MLB Odds & Betting Lines
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If you’re new to sports betting, or specifically MLB betting, our standard odds tables may be a bit overwhelming. This MLB betting guide will give you the foundational information that you need to understand basic betting terminology, interpret game odds, and use moneylines to help you make educated MLB picks each week.
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Understanding MLB Betting Lines
Understanding this is a must before placing a wager with confidence. MLB betting revolves around three main bet types:
- Moneyline: Bet on which team will win the game outright.
- Run Line (Spread): Predict the margin of victory or defeat.
- Totals (Over/Under): Wager on the combined number of runs scored in the game.
MLB Moneylines
Moneyline bets require you to choose the winner of a particular contest. Favorites are shown with a minus sign (-) and underdogs with a plus sign (+). For example:
- Houston -158: You need to bet $158 to win $100.
- Arizona +135: A $100 bet yields $135 profit if they win.
You can tell that Houston is the favored team in this game because they have a -158 designation moneyline. Arizona is the underdog with the +135 moneyline. The specific numbers next to the plus or minus signs indicate the associated payout amount for betting on each team. In the Houston-Arizona matchup, a $100 bet on Arizona at +135 odds would result in a $135 profit if they won the game. This would give you a total payout of $235 with your original $100 wager included. By contrast, Houston's moneyline of -158 means that a bettor would win $100 for every $158 invested. Bettors must risk more money to profit when placing a wager on a favorite as compared to an underdog.
MLB Run Line Spreads
Run line bets involve predicting the margin of victory. In this type of wager, the bettor has to correctly pick which team will win or lose by a specific amount of runs. So, to cover a spread, the selected team must beat the run line that was assigned by oddsmakers for a particular contest. For example:
- Houston -1.5: Houston must win by 2+ runs for the bet to win.
- Arizona +1.5: Arizona must lose by no more than 1 run, or win outright.
Here's the spread for Houston vs. Arizona:
Aside from the spread number, bettors also need to be aware of the juice, or the vig, which is the “tax” that betters pay to a sportsbook to place their wager. Typically, you'll see this number directly below the spread in a smaller font. In this game, each team has their own juice number, meaning that the tax you pay to the sportsbook will be different depending on the team you wager on. The juice is -120 for Arizona and +100 for Houston.
The vig for the spread works the same as a moneyline when calculating a bet's potential payout. Betting on Arizona would net someone $100 for every $120 invested if they covered the spread whereas a bettor would earn $100 for every $100 invested on Houston if they covered the spread.
If there was an exact number set for run line, the two sides could “push”. A push means that no team covered the spread and you will get the money back that you placed on the wager. In some instances, oddsmakers will set an even spread, which means that they see each team as likely to win the contest as the other. This is commonly referred to as a “pick ‘em” matchup.
MLB Over/Unders
Over/Under bets focus on total runs scored. It simply means deciding if both teams will combine to score more or less than a specific run total assigned by oddsmakers for the contest. The bettor is only concerned with the combined run total regardless of the outcome. For example:
- Total: 8.5 runs
- Betting the over wins if both teams score 9+ runs.
- Betting the under wins if the total is 8 runs or fewer.
Oddsmakers have set a total of o8.5 runs for this Houston vs. Arizona game. To win on an "Over" bet, the two teams must combine to score 9 runs or more. To win on an "Under" bet, the two teams must combine to score 8 runs or less. Like spreads/run lines, Over/Unders can push.
Over/Under bets also have juice, which is also indicated underneath the over/under totals in the table. For Houston vs. Arizona, bettors will have to invest $115 for every $100 worth of profit when betting the over and bet $105 for every $100 worth of profit when betting the under.
How to Use the Action Network's MLB Odds Page
Odds vary across sportsbooks, and seasoned bettors know the value of shopping for lines. Use the Action Network’s MLB Odds page to:
- See the best odds highlighted for every bet type.
- Filter games by moneylines, spreads, or totals.
- Customize the page to only display sportsbooks available in your region.
Other MLB Betting Options
Looking for more ways to bet on MLB? Try these options:
- Parlays: Combine multiple bets for a higher potential payout.
- Futures: Bet on outcomes like the World Series winner or division champions.
- Prop Bets: Wager on individual player performances.
- Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): Compete against others by drafting a winning lineup.
MLB Parlays
A parlay is combining two or more wagers into a single betting ticket with the goal of increasing the potential payout. A bettor must win every wager on the ticket in order to win the parlay. While this makes the chances of winning more difficult, parlay bets increase your potential earnings. The more bets added to a parlay, the higher the payout potential.
Bettors can create a parlay by grouping any type of bets together, like a moneyline and an over/under total. Let's create an Astros moneyline and over 8.5 runs parlay using our sample matchup.
Here’s how the two bets payout separately with a $100 budget:
- Astros moneyline (-158) at $50
- The potential winnings are $31.65 for a total payout of $81.65 including the original $50 risked.
- Over 8.5 runs (-115) at $50
- The potential winnings are $43.48 for a total payout of $93.48 including the original $50 risked.
- A bettor has the potential to win $75.13 in payouts for a total of $175.13 including the original $100 risked across the two separate bets.
Here’s how the same bets would payout as a parlay:
- Astros moneyline (-158) AND Over 8.5 runs (-115) at $100
- The potential winnings are $205.28 for a total payout of $305.28 including the original $100 risked.
The payout potential is significantly higher for the parlay bet as compared to the two separate bets despite the total money being risked being across identical bets. Because both bets have to cover in order to win, oddsmakers will give you better payout odds as you add more wagers to your parlay.
Need help calculating your parlay payouts? Don’t forget to take advantage of The Action Network’s Betting Odds Calculator.
MLB Futures
Futures bets are exactly what they sound like: betting on an event where the outcome will be settled in the future (not within the same day or week). Futures bets exclusively deal with moneylines. Examples of futures betting for in MLB includes placing a wager on a team to win their conference or win the World Series.
Futures bets payout very well because they are incredibly difficult to get right. Typically, a futures bet is placed at the beginning of the MLB season and requires a bettor to accurately predict an outcome that is months into the future. The best odds are available earlier in the MLB season, but bettors are able to make futures bets throughout the course of the season as well. The odds are updated regularly to reflect a given team's performance throughout the course of the year, so the odds may not be as favorable later on.
Be sure to check out The Action Network’s MLB Futures page to check out the odds for the remainder 2022 season.
MLB Prop Bets
Want to bet on particular MLB players rather than just the teams? This is where prop bets come into play. Oddsmakers will also set over/under totals for player stats in a given contest. A prop bet enables bettors to wager on whether or not a player will score a certain amount of runs, throw a certain amount of strikeouts, etc.
Need help evaluating prop bet wagers? The Action Labs Prop Tool will help you organize, sort, and grade hundreds of prop bet odds throughout the MLB season. Be sure to check in daily to keep up with MLB action throughout the season.
MLB Daily Fantasy
Sports betting is not currently legal in every state. Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS) have filled the void in those places where it is not legal as a sports betting alternative.
The traditional fantasy options require users to draft a team and set a lineup each day to compete against other players. This model of daily fantasy was made popular by the likes of DraftKings and FanDuel. Newer DFS games like PrizePicks are gaining traction amongst fans, though, where bettors place wagers on player props rather than having to compete against other users.
Get a competitive edge using Action’s FantasyLabs to break down player stats and matchups to set a winning lineup each week.
MLB Betting Help
After reading this MLB betting guide, you should be able to read and understand an odds table. Being able to read an odds table, however, does not necessarily guarantee betting success.
Popular MLB Betting Tips:
- Shop for the best odds across sportsbooks to maximize payouts.
- Analyze team trends, player injuries, and weather conditions for informed decisions.
- Diversify your bets with moneylines, totals, or parlays for different risk levels.
Here are a few tools from The Action Network that can help improve your betting win rate in MLB:
MLB Public Betting Percentages
The Action Network collects a vast amount of betting data on MLB games, including the number of bets and how much money is placed on them. We condense this information into an easy-to-read interactive chart that helps you to assess what bets are most popular amongst the public and where the majority of the money is being wagered. Whether you choose to go along with how the majority has placed its bets, or you choose to break from the pack, is up to you.
The Action Network MLB Public Betting page enables you to filter between bet types as well so you can see the public sentiment across moneyline, spread, and totals.
PRO Projections
Our in-house MLB experts evaluate daily matchups based on a multitude of factors including recent team performance, player value, injuries, and more. Condensing all these factors, The Action Network grades each matchup and provides an edge percentage to let you know which bets are most likely to succeed. Subscribe to Action PRO to get unlimited access to our MLB projections.
PRO Report
If you want to make betting decisions for yourself, but don’t have the time to collect all the data, check out our MLB PRO Report. This analysis highlights five key bettings signals: big money, sharp action, expert projections, expert picks, and historical betting systems.
MLB Expert Picks
If you’re in a time crunch or just want to leave it to the experts, our MLB Picks page is the place to go. Here, you can see how experts are picking a particular contest across various bet types and odds. Check this page regularly during the season to see how you stack up against the experts.
