Surging Twins return home to take on A's

Baseball Betting Lines

08/13/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It must feel good for the Minnesota Twins to head back to the Twin Cities with the American League Central Division lead. They'll try to stay atop the standings when they open a three-game series versus the Oakland Athletics tonight from Target Field.

The Twins went 6-4 on a 10-game road trip and took over the AL Central lead by winning two of three meetings with the Chicago White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field. They grabbed a one-game edge over the White Sox with Thursday's 6-1 victory, with Jason Kubel clubbing a three-run homer and Orlando Hudson adding a solo shot to lead the way.

Francisco Liriano recorded the win by holding the Pale Hose to a run on seven hits and two walks over 5 2/3 innings. Matt Guerrier, Jesse Crain and Matt Capps combined for 3 1/3 scoreless innings of relief.

"I ran out of gas a little bit in the fifth inning, so I was ready to come out," Liriano (11-7) said after earning his 11th win. "Our bullpen has been pretty good, so I wasn't mad at all."

The Twins will host Chicago for three games early next week before wrapping up the homestand against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Carl Pavano is on pace to match or possibly exceed his career-high win total of 18, established during the 2004 campaign with Florida. His 18-8 ledger that year enabled him to sign a big deal with the New York Yankees, but he never reached double digits in wins until last season while a member of the Twins and Cleveland.

Pavano has been on a roll since June, having gone 9-1 with a 2.62 earned run average in his last 12 starts, and will take the ball Friday. The Twins are 10-2 over that span, while Pavano enters tonight's showdown fresh off a seven- inning stint at Cleveland on Saturday. He allowed two runs in seven innings of a 7-2 win that day to improve to 14-7 with a 3.28 ERA in 23 starts this season.

The right-hander will face Oakland for just the third time in his career and owns a 1-0 mark with a 3.29 ERA in two career starts.

Oakland is eight games off the lead in the AL West Division and salvaged the finale of a three-game set at Seattle with a 5-1 victory on Wednesday. Dallas Braden went the distance and allowed four hits and one run with six strikeouts. It was his second complete game in three starts -- both wins.

"It was a good team win," A's infielder Mark Ellis said. "Dallas was obviously outstanding. We knew we didn't have to get too many runs the way he was throwing the ball."

Ellis doubled three times and drove in as many runs, while Coco Crisp and Landon Powell both knocked in a run for the A's, who won for the fifth time in their last nine tries.

Handling the pitching assignment for the A's tonight will be Gio Gonzalez, who has won four of his last six decisions. Gonzalez hopes to build off his last start on Saturday, when he kept the Texas Rangers at bay with seven shutout innings of four-hit ball.

Gonzalez (10-7) reached the 10-win mark for the first time in his career and lowered his earned run average to 3.51 in his 23rd start of the season. The left-hander defeated Minnesota on June 6 of this season, tossing seven innings and allowing just two runs in a 5-4 win.

He is 1-1 with a less desirable 14.21 ERA in three career starts against the Twins.

Minnesota took two of three games against Oakland at the Coliseum from June 4-6 this season, but the A's have won four of the last seven meetings between the two clubs.

Sportsbookonlinegambling Baseball Betting News

<< U.S. women learn World Cup qualifying opponents
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States women's national team will play Costa Rica, Haiti and Guatemala in Group B of CONCACAF Women's World Cup qualifying, it was announced Thursday night. Group A features host Mexico, Canada,

<< White Sox, Tigers to clash in AL Central showdown
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers are fading fast from the postseason picture, but can throw a wrench in the Chicago White Sox' playoff aspirations when the two AL Central rivals begin a three-game series tonight from U.S. Cellular Field.

<< Yankees set sights on another win in Kansas City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The owners of the best record in baseball, the New York Yankees will shoot for their third straight win tonight in the second portion of a four-game road series against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. The Ameri

<< Reds try to rebound in series with Marlins
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cincinnati Reds return to the field today with the same on-field personnel - but a little lighter in the wallets - when they open a three-game home series with the visiting Florida Marlins at Great American Ball Park.

<< N.Y. fully loaded for MLS overall leader L.A.
Harrison, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Red Bull New York will have all three of its designated players available Saturday, when the David Beckham-less Los Angeles Galaxy visit Red Bull Arena in Major League Soccer. Thierry Henry, Rafael Marquez a

Angels ready for key series with visiting Blue Jays >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After getting swept by the dreadful Baltimore Orioles early last week, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have responded in a positive way. Still a long way off from a playoff berth, the Angels look to keep the drive going

Burke cutting it close with Kaberle >>
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brian Burke is currently engaging in a risky waiting game with his most valuable trading commodity, All-Star defenseman Tomas Kaberle. Burke has less than three days remaining to decide wha

Sixers hope lightning strikes twice with Thorn, Stefanski >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The expression "lightning never strikes twice" is often used to describe a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Of course, science tells us that lightning strikes occur frequently in specific areas and, although r

Marseille ready to rebound from slap in the face >>
Valenciennes, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Marseille opened defense of its Ligue 1 title with a shocking defeat to newly-promoted Caen, and midfielder Mathieu Valbuena called the loss a "slap in the face." "We're defending champions, up aga

PGA Championship back after another fog delay >>
Kohler, WI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The first round of the PGA Championship resumed Friday morning following another fog delay and Matt Kuchar seized a one-shot lead. Kuchar birdied No. 6 at Whistling Straits -- his 15th hole -- after pla

MySportsbook.com is the Internet’s largest online sportsbook site serving customers in more than 80 countries worldwide. Founded in 1997, MySportsbook.com was the first sports book to introduce reduced margin wagering, using a -105 pricing model that gives bettors up to 50% better value on wagers than traditional bookmakers. With low minimum bet requirements and the highest maximum limits on the Web, MySportsbook.com has earned an industry leading reputation for providing consistent value to the player, professional customer service and the quickest payouts online. Fully licensed and regulated in Antigua and the UK, the company offers a secure environment for sports betting, horse racing and online casino games.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts credit cards needs.