Bumgarner takes aim at fourth straight win at Chase Field

Baseball Betting Lines

07/24/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Madison Bumgarner shoots for his fourth straight win this evening when the San Francisco Giants continue their four-game set against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field.

Bumgarner has been sensational over his winning streak, allowing two earned runs in his last 19 2/3 innings. On Monday against the Los Angeles Dodgers the 20-year-old lefty gave up just two runs (one earned) and six hits in 5 2/3 frames to get the win.

The former 10th overall pick, though, worked just one 1-2-3 inning in the effort.

"He wasn't as sharp tonight. But that's a good sign," Giants catcher Buster Posey said.

Arizona, meanwhile, will pin its hopes on a streaking young hurler of its own in 25-year-old righty Ian Kennedy, who has won his last two starts. Kennedy got a ton of support in beating the New York Mets on Monday, but did not need it, as he surrendered just one run and four hits in five innings.

Kennedy did not get a decision the last time he faced the Giants, but beat them back on May 19, surrendering a run and three hits in eight innings.

San Francisco improved to 4-1 on its current road trip on Friday, as Aubrey Huff hit two home runs and drove in three, as the Giants spoiled Kelly Johnson's cycle and beat the Diamondbacks, 7-4.

Andres Torres added the tie-breaking two-run triple in the seventh inning for the Giants, who took advantage of several Arizona errors to win for the ninth time in its last 11 games overall. San Francisco beat Arizona by a 3-0 score in Thursday's series opener.

Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez got out of several jams to allow only one run. However, the left-hander lasted just five innings, as he threw 109 pitches, gave up four hits, walked five and struck out 10.

Santiago Casilla allowed three runs in the sixth while recording two outs, and Chris Ray (1-0) got the final one to get the win. Brian Wilson recorded the final four outs to earn his 28th save.

Johnson finished 4-for-4 and became the fourth player in team history to hit for the cycle, but it was not enough to keep the Diamondbacks from losing their fifth consecutive game to the Giants.

"Pretty cool thing to say that you did," Johnson said. "But unfortunately we lost."

Edwin Jackson (6-9) took the loss after allowing six runs (four earned) on eight hits and two walks in six-plus innings.

San Francisco leads the 2010 season series with Arizona by a 5-2 margin, and is 18-7 over the past 25 meetings between the two ballclubs.

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How did changes to college football betting rules affect bettors?

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 online football betting 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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