MLB Futures Betting How to Make Your First Baseball Futures Bet
Ready to dive into the exciting world of MLB futures? We’ve collected the top tips and betting strategies to get you started for a full season of baseball betting.
You’ll find a detailed breakdown of the different types of futures and player awards you can bet. Plus, get key angles to focus on when betting and our top baseball futures betting site to get started playing at. Read on for everything you need to know for placing bets on MLB outrights.
Types of MLB Futures
MLB futures betting offers a ton of great options that new baseball bettors can easily get involved with even if you’re new to the sport. We’ve broken down the most popular futures and outrights across the sport below. Try working futures into your MLB betting strategy!
World Series Winner
The most popular baseball outright to bet on is definitely the World Series futures market. This type of bet offers MLB title odds for who wins the final at the end of the season between the American and National Leagues. You can find this bet type at all major online sportsbooks such as SportsBetting.ag.
Expert Tip: World Series odds for the next season will open up as soon as the champion is crowned, and sometimes even sooner. This gives you tons of time to check out our off-season MLB betting tips before you make your World Series predictions and bets.
American / National League Winner
Betting on baseball’s outright winner isn’t the only season-long futures bet you can wager on. You can also bet which team emerges victorious from both the American League and the National League to play in the World Series. XBet offers all kinds of baseball futures including league winner markets.
Expert Tip: World Series futures get the headlines, but that doesn’t mean that’s where you need to focus your MLB futures betting efforts. Focus your attention on teams whose chances of winning you feel strongly about, and don’t force a bet on the overall winner until later in the season.
Division Winner
You can go deeper and also focus on which teams will win their respective divisions. This includes the East, Central and West in both leagues for a total of six divisions. You’ll find straight up winner odds for each division and much more over at MyBookie.
Expert Tip: With fewer teams per division, take the chance to hone in on only a few teams from 1–2 divisions. Instead of researching every team in the league, read up on historical trends between divisional rivals. See which key off-season moves they’ve made that could help them win their division.
League MVP
Most sportsbooks don’t offer overall League MVP odds. That’s because baseball awards two MVPs, one to the American League and one to the National League. The closest thing you’ll find to an overall MVP award would be the World Series MVP at BetOnline.
Expert Tip: In a league like the NFL, the MVP is almost exclusively a quarterback award, but in baseball, a player can win from any position. Check out historical MLB MVP winners, and you’ll see the field is wide-open, except for pitchers who rarely win, but have their own award.
Cy Young Award
The Cy Young Award is an award for the best MLB pitcher, named after the pitcher who has the most all-time wins. Much like the league MVPs, a pitcher from both the American and National Leagues will win the Cy Young Award. You’ll find competitive Cy Young Award odds all season long at BetOnline.
Expert Tip: When monitoring Cy Young Award odds, follow various pitching stats that voters will consider. Some top pitchers like Clayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom have won in back-to-back seasons recently. Still, typically someone new wins each season in Cy Young Award winning history.
MLB Rookie of the Year Award
The MLB Rookie of the Year odds are open for most of the year at many baseball betting sites like BetUS. This award, known as the Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Award, goes to the players voted to have made the greatest impact to their teams, one per league.
Expert Tip: With many unknowns among rookie players each season, odds can move quickly. A little-known player’s odds will shorten quickly after a breakout game. Track daily performances of rookie players and bet sooner rather than later. Remember to shop for the best odds as some sportsbooks will adjust sooner than others.
Regular Season Records and Stats
Sportsbooks like Bovada offer many betting markets all season in both player and team categories. Some of the most popular are MLB futures bets on most hits, home runs, strikeouts, MLB run line totals, and over/under win totals for each team.
Expert Tip: Instead of betting on every team’s win totals, pick a handful of teams to follow. Then, research their yearly win total trends and check their strength of schedule for the upcoming season. Check whether any added or lost players could make them better or worse than the season prior.
Best MLB Futures Betting Site for Beginners
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MLB Picks from The Sports Geek
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MLB Futures Betting Tips and Strategies
Now that you know some basic MLB futures bets, let’s explore more ways you can win by sharpening your skills with a little extra research.
Consider the Risk and Reward of Betting on Futures Early
MLB futures bets are open all season and off-season, with risks and rewards on when you bet on them. Betting early means getting the best value before markets move. The downside is it ties up your bankroll and gives you less time to analyze teams and key stats.
Choose an Underdog to Back
Sportsbooks factor in the popular favorites when making their odds and juice. Still, with a little handicapping and researching, betting on underdogs can be a profitable baseball futures betting strategy.
Look at Pitching Stats for the Cy Young Award
When betting on the Cy Young Award, track pitcher wins, innings pitched, ERA, strikeouts, saves and shutouts. These all factor into the voting process of the Baseball Writers’ Association.
Hedge Your Winning Bets
Hedging your bets involves betting the opposite of your initial bet to help secure your potential profits or reduce your losses. You can do this with any bet that looks promising, but it’s especially helpful for big parlays or long shots.
Responsible Gambling
We encourage all players to gamble responsibly. Remember that online betting is a form of entertainment, not a source of income. Set loss limits and time limits. Budget your bankroll ahead of time to avoid losing more than you can afford to. Keeping these tips in mind will help you have fun and remain a responsible gambler.
If you are over-preoccupied with thoughts about gambling or exceed your budget regularly, you might benefit from some help. Consider the resources below if you recognize the warning signs and symptoms in yourself or a loved one:
- National Council on Problem Gambling: (202) 547-9204 or NCPGambling.org
- AGA Responsible Gambling Code of Conduct (as supported by the NBA)
- Gamble Responsibly America App (downloadable)
- Gambler’s Anonymous: gamblersanonymous.org/ga/
- Responsible Gambling Council: http://www.responsiblegambling.org/
Key Takeaways for MLB Futures Betting
You’re now ready for an action-packed season of betting on MLB futures. We’ve covered the most popular types of bets, including World Series futures, outright bets on player awards like MVP, Rookie of the Year and the Cy Young. You can also up your game by researching underdogs, hedging your bets and considering the best time of year to bet on MLB futures odds.
Sign up at BetUS and claim their exclusive new customer promotion. You can also check out their extensive menu of baseball futures and predictions to get started towards a winning season.
Latest Sports Betting News from the MLB
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