MLB betting: Big bet comes in on Bronx Bombers
The MLB season is a grind and a lot can change between May and October, but one bettor at BetMGM has seen enough to make a sizable investment in the current best team in baseball.
Big bet on the Yankees
Entering the season, a lot of people had questions about the New York Yankees. They didn't do much in the offseason and it seemed like they were losing ground on the teams around them. The Toronto Blue Jays entered the MLB season as the favorites to win the AL East. The Tampa Bay Rays have been consistently solid for a few years now and don't seem to be going away anytime soon. The Boston Red Sox were coming off a solid season where they eliminated the Yankees in the playoffs.
However, as we approach the six-week mark of the season, the Yankees currently have the best record in baseball. As a result of the hot start, a bettor at BetMGM feels confident enough to make a sizable investment into the Bronx Bombers.
The Yankees opened at 10-to-1 to win the World Series in 2022. After their hot-start, they moved down to just +800. Not wanting to risk any more line movement, that's when a bettor placed a $25,000 bet on New York to win it all. The bet pays out $200,000 if the Yankees can run the gauntlet.
As a result of the bet, the Yankees are now just +600 to win the World Series. The Yankees have the second best odds of any team in baseball behind the Dodgers, who are currently +450 to win it all.
The Yankees have been red hot
After starting the season with a 5-5 record and a series loss to the Baltimore Orioles, some might have felt the preseason discourse about the Yankees was warranted. However, since dropping a game against Baltimore on April 17, the Yankees have gone 22-4 over the last month. Their 27-9 record is the best in baseball, three games better than the second-place Dodgers. They are 3.5 games ahead of the Astros, the owner of the second best record in the American League. New York has opened up a 5.5-game lead over the Blue Jays atop their division as well. New York is currently -225 to win the AL East.
There are currently just six players in all of baseball who have reached the double-digit mark in terms of home runs. Three of those players are on the Yankees in Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo. Judge's 14 home runs lead baseball. The monster Yankees right fielder is currently +500 to win AL MVP, the third best odds behind the Angels' duo of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout.
However, the story for the Yankees has been their pitching. Nestor Cortes currently leads the American League in ERA, and he's 16-to-1 to win the AL Cy Young. Expected ace Gerrit Cole has rebounded nicely from a slow start, and has given up just four runs over 25.1 innings over his last four starts. Cole has the fourth best AL Cy Young odds at +750, trailing only Justin Verlander, Kevin Gausman and Dylan Cease.
Will this continue? That remains to be seen. However, the Yankees currently lead baseball in pitching ERA and wOBA, a combination that suggests a dominant staff and a good lineup. They are the best team in baseball currently and if this continued, their odds would have dropped quickly over the next few weeks. The bettor felt now was the time to lock in the Yankees futures bet, let's see if he was right.
Current World Series favorites
The Yankees have the second best odds to win the World Series currently at BetMGM. Here's a list of other teams near the top:
Los Angeles Dodgers (+450)
New York Yankees (+600)
New York Mets (+800)
Houston Astros (+800)
Toronto Blue Jays (+900)
Milwaukee Brewers (12-to-1)
Atlanta Braves (14-to-1)
San Diego Padres (16-to-1)
Chicago White Sox (18-to-1)
Los Angeles Angels/Tampa Bay Rays/San Francisco Giants (20-to-1)
