7-6-14

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Rain pushes Coke Zero 400 to Sunday start

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series lost to Mother Nature on Saturday night when rain forced postponement of the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway until 11 a.m. ET Sunday.

Prerace activities are scheduled for 10:45 a.m. The green flag originally was scheduled to drop at 7:57 p.m. Saturday.

NASCAR made repeated attempts to dry the track surface to get the race in later Saturday night, but rain continued to fall, negating progress made by track drying equipment. The call was finally made by NASCAR officials to end track drying attempts when local weather radar at 9 p.m. showed rain continuing throughout the night.

The Coke Zero 400 is the second race of the season at Daytona for the Sprint Cup Series, with the first being the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 23. The Daytona 500 was also delayed by rain but completed on the scheduled day in the evening rather than the afternoon. That race was won by Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Jimmie Johnson is the defending winner of the Coke Zero 400. He swept both races a year ago at the track.

When the Coke Zero takes the green flag on Sunday, David Gilliland will start the race from the pole, with Reed Sorenson alongside on the front row. Gilliland claimed the pole during a qualifying session on Friday that was shortened by rain.

Because of rain washing the rubber laid down on the track during the weekend, a competition caution will be expected around lap 20 of the race.

Landon Cassill and Bobby Labonte will start the race in the second row. It'll be the first race for Labonte since the Daytona 500.

Johnson, the defending champion, will start fifth and Earnhardt seventh.

Rain also affected the NASCAR Nationwide Series schedule at Daytona on Friday, shortening the qualifying session and delaying the start of the race by about 1 1/2 hours.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Brian France gives midseason state of the sport at Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- If NASCAR CEO Brian France could change one thing about 2014 it might be the lousy weather that has haunted the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series schedule.

With it raining again at Daytona hours before the scheduled start of the Coke Zero 400, France addressed the national media for the first time since the implementation of the 2014 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup qualifying format and rules package. He said the sport is pleased with the results despite its share of challenges.

"I think we can all see the benefits of changing the importance of winning (races)," France said. "It has changed the racing on the track. The drivers are telling us that. They're taking different kinds of chances. They're going for wins when they would have played it safe, otherwise.

"I think that (competition) is just going to get more intense as we close in on Richmond and set the (Chase) field there."

France predicted that the new format for crowning a champion, in which four drivers will vie for the title in the final race of the season, will also be a major positive.

"We didn't want to have a bad race or two take somebody out early on in the Chase," he said.

France conceded that there are still tweaks to be made, notably with the revised rules package for 2014.

"We're not where we want to be on that," he said, "and we're embarking on a lot of work -- a lot of science, technology and innovation -- to get the very best racing product that we can on all of the tracks. That's obviously a fundamental goal and responsibility at NASCAR."

Nasty weather and going head-to-head with Olympic and World Cup coverage have been among the challenges in 2014 as NASCAR has dealt with up-and-down TV ratings and less-than-capacity crowds at some venues.

"Some markets are doing better than they did last year, so it's a mixed bag," France said. "There are some markets that have had a lot of pressure and Dover is one of those.

"But when you go around and really look at it and all the digital interests that we have today on devices -- and that's obviously not scored currently -- we're real pleased. When you combine it all up, even with our challenges, we're still not off that much. We're never pleased when our ratings aren't growing at the rate we would like, but we understand that circumstances will always have us going one way or the other from time to time."

Overall, France said he is pleased with the economic state of the sport.

"We're on a nice, steady ground and sponsorship is coming back for us, thankfully," he said. "The business is sound and we're going forward."

France said the sport is already looking ahead to 2015, when NBC and FOX will share a new television contract and a new sponsor for the NASCAR Nationwide Series is expected to come on board.

"I think in the coming weeks we'll be getting to the end of that (sponsorship) process and we will be in very good shape when the dust settles," France said.

Speaking at Daytona International Speedway, where the $400 million-plus Daytona Rising renovation project is in full swing, France said he wouldn't be surprised if other venues follow suit to attract fans.

Noting that Daytona is where NASCAR kicks off its season, France said that facility "needs to be a spectacular place to come for our fans."

Adding new seating options, escalators and social media zones in the manner of Daytona might not make sense at every NASCAR track. But France speculated that every facility will take note of the updates.

"I think every track has to have its own identity and has to do what it thinks is important in the marketplace they compete in," he said. "Will (Daytona Rising) be something other tracks want to emulate? I think it will."

With the Daytona project being privately financed, France suggested that state and local municipalities would be well-served to help finance similar improvements that attract fans in other markets.

"Unfortunately for our industry, the speedways don't enjoy the public financing component that almost all major sports enjoy," France said. "We're hoping that gets better-balanced over time -- in other words, that communities, local governments, states will help grow these facilities like they do other stadiums and arenas."

France hinted of more changes ahead for the sport, noting that future rules, such as new engine specifications, must be "relevant," not only to current manufacturers but to manufacturers who might consider entering the NASCAR arena.

He also said NASCAR remains cognizant of lowering the cost of racing so it does not present a barrier for new teams to enter the sport or prevent smaller teams from competing effectively.

"Lowering the cost of racing, getting parity where teams can come in and have success, and making ourselves more relevant to manufacturers and partners is all part of the NASCAR business model," he said.

France predicted "robust discussion" about possible schedule changes for the 2015 season and beyond. Though not specifically addressing a FOX Sports report that Darlington Raceway could host the second race of the season, France said that weather concerns, a new television partner and the new Chase format are reasons to consider shifting some races to new dates.

"We'll be releasing that (2015 schedule) in September," France said.

One thing France does not envision changing is the site of NASCAR's title-determining venue, Homestead-Miami Speedway.

"Historically, we've liked to do it in South Florida," he said. "The weather is great that time of year. It's a good market for us and the track -- and this is an important thing -- is by any definition the best mile-and-a-half track that the drivers believe they have. They can really race hard and compete hard and that matters. When you factor all of those things in, we're going to be in Homestead for the foreseeable future."

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Primetime Sports Picks

5 Unit --> Chicago Cubs (Arrieta)/Washington (Zimmermann) UNDER 7
3 Unit --> N.Y. Yankees (Kuroda) -120 over Minnesota (Nolasco)
3 Unit --> Miami (Alvarez) -115 over St. Louis (Gonzales)

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Game of the Day: Rays at Tigers

Tampa Bay Rays at Detroit Tigers (+105, 7.5)

Logan Forsythe was struggling much like his Tampa Bay Rays in mid-June, batting .178 and spending plenty of time watching from the bench. Forsythe has batted .431 since then to help ignite the Rays, who look to finish their 11-game road trip with nine victories when they visit the Detroit Tigers on Sunday night. Runs will be hard to come by as Detroit’s Rick Porcello, coming off the first two shutouts of his career, takes the mound against David Price -- the major-league strikeout leader.

The Rays have taken two of three in the series and lost only once in their last eight as Forsythe boasts three homers and eight RBIs on the road trip. The Tigers have dropped the last two after winning 12 of their previous 14 and lead the American League Central while hot-hitting Victor Martinez is day-to-day with a sore back. J.D Martinez is 8-for-19 with two homers and five RBIs in July though for the Tigers.

TV: 8 p.m. ET; ESPN

LINE HISTORY: Books opened the Tigers -104 home faves, but that line has moved to +105. The total opened 7.5.

POWER RANKINGS: Rays (+103), Tigers (-188)

INJURY REPORT: Rays: SS Yunel Escobar (Shoulder/Out), LF David DeJesus (Hand/Out) Tigers: DH Victor Martinez (Back/Doubtful)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Rays LH David Price (7-7, 3.50 ERA) vs. Tigers RH Rick Porcello (11-4, 3.12)

After a five-game winless streak, Price has won three of his last four starts while yielding only seven runs over 31 1/3 innings. The Vanderbilt product leads the majors in strikeout-walk ratio (153-17, 9.00), but has surrendered 17 homers – among the most in the majors. Miguel Cabrera is only 1-for-14 with six strikeouts against Price, who is 4-1 with a 2.23 ERA in seven appearances (five starts) versus Detroit.

Before Porcello’s two shutouts, he blanked Cleveland over six innings on six hits in his previous start to begin a three-game winning streak. The 25-year-old New Jersey native has permitted two or fewer runs in 10 of his 16 starts in 2014 and 96 hits in 106 2/3 innings overall. Desmond Jennings is 3-for-10 in his career against Porcello, who is 2-2 in five career starts versus Tamps Bay with a 2.73 ERA.

TRENDS:

*Rays are 6-1 in their last 7 overall.
*Tigers are 23-7 in Porcellos last 30 starts.
*Under is 5-0 in Porcellos last 5 starts vs. Rays
*Rays are 7-16 in the last 23 meetings.

CONSENSUS: 61.9 percent of backers are taking the Tigers at +102

[Can'tPickAWinner]

EZWINNERS

3* (971) Yankees -$120
2* (972) Padres -$125

[Can'tPickAWinner]

StatFox Super Situations – FoxSheets

MLB | SAN FRANCISCO at SAN DIEGO
Play On – All underdogs with a money line of +100 or higher (SAN FRANCISCO) after having lost 6 or 7 of their last 8 games, with a winning record on the season playing a losing team
38-20 over the last 5 seasons. ( 65.5% | 24.6 units )
4-5 this year. ( 44.4% | 0.0 units )

StatFox Situational Power Trends – FoxSheets

MLB | KANSAS CITY at CLEVELAND
KANSAS CITY is 39-17 (+24.0 Units) against the money line with an on base percentage of .300 or worse over their last 15 games over the last 3 seasons.
The average score was: KANSAS CITY (4.8) , OPPONENT (3.4)

[Can'tPickAWinner]

StatFox Super Situations – FoxSheets

WNBA | PHOENIX at LOS ANGELES
Play Under – Road teams where the total is greater than or equal to 140 very good team – outscoring their opponents by 6+ points/game
212-128 since 1997. ( 62.4% | 71.2 units )
6-6 this year. ( 50.0% | -0.6 units )

WNBA | PHOENIX at LOS ANGELES
Play Against – Home teams with a money line of +135 to -155 (LOS ANGELES) after scoring 70 points or more in 2 straight games against opponent after scoring 77 points or more in 4 straight games
29-11 since 1997. ( 72.5% | 0.0 units )
2-0 this year. ( 100.0% | 0.0 units )

WNBA | MINNESOTA at NEW YORK
Play Under – Home teams where the first half total is greater than 65.5 revenging a road loss versus opponent, playing with 3 or more days rest
152-87 since 1997. ( 63.6% | 56.3 units )
1-4 this year. ( 20.0% | -3.4 units )

[Can'tPickAWinner]

BOB BALFE

SAN DIEGO PADRES -120
(Hahn/Lincecum)

Tim Lincecum has not one, but two no hitters against this Padres team yet today is still the dog. This Giants team just can’t hit the ball at all and the Padres pitcher actually has better numbers in his short work this year. Look for a low scoring snoozefest. Take the Padres.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

CHASE DIAMOND
10* MLB DIAMOND DOG
Toronto vs. Oakland
Toronto Blue Jays +147

This game features the 47-42 Jays at the 54-33 Oakland. Oakland is making a run at the World Series getting ace Jeff Samardzija but facts are pitchers normally take a little to adjust to a new team and surroundings and this team is really laying big juice against a very capable Jays team. Drew Hutchison is no push over he is a young gun with a 6-6 3.81 ERA we will take the plus money as the public jumps all over Jeff’s first start. 62% are backing the A’s here and this line has already dropped 10 cents as Vegas looks to push more on the A’s. Take the Jays for a 10* premium winner.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

ADVANCED SPORTS INVESTMENTS

SOCCER
PERRY'S SELECTIONS (July -9.20)
NORWAY - TIPPELIGAEN
9:30am SANDNES ULF @ STROMSGODSET IF -297
SWEDEN ALLSVENSKAN
11:30am MALMO FF -150 @ IF BROMMAPOJKARNA

[Can'tPickAWinner]

GAMBLING GOD

League: MLB
Team A: Nationals
Team B: Cubs
Pick: Under 7
Risk:$120 to win $100
Time: 10:00 AM PT

[Can'tPickAWinner]

HARRY BONDI

MLB FREE PLAY

TAMPA BAY (-120) over Detroit
8:00 p.m. ET

Tough loss for us in 14 innings with the free game yesterday going against “King” Felix Hernandez. Two weeks ago Tampa manager Joe Madden said he thought his team, then 12 games behind Toronto, would still win the division. Most thought he was crazy but since then the Rays have gone 7-1! tonight under the lights of Sunday Night Baseball they send their ace David Price to the hill and we expect another Rays win. Price has yielded only seven runs over his last 31 innings pitched and leads the majors in strikeout-walk ratio (153-17, 9.00). Let’s back Price and the red hot Rays over the Tigers in Motown tonight.

[Can'tPickAWinner]

BEHIND THE BETS

Cleveland Indians
St. Louis Cardinals

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Ecks and Bacon


Ben lee lost on Saturday with E Bouchard +$120/P Kvitova for $25 in the Women's Final at Wimbledon.

Ben lee won on Saturday with Netherlands -$190/Costa Rica in World Cup Soccer.

"Mr Chalk" won on Saturday in MLB in the National League with the Nationals -$142/Cubs.

For Sunday in the Men's Final at Wimbledon E&B like R Federer +$140/N Djokovic for $25.

For Sunday in MLB in the American League "Mr Chalk" likes the Angels -$190/Astros.

Ben lee is 6-5 +$215 for week Thirty Six 168-194-5 -$2914

"Mr Chalk" is 46-34 -$296 for the 2014 MLB season.

All E&B selections will be for $50 unless noted

[Can'tPickAWinner]

Baseball Crusher
Oakland Athletics -133 over Toronto Blue Jays - pending
Chicago Cubs +158 over Washington Nationals
(System Record: 55-0, won last 4 games)
Overall Record: 55-40

Soccer Crusher
VPS + FF Jaro UNDER 2.5
This match is happening in Finland
(System Record: 604-21, won last 10 games and a push)
Overall Record: 604-496-86

Here are the rest of his baseball plays for today...


Baseball
Boston Red Sox -124 over Baltimore O's
San Diego Padres -119 over SF Giants
Detroit Tigers +100 over Tampa Bay Rays