Rasmus, Cardinals dominate Braves

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09/09/2010 - Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Colby Rasmus went 4-for-4 with a pair of home runs and four RBI as St. Louis dominated Atlanta, 11-4, in the opener of a four-game set.

Skip Schumaker went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and two runs scored while Brendan Ryan added two hits, two RBI and two runs scored for the Cardinals, who had dropped their previous two.

Adam Wainwright (18-10) bounced back from a rough first inning to get the win as he was charged with three runs and seven hits with seven strikeouts over eight innings. He snapped a four-start losing streak.

With the win and Cincinnati's loss to Colorado on Thursday, the Cardinals trimmed their deficit in the NL Central to five games.

Derrek Lee clubbed a two-run home run while Jason Heyward and Eric Hinske each drove in a run for the Braves, who have dropped six of their last eight. Jair Jurrjens (7-5) was tagged for seven runs on 10 hits with a walk and two strikeouts over just 3 2/3 innings.

The loss moved Atlanta to a game back of Philadelphia for first place in the NL East. Also, it trimmed Atlanta's wild card lead to 1 1/2 games ahead of San Francisco, which plays San Diego later on Thursday.

Atlanta plated three runs in the first inning to take an early lead. Omar Infante led off with a single that saw him move to third base on a pair of throwing errors. Heyward followed with a single to score Infante and Lee later added a shot over the right field wall, his 17th home run of the season.

St. Louis, though, answered to the tune of five runs in the second. Back-to- back one-out singles were followed by an RBI single from Pedro Feliz. Ryan later added a two-run single and Schumaker then hit the first pitch he saw over the right field wall for his fifth home run of the season.

The Cardinals made it a 7-3 game in the fourth as Randy Winn's sacrifice fly was followed by a solo shot from Albert Pujols.

Rasmus led off the fifth with a shot over the right field wall to give St. Louis an 8-3 lead.

A two-run single off the bat of Rasmus in the sixth extended the Cardinals' lead to 10-3.

Atlanta, meanwhile, struggled to get baserunners as over the next six innings Wainwright faced the minimum. The only batter to get on base was Nate McLouth, who led off the fifth with a single but was then forced out when Infante followed with a double play.

In the eighth, McLouth led off with a single, but Infante again grounded into a double play and Freddie Freeman struck out.

Rasmus' solo blast in the ninth made it an 11-3 game while Hinske added an RBI groundout in the Braves' portion of the ninth to account for the final score.

Game Notes

St. Louis left fielder Matt Holliday was ejected in the fourth inning by home plate umpire Mike DiMuro for slamming his helmet on the ground after being called out on strikes...St. Louis has won all five matchups with Atlanta this season...Wainwright improved to 6-0 in nine games against the Braves...Jurrjens fell to 1-4 against St. Louis in five career starts and lost for the first time at home this season. He was 6-0 at Turner Field coming into the game...It was the second multi-HR game of Rasmus' career.

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FOOTBALL BETTING

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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