Gaming news Feb 25, 2025

Strategies used to Bet on Baseball

Baseball offers a long season packed with games and a diverse range of possible bets. We explain some of the strategies used to bet on baseball.

baseball player about to hit the baseball in a stadium

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While its claim to being ‘America’s pastime’ has waned, baseball remains one of the country’s most popular sports. Its long season and packed schedule of games means it’s equally as prevalent in sportsbooks around the world.

We explore betting on baseball, including the types of bets that are available and how the betting process works.

Different types of baseball bets

1. Moneyline betting on baseball

Choosing who will win the game, better known as a moneyline bet, is the most common type of baseball bet. Each game has an underdog, represented by plus odds, and a favorite, shown with minus odds. This means that if the New York Yankees are the favorite at -135 playing against the Florida Marlins who are the underdog at +114, the results from a $100 bet on each would be as follows:

Marlins win returns $214 ($114 profit)
Yankees win returns $174 ($74 profit)

There is a huge amount of public data available with respect to American baseball, which can be useful for deciding where to place a moneyline bet. Everything from whether the starting pitcher is injured to whether the team uses platooning can have an impact on the result, highlighting the importance of research.

baseball player jumping to catch the ball

2. Runline betting

This is baseball’s version of a point spread; a type of bet used by sportsbooks that only pays out if the favorite wins by a certain number of points. As baseball is much lower scoring than basketball and football, the runline is usually just a 1.5-run handicap but can be as high as 2.5 for some matchups.

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3. Reverse runline betting

A new variation of the traditional runline that flips around the odds, meaning the favorite receives a 1.5+ spread and the underdog a -1.5 spread. If bettors spot an underdog, they think they could beat the odds and win by 2+ runs, this a bet they’ll place.

4. First-inning result

Placing a bet on either who will win the first inning or whether either team scores a run. The latter is usually referred to as YRFIs / NRFIs – ‘Yes/No Run First Innings’.

5. Over/under betting

Betting not on the outcome of the game, but whether the final score will be higher or lower than the sportsbook’s chosen line.

Factors to consider before placing this bet include platoon advantages, pitcher matchups, and weather conditions. For example, smaller ballparks often produce more runs, as do those at higher altitudes, like Coors Field in Denver.

6. Betting on the first five innings

Bettors sometimes prefer this option because bullpens usually have a reduced impact on the first five innings. The markets are often the same as a full game.

7. Parlay betting on baseball

A packed season schedule that frequently may have 15 games played on the same day, means baseball is well positioned for parlay betting. Most parlays are either multi-game or same game.

Multi-game parlays: Combining bets across several games into one bet.
Same-game parlays: Where all the individual components are taken from the same game.

8. Baseball prop bets

Those looking at strategies to bet on baseball also find prop betting popular. Bettors can place money on a huge range of side bets, including batter production, pitcher production and aspects of the overall game. For example, whether a player hits a home run or how many walks a pitcher gives up.

Betting on baseball: a long season with a packed schedule of games and a diverse range of betting options

Baseball offers several ways to bet where the results are decided either in one or more innings or based upon the entire game. There’s also a range of prop bets, ideal for building into a parlay or to place on the side.

Skrill is accepted by the world’s leading licensed sportsbooks, resulting in a rapid and secure betting account deposit option.

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This article contains information about gambling and betting; however this article and content does not constitute “advice”, nor does it constitute any “recommendation” on whether or how to engage in gambling or betting. The information contained in this article should not be relied on for any gambling, financial, or other transaction.

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