MLB Betting Trends - Hottest UNDER Teams

The dog days of summer are almost over, but there are still plenty of chances to cash winning ‘under’ tickets in the majors. Check out this week’s list of the best ‘under’ teams in baseball over the L/5 days…

(Rank) (Team) (O/U Record) (O/U Record in L/5)

1: Tampa Bay Rays (64-80-6) (1-4 in L/5) - The Rays fell off the face of the earth with a dastardly 11-game losing streak in the month of September, but manager Joe Maddon should still be proud of the effort of his youthful pitching staff down the stretch. None of his starting pitchers have conceded more than four earned runs in a start since September 15th. ‘Under’ bettors are 5-1 since that point thanks to the great starts. Much like two years ago, Tampa Bay’s struggles have come from its bullpen, where seemingly everyone is taking turns collapsing. The Rays have 22 blown saves against just 35 converted saves this season. It’s not that anyone in the bullpen has individually been a huge letdown this year (though Grant Balfour’s 4.66 ERA is significantly too high), but it feels like the team can’t string together three consecutive scoreless innings to save a game for a starter right now to save their lives.

2: Seattle Mariners (60-85-5) (1-4 in L/5) - Give it up for Seattle’s pitching staff. In spite of the fact that LHP Jarrod Washburn was dealt to the Tigers, the M’s have still held eight of their L/11 opponents to three runs or less. RHP Felix Hernandez has certainly done his share for all of these ‘unders’ that Seattle has played this season. King Felix is 16-5 with a 2.45 ERA and he hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in a start since July 27th. Since May 30th, ‘under’ bettors are 5-15-1 in Hernandez’s 21 starts.  The M’s are 16-5 in those games as well. If he was pitching on a contending team, without a doubt, he would be the Cy Young Award winner in the American League. As it is, it’d still be a sin if he didn’t win it.

3: Florida Marlins (77-67-8) (1-3-1 in L/5) - The Marlins are still hanging in there, but it’s starting to get to the point where they may have to string together seven or eight victories in a row to run down the Rockies, Giants, and Braves for the NL Wild Card. A split with the Phillies in Tuesday’s doubleheader really wasn’t good enough, especially considering that RHP Josh Johnson was on the mound. He struck out ten Phillies in the day game, but the four runs allowed parlayed with a bad bullpen effort not only cost the Fish the game, but it also cost ‘under’ bettors a victory. The offense hasn’t scored more than four runs in a game since September 16th, and that just isn’t going to cut it no matter how good the pitching is down the stretch.

And the rest…

4: Minnesota Twins (64-77-10) (1-3-1 in L/5)

5: Cincinnati Reds (58-83-8) (1-3-1 in L/5)