Now that football
is finally down to the Super Bowl contenders and basketball has moved
into conference play at the season mid-point, there's time to catch
your breath and decide if you plan to bet baseball in 2005.
Here we're dealing
with money lines and totals, not pointspreads so it's a whole different
game.
For those who
have never understood how to shop for prices or how important starting
pitchers are or the impact of a strong bullpen or the home field advantage,
here are some books to explain both the fundamentals and more advanced
concepts of betting the Great American Pastime.
The late Mike
Lee wrote a classic more than 25 years ago and it still stands the
test of time. Titled Betting the Bases (71 pages, plastic spiralbound,
$8.95), it explains the money line, how to take advantage of winning
and losing streaks, how tough it is to win both ends of a double header,
whether layoffs are a factor, the importance of money management and
when to bet favorites or dogs.
Robert Ross' Betting
to Win on Baseball (109 pages, plastic spiralbound, $29.95) examines
the importance of keeping records, how to make your own line, betting
totals (the over-under proposition), what to do when an unknown (rookie
first-time starter) takes the mound, looking at lifetime records,
betting early in the season compared to later.
Michael Murray's
Betting Baseball--A New Approach (104 pages, plastic spiralbound,
$39.95) is the newest book on baseball betting, first published in
1994. It discusses the money line, the run line, betting Totals, measuring
offense, measuring consistency in starters, evaluating injuries, the
impact of ballpark differences, creating the line. A good portion
of Murray's book looks at the role umpires may play in the final score
(strike zones seem to vary within leagues and among home plate umps).
There is an 18-page
section on baseball betting in the classic Sports Book Management
by Michael Roxy Roxborough and Mike Rhoden (114 pages plastic spiralbound,
$35). This 1998 book was designed to teach future sports book personnel
how to make a line, move numbers and what the house edge is for a
variety of wagers. The book also contains major sections on basketball
and football betting, plus smaller sections for hockey and boxing.
There are illuminating sections on future, parlay cards and special
promotions, along with sections on bookmaking myths and linemaking
theory. Really a book for those who want to work within the industry,
but a super resource for those who want to understand how the House
makes a profit.
