Bettor's best friend (BBF): Wednesday's wagering tips


The price is right. Or is it?

The Seattle Mariners are -130 against the Los Angeles Angels, which is about as low a price you are going to find when Felix Hernandez is pitching at Safeco Field. Hernandez's average home price this season has been -157, compared to just under -113 on the road.

But home is where Hernandez has been more beatable. Hernandez is 8-2 with a 2.06 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP (walks + hits per inning) on the road but "just" 5-3 with a 3.68 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP at Safeco.

Turn up the heat

The Mercury-Fever matchup pits the WNBA's best teams in a possible Finals preview. The recent history of the series has been very one-sided - both straight up and against the spread - for Indiana. The Fever has covered the number in the last four meetings, three times as an underdog. Indiana also has won the last three showdowns outright and is giving 3.5 points to Phoenix.

Taking one for the team

When fifth-ranked Alabama faces seventh-ranked Virginia Tech in Atlanta in the marquee matchup of college football's opening weekend Saturday, it may be without senior starting defensive end Brandon Deaderick, who was shot in the arm and hospitalized, according to the Tuscaloosa News.

The report said Deaderick likely would be released after an overnight stay, but Alabama coach Nick Saban did not say when Deaderick would return to the team. He started every game last season, collecting four sacks.

Alabama was a 7-point favorite for the neutral site game, but the line has dropped to 6.5. The total is 38.

No days off for Holliday

The hottest hitter in the National League since the All-Star break wasn't in the National League at the All-Star break. Matt Holliday, who was traded from Oakland to St. Louis on July 23, is batting .371 with 11 homers and 43 RBI since the break. He had eight homers and 43 RBI before the break.

The Cardinals are -290 to visiting Milwaukee. They have won seven of eight overall, playing to the under six times, and have won four of the last five meetings.

Penny for your thoughts

The Giants are wasting no time with Brad Penny, starting him against the Phillies. In his last five starts with the Red Sox, Penny was 0-4 with a 9.11 ERA and a 1.84 WHIP. However, in three straight starts against National League clubs in June, he was 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA. San Francisco is +185 and the total is 8.5.

Silver & black & blue

It has been a rough preseason for the Oakland Raiders, and it just got rougher. Nnamdi Asomugha, perhaps the best cornerback in the NFL, will miss two weeks with a chipped bone in his left wrist, according to ESPN.com. The injury could limit Asomugha's ability to bump receivers and possibly make plays on the ball.

Asomugha is not expected to play in the preseason finale at Seattle Thursday, in which the Seahawks are 3-point favorite. He also could miss the season opener against San Diego on Sept. 14, where the Raiders are 9-point home underdogs.

Notable quotable

"When you go to sleep and think about how good or bad you are, you're not lying. I'm not lying to myself. Do we have a shot? Of course. If we keep playing like (this), are we going to have a shot? No chance."

-- Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, refuting the notion that the team has given up on the season with the trade of Jim Thome. The White Sox have lost eight of nine and are six games out of first place in the AL Central with 30 games to play.