Diamondbacks aim to get on track in finale with Rockies

Baseball Betting Lines

08/14/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Diamondbacks try to maintain at least a share of the top spot in the National League West this afternoon when they conclude a three-game series with the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.

Arizona relinquished sole possession of first place in the division last night, as Brad Hawpe clubbed a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning and Colorado withstood a ninth-inning charge from the Diamondbacks to hang on for a 6-5 win.

Hawpe finished 3-for-3 with two doubles and a walk for Colorado, which won for just the second time in its last seven contests.

Colorado starter Jeff Francis allowed three runs on six hits in six-plus innings of work, but did not receive a decision. Taylor Buchholz (5-3) tossed a scoreless eighth to get the win. Brian Fuentes overcame a rocky ninth to nail down his 22nd save. The lefty gave up a run on two hits and walked two.

Chad Tracy belted a solo homer for the Diamondbacks, who have dropped five of their last seven games and are now tied with the Dodgers for the NL West lead after LA upended Philadelphia, 7-6, Wednesday. Stephen Drew went 2-for-5 with a double, an RBI and a run scored.

Drew has now hit safely in a career-high 15 straight games.

Arizona starter Doug Davis surrendered four runs -- three earned -- on six hits in five innings, but did not factor into the decision. Jon Rauch (4-3) was saddled with the loss after he gave up the home run to Hawpe.

Heading to the hill for the D'Backs today will be righty Dan Haren, who will try to bounce back from his first loss in more than a month. Haren had a four- start winning streak stopped on Saturday against Atlanta, as he allowed six runs and 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings, dropping him to 12-6, while raising his earned run average to 3.00.

Haren defeated the Rockies the last time he faced them and is 1-2 in three starts against them with a 3.94 ERA.

Colorado will go with righty Glendon Rusch, who is 5-3 with a 5.22 ERA. Rusch pushed his unbeaten streak to six starts on Friday against San Diego, as he surrendered a pair of runs and seven hits in six innings.

Rusch picked up a relief win over the D'Backs earlier in the season and is 5-2 lifetime against them with a 4.14 ERA in 16 games, six of which have been starts.

Arizona has won nine of the 11 encounters between the clubs this season.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back

With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.

"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."

Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .

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