College Baseball Betting
College baseball betting presents some interest opportunities to make money, but players must understand the differences between betting the college game and betting the pro game. College baseball is often more exciting and run scoring is more prolific, so bettors want to get in on the action. But what are the differences that you have to know before jumping into college baseball betting?
Understand that betting opportunities will be more scarce, on-field mistakes will come into play, and emotion plays a significant part in the game. If you understand these things, then college baseball betting will come much easier as a result.
Patience throughout Baseball Season
Chances are that you won't have tons of opportunities to bet on college baseball during the year. Las Vegas sportsbooks don't offer betting on the vast majority of regular season games and even the best online books only offer betting on the bigger games. This puts a huge premium on patience throughout the betting season. Some players might have a tendency to jump on any college baseball game they see, since those opportunities are so scarce.
Smart handicappers will fight this urge, betting only when value presents itself. Possible opportunities to bet on college baseball will come with the following events:
- Televised conference weekend games
- Conference tournaments
- NCAA tournament
- College World Series
The vast majority of betting opportunities come at the end of the year, so you will have an entire year's worth of data at your disposal when making bets.
Mistakes and the College Baseball Game
When betting on pro baseball, you can usually count on routine ground balls being converted into outs. Players will make all of the easy plays and most of the hard ones, too. This isn't always the case in college baseball, so it adds something that you need to be aware of.
When handicapping, you will want to look at pitching matchups, hitting strength, and all of the usual factors. Add in some analysis of defense, too. You don't want to have your bet on a team derailed by a shortstop who can't make the easy play. This is true for bettors eying the under as well as bettors who just bet on sides.
Emotion All Over the Baseball Field
Know that when betting on college baseball, you are betting on 18 and 19 year old kids. These kids are just learning and they are often slaves to their emotion. This makes it even more important to analyze hot teams and teams that are down. When teams are riding a wave of confidence, they tend to play harder and reach their ability levels.
Additionally, you need to look out for those squads with extra motivation. In college baseball betting, there are rivalries that will impact the way teams play. Be wary of this and understand how teams fare against their most hated rivals. This will keep you from betting on college squads that are about to run into an emotional wall against a team from just down the road.