Struggling Braves turn to Lowe in finale with Pirates

Baseball Betting Lines

09/08/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates sure have been enjoying their role of spoiler in this series and are now in position to sweep the Atlanta Braves for the first time in over 16 years.

To do that they will have to solve Derek Lowe, who has won all nine of his career starts versus Pittsburgh and will try to get Atlanta back on track in the finale of a three-game set this evening at PNC Park.

The Braves' offense has plated just 12 runs over their last six games, a span in which they have lost five times, and failed to cross the plate in last night's 5-0 setback. Atlanta's third loss in a row dropped the club a half- game behind Philadelphia for first place in the National League East, a spot it had held solo since May 31.

"It happens," Braves manager Bobby Cox said on Atlanta's website after the loss. "You can't do anything about it. You just got to worry about each game as they come along."

Hopefully for Atlanta, Lowe's past success versus the Pirates carries over tonight as his club aims to avoid its first sweep in this set since April 29- May 1, 1994. Lowe has a 2.76 career earned run average in his nine starts versus Pittsburgh and beat the franchise on May 28 with seven innings of one- run ball.

The 37-year-old righty hasn't pitched since Aug. 29, though, due to lingering soreness in his pitching elbow, but he did turn in a successful bullpen session on Monday.

"Anytime you miss a start and have an MRI, it's not what you want," said Lowe on Atlanta's website. "It reaffirms that what we did was the right way to go."

Lowe lasted just three innings in his last start, giving up five runs, six hits and three walks. He is 11-12 with a 4.53 ERA this year.

While Lowe has never lost to the Pirates, teammate Tim Hudson's recent run of good pitching versus the club did not carry over on Tuesday. Hudson was tagged for four runs over 6 1/3 innings to suffer the loss as he allowed an earned run against Pittsburgh for the first time since Aug. 23, 2006.

All five runs came in the seventh inning for the Pirates, as Delwyn Young hit a two-run homer and Ronny Cedeno added a triple that brought home a pair of runs. That offensive outburst backed James McDonald, who got the win after tossing seven scoreless innings.

"Tim Hudson is a great competitor, and he's a great pitcher," said Pittsburgh's Pedro Alvarez, who also drove in a run. We just always try to grind it out and play until the end."

Pirates rookie Neil Walker added a double in the game to extend his hitting streak to 14 games.

The Pirates have beaten the Braves just three times in eight meetings this year and came into this set having lost eight of their last 11 to Atlanta.

Zach Duke will try to pitch Pittsburgh to the elusive sweep this evening and is 2-0 over his last three starts, but has allowed four runs in each of his last two.

The 27-year-old lasted just five innings in a victory over the Nationals on Friday, getting charged with five hits and three walks while improving to 7-12 with a 5.24 ERA on the season.

Duke gave up just one unearned run versus the Braves at home on May 23, getting a no-decision, but the southpaw was then lit up for seven runs and 12 hits five days later in a setback at Atlanta. He fell to 2-4 with a 4.58 ERA in his career versus the Braves.

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MySportsbook.com favors Buckeyes, Fighting Irish and Golden Bears in this weekend's big games.

NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 21 - My Sportsbook NCAA football fans: things are beginning to get really interesting on college football's national stage. Following last weekend's "Separation Saturday", which included five teams ranked in the top 15 dropping games, the BCS Championship picture is beginning to take shape - with Ohio State leading the charge. And, according to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, the number-one-ranked Buckeyes will continue their winning ways this weekend.

Revenge will be the name of the game in Columbus this Saturday, as Ohio State looks to even the score following last season's loss to Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions. Although Penn State are listed as 16.5 point underdogs, they are 11-10 all-time versus the Buckeyes. Paterno and the Lions, however, will have to shut down Heisman Trophy favorite Troy Smith who has thrown for 769 yards and seven touchdowns this season.

Speaking of revenge, Notre Dame will be out for some against Michigan State, following last year's 44 - 41 overtime loss to the Spartans in South Bend. The thirteenth-ranked Irish, listed as a 3-point favorite, will also be looking to avenge last Saturday's thrashing from the Michigan Wolverines. The Spartans, meanwhile, have won seven of the last nine match-ups against Notre Dame and are coming off an impressive 38-23 victory over Pittsburgh.

Out west, 22nd-ranked Arizona State will be battling for their first victory over 21st-ranked California since 2000. Although the Golden Bears are listed as 7.5-point favorites, the Sun Devils are 3-0, lead the nation in sacks with 18 and possess the Pac-10's leading passer in sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.

NCAA Football betting lines (home team in CAPS)
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Date Favorite Opponent Point Spread
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Sept 21 GEORGIA TECH Virginia 17
Sept 22 NEVADA Northwestern 6.5
Sept 23 MICHIGAN Wisconsin 14
Sept 23 Minnesota PURDUE 3
Sept 23 SYRACUSE Miami (Ohio) 6.5
Sept 23 MISSOURI Ohio 21.5
Sept 23 Louisville KANSAS STATE 14
Sept 23 TENNESSEE Marshall 22
Sept 23 CLEMSON North Carolina 16.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA Kentucky 24
Sept 23 Iowa ILLINOIS 20.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA STATE Rice 30.5
Sept 23 AUBURN Buffalo 41.5
Sept 23 BOWLING GREEN Kent 7
Sept 23 NAVY Tulsa 4.5
Sept 23 VIRGINIA TECH Cincinnati 27
Sept 23 BYU Utah State 29
Sept 23 OHIO STATE Penn State 16.5
Sept 23 TEXAS Iowa State 25
Sept 23 Washington State STANFORD 10
Sept 23 CALIFORNIA Arizona State 7.5
Sept 23 UCLA WASHINGTON 3
Sept 23 INDIANA Connecticut 1.5
Sept 23 Central Michigan EASTERN MICHIGAN 4
Sept 23 WYOMING Air Force 1
Sept 23 UTEP NEW MEXICO 9.5
Sept 23 West Virginia EAST CAROLINA 21
Sept 23 Boston College NORTH CAROLINA STATE 7
Sept 23 GEORGIA Colorado 27
Sept 23 ARKANSAS Alabama 1.5
Sept 23 BAYLOR Army 11
Sept 23 WESTERN MICHIGAN Temple 28
Sept 23 MISSISSIPPI Wake Forest 2.5
Sept 23 KANSAS South Florida 5.5
Sept 23 TEXAS A&amp;M Louisiana Tech 23.5
Sept 23 UAB Mississippi State 9.5
Sept 23 LSU Tulane 36
Sept 23 Utah SAN DIEGO STATE 6.5
Sept 23 BOISE STATE Hawaii 15
Sept 23 Notre Dame MICHIGAN STATE 3
Sept 23 USC ARIZONA U 22
Sept 23 Oklahoma State HOUSTON 1
Sept 23 OREGON STATE Idaho 23
Sept 23 OKLAHOMA Middle Tennessee State 29
Sept 23 MARYLAND Florida International 18.5
Sept 23 AKRON North Texas 17.5
Sept 23 SOUTH CAROLINA Florida Atlantic 29.5
Sept 23 NEBRASKA Troy 23
Sept 23 SMU Arkansas State 6

For complete NCAA football odds and World Series odds please visit MySportsbook.com