Braden faces Angels in first start since perfecto

Baseball Betting Lines

05/14/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Now that the dust has settled on the 19th perfect game in Major League history and all the television appearances have subsided, Oakland Athletics starter Dallas Braden will get back to work tonight in the opener of a three-game road series versus the rival LA Angels of Anaheim.

Braden tossed the second perfect game in the history of the Athletics last Sunday in a 4-0 win against the Tampa Bay Rays at the Coliseum. He struck out six batters and became the first A's pitcher to record a perfect game since Jim "Catfish" Hunter accomplished the feat on May 8, 1968 against Minnesota. Braden's perfect game was the 14th no-hitter in the history of the franchise and first since Dave Stewart turned the trick on June 29, 1990 at Toronto.

The left-handed Braden needed just 109 pitches to complete the remarkable performance and is the first pitcher to throw a perfect game since Mark Buehrle tossed one for the Chicago White Sox on July 23, 2009. Braden is also the second pitcher this season to throw a no-hitter in the majors, as Colorado ace Ubaldo Jimenez no-hit the Atlanta Braves on April 17. Johnny Vander Meer is the only pitcher in history to throw no-hitters in consecutive starts.

Braden is 4-2 with a 3.33 ERA in seven 2010 starts and ended a personal two- game losing streak against the Rays. He beat the Angels on April 11 by holding them to three runs in six innings of a 9-4 victory. Braden is 2-3 in 10 career games, six of which have been starts, against Anaheim.

Oakland dropped the last two portions of its three-game series at Texas earlier in the week and suffered a 2-1 loss in 12 innings in yesterday's finale. Vladimir Guerrero drove in Michael Young in the bottom of the 12th off of A's closer Andrew Bailey to lead the Rangers.

"I just missed my spot," Bailey said on the team's site. "That's when you go back to the drawing board and come back out there the next day."

Jake Fox had three hits and Josh Donaldson knocked in the lone run for Oakland, which got six innings of one-run ball and eight strikeouts from starter Ben Sheets.

The Athletics had won three in a row and five of six games prior to their two straight losses to Texas. They are now two games behind the Rangers for the lead in the American League West division.

Meanwhile, the Angels have been struggling lately and are coming off consecutive losses versus the Rays after winning Monday's series opener. In Wednesday's 4-3 setback at the Big A, Anaheim starter Jered Weaver fanned a career-high 12 batters but came out on the losing end, as he gave up six hits and four runs -- one earned -- over seven innings.

"I tried to keep my team in the game and I did that," Weaver said. "The 12 strikeouts would have looked a lot better if we won the game, 4-3."

Howie Kendrick ended with three hits and drove in a run for the Angels, who lost for the 10th time in 13 tries.

The Angels, who are a game ahead of last-place Seattle in the AL West, will send Joe Saunders to the mound Friday night. Saunders lost his first two starts of the season before winning his only game so far in 2010, when he allowed two unearned runs in eight innings at Toronto on April 17.

Since then he's 0-3 with an 8.31 earned run average in four starts and last took the hill in a 4-3 Angels' victory at Seattle last Saturday. Saunders did not record a decision and gave up three runs -- one earned -- in 5 2/3 innings of work. He lost to Oakland back on April 11, when he was reached for four runs in six innings of a 9-4 defeat to Braden.

In 15 career starts against the Athletics, Saunders is a solid 9-4 with a 4.13 earned run average.

Oakland won two of three meetings with Anaheim back in early April, but the Angels are 12-7 in the last 19 matchups between the division foes.

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NFL Football Betting : Odds on NFL Division to Win the Super Bowl

NFL Super Bowl Betting

The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.

Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.

The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.