Frostad has three for 151st Queen's Plate

Horseracing Betting Lines

07/01/2010 - Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Trainer Mark Frostad and Sam-Son Farm go after a second straight victory in Sunday's $1 million Queen's Plate at Woodbine Race Course. The 1 1/4-mile race is the beginning a the Canadian Triple Crown.

Queen Elizabeth II will be in attendance for the 151st Queen's Plate.

Following last year's Queen's Plate win with Eye of the Leopard, trainer and owner have entered three in Canada's premier thoroughbred event. A total of 13 Canadian-bred three-year-olds have been entered.

The three horses that Frostad will saddle are 3-1 favorite Hotep, Dark Cloud Dancer and Giant's Tomb. Trainer and owner won the Plate in 2000 and 2001 with Scatter the Gold and Dancethruthedawn, respectively, as well as last year.

Hotep will be ridden by Patrick Husbands from post 11. Husbands won the Plate aboard Wando in 2003.

"He should be spot on for the race," noted Frostad. "He has a good stalking style and a good kick."

The colt is coming off a second-place finish to Exhi in the Marine Stakes on May 29. Hotep had won the Wando at Woodbine on May 8 in his first local start of the year.

"He gets pretty revved up. He just gets on his toes and uses a lot of energy in his races," said Frostad. "We wanted to give him five weeks into the Plate. We wanted him in good order for the big race."

Earlier this year Hotep raced at the Fair Grounds in New Orleans. He was 10th in the Risen Star Stakes and 11th in the Louisiana Derby. The colt has career earnings of $187,740 with three wins in eight starts.

Dark Cloud Dancer is 15-1 in the morning-line and will be ridden by Javier Castellano from post four. Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith has the mount on Giant's Tomb. The chestnut colt is 12-1 in the program and will leave from post eight. Smith rode Awesome Again to victory in the 1997 Plate.

Other Plate winners for Sam-Son Farm are Regal Intention (1988) and Dance Smartly (1991). Frostad also saddled Victor Cooley to win the race in 1996.

Here is the complete field for the Queen's Plate in position order: Vicar Street, Tyler Pizarro, 30-1; Who We Gunna Call, Gerry Olguin, 30-1: D's Wando, Emma-Jayne Wilson, 20-1; Dark Cloud Dancer, Javier Castellano, 15-1; Big Red Mike, Eurico Rosa da Silva, 6-1; Smart Sky, Chantal Sutherland, 30-1; Ghost Fleet, Richard Dos Ramos, 20-1; Giant's Tomb, Mike Smith, 12-1; Mobilizer, Jono Jones, 7-2; Roan Inish, Davy Moran, 9-2; Hotep, Patrick Husbands, 3-1; Mobthewarrior, Emile Ramsammy, 10-1 and Moment of Majesty, Robert Landry, 12-1.

The two fillies, Roan Inish and Moment of Majesty, will each carry 121 pounds while the 11 males will tote 126 pounds each. The winner will earn $600,000.

Post-time for the Queen's Plate is slated for 5:40 p.m. (et).

The Triple Crown will continue with the Prince of Wales Stakes on Sunday, July 25 at Fort Erie Racetrack and the Breeders' Stakes on Sunday, August 15 back at Woodbine.

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Football Betting: Defensive Rookie of the Year Awards

Oddsmakers have released the odds for the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award and Seattle Seahawks linebacker Aaron Curry has been made the opening favorite.

Bet on NFL Football

Seattle took Curry with the fourth overall pick in April's NFL draft and plan on inserting him into its starting lineup right away. The Hawks traded linebacker Julian Peterson in the offseason, so Curry is expected to have a significant role in Seattle's defense next year and that's one of the primary reasons he is the favorite to win the NFL ROY Award.

Oddsmakers from online sportsbook MySportsbook.com have made Curry a 5/1 favorite to win this year's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award. Given that he was the best defensive prospect in this year's draft and how he'll have plenty of opportunities to make plays in '09, Curry offers a ton of value at 5/1.

Another thing working for Curry is the position he plays. A linebacker has won the defensive ROY award six straight times and eight of the last nine years. Jerod Mayo, Patrick Willis, DeMeco Ryans, Shawne Merriman, Jonathan Vilma, Terrell Suggs, Kendrell Bell and Brian Urlacher were the most recent linebackers to take home the award.

Following Curry at 5/1 are Tyson Jackson (Chiefs) at 7/1, James Laurinaitas (Rams) at 8/1, Brian Orakpo (Redskins) at 10/1, Rey Maualuga (Bengals) at 10/1 and Jerry Peria (Falcons) at 10/1.

All the players mentioned above are expected to start for their respective teams, but Jackson and Peria are going to have a tough time being recognized on a national level given they're both defensive linemen. D-linemen rarely put up the numbers that it takes to win an individual award like the ROY.

A couple of players with some value are Clay Matthews (Packers) at 12/1 and Larry English (Chargers) at 15/1. Matthews is expected to start at outside linebacker in Green Bay's new 3-4 defense and could rack up a ton of tackles. English, who was an impressive player at Northern Illinois, is expected to be a situational pass rusher for the Chargers and could rack up a ton of sacks.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award, see below. And for complete odds for the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Award, click the link provided.

2009 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award

Robert Ayers (DEN) 12/1

Ron Brace (NE) 25/1

Everette Brown (CAR) 16/1

Darius Butler (NE) 40/1

Patrick Chung (NE) 30/1

Aaron Curry (SEA) 5/1

Brian Cushing (HOU) 12/1

Vontae Davis (MIA) 30/1

Louis Delmas (DET) 30/1

Larry English (SD) 15/1

Evander Hood (PIT) 25/1

Tyson Jackson (KC) 7/1

Malcolm Jenkins (NO) 25/1

Paul Kruger (BAL) 50/1

James Laurinaitas (STL) 8/1

Sen'Derrick Marks (TEN) 20/1

Clay Matthews (GB) 12/1

Aaron Maybin (BUF) 15/1

Rey Maualuga (CIN) 10/1

Roy Miller (TB) 20/1

Michael Mitchell (OAK) 45/1

Fili Moala (IND) 30/1

Brian Orakpo (WAS) 10/1

Jerry Peria (ATL) 10/1

B J Raji (GB) 7/1

Clint Sintim (NYG) 35/1

Alphonso Smith (DEN) 40/1

David Verkune (CLE) 20/1

Jason Williams (DAL) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 6/1

NFL football gambling

To visit this internet sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.

Betting the NFL preseason

Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."

When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules. 

The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.

The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.

“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”

The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.

“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”

The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.

“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”

Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.

“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."

So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?

“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.

Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.

Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.

Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.

“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.

Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.

The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.

“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.

Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.