It’s official. Opening Day is postponed. Major League Baseball released a letter on Tuesday detailing the impasse after the arbitrarily set deadline of February 28th came and went with no agreement being reached. So, here we are – faced with the first time that Major League Baseball will miss meaningful games since the 1994-95 season which saw the entirety of the postseason canceled.
Still, the season will start at some point. Whether it comes in the form of a shortened or condensed schedule largely depends on the time frame of when the new CBA is agreed upon. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the top two contenders to win the 2022 World Series according to Vegas.
Los Angeles Dodgers: +600 odds
After falling to the eventual champs Atlanta 4-2 in the NLCS, the Dodgers come in as the oddsmaker’s consensus favorite to win their second title in three years.
The Dodgers were never likely going to keep all their big-name free agents heading into this offseason. While the loss of ace Max Scherzer and 2020 World Series MVP Corey Seager definitely hurt, LA was able to re-sign Chris Taylor and beefed up their pitching depth with the additions of Andrew Heaney and Daniel Hudson before the lockout ended all communication between teams and players. Legendary Dodger lefty Clayton Kershaw looks likely to re-sign, which will be a boost, but his struggles with a left forearm injury mean that LA’s priority needs to be bringing in another starting pitcher. With links to high-profile free agents Freddie Freeman and Carlos Correa to bolster the infield, Dodgers fans should have plenty to be excited about when free agency resumes.
A lot depends on who the Dodgers are able to add to the team but +600 could wind up being a bargain by the time the season starts, especially when considering that they opened at around +350 to win it all last year. Buying in now could also potentially provide a nice hedge opportunity if Los Angeles is able to win the NL pennant.
Houston Astros: +900 odds
The controversial Houston Astros come in as the second favorite amongst oddsmakers to win the World Series. Like it or not, the Astros have been one of baseball’s most consistent teams since 2015, missing the playoffs only once and making it to the Fall Classic three times.
The big addition to the team so far is Justin Verlander’s return after signing a one-year, $25 million dollar deal after effectively missing the last two years due to undergoing Tommy John surgery. The soon-to-be 39 year old might be looked at as somewhat of a high-risk, high-reward type signing, but if the future Hall of Famer can even come close to replicating the form which saw him capture the Cy Young in 2019 then the Astros’ pitching staff has one of the highest ceilings in baseball.
While Carlos Correa is looking increasingly more likely to be moving on due to his reported eye-watering asking price of $350 million, the Astros will likely move quickly to fill the gap at shortstop once the season resumes. Trevor Story has been linked with a move and top prospect Jeremy Peña will be pushing for his MLB debut after coming back from wrist surgery last season.
At +900, it’s hard to deny the value on the ‘Stros who will be returning key pieces in Bregman, Altuve, Alvarez, and Tucker and who boast an immensely experienced squad.
World Series Betting Tips
Regardless of which team you like to win the 2022 World Series title, one of the principles of success in betting is ensuring that you always have access to the best possible predictions and tips available here on Sportytrader which is a resource dedicated to online sports bettors.
Come check out Belly Up Sports on Twitter for more sports and entertainment news and content.
