Place Your Bets: Salute to a Great Man

The week in sports betting, with a Fourth of July twist

June 30, 2008

By Jason Brough
Bodog Nation Contributing Writer

Thomas Jefferson did a lot of important things for his country. He was the third President of the United States from 1801-1809, during which he bought Louisiana from the French and commanded Lewis and Clark to take a gander out West. But perhaps his greatest accomplishment was authoring the Declaration of Independence, the document we celebrate this Friday, July 4.

With that in mind, let's use the great man's words to preview the week in sports betting. (That's a fitting tribute, no?)

"I like the dreams of the future better than the history of the past."

Unfortunately for the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs (49-33), who haven't won the World Series since 1908, history (read: losing, and lots of it) reared its ugly head over the weekend. The Cubbies were swept by their cross-town rivals, the White Sox, and have now dropped five of their last six. Indeed, what seemed like a dream season just a week ago, when the Cubs were the ones sweeping the Sox at Wrigley, appears to have hit a sizable bump.

It doesn't get any easier for Lou Piniella's men with a seven-game road trip starting tonight in San Francisco and continuing Friday in St. Louis. The Cubs lead the Cardinals by just 2.5 games in the NL Central division. They're also a pedestrian 16-23 on the road, so the standings could be even closer when the Cubs return home to the friendly confines.

The loss of pitcher Carlos Zambrano is hurting the Cubs. (AP Images)

The Cubs also have a number of injury concerns, including outfielder Alfonso Soriano (broken left hand) and, more importantly, pitcher Carlos Zambrano (shoulder). The latter expects to be ready to go Friday against St. Louis, but their absences have already been felt.

"The only reason we could fall into a lull is to make excuses for the guys we don't have playing for us," Cubs left fielder Mark DeRosa said.

"You take [ Alfonso] Soriano out of our lineup, it hurts. You take Carlos Zambrano off the mound, it hurts. I don't care who you put in their place, they're not going to be good as those guys. They're superstars.

"Mentally, we just have to find different ways to win."

Lefty Ted Lilly (8-5, 4.74) will kick it off on Monday against the Giants, who send their fantastically awful investment, Barry Zito (3-11, 5.91), to the hill. A little good news for the Chicago faithful: the Cubs have won Lilly's last four outings and have given him ample run support all season, scoring at least seven runs in nine of his 17 starts.

"There is not a sprig of grass that shoots uninteresting to me."

Imagine how fascinated Mr. Jefferson would be at this week's stop on the PGA Tour. Because after some quick back-of-the-envelope calculations, we figure Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md., must have hundreds, nay, thousands of sprigs of grass.

Tiger will be there... but not playing. (AP Images)

Starting Thursday, it also has the AT&T National tournament, hosted by Tiger Woods, who obviously won't partake following knee surgery.

Tiger's nonattendance means a much-depleted field, according to the Washington Times, which reports that "only five of the world's top 20 golfers will play in the $6 million purse event. Notable absences include Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Geoff Ogilvy, Ernie Els and Sergio Garcia."

"Never spend your money before you have earned it.”"

We wonder if Atlanta Falcons rookie quarterback Matt Ryan will heed that advice. The Boston College product is already guaranteed to make $34.75 million in a career that has yet to start.

Oddsmakers don't seem to have much confidence in the youngster's ability to turn the Atlanta franchise around after its long Michael Vick nightmare, at least not next year. The Falcons are getting 150/1 odds to win Super Bowl XLIII, making them the heaviest favorites of all.

Can Ryan turn the Falcons around? (AP Images)

As far as the lofty expectations fans will have for Ryan, the 23-year-old said all the right things to the Philadelphia Inquirer: "You can't even think about it. If you do, if you get caught up in it, it can only distract you. For me, I certainly have high expectations for myself and what I want to accomplish as a player. You have to live up to those expectations, and that's really the way I've gone about it."

The next longest shot is Miami at 100/1 while the New England Patriots are the favorites to win at 10/3, followed by the Dallas Cowboys (7/1) and San Diego Chargers (8/1). The defending champion New York Giants are at 16/1.

"Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations."

Not that we're experts, but we're pretty sure Mr. Jefferson meant that, whenever possible, you should bet on the Canadian Football League.

This Fourth of July offers two CFL betting options. First, it's the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Montreal. Second, the Saskatchewan Roughriders visit the British Columbia Lions.

Enjoy the holiday, America!

TOP PHOTO: Thomas Jefferson.