Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee is -270 in a road start vs. the Mets, and with good reason. The rhythm Lee developed in his last three starts with Cleveland has stayed with him after his trade to Philadelphia. His ERA is 0.82 in four starts with the Phillies and he has allowed just 18 hits in 33 innings.
On the Mark
There was a serious man-crush on Jets rookie Mark Sanchez after his first preseason game, in which he was 3-of-4 for 88 yards. Now Sanchez gets his first NFL start, which means he faces Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and all those nasty guys on the first-team defense of the Baltimore Ravens. Jets coach Rex Ryan may use this game to decide whether Sanchez or Kellen Clemens will be his starting quarterback. The Jets are 3-point underdogs and the total is set at 32.5.
Cut down
The Rockies will be without red-hot outfielder Carlos Gonzalez for at least a week and maybe longer after he cut his hand in an accident at home that prevents him from gripping a bat. Gonzalez was hitting a team-best .373 (31-for-83) since the All-Star break and homered in four consecutive games in one recent stretch.
Seth Smith, who has a better batting average and on-base percentage than Gonzalez, replaced him in left field and the leadoff spot Sunday. Smith is hitting a league-best .469 (15-for-32) with 11 RBIs as a pinch hitter.
Colorado is -164 in Monday's finale of its important four-game series vs. San Francisco.
The dish on Cable
Raiders coach Tom Cable had quite a week after being accused of breaking the jaw of assistant Randy Hanson. Perhaps Hanson suggested changes to Cable's plans, which seem inflexible.
In Saturday's 21-20 loss to San Francisco, JaMarcus Russell had already been removed when the Raiders got the ball with 1:59 left in the first half and two timeouts left. It was a good spot to let the inexperienced Russell run the hurry-up offense, but Cable stayed with backup Jeff Garcia.
"The situation didn't matter to me," Cable told the Oakland Tribune's web site. "I wanted to stick with what the plan was."
Cable said Russell gets plenty of reps in the two-minute drill in practice. The Raiders host New Orleans on Saturday.
Justin time
Tigers right-hander Justin Verlander is +118 vs. the Angels, just the second time in his last 19 starts he has worked as an underdog. Overall, Verlander has made six starts as an underdog this season and is just 2-3 (Detroit is 2-4). But his other numbers are very strong - a 3.79 ERA, 51 strikeouts in 40 1-3 innings and two starts where he allowed no runs.
Line movement
The Seattle Seahawks are the second choice behind Arizona to win the NFC West at +250, but those odds might get grow if they keep losing offensive linemen. Starting center Chris Spencer left Saturday's win over Denver with a leg injury and will have an MRI to determine how long he will be sidelined. The Seahawks already are without standout veteran left tackle Walter Jones, who had knee surgery and is out indefinitely. Right tackle Sean Locklear moved to left tackle and gave up two sacks and committed a false start.
The Seahawks were 19th in rushing last season at 110.5 yards per game. Their leading rusher was Julius Jones, who did not play Saturday due to a bruised thigh. Behind him are T.J. Duckett and Justin Forsett.
Seattle is at Kansas City next weekend. The Seahawks are 6-point home faves in their season opener vs. St. Louis on Sept. 13.
Seeing red
Reds pitcher Aaron Harang is done for the season following an emergency appendectomy Saturday night. He joins Edinson Volquez as Cincinnati starters out for the season. Harang, who was near the bottom in starter money at $-396, last pitched Thursday night and would have been scheduled to pitch again Wednesday in Milwaukee. Reds manager Dusty Baker was not sure who would take his spot, although a possibility is rookie righty Matt Maloney, who made a couple of rough starts in June.
Helpful notes for Monday 8/24
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