers get the lowest percentage of swings/misses on the strikes they throw: Stammen (8.4%), Padilla (8.7%), Arroyo (8.8%), LHernandez (8.8%), Pineiro (8.9%) and Lannan (9.0%).

1) Finally, these pitchers have the lowest batting average when batters put their pitches in play: Outman .242, Carpenter .243, Feldman .245, Volquez .254, Washburn .260, Hochevar .270, Maine .271.

From: Armadillo
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**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 12:12 AM

MLB
This Day in Baseball

On July 15 in Baseball History...

1901 - Christy Mathewson of the New York Giants pitched his first of two career no-hitters, beating the St. Louis Cardinals 5-0.

1969 - Cincinnati's Lee May hit four home runs in a doubleheader split with the Atlanta Braves. May had two home runs and drove in five runs in both games as the Reds lost the opener 9-8 but came back to win the second game, 10-4.

1969 - Rod Carew stole home off Chicago's Jerry Nyman in the Minnesota Twins' 6-2 victory. It was Carew's seventh steal of home for the year and tied Pete Reiser's 1946 major league mark.

1973 - Nolan Ryan of the California Angels struck out seventeen batters and threw his second no-hitter of the year, beating Detroit 6-0.

1980 - Johnny Bench broke Yogi Berra's record for home runs by a catcher as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Montreal Expos 12-7. Bench hit his 314th homer as a catcher off David Palmer. Bench had thirty-three home runs while playing other positions.

1990 - Chicago's Bobby Thigpen became quickest to reach thirty saves in a season as the White Sox beat New York 8-5.

1997 - The San Francisco Giants scored thirteen runs to set a modern National League record for runs in a seventh inning en route to a 16-2 rout of the San Diego Padres. The Giants set the National League record for the most runs in a seventh inning since 1900.

1999 - After 22 1/2 years in the dreary Kingdome, Seattle finally played a home game outdoors, moving into a $517.6 million ballpark with a retractable roof. Jose Mesa wasted a ninth-inning lead by walking four batters and the Mariners lost 3-2 to the San Diego Padres in Safeco Field's opener.

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**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 12:13 AM

WNBA
Long Sheet

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Wednesday, July 15
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SAN ANTONIO (5 - 6) at WASHINGTON (6 - 5) - 7/15/2009, 11:30 AM
Top Trends for this game.
SAN ANTONIO is 1-8 ATS (-7.8 Units) in road games revenging a home loss versus opponent over the last 3 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 166-212 ATS (-67.2 Units) in all games since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 16-30 ATS (-17.0 Units) on Wednesday since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 25-48 ATS (-27.8 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
SAN ANTONIO is 3-2 against the spread versus WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
SAN ANTONIO is 3-2 straight up against WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
4 of 5 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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ATLANTA (6 - 8) at MINNESOTA (9 - 5) - 7/15/2009, 1:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
MINNESOTA is 14-5 ATS (+8.5 Units) against Eastern conference opponents over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 14-5 ATS (+8.5 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 9-2 ATS (+6.8 Units) in road games revenging a home loss versus opponent over the last 2 seasons.
ATLANTA is 8-0 ATS (+8.0 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
MINNESOTA is 3-12 ATS (-10.2 Units) in home games in July games over the last 3 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
ATLANTA is 2-1 against the spread versus MINNESOTA over the last 3 seasons
MINNESOTA is 2-1 straight up against ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
2 of 3 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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CHICAGO (7 - 7) at INDIANA (9 - 2) - 7/15/2009, 1:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
CHICAGO is 7-0 ATS (+7.0 Units) in road games off an upset win as an underdog over the last 3 seasons.
INDIANA is 6-15 ATS (-10.5 Units) after scoring 75 points or more over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
INDIANA is 4-4 against the spread versus CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
INDIANA is 6-2 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
5 of 8 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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SACRAMENTO (3 - 10) at PHOENIX (10 - 4) - 7/15/2009, 3:30 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SACRAMENTO is 2-8 ATS (-6.8 Units) vs. division opponents this season.
SACRAMENTO is 10-21 ATS (-13.1 Units) after a division game over the last 2 seasons.
SACRAMENTO is 26-45 ATS (-23.5 Units) in road games after scoring 75 points or more since 1997.
PHOENIX is 113-83 ATS (+21.7 Units) as a favorite since 1997.
PHOENIX is 121-84 ATS (+28.6 Units) in home games since 1997.
PHOENIX is 27-13 ATS (+12.7 Units) in home games on Wednesday since 1997.
PHOENIX is 78-51 ATS (+21.9 Units) in home games vs. division opponents since 1997.
PHOENIX is 82-57 ATS (+19.3 Units) in home games after a division game since 1997.
PHOENIX is 49-29 ATS (+17.1 Units) in home games when playing against a team with a losing record since 1997.
SACRAMENTO is 26-13 ATS (+11.7 Units) after allowing 75 points or more over the last 3 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
PHOENIX is 6-4 against the spread versus SACRAMENTO over the last 3 seasons
PHOENIX is 7-3 straight up against SACRAMENTO over the last 3 seasons
6 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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DETROIT (3 - 7) at SEATTLE (8 - 5) - 7/15/2009, 10:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SEATTLE is 18-7 ATS (+10.3 Units) in home games over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 15-5 ATS (+9.5 Units) in home games in May, June, or July games over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 12-4 ATS (+7.6 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.
SEATTLE is 16-6 ATS (+9.4 Units) in home games versus poor defensive teams - allowing 77+ points/game since 1997.

Head-to-Head Series History
DETROIT is 3-1 against the spread versus SEATTLE over the last 3 seasons
DETROIT is 3-1 straight up against SEATTLE over the last 3 seasons
2 of 4 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 12:14 AM

WNBA

Wednesday, July 15

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Lady Luck: Today’s WNBA best bets
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Chicago Sky at Indiana Fever (-10, 145)

The point guard tandem of Tully Bevilaqua and Briann January has the Fever at the top of the WNBA standings.

Bevilaqua and January are not among Indiana's double-digit scorers. But they have combined to average 12.5 points and 5.4 assists while splitting the position virtually in half.

Bevilaqua is an 11-year veteran with plenty of international experience with her native Australia. She is the starter and serves as a mentor to January, a rookie who started the first two games.

"I can honestly say that it was a good move," January told Statepress.com, the web site of Arizona State University. "We lost the two games that I did start, and so adjustments have to be made."

The Fever hasn't lost since, winning nine in a row and covering the spread in eight of those.

Pick: Indiana

Detroit Shock at Seattle Storm (-9.5, 145)

Since Bill Laimbeer resigned as coach just under a month ago, the Shock have forgotten how to play defense.

The total was under in Detroit's first three games this season while Laimbeer was still on the sidelines. It was under again in Rick Mahorn's first game as coach on June 19.

Mahorn has done some tinkering with the offense, but the Shock's defense has suffered. Soft defense in the frontcourt is the primary reason the defending champions have dropped to the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

Detroit has played virtually the entire season without two-way forward Plenette Pierson, who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in the opener. Meanwhile, bruising forward Cheryl Forde is playing her way back into shape after an 11-month injury layoff.

Detroit is allowing an average of 83.7 points in its last six games. The over has paid each time.

Pick: Over

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**Udog** · 07-15-2009, 07:21 AM

WNBA
Dunkel

San Antonio at Washington
The Mystics look to take advantage of a San Antonio team that is just 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games as a road underdog between 3 1/2 and 6 points. Washington is the pick (-4) according to Dunkel, which has the Mystics favored by 6. Dunkel Pick: Washington (-4). Here are all of today's picks.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 15

Game 601-602: San Antonio at Washington
Dunkel Ratings: San Antonio 107.858; Washington 113.955
Dunkel Line & Total: Washington by 6; 141
Vegas Line & Total: Washington by 4; 144 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Washington (-4); Under

Game 603-604: Atlanta at Minnesota
Dunkel Ratings: Atlanta 107.022; Minnesota 113.230
Dunkel Line & Total: Minnesota by 6; 157
Vegas Line & Total: Minnesota by 4 1/2; 166
Dunkel Pick: Minnesota (-4 1/2); Under

Game 605-606: Chicago at Indiana
Dunkel Ratings: Chicago 104.117; Indiana 117.427
Dunkel Line & Total: Indiana by 13 1/2; 154 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Indiana by 9 1/2; 143 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Indiana (-9 1/2); Over

Game 607-608: Sacramento at Phoenix
Dunkel Ratings: Sacramento 108.020; Phoenix 114.990
Dunkel Line & Total: Phoenix by 7; 171 1/2
Vegas Line & Total: Phoenix by 7 1/2; 178 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Sacramento (+7 1/2); Under

Game 609-610: Detroit at Seattle
Dunkel Ratings: Detroit 107.557; Seattle 113.171
Dunkel Line & Total: Seattle by 5 1/2; 139
Vegas Line & Total: Seattle by 9 1/2; 143
Dunkel Pick: Detroit (+9 1/2); Under

**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 08:45 AM

MLB
Baseball Today

SCOREBOARD

Wednesday, July 15

No games scheduled.

STARS

Tuesday

-Carl Crawford, Rays, robbed Brad Hawpe of a go-ahead homer and took home All-Star MVP honors in the American League's 4-3 victory over the NL.

-Mariano Rivera, Yankees, pitched a perfect ninth inning in the AL's 4-3 victory to earn his record fourth All-Star save, breaking a tie with Dennis Eckersley.

-Adam Jones, Orioles, hit a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the eighth inning to lead the American League to a 4-3 win in the All-Star game.

-Prince Fielder, Brewers, had a pinch-hit RBI double in the National League's 4-3 loss to the AL in the All-Star game.

ALL AL AGAIN

Carl Crawford pulled back a home run with a leaping grab an inning before Curtis Granderson tripled and scored the tiebreaking run in the eighth, giving the American League a 4-3 victory over the NL in the All-Star game on Tuesday night at the new Busch Stadium. The AL is 12-0-1 since its 1996 defeat at Philadelphia - the longest unbeaten streak in All-Star history.

PRESIDENT'S PITCH

President Barack Obama threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the All-Star game, barely reaching the plate. St. Louis Cardinals star Albert Pujols helped the president, moving up on the plate and reaching out to scoop the low toss. Obama began the day by greeting Wimbledon champion Serena Williams at the White House, then picked up Hall of Famer Willie Mays in Michigan for the flight to St. Louis.

HE'S BACK

Pedro Martinez has agreed to a $1 million, one-year contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. The three-time Cy Young Award winner was in town for a physical, and the Phillies planned to hold a news conference on Wednesday, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because an official announcement hadn't been made. The 37-year-old Martinez went 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA for the New York Mets last year.

SPEAKING

"It was definitely probably the best catch I ever made.'' - Tampa Bay outfielder Carl Crawford on robbing Colorado slugger Brad Hawpe of a go-ahead homer in the seventh inning of the American League's 4-3 victory over the NL in the All-Star game in St. Louis.

SEASONS

July 15

1901 - Christy Mathewson of the New York Giants pitched the first of two career no-hitters, beating the St. Louis Cardinals 5-0.

1969 - Cincinnati's Lee May hit four home runs in a doubleheader split with the Atlanta Braves. May had two home runs and drove in five runs in both games as the Reds lost the opener 9-8 but came back to win the second game 10-4.

1969 - Rod Carew stole home off Chicago's Gerry Nyman in the Minnesota Twins' 6-2 victory. It was Carew's seventh steal of home for the year and tied Pete Reiser's 1946 major league mark.

1973 - Nolan Ryan of the California Angels struck out 17 batters and threw his second no-hitter of the year, beating Detroit 6-0.

1980 - Johnny Bench broke Yogi Berra's record for home runs by a catcher as the Cincinnati Reds beat the Montreal Expos 12-7. Bench hit his 314th homer as a catcher off David Palmer. Bench had 33 home runs while playing other positions.

1990 - Chicago's Bobby Thigpen became quickest to reach 30 saves in a season as the White Sox beat New York 8-5.

1997 - The San Francisco Giants scored 13 runs to set a modern NL record for runs in a seventh inning en route to a 16-2 rout of the San Diego Padres. The Giants set the NL record for the most runs in a seventh inning since 1900.

1999 - After 22 1/2 years in the dreary Kingdome, Seattle finally played a home game outdoors, moving into a $517.6 million ballpark with a retractable roof. Jose Mesa wasted a ninth-inning lead by walking four batters and the Mariners lost 3-2 to the San Diego Padres in Safeco Field's opener.

2003 - Anaheim's Garret Anderson went 3 for 4 with a two-run homer and a double as the American League beat the National League in the All-Star game 7-6. Hank Blalock of Texas hit a go-ahead, two-run homer as a pinch hitter in the eighth off Los Angeles' Eric Gagne.

2005 - Baltimore's Rafael Palmeiro became the 26th player to reach 3,000 career hits, curling an RBI double into the left-field corner off Joel Pineiro in the fifth inning of a 6-3 win over Seattle. Palmeiro joined Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray as the only players with 3,000 hits and 500 homers.

2006 - For the first time in nearly three decades, a full day of major league baseball games were played without a save being recorded. There were six blown saves during 15 games, including two each in Pittsburgh's 7-6 victory over Washington, and in Cincinnati's 3-2 win against Colorado. The Nationals and Reds both won with ninth-inning rallies.

2007 - The Philadelphia Phillies lost their 10,000th game, 10-2 to St. Louis. The franchise, begun in 1883 as the Philadelphia Quakers and later called the Blue Jays in the mid-40s, fell to 8,810-10,000.

2008 - Justin Morneau slid home just in time on Michael Young's sacrifice fly in the 15th inning, giving the American League a 4-3 victory in the All-Star game at Yankee stadium. The AL extended its unbeaten streak to 12. The AL improved to 6-0 since the All-Star game began determining home-field advantage in the World Series. Boston's J.D. Drew, who hit a tying two-run homer in the seventh inning, took home MVP honors.

Today's birthdays: Chris Denorfia 29; Miguel Olivo 31.

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**pm530** · 07-15-2009, 10:15 AM

Len’s Top Five

Wednesday, July 15

Len's Top 5

Happy Wednesday everyone, here's my Top 5 for July 15, 2009 from Len Berman Sports.

1. Quick Hits

The American League wins the All Star Game yet again, 4-3, securing home field for the World Series. They haven't lost since 1996.

Pitcher Pedro Martinez gets a one year deal with the Phillies.

The British Open begins tomorrow at Turnberry in Scotland.

The wife of NBA star Tony Parker, actress Eva Longoria, told Cosmopolitan she likes to be tied up with silk scarves during love making. Just thought you'd like to know.

2. Mid Summer Classic

They paid homage to St. Louis baseball and the great Cardinals of the past at the All Star Game last night, but Mark McGwire was persona non grata. No mention whatsoever. The President throws out the first pitch, and incredibly the camera doesn't show where it goes. (He didn't quite make it to home plate.) Top of the first, and the hometown hero Albert Pujols botches a ground ball leading to two runs for the American League. And that was all before the first inning was over. But in the end, there was the incomparable Mariano Rivera of the Yankees getting yet another save and burnishing his Hall of Fame credentials.

3. This Bud's for You

I find myself ambivalent toward Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. Since he's the "owners man," I'm often suspect when he does things for the "good of the game." But I have to agree with him on one point. Some agents are yammering about collusion. They claim the owners illegally conspired to hold down salaries during the off-season. They've got to be kidding. Did they hear what the Yankees spent? Have they heard about the economy? The truth is, agents can be more oily than commissioners.

4. Trade Bait

It looks like the best pitcher in baseball is up for grabs. Toronto's Roy Halladay is likely to be traded before the end of the month and he says he's open to pitching for the Yankees. Who wouldn't be? First of all, the Blue Jays are unlikely to trade Halladay within their division. Second, haven't the Yankees spent enough? Third, isn't competitive balance a complete joke in baseball? Here's what the Commissioner should do. Figure out a way to put the Pittsburgh Pirates and the New York Yankees on equal footing, the way the Steelers and Giants are in football. If he does that, he gets my vote for the Hall of Fame.

5. Dear Old Dad

A 14-year old was arrested for running onto the field at a Charlotte Knights game in South Carolina. He led stadium employees on a merry chase across the diamond. Why did the kid do it? He told police that his father dared him. Police then arrested the dad as well, but they released him and held the kid. The brilliant father had told his son beforehand, "Boy, if you do it, you'd be the man." Something the dad has yet to experience.

Happy Birthday: Former wrestler and governor Jesse "The Body" Ventura. 58.
Bonus Birthday: Singer and former gubernatorial girlfriend Linda Ronstadt. 63.

Today in Sports: The first no-hitter is thrown in baseball history by George Bradley of the St. Louis Brown Stockings against the Hartford Dark Blues. 1876.
Bonus Event: Singer Boy George is banned from a British TV show for being a "bad influence." 1987.

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Announcement

Wednesday Trends and Indexes 7/15 (WNBA, Misc.)

Wednesday Trends and Indexes 7/15 (WNBA, Misc.)

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