4/6/2022»»Wednesday

Mlb Opening Lines

4/6/2022

Introduction


MLB SCORES AND ODDS ARCHIVES: Historical scores and odds data from past Major League Baseball seasons including runlines, opening and closing moneylines and totals. MLB 2020; MLB 2019; MLB 2018; MLB 2017; MLB 2016; MLB 2015; MLB 2014; MLB 2013; MLB 2012; MLB 2011; MLB 2010. Bet on MLB baseball at Sports Interaction, with online sports betting on MLB betting lines, MLB baseball bets, MLB baseball point spreads and MLB odds.

The page will endeavor to give the recreational baseball bettor advice on the various bets. I have no handicapping skill in baseball whatsoever, so the best I can do is steer you towards the best type of bets. There are three primary ways to bet on baseball, as follows.

  • Money line: Bet on which team will win.
  • Total: Bet on whether the total number of runs will fall above or below a stated number, usually between 7 and 12.
  • Run line: Similar to a bet against the spread in football or basketball. However, in baseball the better team is always favored by 1.5. If the money line indicates neither team is favored, then either team could be the favored team.

BetMGM released Opening Day lines on Wednesday, which you can find below. Unlike previous years, when MLB has one or two highlight games the day before Opening Day proper, all 30 teams are set to open their season on Thursday, April 1, with games beginning as early as 1:05 p.m. ET and as late as 10:10 p.m. MLB Odds, Postseason 2021 Betting 2021 Major League Baseball Best Vegas Odds Online. We offer the latest MLB Game Odds, Major League Baseball Live Odds, team totals, spreads and run lines. The latest MLB team stats, MLB Futures & Specials, News & other info on the Major League Baseball.

Source of Data


The data this analysis is based on is from the Major League Baseball games played over the 2016 and 2017 seasons. I had to remove two games because of incomplete data. The total number of games this page is based on is 4,929.

Opening

Fun Facts


The following table shows the average number of runs, hits, errors.

MLB Averages 2016-2017

ItemAwayHomeTotal1
Runs 4.47 4.64 9.10
Hits 8.71 8.64 17.34
Errors 0.58 0.58 1.16
Total 13.76 13.87 27.61

Notes

Mlb opening lineups

1. Totals may not appear to agree with sum of the parts, due to rounding.

Money Line Bets


When it comes to betting money lines in baseball, or any sports bet for that matter, what is number of basis points, or 'cents' between the lines of the two teams. For example, a 10-cent set of lines would be +120/-130 or +105/+105. Following is the theoretical house edge by number of cents in the lines, assuming the probability of each team winning is close to 50%.

  • 10 cents: 2.38%
  • 15 cents: 3.49%
  • 20 cents: 4.55%

As of this writing (Sept. 20, 2018) here are which sports book groups offer which sets of money line bets in baseball.

  • 10-cent lines: Westgate, William Hill, South Point, Stations, CG Technology, Golden Nugget, Jerry's Nugget, Boyd
  • 15-cent lines: Stratosphere, Caesars, Wynn
  • 20-cent lines: MGM/Mirage, Treasure Island

Home or Road Teams

I show money line bets on road teams perform slightly better than home teams. To be specific, I show the house edge to be 0.3% less on road teams than home teams. This is well within the margin of error, so I wouldn't put much stock in this difference.

Favorite or Underdog

Not surprisingly, I show money line bets on underdogs perform better than favorites. This seems to be true in every sport. To be specific, I show the house edge to be 0.70% less on underdogs compared to favorites.

Total Bets


The following table shows the number of times the total runs was over, under, and exactly on the over/under line. The return column shows the house edge, assuming a 20-cent line. Note that the house edge is 2.25% less on Under bets.

Over/Under Bets in MLB

OutcomeNumberProbabilityHouse
Edge
Over 2315 46.97% 5.45%
Under 2373 48.14% 3.20%
Push 241 4.89%
Total 4929 100.00%

Run Line Bets

Based on sets of 20-cent lines, I show the expected return laying 1.5 runs on the favorite is 96.90% and buying them on the underdog is 96.34%. This difference of 0.56%, favoring laying the 1.5 runs, is within the margin of error.

Internal Links


Mlb starting lineupsOpening
  • Obscure Topics in Betting Major League Baseball — These are some tables I didn't bother to update when I updated this page with new data. Use the tables in this page, based on data from 2000 to 2009, with a grain of salt.
  • Betting the NFL In-depth look at betting professional football.
  • Betting the NBA In-depth look at betting professional basketball.
  • Appendix 1 Comparative study on who has the best lines in Vegas.
  • Appendix 2 Various topics in sports betting.
  • Appendix 3 List of Las Vegas sports book families.
  • Appendix 4 Fair prices to buy and sell points in the NFL.
  • Appendix 5 Explores sports futures in greater depth.
  • Appendix 6 Lost and expired tickets.
  • Appendix 7 Companion to appendix 1, showing NFL money line pairs from several Internet sportbooks.
  • Appendix 8 Comparitive study on who has the best lines offshore.
  • Appendix 9 Companion to appendix 8, showing NFL money line pairs from offshore sportbooks.
  • NFL Teasers.
  • Total number of kickoffs in Super Bowl 43. Were there 9 or 10?
  • Vegas sports book comparison at WizardOfVegas.com. Who offers what odds on parlays and teasers, as well as rebate percentages.

Mlb Opening LinesWritten by: Michael Shackleford
  • Where to Bet:

2020 MLB Odds

The 2020 MLB season has been released with a shortened 60 game schedule beginning on July 23rd. This MLB Vegas Odds page will be updated daily with money line betting odds on each game, including baseball odds from Las Vegas sportsbooks such as Westgate Superbook, Circa Sports, William Hill, and MGM. For those outside of Las Vegas, we've also included MLB betting lines from online sportsbooks such as FanDuel, DraftKings, and BetMGM.

We also offer odds to win the 2020 World Series for each team in our MLB Futures Odds section. This section also includes each team's odds to win the American League and National League Pennants.

How to read Baseball Las Vegas Money Line Odds

Choose one team or the other for the win!

If you’re betting Major League Baseball money line wagers, you will either be cheering for the favorite or the underdog to pick up the victory, as long as the game officially goes past the midway point (through the top of the fifth inning). A game must at least become official, per the rules of MLB, before a winner is determined. And when you are betting the money line, you will either select the favorite or the underdog to win outright, and you needn’t worry about margin of victory. Simple, right?

Similar to our Run-line and 1st Five Inning Odds, every game on the board shows with pitcher information, as well the Date and Time of the Major League Baseball games of the evening.

Baseball will list Favorites and Underdogs for that day’s games. The Money Line Odds will show the favorite listed with a (-), and the underdogs will be indicated by a (+) symbol. Most betting sites online, as well as all betting apps, will do the math for you. But it’s a rather simple equation based upon $100 wager.

N.Y. Yankees -125 (Bet $100 to win $80)
Tampa Bay +110 (Bet $100 to win $110)

In the above example, N.Y. Yankees is listed as the favorite (-), while Tampa Bay is considered the underdog. If someone making a wager selected the Yankees, favored to win, they would return only $80 on a $100 wager at minus-125. Some books will also offer fractional odds, and in this particular instance the Yankees would be a 4/5 favorite. The decimal format is sometimes listed, especially popular overseas, and the Yankees would be listed at 1.80 on the big board.

Mlb Starting Lineups

Since the Yankees are the favorite, the Rays are considered the underdog and bettors receive a larger return on their initial stake. In the example above, a $100 winning wager on the Rays would return a $210 total, which includes a $110 win and your original $100 stake. The fractional odds for this example would be 11/10, with the Yankees listed at 2.100 with the decimal conversion.

Betting on MLB Games

Where can I bet on MLB games?

There are several legal sportsbook options in the United States. Visit our sportsbook directory to find online sportsbooks where you can bet on the MLB.

Who's the favorite to win the World Series?

For odds on where teams will finish in the MLB Playoffs, check out our MLB Futures page.

Who are the experts picking to win?

Our experts offer picks on all the big MLB games. Check out our MLB handicapper picks to see what our experts are saying.

Can you place parlay bets on MLB games?

Most sportsbooks will allow you to parlay your baseball bets, meaning you can bet on multiple odds and win a bigger payout if they all win. Check out our parlay calculator to see what your payout will be.

Mlb Lines Opening Day