Betting On Baseball

The first pitch in Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2013 season has been thrown and that's great news for fans and bettors alike. With professional hockey, basketball, and football, more or less on hiatus when the summer rolls around in North America, it's up to baseball and Major League Soccer (MLS) to keep bettors and fans entertained. With each of the 30 MLB teams playing 162 games per season there's definitely plenty of action on a daily basis, including the annual All Star Classic.

Betting on baseball is quite popular with serious bettors as it's viewed by many as being the easiest sport to make a profit on. But oddly enough, the casual fan doesn't wager on baseball games with the regularity they do with other major professional sports. One of the reasons for less betting activity on baseball could be the fact that some fans aren't exactly sure how to go about it, so let's deal with that situation right off the bat.

In baseball you'll find that there's no point spread in use like there is in many other sports and this could be a little confusing to some people. The first thing bettors need to do is get a grasp on how the sport's money line operates. Some baseball bettors like to bet on the underdog quite often as they can still come out with a decent profit even when winning less than 50 per cent of their wagers.

When betting on the sport you'll also come across the run line, which is basically the money line and point spread combined into one. There's a constant 1.5 spread of runs in baseball betting and on the odd occasion you may see this increase to 2 or 2.5 runs. The ball team which is favoured in the money line will be favoured on the run line as well.

For example, on a regular money line, which means you're just going to pick the winning team, the odds could be +170 on the Toronto Blue Jays and -165 for the New York Yankees. This means Blue Jays' bettors can win $170 on a $100 bet while Yankees' bettors will need to lay down a $165 wager to win $165. However, if a bet is made with a run line the odds will change. For instance if the underdog Blue Jays are bet on at +1.5 in the run line the odds could read -125 and if the favoured Yankees run line is -1.5 then the odds could be +105.

This now means Blue Jays' bettors will have to wager more than they can win as it'll take a $125 bet to win $100. However, these bettors are being given 1.5 runs in the run line. This means those who laid a wager on the Blue Jays will win their bet even if Toronto loses the game by one run. A lot of bettors like to go with big favourites in the run line since they can get reduced odds when giving 1.5 runs. Betting on the run line basically makes the favourite the underdog.

You can also bet over/under when betting on baseball, which means to bet on the total number of runs predicted for the game. They're typically called totals in baseball wagering. The totals are the same as in other sports. While in ice hockey and soccer they're presented as goals, and in American football, basketball, and rugby they're points, in baseball they're represented as runs. All you have to do to wager on an over/under is to predict if there will be more or fewer runs scored than what the oddsmakers have selected.

For example, the betting line may read like this: Toronto Blue Jays OV 7.5 -120 and the New York Yankees UN 7.5 +130. If you want to bet on Toronto with more than 7.5 runs being scored you'll need to wager $120 to win $100. To bet on New York with fewer than 7.5 runs coming across the plate you can win $730 on a $100 bet. Just remember, that in baseball, when you're betting the extra innings count for run line bets and the over/under.

The pitchers are the key in most baseball games and the money line is decided based on who's going to be pitching for each team. Sometimes the money line is adjusted if a scheduled starting pitcher is substituted. However, you can wager on the contest as 'action' which means you want to make the bet no matter if there's a pitching change. The wager will still be active, but the payout could be different as the odds may have changed because of a pitching change.

If you bet on a baseball game based on the starting pitchers who have been listed by the sportsbook then the bet will be returned if either of the pitchers doesn't start. In addition, a bet can be made based on just one team's pitcher. If you bet on a specific starter for one team and don't care who the other pitcher is then the bet is active as long as the team you wagered on starts the scheduled pitcher.

You can also wager on correct scores, at-bats, hits, balls, strikes, home run leaders, and innings played etc. Of course, bets can be made on division winners and World Series champions. There are a lot of options when it comes to baseball betting and it's typically quite easy to get the hang of it.