Angels open as underdogs

This is Major League Baseball’s betting time of the year and in the playoffs, pitching makes all the difference in the world for oddsmakers.

That’s one reason behind the Angels’ underdog role against Boston in their best-of-five series, thanks to Red Sox right-hander Josh Beckett’s edge over the Angels’ righty John Lackey.

If the series went five games, Beckett and Lackey would probably face each other twice because of off days between games, starting with today’s Game 1 at Fenway Park. That’s all oddsmakers need to see because Lackey is 1-6 with a 6.27 earned-run average in 11 career starts against Boston and is 1-4 with a 7.46 ERA at Fenway Park.

With the Angels playing without outfielder Gary Matthews Jr., the Red Sox opened being favored at -158 and moved to as high as -162 on some boards by Tuesday night. Boston also had received 67.37% (1,280-620) of the wagers for today’s game, according to Wagerline.com. If the Angels can pull off an upset behind Lackey, they would pay off at $150 to $152 on a $100 bet.

If you were looking for some off-the-field baseball action, BetUs.com had a “which manager will be first to be fired or quit line” that did not last long.

The line opened Sunday with the Chicago White Sox’s Ozzie Guillen as the odds favorite at 4-1. Although a decision on Kansas City’s Buddy Bell already seemed like a done deal, he was listed at 5-1. Bell won going away when the Royals let him go Monday.

College Football

Rice is 0-4 and a 20-point underdog for tonight’s game at Southern Mississippi but the Owls have received some under-the-radar support this week. The Golden Eagles opened as 21-point favorites but the line dropped a point with Rice picking up 32.6% of the action as of Tuesday, according to Wagerline.com. .

As reader Neal Jenkins pointed out, last weekend featured nine of the top 10 ranked teams in the nation losing against the spread, with the only program to cover being California, which defeated No. 11 Oregon, 31-24.

lonnie.white@latimes.com