What Is the Moneyline in Baseball? Starters and Run Lines
A baseball moneyline is priced on the listed starters. See how Action vs Listed settles a scratch, why Circa reprices it, and how the run line shifts the price.
Lap plan (7 sectors)
- S1How to read a baseball moneyline next to the starters1 min
- S2Action vs listed pitcher: what the starter clause means1 min
- S3What happens to a moneyline bet when the starter is scratched1 min
- S4What does +1.5 run line mean in baseball?1 min
- S5Moneyline or run line: how the house rules split them1 min
- S6Fast answers1 min
- S7Sourcing1 min
Lights out
A baseball moneyline is a bet on which team wins the game, nothing more: no runs to cover, just a price on each side. The catch is that the price is built on the two listed starting pitchers, so read the house rule for a scratched starter before you read the number.
That is the whole answer. The rest of this page is where the cost hides: how the starter clause works, what different books do when the arm changes, and how the run line reprices the exact same game. For the general mechanics across sports, start with moneyline betting meaning, explained.
How to read a baseball moneyline next to the starters
A baseball moneyline is two prices, one per team, printed beside each club's probable starter. The William Hill US baseball guide uses a Cubs and Phillies board that shows it cleanly:
| Team and starter | Moneyline | Run line | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago, Darvish | -115 | -1.5 at +140 | 9.5, -110 |
| Philadelphia, Nola | +105 | +1.5 at -160 | 9.5, -110 |
Read it left to right. Chicago is the favorite at -115, so you lay more than you stand to win. Philadelphia is the underdog at +105, so you win more than you stake. There is no draw price because there is no draw leg here, which is the gap between this market and a three-way moneyline with a draw.
The pitcher names are not decoration. That -115 is a price on Darvish against Nola. Change either arm and the fair number changes, which is why every book has to say what happens to your ticket when one of them does not start.
Action vs listed pitcher: what the starter clause means
Your moneyline is either Action (it stands whoever starts) or Listed (it only stands if the named starters take the mound). Pick wrong and you can end up holding a price that was set for a matchup that never happened.
With a listed pitcher, the bet is only valid if the pitchers listed when you placed it take the mound as scheduled. Circa defines the trigger tightly: the listed arm must throw the first pitch of the game for his team for a moneyline wager to have action. Anything less and the bet is off.
The trap is the default. According to Action Network's scratched pitcher rules, you generally have to choose Listed yourself, because Action is the default at most sportsbooks. DraftKings splits it further, offering three separate listed-pitcher bets: pitcher A must start, pitcher B must start, or both must start. At DraftKings, Action rules cover every market except those listed-pitcher markets.
What happens to a moneyline bet when the starter is scratched
It depends on the book, and the rules point in opposite directions. As of October 2026, here is how the three books in the source pack handle it:
| Book | Action moneyline after a starter change | Run line and totals after a starter change |
|---|---|---|
| Circa Sports | Stands, at a new price Circa sets from the actual starters | Refunded |
| William Hill US | Stands, all bets are action | Stands, all bets are action |
| DraftKings | Action is the default | Action unless you took a listed-pitcher market |
Circa is the one that bites. If the starting pitcher options change, an Action moneyline gets an adjusted price set by Circa based on the actual starting pitchers. That is the book's number for the new matchup, not the price you took. So if your favorite lost its ace, your ticket now pays at whatever the book thinks the weaker arm is worth.
Meanwhile, at Circa every prior wager on the run line and totals gets refunded when the starter options change, along with alternate run lines, alternate totals and team totals. Same game, same scratch, and one bet is repriced while the other is handed back.
William Hill takes the opposite line: all baseball bets are action regardless of the starting pitcher. No refund, no reprice. Whatever you bet is the bet.
What does +1.5 run line mean in baseball?
The run line is the baseball spread: the favorite gives 1.5 runs and the underdog gets 1.5 runs, and the prices move to pay for that cushion. It is the same game as the moneyline, sold at a different number.
Go back to the Darvish and Nola board. Chicago is -115 to win outright but +140 at -1.5, because now the Cubs have to win by two or more. Philadelphia is +105 to win outright but -160 at +1.5, because the Phillies now cash even in a one-run loss. The underdog went from plus money to laying a price, and that swing is the cost of the extra run and a half.
So the question is never "moneyline or run line" in the abstract. It is whether the price shift is worth the margin you are adding or giving away for this specific pitching matchup.
Moneyline or run line: how the house rules split them
The two bets settle under different rules, so the choice is partly about what you are protected from. The moneyline settles on the winner; the run line also depends on how long the game goes and, at some books, who starts.
William Hill requires the game to go 9 innings on the run line and totals, or 8.5 if the home team is ahead. At Circa, full-game wagers including the moneyline and run line have action once a winner is declared, regardless of how many innings are completed beyond Circa's qualifier.
| Moneyline | Run line | |
|---|---|---|
| What has to happen | Your team wins | Your team covers 1.5 runs |
| Price on the Darvish and Nola board | -115 or +105 | +140 or -160 |
| Starter change at Circa | Action: repriced to actual starters | Refunded |
| Length rule at William Hill | All bets action regardless of starter | 9 innings, or 8.5 with the home team ahead |
Check the starters, check the clause, then check the number. In that order, before first pitch.
Fast answers
How does a moneyline work in baseball?
You pick the team that wins the game. The minus price marks the favorite and the plus price marks the underdog, and in baseball that price is quoted next to the two listed starting pitchers, so the matchup on the mound is part of what you are buying.
What does +1.5 run line mean in baseball?
The underdog gets a run and a half. It cashes if that team wins or loses by a single run. Because that cushion is worth a lot, the +1.5 side usually costs more than the dog's moneyline, as in the William Hill example where Philadelphia sat at +105 on the moneyline and -160 at +1.5.
What is better, moneyline or spread in baseball?
Neither is better by default. The moneyline only asks who wins; the run line asks by how much and moves the price to match. The house rules differ too: at Circa a starter change refunds the run line but reprices an Action moneyline, so the bet type also decides what happens before first pitch.
What does +/- mean in baseball odds?
Minus is the favorite, plus is the underdog. On a run line the same signs also sit in front of the 1.5 runs being given or taken, so read the run number and the price as two separate pieces of the line.
Sourcing
- Circa Sports, Nevada House Rules, accessed October 2026
- William Hill US, How to bet on baseball, accessed October 2026
- Action Network, MLB Betting Rules for Scratched Pitchers, accessed October 2026
- Sports Insights, MLB Betting Lines: Action vs. Listed Pitcher, June 11, 2013
