How To Legally Bet On MLB Games Online

If you want to get started betting on MLB games online, first, you must make sure you’re in a state where sports betting is legal.

In states where it is legal, simply register at a sportsbook, make a deposit, and MLB betting should be available to you.

How to Bet on Baseball Online

The sportsbook’s app or website should have a tab labeled “Baseball,” “MLB,” or something in that ballpark. Selecting that tab should give you options for games and Futures.

From there, find what you want to bet on and wager as you wish.

Top 10 Online Sportsbooks For Baseball Betting

1. FanDuel:

FanDuel is one of the most trustworthy sportsbooks on the market, and they offer a ton of options to make the MLB summer a fun one. If you’re looking for futures options, there aren’t many places that have better MLB futures offerings in the offseason than FanDuel.

Get your $1,000 No Sweat First Bet by clicking here and joining FanDuel

2. Caesars:

An excellent sportsbook with a stellar rewards program, Caesars is incredible for MLB betting. They provide a plethora of MLB team and MLB player props, along with comprehensive live betting availability for all nine innings of every game.

Up to $1,250 back on your first bet when you join Caesars here

3. WynnBET:

The WynnBET app is one of the easiest to use, and betting on MLB baseball is no exception. Along with the app’s simplicity, WynnBET has some of the best MLB odds available among US sportsbooks, making it a top choice for baseball betting.

4. BetMGM:

BetMGM has risen to the top among sportsbooks, and an official partnership with MLB has helped it become a premier brand for baseball betting. They have just about everything you could ask for in baseball betting, along with incredible MLB same-game parlays.

$1,000 Risk-Free Bet for all new BetMGM players here

5. DraftKings:

DraftKings’ Flash Bet option makes live betting on the MLB one of the quickest and most convenient ways to get a settled bet instantly. That unique feature, coupled with comprehensive MLB markets for every game, make DraftKings an excellent option.

New DraftKings players get a deposit bonus up to $1,000

6. PointsBet:

Hailing from Australia, PointsBet still has great markets for American sports, including baseball. A wide range of props and their unique PointsBetting system are among the reason that PointsBet is an excellent MLB betting option.

7. Fubo:

The Fubo app is quick, its interface is incredible, and they have awesome live streaming services. Betting on baseball and following the action as it unfolds has never been easier than the Fubo sportsbook app makes it.

8. Bet365

Although Bet365 isn’t offered in every state yet, in the states where it is, they receive rave reviews. Their MLB selection is strong, and their odds are competitive with every sportsbook.

9. SI Sportsbook

An offshoot of the Sports Illustrated Magazine, SI Sportsbook has a ton of options when it comes to betting on baseball. They also have great promos and insights throughout the season to help bettors.

10. BetRivers

BetRivers hands out promos and deals like they’re candy on Halloween. You won’t struggle to find a great offer on MLB games during the summer. They also have one of the best live betting experiences.

What are Baseball Odds?

Baseball odds are the probability of something happening, according to the sportsbook.

I like to consider -110 the baseline for odds, representing roughly a 50% chance of being correct.

If a number is lower than that, like -220, it is more likely to occur. If it is a higher number, say -105 or +115, then it’s less likely that what you're wagering on will happen, according to oddsmakers.

Those odds also represent the payout if your bet wins. A negative number such as -220 means that you would need to wager $220 to win $100, a total of $320 back. On the other end, +115 means that putting down $100 will win you $115, a total payout of $215.

Odds are constantly evolving before and even during games.

How to Bet on Baseball Online: Explained

There are a lot of different things to bet on during a baseball game, but the first thing you encounter will likely look like this:

Baseball Moneyline Betting and Odds

If you take a team on the Moneyline, that simply means that you believe they will win, regardless of the margin.

So in the example above, if you wanted to take the favorites, you would take the San Diego Padres at -145.

Baseball Spread Betting And Odds

Betting on the spread will make the margin of victory matter. Oddsmakers decide an amount that the favorites should win by, and bettors wager whether or not they will.

So above, the Padres are -1.5, taking them to cover the spread would mean that they would have to win by at least two runs for your bet to be a winner.

If you bet on the Athletics to cover at +1.5, they must either lose by a lone run or win the game for the bet to win.

If the spread were to be a whole number like -2 (which it probably won’t be for MLB games), if the Padres won by exactly two, it would be a push. Your wager will be refunded if that happens.

Baseball Over/Under and Totals Betting and Odds

Placing a bet on the total is wagering that the final score either will or won’t exceed the set amount.

In the above example, if there are 10 or more total runs in the game, the over will be the winner. Anything fewer, and the under will win.

If the total is a whole number, say 10, and there are exactly 10 runs, it’s a push.

Baseball Prop Bets Explained

Prop bets are betting alternatives that provide options for specific things.

They offer a wide variety of props for players and the game, such as:

• Which team will score first?

• How many strikeouts will the starting pitcher have

• Will a player hit a home run

• Will there be extra innings

It’s a fun and different way to bet, with the postseason usually offering more prop betting choices.

Baseball Parlay Betting And Odds

A parlay is when you take at least two standalone bets and play them as one.

Instead of taking four separate wagers at -110 each, you can instead make one wager at +1228.

At the price of one bet, you have the opportunity to win much more money. The trade-off is that every single bet must be correct, or else you’ll end up empty-handed.

During the season, sportsbooks may offer pre-made parlays for the day’s MLB slate.

Live/In-Play Baseball Bets

Even when a game is in progress, sportsbooks offer updated odds that you can bet on. So, if you missed a bet pregame or have a feeling about how the rest will play out, you can still play.

The odds are constantly changing, and some things may no longer be available, but most will be. Albeit at different odds than before the game.

Baseball NRFI Odds: Explained

NRFI stands for “No Runs First Inning” and is a wager that’s settled quickly in a ballgame.

It’s pretty self-explanatory, with the bet being whether or not either team will score in the first inning. Most sportsbooks will have it set as a yes/no option or an over/under on 0.5 runs in the first.

It doesn’t matter how the run was scored, only if there was a run or not.

Baseball F5 Bets (First Five Innings)

Many sportsbooks offer options on MLB games that treat the first five innings as their own game.

Instead of waiting for all nine innings, bettors can instead wager on the first five if they want quick results.

They’ll have options available for moneyline, spread, alternate spreads, totals, and more, all based on the action through the first five innings.

Baseball Futures Betting And Odds Explained

Futures bets are wagers on the end-of-season results. They’re usually open to the public before the season and available until the end of the season.

Here are some popular futures bets:

• AL/NL MVP winner

• Division Winner

• AL/NL Champions

• World Series Winner

• AL/NL Cy Young

• AL/NL Rookie of the Year

So if you like Mookie Betts or Paul Goldschmidt for the NL MVP, find the MLB Futures section at your sportsbook and put your bets down on them. If you think the Yankees or Astros are going to win the World Series and want to bet on it, the MLB Futures section is where you want to be. All of the awards and options for winners are under baseball futures, from the offseason until the bet is settled.

Top 10 Major League Baseball Teams To Bet On

Let’s face it, some franchises tend to be more successful than others. In a long season like baseball, it’s nice to know which franchises tend to consistently find success. Here are 10 of the most successful in the league recently:

1. New York Yankees

2. Los Angeles Dodgers

3. St. Louis Cardinals

4. Atlanta Braves

5. Houston Astros

6. New York Mets

7. Tampa Bay Rays

8. San Francisco Giants

9. Toronto Blue Jays

10. San Diego Padres

Best Major League Baseball Betting Strategies For Beginners In MLB

Strategy 1: Avoid Big Favorites on Moneyline

In a sport like baseball, the risk of a massive favorite isn’t worth the reward.

Consider this, a 100-win team still loses 62 times. A 100-loss team ends up with 62 wins in an entire season. A team that is between -200 and -300 will inevitably suffer a loss at those odds multiple times in a season.

As a bettor, you’ll lose $200 to $300 while only standing to gain $100. It’s not worth it.

Strategy 2: Bet Against the Public

Going against the grain works in the betting world for several reasons.

People like to bet on the superstars, favorites, and home teams. Big markets get a lot of bets because of fandom size, and everybody loves the team that’s overperforming preseason expectations.

The public is also more prone to recency bias. The public can be correct, but some people have found success going against them more often than not.

Strategy 3: Know the Circumstances of the Day

Who are the starting pitchers? Is there a key reliever unavailable?

Those are just two things in an ordinary day that can drastically shift the outcome. Don’t just bet for the team, but know what’s potentially working for or against them.

Some teams are terrible in day games. Some teams are amazing in certain ballparks but terrible in others. The umpires and weather can have a massive impact.

Some umpires are more hitter-friendly, lending to more walks and baserunners, while some are pitcher-friendly and can single-handedly take run-scoring opportunities off the board. A cold and rainy night game is less likely to see the ball leave the park frequently. On the flip side, a day game in 90+ weather is probably going to have multiple home runs.

Strategy 4: Learning the Advanced Metrics

When it comes to baseball, there are a lot of stats and new sabermetrics that pop up everywhere. Most people can see an advanced stat and not know exactly what it quantifies.

Another challenge is that they don’t all follow the same scale, which can make it even more confusing. For example, Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) is better when the number is lower, while Weighted Runs Created (wRC) is better when the number is higher.

Then, there are often stats that have adjustments to factor in league averages and ballparks, such as expected FIP (xFIP) and Weighted Runs Created Plus (wRC+). There are so many stats out there, so it’s wiser to look them up when you come across them than to assume you know the meaning.

Strategy 5: Divisional Underdogs Play Better Than Normal Underdogs

Teams in the same division play each other more frequently than the other teams in the league. This creates familiarity with hitters, pitchers, and their division rival's ballparks.

While the underdog may lose more times than they win, even divisional matchups that feature the best team in the league against the worst tend to avoid being lopsided by the end of the season. Because of the odds when you bet on an underdog, you don’t need to win as frequently to break even or profit.

It pays to take a shot on underdogs in divisional matchups, as they have a better shot at winning than a normal underdog, and the reward is worth the risk.

Strategy 6: Betting Consistently

The thing about baseball, particularly the MLB season, is that it’s long. Just like the respective MLB teams throughout the season, bettors will experience stretches where they can’t seem to get anything right. Likewise, there will be periods when everything goes right for you.

The key to betting success in baseball is to not get discouraged when you are making smart bets, and they fail. In the short term, it may be draining, both mentally and on your wallet, but over the course of an entire season, the bets will eventually produce positive results.

More than any other sports in the world, persistence in baseball betting is crucial to getting the most out of it.

Baseball and MLB Games Betting FAQs

Is betting on MLB legal in the US?

Ultimately, it depends on what state you reside in, but yes MLB betting is legal if sports betting is legal in your state.

What states allow baseball/MLB betting?

Online: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming

In-person only: Delaware, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Dakota

Can you make money betting on MLB Games?

Yes, and because the season is longer a steady return on investment is more profitable than other sports if it's maintained.

Can I parlay MLB bets?

Yes, although they’re considered riskier than single bets generally, especially for baseball which is wildly variable daily.

What is the most profitable bet in Major League Baseball?

Some people would say that betting against the Colorado Rockies for every road game is the surest thing in MLB.

Can I bet on College baseball?

Yes, most places allow wagers on college baseball.

Can I bet on the World Series Finals?

Yes, the World Series offers wagers and typically more options than any other game all season.