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Callaspo may bat third in Royals lineupBaseball Betting Lines03/27/2010 - SURPRISE, Ariz. (AP) -Alberto Callaspo may start the season batting third for the Kansas City Royals. Alex Gordon's broken right thumb opened up third base for Callaspo, and his offense in spring training and last season thrust him into the middle of the Royals' lineup. Callaspo hit .300 with 41 doubles, eight triples and 11 home runs last season with 73 RBIs, while playing mostly second base. Manager Trey Hillman used him in the third slot only twice. Callaspo hit mostly fifth or seventh for the Royals. Hillman wants Callaspo, who is leading the Cactus League with a .458 batting average, in the heart of the order when the Royals open the season April 5 against the Detroit Tigers. ``I like Callaspo in a position to drive runs in,'' Hillman said. ``I don't like waiting to the sixth or seventh slot to get his bat back up there because of the slugging and the on-base percentage, the batting average, the whole package, so I'm going to look at him three.'' With Callaspo inserted into the third slot, that caused more changes at the top of the order. Speedy outfielder Scott Podsednik, whom the Royals signed as a free agent in January, was slated to bat leadoff. David DeJesus, who batted first 95 games last season, was scheduled to hit third. In Hillman's revised lineup, DeJesus leads off and Podsednik hits second. ``That's pretty cool,'' DeJesus said. ``That's where I've had a lot of success, batting first, and Scott's had a lot of success batting second. It seems like AC (Callaspo) gets a hit every time up at the plate or hits it hard. Whatever the lineup, we'll get it done.'' Podsednik stole 30 bases last year and his 266 career steals rank fifth among active players. ``I think Pod is more of prototypical leadoff guy because of his stolen base totals,'' Hillman said. ``But you can't argue with what history has told of David's numbers in the leadoff slot and what his numbers aren't in the No. 2 slot, although it's a much smaller sample. ``I really want to try to stay away from guys getting mental. I honestly don't want to put David in the No. 2 slot. I think he would slot there just fine, but he doesn't have a (positive) history there. He's going to read about it and hear about it. I don't think that's a good combination.'' Billy Butler, who hit .301 with 21 home runs and 51 doubles last season, will bat cleanup. ``Billy's extremely important because of our lack of run production last year,'' Hillman said. ``Billy sitting in the middle of the order is going to be huge for us.'' Hillman said Rick Ankiel and Jose Guillen would ``fluctuate'' in the fifth and sixth slots. Ankiel is scheduled to return to the lineup Saturday as the designated hitter after being out since March 11 because of a sore right ankle. Chris Getz and Jason Kendall, who were spring training candidates to hit second, and Yuniesky Betancourt will hit in the bottom third of the order.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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NFL Football Betting : Odds on NFL Division to Win the Super BowlThe 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. |
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