Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees

Vazquez takes the mound looking to help the Yankees increase their AL East lead when they face the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. As Rodriguez eyes a Sunday return from a strained calf that has kept him out for two weeks, Javier Vazquez rejoining the New York Yankees rotation won’t receive the same fanfare as Alex Rodriguez’s return to the lineup, but getting the right-hander back on track could be crucial to the club’s fortunes. After a two-week demotion to the bullpen, Vazquez is set to start after some promising relief work earned him back his spot in the rotation. Vazquez (10-9, 4.86 ERA) was demoted after going 2-2 with a 6.69 ERA from July 21-Aug. 21, but posted a 2.00 ERA in nine innings over two games out of the bullpen. “We like the way Javy has been throwing the baseball,” manager Joe Girardi told the Yankees’ official website. “We made some minor adjustments and it seemed to really help him.” One of those appearances came at Toronto on Aug. 25, when Vazquez gave up two hits and a solo home run in 4 1-3 innings of a 6-3 loss.He started against the Blue Jays on June 6, pitching seven innings and allowing one hit - a two-run homer to Vernon Wells - in a 4-3 victory. That was part of a 12-game stretch in which Vazquez posted a 2.75 ERA, and the Yankees need him to regain that form. New York has struggled to stabilize its rotation due to injury and ineffectiveness. The Yankees opened this series with a 7-3 win Friday, their seventh straight. Curtis Granderson had two hits and drove in three runs while Brett Gardner tripled and scored three times. The Yankees won without Rodriguez and Nick Swisher (stiff left knee) as well as Derek Jeter, who was given the day off. Swisher said he hopes to play Saturday. Also from their team website: “We’ve got a good enough lineup, a good enough bullpen, a good enough starting five that if a couple guys are down and some other guys have to fill in, we still feel like we can win,” Gardner said. The Yankees have won 13 of 17, scoring at least six runs 10 times. The lineup could be even more dangerous by the end of this series. Rodriguez will run the bases at full speed before Saturday’s game in the final test for his calf. “Just want to make sure we cover everything before we get back out there,” he said after doing some running Friday. “But today felt pretty good.” The Yankees will look to keep rolling for at least one more game without Rodriguez when they face Marc Rzepczynski (1-3, 6.03), who was pounded by New York two starts ago. The left-hander lasted three innings and gave up six runs and three homers in an 11-5 loss Aug. 24. He is 0-2 with a 10.22 ERA in three starts versus the Yankees. I expect him to have another bad day again today. Although the chalk is high I’m still taking the Yankees -185 (5dimes).

Los Angeles Angels at Oakland Athletics

The Angels could be a good opportunity with the large dog price today, since they have won 12 of their last 17 games in Oakland and had a day off Thursday. The A's could have used the break after a brutal 10-game road swing that sent them cross-country to Cleveland, halfway back to Texas and then all the way to New York. They flew home after yesterday's series sweep by the Yankees. The A's were on a roll midway through the trip thanks to their starting pitching's streak of 18 quality starts, but that unit appeared to fatigue from overuse in New York. Dallas Braden's early exit from Thursday's game is a prime example. Oakland's Gio Gonzales has been hot recently and L.A.'s Scott Kazmir has not, but the Halos lefty has enjoyed success against the A's. After getting hammered in his last meeting against the A's he is 9-4 for his career against the AL West rivals. The A's are batting just .239 against lefties in their last 10 starts. Looking for a another successful effort against the Los Angeles left-hander, the A’s try to avoid a fifth consecutive loss as they host the Angels on Friday night. Oakland (65-68) was outscored 29-11 while being swept in a four-game set at Yankee Stadium this week. The Oakland A’s who have lost 6 of their last 8 return home looking for a third straight victory over the Angels (65-69). The second-place A’s are one-half game ahead of Los Angeles in the AL West but 10 behind Texas. Though the A’s struggled to produce in the Bronx, they have outscored Los Angeles 44-22 while going 4-3 versus Los Angeles at home. Oakland roughed up Kazmir (8-12, 6.34 ERA) for 13 runs and 11 hits in five innings of a 15-1 home win July 10. They were the most runs allowed by an Angels pitcher since Scott Schoeneweis gave up 11 against Baltimore on May 23, 2001. Kazmir had given up one run and eight hits to win his previous two outings against the A’s. Following that outing, Los Angeles placed Kazmir on the disabled list with shoulder fatigue. He is 1-3 with a 4.33 ERA in five starts since returning. Kazmir has allowed four runs in each of his last three starts, the latest over 5 2-3 innings of a 5-0 loss to Baltimore on Saturday. Gio Gonzalez (12-8, 3.23) looks to win his third straight start as he takes the ball for the A’s in the series opener. The left-hander allowed two runs in six innings of an 8-2 win at Texas on Sunday to improve to 3-1 with a 1.36 ERA in his last five starts. Gonzalez is 2-1 with a 4.22 ERA in four starts versus Los Angeles, which won its first series in six tries after taking two of three at Seattle this week. Even though the Angels have averaged only 3.3 runs per game and have lost 12 of their last 18, I’m still going to take a shot with the the Angels with the very large dog price of +165 (5dimes).

[B]Final scores:[/B] 1. DETROIT TIGERS 1 [B]2. MINNESOTA TWINS 2[/B] [B]3. TEXAS RANGERS 4[/B] 4. KANSAS CITY ROYALS 3 5. COLORADO ROCKIES 1 [B]6. SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS 2[/B] [B]7. LA ANGELS 4[/B] 8. SEATTLE MARINERS 2 Tiebreaker 1 : Total number of Runs in the above 4 games: [B]19 [/B] Tiebreaker 2: Total number of Hits in the above 4 games: 57 Out of [B]42[/B] contestants we had [B]9[/B] go a perfect [B][COLOR=Red]4-0[/COLOR][/B]! Our Winner by Tiebreaker is [SIZE=4][COLOR=Blue]WeinketoWarrick![/COLOR][/SIZE] His TB of [B]24[/B] runs is closest to the actual runs scored which was only[B] 19[/B]! [B][SIZE=3][COLOR=Blue]WeinketoWarrick 4-0 TB1: 24[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B] Goat Milk 4-0 TB1: 27 steve173 4-0 TB1: 32 LVBOUND 4-0 TB1: 33 Mikail 4-0 TB1: 35 sportsfanatic 4-0 TB1: 38 steve18 4-0 TB1: 39 Team Ramrod 4-0 TB1: 51 Philavanh 4-0 TB1: 55 CONGRATS WEINKEtoWARRICK!!! Your points have been credited! And thank you everyone for playing! :highfive:

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=3][/SIZE][/FONT][CENTER][FONT=Arial][SIZE=3][B][SIZE=5][COLOR=Red]FREE 100 POINT CONTEST TONIGHT![/COLOR][/SIZE][/B][/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Arial][SIZE=3][B][SIZE=5][COLOR=Red]

[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B][/SIZE][/FONT][/CENTER]
[FONT=Arial][SIZE=3][B]Simply choose the WINNERS from the following 4 games, along with the 2 tiebreakers. In the event of a tie after the 2nd tiebreaker, the prize will be split evenly. [COLOR=Red]Deadline to enter this contest is 8:00pm EST.[/COLOR]

NO EDITING ALLOWED AFTER PICKS ARE MADE

[/B]
[/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Arial][SIZE=4][SIZE=3]1. DETROIT TIGERS
2. MINNESOTA TWINS

3. TEXAS RANGERS
4. KANSAS CITY ROYALS

5. COLORADO ROCKIES
6. SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS

7. LA ANGELS
8. SEATTLE MARINERS

Tiebreaker 1 : Total number of Runs in the above 4 games:

Tiebreaker 2: Total number of Hits in the above 4 games:


Your post should look like this:

Example:
[/SIZE][/SIZE][/FONT][FONT=Arial][SIZE=4][SIZE=3]1. DETROIT TIGERS
3. TEXAS RANGERS
5....[/FONT][/SIZE][/SIZE]

Colorado at San Francisco

September couldn’t come soon enough for San Francisco starter Tim Lincecum. The two-time NL Cy Young winner lost all six of his starts last month, sporting a 7.82 ERA. He has allowed at least four earned runs in each of his last four starts. Colorado had won six of its last seven heading into Tuesday’s action and will have their ace Ubaldo Jimenez on the mound against the Giants. Jimenez hasn’t won in four starts, but didn’t allow more than three runs in any of those outings either. The 6-foot-4 right-hander has already beaten San Francisco twice this year. Instead of anticipating another tantalizing matchup between NL West aces, Ubald Jimenez and Tim Lincecum both enter their latest duel desperate for a victory. Recent results have been especially troubling for Lincecum, who spent August losing a career-worst five consecutive starts for the San Francisco Giants Jimenez, meanwhile, will take his fifth shot at a franchise-record 18th win as the Colorado Rockies try to take the three-game series at AT&T Park on Wednesday night. Lincecum (11-9, 3.80 ERA) has won the last two NL Cy Young Awards, and Jimenez (17-5, 2.71) has pitched like a contender for that honor for much of this season. Both right-handers, though, have been frustrated lately - particularly Lincecum, who is eager to begin a new month after going 0-5 with a 7.82 ERA in five August starts. He has already set a career high in losses. Lincecum won’t be satisfied with another September like last year, when he was 1-3 with a 3.60 ERA, his worst month in terms of both record and ERA. His Dominican counterpart hasn’t been pitching poorly, but Jimenez is 0-3 in four outings, all quality starts since matching Colorado’s single-season record for wins Aug. 4 against San Francisco. Minimal run support and bullpen problems have plagued Jimenez lately. Jimenez is 2-0 against the Giants this season, including a four-hitter in a 4-0 road win over Lincecum on May 31, but he also gave up a season-high seven runs to San Francisco on July 3, with Travis Ishikawa’s grand slam providing the biggest blow. Lincecum and Jimenez have often brought out the best in each other. Each pitched seven shutout innings in a 1-0 Colorado win June 11, 2008, and they traded low-scoring victories in a six-day span in August 2009. Each team hopes its ace can deliver a helpful victory in the playoff chase. The Giants (73-60) pulled within four games of NL West-leading San Diego and remained 1 1/2 games behind Philadelphia for the wild card after Tuesday’s 5-2 victory. The Rockies (69-62), who won the series opener 2-1, have a chance to win their first road series since June 28-30 at San Diego. Since the All-Star break, they’ve gone 8-18 away from home, losing six of their seven road series and splitting a four-game set at Pittsburgh. I like Jimenez and Colorado to bounce back from last nights loss and put a W in the win column. I like the Rockies at -114 (5dimes).

[quote=Bill Dozer;5880075]RobDaBank,

No points were given to you. You realized we had a server communication glitch during an update where you could move points that you didnt have from the forum ([B][COLOR=Red]1744 of them over 20 transfers[/COLOR][/B]) to the SBR sportsbook and then put them in your SBR points wallet. Unlike some others who found this and played them away, you went directly to the store for $250 cash.

Maybe the posters can eventually decide when he's back. I wouldn't be as happy to have you back. Stealing $250 and thousands of points really takes them away from your fellow posters. Too...[/quote]

Since you tried to slam 2daBank,

How many points did you win in "3-card poker?"

Or were all the points from the software Glitch day?

OmgUrMom
Date/Number of transactions (Everyone has minimum of 2, Loyalty and 1st post))
10 JUL: 4
11 JUL: 7
12 JUL: 8
13 JUL: 3
14 JUL: 2
15 JUL: 3
16 JUL: 8
17 JUL: [B][COLOR=Red]96[/COLOR][/B]
[URL]http://store.sbrforum.com/points/log/OmgUrMom[/URL]

There were [B][COLOR=Red]96[/COLOR][/B] transactions all on July 17th, but I'll just list your purchases:

1934A3 7/17/2010 (1) WALMART GIFT CARD
9:29 AM Order id: 4099 OmgUrMom SBR Store Purchase ...

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs have been a different team since Lou Piniella turned over the team’s managerial duties to Mike Quade. The Cubs were 4-2 since the change heading into Monday’s game and face a slumping Jeff Karstens on Tuesday. Karstens had his last scheduled start skipped due to arm fatigue and has already topped 200 innings this year so Pittsburgh is going to keep a close eye on him for the rest of the year. Karstens has dropped four straight starts and is coming off a rotten outing against the New York Mets. The 6-foot-3 right hander gave up seven earned runs on 11 hits over just 3 1/3 innings of work and has an 8.40 ERA over his last three starts. A trip to Wrigley Field couldn’t help the Pittsburgh Pirates end their misery away from home. The prospects for snapping their lengthy road losing streak appear grim again Tuesday night. In what appears to be a decided pitching mismatch, red-hot Chicago Cubs starter Ryan Dempster will try to earn a career-high fifth straight victory and complete a near-perfect August while the Pirates’ Jeff Karstens will try to avoid matching the longest skid in the majors this season. Having previously won nine of 12 over the Cubs this season and four of six at Wrigley, Pittsburgh (43-88) seemed to catch a break with another matchup against struggling Chicago (56-76). Instead, the major leagues’ worst team was on the wrong end of a 14-2 rout - its 14th consecutive road loss and 38th in its last 42 games away from home. The Cubs, meanwhile, improved to 5-2 under interim manager Mike Quade. They would appear to have an excellent chance to continue that run with Dempster (12-8, 3.42 ERA) heading to the mound. Dempster, who is 4-0 with a 1.31 ERA in five starts this month, gave up two hits over seven innings during a 4-0 win in Washington on Wednesday, the 99th victory of his career. Dempster has lost both of his matchups this season with the Pirates despite pitching adequately, allowing three runs over seven innings in each game. Heading into this season, he had won his four previous decisions as a starter against Pittsburgh. Karstens (2-10, 4.98) is 0-8 with a 5.40 ERA in his last 10 starts - a stretch that began with a loss at Wrigley on June 29. he right-hander’s last start was the worst of all. He gave up a season-high seven runs and a career high-tying 11 hits in a 7-2 home loss to the New York Mets on Aug. 20. With another loss, Karstens would join Atlanta’s Kenshin Kawakami and Baltimore’s Brian Matusz as the only pitchers to drop nine consecutive decisions this season. Karstens is 2-1 with a 2.12 ERA in three career starts at Wrigley and 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA in five overall against the Cubs, who had dropped 12 of 14 at home before Monday’s series opener. The Pirates, who lost 17 straight on the road May 26-June 27, are 13-52 away from home this season. No other club in the majors has fewer than 21 road wins. I like Over 9 in this one (still awaiting 5dimes line).

Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds

Prior to Sunday's 7-5 series-clinching victory over the Cubs, Baker juggled the lineup to allow Drew Stubbs to bat leadoff for the first time since May. He responded by going 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Outfielder Jay Bruce, who had been batting leadoff, moved to fifth in the order and hit his fourth homer of the series. Scheduled starter Edinson Volquez has been struggling, so Baker moved him to the bullpen and replaced him with rookie Travis Wood, who battled his way through five innings. Unlike the Big Red Machine, no-names are helping this team to a five-game lead over the Cardinals. "In this series, and a lot of this year, it's been that way," Stubbs said. "Obviously we've had the great things from Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips and Scott Rolen.. but everybody in the lineup has contributed and helped out at some point or another." The Reds have feasted on the NL Central (except for the Cards) this season and have won eight of their last nine meetings with the Brewers. They are ripping left-handers to the tune of .307 and catch a familiar southpaw in Randy Wolf. The Reds look for a fourth consecutive home win over the Brewers on Monday night. The Reds have a five-game lead over St. Louis in the Central and have won 11 of 15 since being swept at home by the Cardinals. Cincinnati, which is trying to go 21 games over .500 for the first time since 1999, is 4-1 against Milwaukee (62-68) and outscored the Brewers 22-6 while winning the last two. Though the Brewers will try for a fourth straight win after sweeping Pittsburgh, they have lost eight of nine to Cincinnati. Their only victory came with Randy Wolf (10-10, 4.74 ERA) on the mound. The left-hander is 9-2 with a 3.07 ERA in 17 starts against Cincinnati, including 4-0 with a 2.30 ERA over his last seven since a loss April 12, 2004. He gave up two runs in seven innings but did not factor in the decision of a 3-2 win over Cincinnati on July 26. Despite giving up four runs in five innings of a 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, Wolf is 3-1 with a 3.23 ERA in his last six starts. Cincinnati’s Homer Bailey (3-2, 4.83 ERA) takes the ball looking to bounce back after he allowed five runs in 5 1-3 innings of a 12-11, 12-inning win at San Francisco on Wednesday. Despite that outing, Bailey is 2-0 with a 2.95 ERA in three starts since missing almost three months with shoulder inflammation. The right-hander is 0-2 with a 6.56 ERA in four starts against the Brewers but allowed two runs in seven innings of a 5-4 home win May 18. Milwaukee’s Trevor Hoffman has a chance to record his 600th save after earning No. 599 on Sunday. Though Hoffman lost his closer’s job earlier this season, he’s been called on to finish games with leads of three runs or more in recent weeks. The right-hander has 29 saves in 36 chances against the Reds. In my opinion, the Reds should have another breakout game tonight. I like the Cincinnati Reds at -144 (5dimes).

Milwaukee Brewers vs. Cincinnati Reds

Prior to Sunday's 7-5 series-clinching victory over the Cubs, Baker juggled the lineup to allow Drew Stubbs to bat leadoff for the first time since May. He responded by going 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Outfielder Jay Bruce, who had been batting leadoff, was moved to fifth in the order and hit his fourth homer of the series. Scheduled starter Edinson Volquez has been struggling, so Baker moved him to the bullpen and replaced him with rookie Travis Wood, who battled his way through five innings. Unlike the Big Red Machine, no-names are helping this team to a five-game lead over the Cardinals. "In this series, and a lot of this year, it's been that way," Stubbs said. "Obviously we've had the great things from Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips and Scott Rolen.. but everybody in the lineup has contributed and helped out at some point or another." The Reds have feasted on the NL Central (except for the Cards) this season and have won eight of their last nine meetings with the Brewers. They are ripping left-handers to the tune of .307 and catch a familiar southpaw in Randy Wolf. The Reds look for a fourth consecutive home win over the Brewers on Monday night. The Reds have a five-game lead over St. Louis in the Central and have won 11 of 15 since being swept at home by the Cardinals. Cincinnati, which is trying to go 21 games over .500 for the first time since 1999, is 4-1 against Milwaukee (62-68) and outscored the Brewers 22-6 while winning the last two. Though the Brewers will try for a fourth straight win after sweeping Pittsburgh, they have lost eight of nine to Cincinnati. Their only victory came with Randy Wolf (10-10, 4.74 ERA) on the mound. The left-hander is 9-2 with a 3.07 ERA in 17 starts against Cincinnati, including 4-0 with a 2.30 ERA over his last seven since a loss April 12, 2004. He gave up two runs in seven innings but did not factor in the decision of a 3-2 win over Cincinnati on July 26. Despite giving up four runs in five innings of a 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, Wolf is 3-1 with a 3.23 ERA in his last six starts. Cincinnati’s Homer Bailey (3-2, 4.83 ERA) takes the ball looking to bounce back after he allowed five runs in 5 1-3 innings of a 12-11, 12-inning win at San Francisco on Wednesday. Despite that outing, Bailey is 2-0 with a 2.95 ERA in three starts since missing almost three months with shoulder inflammation. The right-hander is 0-2 with a 6.56 ERA in four starts against the Brewers but allowed two runs in seven innings of a 5-4 home win May 18. Milwaukee’s Trevor Hoffman has a chance to record his 600th save after earning No. 599 on Sunday. Though Hoffman lost his closer’s job earlier this season, he’s been called on to finish games with leads of three runs or more in recent weeks. The right-hander has 29 saves in 36 chances against the Reds. In my opinion, the Reds should have another breakout game tonight. I like the Cincinnati Reds at -144 (5dimes).