If your new to betting baseball, then you probably have no clue what a baseball run line is, much less how to bet on it. To put it simply, the run line is baseball’s version of the point spread. Unlike the NFL and NBA, where the odds are kept at -110 and the points move to balance the action, the run line in MLB is fixed at -1.5 runs and the odds move to balance the betting action. Baseball run lines usually list the favorite at -1.5 runs which means the favorite has to win the game by 2 or more runs to cover the action.

Why would you place a run line wager and not a standard money line wager?
Let’s say Benoit is pitching for the Detroit Tigers and Molina is pitching for the New York Yankees. The runline is Detroit -1.5 runs -145 and the moneyline is Detroit -280. This means you could either bet on Detroit to win by 2 runs and lay $145 to win $100 on the run line or bet on Detroit to win by 1 run and risk $280 to $100 on the money line bet.

By analyzing run line odds, you may find a favorite that you want to bet on without risking a heavy loss. Be thorough when doing your research, there will be a lot of strong pitchers and teams during the season that consistently win by a large margin when they win.

The whole goal of betting on baseball is to make smart money choices and limit your risk. By carefully examining the baseball betting odds and run lines, you significantly reduce the amount of money you must risk for each wager.