Shields and Verlander square off at the Trop

Baseball Betting Lines

07/27/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - After being on the receiving end of several no-hitters over the past year, the Tampa Bay Rays finally got one of their own last night.

Fresh off Matt Garza's pitching gem, the Rays will attempt to pin an eighth consecutive road loss on the slumping Detroit Tigers when these two teams continue a four-game series from Tropicana Field this evening.

Tampa Bay kicked off its current 11-game homestand in memorable fashion on Monday, when Garza became the first pitcher in franchise history to throw a no-hitter in a 5-0 triumph over the Tigers. The standout right-hander faced the minimum 27 batters, with a second-inning walk to Brennan Boesch accounting for Detroit's lone baserunner on the night.

"I don't care who it came from, we needed one," said Garza, who struck out six and tied a career high with his 11th win. "We've been on way too many of those in the last year. We've seen three of those and we've seen some almost happen. We needed one just for our own confidence."

Tampa Bay was the victim of a no-hitter twice earlier this season, including a perfect game by Oakland's Dallas Braden on May 9. Former Ray Edwin Jackson also held his old team hitless while with Arizona on June 25, and Chicago White Sox ace Mark Buehrle's unforgettable perfect game came against Tampa on July 23, 2009.

The Rays seemed to be on their way to another hitless night on Monday, as Detroit starter Max Scherzer didn't allow one over the first 5 2/3 innings of the contest. That streak came to an end when Matt Joyce belted a grand slam on a full-count pitch to snap a scoreless deadlock in the bottom of the sixth.

Tampa Bay had loaded the bases on a pair of walks and an interference call on Tigers catcher Gerald Laird.

"I honestly had the approach where I was going to hit a hard ground ball up the middle," said Joyce. "You know, 3-2, it was a fastball and I put good wood on it."

Scherzer (7-8) left after giving up a single to Jason Bartlett following Joyce's slam and was reached for four runs (three earned) while striking out eight over his 5 2/3-inning stint.

Carl Crawford added a solo homer later on for Tampa Bay, which has now won three in a row and remained three games behind the New York Yankees for first place in the American League East. The Rays lead the Wild Card standings by five games over Boston.

Detroit, on the other hand, has now dropped 10 of their last 13 and fallen three games back of Chicago for the top spot in the AL Central. The Tigers have also lost eight straight on the road and are a woeful 16-30 as the visitor this year.

The Tigers will turn to ace Justin Verlander tonight in hopes of getting back on track. The All-Star hurler has been one of the few recent bright spots for the sputtering club as of late, as he's won four straight and seven of his last eight decisions to improve to 12-5 over 20 overall starts in 2010. The 2006 AL Rookie of the Year honoree has also been able to pitch deep in games, having worked into the seventh inning in 10 of his last 13 trips to the hill.

The hard-throwing righty kept up his strong recent form by limiting Toronto to two runs over eight innings to lead Detroit to a 5-2 triumph last Thursday at Comerica Park. He's also one of the few Tiger pitchers to have some success on the road, bringing a 5-3 record with a 4.99 earned run average in 10 away starts into tonight's clash.

The Rays are well aware of Verlander's abilities, considering the 27-year-old boasts a 4-0 record with a 3.55 ERA in six career meetings with Tampa Bay. He's prevailed in both of his two previous starts at Tropicana Field and allowed only four runs in a combined 13 innings over those games.

Verlander has also thrown a no-hitter once in his career, having accomplished the feat against Milwaukee on June 12, 2007. He may have to be in top form again tonight, considering how a Detroit offense that's missing three key regulars in Magglio Ordonez (fractured right ankle), Brandon Inge (broken hand) and Carlos Guillen (calf strain) has fared of late.

Detroit did sweep a three-game set from the Rays at Tropicana Field last September and won six of eight overall meetings between the clubs in 2009.

Verlander's counterpart this evening, James Shields, has also performed quite well when called upon in this series. The Tampa righty sports a 3-0 mark with a 3.93 ERA in six lifetime starts against Detroit.

Unlike Verlander, Shields hasn't been on top of his game as of late. The durable 28-year-old has permitted four or more runs in five of his last six outings and has posted a substandard 7.25 ERA in a 10-start stretch dating back to May 30. He's lost eight of his last 11 decisions as well and had problems pitching at home, where the California native carries an unwanted 1-5 record and 5.59 ERA in nine 2010 starts.

Shields was able to notch a win by battling through 6 1/3 innings at Baltimore this past Wednesday, surrendering four runs on eight hits in the Rays' 5-4 decision.

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Police report: Terrell Owens hospitalized after attempt

Terrell Owens will address the media at a 3:15 p.m. ET news conference outside the Cowboys' practice facility after an internal police report indicated he tried to kill himself by overdosing on prescription pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened.

The Dallas police report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

Owens left the hospital late Wednesday morning, giving reporters a "thumbs up" but making no comment as he was driven away in an SUV.

Michael Irvin said that Owens denied he attempted suicide and said he was rushed to the hospital as a result of an adverse reaction to medication. And a source close to Owens told Michael A. Smith that Owens wasn't attempting suicide.

NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders said he spoke with Owens shortly before his release from the hospital and that Owens was in good spirits.

"The fact that it has been reported a suicide attempt, he's laughed at that notion. It was a case that medication that was taken wasn't accepted well in his system with the other vitamins he's on," Sanders said.

The series of events began a little before 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Owens' publicist, Kim Etheredge, said she was at Owens' home when he took pain medicine for his broken right hand. Concerned by how he began acting, Etheredge said in various interviews Wednesday with Dallas-area media that she called 911. Owens was taken to a hospital, with Etheredge saying it was an allergic reaction to the medicine.

But early Wednesday, several media outlets received a police report -- that had yet to be released by the authorities -- saying Owens had attempted suicide by overdosing on the painkillers, even putting two more pills into his mouth after an unidentified friend intervened.

The police document, first reported by WFAA-TV, said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

When officially released by police, about half the document was blacked out, including the phrases "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication" and "a drug overdose," as well as the details of Owens having two pills pried from his mouth and Owens saying "Yes" when asked if he intended to harm himself.

Etheredge, who said she was the friend cited in the police document, told Dallas-area media Wednesday that the police got the story wrong.

The tape of the 911 call could help clear things up. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get its contents, but fire department officials said it would not be available before late Wednesday.

The police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.

The friend, who is not identified in the report, "noticed that [his] prescription pain medication was empty and observed [Owens] putting two pills in his mouth," the police report said.

Using her fingers, the friend attempted to pry them out of Owens' mouth. Owens told police he had taken only five of the 40 pain pills in the bottle he'd emptied before the incident.

Etheredge told the Star-Telegram that Owens was "fine."

Etheredge said she called 911 because Owens was groggy and lethargic. After taking some supplements "it kicked in a reaction" with the painkillers, she told the Star-Telegram.

"Here's a person whose body is so clean, it really had a negative reaction to the medication and supplements he was taking," Etheridge told The Morning News. "Thank goodness someone was there to call an ambulance."

Police Lt. Rick Watson said he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.

It is not a crime in Texas for a person to attempt suicide.

"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."

Watson and fire department spokesman Joel Lavender cited privacy laws for the lack of information they could provide. Lavender said more details could come from the 911 call. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get the contents of the call.

"Let's just look at the tape, review the tape," Lavender said. "I'll give you an honest answer once I know something."

At the police news conference, Watson released a version of the police narrative with certain sections blacked out. The full report was obtained by several news outlets and reported first by WFAA. The AP received the full version from WFAA.

According to the police report, Dallas Fire and Rescue was called regarding someone "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication." Officers arrived to find Owens being stabilized by ambulance workers, who then took him to Baylor University Medical Center.

Owens was hospitalized late Tuesday because of what his publicist said was an allergic reaction to pain medicine he was taking for a broken hand. Doctors reportedly tried to induce vomiting.

Owens, one of the league's top receivers during his 11-year NFL career, is best known for wild stunts on the field and other publicity-seeking antics off it.

When the Cowboys signed him to a $25 million, three-year deal in March, they said their background checks indicated no red flags. In fact, team consultant Calvin Hill -- who mostly deals with troubled players -- said during training camp that his department was not involved with Owens because he didn't have a history of those kinds of problems.

He missed most of training camp, and three of four preseason games, because of a hamstring injury. He was late for work during his recovery and was fined for it, but Owens laughed it off, saying he overslept. He said it had happened before, though not with Dallas, and would probably happen again.

Owens broke the bone leading to his right ring finger during a game a week ago Sunday. The next day, doctors screwed in a plate so the bone could heal without fear of further damage. Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said last week that the pain medicine made Owens ill.

Owens had not practiced since the injury, but because Dallas had a bye this past weekend he did not miss a game. He was expected to practice Wednesday, and Parcells had said there was a chance Owens could play Sunday against Tennessee.

Owens had been especially looking forward to the Cowboys' game after that -- Oct. 8, in Philadelphia, against the team that dumped him midway through last season only months after he helped them nearly win the Super Bowl.

Owens was seen laughing and joking on the practice field Tuesday morning. He chatted briefly with reporters in the locker room in the afternoon and seemed fine. A 2-inch scar on the top of his hand was puffy but not wrapped, and he said the swelling was doing down.

While in the locker room, he took a pill from a white paper bag and looked at another medicine bottle that was in the bag. He also called a business partner about a towel-wrap venture they're starting and joked to TV cameras that he wasn't talking until Wednesday and it was only Tuesday.

"My little boy knows better than that," he said, laughing, as he plopped onto a sofa in the middle of the locker room.

Also Tuesday, Owens was involved in launching a national campaign for the National Alliance to End Abuse, an organization aimed at helping at-risk youngsters. He appeared at a high school Tuesday morning and was scheduled to visit others but had to cancel because of changes in the team's practice schedule.

Owens has played two games for the Cowboys, catching nine passes for 99 yards and a touchdown. For updated football betting lines and Dallas Cowboy Superbowl odds visit online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

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