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MLB – Baseball Betting Odds Online
There’s no question that baseball is America’s favorite pastime and it follows that online baseball betting is America’s favorite sportsbook activity. When it comes to betting baseball online, there’s a ton of action to choose from every day. Naturally, you need some forehand understanding of the baseball betting world in order to navigate these waters. Below you’ll find a comprehensive guide covering the ins and outs of online baseball betting. Online MLB Betting BreakdownThe seasonThe MLB betting season begins in spring sometime in March and will continue until the fall, concluding in late September or early October. Afterwards the postseason will begin, leading up to the World Series. The World Series is the final series of the season and will determine who the best team in the world is. Afterwards the offseason will commence and the whole thing will start all over again in a couple of months. World SeriesThe World Series is the annual championship series for the MLB. This showdown has been going on since 1903 so there’s quite a bit of history to the sport. In of itself, the series is a best-of-seven playoffs to determine who gets to hoist the Commissioner’s Trophy. Colloquially referred to as the Fall Classic, even those who aren’t MLB fans tend to keep up with the World Series. It’s a great event for friends to get together and a terrific reason to make some online baseball betting predictions. Types of MLB Betting LinesGenerally speaking, the most common MLB betting lines consist of betting on the money line, betting against the spread, and betting on the over/under. We’ll be taking a look at these one-by-one below but first it’s important to familiarize yourself with the betting lines and MLB odds. The line begins on the left with the name of the team followed by the spread line, the totals line and the money line. Both the spread and the totals have two numbers, the number the represents the line and the odds that represent the payout. The last line, the money line, only features the odds.
Money LineWhen you bet on the money line, you are simply betting on one team to beat another. Using the example above, we can see that the Pirates are pegged as a betting underdog against the Cubs. We can tell this because the Pirates have a (+) in front of their odds while the Cubs have a (-). Generally the odds on the money line start at -110 and will continue to rise if a team is heavily favored. Above we can see Chicago is pegged as a -158 favorite, which means they’re pretty likely to win this game. Normally a -110 betting line requires a $110 initial wager in order to be able to win $100. But sticking with the example above, you need to wager $158 in order to be able to win $100. In short, a $158 winning bet on Chicago would net you $258 in total (the original $158 wager plus the $100 in winnings). Because the Pirates are the underdog and are likely to lose, taking them straight up is more appealing. Since they’re facing + odds, you only need to wager $100 in order to be able to win $148. Sportsbooks have to make taking the underdog appealing in order to balance these matchups up. To sum it up, a $100 winning bet on the Pirates would net you $248 (the original $100 wager plus the $148 in winnings). ATSBetting against the spread is a little more complicated than betting straight up but it’s still fairly straightforward. Instead of betting on one team to beat another, here you are betting on a team to cover the spread. So how does a team cover the spread? The spread refers to a point total that a team must cover. Using the above listed odds, we can see that the runline is set at 1 ½ points. So in order for the favorite to cover the spread, Chicago in this case, the Cubs must beat the Pirates by more than 1 ½ points. On the other hand, if the Pirates can avoid losing by less than 1 ½ points, they will have covered the spread. Below are some listed examples so you can see how this runline would play out. Cubs win 10-8 || Here Chicago won by 2-points so they did cover the 1 ½ point spread while the Pirates did not. Cubs win 10-9 || Here Chicago won by 1-point so they did not cover the 1 ½ point spread while the Pirates did. Pittsburgh wins 5-4 || Here Pittsburgh avoided losing altogether so they did cover the spread. TOTALsUnlike betting run line or money line, here you aren’t really picking one team over another. Instead, you are simply betting on the total sum of points that will be scored in a game. Obviously this is calculated by taking the points one team scored and adding it to the points the other team scored. Sticking with the betting line we’ve covered, we can see that the over/under is set at 9 ½ points. So if you think more than 9 ½ points will be scored in this matchup, you would take the over. If you think there will be less than that figure, you would take the under. The over is always the top line and the under is always the bottom line. The vig is the same in the example above but sometimes they can vary. MLB Parlays, Props & Futures BettingParlays and props betting lines represent other MLB betting lines that aren’t as common. Here you can make predictions in advance or even up the stakes by making multiples bets in one. Below we’ll be taking a look at these options as well as what they offer. ParlaysBetting Parlays are very popular because they take a relatively low-risk wager and turn it into a massive payout. Parlays work by allowing you to combine multiple bets into one. Naturally, you need all of your bets to come true in order for your parlay to be successful. Since this is quite difficult to accomplish, bookies really sweeten the pot with these types of predictions. The payout is affected by how unlikely a bet is to come to fruition as well as how many different bets you’re making at once. Props BettingProps betting lines have been growing in popularity in recent years. With props betting, you are betting on some vastly different things. These types of lines can offer action on who will have a lead at halftime, what kind of game a player will have and everything in between. There are a ton of different options so you really have to check these out yourself to be up to speed. Live BettingLive betting allows you bet on a game as it unfolds, making both the game and your bets that much more thrilling. This is somewhat new to the scene but it offers the biggest thrills of all. Additionally, there are a ton of opportunities to find some winnings as you watch the game develop. MLB Futures BettingFutures betting is a great option with tremendous odds. If you feel confident about who will be winning the World Series, this is without a doubt the best way to go about betting on baseball. Here you can make lofty predictions way in advance and capitalize on some pretty eye-catching odds. Below we’ll be taking a look at the World Series futures betting odds as they currently stand.
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