With games occurring almost daily throughout the season, MLB may be the easiest sport to bet on. However, at first glance, an MLB odds table may look like a confusing jumble of numbers.
On this page, we will keep you up to date on the latest MLB betting odds for the day, walk you through what MLB betting odds are, and show you how to read them as they relate to specific markets. If you're playing DFS, you can also see updated odds within our MLB DFS optimizer.
What Are MLB Betting Odds and Lines?
MLB odds and lines are similar to those that you'll find in other sports. The moneyline for an MLB game is the same as it is for the NFL, NBA, and NHL.
Instead of a point spread, you have a run line for MLB games. Finally, there's the total.
The odds in a betting line will tell you how much you can win off a certain wager and your margin for victory.
The Basics
While it may be easy to see one team beating another (moneyline) by a run, can you see them winning by at least two (-1.5 runline) or losing by two (+1.5 runline)? That's where doing your homework comes into play—is the game in a pitcher-friendly park or a hitter-friendly one?
The answer can help bettors decide whether to bet the OVER or UNDER on the run total. The more informed your betting decision is, the better.
Where are the Best MLB Odds?
You can use the MLB odds tool above to find the best baseball odds on any given major league baseball game. This page compares the odds across sportsbooks for every baseball moneyline, runline, and game total (or over/under) every day of the MLB season.
Right now we compare MLB odds from seven major sportsbooks. Sign up with the bonus codes below to begin betting on baseball today with a legal online sportsbook:
- BetMGM Bonus Code
- Caesars Promo Code
- ESPN BET Promo Code
- Fanatics Sportsbook
- bet365 Bonus Code
- DraftKings Sportsbook Promo Code
- FanDuel Sportsbook
And of course, once you have sportsbook accounts, continue to use this page to find the best MLB odds.
Major League Baseball Odds in Sports Betting
One of the many things that makes betting on MLB odds tough is not knowing what a team's starting lineup may look like. But if you do your homework and use visit MLB starting lineups, you'll know how accurate a projected lineup may be. Armed with this knowledge, you can get a good idea of how MLB games may play out based on the tendencies of certain players.
Figure this out, and you can put your money down before a lineup is made official and before sportsbooks are flooded with wagers and forced to move the odds.
How to Read and Analyze MLB Odds
Odds for MLB bets will appear in one of three forms: American, decimal, or fraction.
While the default form will depend on your location in the world, sportsbooks usually let you switch how odds get presented if you prefer a particular form.
American Odds
American odds are three-digit numbers with either a plus or minus sign in front. The minus sign designates a market as the betting favorite, while a plus sign indicates a market is the underdog. If bettors bet on the underdog (i.e., +110), a $100 wager will win the listed number. But for favorites, the number indicates how much you'll need to bet to win $100.
Decimal Odds
Decimal odds are often used at sportsbooks in Europe and other international markets. They appear as a number with one or two decimal points, such as 2.0 or 1.91. For a game, the favorite will be the lower of the two numbers listed, while the higher number will be the underdog.
Fractional Odds
Fractional odds are standard in the UK and tell bettors how much you can win should you bet a certain amount. The numerator (top) indicates how much you can win if you risk the number listed as the denominator (bottom).
MLB Odds Glossary
Moneyline (or Line) - – Unlike sports such as football or basketball, baseball doesn’t have a spread. Wagers are usually taken on the moneyline, which simply states the odds a bettor must lay to win their bet. For example, a -140 moneyline means a player would have to lay $14 for each $10 they’d like to win. If the underdog is +130 in that game, the bettor would win $13 for every $10 they lay.
Total – The number of runs scored by both teams. The bettor can either go Over or Under the given total.
Runline – This is the baseball bet most like the spread in other sports. The bettor can choose to lay or take a set number of runs, most commonly 1.5, in order to gain a more beneficial moneyline. For example, if a favorite is -200, but the bettor doesn’t wish to risk $20 to win $10, they might find a more attractive bet at -1.5 (-110), though their team would have to win by at least two runs.
Favorite – The team with the higher moneyline. The favorite will always be minus money (ie -140).
Underdog or Dog – The team with the lower moneyline. The dog will always be plus money (ie +120).
Over – A bet made for a team or game to score more runs than the game total. (ie Over 8.5 runs).
Under – A bet made for a team or game to score fewer runs than the game total. (ie Under 8.5 runs).
Action – A baseball bet can either be made with the intention or action or specifying one or both listed pitchers. An action bet plays no matter who the starting pitchers are.
Listed – A baseball bet can either be made with the intention or action or specifying one or both listed pitchers. Bettors can choose either or both listed pitchers. If the pitcher(s) chosen as listed do not start the game for some reason, the bet does not count.
Vigorish (Vig or Juice) – The fee or commission a player has to pay to the house. This is generally baked into the moneyline in baseball bets and is considered the book’s advantage. Savvy players can limit or rarely even eliminate the size of the advantage by shopping around.
Parlay – A bet that combines a number of teams, all of which must win for the bet to win. The attraction is a larger payout.
Round Robin – A special kind of parlay which makes betting combinations for every team listed in the bet. For example, a three-team round robin would feature a three-team parlay and three two-team parlays. Bettors signify how much they wish to risk or win for each leg of the parlay.
Sportsbook (Book or House) – The entity offering the bets.
MLB Odds Shopping – Using several books to look for the best lines.
MLB Live Betting – When action is offered after a game starts, while it’s in progress.
MLB Proposition (or Prop) – These are individual bets within a game, usually centering around a team, player or the game itself. For example, most team props revolve around runs. A batter prop will often offer a moneyline on whether a certain player will hit a Home Run or not. A popular pitcher prop lists the total of strikeouts he might have, similar to a run total.
MLB Odds and Betting Lines
The top online sportsbooks will offer 200+ markets for each MLB game. But the primary two that draw bettors into MLB betting are the moneyline odds and runline. If you are looking to just bet on a game's outcome, you will want the moneyline.
While understanding MLB odds is crucial to sports betting, it can also help you up your DFS game when you recognize the following:
- A Major League Baseball game with a high run total will likely see a lot of offense generated.
- Low run totals could be a good indicator of a potential pitcher's duel. DFS players will want to avoid position players on both teams but may want to consider picking one of the pitchers.
- A team that is a heavy moneyline favorite against another may have a pitcher and/or a few position players worth picking.
- Prop bets can give you an indication of how you can expect certain players to perform.
MLB Moneyline Bets
An MLB moneyline bet is a bet on who the outright winner of the game will be. To make up for the competitive difference between teams, bettors can win more if they bet on underdogs than win than if they were to bet on favorites.
For example, the betting line for Game 1 of the 2023 World Series was as follows:
- Runline: Diamondbacks +1.5 (-145); Rangers -1.5 (+122)
- Moneyline: Diamondbacks +143; Rangers -170
- Total Runs: O/U 8 (-115/-105)
In this game, the moneyline on the D-backs was +143, making them the underdogs to win the game outright. But a $100 bet on them to win would have resulted in a $243 payday (your stake plus $143 in winnings) if the D-backs came out on top. Those who bet on the Rangers made the smarter choice, though they would've had to bet $170 to win $100.
MLB Runline Bets
If you want to even the playing field, bet on the runline, which is baseball's equivalent of a point spread. It's the expected margin of victory between two teams. But since baseball games are typically low-scoring, the run line is often +/- 1.5.
The betting favorite must win by more than the listed number for bettors to win runline bets. Consequently, bets on underdogs are winners if the team wins outright or loses by fewer runs than the runline.
In the above example, the runline on Game 1 of the 2023 World Series was the D-backs +1.5 at -145 and -1.5 for the Rangers at +122. Though the Rangers won the game 6-5, runline bets on the D-backs were winners since the Rangers didn't win by more than two runs.
MLB Prop Bets
An MLB prop bet is a wager on whether or not a specific thing will happen during a game that doesn't necessarily impact the final outcome. The bet can include an individual player's performance for a game or at specified points during a game (by quarter, inning, over X innings, etc.), along with team statistics.
MLB Parlay Bets
An MLB parlay bet combines several individual wagers into one bet. To win, bettors need to win each leg of the parlay. The odds for a parlay tend to grow exponentially as legs get added since it becomes harder to win.
Most sportsbooks (if not all) will let you create same-game parlays, but a traditional one would look something like this: Team A -1.5, Team C ML, Game E OVER 9.5 runs. The sportsbook will take the individual odds of each leg to calculate the odds for the parlay.
MLB First Inning and Halftime Bets
A first-inning bet refers to a wager related to the first inning. Possible markets include the 1st inning result, runline, total runs, correct score, etc. Halftime bets involve the first five innings (approximately half of the game).
Markets could look a lot like the ones offered for the first inning. Here are a few examples:
- First inning result: Team A +500 Tie -200 Team B +350
- First five innings moneyline: Team A +270 Team B -265
- First five innings total runs O/U 4.5 at +120/-150
MLB Over/Under Bets
Over/Under bets are a type of wager that lets bettors put money on whether a specified statistic will be over or under a given number. For example, the total runs for Game 1 of the 2023 World Series was 8 (-115/-105). Since the final score was 6-5, bets on the OVER paid out at -115.
MLB Futures and World Series Odds
Futures bets concern season-long outcomes, like the World Series champion. Other examples include AL and NL MVPs, division winners, and NLCS/ALCS winners.
Odds are often available year-round and are subject to change at any moment. For example, the 2024 World Series odds for the Houston Astros opened at +900 at BetMGM. But after getting off to a 19-25 start, their odds moved to +1800 at one point.
MLB Live Baseball Game Bets
You'll first need to identify which game(s) are available for live betting. Most sportsbooks will have an icon for bettors to click on and see which sports and games are available. The odds are subject to change at any moment since the game is unfolding in real-time.
On BetMGM's app, you'll see the word "Live" in the upper left-hand corner of your screen. Click on it and then on "Baseball" to see the games covered and a list of upcoming events.
MLB Betting Resources
How you research MLB games could depend on what you are planning to do.
For DFS players, if you like to stack players (use multiple players from the same team), you'll want to identify a high-scoring game in which one team should dominate the other. Depending on the team, you could build a winning roster from a single game.
Sports bettors will want to look for any indicators that can give them an idea of how a game could play out. Are two superstar pitchers taking the mound in a pitcher-friendly park? Consider taking the UNDER on the run total.
Of course, anytime you bet on a game, you want to bet responsibly. Don't bet with money you can't afford to lose. Never chase a loss with a bigger wager on another game. Always do your homework and bet according to your research—never bet with your heart or based on emotion.
Set limits for yourself and stick to them. But if you discover that you can't stick to them or think you have a problem, reach out for help. Every sportsbook has resources like the helpline 1-800-GAMBLER available to bettors struggling to gamble responsibly.
MLB Odds FAQ
Before you dive in blindly and strike out, check out these FAQs on MLB odds so you can make smarter bets:
What's the best way to win baseball bets?
The easy answer is to do your homework. You want to make the most informed decisions you can possibly make, but you can only do so if you've shopped around for the best prices on odds and studied trends.
What are the stats to watch when looking up MLB odds?
With the many ways MLB stats get collected, it could take quite a while to answer this question. But if you are not looking to get too technical, review the following stats when looking up MLB odds: ERA, WHIP, BABIP (batting average on balls in play), Hitter vs. Pitcher, Ballpark (hitter or pitcher-friendly, etc.
Where do you find the best MLB odds?
DraftKings and FanDuel often have the best baseball odds and offer daily odds boosts. But we highly recommend line shopping (checking several sportsbooks) to ensure you have the best odds for your desired market.
What is the first five moneyline?
The first five moneyline is a bet in which bettors can put money down on the team they think will lead after five innings.