Bailey, Reds shut out Pirates again for sweep

Baseball Betting Lines

05/12/2010 - Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Homer Bailey pitched his first career shutout, allowing only four hits, as the Cincinnati Reds completed a three- game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 5-0 win at PNC Park.

Joey Votto hit a two-run homer and Drew Stubbs went 2-for-4 with a solo shot for the Reds, who earned their first sweep of the Pirates since September 22-24 of last year in Pittsburgh. Bailey (1-2) added six strikeouts to his ledger without walking a batter. He came into the contest with a 7.24 earned- run average in six previous starts this season.

Bailey, who threw just 90 pitches, is the second straight Cincinnati starter to throw a shutout, as Johnny Cueto threw a one-hitter in a 9-0 win over the Pirates on Tuesday night. It was the first time Reds starters tossed back-to back shutouts since Jose Rijo and Tom Browning did so on June 9-10, 1989, against the Dodgers in Los Angeles.

Garrett Jones had a pair of hits, while Steve Pearce and Lastings Milledge each singled for Pittsburgh's only offense. The Pirates have dropped four in a row. Zach Duke (2-4) was roughed up for nine hits and five runs with two strikeouts and one walk in five innings of work.

Cincinnati posted runs in each of the first two innings to grab the early lead. Brandon Phillips doubled with one out in the first and crossed the plate when Votto followed with a two-run homer. Ryan Hanigan's RBI double and a bloop run-scoring single by Orlando Cabrera in the second made it a 4-0 game.

Stubbs cracked a solo homer to straightaway center in the fourth to give the Reds a five-run cushion.

Bailey retired seven straight batters before surrendering a single to Milledge leading off the eighth. However, the right-hander got Andy LaRoche to bounce into a force out and Jason Jaramillo to hit into a nicely-turned 4-6-3 double play.

The Reds went quietly in the top of the ninth, then in the bottom half, Bailey retired the Pirates in quick order to complete the gem.

Game Notes

The Pirates, who swept a three-game set from Cincinnati from April 16-18, finished 4-5 on their nine-game homestand...Bailey improved to 5-0 in five career starts against Pittsburgh...Duke dropped to 3-7 in 12 lifetime starts versus the Reds, who have won five straight overall.

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Colts give the ‘D’ its due

The Indianapolis Colts know that winning the Super Bowl last season put a huge target on their backs, and they expect opponents to go all-out to knock them from the top of the mountain.

They’ll get their first test from the New Orleans Saints this Thursday night. The defending champs had nothing but good things to say about the New Orleans defense this past week, praising their opponents’ pass rush and run-stopping abilities.

"They play very aggressively," head coach Tony Dungy told the New Orleans Times-Picayune. "They play a lot of man-to-man coverage, and they come after you. They have good pass rushers, and they're going to try to pressure us, I'm sure."

Both center Jeff Saturday and quarterback Peyton Manning gave New Orleans’ front four props, admitting keeping guys like Will Smithand Charles Grant contained would be a tall task for the offensive line.

New Orleans ranked second in total defense during the preseason at a sportsbook, allowing just under 233 yards per game. Last season, the defense finished 11th in the league after giving up 307.3 yards and 20.1 points per contest.

Not so sound on the ground

If Indianapolis' efficient offense has a weakness it has to be its running attack. The Colts one-two-punch of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai is no longer, leaving the bulk of the carries to Addai, the second-year back out of LSU.

Former Saskatchewan Roughrider Kenton Keith was named Addai’s backup this week after beating out DeDe Dorsey for the second-string position. Indy has only three backs on the roster right now, including fullback Luke Lawton, and coach Dungy is aware of the thinness of his ground game. Sports Betting lines on the game can be found at BettingExpress.com

“We’ll continue to look. Luke Lawton’s done a good job for us too. So probably getting a third true tailback is something that we’d like to do,” Dungy told the Indiana Tribune-Star.

Last season, Addai rushed for over 1,000 yards in his rookie campaign and scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Brees says bring it on

Opening the season on the road against the defending Super Bowl champions is not the way most teams would like to kick off their year – unless you’re the New Orleans Saints or their quarterback Drew Brees. This internet Sportsbooks had the Saints as the favorites.

Brees told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he is excited to get the regular season started and the Colts are a great challenge for him and his teammates. The 28-year-old QB, entering his second season with the Saints, is expecting a wild environment in the RCA Dome this Thursday when the franchise celebrates its 2007-2007 championship.

Brees said he sees the opening game scheduling as an honor and a testament to how well New Orleans did last season. The Saints missed facing the Colts in the Super Bowl by one game, losing to the Chicago Bearsin the NFC Championship game.

"I mean, people think we can hang with these guys," Brees told reporters. "Even if they didn't, it wouldn't matter what they thought because as a team we're very confident. We know what we can do. We're not satisfied where we finished the season last year. And we've been looking forward to this opportunity for a long time."

SportsBooks ready for a shootout

Oddsmakers are preparing for some fireworks this Thursday when the NFL season kicks off. online Sportsbooks have Thursday’s total set at a whopping 52 points, accounting for two of the league’s most explosive offenses.

“This is like must-see TV,” Saints cornerback and former Colt Jason David told the Baton Rouge Advocate. “It’s two exciting offenses with great players. You’ve got a lot of star power on offense. At any given time a big play can happen. If I was a fan, I wouldn’t miss a snap.”

New Orleans, who ranked No.1 in total offense last season, can go blow-for-blow with the Colts’ attack. Head coach Sean Payton’s offensive schemes will get even better production out of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and receiver Marques Colston now that they’ve each had a season of playing together under their belts.

The Saints and Colts were the top two passing teams in the NFL last year, but while Indianapolis managed to put up almost 27 points per game, New Orleans struggled to capitalize on their efforts. The Saints ranked fifth in points per game.

“Yards are great,” running backDeuce McAllister told reporters, “but to be able to score more touchdowns would be important for us.”

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