St. Louis right-hander Adam Wainwright’s 2.24 ERA has helped ’under’ bettors.
Those who wager on baseball totals have noticed a definite trend through the season's first half. There are quite a few more teams with ‘under' trends than clubs with tendencies to soar ‘over' the closing total.
This might seem unusual considering the ‘under' has cashed just 13 more times than the ‘over' (560-547) through the first 1,107 games of the season.
The St. Louis Cardinals top the list of ‘under' clubs at 49-33-2 (59.8 percent). Most of the ‘under' success can be attributed to pitching and defense, as the Cards have allowed just 326 runs (3.8 runs per game). It should also be noted that the ‘under' has cashed in 25 of the Cardinals' first 39 contests at Busch Stadium.
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The NL West-leading Padres have allowed a Major League-low 283 runs (3.4 runs per game), which has greatly helped the ‘under' go 44-33-7 (57.1 percent) in their first 84 contests. Most of the low scoring damage has occurred at Petco Park, where San Diego has seen the ‘under' go 25-12. Conversely, the ‘over' has gone 22-19 in the Padres' first 41 road encounters.
Though the Chicago Cubs play at a small bandbox called Wrigley field, it is interesting to note that the ‘under' has cashed in 23 of the first 40 games there. Overall, the ‘under' is 44-33-8 in the club's first 85 affairs, thanks to some light hitting that has seen the Cubbies average just four runs per game.
Though the utilization of the designated hitter sometimes doesn't bode well for betting the ‘under' in American League games, it doesn't seem to influence Baltimore and Oakland.
Both squads have seen the ‘under' cash at a 56.3 percent clip. The O's have seen the ‘under' go 45-35-4 in their first 84 outings, while the A's have seen the ‘under' go 45-35-6.
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An anemic offense is the main cause for Baltimore's ‘under' trend, as the club scored 307 runs through those 84 games for an average of just 3.6 runs per game. Only Seattle (291) and Houston (301) had scored fewer runs.
Bettors who like to wager on the ‘over' are having a field day with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Kirk Gibson's troops allowed a league-leading 495 runs through their first 85 contests, helping the ‘over' go a league-best 52-31-2 (62.7 percent). Most of the damage has occurred at home, where the ‘over' was 28-14.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers round out the top ‘over' teams, with both squads flying above the closing total at a 55 percent rate. The Dodgers have seen the ‘over' go 46-37-1 in their first 84 contest. Most of the damage has occurred at Dodger Stadium, where the ‘over' was 26-16 through 42 home dates.
The Brewers had allowed 460 runs (5.3 runs per game) through their first 85 encounters, which was the second highest total behind Arizona.