MLB betting for 2010 begins with looking at the odds to win the World Series.
The defending World Series champion New York Yankees are favored in baseball betting at odds of just under 3-1. Here is a look at some of the other contenders and a couple of longshots for the 2010 baseball season.
MLB betting favors the Yankees but they are not the only team with single-digit baseball betting odds. The Boston Red Sox are next at 5.5 to 1 in MLB betting futures. The Philadelphia Phillies got a lot of press by signing Roy Halladay and they are also right there with the same MLB betting odds at 5.5 to 1.
The Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies are definitely the three favorites in MLB betting since all of the other teams have double-digit odds. The lowest of those odds is 12-1 on the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers have a number of question marks and they are playing in an improved National League West but they still have Joe Torre as manager and a solid team. St. Louis is next at 13-1 in MLB betting. The Cardinals look very tough this season as they re-signed Matt Holliday to complement the best player in baseball, Albert Pujols. The Cardinals also have an excellent starting rotation led by Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright.
The Los Angeles Angels lost pitcher John Lackey but they are still given a lot of respect in MLB betting as they are 14-1 to win the World Series. The New York Mets really have done nothing but they are a New York team and still get some play on the futures board so the odds are low at 15-1. San Francisco has a great pitching staff and they are next at 16-1. The Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies and Seattle Mariners are 18-1. Texas is the only other team with baseball betting odds of 20-1 or less.
There are some interesting longshots including the Arizona Diamondbacks who get a healthy Brandon Webb back to dominate National League hitters. Arizona is a very tempting 50-1 in World Series odds. In the American League the Tampa Bay Rays are not getting much respect as they are 27-1 in baseball betting.
The two teams with the longest baseball betting odds to win the World Series are the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals at 125-1.