How To Bet On Baseball

Baseball is one of the most fun sports to watch and bet on. However, it’s always more fun when you know how to bet on baseball so that you win more than you lose.

1. How To Bet On Baseball
2. How To Bet On Hockey

Like you, I’m a big fan of MLB, and I’m also a super experienced sports bettor who’s always looking for profitable opportunities in the baseball betting market. I’ve put together this guide on betting on baseball to help you turn the kind of profits I make regularly. Why? Because I hate bookmakers!

This article will introduce you to some of the best baseball betting sites in terms of odds, bonuses, and usability. I’ll also walk you through some of the best baseball betting strategies that I use.

Ready to make some money? Let’s go!

Betting on MLB Baseball Games. MLB Baseball offers a ton of betting opportunities. Betting on MLB Baseball Games offers gamblers more opportunities to make a wager than any other sport. With over 2,430 games played across six months, there’s always another bet to be laid on the MLB.

Best Baseball Betting Sites

1. Sports Betting 101 and Betting Tips: Direct from the WagerTalk TV Studios in Las Vegas host Kelly Stewart talks with sports betting expert Marco D’Angelo and lo.
2. Betting on the baseball runline. The less-popular cousin of the moneyline bet in baseball is the runline wager. The betting favorite will be assigned a -1.5 run handicap, but oddsmakers will offer an appropriate amount of “juice” to make laying the 1.5 runs with the favorite more appealing.

Bovada is the standout choice when it comes to live MLB gambling. It updates its odds as soon as there is a potentially game-changing incident, its odds are very competitive, and it offers a huge amount of MLB betting lines for each game. Plus, Bovada keeps you informed with each game via up-to-the-minute statistics. These will help you place better bets.

Right now, it is offering a 50% welcome bonus to new players worth up to $250.

MyBookie is known for posting their lines super fast, and they’re also one of the best in the business when it comes to competitive odds. MyBookie ran some ace promotions throughout the MLB season, too. And if you’re betting on the move, the MyBookie mobile version is top-notch.

At the moment, there’s a 100% welcome bonus on the table for new players worth as much as $300.

If you’re new to betting on baseball, BetAmerica has a helpful section on their website where their experts give out free news and analysis. This helps you to make better, more informed betting decisions.

As well as that, BetAmerica is known for offering regular free bets to customers that can be used on the MLB, and their odds are good.

There’s a 100% matched deposit welcome bonus available to new players worth as much as $100.

How To Bet On Baseball

Helpful Stats & Facts For Betting On Baseball

To improve your odds of winning on sports betting, it’s always helpful to fatten your overall knowledge up with some stats and facts. Baseball, in particular, is a numbers game. The more you know about the metrics, the more you’ll win.

Here are some of my favorite stats and facts for betting on baseball:

• The more times a player hits the ball into the air, the more home runs he’s gonna hit.
• In general, look out for teams that strike the ball into the air often. They are usually more offensively productive.
• The best batters to back are those with a low ground ball to fly ball ratio.
• A GB/FB ratio of under 1.00 is impressive – lookout for it as these batters will have good power numbers.
• Batters that prefer to hit ground balls will perform better against fly ball pitchers.
• Around 29% of MLB games since 2004 have been decided by just one run.

The Most Popular Types of Baseball Bets

One of the most exciting things about betting on baseball is that there are lots of different types of bets you can place. I’m not going to cover every single bet, but here are the most popular ones:

Money Line Bet

The money line bet is the least complex of all bets. There are no point spreads involved, and all you have to do is decide who you think will win the match outright – the favorite or the underdog. This means you can ignore the Major League Baseball spread altogether.

The money line for a favorite to win the game typically looks like this:

The money line for an underdog to win the game looks like this:

• +200

You’ll need rudimentary math skills to find the value bets, but it’s not that difficult. Essentially, if you place a $100 wager on an underdog that’s priced at -200, you will win $200.

Over/Under Bets

The over/under bet is popular in all the big sports. When it comes to baseball, it refers to the total runs scored in any one game.

For example, before a game begins, the sportsbook will set a total number of combined runs between both teams. This could be 6,7,8,9 or even more. It’s then up to you to decide if the final total will be higher or lower (over or under). It’s a fun bet that requires a bit of research on your part if you want to make a success of it.

First 5 Bet

The first 5 bet is another really simple baseball bet that’s easy to get the hang of. Essentially, you’re just betting on who you think will be leading after the first 5 innings of a match. To help you place a more informed first 5 bet, make sure to see who the starting pitchers are.

One of the reasons the first 5 bet is so attractive is that you’re not stressing out about late-inning pitch hitters or who’s in the bullpen. Instead, you just need to take a look at the starting pitchers, and make your decision from there.

Betting The Line

When you bet on the run line for a match, you’re essentially handing the other team 1.5 runs. Why would you make this bet? Basically, you’re confident enough that team A is going to win by numerous runs at a canter. So, you hand the other team 1.5 runs and make yourself a bigger profit.

Whilst the profits can be big, it’s important to refer back to the statistic I shared earlier that shows nearly 30% of MLB games since 2004 have been decided by just one run. It’s certainly something to bear in mind when considering the MLB betting line.

Futures

A futures bet is when you place a wager on something that will happen sometime in the future. For example, you might place a wager on the Yankees to win the World Series in 2021.

Whilst futures are popular bets, and they also mean that your money is going to be tied up for a large amount of time. On the plus side, if it looks as though your futures bet is coming in, the sportsbook sometimes offers to pay out early (albeit at a smaller profit than if you held on until the end).

MLB Betting Strategy

Now that you understand a bit more about the types of baseball bets you can place let’s take a closer look at two excellent MLB betting strategies that I’ve personally used. Please note that, while these strategies have yielded solid profits for me and many other sports bettors, past results do not dictate what will happen next.

The First Five Innings Line

I covered the First 5 bet just a little earlier in this article. It’s a type of bet – but it’s also a strategy that can prove very fruitful if you get it right.

How To Bet On Hockey

Essentially, with this MLB betting strategy, you’re betting on a team to be leading after the first five innings. That’s it. But why would you do this? And how’s it possible to make it consistently profitable?

I can respond to both questions with the same amount: Take a look at the starting pitchers. If you can see that Team A is starting with stronger pitchers than Team B, it makes sense to lump your money on Team A to be leading after the first five innings.

Also, take a look at form and statistics. How often does a team lead after the first 5 innings? What you want to look for are teams that start strongly. These are teams to back using these strategies.

Bet On The Homecoming Team

MLB is a long, long season, and teams play a huge amount of games. But what’s also worth noting is that teams play a LOT of games on the road. Sometimes, they’re away from home for a very long time. This can have an adverse effect on a team. By the end of their away stretch, they’re desperate to get home to see their families again.

For us bettors, they’re also desperate to play in front of their home crowd again, knowing that after the game, they can return to their wife and kids.

See, the records back us up on this. Traditionally, when a team returns after a long road trip, they kill it at home. Don’t get me wrong; they don’t always win. But backing the home team after a lengthy road trip is a solid strategy that can pay off. With that in mind, you should still study the form closely and check for variables, such as injuries and suspensions. But generally, this is a good MLB betting strategy.

Top Tips For Betting On Baseball

Having a strategy in place is one thing. But let’s supplement that strategy with some helpful tips and tricks for betting on baseball.

Starting Pitching Matters

I’ve mentioned starting pitchers a few times in this article – and for a good reason. Starting pitching matters. A lot. Starters might not throw as many innings as they did in the previous decades, but they still throw more innings than the bullpen.

Don’t Force It

The beauty of the MBL for sports bettors is that each team plays 162 games per year. That’s insane. It also means that you shouldn’t place a bet simply for the sake of placing a bet. If there’s no value to be had, don’t sweat it. Wait until the next game.

Evaluate Home and Away Teams

Yes, it’s a truism that home teams – in general – outperform away teams. But if you’re going to find any value, what matters more is that you know what the difference is by looking at the relevant splits. Take the time to crunch the data. Check the form, the stats, and find trends.

Focus On Defense

Offense sure is exciting. But defense is super valuable in an MLB game, and good MLB gamblers know this. In fact, I’d say that it’s usually defense that wins or loses a game.

When looking at the defense, consider the range of the players. Also, consider how each defensive player performs on the balls he reaches.

Take a look at catchers, too – how much confidence they back the pitching staff, for example, as well as how they deal with an attempt at a stolen base.

Common Online Baseball Betting Tools

To aid your betting career, it’s a good idea to use online baseball betting tools. There are a few out there – here are some of my top recommendations:

• Fangraphs – Fangraphs is a quite incredible tool that’s essentially a comprehensive database stuffed with baseball stats. You can use the tool to learn how players perform against the left and right-handed pitchers, for example! New stats and articles are constantly being added each day, too
• StatCast – Another key tool to use when you bet on baseball, StatCast gives you access to previously inaccessible stats, such as how fast a fielder runs, what routes they take, and how hard a ball is hit. All these stats (and more) are useful whenever you’re putting a bet together
• BrooksBaseball – I’ll never tire of saying how important pitching is to betting on the MLB, and BrooksBaseball is the OG of pitching. Everything you could want to know about a pitcher is here. Armed with such knowledge, you can stay one step ahead of the bookmaker
• OddsPortal – I personally don’t think a sports bettor should ever go without an odds comparison tool. That’s exactly what OddsPortal is, and you can use it to find the best prices for the bets you want to place

Final Word On Baseball Betting

Knowing how to bet on baseball will give you a crucial edge over the bookmaker. I hope you’ve enjoyed my article, but the next step to getting better at sports betting is to choose a sportsbook that’s right for you. Then, grab the welcome bonus and use tools to help you place better, more informed baseball bets.

And don’t forget to leave a comment with your success stories!

Baseball betting is often cited as one of the most popular markets for sharp bettors. With thousands of yearly fixtures creating a large sample size to apply an analytical approach, learning how to bet on baseball could be the key to successful betting. Want to learn how to bet on baseball? Read on for the ultimate baseball betting guide.

How to bet on baseball

The first step to learning how to bet on baseball is to understand how the game is played. A standard baseball game comprises of two teams with nine players on each side. The teams take it in turns to bat and field for nine innings - each consisting of three “outs” for each team - and attempt to score the most runs by circling the four bases on the field.

Baseball betting - The basics

There are three basic bet types available for baseball betting; Money Line, Run Line and Total. Money Line baseball betting simply refers to which of the two teams will win the game. Run Line betting is baseball’s equivalent to NFL’s Point Spread, while Totals betting in baseball relates to the total number of runs scored in a game.

Money Line betting

Once bettors understand how to bet on baseball, the next step is to find out how to get an edge over the bookmaker. There are two main factors to consider that could inform your Money Line baseball betting:

Defence - The starting pitcher

With so many games in a typical MLB (Major League Baseball) season, it is important to be aware of rotation and who will be the starting pitcher in any given game. Although analysing a team’s bullpen (second choice or “relief” pitchers), it is ultimately the starting pitcher that provides the biggest variables.

Pitching stats to look out for include; IP (Innings Pitched), WHIP (Walks Plus Hits per Innings Pitched), ERA (Earned Run Average) and WARP (Wins Above Replacement Player).

Offence - The hitters

In addition to assessing the effectiveness of each team’s pitchers, the same should be done for batters. Again, there are numerous statistics available but some are considered more valuable than others; PA (Plate Appearances) wOBA (weighted On-Base Average), OBP (On-Base Percentage) and ISO (Isolated Power) are just a few examples of stats bettors should use.

Run Line betting

Betting on the Run Line can offer better value, but also requires slightly more advanced baseball knowledge. At a basic level, for those who know the value of 3 points in NFL betting, 1.5 points is effectively the same thing in baseball betting - it is a 1.5 point handicap that either side must cover for a bet on them to win.

A Run Line strategy can be devised to help bettors assess whether there is value in the market or not - this is done by converting the Run Line odds into a percentage chance of winning.

The simple formula to convert odds into probability percentages is below.

Converting odds into probability:

(Risk / return) x 100 = probability percentage

However, sharp bettors will calculate probability without the bookmaker’s margin - this can be done using the hypothetical example.

The following formula can be used to calculate no margin, or 'fair' odds:

(Boston Red Sox odds - Tampa Bay Rays odds) / 2 = Boston Red Sox no margin odds

After converting the Boston Red Sox odds into 'fair odds,' we can work out the percentage chance of a -1.5 Run Line bet on them winning:

To convert the decimal odds into probability, the process is just as straight forward. Simply convert the odds into a percentage to work out the bookmaker’s margin:

1/Decimal odds = implied probability

We then calculate the implied probability of all outcomes to get the margin.

(1/1.92) + (1/1.99) = 1.022 or 102.2% = 2.2% margin

Implied probability x (100 - margin) = fair probability percentage

Totals baseball betting

Just like Totals betting in any other sport, Totals in baseball betting refers to a bet on the total number of points (runs) scored in a game being over or under a figure set by the bookmaker - each team has 27 outs to score as many runs as they can, making it ideal for strategic betting.

Similarly to Money Line betting in baseball, analysing the two teams in terms of offensive and defensive strengths can go a long way to informing your Totals betting. Additionally, there are several external factors that can lead to both high and low scoring games.

External factors

Aside from analysing team and player performance, it is important to consider the external factors that could affect your baseball betting. While baseball shares similarities with other sports in terms of home field advantage and being affected by the weather, it differs slightly because of how important luck is.

Heat thins the air and enables the ball to travel further, but the less humid it is the thicker the air becomes, making it harder for the ball to travel.

Different baseball stadiums have different dimensions and this can influence how many runs are scored. Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Chase Field are renowned for high scoring games. In contrast, San Francisco Giants’ AT&T Park and Safeco Field - where the Seattle Mariners play their home games are known to be low scoring stadiums.

The temperature, humidity and wind speed on game day also affects baseball betting. Heat thins the air and enables the ball to travel further, but the less humid it is the thicker the air becomes, making it harder for the ball to travel.

The wind has a more obvious impact on baseball which can work both for and against batters. If a strong wind is blowing in the opposite direction to where a batter is hitting, the ball won’t go very far. If the wind is with the batter and going in the same direction as their hit, it will help the ball go further - wind speed and direction is certainly worth analysing for Totals baseball betting.

You can build on this knowledge by learning more about developing a baseball betting strategy. Alternatively, read about how Joe Peta capitalised on discprancies in MLB odds to make money in our Trading Bases book review.

Now that you know how to bet on baseball, you can implement this expertise and take advantage of Pinnacle’s unbeatable baseball betting odds.