Happ strong again as Astros down Arizona

Baseball Betting Lines

09/05/2010 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hunter Pence's three-run home run in the first inning stood up as the deciding hit as Houston held off Arizona, 3-2, to wrap up a three-game set.

Pence finished 2-for-4 and Jeff Keppinger added a hit and a run scored for the Astros, who took the final two games of the series and have won five of their last six contests.

J.A. Happ (6-2) continued his fine pitching since being acquired from Philadelphia, as he yielded two runs on six hits while walking two and striking out seven over seven frames to grab the win and Brandon Lyon worked around a one-out double in the ninth to register his 13th save.

Rodrigo Lopez (5-13) allowed all three runs on six hits and a pair of walks while striking out five over six innings to take the loss for the Diamondbacks, who claimed the season series, 4-3.

Michael Bourn started the game with a walk and Keppinger followed with a base hit before Pence pounded his three-run home run the other way to right field to put the Astros ahead.

Arizona chipped away at the lead on John Hester's solo homer in the third and Kelly Johnson's solo shot to center in the fourth.

The hosts' bid to tie the game in the fifth was thwarted when Hester was thrown out at the plate trying to score from second base on Stephen Drew's infield single.

Happ worked out of a first-and-second, one-out jam in the seventh by striking out Hester and pinch-hitter Ryan Roberts to close his performance.

Matt Lindstrom stranded Chris Young at third base in a scoreless eighth before turning the game over to Lyon, who got Gerardo Parra to fly out and pinch-hitter Miguel Montero to strike out to end the game after Brandon Allen's pinch-hit double.

Game Notes

Pence has hit safely in six straight, including five multi-hit games, and has 11 hits during that stretch...Lyon has thrown scoreless relief in 13 consecutive outings and in 23 of his last 24 appearances since July 20...He has also converted each of his last 10 save chances since August 13...Lopez fell to 1-2 in four career outings against Houston, with his lone win coming as a member of the Orioles on June 15, 2005...Arizona outfielder Justin Upton missed his fifth straight game due to irritation in his left shoulder.

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MySportsbook.com and Kentucky Derby Offer Bonuses
The 2008 Kentucky Derby has announced a $1-million bonus for this weekend’s 134th ‘Run for the Roses’ and MySportsbook.com is doing the same.

Well, not quite $1 million, but MySportsbook.com is offering a 75% rebate for Kentucky Derby lines. Check out the exclusive horse racing bonus for all the details.

According to MySportsbook.com, the favorites for Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky are: Curlin (+250); Street Sense (+500); Scat Daddy (+700); Circular Quay (+750); and Nobiz Like Shobiz (+800).

Derby organizers announced this week that there will be a $1-million bonus at the 2007 Kentucky Derby odds if the first-place horse wins by more than 6 1/2 lengths – the margin of Barbaro's victory last year. The bonus would be divided Saturday among the winning trainer, jockey, owner and a charity, with each receiving 25 percent. The designated charity is the Barbaro Memorial Fund.

''It's certainly creative, it's certainly fun and it has something for the horsemen, which we always want to embrace,'' Churchill Downs president and chief executive Robert Evans said at a news conference. ''What's really cool is it will force us to remember Barbaro.''
    
Meanwhile, the Derby favorite – Curlin – is going against the odds this year. It's been 125 years since Apollo won after skipping his 2-year-old season, and not since Regret in 1915 has such a lightly seasoned horse worn the blanket of red roses.

Arkansas Derby winner Curlin – unbeaten in three career races – tries to overcome both those obstacles in Saturday's 133rd Derby.

''We're not running against history,'' trainer Steve Asmussen said Monday. ''We're running against who they load up.''

Six other horses have run in the Derby without benefit of 2-year-old races and with three or fewer starts. The best any of them managed was a sixth-place finish by Showing Up last year.
   
Asmussen dismissed suggestions that Curlin's lack of racing experience could keep him from the winner's circle.

”He exudes confidence and he's got a great presence about him,'' the trainer said. ''I feel great about the position we're in. He's not worried about anything, why should you be?''
   
The Kentucky Derby is at 4:04 p.m., ET Saturday.

For complete odds on the Kentucky Derby, visit MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.