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09/02/2010 - Flushing Meadows, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki and former world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic were a pair of second-round winners Thursday at the 2010 U.S. Open.
The 2009 runner-up Wozniacki double-bageled Taipei's Kai-Chen Chang 6-0, 6-0 in a mere 47 minutes at Ashe Stadium.
Wozniacki lost to former world No. 1 Kim Clijsters in last year's U.S. Open finale.
The second-ranked 20-year-old Wozniacki became the top seed here when world No. 1 superstar Serena Williams pulled out last week, citing a foot surgery.
"It's nice to be the No. 1 seed, and, you know, it's nice to play at the big stadium," Wozniacki said. "It's a great atmosphere. I'm just happy to be through to the third round."
Wozniacki's third-round opponent will be another player from Taipei, Yung-Jan Chan.
The fourth-seeded Serbian Jankovic snuck past Croat Mirjana Lucic 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 on Day 4. Jankovic needed just over two hours to hold off the game Lucic. The sloppy matched featured 19 double faults and 16 service breaks, including nine by the winner.
Jankovic was the 2008 U.S. Open runner-up to Williams.
Seventh-seeded Wimbledon runner-up Vera Zvonareva and 11th-seeded former U.S. Open titlist Svetlana Kuznetsova were a pair of seeded Russian victors on another extremely hot day at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Zvonareva got past big-serving German Sabine Lisicki 6-1, 7-6 (7-5), while the two-time major champion Kuznetsova continued her recent resurgence with a 6-2, 6-3 spanking of Latvian Anastasija Sevastova. Kuznetsova captured the year's final Grand Slam event back in 2004 and was the runner-up here in 2007. Zvonareva lost to the mighty Williams in July's Wimbledon finale.
Belgian slugger Yanina Wickmayer, the 15th seed here, handled German Julia Goerges 6-4, 7-5 to improve to 7-1 in her last eight matches in Flushing. Wickmayer was a surprise semifinalist here a year ago.
In some upsets, 18-year-old American Beatrice Capra upended 18th-seeded Frenchwoman Aravane Rezai 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, while Swiss veteran Patty Schnyder topped 22nd-seeded Spaniard Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez 7-6 (7-2), 6-4.
Additional second-round wins came for Spaniard Lourdes Dominguez Lino, Slovakian Dominika Cibulkova and the aforementioned Chan.
<< D'Backs' Hudson named NL Rookie of the Month
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Daniel Hudson was
named the National League Rookie of the Month for August.
Hudson went 4-1 with a 1.85 earned-run average in six starts during the month.
He led all National Le
<< St. Louis' Pujols named NL Player of the Month
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - St. Louis first baseman Albert Pujols has been
named the National League Player of the Month for August.
Pujols batted .379 over 26 games in August and led the National League with 11
home runs. He posted a .
<< Orioles' Matusz named top AL rookie for August
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Baltimore Orioles pitcher Brian Matusz has
been selected as the American League's top rookie for the month of August.
Matusz went 4-1 with a 2.43 earned-run average over six starts in August. He
led AL r
<< Atlanta's Hudson voted NL Pitcher of the Month
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Atlanta Braves pitcher Tim Hudson has been
named the National League Pitcher of the Month for August.
Over six starts in August, Hudson posted a 4-0 mark with a 1.71 earned run
average. He struck out 3
Boston's Buchholz named AL Pitcher of the Month >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Red Sox right-hander Clay Buchholz was
named the American League Pitcher of the Month for August.
Buchholz was 4-0 with a minuscule 1.03 earned-run average over six August
starts. He struck out
Hawks sign C Thomas >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Hawks signed free agent center Etan
Thomas on Thursday. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.
An eight-year veteran, Thomas spent last season with Oklahoma City and in 23
games a
Braves activate Glaus >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Braves activated first baseman
Troy Glaus from the 15-day disabled list prior to Thursday's game against the
Mets.
Glaus had been on the DL since August 18 with inflammation in his left knee
Iowa gives Ferentz extension through 2020 >>
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -Iowa says it is extending coach Kirk Ferentz's contract through 2020.Ferentz's current deal runs through 2015 and pays him roughly $2.84 million per season. Ferentz's new deal will total nearly $3.7 million a year.School offici
(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).
The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.
"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."
Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.
"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."
When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:
CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.
DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.
PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.
You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.
"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."
Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.
(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)
Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."
But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."
Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."
Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."
All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.
In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.
"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."
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