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What Are Blackjack Side Bets?Side bets are bonus bets placed on a round of Blackjack on outcomes beyond whether the player or dealer will win. The majority are staked at the start of the round before the cards have been dealt alongside regular bets and many have fixed odds that usually offer greater payouts than the simple 2:1 rewarded for beating the dealer.Play Blackjack at Pinnacle Casino

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Side bets provide an exciting way to make Blackjack games more interesting whilst offering you a greater number of ways to win. So what are side bets, what side bets are available and are they worth it? Read on to find out.

Blackjack Side Bets Explained

Finding a niche market in betting can often lead to value. This can be anything from specialist knowledge of handball betting to extensive experience in betting on Japanese baseball. Providing you know more than the bookmaker, there is money to be made.  &lt;Bet on soccer at Pinnacle&gt; They also make for interesting and potentially profitable bets, as they can be a little more reliable

Soccer odds

A corner is one of the most inexplicably exciting events in soccer. Only around three per cent of them lead to a goal, but you can guarantee that the attacking team’s fans will roar their approval and encouragement if their team are awarded one. Read on to find out how you can benefit from betting on corners.

Corners betting in soccer: Value in a lesser-known market

Poisson Distribution is a mathematical concept for translating mean averages into a probability for variable outcomes across a distribution. For example, if we know Manchester City average 1.7 goals per game, so by putting the Poisson Distribution formula tells us that this average equates to Manchester City&nbsp;scoring 0 goals 18.3% of the time, 1 goal 31% of the time, 2 goals 26.4% of the time and 3 goals 15% of the time.

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Poisson Distribution: Predict the score in soccer betting

What is Expected Value?The amount a player can expect to win or lose if they were to place a bet on the same odds many times over, calculated through a simple equation multiplying your probability of winning with the amount you could win per bet, and subtracting the probability of losing multiplied by the amount lost per bet.A simple example of Expected Value (EV) put into practice -&nbsp;if you were

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The Expected Value of a bet shows us how much we can expect to win (on average) per bet, and as such is the most valuable calculation a bettor can make when comparing bookmakers' odds. How can you calculate Expected Value in sports betting in order to predict your winnings? Read on to find out.

How to Calculate Expected Value

<p>Luke studied Economics at The University of Exeter before embarking on a career that combines two of his greatest interests, writing and sports betting. Despite a keen interest in soccer, he is open to exploring any sport where value might be present. He particularly enjoys analysing markets from different perspectives to try and find a profitable edge.</p>

Luke Petty

<p>Japan is home to the second biggest professional baseball league on the planet. The Nippon Professional Baseball league (NPB) features 12 franchises who compete for the prestigious Japan Series title.</p>
<p>Each NPB team plays 143 regular season games so there are plenty of opportunities for bettors to find value, especially those who take an analytical approach to betting. Large sample sizes and relatively settled rosters provide a strong opportunity for data-focused bettors.</p>
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<h2>Get the best odds for npb betting</h2>
<p>Pinnacle are the choice for knowledgable Japanese baseball bettors&nbsp;</p>
<a id="SignUpCTA" class="button sign_up" href="https://www.pinnacle.com/en/account/signup/step1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sign up here</a><a id="LogInCTA" class="button log_in" href="https://www.pinnacle.com/en/account/login?appId=guest&amp;returnPath=/betting-resources/en" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Log in here</a></div>
<h3><strong>NPB teams</strong></h3>
<p>There are 12 NPB teams split into two divisions:</p>
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<h2>NPB teams</h2>
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<p><strong>Central League</strong></p>
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<p><strong>Pacific League</strong></p>
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<p>Chunichi Dragons</p>
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<p>Chiba Lotte Marins</p>
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<p>Hanshin T<span>igers</span></p>
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<p><span>Fukuoka</span> Softbank Hawks<span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></p>
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<p>Hiroshima Toyo Carp</p>
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<p>Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters</p>
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<p>Tokyo Yakult Swallows</p>
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<p>Orix Buffaloes</p>
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<p>Yokahama DeNA BayStars</p>
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<p>Saitam Seibu Lions</p>
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<p>Yomiuri Giants</p>
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<p>Tohoku Rakuten Eagles</p>
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<h3><strong>NPB league schedule and postseason</strong></h3>
<p>Each team plays 143 regular-season games. After all regular season games have been played the top three teams go on to compete with each other in a two-stage playoff.</p>
<p>The regular-season runners-up play the third place team in a best-of-three series. The winners of that contest then play the regular-season league champions in the Final Stage. The Final Stage is a <span>six-game</span> series with the regular-season champions starting with a <span>one-game</span> advantage.</p>
<p>The winners of the Climax Series from each league then play in the best-of-seven Japan Series to determine the overall champion.</p>
<h3><strong>Differences between MLB and NPB<span>&nbsp;</span></strong></h3>
<p>Betting on NPB is broadly similar to MLB betting, <span>however</span> there are a few differences bettors should be aware of:</p>
<h3><strong>Regular season games can end in a tie</strong></h3>
<p>If an NPB game is level after 12 innings then the result is a tie.</p>
<p>In terms of betting, in the event of a <span>tie</span> all wagers on the Money Line will result in a push (<span>stake</span> is returned to the <span>bettor</span>) whilst spread and totals bets will be settled as usual.</p>
<h3><strong>Longer shifts from starting pitchers</strong></h3>
<p>Since NPB teams can operate a six-man rotation, as opposed to five in MLB, NPB managers can leave their starters out for <span>longer</span> as they can play weekly rather than every five days. It is not uncommon to see opening pitchers racking up 100 or more pitches in a game.</p>
<p>This adds to the importance of knowing the starting pitchers for each matchup since longer shifts can see them have a greater impact on the game.</p>
<h3><strong>Totals</strong></h3>
<p>In general total runs per game are lower in the NPB compared to Major League Baseball. However, scoring can be variable season-to-season so trends need to be monitored.</p>
<h3><strong>NPB runs per game</strong></h3>
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<p>Season</p>
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<p>Central League</p>
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<p>Pacific League</p>
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<p>Average</p>
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<p>2018</p>
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<p>4.44</p>
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<p>4.28</p>
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<p>4.36</p>
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<p>2017</p>
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<p>4.04</p>
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<p>4.01</p>
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<p>4.03</p>
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<p>2016</p>
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<p>4.09</p>
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<p>4.12</p>
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<p>4.11</p>
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<p>2015</p>
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<p>3.42</p>
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<p>3.98</p>
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<p>3.7</p>
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<p>2014</p>
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<p>4.22</p>
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<p>4.01</p>
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<p>4.12</p>
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<p>Average</p>
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<p>4.04</p>
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<p>4.08</p>
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<p>4.06</p>
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<h3><strong>MLB runs per game</strong></h3>
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<p>MLB</p>
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<p>2018</p>
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<p>4.44</p>
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<p>2017</p>
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<td>
<p>4.65</p>
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<p>2016</p>
</td>
<td>
<p>4.48</p>
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<p>2015</p>
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<p>4.25</p>
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<p>2014</p>
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<p>4.07</p>
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<p>Average</p>
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<td>
<p>4.38</p>
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<p>Per game run totals in NPB dropped in 2015 after the ball was changed to a less <span>hitter-friendly</span> one, <span>however</span> run totals have slowly increased as the league has adapted.</p>
<p>Totals bettors should be aware that average runs in NPB are marginally lower than in MLB due to a combination of factors including fresher pitchers and the change of ball.</p>
<p>Over the past five seasons marginally more runs have been scored in the Pacific League than in the Central League, <span>however</span> this difference is so small that it can probably be attributed to variance.</p>
<h3><strong>NPB betting: Markets available</strong></h3>
<p>Pinnacle <span>offer</span> a range of markets which will be familiar to MLB bettors:</p>
<h3><strong>Money Line</strong></h3>
<p>A bet on which team will win the fixture. This will result in a push in the event of a tie.</p>
<h3><strong>Run Line betting</strong></h3>
<p>This is a bet on the spread or handicap. For betting on the NPB a team is assigned a total number of runs to be added or taken away from their final total.</p>
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<li>Read:&nbsp;<a style="color: #f50;" id="articleLink" href="/betting-resources/en/educational/handicap-betting-in-different-sports/elx2vjpllhq8rkla" target="_blank">Baseball handicap betting</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3><strong>Totals</strong></h3>
<p>A bet on the total number of runs which will be scored in the game.</p>
<h3><strong>Team totals</strong></h3>
<p>A bet on the total number of runs to be scored by a specific team in the game.</p>
<h3><strong>Team to score first</strong></h3>
<p>A bet on which team will score the first run.</p>
<h3>Hits+ runs+ errors</h3>
<p>A totals wager that combines the runs, hits and errors in a game. Bettors can bet on there to be over or under a set total.</p>
<p><strong>For more information about <span>baseball</span> betting read Pinnacle’s </strong><a href="/betting-resources/en/baseball/ultimate-baseball-betting-guide/ju3j9v9hpreq3vms" target="_blank"><strong>guide to betting on baseball</strong></a><strong>.</strong></p>
<h3><strong>Get the best odds for Japanese baseball betting</strong></h3>
<p>The Japanese league provides an exciting market to those familiar with baseball betting and newcomers to the sport alike.</p>
<p>Now that you know the basics behind betting on Japanese baseball make sure to take advantage of Pinnacle’s best value <a href="https://www.pinnacle.com/en/odds/match/baseball/japan/nippon-professional-baseball" target="_blank">NPB odds</a>.</p>

NPB Odds

NPB betting: How to bet on Japanese baseball

Betting on Japanese baseball provides a great opportunity for value bettors. What are the main differences between NPB and MLB? What should totals bettors consider? What markets are available for NPB bettors? Read on to find out.