Cinderella in cleats: Fresno State wins College World Series
Cbaseball Betting Lines
06/26/2008 -
Omaha, NE (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Steve Detwiler went 4-for-4, including a pair of
homers, and drove in all the runs for Fresno State, which won its first
College World Series championship with a 6-1 victory over Georgia.
Georgia used an eighth-inning rally to take Monday's opening game, 7-6, though
Fresno State powered to a 19-10 win on Tuesday. Detwiler was the driving force
Wednesday in helping Fresno State take the best-of-three series, setting
records for most home runs, most extra-base hits, most RBI and most total
bases in a championship game.
He provided enough offense for Fresno State starter Justin Wilson, who threw
eight brilliant innings, giving up only one run on five hits, while striking
out nine. Tommy Mendonca, who hit four homers and drove in 11 over the course
of the tournament, and had stellar defense at third base, was named Most
Outstanding Player.
The school became the lowest seeded team to win an NCAA championship in any
sport. It was a fourth seed at the Long Beach Regional, and began its unlikely
run there, knocking off 11th-seeded Long Beach State and sixth-ranked San
Diego. In the Super Regional, Fresno State won two of three against third-
ranked Arizona State to reach the College World Series.
Fresno State went on to beat fifth-ranked Rice, eliminate second-ranked North
Carolina and staved off elimination three times in the same tournament, ending
with a 47-31 record.
Gordon Beckham went 2-for-4 with a solo homer to provide Georgia's only run,
and tied LSU's Matt Clark for the national lead in homers with 28. Starter
Nathan Moreau was solid in five innings, holding the Fresno State offense to
three runs -- two earned -- on three hits, but took the loss.
"First, I have to tip my hat to Fresno State," Georgia head coach David Perno
said. "They are a true champion. They did it the hard way with five games in
five days...To our guys, just a group of guys who went 23-33 (last year) and
set their sights that they were going to be here, and not only did we get
here, but we did a fair share of winning here."
Georgia, which finished with a 45-25-1 record, lost its first game of the
Athens Regional to Lipscomb, but won four straight from there to advance to
the Super Regionals. After winning two of three against N.C. State, Georgia
advanced to the College World Series, where it was undefeated in three games
until meeting Fresno State. Georgia last won the CWS in 1990.
"We just came up one short. It was unfortunate tonight. We had some
opportunities and we hit some balls hard at those times but nothing fell for
us. We just couldn't keep them in the yard," Perno said.
In the top of the second, Steve Susdorf got on board with an infield single.
After an Alan Ahmady fly out, Detwiler smacked a ball to right field that just
got over the fence in right field for a 2-0 Fresno State lead.
Georgia got a rally going in the home second as Danny Muno made a pair of
errors. The shortstop dropped the ball while lunging forward, allowing leadoff
hitter Bryce Massanari to reach base. Later, Muno made too high a throw for a
force out at second, leaving the bases loaded with two outs. But Gavin
Hedstrom made a nice catch on a long drive from Ryan Peisel to end the threat.
Detwiler sent a deep drive to center in the fourth to plate another run, and
put Fresno State on top 3-0, but his biggest -- at least longest -- hit of the
night came in the sixth.
With two outs, Susdorf doubled and Ahmady walked against Dean Weaver, who
relieved Moreau at the beginning of the frame. Detwiler then crushed a high
fastball to left, into the last several rows of the stands, boosting Fresno
State's lead to 6-1.
Beckham led off the bottom of the eighth, but Wilson got out of the inning
without further damage. Clayton Allison got into trouble in the bottom of the
ninth -- two on and none out -- but closer Brandon Burke got David Thoms to
ground into a double play. Matt Olson then hit a fly to right field, which
Detwiler caught to end the game.
<< Rays batter Fish for 15 runs in romp
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Carl Crawford homered twice and drove in five
runs, and the Tampa Bay Rays scored 10 runs in the fifth inning en route to a
15-3 decimation of the Florida Marlins in the middle contest of their three-
game se
<< Soto carries Cubs past O's
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Geovany Soto was 2-for-3 with three runs batted
in, as the Chicago Cubs took advantage of a patchwork Baltimore pitching
performance with a 7-4 victory at Wrigley Field.
Jim Edmonds homered and drove in
<< Royals sweep Rockies to continue interleague success
Kansas City, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ross Gload had two doubles, two runs batted
in and scored as the streaking Kansas City Royals completed a three-game sweep
of the Colorado Rockies with a 4-2 victory.
David DeJesus and Alex Gordon each h
<< Wright clubs 2 HRs in return to lineup as Mets pound Mariners
Flushing, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After a much-needed day off, David Wright
homered in his first two at-bats and the New York Mets avoided a three-game
sweep with 8-2 win over the Seattle Mariners at Shea Stadium.
Wright had played e
<< Orioles scratch Burres from start
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Baltimore Orioles scratched left-
handed pitcher Brian Burres from his scheduled start Wednesday due to an
undiagnosed stomach ailment.
Burres was replaced on the mound by righty Matt
Zito finally posts interleague win as Giants top Tribe >>
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barry Zito put together his best and
longest outing of the season, lifting the San Francisco Giants to a 4-1
victory over the Cleveland Indians in the middle contest of a three-game
interle
Ramirez homer lifts Rangers over Astros; Chacon attacks GM >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Max Ramirez collected the first two hits of
his major league career -- including a go-ahead two-run home run -- as the
Texas Rangers edged the Houston Astros, 3-2, in the second of a three-game
series
Confrontation with GM leads to suspension for Astros' Chacon >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Houston Astros have suspended pitcher
Shawn Chacon indefinitely for insubordination to the team, general manager Ed
Wade announced on Wednesday.
"We have suspended Shawn Chacon, pending final resol
Stults, Dodgers blank White Sox >>
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eric Stults tossed his first career
shutout, as the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Chicago White Sox, 5-0, in
the middle installment of a three-game interleague set at Chavez Ravine.
Stults (2
Twins keep on rolling with drubbing of Pads >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Brendan Harris and Craig Monroe clubbed two-
run homers, and the Minnesota Twins got to Greg Maddux to post their eighth
straight victory, 9-3, over the San Diego Padres.
Carlos Gomez had three hits, incl
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers SPORTS TRASH TALK
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from mysportsbook.com.
Big 12 Conference betting odds
Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State
 Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.
Work left to do:
Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.
Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.
Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.
|
