Handicapping improved MLB teams
Year after year there are MLB teams that seem to come out of nowhere to surprise fans and baffle oddmakers on their way to an unpredictable season, going from bottom feeder to the top of the standings in just a single season.
However, sometimes after taking a closer look at a team that has charged to the top of the standings, it’s not all that shocking to understand why a team might be performing better than expected. Nevertheless, it’s imperative that baseball bettors know this in advance, in order to capitalize on big profits.
To help handicappers predict these huge team swings, we have assembled a few characteristics to look out for that can make one of these teams a big winner.
First, baseball bettors need to spot improvement in a team’s pitching rotation, spotting the subtle changes that the normal betting public is likely to overlook.
Perhaps the addition of a young pitcher with little experience but coming into their own, a key pitcher working his way back successfully from an injury, or a strong reliever being mixed into the backend of the rotation.
It can also be the addition of a veteran pitcher whose leadership has been lacking.
Sometimes an MLB roster has talent, but it lacks the discipline, focus and commitment to put it all together and win games. However, with the right veteran in the locker room, a small spark can ignite a team’s confidence, which can result in improving the team’s ability to win games.
Another factor to consider when trying to predict a team’s ability to improve following a bad season, is any changes in its coaching staff, particularly a manager change.
Handicappers spend a lot of time looking at players and their impact on a team, but they also need to spend ample time looking at managers and their effect on a team.
Equally important are a club’s pitching coaches and hitting coaches, who definitely get very little, if any attention by bettors. However, an upgrade to a well-known and experienced pitching or hitting coach can do a number on a team’s ability to win games. Even teams that have same manager from a dismal season the year before, but shuffled their coaching staff, can improve dramatically without getting noticed. Meaning, without the public jumping on the bandwagon, good value could be found here.
Finally, handicappers need to recognize rising young stars that have turned in sustaining key performances, and perhaps a team that is playing in a weakening division.
Teams play each other an outrageous number of times during the season, so it only makes sense that some teams just get better by repetition, often times taking advantage of the rest of the teams in their division who might be on the downslide, suffering from free agent losses, key injuries, retirements and off field drama.
These are just a few factors that can increase a MLB team’s ability to perform better than a prior season, but if a baseball handicapper studies these and other factors, they too could cash in on a better betting year than the one before.
