MLB Edition

6/13/2008 4:00 PM EST

By The Team at SportsInsights.com

Welcome to this week's edition of the Sports Marketwatch – MLB Edition, where the Team at SportsInsights gives sports fans unprecedented insight into the sports marketplace. If you ever wanted to know what was really happening on the sportsbook side, you now have an all-access pass with Sports Marketwatch!  Sports MarketWatch will be published weekly on Friday, normally by 5PM Eastern Time. 

The staff at SportsInsights.com speaks directly with the line managers at some of the sports betting industry’s largest sportsbooks about which games the public is chasing and the Sharps are pounding.  We’ll take a look at what’s in store for upcoming games.

Sports Marketplace – MLB Edition

Last week, the Sports MarketWatch treaded water in MLB, declining slightly by going 1-2, with the win at a nice +140 odds (+1.4 – 2.0 units).  Today is Friday the Thirteenth and let’s hope the MarketWatch’s luck turns around.  Overall, this has been a good year for the approaches highlighted by SportsInsights and Sports MarketWatch.    

Note that today also kicks off another round of inter-league play which sometimes throws a curve at MLB bettors. 

2008 MLB Games to Watch: 2-9, 18.2%, -6.1 units

*Source: SportsInsights.com

Sports MarketWatch – MLB Games to Watch

Cincinnati Reds +103 over Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox have been hot and at 15 games over .500, they, along with the Angels, hold the best record in the AL.  The Reds, on the other hand, are in last place, 11.5 games out of first place. 

As our readers know, we often need “bad teams to do good things.”  We note, however, that the Reds are not as bad as “last place” seems.  The Reds are just 4 games under .500 (.471 ball) and are a sparkling 20-12 at home. 

The public loves the Red Sox in this match-up to the tune of a huge 85% of the bets!  This is creating value on the Reds.  The line opened at Cincy as a slight favorite – but you can already get “plus odds” on the Reds.  We’ll “sell” the Red Sox after their recent hot streak and “buy” the Reds at home. 

Cincinnati Reds +103

Houston Astros +135 over New York Yankees

With Joba Chamberlain’s name (as in Star Wars’ Jabba the Hut!) and knockout stats as a setup man for Mariano, it is no wonder that this Yankee prodigy is getting all the press.  Chamberlain has recently been moved to the starting rotation and has done relatively well – although he has been inconsistent. 

The visiting Yankees are gathering more than 70% of the bets and this is creating value for sports investors.  The line opened at Houston +125 and has been edging up to Houston +135.  Both the Astros and Yankees have hovered around the .500 level for much of the season.  We like getting “plus moneyline odds” on a live dog against a potentially over-rated Yankee team with a young starter. 

Houston Astros +135

Washington Nationals +125 over Seattle Mariners

Offshore sportsbooks have this game on their radar screen because the “smart money” is focused on the Nationals in this game.  This is a battle between two last place teams – both of which are playing below .400 ball.    

SportsInsights.com reports that with less than 25% of the bets on Washington, the line has moved from Washington +129 down to Washington +115 in some places.  This is verification that “smart money” is taking the Nationals in this game.  We’ll “bet against the public” and join the “smart money.”

Washington Nationals +125

Games to Watch (2-9, -6.1 units)

Cincinnati Reds +103

Houston Astros +135

Washington Nationals +125

It should be another exciting weekend in the sports marketplace.  Keep Sports MarketWatch picks handy and your browser pointed to SportsInsights.com for the latest real-time updates, using our exclusive Sports Investing tools.

We’ll be back next Friday with the new edition of the Sports Marketwatch – MLB Edition.

Enjoy the games!

The Team at SportsInsights.com