MLB Odds Today

The board above has MLB odds today for every game that hasn't thrown its first pitch. We pull the lines from major sportsbooks and update them through the day. Every game gets a moneyline, a run line and a total, and there are First 5 Innings lines and team totals on their own tabs. You can bet all of it free.

Starting pitchers set the moneyline

Ask a baseball bettor what the line on a game is and you'll hear a moneyline back. It's the main bet in Major League Baseball, and the biggest thing that goes into it is the pair of starting pitchers. A top starter facing a weak one can make his team a heavy favorite. Swap the two pitchers and the same matchup might be close to even.

The odds are American. A minus number is what you'd wager to win $100, and a plus number is what $100 wins. Everyone can bet moneylines up to -300 here; Full Access members can go to -1000.

Reading MLB odds, one game at a time

Say the home team is -145 and the visitors are +125. The run line, which is baseball's point spread, has the home team -1.5 at +140 and the visitors +1.5 at -160. The total is 8.5.

Bet $145 on the home moneyline and you win $100 if the home team wins. Put $100 on the visitors and you win $125 if they pull it off. On the run line, $100 on the home side wins $140, but now the home team has to win by two runs or more. Flip it, and $160 on the visitors at +1.5 wins $100 if they win the game or lose by 1 run. For the total, the over needs nine runs or more from both teams together, and the under needs eight or fewer.

Notice what the run line does to the prices. The favorite becomes the plus-money side, because winning by two is a lot harder than just winning, and the underdog's extra run of cushion costs you a minus price. When a run line looks like a bargain, that's usually why.

First 5 Innings and team totals

A starter can pitch beautifully for six innings and watch the bullpen lose the game. The First 5 Innings lines settle on the score after five innings, so the bet is mostly about the two starting pitchers and the bullpens hardly come into it.

Team totals are an over/under on one team's runs alone. If you like a lineup against a struggling pitcher and have no read on the other side, MLB team totals let you bet that one offense and ignore the rest.

When baseball odds move

Pitching news moves MLB betting lines more than anything else. If a scheduled starter is scratched, the moneyline and the total can both jump in one go. Lineup news, weather and lopsided betting on one side move numbers too. Our board follows the sportsbooks through the day. Your bet is graded at the odds you took when you placed it, so a line that moves afterward doesn't change what you're paid.

Bet on MLB with a free balance

Pick a line, type in a wager and place it, the same way you would at a sportsbook. If you'd like to know where the paid handicappers stand before you bet, our best MLB picks today show the sides that more than 100 of them agree on, and the betting rules explain how each bet type is graded.

For real cash, the Streak Contest has you pick one game at a time to build a winning streak, and the Monthly Contest leaderboard pays out too. Both pay cash prizes by PayPal. You must be 21+ to play. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.

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