MLB Handicapping: Braves and Red Sox Share Same Downward Trajectory
by Robert Ferringo - 4/12/2012

The Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves are now joined by something more than their mutual hatred for everything New York. After their epic 2011 September failures the two organizations are now seemingly bound together by a shared distress and ineptitude in this young 2012 Major League Baseball season.

2012 MLB Predictions
by Robert Ferringo - 4/5/2012

Bring on the Spring. The weather is getting warmer and that means shorter skirts and longer days. Some bettors need to regroup after waging a costly winter war with the sportsbooks. But others, who were able to brave and thrive through the heart of the gambling season, are ready to turn their focus to the seven-month endurance trial that is the MLB betting season.

2012 MLB Predictions: AL Central Outlook and Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 3/27/2012

On the one hand, the AL Central looks to be the worst division in baseball, mainly because three of the eight worst team ERAs in baseball last year rest within it. On the other hand, at least the lack of quality pitching – outside of Detroit’s Justin Verlander – could make for some exciting, high-scoring games in what has become a pretty boring, low-scoring sport in the post-steroid era.

2012 MLB Predictions: NL West Outlook and Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 3/26/2012

With 14 unique division winners in the last 17 seasons, the National League West is one of the most competitive divisions in all of baseball. Last year the Arizona Diamondbacks pulled off a stunning worst-to-first finish – the third time they have done that in their 14-year existence – and the West has only seen four back-to-back division title winners over the past 20 years.

2012 MLB Predictions: NL Central Outlook and Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 3/26/2012

Defending champion St. Louis is hoping that the losses of Tony LaRussa and Albert Pujols can be overcome with ease. Chicago is hoping that a new general manager will magically be able to transform this loser organization and get the Cubs their first World Series win since the horse-and-buggy were all the rage. Pittsburgh is hoping that its cup of tea in first place last July is a sign of good things to come and Cincinnati is hoping that it can bounce back and fulfill the promise that its 2010 division title seemed to bring.

2012 MLB Predictions: AL East Outlook and Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 3/23/2012

I feel like Major League Baseball added an extra Wild Card spot in each league this season just to give someone outside of the American League East an actual chance at the postseason. Or maybe they just wanted to give some of the other teams inside the East – which has been responsible for five straight AL Wild Card teams and eight of the last nine – a shot.

2012 MLB Predictions: NL East Outlook and Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 3/23/2012

The 2012 NL East looks like it is shaping up as a contest between the old guard and the scrappy upstarts. Philadelphia and Atlanta have won the division title every year but one over the last 20 seasons. However, these aging organizations will be challenged by the young, up-and-coming rosters building in Miami and Washington, who are looking to overtake the men at the top and usher in a new reign in the East.

2012 MLB Predictions: AL West Outlook and Betting Odds
by Robert Ferringo - 3/21/2012

The poor, poor Seattle Mariners. It’s going to be a long season for the boys in the Pacific Northwest because, through no fault of their own, they now find themselves in the middle of a clash of titans. The Los Angeles Angels and Texas Rangers are both gearing up for what should be one of the most competitive and best division title races in recent AL West memory.

2012 March Madness Bracket Predictions: Midwest Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/13/2012

If you want proof of the mid-major invasion into this year’s NCAA Tournament you just have to look at the Midwest (St. Louis) Region. Teams from the six BCS conferences fill only seven of the 16 slots in this region. That is the second-fewest only to the West Region, which has just six slots filled by teams from the power conferences.

2012 March Madness Bracket Predictions: East Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/13/2012

What a difference a loss makes. Last week Syracuse was 30-1 and was the clear-cut No. 2 favorite to win the National Championship. At the same time, Ohio State was coming off a mammoth win at Michigan State to earn a piece of the Big Ten title and was positioning itself to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

2012 March Madness Bracket Predictions: South Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/12/2012

If Kentucky wants to claim another banner for the Bluegrass State it certainly is going to have to earn it. The Wildcats are the consensus No. 1 team in the country and they are the overall No. 1 seed in the entire tournament. They are the clear-cut favorite to win the National Championship at +185 and will be the sweetheart pick of the majority of brackets filled out this week.

2012 March Madness Bracket Predictions: West Region
by Robert Ferringo - 3/12/2012

Think small. The West (Phoenix) Region of the NCAA Tournament features mammoth Michigan State and its rugged frontcourt matched up against a seemingly endless roster of small, quick, guard-oriented teams. This region will be playing basketball at a frenetic pace and if you like little guards running and dunking and chucking up three-point shots then this is the region for you.

NCAA Tournament Field Projections and Predictions, Feb. 27
by Robert Ferringo - 2/27/2012

We are on the verge. We are on the verge of the month-long free-for-all that is March Madness. This month is an orgy of college basketball betting, buzzer beaters, and broken dreams. It is, in my opinion, the single-greatest event on the sports betting calendar and it is a five-week endurance trial that will test the nerve and daring of gamblers throughout the country.

College Basketball: 2012 Missouri Valley Tournament Odds and Predictions
by Robert Ferringo - 2/27/2012

The Missouri Valley Conference Tournament is the first of the recognizable conference tournaments to be played each season. It marks the beginning of March Madness and is an appetizer for the upcoming month of knockout games, buzzer beaters, stunning upsets, and thrilling college basketball betting moments and situations.

College Basketball Handicapping: Bracket Buster Trends and Betting Preview
by Robert Ferringo - 2/16/2012

As a fan, this is a chance to see the game in pure form. I mean, what says, “College Basketball Perfection” like Presbyterian vs. Jacksonville State or Western Michigan vs. North Dakota State matchup. And the dozens of manufactured storylines that go into this weekend actually may do more to denigrate and condescend to mid-major teams than they do to actually give them a forum to pimp their wares.

NCAA Tournament Field Projections and Predictions, Feb. 14
by Robert Ferringo - 2/14/2012

If you had told me a month ago that Notre Dame would be looking like a sure thing to make the NCAA Tournament and Connecticut would be fighting to keep its head above water and out of the NIT I would have laughed in your face. Ah, college basketball.

Weekend College Basketball Handicapping Preview
by Robert Ferringo - 2/3/2012

Beware of the “All Of A Sudden” Expert. Football is coming to a grand end with the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 5. Once our National Pastime has been put to rest college basketball will become the forefront of our nation’s sports betting scene.

Super Bowl Handicapping: Under-the-Radar Players
by Robert Ferringo - 2/1/2012

Manning against Brady. Rob Gronkowski and his undisclosed ankle. The Nicks-Cruz-Manningham triumvirate. Belichick. Coughlin. Super Bowl 46 will kickoff at 6:30 p.m. on Sunday in Indianapolis and New York and New England are poised to renew their ongoing regional rivalry. The Super Bowl is the grandest stage in American sports and is the time for football’s greatest players to earn their status and carve out their names in history.

NCAA Tournament Field Projections and Predictions, Jan. 27
by Robert Ferringo - 1/27/2012

This week I decided to do something a little different. In past NCAA Tournament field projections and predictions articles I was making blanket predictions about how many teams from each league would find their way into the field. But now that we are approaching February and we are two-thirds through the season I feel comfortable starting to actually project the field.

College Basketball Handicapping: Personnel Subtractions
by Robert Ferringo - 1/25/2012

Two weeks ago the Syracuse men’s basketball team was a godless killing machine. They were the No. 1 team in the country and were decimating opponents with a roster that went 10-deep and with an attack that sent wave after wave of skilled players pounding against their opponents.