Anything with an outcome can be wagered on and that includes the Little League World Series. That’s right you can throw down on a group of kids who haven’t even reached their teenage years. Maybe that’s a good thing since these boys haven’t been spoiled by the riches and you know they will try their hardest to win no matter what. Betting on kids isn’t for everyone, but it does provide a unique situation and another outlet for bettors.
The sporting world turns its attention to South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, this week for the LLWS, which opens on Thursday, August 15 and runs through the championship game on Sunday, August 25. The popularity of the game has increased drastically over the years and every game of this tournament will be televised on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC.
Betting markets exist and you can find odds on the LLWS at top online sportsbooks. Opening Lines favor the international finalist with odds of -180. Hawai’i claimed victory last year, just the third victory for the United States in the last nine years.
Little League World Series Odds at BookMaker.eu
International Team wins LLWS -180
U.S. Team wins LLWS +140
We could be witnessing a resurgence by the United States. There have been just three champions in the last nine years, but two of those titlists came in the last three years. Honolulu blanked Seoul, South Korea, last year and New York won in 2016, temporarily putting an end to a dominant stretch from Japan. Teams from Tokyo had won five of eight championships from 2010 to 2017.
Chofu Little League won the competitive Japan Region and will likely be the overall favorite when the competition begins. Chofu went 4-0 to win the 16-team region, outscoring opponents 37-1 along the way, including an 8-0 victory to win the region.
South Korea will also be a heavy favorite to win the LLWS, but it won’t be a team from Seoul this year. Chung Nam Little League from South Chungcheong, South Korea, earned a spot in the LLWS by winning the difficult Asia-Pacific Region with a 7-2 victory over Chinese-Taipei. Chung Nam outscored its opponents 78-8 over the course of a perfect seven-game regional.
Curacao won the Caribbean regional and the team from Bologna, Italy, prevailed in the Europe-Africa regional. Latin America is always a tough opponent and the team from Venezuela will represent that bracket.
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The West Region on the U.S. side has been a consistent threat in the LLWS. Honolulu won the third title for Hawai’i last year and has helped the region to 10 championships. Teams from California, Hawai’i and Arizona have also finished as runner-up 19 times.
Elmora Youth Little League out of New Jersey may be the best chance for the United States to win the 2019 LLWS. The team has a good mixture of pitching and hitting, getting 17 runs to beat New York in the Mid-Atlantic Regional.
Betting on the youngsters in the LLWS is unpredictable. A routine ground ball can turn into the dreaded little league home run. Once a ball is in play, anything can happen, and it usually does. You can ride the hot arm of a pitcher for a certain team, but even that doesn’t always work out given the pitch count rules and requirement to play every player in every game. These are the best kids on their respective teams, but they are kids and 12-year olds do crazy things.
The best bet for a U.S. team to win the title is to hope Japan and South Korea get knocked out in bracket play. That’s not likely to happen given the gap between the Far East teams and their disciplined style. Again, they are kids and the outcomes are unpredictable. However, with the success Japan has had it’s hard to go against the international bracket.
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