Do you like to dabble in sports betting? A lot do, and money can certainly be made with the process, but for those who are looking to just get into the act, there is one sport that may be easier to win money: baseball.

Baseball is America’s pastime and it’s also America’s pastime for sports gambling. But you have to know what and when to place your bet. Here are a couple pointers:

Know who’s hot

Sometimes betters go on history. For example, the Yankees have most the most MLB championships in the league and they have been good since Derek Jeter came into the league so they should easily slide by the Kansas City Royals.

Not so fast.

That misconception causes a lot of mistakes and loses money as a result. Know who’s hot this year, not just what team is historically better than the other.

This is a new year and betting should have a fresh update every year.

Bet on the home team

17 teams have better than .500 home records this year; three teams are .500 and the rest are under .500.

What does this mean? Statistically, betting on the home team is the best option if you are on the fence. It happens more often than not.

Know the starters

Pitching wins games. Pitching wins you money.

Bet on the pitcher who has had a couple good starts in a row. Chances are: he’s going to do it again.

Best place to bet on baseball and other sports

We all have an interest in sports and some of us feel confident about gambling on the sport they love. But where do you do it?

There are many options out there but I would recommend a place that gives you free money after placing one order.

Check out bonus bets for William Hill they reward you for signing up using the promotion code which is perfect for anybody who wants a taste of sports betting.

Good luck!

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As spring training is just a few weeks away, there are still some high profile free agents that have not signed.  We take a look at the top remaining free agents and take a look at their possible landing spots.

Michael Bourn

Bourn is coming off the best season of his career but still has not found himself a club.  Aging outfielders at the age of 30 aren’t normally a hot commodity around the league, but Bourn has proven to be one of the best leadoff men in baseball over the past few seasons.  Posting a .348 on-base percentage last season for the Atlanta Braves, Bourn still has plenty left in the tank.

Bourn is represented by Scott Boras and is rumored to be seeking $15 million per year and at least a four year deal.  He has been in contact with the New York Mets, but contract talks are stalling.  Other teams with interest include the Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Texas Rangers.

Where we think he’ll end up

Despite Bourn’s impressive past few seasons, he is 30 and is probably in decline.  GMs around the league would be crazy to give him more than four years guaranteed and Boras’ $15 million per year is laughable.  His outrageous salary demands are likely the reason Bourn is still on the market.

He’s a nice fit for the Mets, and they appear to be the only team that has heavy interest in signing him.  If I was going to put my money where my mouth is  I’d bet he lands with the Mets on a 3-4 year deal that pays him $10-$12 million per year.

Kyle Lohse

Surprisingly, one of the best pitchers in the baseball last season Kyle Lohse has still not been signed. Lohse is coming off an impressive 16-3 season with a 2.86 ERA and 1.09 WHIP with the St. Louis Cardinals.  Over the past three seasons, Lohse has produced a line of 30-11 with a 3.11 ERA over 399 innings.

Perhaps not so coincidentally, Lohse also is another Scott Boras client without a job.  Another factor hurting Lohse is the draft pick compensation is attached to signing the right-hander.

The Cardinals seem to have little interest in Lohse, but with many pitchers in their starting rotation coming off serious injuries, they haven’t ruled out bringing him back.  Garcia and Wainwright are coming off injuries, and Chris Carpenter likely will not pitch in 2013 and his career could be over.

Where we think he’ll end up

It’s difficult to say because there is not a lot interest around the league.  The Orioles and Brewers did show some interest but would need the asking price to come down.  Lohse made almost $12 million last season, and saber experts would suggest he is due for regression.  He is also 34 years old.  Ultimately, we see Lohse returning to St. Louis with a slight salary increase on a three year deal.

Grady Sizemore

Grady Sizemore has been marred by injuries for the past five seasons and missed 382 of the last 486 regular season games.  He has not been fully healthy since the start of the 2007 season.  Despite his long injury history, he is only 30 years old.

He has spent his entire career with the Cleveland Indians, who resigned him last season for $5 million.  He did not step into the batter’s box once and had another knee surgery in September.  He is still not fully healed from surgery but expects to be fully healthy by midseason at the latest.

Where we think he’ll end up

It’s hard to think many teams would want to take a chance on Sizemore at this point, despite his considerable upside if he should stay healthy.  We look for him to find a club this year, but probably not until he is at full health.  Sizemore could be a pleasant contributor for a team in need of left handed power.

Freddy Sanchez

Despite not playing a game in 19 months, Freddy Sanchez is drawing interest from many teams around the league.  A career .397 hitter with a .335 on-base percentage, Sanchez won the batting title in 2006 hitting .334.  He’s also plus defender at both second and third base.

Where we think he’ll end up

Like Sizemore, it is hard to nail down an exact team Sanchez might be headed to, but an in shape Sanchez could be a bargain.  A versatile infielder with a proven glove and a near .300 career average is something many teams across baseball need.  Despite his age (35), we think Sanchez will earn a spot on a major league roster before spring training starts.

UPDATE:

Michael Bourn signed a four-year, 48 million dollar contract with the Cleveland Indians.

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Francisco Liriano isn’t expected to throw his first pitch in a Pirates uniform for another month, according to ESPN. He is expected to return in May.

“It’s coming along pretty good,” Liriano said. “I’m going to take it one day at a time and see how it feels over the next couple of weeks.”

“I was surprised when I got to the hospital and they told me it was broken,” Liriano said. “It didn’t feel like it was broken.”

“At first, they thought I was joking,” Liriano said. “I said, ‘No, I’m serious. Cancel the flight because I don’t think I can fly there tomorrow.’ It was sad and disappointing. There was nothing I could do except stay home, take it easy and wait.”

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We are hours away from the biggest football game of the season. We are hours away from a quarterback putting his name into the game’s elite category. We are hours away from one brother ousting another in triumph. We are hours away from crowning the champion of the world.

With that being said, and I know this is a baseball site so I’ll keep it short, here is your prediction for this year’s Super Bowl:

Ravens 20, 49ers 17.

This game is a virtual toss up as I have described before. Super Bowl 47 betting is even more of a toss up which is why the link is a great tool for advice. It displays the information perfectly, describing why the quarterback position is the key to the game.

Flacco has the experience edge on his counterpart by far. He has played and won more playoff games, now making it to the Super Bowl. Flacco has played in more games that were deemed “big”.

The Ravens have the edge and it’s because of that man.

And if indeed the Ravens win the Super Bowl, Flacco will be cashing out in a big way. Even if he doesn’t he still will be getting paid franchise money, according to the Baltimore Sun.

“We have a franchise quarterback, he’s going to get franchise money,” Bisciotti said in an interview with a small group of reporters Thursday. “That franchise money thing is about as hard to define as the word ‘elite,’ which we’ve had to dissect a hundred different ways. We’ve got our quarterback for the next 10 years and we’re going to ride Joe. And we said in the last couple of years that we believed he can get us to Super Bowls and win some. So we’re four days short of finding out whether he can win, but he got us there and he did it in grand fashion. So I find myself very optimistic about this.”

He has earned it.

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According to the Associated Press, the Pittsburgh Pirates agreed to terms on 2013 contracts with second baseman Neil Walker and right-hander James McDonald on Thursday, avoiding arbitration.

Terms of the deals were not disclosed, according to the report.

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As the Hall of Fame elects not one single person into its celebrated history, let’s take a second and talk about other sports.

Why? Because baseball deserves not to be talked about after not allowing one person in the MLB Hall of Fame.

Instead, let’s discuss football.

Who ya got? That’s the question now that the Wild Card round of the 2013 postseason is done and over with. Houston travels to New England to play the Patriots; Baltimore goes to Mile High to play the scorching hot Broncos; Atlanta hosts a dangerous Seattle Seahawks team and Green Bay and San Francisco take center stage on Saturday night in San Francisco.

I’ll unwillingly take the following:

Patriots over Texans.

I’ll more appropriately be rooting for the Seahawks and Broncos while not really caring who wins in the Packers-49ers game.

NFL betting odds have the Broncos (-10), 49ers (-2.5), Falcons (-1) and Patriots (-9.5) advancing to the Conference Championship games.

I would say that the odds makers couldn’t be more spot-on.

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We recently tried to predict how the Pittsburgh Pirates would do in the 2013 season. We projected the odds for the Pirates to finish above .500, make the postseason  and even win the World Series.

Now I would like to share the results. These results came from Facebook, Twitter and through me on my personal social media accounts.

104 people voted for us, and to them I say thanks. Here we go.

Win the World Series: 1

Nobody should have picked the Pirates to win the World Series but you’ll always have that one extremely optimistic fan out there!

Make the postseason: 29

I could see this happening but we still have a long ways to go before I can officially make my decision. I would have projected this number before this survey because we polled mostly what you can consider hardcore fans.

Finish .500 or better: 45

I could definitely see the Pirates playing above .500 baseball.

Finish under .500: 29

If I personally had to choose right now, I would say that the Pirates will finish under .500 once again. Until they finally eclipse that mark, I won’t project that they do. Ever.

It will be interesting to see where the Pirates stand in the eyes of sports books when the season comes around.

For all sports betting including Bowl Game Betting follow the link provided. Keep an eye out on the Pirates’ odds on that link too. With the Pirates season around the corner, it’s fun to keep tabs on how the experts think they will do this upcoming season.

If anything, hopefully the Pirates can be in the discussion come August once again. We can only hope.

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Have you ever thought about betting on sports? What about baseball?

It can be difficult but winning money is highly possible. There are several sites to help you get the best out of your betting. Please check for more sports betting online options, and look for places that could give you great advice.

My Advice

Research

Don’t go in without knowing the statistics. You don’t have to be a saber metrics guy but know what you’re doing. Research before you bet or you may pay the ultimate price.

Knowing the game of baseball certainly helps; realizing who’s hot and who’s not will definitely help you get where you want to be. Understanding pitching matchups, who does well against certain pitchers, how teams fare against one another and so much more goes into one bet.

Do your research!

Understand

Read sites like the one I mentioned. They really do help but also they provide you examples of how to go about betting on games. Sometimes the actual act of betting gets lost in the process prior to placing a bet.

Make sure you understand what you’re doing and what you’re getting into before placing a bet.

Start Small

Don’t bet big on the first one. Start small and learn the tricks of the trade before betting big. The worst thing you can do is throw all your money in one game and watch it disappear before you place another bet. While it could pay off, it’s still not the best decision.

The bigger the risk the bigger the reward. However, you don’t want to take that risk when you don’t know the tricks of the trade. Patience can be your best friend or your worst enemy.

You have the option but it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Note: This is not an endorsement for sports betting. Gambling is dangerous so please be responsible.

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