Betting lines can move for many different reasons — like injuries to key players, weather, late lineup changes, one-sided action or smart money coming from professional bettors that immediately attracts the attention (and respect) of sportsbooks.
Also referred to as "sharps," these bettors have the ability to move lines across the market due to their reputations and ability to win over the long term.
At The Action Network, we have a handful of tools that allow us to track line movement, specifically adjustments being made solely in reaction to smart money.
And based on our betting tools, there's no question that sharps are betting both the moneyline and over/under for tonight's Yankees vs. Nationals (7:15 p.m. ET, FOX) matchup.
*Odds as of Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET
Yankees vs. Nationals Odds, Sharp Betting Pick
James Paxton vs. Stephen Strasburg
After kicking of the 2020 MLB season with a rain-shortened 4-1 victory over the Nationals on Thursday, the Yankees will send James Paxton to the mound tonight in Washington to take on Stephen Strasburg.
Sixty-one percent of bettors are taking New York, and sharps are among that majority as well.
After opening at -118, Sports Insights' Bet Signals — which track and report sharp betting action in real-time — triggered a Steam Move on the Yankees at -120, explaining why this line has climbed to a consensus of -130.
Steam is the result of a sudden overload of money placed at multiple sportsbooks and, in most cases, occurs due to betting groups, betting syndicates and a few key players with the resources to “get down heavily” at multiple locations, all at once.
But the sharps didn't stop there.
They also hit the Yankees-Nationals over three separate times, pushing this number from the opener of 8.5 to 9, at the time of writing.
Sharp angles: Yankees (moved from -118 to -130) & Over (moved from 8.5 to 9)
[Bet now at PointsBet and Win $100 if the Yankees get ONE hit!]
