A's, Tigers wrap four-game set in Detroit

Baseball Betting Lines

08/13/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Right-hander Chad Durbin returns to the starting rotation for the Detroit Tigers tonight when they host the Oakland Athletics in the finale of a four-game set at Comerica Park.

Durbin, a 29-year-old who was drafted in the third round by the Kansas City Royals in 1996, has made 15 starts and 12 appearances out of the bullpen this season. He was exclusively used in relief between mid-June and early August, then lasted 4 1/3 innings against Tampa Bay in a start on August 8.

He's pitched twice against the Athletics in relief during 2007, combining to toss 2 1/3 scoreless innings while allowing one hit and striking out three. In his career, Durbin is 2-2 in eight appearances -- six starts -- against Oakland and has allowed 25 earned runs in 33 innings.

Slumping right-hander Chad Gaudin goes for the Athletics in search of his first win since July 5.

The 24-year-old New Orleans native was 8-3 after a 3-2 defeat of Seattle, but has since gone 0-5 in six starts since, allowing at least four earned runs in each outing.

He was touched for eight hits and seven runs in five innings en route to an 8-6 loss in Texas in his last start on Tuesday.

This will be Gaudin's first lifetime start against the Tigers. He's made five career relief appearances against them and is 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA in seven innings, allowing four hits and a run.

On Sunday, Magglio Ordonez blasted two home runs off Dallas Braden in an eight-run second inning as Detroit downed Oakland, 11-6.

Ordonez became just the second player in Tigers history to go deep twice in the same inning, joining the legendary Al Kaline, who belted two homers in the sixth inning of an April 17, 1955 affair against Kansas City. Ordonez is a gaudy 8-for-12 in the series with three homers and eight RBI.

Brandon Inge finished 1-for-3 with two RBI for the Tigers, who won their second straight and leapfrogged over Cleveland to take first place in the AL Central by one-half game. The Indians fell to the New York Yankees, 5-3, Sunday.

Nate Robertson (7-9) allowed four runs on five hits in 5 2/3 innings to earn the win.

Marco Scutaro was 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and a pair of run-scoring doubles for the Athletics, who have lost three of their last five games. Mark Ellis and Dan Johnson added an RBI apiece.

Braden (1-7) was rocked for eight runs on seven hits in just 1 2/3 innings en route to the loss.

These teams have split six encounters so far in 2007. Detroit won five of nine regular-season game against Oakland last season, then swept the A's in the best-of-seven American League Championship Series in October.

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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.