Cubs top Dodgers to keep pace in NL Central

Baseball Betting Lines

09/06/2007 - Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark DeRosa finished 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored, and the Chicago Cubs topped the Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-2, in the third of a four-game set.

Ted Lilly (14-7) held the Dodgers to six hits and two runs through 6 2/3 innings, fanning three and walking one for the Cubs, who had dropped the first two games of the series. Chicago remained a half-game ahead of the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central. Milwaukee routed the Astros, 14-2, on Wednesday.

Aramis Ramirez homered for the Cubs, who will try to earn the series split on Thursday afternoon.

Eric Stults (1-3) fared better at the plate then he did on the mound, as he went 2-for-2, but gave up eight hits and four runs -- three earned -- in 4 1/3 innings, with two strikeouts and two walks. Mike Lieberthal went 1-for-3 and scored twice for the Dodgers, who saw their three-game win streak come to an end.

Los Angeles remained in a tie with the Phillies for second place in the wild- card race, 3 1/2 games back of the Padres and Diamondbacks, who are tied for the NL West and wild card leads. San Diego and Arizona played each other later Wednesday night.

The Cubs took the early lead in the second on Geovany Soto's RBI single to left. Ramirez extended the lead to 3-0 in the third when, with two outs and a man on, he ripped a shot to left, his 20th homer of the season.

Lieberthal doubled to right with one out in the fifth, moved to third on a single by Stults, and came home on Rafael Furcal's sacrifice fly. DeRosa roped a one-out double to center in the fifth, though, and Derrek Lee got one run right back with his RBI single to right.

Pinch-hitter Olmedo Saenz roped an RBI double to center in the seventh to make it a two-run game, but the Cubs broke it open with a four-spot in the eighth. Soto worked a one-out walk, and quickly came home on Ryan Theriot's pinch- double to right. Theriot then stole third, and was driven in by Jacque Jones' single to center. Alfonso Soriano kept the inning going with a double to left, and then DeRosa singled to left, plating two more runs to give the Cubs a six-run cushion.

Game Notes

Chicago improved to 5-4 on their 10-game homestand. Of the Cubs' 35 runs on the homestand, 21 have come in the sixth inning or later...Lilly is now one win shy of becoming the first Cubs lefty to record 15 wins since Greg Hibbard in 1993.

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Pacific-10 Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Stanford

Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.

Should be in:

Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.

Southeastern Conference odds
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State

It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.

Work left to do:

Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.

Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.

Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile.

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