
Baseball
Manager Factor
The old baseball axiom
of pitching being ninety percent of the game
would get very little argument from most sports
betting players, even if that baseball parable
may be a bit of an exaggeration. There are
very few baseball teams that ever got anywhere
successfully without solid pitching. Again,
the importance of pitching and its relation
to sports handicapping baseball games gets
very little argument.
The one factor or aspect
of sports handicapping baseball, which causes
considerably more debate amongst sports betting
players is how significant a manger is for
a baseball team. The arguments presented on
both sides of the issue at online sports betting
blogs and the evidence itself is mixed but,
in the end, the manager has marginal influence
over a baseball team and sports betting players
would be wise to not put too much emphasis
on managers when evaluating and sports handicapping
baseball teams.
Sports betting players
will recall that Joe Torre had a mediocre
record and was bounced from several jobs as
a manger before taking over the New York Yankees
and leading them to dynasty status during
the 1990’s and into the new millennium
as contenders. What did Torre have in New
York that he lacked at Atlanta and St. Louis
where his record was mixed? What made Torre
a ‘go with’ manager at many online
sports betting websites and sportsbooks? He
had George Steinbrenner’s money to buy,
develop, and keep top-notch talent.
Mike Hargrove led the
Cleveland Indians to their best era of baseball
in nearly two generations before departing
for Baltimore. When Hargrove arrived with
the Orioles, many sports betting players immediately
bought into the theory that Baltimore, with
a well-heeled owner, would be off and running
towards championships. It never happened and
Hargrove departed for Seattle, where he is
struggling in his first season.
Speaking of Seattle,
many sports betting players considered the
Mariners, under Lou Piniella, a money machine
against the sports betting odds and line makers.
Seattle was an annual title contender under
Sweet Lou. But now that Piniella is in Tampa
Bay, his teams are annually among the worst
in baseball as he publicly complains about
the lack of ownership commitment to winning.
You won’t find a lot of online sports
betting action on Piniella these days. Sports
handicapping baseball comes down to team talent.

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