The first half of the baseball season winds down this week, with teams looking to head into the annual All-Star Break on a high note – including the Washington Nationals, who sit as surprising division leaders through the first three months of the season. Sports bettors will also find wagering opportunities on the track and in the Octagon this week, while the PGA Tour plays the Greenbrier Classic and Wimbledon starts to get serious over in England . . .
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1. San Francisco Giants at Washington Nationals (Tuesday, 6:35pm ET)
Barring a collapse over the next seven days the Nationals will be holding down top spot in the NL East when next week's All-Star Game rolls around, and they can help themselves on Tuesday night by putting a beating on Giants ace Tim Lincecum. The righthander has terrible numbers this season (3-8, 5.60 ERA, 1.49 WHIP), but he did put together a solid outing against the Dodgers last time out with seven shutout innings. The Nats have Jordan Zimmermann set for Tuesday's start, and he's 4-6 with a solid 2.77 ERA on the season.
2. Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles Dodgers (Wednesday, 9:10pm ET)
The Reds and Dodgers could be the division leaders in the NL Central and the NL West, respectively, at the end of this week if things fall their way over the next two series; they'll clash at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday night with a holiday matchup to conclude their three-game set. Aaron Harang is scheduled to pitch for the Dodgers on Wednesday, and he's been a poor option for MLB bettors lately with his team 0-3 in his last three outings. Reds probable Mike Leake held the Giants to one run over nine innings in his last start.
3. New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox (Friday, 7:10pm ET)
The Yankees will definitely be the AL East leaders at the conclusion of the first half of the baseball season, but the Red Sox will get a chance to cut into that lead this weekend as the teams play four games in three days at Fenway Park starting on Friday night. New York continues to ride high on the World Series futures at Bovada, boasting the second-best record (behind just the Rangers) in the American League heading into play this week. Boston, floundering to start the season, has been on a run lately to move up the standings.
4. Coke Zero 400 @ Daytona International Speedway (Saturday, 6:30pm ET)
The Sprint Cup Series will race under the lights at Daytona International Speedway in the Coke Zero 400, with Matt Kenseth looking for his second victory at the venue this season after he took the checkered flag in the Daytona 500 in February. Kenseth has the lead in the driver standings heading into the Coke Zero 400, but he's back at 9/1 on the NASCAR futures at Bovada to win the series' title this season. Jimmie Johnson is the 3/1 favorite on that list; third in the standings, he last visited Victory Lane at Daytona back in 2006.
5. UFC 148 @ Las Vegas (Saturday, 10:00pm ET)
MMA bettors get a show in Las Vegas this week as UFC 148: Silva vs. Sonnen II hits the Octagon on Saturday night. That headline match sees Anderson Silva listed as the -285 favorite on the UFC lines at Bovada, with Sonnen pegged as the +225 underdog for the night. Other action on Saturday night's card has Forrest Griffin sitting as a -315 favorite against Tito Ortiz (+245), with Dong Hyun Kim at -145 against Demian Maia (+115).
Honorable Mentions
Tennis: 2012 Wimbledon Championships (ongoing)
Golf: The Greenbrier Classic (Thursday to Sunday)
CFL: Winnipeg at Montreal (Friday 7:00pm ET)
MLB: San Francisco Giants at Pittsburgh Pirates (Friday 7:05pm ET)
Formula 1: British Grand Prix (Sunday 8:00am ET)
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