College Baseball Betting

By Phil Simon

It’s not as mainstream as college football and college basketball, but college baseball betting is picking up steam. And things really heat up around the College World Series when eight of the top teams in the country gather for a two-week long tournament to determine the sports national champion. The road to Omaha – Nebraska, where the college World Series takes place – actually begins a few weeks earlier when the postseason field is announced and begins competing in regional events. This is a big deal for college baseball teams and sportsbooks since those games attract a lot of attention from fans and people just cheering for their school since they made the tournament.

Betting on College Baseball

The game is the same and so are ways to wager on it. During the course of a regular season you don’t typically see odds for college baseball games, but that all changes once the tournament regionals begin. Bettors are more familiar with the point spread and run total betting options in football and basketball making those sports hugely popular among the college sports betting crowd. Baseball doesn’t get as much coverage or publicity as its counterparts which is why betting the game isn’t as widespread.

Since college baseball isn’t as popular as football and basketball, many professional gamblers love betting the game. They feel a college baseball game is easier to predict. And since oddsmakers don’t research the lines the way they do for the other sports, there are always some value picks on the board. It’s important to remember, though, that the game is dominated by a few high-profile programs that always seem to be playing for a national title.

As with any sport you’re about to wager on it pays to do homework on the teams. That’s even more important when it comes to college baseball since fans aren’t constantly bombarded with news, analyses and statistics like they are with the others. It’s also important to know how to read a college baseball betting line. We do see big mismatches which lead to lofty numbers on the moneyline. And with teams rarely having deep pitching staffs and with the aluminum bat in play, the total will oftentimes will be in double digits. Here is an example of a college baseball betting line.

Oregon State    -1.5 ( +150 )      -280     o10 ( -115 )

North Carolina   +1.5 (-190 )       +230     u10 ( +100 )

Now, if you’ve been paying attention and reading other articles pertaining to baseball betting, the above line looks familiar. For those new to wagering on America’s pastime here’s a brief tutorial. In the above example Oregon State is a big favorite on the moneyline, which is the middle row. The favored team or outcome will have negative odds attached to it. For a straight up moneyline bet, which is where you pick the winner regardless of the score, you’d have to risk $280 to win $100 backing Oregon State. North Carolina is expected to lose the game, but their +230 odds are inviting. Backing UNC with a $100 wager earns a $230 payout if they win.

The mere presence of 1.5 runs shifts the odds dramatically. Think of the runline as baseball’s version of the point spread. In this case UNC is spotted a run and a half, meaning they can lose the game but still pay off backers. And because of this UNC is the favorite on the runline. Savvy bettors pick up on getting better odds for OSU. They would have to win the game by two or more runs, but the payout is $150 on a $100 wager.

The over/under, or total, is another popular way to bet on baseball. In this case the teams would have to score 11 or more runs to cash the OVER. Since that is the expected outcome, a winning bet would only pay $87 dollars on a $100 wager. Backing the UNDER at even-money gets you $100 on a payout. Many sportsbook also offer team totals, which is similar to a prop bet. You can wager on whether or not the squads will go over or under their projected run total. It’s not listed on the line above, but OSU’s total is six with the over at -125. The negative odds mean a lower payout with only $80 returned on a win. In order to be a more informed and knowledgeable bettor you have to do some research. So study up on your college baseball teams and go win some money.