How to Bet on Baseball

Last updated on April 13th, 2024 at 02:14 pm

Baseball is one of the most popular sports people bet on, and there are quite a few leagues that are popular across North America, all the way to Asia. Baseball betting is also widely popular with both casual fans and serious sports bettors. In addition, baseball betting is also one of the easiest sports betting markets to understand, so it is a popular option for those who are still learning the ropes. And we will help you learn how to bet on baseball, from the bets you can place, how to read MLB betting odds, and baseball betting strategies you can use to earn more.

Now that the MLB season is starting, there will be a lot of baseball fans and bettors looking to win from betting on their favorite MLB clubs, or will be busy finding the best betting odds from their favorite online sportsbooks. Before you place those bets, read through our betting guide so you can make well-informed bets and increase your chances of earning more.

Table of Contents

How to Read MLB Betting Odds

The first thing you need to do is to understand how the odds works. With baseball betting, you have the usual wagers that you can make with other sports, like the moneyline and totals.

Moneyline

The moneyline is very straightforward, and the easiest to make, since you just bet on who you think will win the game. Sportsbooks will display the odds with the away team first (or on top), then the home team below. For example:

Boston Red Sox: +120

Atlanta Braves: -130

The team with the (-) sign is the favorite to win, so the amount that you see will be the amount you have to bet to win $100. Meanwhile, the team with the (+) is the underdog, and the number after the sign is the amount you will win if you bet $100.

Totals

Understanding baseball totals is quite easy, as you bet on the total runs scored by both teams. Then you choose if they will go over, or under. Runs that are scored in extra innings will count towards the total. If, however the game ends at the total set, you will just get a refund on your bet. For example:

Red Sox/Braves

Over 8 -120

Under 8 +100

This means that for the over, you will bet $120 to win $100, while in the Under, you bet $100 to win $100. You can also place a bet on team totals, where you bet on just one team instead of both.

Run Line

The run line is basically the spread bet in baseball betting. The standard run line is 1.5, and the favorite will be -1.5. Here, the team has to win by 2 or more or else you lose your bet. Meanwhile, the underdog will need to win the game, or lose by just 1 point. For example:

Red Sox +1.5 (-140)

Braves -1.5 (+130)

Other Bets

There are also other bets you can make, like series betting, which is unique to the MLB. These are under futures bets. Parlays are, of course, popular because it is a high-risk but high-reward bet. Prop bets are also popular, as well as the First Five Innings option, or F5 betting. Here, you just choose outcomes based on the first five innings.

Baseball Betting Strategies

When it comes to baseball betting strategies, they are very similar to that of betting on other sports, with a few changes.

Manage Your Money. Any responsible bookie will tell their players to set a bankroll and manage it. Blowing away all of your money on a bet or two is not a good way to gamble, and also carries a lot of risk for players. The MLB has more than two thousand regular season games, plus postseason games. There are a lot of chances for you to win, so you have to be smart with your betting.
Check the Weather. Baseball is an outdoor sport and the dynamics of the game depends a lot on the weather. A muggy, humid day will mean less speeds for balls to travel, while a windy day can also affect the speed and direction of a ball.
Get a Good Sportsbook. Your bets are as good as a loss if you use an unreliable sportsbook that will offer bad odds, or worse, hold your money. Learn where to bet on baseball and make sure you use a sportsbook that offers good odds, a secure site, and good bonuses.

Earn More from Baseball Betting

Aside from betting on baseball, there is another option for you to earn from the sport, and that is to open a baseball betting site. As a baseball bookie, you can earn from every bet that players make in your book, so the potential to earn more will be higher than your bankroll.

There are a lot of guides online that can help you learn, and you can use the best bookie pay per head providers to make it easy for you to be a baseball bookie. As mentioned earlier, there are more than two thousand games in an MLB regular season- imagine how much you can earn from that versus betting on a few hundred games.

Become a Baseball Bookie with DiscountPayPerHead.com Here!