Marlins send staff ace Johnson to hill vs. Rangers

Baseball Betting Lines

06/15/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A series win over one of the top teams in baseball has the Marlins on the verge of returning to the .500 mark. With Josh Johnson set to start tonight, Florida has a good chance of reaching that mark.

Johnson will aim to win his third straight game and continue his dominating six-start run this evening in the opener of a three-game series versus the visiting Texas Rangers at Sun Life Stadium.

The right-handed Johnson is 7-2 with a 1.91 earned run average on the season and is pitching to a 0.43 ERA over his last six starts, allowing just two earned runs over 42 innings. That includes eight scoreless innings versus the Phillies and Roy Halladay on Thursday as Johnson worked around three hits and retired the final 17 batters he faced.

The outing came just two starts after Johnson was on the losing end of Halladay's perfect game on May 29, but it was the Marlins hurler who came out on top last time.

"I just finally found my rhythm, found my tempo in about the fourth or fifth [inning]," Johnson said. "I was just pounding the zone, I was trying to throw as many strikes as I possibly could, throw my change-up in any count, slider in any count, just located my fastballs down the zone."

The 26-year-old is 5-1 with a 1.50 ERA in eight starts at home this season and has never before faced the Rangers. Johnson, though, is 5-2 with a 3.86 ERA in 11 career interleague starts.

Johnson will try to keep the momentum going from a series victory over the Rays this past weekend. Florida secured the victory with a 6-1 triumph on Sunday.

Jorge Cantu and Wes Helms both homered during a four-run sixth inning, while Mike Stanton drove in two runs. Chris Volstad got the win after holding Tampa Bay to just a run over six innings.

"It was good to win the series, especially against the best team in baseball. We're playing great right now," Volstad said after his club won for the third time in four games and improved to 31-32 on the season.

Cantu, meanwhile, hit his first homer since May 23 and extended his hitting streak to 12 games. He is batting .313 (15-for-48) over his run with 10 RBI.

The Rangers also come in with some momentum after taking Sunday's rubber match of a three-game series versus the Brewers by a 7-2 margin. Josh Hamilton drove in three runs, two on a fourth-inning homer, and Julio Borbon added a pair of doubles and two RBI in Texas' fifth win in six games. That has them one game up on the second-place Angels in the American League West.

Hamilton is hitting .405 (15-for-37) over a 10-game hitting streak with six homers and 17 RBI.

Starter Colby Lewis held Milwaukee to a pair of runs over eight innings, striking out 10 while also going 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI and a run scored.

"It was definitely a lot of fun," Lewis said. "I didn't even know I had 10 strikeouts. I just wanted to compete and help us win. It doesn't matter if it's hitting or pitching."

C.J. Wilson will try to use his arm to give the Rangers another victory Tuesday. The left-hander has won consecutive starts since a four-game span in which he went 0-2 with a 7.04 ERA.

Wilson's last victory came versus the Mariners on Wednesday after he gave up two runs on four hits and three walks over seven innings, his longest outing since May 13.

The 29-year-old is 5-3 on the season with a 3.52 ERA and makes his first career start versus the Marlins. He has faced them twice in relief, recording two outs and allowing one hit.

The Marlins won two of three over the Rangers when the teams last met in Florida from June 10-12, 2005.

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Chiefs' Treen Green out for Sunday's game

How long Trent Green will remain sidelined is unknown. Coach Herm Edwards said Monday he will miss a second straight start Sunday when the Chiefs host the San Francisco 49ers.

A two-time Pro Bowler, Green was going into a feet-first hook slide when he was knocked unconscious by a thunderous, head-snapping hit from Cincinnati's Robert Geathers.

Oddsmakers at online sportsbook MySportsbook.com currently have the Chiefs listed as 7-point favorites versus the 49ers.

The 49ers got beat by Philadelphia 38-24 as a 6.5-point underdog last week. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under total (42.5).

Alex Smith completed 27-of-46 passes for 293 yards with a touchdown. Michael Robinson rushed for 29 yards and a pair of touchdowns on five carries.

The Chiefs lost 9-6 to Denver last week as an 11-point underdog. The combined score was well UNDER the posted over/under total (38).

Larry Johnson rushed for 126 yards on 27 carries. Damon Huard completed 17-of-23 passes for 133 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

To visit this online sports book got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.

Huskers' Lucky hospitalized for undisclosed reason

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraska running back Marlon Lucky was hospitalized Monday for undisclosed reasons after Lincoln police responded to a call at his residence.

The Nebraska athletic department said in a release Monday that Lucky was admitted Sunday night.

MySportsbook.com has the Cornhuskers listed at +2500 to win the BCS National Championship odds.

A nursing supervisor at the hospital said all questions about Lucky were being referred to the athletic department. The athletic department said there would be no further comment from the department or Lucky's family.

A Lincoln Police spokesman said officers responded to a call at Lucky's residence 11:30 p.m. Sunday. The spokesman said he didn't know Lucky's condition at the time he was taken to the hospital.

Lucky, from North Hollywood, Calif., started six games last season as a sophomore and was the team's second-leading rusher, with 728 yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 32 passes for 383 yards. He averaged 19.1 yards on eight kickoff returns.

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