Dodgers feast on Phils' pitching in 15-3 rout

Baseball Betting Lines

08/23/2007 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Andre Ethier belted a two-run home run in the fourth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers pounded the Philadelphia Phillies, 15-3, in the second of three straight games at Citizens Bank Park.

Matt Kemp went 4-for-6 with two RBI and scored three runs for the Dodgers, who have split their last four games. Rafael Furcal and Juan Pierre both added three hits in the rout, in which LA notched 18 hits and its season high for runs.

Right-hander Derek Lowe (10-11) got his second straight win, having allowed three runs on six hits with three strikeouts over seven innings for LA.

Philadelphia rookie right-hander J.D. Durbin (5-3) moved up a spot in the rotation in place of southpaw staff ace Cole Hamels, who was pulled from this start after suffering tenderness in his left elbow following a defeat of the Washington Nationals last Thursday. Durbin defeated the Dodgers on July 17 with six innings of six-hit, one run ball in a 15-3 Philadelphia win, but had the fortune reversed Wednesday, allowing five runs - four earned - on seven hits with a strikeout and three walks over six innings.

Chris Coste homered for the Phillies, who have dropped three of four. Aaron Rowand had a pair of hits and scored twice for the Phils, who remained five games behind the Mets in the National League East and slipped a game behind San Diego for the top spot in the wild card standings. Shane Victorino, who was activated from the DL after being sidelined since July 31 with a right calf strain, finished 0-for-4 in his return.

The Dodgers got on the board in the first when Furcal grounded a lead-off single and later scored on a double by Ethier, whose two-run homer to right- center field on the first pitch he saw in the fourth gave them a 3-0 lead.

The Phils got one back in the fifth, as Rowand grounded a lead-off single, raced to second on a wild pitch, and made it home courtesy of Victorino and Greg Dobbs groundouts.

LA put up a pair of runs in the sixth. Kemp singled and scored on a double by Jeff Kent, who later came home on a base hit by James Loney.

The Dodgers then blew the game open with five runs in the seventh off reliever Jose Mesa. Furcal walked before Pierre and Kemp singled to load the bases for Kent, who got a run home on a sacrifice fly. Mesa then intentionally walked Ethier, but hit Russell Martin with a pitch, prompting Clay Condrey to relieve him on the mound. Loney next singled in a pair of runs and Shea Hillenbrand's sacrifice fly capped the frame's scoring.

Philadelphia answered with two runs in the home half, as Rowand singled before Coste's two-run blast to left field on an 0-1 pitch.

The Dodgers, however, added three insurance runs in the eighth. Furcal and Pierre both singled before Kemp's triple cleared the bases. Kemp wasn't far behind, scoring on a Ramon Martinez groundout.

LA plated another pair of runs in the ninth sparked by singles from Hillenbrand, Furcal, Pierre and Kemp. Martinez then hit a sac fly for the final margin.

Game Notes

A precautionary MRI Wednesday showed no structural or ligament damage to Hamels' elbow, and the stint on the DL is retroactive to August 17, making him eligible to return on September 1...Dodgers reliever Roberto Hernandez, with 1,002 appearances, tied Goose Gossage for 11th place on the all-time games pitched list...Kent now has 1,446 RBI for 54th place on the all-time RBI list...Los Angeles took two of three games from Philadelphia at Dodger Stadium last month after winning four of the seven matchups last season. The Dodgers also won two of three in last year's visit to Citizens Bank Park.

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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.

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