2020 World Series Odds: Bronx Bombers Favored To Win it All
The 2020 MLB season is only a few months away and while the cloud of the sign-stealing scandal hovers above baseball like a black cloud, one team that doesn’t seem to be deterred is the New York Yankees and they remain the betting favorite to win the World Series.
Online sportsbook BetOnline has the Yankees at +350 to win their 28th World Series in franchise history and after adding SP Gerrit Cole from the Houston Astros, the Bronx Bombers have earned the favorite tag.
Following the Yanks are the Los Angeles Dodgers at +600, the Astros at +700 (more on them below), the Atlanta Braves at +1000 and the New York Mets at +1400 to round out the top five options on the oddsboard.
Why are the Yankees the Favorites?
As my colleague Scott Hastings detailed when he previewed the 2020 World Series futures back in December, Gerrit Cole is clearly a needle-mover in the Bronx. Cole is coming off a career year in which he had his lowest ERA (2.50), most strikeouts (326) and most innings (212.1), all of which led to him finishing second in the AL Cy Young voting, four votes shy of his teammate and future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander.
Adding Cole to an already stacked roster that had the third-best record in MLB a year ago feels a little Golden State Warriors-ish but that’s the Yankees for you. They have bought players throughout the history of the franchise so bettors shouldn’t be shocked that Cole chose to become the highest-paid pitcher in baseball with a contender in the biggest market in North America.
Assuming the Yankees lineup can remain healthy (Giancarlo Stanton missed all but 18 games in 2019), they should be in the driver’s seat and control their destiny going into the postseason. Even at +350, those odds are worth considering given how dynamic this roster is.
Fade the Astros and Red Sox
As I detailed in my piece on the sign-stealing fallout and the axing of AJ Hinch and Alex Cora, former managers of the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox, these two teams could be in free fall and I want no part of them when betting on MLB futures.
Yes, the Astros still present a formidable batting order but the loss of Cole cannot be overstated because now Houston will need to rely solely on Verlander and Zack Greinke in the rotation. Those two are obviously great but the AL West has improved and with the Astros’ every move under scrutiny, the distractions could be too perilous for them to overcome. Their odds at +700 are also not enticing enough with the drama surrounding them.
As for the Red Sox, they were already in a downward spiral after the massive regression of starters Chris Sale and David Price in 2019. Sale and Price both sported career-high ERAs over 4.25, and the bullpen was a dumpster fire with 31 blown saves last season.
Boston’s offense could rebound as it still has studs up and down the batting order but with no offseason upgrades, an exiled manager and the Yankees’ improvements, there will be no endorsement from me to back the Sox to win the World Series, even at +2500.
Here’s a look at the full list of odds to win the 2020 World Series:
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| New York Yankees | +350 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | +600 |
| Houston Astros | +700 |
| Atlanta Braves | +1000 |
| New York Mets | +1400 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | +1400 |
| Washington Nationals | +1400 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | +1600 |
| Chicago Cubs | +2000 |
| Cleveland Indians | +2000 |
| Los Angeles Angels | +2000 |
| Minnesota Twins | +2000 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | +2000 |
| Boston Red Sox | +2500 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | +2500 |
| San Diego Padres | +2500 |
| Chicago White Sox | +2800 |
| Oakland Athletics | +2800 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | +3300 |
| Cincinnati Reds | +3300 |
| Texas Rangers | +5000 |
| Colorado Rockies | +10000 |
| San Francisco Giants | +10000 |
| Seattle Mariners | +10000 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | +10000 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | +15000 |
| Baltimore Orioles | +25000 |
| Detroit Tigers | +25000 |
| Kansas City Royals | +25000 |
| Miami Marlins | +25000 |
Odds as of January 19 at BetOnline
What is a Futures Bet on World Series Odds?
When you visit your sportsbook of choice, you’ll see an option to bet on which team will win the World Series. This kind of bet is a futures wager, which means you’re betting on events that will happen in time. Oddsmakers release action on the Fall Classic before the season starts and adjust the lines from April to October as teams surge and stumble in the standings.
You would see odds listed like this:
- Houston Astros +200
- Los Angeles Dodgers +250
- New York Yankees +400
- Atlanta Braves +550
- St. Louis Cardinals +700
Unlike a moneyline bet, where there would be a clear favorite and underdog, the team with the lowest odds is the closest thing to a fave. In this case, it’s the Astros. The team with the highest odds would be the closest thing to a dog. Here, it’s the Cards.
If you were to bet $50 on St. Louis at the beginning of the season and they won the World Series, you’d get a payout of $400 – your original $50 is returned, along with your winnings of $350. On the other hand, a bet on Houston would give you a payout of $150 – you get your $50 back, plus your loot of $100. Our Odds Calculator can help you determine how much you’d pocket depending on the odds and the amount bet.
The earlier you can make a futures bet the better, because you’ll see higher returns since World Series odds ebb and flow depending on a team’s overall performance, injuries to key staff, and how they stack up against the rest of their division. However, you’ll need to handicap your bets accordingly. Luckily, we’ve got you covered with everything baseball:
• Odds
• Offensive and Defensive Stats
