We reached the final day of the regular season, but the situation in the National League is hardly defined as both the NL Central and NL West is going to a Game 163. The odds are impacted accordingly for those looking to bet on who will win it all.
We’ve had some exceptional postseasons over the last few years. We’ve seen a team in the Chicago Cubs win the World Series for the first time in 108 years. We saw the Houston Astros get their first title in the franchise’s history shortly after their region was ravished by a hurricane.
The last two World Series have gone to Game 7, granting us some rather exciting moments along the way.
While we’ve been spoiled with great playoff drama lately, the 2018 playoffs have already gotten off to an exciting start. We will have a pair of play-in games on Monday ahead of a one-and-done Wild Card contest on both Tuesday and Wednesday. What could be better?
The answer, of course, is winning big on postseason futures bets. If you’re looking to get some MLB futures action, look no further than BookMaker.eu.
2018 MLB World Series Betting Odds at BookMaker:
Boston Red Sox +325
Houston Astros +343
Cleveland Indians +655
Los Angeles Dodgers +890
Chicago Cubs +935
New York Yankees +965
Atlanta Braves +1035
Colorado Rockies +1050
Milwaukee Brewers +1265
Oakland Athletics +1865
ODDS ANALYSIS
Coming into the season, the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers were the odds-on favorites to win it all in 2018 after meeting in a thrilling 2017 World Series. That’s not overly surprising, of course, both teams were deep with talent and while there was some turnover, each team still lined up well.
As it turns out, we could very well see a rematch in 2018. Both are postseason teams again with the Astros winning the AL West and the Dodgers up on the Colorado Rockies to see who gets the NL West and who must battle it out in the Wild Card game.
Houston remains a favorite to win it all, just after the Boston Red Sox who recorded a franchise best 108 wins. Repeating as champions, however, is very tough and the Astros have a treacherous road ahead to do it. As for the Sox, winning the most games in the regular season and nabbing a World Series title in the same season is tough as well. After all, the 2001 Seattle Mariners won 116 games, but they didn’t even make it to the Fall Classic.
The AL playoff picture is incredible treacherous for any team. Boston won more games than anyone, but they could end up playing against a fellow 100-win team in the division series if the New York Yankees top the Oakland Athletics in the Wild Card game. That seems to be the prevailing thought with the A’s having the longest odds to win it all. They, of course, may be a good sleeper bet given how well they’ve played since mid-June. They’re not a flash in the pan and while the Bronx Bombers have more wins than them, the A’s won 97 games, more than six of the 10 playoff teams.
American League teams top the odds. The Sox, Astros and Cleveland Indians are the three heaviest favorites. Then there’s a jump before the first NL teams: the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs. Interestingly, those two teams are ahead of the Atlanta Braves. Atlanta is guaranteed a division series; the Cubs and Dodgers have to play Game 163 to try and win their division. The New York Yankees even have better odds to win the World Series and they’ve got to beat a pesky A’s team in a Wild Card game to earn the right to play the team that won the most games in the sport. Their path is far harder the Atlanta’s.
QUICK PICK
We haven’t had a back-to-back World Series winner since the Yankees won their third straight title in 2000. That should make any bettor skeptical of backing a reigning World Series champion to repeat, but if there’s a team to do it, it just might be this Astros squad.
Houston won the World Series last year despite a lackluster bullpen. This year, their bullpen had the best ERA in baseball, a third or a run lower than the next lowest bullpen ERA. Meanwhile, they have virtually the same lineup with some added depth and a much-improved rotation that features Gerrit Cole alongside Justin Verlander and Dallas Keuchel.
The Astros are a solid choice to repeat, but they—along with the Red Sox—are one of the heavy favorites to win it all. Both are safe picks, but they have minimal upside compared to a longer shot like the Brewers or even the Braves. After all, they’re the best teams, but the best teams don’t often end up winning the World Series, just ask the 2006 St. Louis Cardinals who ended the regular season with just 83 wins, sneaking into the playoffs thanks to a weak division.
The Braves are an interesting pick. The heavy favorites are all in the American League, but we know that there will be one AL team and one NL team in the World Series. Getting to the World Series is half the battle.
Of the NL clubs, Atlanta is the only one that’s guaranteed a division series, the other four teams are all playing in play-in games and then could be exposed to the Wild Card game if they fail to clinch their respective divisions.
While getting to the World Series figures to be inherently harder in the AL thanks to the loaded rosters amongst all five playoff teams, it’s fair to assume an AL team is more likely to win once they get there than a team from the NL. After all, the Indians won the fewest games of any team in the AL, but their 90 wins are on par with the win totals in the NL.
Even though the NL had the better record in interleague play, most of that can be attributed to the teams like the Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers at the bottom of the barrel in the AL. The bottom is terrible, but the top is loaded.
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform.
Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here so start betting with BookMaker today!
