Phils try to stay healthy, aim for win in Cincy

Baseball Betting Lines

06/29/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - With their offense starting to heat up, the last thing the Philadelphia Phillies need right now is another injury. However, they might be without former All-Star Chase Utley this evening in the second portion of a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park.

The Phillies had plated 75 runs over their previous 11 games prior to last night's 7-3 setback. More concerning was the exit of Utley, who injured his right thumb sliding into second base during the fourth inning and had to leave the game in the ninth frame.

The second baseman, who is hitting .395 (15-for-38) over his last 10 games with a homer and 11 RBI, will undergo an MRI on Tuesday and the Phils hope it isn't serious.

"But for him to leave a game ... that's the last guy that's going to take himself out of a game," Shane Victorino told the Phillies' website. "He's obviously hurting. I hope he's not seriously hurt."

Raul Ibanez had a late two-run homer for Philadelphia and Kyle Kendrick yielded six runs -- five earned -- on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings of work.

The Phillies had won five of six coming in, but fell 4 1/2 games back of the first-place Braves in the National League East. The Reds, meanwhile, were able to maintain their half-game edge over the second-place Cardinals in the NL Central thanks in part to Scott Rolen's 300th career homer.

Rolen, who began his career with six-plus seasons in Philadelphia from 1996-2002, launched his team-leading 17th homer of the season to break a scoreless game in the fourth inning. That helped make a winner out of Johnny Cueto, who tossed eight innings and allowed just one run in the Reds' sixth victory in their last seven games.

"Johnny threw great," Rolen said. "He's been consistent all year. Obviously he was lights-out early. He's going out there deep into the game -- [into the] sixth, seventh and eighth inning. Any time you do that, you've got a chance to win."

Orlando Cabrera and Joey Votto both had three hits and an RBI, with Votto extending his string of reaching base safely to a career-best 36 straight games.

Rookie Mike Leake will make his 15th start of the season two days later than anticipated as the Reds try to limit his innings. He is 5-1 with a 2.92 earned run average and has totaled 89 1/3 innings so far. Reds general manager Walt Jocketty told his team's website that they would like to limit Leake to 170 innings.

"That's not etched in stone," he told the site. "It depends on how many pitches he throws each time out, the kind of effort and how he feels."

The eighth overall pick of the 2009 draft suffered his first career loss on June 16 versus the Dodgers, allowing five runs over six innings. Leake then limited the Athletics to just a run on five hits and four walks over six innings of a no-decision last Monday.

The right-hander is 3-1 with a 3.67 ERA in nine starts at home this year and faces the Phillies for the first time.

Joe Blanton looks to continue his turnaround this evening when he faces the Reds for the third time in his career.

Blanton has won back-to-back starts since an 0-3 stretch that saw him post a 10.18 ERA over four starts. However, the right-hander bested the Twins with six innings of three-run ball on June 18 and followed that up six days later with 7 2/3 frames in a victory against the Indians. Blanton allowed another three runs in the 12-3 triumph, striking out eight.

"I changed a couple things that helped me get the ball down in the zone and I think that's made a big difference," Blanton told the Phillies' website. "Sinker's a big pitch for me, and not being able to throw it down makes it flat and makes for a tough day when you go out there. Now I'm able to get it down, and everything has been working off of that."

The 29-year-old is just 1-3 with a 9.27 ERA in four road starts this year and 2-0 with a 4.15 ERA versus the Reds.

The Phillies took five of seven from the Reds last season and have won nine of the last 13 meetings overall.

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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.

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