Looking for an easy way to keep up with the latest baseball betting odds? Or maybe you just want to know what the betting odds are for a game you’re interested in watching. Either way, this article will teach you how to read baseball betting odds and make the most of them.
Step one: Determine the Score
On the surface, it might not seem like there’s a whole lot of difference between a baseball game and a horse race. But when it comes to sports betting, there’s a lot of differences that matter. To start with, the first base coach in the MLB typically moves around a lot more than the jockey in a horse race. There’s also the matter of extras such as walks, hit by pitches, and the like. Finally, the outcome can be determined more quickly in a baseball game. In other words, there’s more opportunity for the bookmaker to make money off bets on baseball games than there is for example, for a horse race. It’s all about the probability and the speed at which the game’s results are determined.
To find out what the score is at any given moment during a game, you can either monitor the action closely on the big screen or look up the box score after the game. The former option is usually the best approach, though finding the time to focus closely on the action can be difficult when you’ve got other things on your mind. Checking the score after the game is usually the quick and easy option, though it can be slightly delayed if you’re not subscribed to the mail order of box scores.
Step two: Determine the Time / Turn Score
When placing bets on sporting events, you have to determine how much you want to wager on each particular game. For instance, if you’re going after a $10 wager on the under, you might want to risk $5 on each of the last 2½ hours of the game. This way, you’ll maximize your chances of winning while keeping the overall cost of your wagers in line with what you’re willing to risk.
As the game’s time draws closer to its end, the probability of the game ending in a particular way increases. To be precise, here are the four possible outcomes:
- Winner: Home team wins
- Runners: Home team ties / Home team loses
- Away team wins
- Ties / No Result
The closer the time is to the game’s end, the higher the probability of one of these four outcomes occurring. For instance, at the start of the 7th inning, there’s a 60% chance that the game will be over before the start of the 8th. This is because it’s very unlikely that the home team will score 4 or more runs in the 7th inning. In other words, the odds are 60% that the game will end in either a home or away win.
To determine how much you want to wager on each time frame, it’s important to consider the amount you want to risk and the amount you can afford to lose. For instance, if you’re not willing to risk more than $10 on any given game, you might want to consider betting the smaller time frames. This way, you’ll minimize your risk while profiting from the large bets placed by other bettors.
Step three: Determine the Outcome
Once you’ve determined the score and the time frame, it’s easy to figure out the outcome of the game. Knowing that the game is tied at the end of the 5th inning with the score still 0-0, there’s a 50% chance that the game will be one of those typical nail-biter finishes. In other words, there’s a 50% chance that the home team will not score a run and the other 50% that they will, resulting in a tie. The same goes for the other three scenarios mentioned above:
- Home team wins
- Runners: Home team ties / Home team loses
- Away team wins
- Ties / No Result
The key to successful wagering on sports is knowing the odds and being able to maximize your winnings while minimizing your losses. The best place to do that is online. Not only will you find the vast majority of odds available online, but you can also access information about upcoming games and get odds for those as well.