Blue Jays' Anthopoulos building on youth

Baseball Betting Lines

07/16/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When your pockets aren't deep and you live in the American League East, you need to do things a little differently. With a new general manager in town, it seems as though the Toronto Blue Jays have finally come to understand that motto.

It's been less than one year since Alex Anthopoulos replaced J.P Ricciardi as GM of the Blue Jays and he's looked anything but a man in his early 30's in his first year on the job.

Although their record may not indicate it at 44-45, Anthopoulos has brought an optimism of hope back to the club despite playing in a division that features the three best teams in the American League. The task left for him was not easy either, as he had the responsibility of unloading the franchise's greatest pitcher, Roy Halladay.

Anthopoulos took over with a vision that, at this point, most Torontonians can probably feel comfortable trusting after living through eight years of Ricciardi's five-year plan. Nobody said it would be easy, especially when the Jays have to look up to AL East behemoths New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays, but Anthopoulos has executed his plan well.

He's building through youth and high-ceiling, high-potential types of players. A few of those pieces were already in place, but the new GM has done a solid job supplementing the existing talent.

A look at some of the key moves made by Anthopoulos:

Anthopoulos stepped into a tough spot - despite being the assistant GM before taking over the role - as he would become the man responsible for trading away the best player on the roster. He went to work quickly, landing the Jays three very good prospects in starting pitcher Kyle Drabek, catcher Travis d'Arnaud and outfielder Michael Taylor from the Philadelphia Phillies. Taylor was immediately shipped to the Oakland Athletics in exchange for Brett Wallace, the future first basemen of the Jays who already has played for three organizations during his brief span in the minor leagues.

While it's impossible to replace Halladay's arm and work ethic, but this type of return could prove to be a success for years to come. All three players made their respective minor league All-Star games this season, and Wallace and Drabek are on a fast track to the majors. Wallace did not participate in the Pacific Coast League's All-Star Game (Triple-A) due to a wrist injury, but his teammate Jarrett Hoffpauir, someone Anthopoulos also snatched up in the offseason, took his spot. Hoffpauir has seen a little bit of time this season, appearing with the big club in nine games.

The youth movement continued by way of the draft this past June, as Anthopoulos selected a little bit of everything, starting with a polished college arm and continuing with some high-potential prospects and homegrown talent. He made a point of targeting pitching, using his first four picks to select right-handers Deck McGuire, Aaron Sanchez, Noah Syndergaard and Asher Wojciechowski as well as capitalizing on Canadian-born talent. The most intriguing of which is Ontario-native Marcus Knecht, who batted .472 with 16 homers at Connors State College last year.

As much as Anthopoulos has concentrated on a youth movement, the team entered the season with several holes still to fill. Although his offseason signings didn't appear to be significant at the time, even the most optimistic of supporters couldn't have foreseen the production the Jays gotten from their additions. Catcher John Buck is enjoying his finest season and fresh off his first All-Star game, shortstop Alex Gonzalez is on his way to a career year and Kevin Gregg, despite being shaky at times, has converted 20-of-23 save opportunities.

Gonzalez, who hit 17 home runs and drove in 50 runs in the first half, was never part of the long-term plan, which is why his trade to the Atlanta Braves came as no surprise. The five-player deal was essentially a swap for shortstops, where the Braves were more concerned with the now and the Jays for the future, as they are willing to let Yunel Escobar play through his current struggles. Although he's having a down year, the 27-year-old still has plenty of upside and is coming off a fine 2009 season, when he hit .299 with 14 homers and 76 RBIs - the later numbers career highs. If Escobar, who is hitting .238 with no home runs, doesn't bounce back, the Jays also have Cuban Adeiny Hechavarria, an offseason acquisition who is currently playing in the minor leagues but projects to be the shortstop of the future.

The biggest steals for the Jays have come in the form of outfielder Fred Lewis and starting pitcher Brandon Morrow. Lewis was acquired from the San Francisco Giants at the beginning of the season and has turned out to be a complete success. The 29-year-old is batting .276, leading the team with 10 stolen bases and has become a fan favorite in Toronto.

Morrow, on the other hand, has finally found a role, as he's not only firmly entrenched in the Jays' rotation, he's quite possibly the future ace of the staff. He still needs to string together more consistency, but has shown flashes of dominance during his first year as a Blue Jay. He came over to Toronto in an offseason trade with Seattle.

There's a lot of hope for the Blue Jays moving forward, with Anthopoulos steering the ship into a deep pool of youth. Toronto already has a surplus of young players thriving in the big leagues, led by a rotation whose oldest member is 28-year-old Shaun Marcum. It goes without saying that Anthopoulos has done an exceptional job and has the Jays heading in a positive direction.

For the fans, this team has become a breath of fresh of air. This truly is a new era for Blue Jays baseball.

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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.

Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.