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Ichiro depressed by another lost Mariners seasonBaseball Betting Lines07/15/2010 - SEATTLE (AP) -Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki is dumbfounded, even depressed at the turn of fortunes his team has taken. Ken Griffey Jr. is gone, driven home to retirement in Florida. Cliff Lee is gone, too, traded to division-rival Texas instead of teaming with fellow ace pitcher Felix Hernandez to beat the Rangers and everyone else in the AL West. The Mariners have gone from a popular playoff pick and winners of baseball's offseason to losers during the regular season. Again. Seattle begins the second half Thursday at the Los Angeles Angels sitting 18 games under .500, and 15 games behind the Rangers - last in the division. A team built on pitching and defense is failing - and flailing - miserably on offense. ``To be honest with you, I can't even explain in words. It's very, very tough, hard and depressing,'' Suzuki said Monday in Anaheim, Calif., ahead of his 10th consecutive All-Star game. Seattle's 3.39 runs per game and .238 average are its second-lowest marks at the break in team history. The Mariners' 57 home runs in 88 games is their third-fewest at any All-Star break. Seattle had 102 homers at the break the last time the team made the playoffs - in 2001. ``The media - everyone - expected a lot from us in spring training, and it didn't work out that way,'' the 36-year-old Suzuki said through his interpreter. ``You can't explain it in words. That's how tough it is, mentally.'' Suzuki, who this season became the sixth major league player since 1901 to steal 20 bases in each of his first 10 seasons, is not alone wallowing in the grim reality of a 35-53 record. ``We're all disappointed,'' said manager Don Wakamatsu, who has gone from refreshing in the his rookie season to ripped by fans in his second. ``We came in with high expectations.'' General manager Jack Zduriencik has admitted those expectations may have been too high. The Mariners lost 101 games just two seasons ago and are still in the early stages of Zduriencik's overhaul of the organization. The team has increased its emphasis on developing minor league players and is remodeling the big league squad into one based on pitching and defense - as opposed to high-priced, free-agent power hitters. Long-term success is what the GM was looking to when he traded Lee for heralded hitting prospect Justin Smoak and several Double-A players. ``One of the important things for us is to win now, of course, but also build for the future,'' Zduriencik said Friday. ``In this process we are trying to build a World Series championship-caliber club here.'' That seems light years away right now. So what's left in this season? The 23-year-old Smoak is going to play almost every day at first base. That means Russell Branyan, acquired from Cleveland on June 26 to give Seattle at least one consistent home-run threat, will play more at designated hitter. That leaves Milton Bradley trying to find playing time in left field with young Michael Saunders. Wakamatsu said he hopes Bradley, who last started on July 3, will get a fresh start this weekend against the Angels following some rest. The rotation has a 3.55 ERA, the best at the All-Star break in team history. But without Lee it has holes that Triple-A call-up David Pauley is now helping to fill. Erik Bedard, a former ace in Baltimore, was scheduled to make his season debut this month following shoulder surgery last August, but his shoulder began bothering him again. He remains out indefinitely. The bullpen that was a strength last season is now a liability, epitomized by 2009 star closer David Aardsma's 0-6 record, 5.40 ERA and four blown saves in 20 chances - as many blown saves as he had all of last season. And the Mariners are closer to their second 100-loss season in three years than any postseason pipe dream. ``I didn't expect this to happen, but ... it's reality,'' Suzuki said. ``We have to deal with it. ``To us players, we can only look forward to a future.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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Football BettingNFL Football Betting OnlineThe San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago. Thursday, August 21 NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37 NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007 In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points. Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season): * SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp. Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled. Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too. That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm. Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds. CHICAGO -3 (-120) ** The 2008 NFL betting lines season is almost upon us! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join sportbook today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLIII and beyond! Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds . |
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