Los Angeles Dodgers Remain World Series Favorites as Postseason Approaches

Posted on: September 24, 2020, 06:25h. 

Last updated on: September 24, 2020, 11:55h.

Bill Huber Read More
Expertise: Sports Betting, Sports.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees were the World Series favorites when Major League Baseball’s truncated season began two months ago. They are still the favorites with the postseason set to begin on Tuesday.

Los Angeles Dodgers Mookie Betts
Mookie Betts and the Los Angeles Dodgers are the World Series favorites and have the best record in the majors with four days to go in the regular season. (Image: Jayne Kamin-Oncea/USA TODAY Sports)

The Dodgers have lived up to the hype. With the regular season ending on Sunday, the Dodgers have baseball’s best record at 39-17. They have the best pitching staff (league-best 3.08 ERA) and are second in scoring (323 runs).

For the World Series, the Dodgers are a chop out for us,” Jason Scott, vice president of trading for Roar Digital/BetMGM, told Casino.org. “The truncated season has seen us take money for many of the large-price teams. We will keep most of that money. The Padres are our only loser in terms of realistic chances. In day-to-day games, we haven’t seen disproportionate money for the Dodgers.”

Shortly before the start of the season, the Dodgers and Yankees were +350 to win the World Series at BetMGM. With four days left in the regular season, the Dodgers are +375 and the Yankees are next at +600.

Why the Yankees?

In the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays have the best record at 37-20, followed by the Oakland A’s (34-21), Minnesota Twins (35-22), Chicago White Sox (34-22), and Yankees (32-24). Interestingly, while the Yankees have the fifth-best record in the American League and ninth-best record overall, they have the second-shortest odds.

From an odds perspective, why are the Yankees ahead of the Rays (+700), who ran away from the Bronx Bombers to win the AL East?

A combination of players returning from injury and, equally as important, is the playoff structure,” Scott said. “It’s 16 teams, knockout, and no real home field advantage. That means this year there isn’t a huge difference between the first or 16th team.”

If the postseason were to start today, these would be the matchups. These wild-card series are best-of-three. The Yankees and White Sox, who are tied for the fourth-shortest odds, would be a heavyweight showdown.

AL matchups

  • No. 8 Blue Jays vs. No. 1 Rays
  • No. 7 Indians vs. No. 2 A’s
  • No. 6 Astros vs. No. 3 Twins
  • No. 5 Yankees vs. No. 4 White Sox

NL matchups

  • No. 8 Reds vs. No. 1 Dodgers
  • No. 7 Giants vs. No. 2 Braves
  • No. 6 Marlins vs. No. 3 Cubs
  • No. 5 Cardinals vs. No. 4 Padres

Among the teams that have been eliminated, the Washington Nationals (+2,000) had the shortest World Series odds.

Latest World Series Odds

Before the season, the Dodgers were the favorites (+380) over the Yankees and Houston Astros (+400) at FanDuel. At the trade deadline at the end of last month, the Dodgers (+350) and Yankees (+450) were the top choices. But the San Diego Padres made a big move after making several deals. They are tied with the White Sox and Oakland A’s with the fourth-shortest odds.

Here are the latest championship odds from BetMGM. Of the 10 teams with the shortest odds, the Padres entered the season as the biggest long shots at +5,000.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers +375
  • New York Yankees +600
  • Tampa Bay Rays +700
  • Chicago White Sox +1,000
  • Oakland A’s +1,000
  • San Diego Padres +1,000
  • Atlanta Braves +1,200
  • Minnesota Twins +1,200
  • Chicago Cubs +1,400
  • Cleveland Indians +2,000
  • Houston Astros +2,500
  • Cincinnati Reds +3,500
  • St. Louis Cardinals: +3,500
  • Miami Marlins +4,000
  • Milwaukee Brewers +4,000
  • Philadelphia Phillies +4,000
  • Toronto Blue Jays +4,000
  • San Francisco Giants +5,000
  • New York Mets +8,000
  • Colorado Rockets +20,000
  • Seattle Mariners +30,0000
  • Washington Nationals +30,000
  • Los Angeles Angels +40,000
  • Detroit Tigers +50,000