Patriots take show on the road

The road has not been kind to New England. At least in the preseason.

In their franchise history, the Patriots are 35-57 away from Massachusetts and they will be the visitors tonight when they look for their first victory of the 2007 exhibition season against Carolina.

Favored by many to win the Super Bowl next February in Arizona, the Patriots have lost their first two exhibition games, 27-24 to visiting Tennessee last week and 13-10 at Tampa Bay in their opener on a field goal as time expired.

The third week of the preseason is when teams give their starters the most playing time, but it is unclear whether quarterback Tom Brady will be available for New England tonight. Brady left the team earlier in the week to attend the birth of his son with former girlfriend Bridget Moynahan.

Carolina (1-1) has won its last two games against New England. The Panthers prevailed, 20-17, in the 2004 preseason and won the last regular-season encounter, 27-17, in 2005. Both of those games were played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.

Baseball

Atlanta’s John Smoltz, who became the Braves’ strikeout king in his last start, will be looking for his 205th win tonight in St. Louis.

Smoltz, who struck out 12 in eight innings in a 6-2 victory over Arizona last weekend, has 2,920 strikeouts, enabling him to surpass Phil Niekro, who finished his long career with 2,912.

Tonight’s game will be the first time Smoltz has faced the defending World Series champions this season, but the Cardinals have had success against him. Smoltz (11-6) is 10-11 lifetime against St. Louis.

Golf

Tom Kite is back to defend his title in the $1.6-million Boeing Classic, this week’s stop on the PGA Champions Tour.

The website Bodog.com is offering 12-1 odds that Kite can repeat in the 54-hole tournament at Snoqualmie Ridge in Snoqualmie, Wash. Keith Fergus, who lost to Kite on the first playoff hole in 2006, is 35-1.

Of the 39 individual players listed by Bodog, the shortest price is 6-1 on Loren Roberts, who ranks third in the Charles Schwab Cup points behind Jay Haas and Brad Bryant. Neither Haas nor Bryant is playing in the Boeing.

Mark McNulty, a five-shot winner in The Tradition in Sunriver, Ore., last week, is 25-1, which is the same price offered on David Edwards, who was second in The Tradition.

David Eger, who captured the inaugural Boeing Classic is 2005, is 50-1. Eduardo Romero and D.A. Weibring are both 10-1, Mark O’Meara is 14-1 and Craig Stadler is 33-1.

bob.mieszerski@latimes.com