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CFL
MONTREAL ALOUETTES (3-1) AT HAMILTON TIGER-CATS (2-2) Friday, July 29,6:30 p.m. (et)
The uncertainty surrounding the status of quarterback Anthony Calvillo has the Montreal Alouettes wondering how they'll handle their preparations for their meeting with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Friday at Ivor Wynne Stadium.
Calvillo, one of the most prolific passers in the history of the CFL who just a few weeks ago set a new record for all-time passing touchdowns, exited against Saskatchewan midway through the second quarter this past Sunday when he suffered an eye injury. Finishing the game for the Als, one that they eventually lost by a score of 27-24, was Adrian McPherson who threw for just 98 yards and a score, but also gave Montreal's offense another facet with his 10 rushing attempts for 41 yards and two majors.
Montreal finished with a mere 305 yards of total offense and turned the ball over a couple of times on interceptions as the Roughriders took advantage of the change at quarterback.
Reports at the start of this week had Calvillo still suffering from blurred vision and a sore eye and it was unclear when he would be ready to return to the field.
Obviously, if McPherson is handling the quarterback duties primarily, the rushing attack for the Als could easily be more productive, even beyond what is expected for a unit that is second in the CFL after four games with 376 yards on the ground. Montreal has punted the fewest times thus far (17 times), but that too could take a hit if receivers for the Als have to adjust their timing in order to work with McPherson.
Hamilton, which has punted just 19 times and is averaging a mere 39.6 yards per kick, could be catching the Alouettes at just the right time, that is as long as the Ti-Cats can figure out how to capitalize on a possible change at QB.
In the eight-point win over British Columbia last week, the Tiger-Cats ran out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter before scoring a total of just 15 points in the second half as they held on for their second win in four opportunities. Kevin Glenn survived three sacks to have a fantastic game for Hamilton, converting 21-of-31 passes for 334 yards and three touchdowns. Dave Stala turned his three receptions into 37 yards and two majors, while tiny Chris Williams raced for a game-high 189 yards and a score on eight receptions.
Providing the Cats with an alternate form of offense, running back Avon Cobourne, who will be facing his former team this week, generated an even 100 yards on 14 carries and hit the end zone twice, scoring the first and last TDs of the contest.
Cobourne enters the week ranked third in the league in rushing with 264 yards on 48 carries after registering his first 100-yard effort for the Tiger-Cats. A former Grey Cup MVP, Cobourne has been putting in extra time with his offensive line in order to more accurately pinpoint where his cuts will be and where holes will develop, all in an effort to give Glenn some breathing room.
Glenn, responsible for a career-high 33 passing scores a year ago, is off to a quick start this time around with his seven TD strikes, including a total of five in the last two outings.
These two teams will be sizing up each other in back-to-back weeks in early September and then will have one more regular-season meeting on October 16 in Montreal. In terms of the all-time series, the Als own an 85-75-7 advantage in regular-season meetings dating back to 1950.
Hamilton crushed the Alouettes in the last clash in 2010 by a lopsided score of 4-3, yet Montreal has still won six of the last seven matchups and 14- of-16.
Regardless of who is in the huddle and handling the passing duties for the Als this week, having Calvillo questionable and possibly out of action might be the worst thing for the Tiger-Cats since they can't be completely sure who to plan for in the days leading up to the contest.
Montreal 31 Hamilton 17
TORONTO ARGONAUTS (1-3) AT EDMONTON ESKIMOS (4-0)Friday, July 29, 9:30 p.m. (et)
The injury bug appears to have taken a bite out of the Toronto Argonauts, but until the team takes the field at Commonwealth Stadium on Friday night against the Edmonton Eskimos, it won't be known how or if the Argos will be feeling it.
Against the surprising Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Saturday afternoon, starting quarterback Cleo Lemon exited after a helmet-to-helmet collision in the first quarter and never returned. With Lemon on the bench after completing his first five passes of the day, backup Dalton Bell took over the offense for the Argos but was unable to hold off a 33-24 loss to Winnipeg at home.
Lemon sustained damage to his teeth and a split nerve and was still being treated at the start of the week which made his availability for the match up against Edmonton questionable.
Bell finished the day 13-of-27 for 169 yards and a score, but he also suffered a pair of late sacks and tossed a couple of interceptions that prevented the hosts from holding on for the victory.
As for the Eskimos, they are now the only undefeated team in the league after Montreal lost to Saskatchewan over the weekend when Anthony Calvillo was knocked out of the action.
Fred Stamps scored a pair of long touchdowns in the first half as he helped lead the Esks to a 24-19 win over the Calgary Stampeders at McMahon Stadium over the weekend. Stamps caught TD passes of 55 and 65 yards in the contest and finished with five grabs for a game-high 161 yards.
Edmonton quarterback Ricky Ray had a sub par effort, by his own standards, as he converted 12-of-27 passing for 229 yards and the two scores to Stamps. Ray also tossed his first interception of the season, the first since October of last year in fact, but still the Esks moved to a perfect start after four games for the first time in a quarter century (1986).
Running back Arkee Whitlock, back in action after missing the first three games of the campaign with an injury, was responsible for 10 carries leading to a game-high 56 yards.
The Edmonton defense was a bit exposed by the Stamps as the hosts controlled the ball for more than 34 minutes and generated 479 yards. Perhaps the one saving grace for the Eskimos was that Calgary was flagged for 12 penalties for a loss of 154 yards in the meeting.
Obviously the Eskimos are blessed to have someone like Ray taking the ball from center again this season, the quarterback displaying an incredible efficiency rating of 119.7 thanks to eight touchdowns and just the one interception, but a lot of credit also has to go to Jerome Messam who held down the running attack for the squad while waiting for Whitlock to return.
Messam has earned himself more touches as the season goes on seeing as how he is fourth in the league in rushing with 220 yards and has landed in the end zone twice when Edmonton has needed a spark.
However, the spotlight clearly shines on Ray and Stamps, the latter easily leading the league in receiving with 477 yards and four TDs on 22 catches. In just four games, Stamps is already halfway to matching his career high for TD receptions in a season.
Finding a top-flight receiver this year for the Argos might not be as easy, as Jeremaine Copeland leads the way for the group with a mere 12 catches for 203 yards and has yet to tally a major. Copeland might be one of the most accomplished receivers in the history of the league, having logged five seasons with more than 1,000 yards, but an unstable quarterback position certainly can't be helping with his production thus far.
Edmonton owns a 41-38-1 record in the regular-season series against the Argos dating back to 1949. The Eskimos won the most recent meeting in late September last season by a score of 24-6 in Moncton, NB in the CFL's first ever regular season game in Atlantic Canada. Edmonton has now taken three of the last four match ups.
The teams are scheduled to face each other one more time this season during the third week of October.
Not knowing who will be handling the quarterback duties for the Argonauts makes it that much more difficult for the visitors to create a strong game plan. No matter who is throwing the ball down the field for Toronto though, the Eskimos should be ready for them.
Edmonton 41 Toronto 24
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MLB
Write-Up
Friday, July 29
Hot pitchers
-- Hensley is 1-0, 1.80 in his two starts this year.
-- Halladay is 3-1, 2.72 in his last six starts.
-- Vogelsong is 2-0, 1.93 in his last three starts.
-- Garza is 0-0, 1.29 in his last three starts.
-- Stauffer is 5-3, 2.26 in his last nine starts.
-- Collmenter is 2-0, 1.29 in his last three starts.
-- Porcello is 4-0, 4.07 in his last four starts. Angels are 6-2 on the road when Chatwood starts.
-- Toronto won last three Cecil starts (2-0, 2.54). Ogando is 3-1, 2.54 in his last four starts.
-- Floyd is 2-0, 1.17 in his last couple starts.
-- Gonzalez is 4-0, 0.96 in his last four home starts.
-- Bedard is 3-2, 2.06 in his last eight starts. Niemann is 2-0, 1.65 in his last four starts.
Cold pitchers
-- Gee is 2-3, 5.71 in his last six starts. Wang is making first start since 2009; he was 55-26, 4.16 in 106 starts for Bronx Bombers. He allowed eight runs in 10.2 IP in two AAA starts this season.
-- Morton is 1-2, 6.17 in his last five starts.
-- Willis is 0-1, 3.71 in three starts for the Reds.
-- Beachy is 0-1, 5.82 in his last four starts.
-- Astros lost last nine Lyles starts (0-5, 5.40). Wolf is 0-4, 5.40 in his last five starts.
-- Hammel is 1-3, 9.58 in his last four starts.
-- Lilly is 1-5, 7.71 in his last seven starts.
-- Carrasco is 0-4, 7.08 in his last four starts. Francis is 0-5, 5.45 in his last seven starts.
-- Guthrie is 1-4, 6.10 in his last five starts. Burnett is 0-2, 5.48 in his last four outings.
-- Wakefield has an 8.29 RA in his last five starts, but Boston won his last four outings, scoring 40 runs.
-- Liriano is 1-1, 5.95 in his last four starts.
Totals
-- Over is 10-3-1 in Mets' last fourteen games.
-- Over is 8-3 in last eleven Halladay starts.
-- Seven of Giants' last nine road games went over the total.
-- Nine of last twelve Florida road games went over the total.
-- Over is 7-2-1 in Lyles starts this season. Seven of last eight starts by Wolf stayed under the total.
-- Over is 10-3 in Garza's last thirteen starts.
-- Over is 6-0-1 in last seven games at Petco Park.
-- Four of last five Collmenter road starts stayed under total.
-- Seven of last eight Porcello starts went over the total.
-- Over is 7-3 in Ogando's last ten starts.
-- 10 of last 13 Kansas City games stayed under the total.
-- Nine of last twelve Oriole road games went over the total.
-- Over is 7-1-1 in last nine Wakefield starts.
-- Nine of last ten Oakland games went over the total.
-- Seven of last nine Bedard starts stayed under the total.
Hot Teams
-- Marlins won eight of their last nine road games.
-- Phillies won 17 of their last 22 home games. Giants are 10-4 in their last 14 games overall.
-- Mets won their last three games, scoring 20 runs.
-- Brewers won six of their last seven home games.
-- Cardinals won five of their last seven games.
-- Dodgers won four of their last five games. Arizona won five of its last six games.
-- Toronto won eight of its last eleven home games.
-- Red Sox won nine of their last twelve games. White Sox won four of their last five games.
-- Royals won six of their last nine games.
-- Bronx won eight of its last twelve games.
-- Angels won seven of their last nine games.
-- Oakland is 8-5 since the All-Star break. Minnesota is 6-2 in its last eight road games.
Cold Teams
-- Nationals lost seven of their last eight games.
-- Pittsburgh is 3-5 in its last eight games.
-- Braves are 4-6 in their last ten games.
-- Cubs lost ten of their last twelve road games.
-- Astros lost 14 of their last 18 road games.
-- Cincinnati is 8-14 in its last 22 games.
-- San Diego lost 13 of its last 19 games. Rockies lost four of five.
-- Detroit lost three of its last four games.
-- Rangers are 4-5 in their last nine games.
-- Indians lost six of their last seven games.
-- Baltimore lost nine of its last ten road games.
-- Mariners lost 17 of their last 18 games.Tampa Bay is 9-15 in its last 24 games.Comment
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Vegas Sports Plays
Glenn Long – Owner & Handicapper for over 20 years:
Glenn’s picks for July 29th:
7:05pm - #971 – Kansas City Royals +120 / 3 units
8:10pm – #976 – Chicago White Sox -105 / 3 units
10:05pm - #977 – Minnesota Twins +125 / 3 units
Johnny Yang – Professional Bettor / Handicapper since 1997:
Johnny’s pick for July 29th:
7:05pm - #968 – Detroit Tigers -135 / 10 units
Brooks Riley – Professional Bettor / Handicapper since 2000:
Brook’s picks for July 29th:
7:05pm - #969 – Texas Rangers -135 / 5 units
8:05pm – Boston Red Sox @ Chicago White Sox – OVER 9.5 / 3 units
10:10pm - #965 – Arizona Diamondbacks -110 / 3 units
Carter Williams – Professional Bettor / Handicapper since 2002:
Carter is passing on the board for FridayComment
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FantasySportsGametime
MLB Baseball Friday
Play Philadelphia (-250) over Pittsburgh (Top Play of the Day)
Starts at 7:00 PM EST
Roy Halladay has won 17 of the last 19 games as a favorite of -150 or higher and they have also won 9 consecutive home games when the total posted is seven runs or less. Roy Halladay has an ERA of 1.45 vs. Pittsburgh over his career and he is 7-1 in home games this season with an ERA of 2.44.
Play New York Yankees (-200) over Baltimore (Top Play of the Day)
Starts at 7:10 PM EST
Jeremy Guthrie has lost 7 of the last 9 road games and he has also lost 39 of the last 58 games as an underdog of +100 or higher. Jeremy Guthrie is 3-9 vs. New York over his career with an ERA of 5.66 and he has an ERA of 5.21 over the last three overall starts.
Play Milwaukee (-180) over Houston (Bonus)
Canadian Football Friday
100* Play Hamilton (+3.5) over Montreal
Starts at 6:30 PM EST
Hamilton has won 8 of the last 9 home games when the total posted is between 52.5 and 56 points and they have also won 5 of the last 6 home games as an underdog of 7 points or less. Hamilton is only allowing an average of 13 points a game on defense at home this season and they WON 40-3 vs. Montreal at home last season.
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