As the 2013 US Open Tennis tournament nears the quarterfinal stage, the higher seeds look to avoid a potential upset when they go up against tricky underdogs. In MLB, division rivals battle it out to keep hopes of an automatic playoff berth alive.
Place your bets for today’s exciting action.
Betting Preview – September 3, 2013
MLB
St. Louis Cardinals at Cincinnati Reds
Odds: STL (+135) at CIN (-150), O/U: 8.5
Time: 7:10 pm ET
The St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds continue their chase of the NL Central-leading Pittsburgh Pirates with Game 2 of a four-game series. The Reds beat up on Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright yesterday to win Game 1, 7-2. Reds pitcher Mat Latos had a terrific outing, pitching a complete game while allowing just 2 earned runs.
Top Cardinals pitching prospect Michael Wacha (2-0, 3.78 ERA) takes to the mound against the solid Homer Bailey (9-10, 3.55 ERA). Both players have had recent success against the opposition. Wacha threw four scoreless innings with seven K’s in relief against Cincinnati last week while Bailey shut down St. Louis for 7 1/3 scoreless innings last time out, striking out seven and allowing five hits.
The Cardinals are one game back in the division after losing 2 out of 3 to the Pirates, while Cincinnati is 3.5 games back of first place.
2013 US OPEN TENNIS
Mikhail Youzhny vs Lleyton Hewitt (Men’s)
Lleyton Hewitt seeks to extend his improbable run in the 2013 US Open as he takes on No. 21 seed Mikhail Youzhny for a place in the quarterfinal. Hewitt caused what was arguably the upset of the tournament thus far when he defeated No. 6 seed Juan Martin del Potro in a grueling 5-set match in Round 2.
Standing in the way of his first Grand Slam quarterfinal berth in 4 years is the Russian veteran Youzhny, whom Hewitt has beaten in five of their six meetings all-time. Hewitt, however, is still a +125 underdog to advance with Youzhny, the favorite at -155.
Victoria Azarenka vs Ana Ivanovic (Women’s)
Time: 12:00 am ET
In the women’s tournament, World No. 2 Victoria Azarenka faces a potentially difficult test in No. 13 seed Ana Ivanovic in the Round of 16. Azarenka reached last year’s US Open final as the top seed before falling to Serena Williams.
She goes up against former French Open champion Ivanovic, who reached the quarterfinals of last year’s tournament herself before also succumbing to the eventual champion Williams.
Azarenka holds the advantage in head to head matchups, 4-2, including a three-set victory over Ivanovic in their most recent meeting in the Southern California Open semifinal last month. The higher seeded Azarenka is a -800 favorite to progress, with Ivanovic a +550 underdog.
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