Opening Day of the 2023 MLB season is about a month way, as we’ll see all 30 teams in action on March 30th. For those that can’t wait until the first pitch is thrown, there are plenty of ways you can attack the futures market. Our world-class betting analysts are already loading up our Pro Picks page with some of their favorite futures. However, there’s also another option for some of our bolder bettors, and that would be to bet on spring training.
Should you be betting on MLB spring training?
There are some inherent risks that come with betting on games that are effectively meaningless. For starters, there’s no guarantee that the team you’re betting on will be comprised of MLB-level talent. This is the time of the year in which minor-league players are getting opportunities to go out and try to make teams, so lineups tend to be weaker than usual. And the same goes for pitching, with some guys getting chances despite being nowhere near ready to face some of the best hitters on the planet.
This spring training also happens to be even more of a mixed bag than usual, as a lot of massive changes are going into place this season and the players are just getting a chance to test them out now. Some of the changes that have been made to MLB include the implementation of a pitch timer that prevents pitchers from taking too much time before beginning their motion, defensive shift limits to avoid having fielders bunched up in one specific part of the field and bigger bases for player safety — there should be less collisions with players having more room to operate, and potentially more stolen bases. These rule changes have already been quite controversial:
Bottom of the ninth. Tie game. Bases loaded. Full count. The dream scenario. And … Cal Conley didn't get set in the batter's box with 8 seconds left on the pitch clock.
Umpire calls an automatic strike. At-bat over. Inning over. This is the new reality. pic.twitter.com/Bv5k2xJ06j— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 25, 2023