Angels popular bet behind AL MVP co-favorites Ohtani, Trout
Baseball is back and so are bets on the Los Angeles Angels to win the World Series.
Led by Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, the co-favorites to win the American League MVP award, the Angels are once again a popular pick to win their first world title since 2002.
“Every year in the preseason, we always get bets on the Angels,” Westgate SuperBook manager Randy Blum said. “They never seem to get enough pitching to get over the hump.”
A SuperBook bettor wagered $10,000 to win $400,000 on LA to win the World Series at 40-1 odds in November. Additional action on the Angels has caused them to drop to 16-1 at the SuperBook, where they’re one of 12 teams at 20-1 or less to win it all.
“With an extra team making the playoffs in each league, we’re basically trying not to attract more Angels money,” Blum said. “The big thing is are they going to let Ohtani, at some point, pitch a full pitcher’s schedule? For a team like the Angels that needs pitching, it’s hard to have your best pitcher just pitch once a week.”
Three-time AL MVP Trout and reigning AL MVP Ohtani are +450 co-favorites at the SuperBook to win the 2022 award.
It’s the first time Blum can recall that Trout was not the clear favorite.
“Ohtani is just such a unique player,” Blum said. “I don’t believe he can duplicate what he did last year offensively. But if he comes back to earth a little bit and also has 15 pitching wins, he can still win.”
The Dodgers are the 6-1 favorites to win the World Series after opening at 5-1. Books bumped up LA’s odds after shortstop Corey Seager signed with the Texas Rangers.
“On paper, they’re still going to have a great team,” Blum said.
The defending world champion Atlanta Braves are the 10-1 second choice.
The New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros and New York Mets are each 12-1.
The San Diego Padres, Milwaukee Brewers and Toronto Blue Jays are each 14-1. The Boston Red Sox are 18-1.
“We felt the Dodgers and Braves were definitely 1-2 in the NL,” Blum said. “But in the AL, we have a bunch of teams with the same odds.”
The Mets dropped from 18-1 to 12-1 after they signed three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer — the 6-1 second pick to win the NL Cy Young behind teammate Jacob deGrom, the +250 favorite.
“When you’ve got deGrom and Scherzer 1-2, you’ve got a shot any day of the week,” Blum said.
DeGrom, a two-time Cy Young winner, also is the 16-1 sixth pick to win the NL MVP.
“We’ve never opened a pitcher lower than this,” Blum said. “If he stayed healthy last year, he was going to run away with the MVP. That’s how good he was and is.”
Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto is the +350 favorite to win the NL MVP, followed by Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. at 4-1 and Dodgers right fielder Mookie Betts at 6-1.
Philadelphia Phillies right fielder and Las Vegas High School and College of Southern Nevada product Bryce Harper is 10-1 to repeat as MVP.
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole is the 3-1 favorite to win the AL Cy Young, followed by Cleveland Guardians ace Shane Bieber at +450.
A SuperBook bettor wagered $7,000 to win $210,000 on the Cardinals (30-1) to win the World Series. Now 25-1, St. Louis is the ticket leader at the Westgate, followed by the Dodgers and San Francisco Giants (25-1).
Opening Day is April 7.
Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.