Major League Baseball Hot Stove season is in full swing. It is cold outside now in Ohio but it will not be long until pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training and the 2023 season beckons. 2023 promises to be especially fun for Ohio baseball fans and sports betting legalization began at 12:01AM on January 1st, 2023.

MLB debuts a new scheduling format in 2023. Teams will now play 14 games against each of their division rivals, six each vs. other teams in their league, four vs a designated rival in the opposite league and three vs every other team in the opposite league. Fans now get to see their teams oppose every other MLB team every season. All teams will visit every other ballpark in MLB at least once every two seasons.

The good news for Ohio baseball fans? Both Cincinnati Reds fans and Cleveland Guardians boosters get to see their teams square off vs the Los Angeles Dodgers each season. The bad news? Well, the Dodgers look good heading into 2023 as they do virtually every season so they will be tough games to win as always. The Dodgers visit The Great American Ballpark on June 6th, 7th and 8th while the Reds head out to LA on July 28th, 29th and 30th. The Dodgers return to Ohio to face the Guardians for a three game set starting on August 22nd.

Ohio residents over the age of 21 can bet on the Dodgers games, as well as every other game. Make sure to click here and take advantage of all the the best Ohio sports betting promos available to new signups. Most of the sportsbooks offer first bet free bet insurance in the range of $1000 as a welcome bonus.

Ohio residents will have many ways to wager on MLB in general, and Reds and Guardians games vs the Dodgers in particular. That includes all of the following.

Moneylines

This is the most popular baseball bet. Just pick the winner, with odds. MLB does have a unique twist however as bets are often contingent on the starting pitchers listed in the betting market. For example, a book may post something like this line on Dodgers vs Reds

• Dodgers (Kershaw) -170
• Reds (Lodolo) +150

Dodgers bettors need to risk $170 to win $100 if the Dodgers win, while Reds bettors win $150 if the Reds win. The bet voids completely if either Clayton Kershaw or Nick Lodolo get scratched from the start.

Run Lines

These are game bets with a spread, virtually always set at 1.5 runs. In the above example, maybe the books post Dodgers (Kershaw) -1.5 runs +130 vs Reds (Lodolo) +1.5 runs -110. Dodger bettors win $130 on a $100 bet if the Dodgers win by two runs or more. On the flip side, Reds bettors cash if Cincy either wins the game or loses by just one run. As in the moneyline, the bet voids if one of the scheduled pitchers fails to make the start.

Totals

Just like other sports, this is an over/under wager on the total combined score of the two teams. In baseball that is the combined runs, which will look something like this.

Dodgers vs Guardians Over 7.5 runs +160, Under 7.5 runs -140.

If the teams combine for eight runs or more, the over wins, if it is seven or less, the win goes to the under bettors. Under bettors beware of extra innings on this one! Everyone who has ever played an MLB total has a bad beat horror story on an under gone horribly bad.

Five Inning Money Lines and Totals

Sportsbooks list popular halftime bets on all major sports, or in the case of hockey, bets on the three periods. Five inning lines are the equivalent in MLB markets but these have an added appeal. That is because the dynamics of a game change dramatically when starting pitchers leave the game and bullpens of various qualities enter in. Reds bettors especially will have interest in this as they figure to have plenty of games where their high quality starters hold the opponent in check but their shaky bullpen gets blown up.

Futures

Just like these sound, they are relatively long-dated bets on season achievements such as World Series and pennant winners. Some have posted already, including these World Series odds over at BetMGM

• Astros +650
• Mets +650
• Yankees +650
• Dodgers +800
• Braves +1000
• Padres +1000
• Phillies +1400
• Mariners +1600
• Blue Jays +1600
• Guardians +2500

Everyone else carries odds of +2500 or greater. That includes the Reds at a whopping +25000.

The books will eventually post odds on Cy Young winners, MVPs and Rookie of the Year winners, as well as Division winner futures.

Props

Sportsbooks post an enormous menu of prop bets on every MLB game. Bettors can find over/under individual player game props on just about everything, from homers to total bases to RBI’s to hits. They also list combined props such as hits and walks allowed for pitchers as well as team props such as team to score first, total home runs and so on.

Props list on the day of the game and generally carry relatively low limits.

Live Betting

MLB is not the speediest game out there. That is often not great for viewership but does lend itself quite well to live betting the games. All sportsbooks will prominently post live odds on MLB games in all of moneylines, totals and run lines. These run lines do not default to 1.5 runs, but rather will post nearer to the actual score.

Spring will arrive before we all know it, and in 2023 Reds and Guardians fans can hopefully enjoy betting on their players and teams while inside the borders of Ohio!