Injury scratches Hurricane Ike from Preakness

Horseracing Betting Lines

05/12/2010 - Baltimore, MD (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hurricane Ike, winner of last month's Derby Trial, has been withdrawn from the Preakness Stakes with a leg injury. Trainer John Sadler made the announcement Wednesday morning.

"My horse isn't so fine. It's something that came up this morning. I got a call telling me that he was off behind," said Sadler from Hollywood Park.

Assistant trainer Larry Benevidez, who has been overseeing the colt training at Churchill Downs, informed Sadler of the unspecified injury to Hurricane Ike's left hind leg.

"This is pretty fresh, but it looks similar to the problem he had at Oak Tree," said Sadler, referring to a condition last fall at Santa Anita Park that delayed the colt's three-year-old season. "He might have re-injured himself in the same area.

"This is extremely disappointing. It's disappointing, but what can you do? Sometimes they don't cooperate. Hopefully, we'll get him into some big races later this year."

Owned by Ike and Dawn Thrash, Hurricane Ike was second earlier this year in the Bay Shore Stakes to Eightyfiveinafifty at Aqueduct. He has won two of eight career starts for $249,732.

Wwwthespinroom Horseracing Betting News

<< Flyers try to stay alive in Game 6 vs. Bruins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Flyers will try to stay alive in the Eastern Conference semifinals once again when they host the Boston Bruins tonight at Wachovia Center in Game 6 of the best-of-seven series. The seventh-seeded Flyers lo

<< Pens host surprising Habs in Game 7 of East semis
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The eighth-seeded Montreal Canadiens have pushed the defending Stanley Cup champions to the brink in the Eastern Conference semifinals and it all comes down to tonight, when the Habs visit the Pittsburgh Penguins for a decisi

<< Red Sox close homestand with finale against Jays
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Red Sox will attempt to close out a long homestand with a result that's been a familiar one so far this season, a win over the Toronto Blue Jays. With Tim Wakefield set to make his first start in more than two

<< Mariners try to make it three in a row in Baltimore
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Seattle Mariners have dug themselves a hole in the American League West race with a dreadful recent homestand, but their current road trip has gotten off to a much more desirable start. The team will set its sights on a s

<< Yanks, Tigers play two in Detroit
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After an unscheduled day off, the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers will pull double duty with a day-night twinbill beginning this afternoon at Comerica Park. The second test of this four-game series, slated for Tuesday

Tigers recall P Figaro, option OF Raburn >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers recalled pitcher Alfredo Figaro from Triple-A Toledo and optioned outfielder Ryan Raburn to the same club Wednesday. The 25-year-old Figaro posted a 4-1 record and 2.55 earned run ave

OKC's Collison undergoes arthroscopic knee surgery >>
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -Oklahoma City Thunder forward Nick Collison has undergone successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.The team says the procedure took place Tuesday. Collison will begin rehabilitating the knee immediately and should resume

Terry suffers injury in training >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - John Terry was taken to the hospital on Wednesday after suffering an injury to his right foot in training. It was originally feared that the Chelsea captain may have suffered a broken metatarsal, whi

O'Neill to return at Villa >>
Birmingham, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aston Villa owner Randy Lerner has confirmed that Martin O'Neill will remain in place as manager at Villa Park next season, following talks between the two men. O'Neill has been fending off ru

Iniesta targets weekend return >>
Barcelona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has handed club manager Pep Guardiola a boost after coming through training unscathed following a month out with a hamstring injury. The Spain international i

FOOTBALL BETTING

Sportsbook Betting

After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

NFL Betting Lines

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

Numerous College Basketball teams take final big step to March Madness betting

So, what turned on the lock spigot? Well, after what felt like weeks of teams treading water and slipping back into the bubble muck, a bunch of them finally decided to say "to heck with parity" and won games that should put them into the Big Dance.

Disagree with some of these? Then here's the challenge. Take all of the "should be ins" and make a legit case that each should be ahead of the team that's a lock. Then find 10 more teams that also should be placed in the bracket ahead of that lock team. Not so easy, is it?

If you want more evidence that these locks should be good to go, check out what our research department dug up. Since the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams in 1985, only six teams from a "big six" conference have had a record of 10-6 or better in conference play and not been selected: Colorado (2004) and Nebraska (1999) from the Big 12, Boston College and Seton Hall (both 2003) from the Big East, Indiana (2005) from the Big Ten and UCLA, which somehow went 12-6 in the Pac-10 in 1988 and still missed out. (Note: Five teams went 11-7 and didn't get in, the latest being last season's Stanford team, which had a brutal nonconference run.)

Yes, 10 conference wins doesn't always mean what it used to because of unbalanced schedules, but this season, it should be plenty good in all but the extreme cases (see: Iowa).

In a way, this is a welcome development, because this is a bubble watch, not a lock watch. We can finally be done with teams like Maryland and Virginia Tech and start really bearing down on at-large battles such as Syracuse-West Virginia and Appalachian State-Georgia Tech.

Interestingly, all the shifting of teams into lock status appears to be more administrative than impactful. The number of remaining available at-larges didn't change one iota. The only difference is that teams on the bubble now have a clearer idea of which team(s) they are competing with for those precious bids.

The Bubble Breakdown
CONFERENCE LOCKS SHOULD BE INS AT-LARGES TAKEN
(assuming no auto bid outlier)
ACC Betting Odds 6 0 5
Big East Betting Odds 5 0 4
Big Ten Betting Odds 2 2 3
Big 12 Betting Odds 3 0 2
Pac-10 Betting Odds 5 1 5
SEC Betting Odds 4 0 3
MVC Betting Odds 1 1 1
MWC Betting Odds 2 1 2
TOTAL 28 5 25

As always, I've tried to be as inclusive as possible while only including teams that would have a reasonable chance of at least being discussed if this were Selection Sunday. If your team's not on here, there's probably a good reason (or three) -- start with the RPI and SOS numbers and work your way down.

(Please remember, per selection committee criteria, that records displayed are Division I only. Next update: Feb. 28)

If you have a legitimate grievance, or just like talking bubble, send an e-mail. Polite ones with fact-based arguments have a much better chance of receiving a response. I apologize in advance if I can't get back to all of you.

Atlantic Coast Conference

Work left to do: Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech

The ACC moves to six locks as BC, Va Tech and Virginia all got their 10th ACC wins, which should be more than enough this season, and Maryland rallied past North Carolina to get the final piece the Terps needed. After that? It could end there unless FSU, Ga Tech or Clemson picks things up in a hurry.

 

Work left to do:

Clemson [19-9 (5-9), RPI: 41, SOS: 42] The Tigers are closer to locking up the collapse of the year award (in a good battle with OK State) than they are to grabbing an at-large. Clemson's been very competitive, but there's no really positive way you can spin nine losses in 11 games. They now cannot get to .500 in ACC play and still must head to Virginia Tech in the season finale (after hosting Miami). Unless the Tigers win both and/or do some serious work in the ACC tourney, they very well could be left out. There are no great nonconference wins, but ODU, App State, Miss. State, South Carolina and Georgia are all respectable W's.

Florida State [18-11 (6-9), RPI: 48, SOS: 14] The Noles got thrashed at Maryland to run their losing streak to five, but then pounded NC State at home to set the table for what likely is an elimination game at Miami. You can at least make a case for the Seminoles at 7-9 in ACC play (and some work in the ACC tourney), but 6-10 is not going to cut it. Wins at Duke and over Florida will resonate, but the computer numbers remain questionable. Beyond Florida, FSU thrashed bubble buddy Providence, but there's not a ton beyond those two games that will help. They didn't show well in big-time opportunities against Pitt and Wisconsin (before the Florida win).

Georgia Tech [18-10 (6-8), RPI: 51, SOS: 46] The Jackets beat Wake on Wednesday but couldn't get it done at UVa on Saturday, which could be a crucial loss with UNC and BC (both at home) remaining and 8-8 almost a certain need for at-large consideration. A nonconference win over Memphis helps, but the RPI and SOS are not at-large quality right now; if you combine those with a sub-.500 ACC mark, that could spell NIT for GT.

For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com

Additional basketball lines can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.