The first week of April brings the rare crossover between four major sports, as the MLB, NHL, NBA, and NCAA hoops all collide. But before we look ahead at the week that will be, here at Bankroll Sports, we’re analyzing the week that was and giving all sorts of heck to those that have drawn our ire as sports betting fanatics.

Rap Sheet Picture of the Week
Philadelphia Eagles HC Andy Reid, who looks angrier than ever about the fact that his franchise quarterback, Donovan McNabb was traded for peanuts in his own division.

There’s no better place to start than in the NBA this week, and boy, would we love to give a piece of our mind to the New Orleans Hornets. You get G Chris Paul, your pride and joy, back in the lineup after he missed what felt like an eternity to this franchise, and you promptly come out and beat the Lakers on your home court. Great, right? After all, it’s not often that you can give up 31 points to G Kobe Bryant and 26 points and 22 rebounds to F Pau Gasol and live to tell about it. However… What gives after that, Hornets? As 9.5 point favorites, the Wizards came into New Orleans Arena and spanked the Hornets 96-91. That was followed up by a nine point loss in Memphis, which we deem to be excusable. But losing to the Nets? By four touchdowns? The 115-87 win for Jersey was clearly its biggest ‘W’ of the season, and it came at the expense of a team that just looks like it has given up. Don’t worry, the laughs aren’t over quite yet if you missed this embarrassing one in Jersey. Minnesota is still on the schedule!

This may not have a heck of a lot to do with gambling at this point, but is there any doubt that the Philadelphia Eagles are getting smacked by the Washington Redskins twice this season? Apparently, making it to five NFC Championship Games and a Super Bowl wasn’t enough for QB Donovan McNabb, so the Iggles shipped him out of town. Ok, no problem, right? After all, guys get traded at the end of their careers all the time. But to send him to Washington??? You’re just asking to get whooped up on, Philly. And this blogger, who notoriously hates the Redskins, is going to love watching McNabb come back into the City of Brotherly Love and beat the snot out of your team this season.

The bullpen for the New York Yankees is already off to a flying start this year. You’d figure in and amongst all of the money that this team spends that they’d learn that eventually, a bullpen is going to help you out, right? But no, apparently having leads of 5-1 and 7-5 aren’t good enough. It’s not bad enough that David Robertson allowed his only inherited runner to cross home plate, but then Chan Ho Park proved once again why the Yanks have no clue how to spend their bucks by giving up three runs (two earned) in a three-run seventh. Don’t worry Joba Chamberlain, we’re not forgetting the three hits and a run you gave up in your 1.1 innings worked either. The final stat line for the New York pen? 2.2 IPs, 4 runs (3 earned), 6 hits, 2 walks, 1 K, 1 HR allowed. That’s a WHIP of 3.00 and an ERA of 13.50. Stellar job, boys. Stellar.

Sportsbook.com is an excellent sportsbook for betting MLB futures! Today, we’re taking at look at some of the juiciest season win totals that you can dig into for the 2010 season!

New York Yankees Over 95.5 Wins: Let’s just analyze the Yankees in a really quick nutshell, because no one wants to admit outside of the Bronx that they’re betting on the Yankees to do well. But this was a team that won 103 games last season and is just better this year than it was a year ago. Yes, both DHs Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui have moved on, but new DH Nick Johnson can really tear the cover off the baseball, and replacement OF Curtis Granderson could go 30/30 by taking potshots at those short porches in left and right field at New Yankee Stadium. Add RHP Javier Vazquez into the mix, and the recipe is just far too ripe to pass on the boys in pinstripes.

Kansas City Royals Over 72 Wins: Now here’s a team that we like and like quite a bit. Before we even look at anything that the Royals did in the offseason, just take a look at the rest of the division. The Twins certainly are not a better team than they were a year ago, as SS Orlando Cabrera and closer Joe Nathan are both gone. Detroit lost both SP Edwin Jackson and OF Curtis Granderson and only got back SP Max Scherzer of any note in return. Chicago is still a time bomb waiting to happen. Just from that standpoint alone, Kansas City should find a few more wins in divisional play. That being said, this is clearly a better team than the one that won 65 games last year. C Jason Kendall will bring some stability to a pitching staff that really hasn’t had a competent defensive catcher ever, and OFs Scott Podsednik and Rick Ankiel should be notable upgrades on what was playing in the outfield last year for this team. We tend to think that KC can compete, though we’d just be happy to see it reach 73 ‘W’s.

Pittsburgh Pirates Under 69.5 Wins: Newsflash: The Pirates aren’t very good. They’re not going to get any better this year either. The Bucs are almost certainly the worst team in baseball. Their pitching staff isn’t anything to write home about, and their lineup is basically 2B Akinori Iwamura and a ton of guys that are barely old enough to drink a beer, let alone rent a car. Everyone in Steeltown knows that another 100-loss season could very well be on the horizon, and there’s nothing stopping us from saying that they won’t touch a 70-win barrier that they haven’t reached since 2004.

Houston Astros Under 73.5 Wins: This is almost a bit of a prospective futures bet than anything else. What we’re hoping for out of the ‘Stros this year is that 1B Lance Berkman and OF Carlos Lee both get traded. If that’s the case, this is a team that will almost certainly rival Pittsburgh for the gutter in the NL Central. Let’s also realize that Milwaukee and Cincinnati are both going to be competing with the Cubs and Cardinals for divisional supremacy, so it is very possible to see two teams finish with at least 100 losses in the same division, particularly in one with six teams. Houston’s pitching staff is just woeful beyond SPs Wandy Rodriguez and Roy Oswalt, and taking SS Miguel Tejada out of this lineup is only going to make things that much worse for a team that didn’t have much of an offense last season either.

Washington Nationals Over 72 Wins: Are we insane for backing the Nats after they lost 103 games last season? It’s possible that we’ve gone a tad bit crazy, but we think that the boys from DC are in for a much better year this year than they had in ’09. Adding SP Jason Marquis to the front end of the rotation will help out John Lannan quite a bit, as will the inevitably moment that SP Stephen Strasburg comes up from the minor leagues. The lineup hasn’t been the issue with this team. 1B Adam Dunn and 3B Ryan Zimmerman can mash, no doubt, and OF Nyjer Morgan is expected to produce big things at the top of the order. But the staff ranked 28th in the majors last year with a 5.02 team ERA and absolutely must get better.

In 2008, the American League East took a turn for a complete surprise as the upstart Tampa Bay Devil Rays took the division, and then later the American League title in October. The beasts of the East; Boston and New York finished in second and third place respectively, with Boston garnering the wildcard, and the Yankees snapping their 13 season playoff streak and finishing 16 games above .500 and 8 games back. The Toronto Blue Jays finished 86-76 and 11 games back, and the Baltimore Orioles won 68 games, finishing 28.5 games out of first place.

A year after winning the American League Championship Series, before falling to Philadelphia in the World Series, the Tampa Bay Rays come into the season as the underdog in the American League East once again. Tampa Bay kept relatively quiet in the off-season, while their rivals, the Yankees and the Red Sox were active picking up additional talent.

Despite all the drama surrounding Manny Ramirez last season, Boston was still able to snag the wildcard, only to fall in the ALCS to the Rays. A full season with Jason Bay patrolling the outfield, along with the additions of Rocco Baldelli, Brad Penny, Takaski Saito and John Smoltz the Red Sox appear to be in a prime position to play October Baseball once again. Youngsters Clay Buchholz, Jon Lester and Justin Masterson will be turned heavily to with oft-injured Josh Beckett and Brad Penny in the middle of the rotation. Offensively, Boston will look to get a repeat season from AL MVP Dustin Pedroia. Pedroia hit .326 with 17 homeruns and 83 rbi’s for Boston. Jacoby Ellsbury brings lightning quick speed to the outfield, but will need to find more ways to get on base to please the Boston organization in 2009. As Boston continues to prime for the 2009 season in Key West Florida, the pundits are still debating if the decision to avoid surgery on David Ortiz’s wrist was a good decision. Ortiz had some of the lowest numbers in his career, a cause for concern for the Red Sox nation. It should be an excellent spring training battle at shortstop between Julio Lugo and Jed Lowrie

The Yankees had the huge off-season, picking up free agents pitchers C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett. On the offensive side, Mark Teixeria was signed to a massive contract to shore up the first base position for the Yankees. The Yankees on paper, appear to have the firepower to win this division, but with the off season issue regarding Alex Rodriguez and steroids, the team will need to find a way to rally and concentrate on baseball. Catcher Jorge Posada looks to be regaining health after missing the ladder part of the 2008 season after having right shoulder surgery. Hideki Matsui is also coming off a season ending injury after having left knee surgery at the end of the 2008 season. The question around the Yankees spring training facility in Tampa Florida is whether Joba Chamberlain is best served as a starter or an 8^th inning man? Mariano Rivera will once again take the duties as the closer for the Yankees.  Starting pitching will once again be the question mark for Joe Giradi’s squad, as Phil Hughes, Humberto Sanchez and Jason Johnson all look to be fighting for the fifth position in the rotation. 

The defending champion Tampa Bay Rays added Pat Burrell from Philadelphia to help bring some power to the lineup from the outfield position. The outfield is awfully crowded for the Rays who have B.J. Upton, Carl Crawford and Gabe Kapler already. Look for youngster Matt Joyce to get some at bats in the outfield for Tampa Bay as well. Evan Longoria will look to repeat his .272, 27, 85 2008 season as his stock in major league baseball continues to grow. Carl Crawford appears to be as close to 100% as he can be, after playing just over 100 games last season. The pitching staff last season turned into one of the more dynamic staffs in all of baseball, and will now add youngster David Price, the 6’6 lefthander out of Vanderbilt University. Most recently, Tampa Bay added reliever Jason Isringhausen to a minor league contract. Isringhausen may be a big help later in the season if he can regain his old pitching ways. 

The Baltimore Orioles come into Fort Lauderdale Florida with a few new faces. Baltimore picked up Ryan Freel, Ty Wiggington, Cesar Izturis and Gregg Zaun, all veterans, along with youngsters such as Rich Hill and Felix Pie. They also resigned All-Star second basemen, Brian Roberts. Baltimore had the American League’s worst ERA last year with a 5.51 era. This season Mark Hendrickson will be turned to, to eat up innings after finishing with a 5.45 era last season in Florida. Koji Uehara, a two time All Star in Japan will slide into the rotation along with Jeremy Guthrie. Youngsters Matt Wieters, Nick Markakis and Adam Jones will seemingly get plenty of at bats for a team that is expected to finish at the bottom of the division again in 2009. Felix Pie amd Ryan Freel will have a spring training battle to see who can fill the other outfield position for Baltimore, while Luke Scott appears to be the team’s designated hitter.

The Toronto Blue Jays did not put forth much of an effort in the off season to show the fans they are going to attempt to compete at the top of the American League East. Additions of Michael Barrett, Kevin Millar, Mike Maroth and Matt Clement are hardly a sign of dominance. The Blue Jays do not appear to have a great deal of starting pitching depth beyond Roy Halladay and Jesse Litsch, so guys like Scott Richmond, David Purcey and Brian Burress will be forced to step right into the show. Vernon Wells and Alex Rios are nice plays and with Halladay, the Jays will have a staff ace.  However, this team has a lot of question marks and seems to be relying on too many young bats.

The New York Yankees proved once again they are the wealthiest team in Major League Baseball. The Yankees signed superstar C.C Sabathia to a 7 year contract worth a mind boggling 161 million dollars. The huge deal equals the highest paying contract ever for a Major League pitcher. The deal is also the 4^th highest paid contract in the history of Major League Baseball. For the Yankees to spend this type of money on a pitcher, represents the desperate attempt the New York franchise has pulled to get their team back to winning World Championship for the first time since 2000.

While many teams have been slow to dish out big money contracts or deals due to the slumping economy, the Yankees have flexed the financially charged muscle. New York just moved across the Bronx, to their brand new 1.6 billion dollar place that is the New Yankee Stadium. The new stadium is the most luxurious among all Major League Baseball stadiums today. Tickets for the new ballpark are in the $2,500 range where people can watch the game from bars and clubhouses containing swimming pools, hot tubs, and anything else you can imagine. Yep, it’s safe to say the Yankees are not struggling when it comes to money despite the majority of teams who have cut back on franchise spending in fear of losing tons of money due to the economy.

The new contract with pitcher C.C Sabathia is simply another prime example of what New York has done for years. The Yankees have simply made an effort to buy World Championships. The New York Yankees franchise is estimated at an incredible 950 million dollars. The value equals twice the amount of 27 out of 29 franchises in Major League Baseball and nearly 300 million ahead of the 2^nd most wealthy team in the MLB the Boston Red Sox. Considering that there is no salary cap in baseball, the Yankees have the opportunity to spend basically whatever they choose. New York has the ability to sign and spend money that no other team in baseball can even compare. The Yankees however have still not been able to produce a World Championship in 8 years. The Steinbrenner’s, who own the franchise, are willing to fork out money that seems unfair to ensure the Yankees have success no matter the cost.

The Yankees have been quoted as being “the best team money can buy.” The Sabathia deal is just another event that displays the financial monopoly that is the New York Yankees. Despite the argument that C.C Sabathia most likely is not worth the amount of the lucrative contract, the Yanks have enough money to sign these types of deals with no worries. New York over the past 8 years since their last World Championship has amassed a level of talent that is similar to that of an all-star team. Any team that has the money to accumulate the best two players in their sport has too much power. The Yankees have just that in superstars Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez.

Simply look at the New York roster and you can see the level of financial superiority. The Yankees have a roster of all-star and future Hall of Fame players. You do not even have to be familiar with baseball to know the names Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera, Hideki Matsui, and now C.C Sabathia. If it were possible, New York would simply buy World Championship rings every year and claim the Championship rather than winning it with the unlimited amount of revenue that flows through the program. However, New York has to settle for buying a team that others could only dream of buying. Still the World Championships have yet to come. If New York fails to capture a Championship in the next few years, can you imagine how much more desperate and lucrative financial movements that will be made to ensure success. New York definitely benefits from a professional league without a salary cap. I mean can you really blame the Yankees for spending more money than any other team since they have that option. Surely the sporting world must admire the Yankee’s determination and ‘whatever it takes’ attitude to win despite how much you love or hate them.