Every player has a betting system in place, and it usually involves the home team as the side with the edge. That should hold true on Thursday, when the Los Angeles Angels host the Minnesota Twins in the first of a four-game set.

Twins Angels Odds – Thursday, July 23, 10:05 PM ET

Scott Baker (8-7, 5.10) got off to a good start after a rough first half, holding Texas to a run on six hits over eight innings in a 4-1 victory on the road. Baker also tied a season high with eight strikeouts while walking a pair of Rangers. The 27-year-old righty has now won four of his last five decisions despite a couple of shaky outings before the break, and he’s comfortable on the road with a 4-3 record in eight starts and a 4.38 ERA. However, he’s still looking for his first win against the Angels, posting an 0-4 mark in six starts with a 5.88 ERA, which is sure to sway some from making the Twins one of their baseball picks on Friday.

Jered Weaver (10-3, 3.48) is 7-1 in his last 10 starts, but he was lucky to earn a no-decision in an 11-6 victory in Oakland, as he left after just 3.2 innings, giving up five runs on eight hits. There are reports that Weaver was ill before the game and tried to gut it out, but it wasn’t happening. But maybe a return to Angels Stadium is what the doctor ordered as Weaver is 7-1 in 10 home starts with a 2.25 ERA. The 26-year-old righthander has found success against the Twins in the past, going 2-1 in four outings with a 2.60 ERA.

Your betting system will favor Los Angeles at home, where they have an MLB-best 32 wins. Weaver has been a beast this year, and he’d love to avenge that outing against Oakland, which means he’ll have his best stuff. The Twins have also dropped seven of their last 10 trips to Los Angeles, which doesn’t bode very well for their chance.

Betting system pick: Los Angeles Angels

Betting on baseball is a little different than betting on any other sport. In the NFL, you only have 17 weeks of games to worry about. In tennis, you handicap the major tournaments. In basketball, it’s typically a matchup of the haves and have nots and in hockey, home ice advantage proves to be key.

Betting on Major League Baseball, is a different animal completely.

For starters, the season is 162 games long and it drags out over the span of nearly six months of the year. Since it is so long, games are played over different seasons. For example, the sport starts in spring, stretches over the summer and dips into fall.

So with so many games in the baseball season, one has to realize that any underdog can win at any point.

The Seattle Mariners were the worst team in baseball in the 2008 season yet they still won 61 times. It’s not like they were the Detroit Lions; if you bet against the Mariners every game you lost a good share of the time.

So since underdogs have so much value, that’s exactly what sports bettors have to look for: value.

Betting on huge favorites in baseball is arguably the worst system in sports betting. Laying more than -150 is dangerous as is and paying for -200 or -300 simply because a brand name pitcher is on the mound is not worth the price tag.

Take a look at pitchers like C.C. Sabathia or Brandon Webb this year, two guys who were Cy Young contenders last year. People have overpaid mightily for both starters on the betting lines each time they stepped on the hill and Sabathia has struggled and Webb did too before he got hurt.

In baseball, look for underdogs on a daily basis. Look for teams that are evenly matched and bet on the teams that are offering a good price. Paying for brand name pitchers and brand name teams can get you in trouble if you consistently lay more than -150.