Today in the Daily Sports Roundup: The PGA opens the FedExCup playoffs, the NFL continues its preseason, and the Rangers and Yankees close out their set.
Former Kentucky basketball coach Billy Gillispie has been charged with a DUI. The National Liberty Gold Course is hosting the Barclays Golf Tournament odds.
Colliding on the gridiron . . .
The official betting previews of the Rams-Bengals, Dolphins-Buccaneers, and Eagles-Jaguars are up.
The NFL launches its third week of preseason action on Thursday night with St. Louis at Cincinnati (-2.5), Miami at Tampa Bay (-2.5), and Jacksonville at Philadelphia (-7.5). The Jaguars and Eagles are both winless so far in the preseason, but Philly has been given the oddsmakers’ edge as they debut Michael Vick. Starting Eagles QB Donovan McNabb is expected to play into the second half, but Vick should see some snaps and possibly be put in the Wildcat.
The nation’s top football handicapper picks continue to be hotter than Kathleen Neill stripping for Zach Hyman or NHL hottie Carrie Milbank.
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Meeting up on the diamond . . .
It’ll be Dustin Nippert (4-2, 3.95 ERA) vs. A.J. Burnett (10-7, 4.08 ERA) on Thursday afternoon as the Rangers close out their series at Yankee Stadium. Righthander Nippert will be looking to bounce back from a loss to the Rays in his last start; he allowed four earned runs over just five innings of work. Righthander Burnett was pounded by the rival Red Sox in his most recent outing, surrendering nine earned runs on nine hits over his five innings of work in their lopsided loss.
Also on the abbreviated American League schedule for Thursday: Cleveland at Baltimore, Kansas City at Seattle, Oakland at the Angels, and the White Sox at Boston. Chicago will send John Danks (11-8, 3.85 ERA) to the mound in that contest; lefthander Danks beat the Orioles last time out, giving up just one earned run over 6 1-3 innings of work. The BoSox counter with Junichi Tazawa (2-2, 3.57 ERA); the righthander blanked the Yankees over six innings last week.
Over in the National League the top hurler on the hill on Thursday will be the Cardinals’ Chris Carpenter (14-3, 2.16 ERA), with his team hosting the Astros and Brian Moehler (8-9, 5.29 ERA). Righthander Carpenter picked up his sixth straight win last time out, pitching seven shutout innings (and allowing just three hits) vs. the Padres. Righthander Moehler is also coming off a victory, as he held the Diamondbacks to two earned runs on six hits over 5 2-3 innings on Saturday.
Rounding out Thursday’s NL slate: the Mets at Florida, Cincinnati at Milwaukee, Washington at the Cubs, the Dodgers at Colorado, San Diego at Atlanta, Arizona at San Francisco, and Philadelphia at Pittsburgh. J.A. Happ (10-2, 2.59 ERA) will get the ball for the Phillies in that matchup, with the Pirates sending Charlie Morton (3-6, 5.21 ERA) to the hill. Lefthander Happ has given up two or fewer earned runs in each of his last five starts, with Philadelphia 4-1 in those contests.
Tipping off on the hardwood . . .
The WNBA returns from its one-day break with four games on Thursday night: Atlanta at Detroit, Connecticut at Seattle, Phoenix at Los Angeles, and San Antonio at Indiana. The Silver Stars fell to 11-16 straight-up (and 11-16 against-the-spread) last time out with a 99-84 loss to Detroit. The Fever are also coming off a loss – they were beaten 74-60 by Seattle on Saturday. Indiana, though, still leads the Eastern Conference at 19-7 SU, and they’re at 16-10 ATS on the year.
Rounding out the Roundup . . .
Finally, the PGA Tour begins its FedExCup playoffs on Thursday morning in The Barclays at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City. Tiger Woods is the big 9/5 Vegas favorite to grab the trophy this week, with Padraig Harrington and Phil Mickelson next on that list at 15/1 odds. Sergio Garcia, Steve Stricker, and Ernie Els are then pegged at 25/1 odds to win The Barclays, with Vijay Singh, Stewart Cink, Retief Goosen, and Hunter Mahan at 30/1. Singh is the defending champ.