Buehrle, Pierzynski carry White Sox over Royals

Baseball Betting Lines

07/09/2010 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Buehrle spun seven scoreless frames and A.J. Pierzynski hit two home runs and drove in a season-high four runs to power the White Sox to an 8-2 victory over Kansas City in the opener of a three-game set.

Buehrle (8-7) allowed six hits, while walking three and striking out a pair to lead Chicago to its sixth consecutive win.

Andruw Jones had three hits and drove in two runs and Paul Konerko had a pair of hits, scored twice and drove in a run for the White Sox, who have won 12 of their last 13 home games.

Bruce Chen (5-3) suffered the loss after yielding three runs on six hits over 3 1/3 innings, while walking one and fanning one for the Royals, who were denied their first four-game win streak of the season.

Konerko and Carlos Quentin opened the second inning with singles, advanced on a Pierzynski sacrifice bunt and scored on a single off the base of the left field wall by Jones, who had driven in only one run since June 11.

Pierzynski went from small ball to long ball with a one-out solo home run in the fourth that made it 3-0 and knocked Chen out of the game.

Meanwhile, the Royals put a runner at second base in four of the first five innings and had multiple base runners in the first, fourth and fifth innings but could not score against the ChiSox southpaw.

Chicago added another run in the fifth against Kanekoa Texeira when Gordon Beckham doubled, moved to third on a Juan Pierre bunt base hit and scored when Alexei Ramirez bounced into a double play.

Alex Rios worked a two-out walk in the eighth off Victor Marte, stole second and scored when Konerko doubled to the gap in right-center. Quentin drew a walk, and was replaced by a pinch-runner, before Pierzynski followed with his second clout of the night to right field to finish the scoring for the home side.

Sergio Santos threw a scoreless eighth for the Sox and turned things over in the ninth to Jeff Marquez, who was making his major league debut. The right- hander retired the first batter he faced before Mitch Maier singled and scored on a Yuniesky Betancourt home run that spoiled the shutout bid. Marquez then retired the next two hitters to end the game.

Game Notes

Royals' outfielder Jose Guillen missed his second straight game due to a left quadriceps strain suffered in Tuesday's game in Seattle...Quentin returned after missing the last three games because of a knee injury...Jones had his first multi-RBI game since May 5...Buehrle beat the Royals for the first time in three meetings this year and for a 21st time in his career...The season series is even at five games apiece...The White Sox are 23-5 since June 9. Bryan Bulaga, the 23rd overall pick in the NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers, threw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the game.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.