Yankees Biggest Challenge Could Come From Within Division

As baseball enters the final month of the MLB betting season, the New York Yankees have carried over their dominance from the year before as defending World Series champions, compiling the best record in the major leagues entering play Wednesday night. With 78 wins, which include a solid record both at home and on the road, the Yankees have established themselves as the team to beat this season. So who are the clubs with the best chance of taking down the pinstripes?

The Tampa Bay Rays have kept pace with the Yankees at 78 betting wins, and are tied for the top spot in the American League East. The Rays have identical records at home and on the road, their 39 wins away from home good for the best road record in the league. With the Minnesota Twins and Texas Rangers leading their respective divisions, the Yankees biggest challenge in the American League may come from within the AL East.

If the Yankees make it all the way back to the World Series, then they will likely have to beat either the Philadelphia Phillies or the St. Louis Cardinals. Despite that both teams trail in their respective divisions, at least one of them should make the postseason, and although they may have underachieved to this point in the regular season, both are built for the playoffs. The Phillies have been in the World Series two straight seasons, and could very well be back there in 2010.

 
MLB Betting Tips: Turnaround Teams

As is the case when wagering on any sport, players are always looking for the edge to get that addition to their winning percentage when betting on baseball. Many bet against streaks of significant length, while others wager based on pitching match ups, or record against the opposition. One of the most proven ways to succeed when wagering on MLB baseball however is being able to accurately predict which teams will turn around from year to year, meaning to be able to project which successful teams one year will fall off the next, and which that terrible one year will improve significantly the next. Everything from free agent additions to players returning from injury will have an impact on a team turning it around from season to season, but one proven way to get an edge in predicting which teams will improve.

The most effective way of predicting which teams will turn it around from year to year is to pay attention to the amount of one-run games that team won or lost. A game that is decided by one run can sway very easily, and the probability that year in and out teams will win or lose one-run games is extremely low. Therefore, if one team had success winning a large percentage of one-run games in 2009, the likelihood is that they will not be able to repeat that success in 2010. An example of this is the Seattle Mariners, who were 35-20 in one-run games in 2009. This year, their sports betting success in such contests likely won't be so high.

 
Baseball Betting: Easy As Three Strikes

Whether it's hockey, basketball, football, or MLB betting that players want to wager on, the betting landscape can at times be difficult to navigate for those just learning on how to play the game online. A quick look at the options and types of wagers that can be placed on baseball games however makes it much easier to figure out which types of bets best suit a player's style, and how they go about wagering on it.

For example, pretend the New York Yankees are hosting the Baltimore Orioles, and the player reaches the betting screen. From there, the two easiest online sports betting options are either picking the winner, or picking whether the total will go over or under the number. This option is simple, will the Yankees win? Or will the Orioles? Will they score more or less runs combined than the number available? Each option will have a number beside it, which are the odds. Multiply that number by the amount the player is wagering, and your total earnings, or total juice, is calculated. Two other options available are betting the spread, or betting pitchers. For the first option, betting the spread, each team will be assessed a number, and the player must choose whether the favorite will win by that many runs, or if the underdog will stay within that many runs. The final option, betting the starters, consists of picking a winner or loser just like the original bet, however in this case the wager only applies to the first five innings. Therefore, if the team you picked is winning after five innings, you win.

 
Baseball Betting 101

Baseball betting can be both the best and worst way to make money while betting at a sportsbook. Over a long grinding schedule such as the 162 games played by MLB baseball teams, different factors can assist and detract your odds of choosing a winner. For instance trends can form resulting in long losing streaks for the team you wagered on, or vice versa. Today we look at three different types of bets, moneyline's, totals and run lines the three most popular bets when betting on baseball. After explaining each type of bet, you will have the ability to pick winners more accurately.

1. Moneylines - These are odds expressed in terms of dollars, where as a point spread is based on points. For instance to bet the favorite, you have to put down more than one dollar to get back your one dollar plus more money. An underdog on the contrary is bet as a dollar to break even. Dollars are also bet with cents so for instance if you were to bet a $1.55 and the money line was -155 it means the same thing.

2. Totals - Totals is an alternative name for the over under bet. The total bet line is a bet placed on what the bookmaker believes will be the total amount of runs scored in a game. Bettors then have the ability to bet that the total amount of runs scored will go over the total or under the total in order to make their money.

3. Run lines- This bet only works for an underdog if they get at least 1.5 runs while the favorite has to get 1.5 runs more than the total to collect a profit.

 
Lilly Flirts with No Hitter But Still Wins Game

This year's Chicago Cubs have much to be disappointed with, as the team has struggled early and often to start the season. On Sunday night however, starting pitcher Ted Lilly gave fans betting on the Cubs a reason to be proud, as the lefty flirted with a no hitter all the way to top of the ninth inning. Conversely, White Sox pitcher Gavin Floyd also gave White Sox fans betting on their squad for the victory to be impressed, as he too flirted with a no hitter until the seventh inning. In the end the Cubs off the bat of Alfonzo Soriano, were able to walk away with a one to nothing victory in the battle of Chicago.

Lilly the veteran pitcher, said he had not felt as much energy in his start last night, since he was a part of the New York Yankees 2001 World Series winning squad. Although he was injured to start the season, Lilly appears to be rounding into form, and along with Cubs staff ace Ryan Dempster, is forming a formidable one two punch.

Due to injuries and a lack of focus to start the season, the Cubs sit seven and a half games back of the first place Cincinnati Reds for top spot in the National League Central division. One could say that the team's Achilles heel thus far has been its offense, yet the pitching has struggled mightily to keep them in games and the squad has amounted a 28 win and 35 loss record. The one saving grace the team has is that the MLB season is 162 games long, and the team can still rebound to possibly take over the NL Central division. However, a seven and a half game lead for the Reds is a tough hill for the lowly Cubs to climb out of. Nevertheless, with a strong effort by Ted Lilly last night, and Carlos Zambrano pitching tonight, the team has two of the best pitcher's in the game looking to assist in turning the ship around.

 
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