Carpenter hopes to pitch slumping Cards past Astros

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08/31/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Even with stud right-hander Chris Carpenter on the mound tonight, the St. Louis Cardinals will not be guaranteed a win over the Houston Astros in the second portion of a three-game series between NL Central inhabitants at Minute Maid Park.

St. Louis has lost three straight and 11 of its last 15 contests to fall six games behind Cincinnati for the division lead, but did remain three games in back of Philadelphia for the Wild Card in the Senior Circuit. In Monday's series-opening 3-0 loss at Houston, Jake Westbrook was dealt the hard-luck defeat for yielding all three runs and nine hits in seven innings.

"The first inning was tough for me," said Westbrook. "It was some tough luck out there and the seventh inning was all me, it was all my fault out there."

Westbrook gave up two runs in the seventh frame to put his team in an even bigger hole, while Randy Winn and Yadier Molina had the Cardinals' only two hits on the night. Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday, two of St. Louis' top sluggers, both finished 0-for-3 in the loss.

Carpenter will shoot for his 15th win of the season tonight and has won five of his last six decisions, but did not factor in the outcome of last Thursday's 11-10 loss at Washington. He allowed six runs -- three earned -- and 10 hits over six innings to remain at 14-4 with a 2.93 ERA in 28 starts.

The righty and 2005 NL Cy Young Award winner is 4-1 in 12 road starts and will face Houston for the third time this season. He owns a 1-1 mark with a 3.52 ERA over the first two matchups and is 7-4 in 16 lifetime starts against the Astros.

Houston starter J.A. Happ has been solid since coming over from Philadelphia as part of the Roy Oswalt deal and delivered a two-hit shutout last night. Happ struck out four batters and allowed one walk to improve to 5-2 this season. It was the third shutout of his career and first this season.

"It's been a while since I felt that comfortable throwing first strikes," said Happ. "I was feeding off that confidence. [The Cardinals] were putting the ball in play and we were making the plays out there tonight."

Brett Wallace went 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored while Hunter Pence had two hits and a run scored for the Astros, who have won seven of their last nine games, including a four-game sweep in Philadelphia before the weekend.

Houston starter Wandy Rodriguez has been impressive over the past two months and is slated to take the mound Tuesday. Rodriguez is 7-2 with a 1.79 earned run average in his last 12 starts and recently defeated the Phillies last Thursday with seven innings of one-run ball in a 5-1 victory.

The lefty will now face St. Louis for the fourth time this season and is 1-2 with a 6.06 ERA over the initial three starts. In 18 career matchups (17 starts) with the Cardinals, Rodriguez is only 4-11 with a 4.30 ERA.

Rodriguez is 6-5 in 13 starts at Minute Maid Park this season.

Houston has won eight of 13 meetings with the Cardinals this season.

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FOOTBALL BETTING

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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