D-Backs edge Astros
Baseball Betting Lines
09/04/2010 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Augie Ojeda's sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth delivered the winning run as Arizona downed Houston, 4-3, to start a three-game set.
Adam LaRoche went 2-for-4 with two runs batted in and Gerardo Parra added two hits and a run scored for the Diamondbacks, who have won four in a row and seven of their last eight games while outscoring their opponents 58-28 in the process.
Aaron Heilman (5-5) earned the win with a scoreless top of the eighth and Juan Gutierrez worked a scoreless ninth to preserve the win and earn his seventh save.
Wilton Lopez (5-1) suffered the loss after yielding the deciding run on one hit over one inning of work for the Astros, who had a three-game win streak snuffed out.
Ryan Roberts doubled off Lopez to open the decisive frame and advanced to third base on a Gerardo Parra groundout. Ojeda, pinch-hitting for Heilman, then lifted a fly ball deep enough to center field to chase home Roberts with the tie-breaking run which also ended Lopez's time on the hill.
Houston had evened the game at three when Angel Sanchez grounded into a double play with runners at the corners and nobody out in the seventh.
Stephen Drew singled to start the home first, advanced after a walk to Chris Young and scored when LaRoche followed with a double. However, Houston starter Brett Myers worked his way out of further trouble by getting Mark Reynolds to foul out, Miguel Montero to fly out to shallow right field and Brandon Allen to pop up.
Sanchez opened the fourth with a base hit and scored to tie the game on Jeff Keppinger's one-out single to left. Myers doubled to right with one out in the fifth and scored on a Sanchez two-out single to right to put the Astros in the lead for the first time.
Arizona reclaimed the lead in the fifth on consecutive run-scoring singles by Young and LaRoche.
Daniel Hudson delivered another fine start for Arizona but was not involved in the decision after allowing two runs on seven hits with one walk and six strikeouts.
Myers was charged with three runs on seven hits with three walks and four strikeouts in his six of innings, as he stretched his streak of lasting at least six frames in each of his 28 turns this season.
Game Notes
LaRoche's two RBI give him 89 on the season, the most for a D-Backs first baseman in a single season, surpassing Tony Clark's 87 in 2005...Drew went 1- for-3 and has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games during which he has 18 hits...Hudson has gone at least six innings in each of his seven starts since being acquired by the D-Backs on July 30...Arizona selected the contract of veteran left-hand pitcher Mike Hampton from Triple-A Reno prior to the game...Houston has lost eight of its last nine meetings with Arizona...Astros outfielder Hunter Pence went 2-for-4 and has a team-leading 43 multi-hit games.
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The bat
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The re-worked
Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds | |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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