Early 2019 MLB Betting Strategies, Tips and More

With about six weeks remaining before the start of the 2019 MLB regular season, it’s time to start thinking about how to manage your sports betting in the early going of the campaign. There is no other sport that has a regular season that is nearly as long as the 162-matchup slog that baseball players work their way through, and understanding that the teams that take off strong in April often fizzle by the All-Star break, particularly if they are not able to add some contributors to their roster — and if that early push represents significant overperformance with respect to statistical expectations. So, who can win the 2019 World Series? Here are some tips and strategies for the upcoming season.

Early 2019 MLB Betting Strategies, Tips and More

#SpringTraining is now, #OpeningDay is soon. 👀 pic.twitter.com/LRdDRU6TXD

— MLB (@MLB) 14 de febrero de 2019

Take a look at win total wagers

One of the more popular wagers at this point has to do with selecting teams either to win more or fewer games than the projected total. One team that is a head-scratcher is the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have a win total of 95 despite winning just 92 last year. They did add reliever Joe Kelly in free agency, but with the Rockies and the Giants projected to improve, and with the Dodgers looking set to lose Manny Machado in free agency, it’s hard to see how they get over 95 wins. At this point, I like the Dodgers to finish under that win total. The Cleveland Indians have a projected win total of 91 ½ wins after winning 91 a year ago. They lost rental third baseman Josh Donaldson to the Braves and eponymous relief pitching genius Andrew Miller to the Cardinals, and they haven’t added anyone yet. They still have a terrific starting rotation, but their offense was middling last year, and with Miller and Donaldson gone — and with the White Sox looking to improve in the AL Central — I’m taking the Indians to go under that total.

What Other Teams Should You Check Out?

The Oakland A’s rolled to 97 wins last year — but their projected win total for this year is 83. They did lose second baseman Jed Lowrie and reliever Jeurys Familia to the Mets, but they added reliever Joakim Soria and resigned starter Michael Fiers. They replaced Trevor Cahill with Marco Estrada in their rotation. In the AL West, Houston is the class of the division, but the Angels, Mariners and Rangers are all either going to stay still or slide downward, at least at this point, so I’m taking the A’s to go over. The Philadelphia Phillies hung around the wild card race in the National League until August and won 80 games on the season. Their predicted total this year is 83, despite the fact that they signed bashing outfielder Andrew McCutchen from the Yankees and reliever David Robertson. They re-signed Aaron Nola to anchor their rotation, along with Jake Arrieta, and in lots of sports books they are one of the favorites to roll to a National League pennant. The rest of the NL East (except for Atlanta) is in flux, so I’m liking the Phillies to go over.

What to Pay Attention To

You’ll want to pay close attention to free-agent signings as Opening Day approaches. The biggest names still available are Manny Machado and Bryce Harper, but there are over 100 free agents still on the market, and names like former Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel and last year’s closer for the World Series champion Red Sox, Craig Kimbrel, also remain unsigned. Gio Gonzalez, a solid lefthanded starter, remains unsigned too. So you’ll want to pay attention to key signings down the stretch so that you don’t end up putting down a big futures wager on a team that ends up either signing (or not signing) the player that will change the outcome significantly. After all, Machado could end up signing with the White Sox and taking them to an AL Central title, but the Yankees and Phillies are still interested as well. And Bryce Harper is getting a push from the San Francisco Giants. Can’t you see him hitting home runs out of AT&T Park into McCovey’s Cove? So stay tuned in the last weeks of the off-season.