07/03/2008 - San Francisco, CA (Baseball Betting) - The Chicago Cubs activated outfielder Reed Johnson from the 15-day disabled list on Thursday.
The 31-year-old went on the shelf on June 24, retroactive to June 18, due to lower back spasms.
In 56 games for the Cubs this year, Johnson is batting .271 with three homers and 31 RBI since coming over from Toronto on March 25 as a free agent.
In a related roster move, the club optioned infielder Eric Patterson to Triple-A Iowa.
<< Injured Oswalt to miss next start
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Houston Astros pitcher Roy Oswalt will miss his
next scheduled start while recovering from a right hip abductor strain.
Oswalt, who left Monday's 4-1 win against the Los Angeles Dodgers with the
injury, wa
<< Penguins sign G Fleury to seven-year extension
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Penguins signed
goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury to a seven-year contract extension on Thursday.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported
Thurs
<< Bryans fall in Wimbledon semis
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The world No. 1 twin Bryan
brothers, Bob and Mike, came up semifinal losers Thursday at Wimbledon.
An eighth-seeded doubles team of Swede Jonas Bjorkman and Zimbabwe's Kevin
Ullyett upended the top-
<< Pirates' Duffy ready to return
Pittsburgh, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates recalled outfielder
Chris Duffy from his rehab assignment with Double-A Altoona, reinstated him
from the 60-day disabled list and then optioned him back to Altoona.
Duffy has not
Avs add Tjarnqvist to defensive mix >>
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Avalanche signed free-agent
defenseman Daniel Tjarnqvist to a one-year contract, the club announced
Thursday.
Tjarnqvist, 31, returns to the NHL after playing last season in the Ru
Dodgers edge Astros in finale >>
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chad Billingsley tossed eight strong innings,
and James Loney went 2-for-3 with a home run, two runs batted in and two runs
scored as the Los Angeles Dodgers topped the Houston Astros, 5-2, in the
finale
Rays place Bartlett on DL, make three other moves >>
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Tampa Bay Rays placed shortstop
Jason Bartlett on the 15-day disabled list Thursday with a right knee sprain
suffered in Wednesday's 7-6 victory over Boston.
The 28-year-old Bartlett is battin
Kearns back with Nationals >>
Washington, DC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Nationals activated
right fielder Austin Kearns from the 15-day disabled list Thursday.
The 28-year-old was placed on the DL with a right elbow pain on May 22. In the
meantime, he u
American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout
An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.
Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off. Randy was not impressed though. Paula thought he started off fantastic. "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either.
Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed. Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact. He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition.
Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula. Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.
Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next. Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential. Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell. He sang "Careless Whisper".
22 year old Chris Richardson was up next. He was listed with +1100 odds coming in. He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great.
Nick was boring and pitchy. Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week. Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition.
Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds . These of course were the early odds. He was considered original for picking an "odd song". He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night.
Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good.
Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds. Great voice and a great sense of humor. He's a real standout. Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit. Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig".
Jared Cotter followed. He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition. The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good.
22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next. "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon. Though the judges felt he performed okay. Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.
Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition. He was the last to perform. He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start.
Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys. Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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