Boston's Ortiz named AL Player of the Month

Baseball Betting Lines

06/02/2010 - New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz earned American League Player of the Month honors for May.

After a slow April, Ortiz erupted with a .363 average and 10 home runs in 23 games in the season's second month. He also recorded four doubles and 27 RBI while compiling an MLB-leading .788 slugging percentage.

The 34-year-old, who now has four career monthly awards, reached base in 21 games during the period.

The runner up for the honor was Texas Rangers designated hitter Vladimir Guerrero, who batted .330 with 10 home runs and an MLB-leading 31 RBI.

Wwwoasiscasino Baseball Betting News

<< Bynum's knee refills with fluid after procedure
LOS ANGELES (AP) -Four years into his NBA career, Andrew Bynum is still trying to make it through his first full postseason.The oft-injured Los Angeles Lakers center went through a limited practice Wednesday for the first time since having his balky

<< Carlesimo joins Raptors staff
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Raptors added former NBA and college head coach P.J. Carlesimo as an assistant on Wednesday. Carlesimo was last seen on NBA sidelines for the Seattle/Oklahoma City franchise before be

<< Altintop extends Bayern deal
Munich, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bayern Munich midfielder Hamit Altintop signed a one-year extension to his contract on Wednesday that will keep him with the Champions League finalists until 2011. Altintop made 15 appearances in le

<< Mine That Bird puts in work for Lukas
Louisville, KY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas had 2009 Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird workout Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs. The four-year-old gelding worked a half-mile in 48 seconds with his regular

<< Ducks sign Brookbank to extension
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks signed defenseman Sheldon Brookbank to a two-year contract extension on Wednesday. Financial terms of the deal were not released. The 29-year-old appeared in 66 games last season for A

Boston's Lester named AL Pitcher of the Month >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester was named the American League Pitcher of the Month for May. Lester was a perfect 5-0 in six outings during May. He allowed just 24 hits over 44 innings and led

Braves' Glaus named NL Player of the Month >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves first baseman Troy Glaus has been named the National League Player of the Month for May. Over 28 games during the month, Glaus drove in an NL-best 28 runs with six homers and scored 17 ti

Rockies' Jimenez voted NL Pitcher of the Month again >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies' Ubaldo Jimenez has been named the National League Pitcher of the Month for May, the second straight month the right-hander has been awarded with the honor. In six May starts, Jimenez

Padres activate Scott Hairston from DL >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres activated outfielder Scott Hairston from the 15-day disabled list Wednesday. He had been on the DL since May 16 with a strained left hamstring. Hairston suffered the injury in a

Yankees activate Jorge Posada >>
NEW YORK (AP) -Jorge Posada has been activated from the 15-day disabled list and inserted into the New York Yankees lineup as the designated hitter for their game against the Baltimore Orioles.The 38-year-old catcher has not played since May 16 beca

FOOTBALL BETTING : Crabtree's base deal: six years, $32 million

Football Betting

In the wake of the news that the 49ers have signed receiver Michael Crabtree after an extended holdout, there has been not a hint of the dollars to be paid to Crabtree.

And since this means that his agent hasn't leaked the numbers, it means that his agent feels no specific motivation to do so.

Possibly because his agent isn't all that thrilled to have his name on the deal.

So the numbers will come from sources other than Crabtree's agent. And we've gotten our mitts into them.

Per a league source, Crabtree has signed a six-year, $32 million contract. (The total includes guaranteed money, base salaries, and the one-time incentive based on achieving minimum playing time.)

The deal also includes $17 million in guaranteed money.

As reported elsewhere, the deal can void to five years based on performance triggers, wiping out a final year base salary of $4 million. But they won't be easily reached.

The source tells us that, in his first four seasons (including 2009), Crabtree must either qualify for two Pro Bowls, or he must qualify for one Pro Bowl in one year and he must participate in 80 percent of the offensive snaps in a separate year in which the team makes the playoffs.

In other words, if in 2010 he qualifies for the Pro Bowl and the team makes the playoffs and he participates in 80 percent of the snaps, he'll still need to make it to the Pro Bowl or achieve the 80-percent/playoffs in another season.

Since the chances of Crabtree making the Pro Bowl or participating in 80 percent of the offensive snaps this year is roughly zero percent, he'll have three years to get it done.

And it won't be easy. Frankly, he'll be hard pressed to make it to one Pro Bowl in three years with the likes of Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Steve Smith, the other Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, DeSean Jackson, Johnny Knox, Percy Harvin, Greg Jennings, Roddy White, T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the same conference for sportsbook betting.

So, by all appearances, it's a six-year deal. And at $17 million in guaranteed money, the per-year guarantee is a tepid $2.83 million per year.

There's another problem with the deal -- it has no mid-tier incentive package. Instead, the additional $8 million that Crabtree can earn (pushing the max value to six years, $40 million) requires the kind of unrealistic, mega-star performances that no rookie is likely to ever achieve.

So while the contract paid to Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji covers five years and pays $22.5 million, he has the ability (if he's a solid player) to make up the difference between his base deal and Crabtree's five-year, $28 million haul via the mid-tier incentive package in Raji's deal.

And unless Crabtree meets the performance thresholds necessary to void the sixth year, he'll be stuck under contract for another year at a base salary of only $4 million.

There's one other area of concern with the deal. Crabtree, per the source, received no option bonus. Instead, he has significant money tied to a fairly new device known as a "discretionary salary advance," which unlike an opition bonus is subject to forfeiture if Crabtree decides in a year or two that he wants to hold out for a better deal. (We're also told that the 49ers have included language that would make certain escalators subject to forfeiture, too.)

Meanwhile, the deal falls well short of the mark for which Crabtree and agent Eugene Parker were aiming -- the five-year, $38.25 million contract paid by the Raiders to receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, the seventh overall pick in the draft.

Even if Crabtree successfully voids the final year, he'll make more than $2 million per year less on average than Heyward-Bey.

Thus, as we explained earlier in the day, this is a deal that Crabtree could have done in July, which would have given him a much better chance of making a contribution to the 49ers during his rookie year.

So while the final outcome can be described as win-win, the broader view suggests that it's really a lose-lose situation.

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.

NFL Football Betting : Odds on NFL Division to Win the Super Bowl

NFL Super Bowl Betting

The AFC South and the NFC East are the favorite divisions to have the next Super Bowl champ among them in the NFL betting odds. But more down to the point, these football odds are in favor of the Indianapolis Colts, by far the strongest team in the AFC South, and the Dallas Cowboys of the NFC East.

Most sports fans would agree that these two teams top the list to win it all before the season even begins. In the BetUS Sportsbook football futures, the Colts are +800 in the odds to win the Super Bowl, while the Cowboys are sitting at +1000 and the Super Bowl XLIV champions New Orleans Saints at +900. In the AFC South, the Colts won the division for five straight years after the 2002 realignment, before the Tennessee Titans won it in 2008. But the Colts came back strong in 2009 to win the division again en route to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys are the favorite to win the NFC East, as well as to advance far into the post season. The Cowboys won the division last season before their horrendous loss in the NFC Divisional playoff to Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings. But the ‘Boys will take that loss humbly and be ready for the playoffs this time around.

The NFC South is also very strong, at +600 in the NFL futures, considering that it is home to the defending Super Bowl champions. However, some predictions have the Atlanta Falcons with possibilities of claiming the divisional title this season in place of the Saints, as no team has won back-to-back division championships since the division realignment took place. Let’s not overlook the AFC North at +500. As TO goes to Cincinnati to join Chad OchoCinco and Adam “Pac-Man” Jones, this team looks to claim the division title again. And it is likely they will do so. The Bengals lost in the AFC Wild Card spot in a hard-fought battle against the New York Jets last season. Lest not forget the Pittsburgh Steelers, the XLII Super Bowl Champions… All these teams present interesting odds and matchups for the upcoming season, but the safest and surest bet seems to be with the Colts in the AFC South and the Cowboys in the NFC East. Play this weekly NFL Football Contestto see if you can win.

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.