Reds aim to rebound against Marlins

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07/21/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Young left-hander Bobby Livingston goes for his third win of the season, and of his brief big-league career, tonight when the Cincinnati Reds visit Dolphin Stadium for game three of a four-game series with the host Florida Marlins.

Livingston, a 24-year-old who was drafted by Seattle in the fourth round in 2001, has strung together victories in each of his last two spot starts with the injury-plagued Reds.

He defeated Colorado, 4-2, with 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball on June 1, then returned on July 16 and defeated the Atlanta Braves, 10-3, after allowing eight hits and two runs in five innings.

Livingston reached the majors with Seattle in 2006, making three relief appearances and posting an 18.00 earned run average. His first start for the Reds this season came in a 10-5 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 13, during which he allowed 10 hits and four runs in 5 1/3 innings and got a no- decision.

Korean veteran Byung-Hyun Kim goes for the Marlins in his first career start against the Reds.

Kim, who's made all but one of his 11 appearances this season as a starter, dropped a 5-3 decision to St. Louis on July 16 after allowing eight hits and five runs in six innings. He'd beaten San Diego one start prior, allowing three hits and two runs in 6 1/3 innings on July 5.

The 28-year-old has pitched in relief against Cincinnati 12 times, recording five saves and a 1.46 ERA in 12 1/3 innings.

On Friday, Dan Uggla went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBI as the Marlins pounded the Reds, 10-2.

Scott Olsen (8-7), who had served a two-game suspension laid down by Marlins general manager Fredi Gonzalez for insubordination and conduct detrimental to the team, got the win as he gave up just two runs on four hits in seven innings.

The penalty stemmed from an incident occurring after Olsen argued with the manager when he was lifted from his last start, a 5-3 defeat of Washington on July 15.

Miguel Cabrera hit a two-run home run and drove in three runs, Miguel Olivo added a two-run homer and Hanley Ramirez had three hits and drove in a pair for the Marlins, who had lost three of four.

Jeff Conine and Brandon Phillips each hit homers while Kyle Lohse (5-12) got pounded for seven runs -- four earned -- on eight hits in 6 2/3 innings for the Reds, who had a season-high four-game winning streak stopped.

Cincinnati won four of six from the Marlins last season and is 11-9 against them since the start of the 2004 campaign. The Reds have also won seven of their last 11 in South Beach.

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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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