Hey, look who’s back in the majors! It’s John Smoltz, who has missed over a year after undergoing shoulder surgery. He’s not doing the Tomahawk Chop in Atlanta anymore though but rather, he’s taking the mound for the Boston Red Sox.

Smoltz’s first start for the BoSox comes tonight when his new team heads to the nation’s capital to play the Nationals—Sportsbook.com has Boston listed as a -135 road favorite and the Total is set at 9.

In the last 11 games between Washington and Boston, the Red Sox have the big edge, going 10-1 SU. Of note for sports bettors is that the last 10 times Smoltz has pitched in Washington the result has been 8 overs and 2 unders, with a current mark of 6 overs and only 1 under in the last seven. Smoltz is a righty and in Washington’s last 20 games against right-handers, they are 7-13 SU, with 5 overs and 15 unders.

Smoltz will also be rooting for his old team as the Atlanta Braves are hosting the rivals of his new team, the New York Yankees.

The Yanks and Braves will be playing the rubber match of their current series with today’s meeting.  Most Online Sportsbooks have Atlanta listed as a -112 favorite.

The Braves have struggled at home against the Yanks going 2-5 SU in their last seven. New York will send Andy Pettitte to the mound and he has had much success against Atlanta with his teams going 8-1 SU in his last nine starts, while the Over/Under has gone 6-2-1 during the same stretch.

In Pettitte’s last five games in Atlanta his teams are 4-1 SU. The Braves will counter with Derek Lowe and in his last 17 starts against the Yanks, he’s 9-8 SU. In his last eight home starts against the Bronx Bombers, Derek Lowe’s teams have gone 5-3 SU.

The Cleveland Indians will also be finishing off a series tonight as they play the final game of their current set against the Pittsburgh Pirates—the Tribe is favored at -150 while the Pirates are listed at +130.

Cleveland is a very unprofitable 3-8 SU in its last 11 road games against Pittsburgh and will rely on Cliff Lee on the mound tonight. In his last 20 road starts, Cliff Lee’s teams have been a slightly profitable 11-9 SU. It will be Ross Ohlendorf’s turn in the Pittsburgh rotation and in his last six home starts, the Pirates are 5-1 SU and in his last nine home starts, the Over/Under has gone 3-6.

The 2009 NCAA Men’s Basketball National Championship Game is set for tip-off tonight, April 6th at 9:21 PM EST. It all began when 64 became 32, 32 became 16, 16 became eight, eight became four, four became two and by the end of tonight, two will give way to one; such is the NCAA’s March Madness tournament. Take a look at the NCAA Championship wagering odds right now!

When online wagering odds were established for the Final Four, the UConn Huskies saw themselves installed as a 3.5-point favorite against the Michigan St. Spartans but by the time opening tip-off came around, bettors had pushed UConn up to –5 at most online sportsbooks. It was a tough game for the betting public, as MSU shocked the Huskies, winning straight up 82-73…the flushing sound you heard as the final buzzer went was parlay and teaser bets all over the land going down the toilet.

In the other Final Four tilt, the North Carolina Tar Heels opened as 7.5-point faves, but by game time, at SPORTSBETTING.com, the line had settled in at –7 as bettors felt Villanova had a real shot at keeping this one close. They didn’t and the ‘Heels covered handily in an 83-69 win over the Wildcats.

Those results set the table for tonight’s big Championship game. The odds opened up with the Tar Heels listed at -7.5 but UNC money quickly moved it to –8. The Total also got pushed up quickly as “Over” money showed early. It opened at 153 and now the over/under sits at 154.

Seeing North Carolina as a solid favorite at the sports books is nothing new obviously. This team has been the favorite to win it all virtually the entire year. They started the year as the odds-on favorite to be crowned champs, and the same for the tournament future odds. And after each round they opened as the favorite to win it all.

Not only were they seeded No. 1 in the South region for the tournament, UNC has gone 5-0 SU and ATS during tourney play, racking up an Over/Under record of 1-4. The Spartans have been just as profitable during March Madness equaling UNC’s SU and ATS records at 5-0 but differing in the Total department with 3 overs and 2 unders. In the past 10 games, North Carolina is 6-4 ATS while Michigan State is 8-2 ATS.

While many opponents throughout March Madness have had little or no history between one another, the Tar Heels and the Spartans have met seven times since 1995, with North Carolina holding an edge of 5-2 against the spread. They’ve met this past season as well, although MSU fans would like to forget about that one. The Tar Heels were a 10.5-point favorite when they took to the floor in early-December. It was a not a god night for the Spartans – the Tar Heels ran them out of the building, posting a 98-63 victory—fittingly enough that game was at Ford Field, the site of today’s championship game.

The last time the two met in the latter stages of the tournament was during the Final Four in 2005, North Carolina again won, defeating Michigan State 87-71 covering as a 5-point favorite.

Fate has not been kind to Michigan St. when it is favored by 8-points or less, as it is 8-12 ATS in its last 20 games, however, it is also 6-14 on the Over/Under at the same time. More recently, the Spartans are actually profitable when listed at +8 and below going 6-2 ATS in its last eight. North Carolina is 10-9-1 ATS in its last 20 games when favored by 8-points or less and more recently it is also 6-2 ATS in its last eight when favored by the same amount. The Tar Heels are 13-7 on the over/under in the same span of time.

Heading into the game tonight the Tar Heels continue to see most of the betting action, as 76% of the volume is backing a North Carolina win and cover. One NCAA prop wager of interest at SPORTSBETTING.com is for the total number of different players to score 10 or more points in the title game with the over/under set at 6.5.

Taking a look at Michigan State’s roster, only guard Kalin Lucas and forward Raymar Morgan average over 10-points a game (14.7 and 10.4 ppg respectively) while NC’s roster has five players who average ppg in double-digits, Tyler Hansbrough (20.8 ppg), Ty Lawson (16.5 ppg), Wayne Ellington (15.8), Danny Green (13.3) and Deon Thompson (10.6).

Ty Lawson missed the first game of the tournament thanks to a toe injury but has been playing well after returning to the lineup averaging 20.75 points and 7 assists per game. Lawson has also been chipping in at the free throw line shooting 75% from the charity stripe.

Enjoy the last game of the season for college basketball.

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