Stlcaedinals Baseball Betting News

<< Kentucky holds on against Vanderbilt
Nashville, TN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Doron Lamb scored 16 and his three-pointer with under four minutes left gave Kentucky the lead for good, as the top- ranked Wildcats beat Vanderbilt, 69-63, for their 17th straight win. Anthony Davis

<< Richardson's hot shooting leads Orlando over Milwaukee
Milwaukee, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jason Richardson made 9-of-11 from long range, including four in the last five minutes of the game, to lead the Orlando Magic with 31 points as they defeated Milwaukee, 99-94, at the Bradley Center.

<< West helps Mavs outlast Blazers in 2-OT
Dallas, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Delonte West scored six of his 10 points in the second overtime period as the Dallas Mavericks took a 97-94 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers at American Airlines Center. Dirk Nowitzki scored a team-h

<< Lin pushes Knicks past T'Wolves
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The legend of "Linsanity" grew a bit larger on Saturday as Jeremy Lin scored 20 points, including a game-winning free throw with the game tied to lead the Knicks over the Timberwolves 100-98 at Target

Iginla lifts Flames over Canucks in shootout >>
Calgary, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Stymied late in regulation, Jarome Iginla made good on his opportunity in the shootout, netting the decisive goal to lift the Calgary Flames to a 3-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks at the Saddledome. Iginl

Suns ease past Kings >>
Sacramento, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jared Dudley had 20 points and 10 rebounds as the Phoenix Suns eased past the Sacramento Kings, 98-84, at Power Balance Pavilion. Steve Nash missed the second quarter after taking a shot to the face

Korda wins playoff at Women's Australian Open >>
Victoria, Australia (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jessica Korda first gained control during the final round at the Women's Australian Open on Sunday, then gave it away with a string of bogeys on the back nine. But when she needed critical birdies, she

Croatia advances past Japan in Davis Cup >>
Hyogo, Japan (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ivo Karlovic defeated Go Soeda in the final match as Croatia downed host Japan, 3-2, to advance in the Davis Cup. Kei Nishikori had taken down Ivan Dodig 7-5, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3 to tie the match at 2-all, but

Betting Football

Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.