Baseball betting is a popular past time for several reasons: baseball is one of the only sports occurring during the summer months leaving bettors with few other options; and betting on baseball is more of a sure thing than any other game as the favorite wins almost 60 percent of the time. This might make baseball parlay bets sound like they are a sure thing and everyone that loves to bet should participate, but you should operate with care. Baseball parlay bets can be profitable, but you need to be in it for the long run. You are not going to win every time, which could mean large losses down the way. If you are not able to withstand those losses and stick in it for the long run, it could be a wallet buster.
The Baseball Moneyline
Baseball parlays are just like parlays in any other sport with the exception that it operates on a moneyline rather than a point spread. This means that you have to calculate your payout based on the odds for a particular game. For example, a game with a +110 odds that you bet $100 on, you will win $110 plus your original $100. The increments go up for every $100 you bet; if you bet $200, you would win $220. On the flip side, if you were betting on the team with -150 odds, then you would need to bet $150 to win $100.
The Parlay Bet
Taking this example a step further, you have the parlay bet. During this bet you are wagering on several games, not just one. This means if you win your first wager, it gets rolled over into the second game and finally the third game. The amount that gets rolled over is your original bet plus any profits. This could be a lucrative way to bet on baseball and to increase your winnings significantly. The number of games you can include in the parlay depends on the number of games occurring that day; you can bet a 2-game parlay all the way up to a 10-game parlay in some cases.
The Odds
How do you know what you will get paid on each bet? It is broken down into the favorite and underdog. The favorite is signified by a (-) and the underdog by a (+). For example, if the favorite were shown as a -150, you would need to be $150 to win $100. For the underdog that has odds of +150, you would only need to bet $100 to win $150. In the parlay, your original bet is what you determine; the rest is determined for you depending on how your bets go. If you win the first game, then your bet gets rolled over into the 2nd game with those odds and it keeps rolling until the games are over or until you lose. If you lose, you are out your original bet and any profits you may have accumulated.
Parlays can be Attractive
Baseball parlay bets can be very attractive as they enable you to increase your winnings significantly. If you understand baseball very well, you have the potential to make much larger winnings than you would if you bet on a single game. This is especially effective in cases where you will be betting on the heavy favorites, as they typically do not have very large payouts on their own. As a parlay bet, however, you are increasing the amount of your bet on the second game, which means you will win more than had you bet on a single game.
Baseball parlay bets can be very lucrative as long as you know the sport. The options for betting are endless, allowing you to determine your own potential winnings. As long as you know the odds and are informed on the teams you are betting on, the potential to win can be very large.