Have you noticed anything different this season about sports betting totals on American League games? The totals are a little bit lower than normal on the online sports betting odds board and there is a good reason for that. Scoring is down this season in the American League and it is down substantially.
Sports betting totals don’t get quite as much publicity as the sides but many gamblers actually bet them more often because they go under the radar. That also applies to baseball totals. Since 1993 the American League has averaged at least 4.7 runs per game every season. This season the league was averaging just 4.5 runs per game. Those numbers are way down from last season.
Why is the scoring down in the American League and will the sports betting baseball totals continue to drift lower? The big change in scoring has been the amount of home runs. Hitters are just not hitting as many long balls as in the past. Perhaps baseball finally has realized that steroids did make a huge difference and the new drug testing is making an impact. Not only are home runs down but batting averages are down. Through games of last week the league was hitting just .257 which is the lowest average since 1992. Some teams are really struggling to score runs. The Seattle Mariners have a very weak offense. They don’t have many hitters in their lineup who can drive in runs and their lineup has almost no power. Kansas City is another team that struggles to score runs and their lineup is weak. Baltimore and Cleveland have very weak lineups and injuries have not helped either of those teams as some of their best hitters are hurt.
The question to answer in sports betting is whether the totals will start to go up as the weather gets hotter. The answer is yes but maybe not as high as in past years. The National League is closing the gap on the American League and it is showing in runs scored. Tampa Bay and the New York Yankees can still score runs and Texas always hits the cover off the ball but some teams just don’t have powerful lineups. That is not likely to change even when the weather gets hotter.