Westgate takes AL MVP odds off board amid Mike Trout’s uncertainty

A week before opening day, the American League MVP odds were off the board at the Westgate sportsbook Thursday amid speculation that clear favorite Mike Trout might not play this season.

Trout’s wife is expecting their first child in August, and the Angels center fielder has said he doesn’t feel comfortable playing and isn’t sure if he’ll play the entire 60-game season.

“We just need definitive information before we put the AL MVP back up,” Westgate manager Randy Blum said. “Even if he starts the season, he could decide not to come back. And, given the short season, if he misses a month, obviously he can’t win.”

To discourage sharp play on Trout to win his fourth AL MVP award this season, the Westgate opened him as a prohibitive -140 favorite. But he had climbed to the +125 favorite before the odds were taken down.

“We bumped up his odds with the shortened season, since anything can happen,” Blum said. “Anyone can get hot for six weeks.”

MGM Resorts still had its AL MVP odds up Thursday, with Trout the +130 favorite, followed by the Yankees’ Aaron Judge (+850), the Indians’ Francisco Lindor (11-1), the Yankees’ Gleyber Torres (15-1) and the Angels’ Anthony Rendon (16-1).

If Trout misses only a handful of games for paternity leave, handicapper Micah Roberts still expects him to win the MVP award.

For a long shot, Roberts likes Rays leadoff hitter Austin Meadows at 50-1, especially if Tampa Bay upsets the heavily favored Yankees in the AL East.

“If the Rays play well and are hanging tough with the Yankees, I think it will be because of Austin Meadows,” said Roberts (Sportsline.com), a former Las Vegas sportsbook director. “He might not have the best stats, but he’ll get more credit than the guy who has better numbers because of leading an underachieving team to slay the evil empire.”

In his first full season last year, Meadows hit .291 with 33 home runs and 89 RBIs in 138 games.

National League MVP

Mookie Betts, the 2018 AL MVP, is the 5-1 favorite at the MGM to win the NL MVP after the Dodgers acquired him from the Red Sox.

Blum said the Westgate has taken sharp action on Betts.

“As soon as we put the odds up, one of our most respected baseball bettors bet him for NL MVP,” he said.

Betts is followed at the MGM by the Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr. (6-1), the Brewers’ Christian Yelich (7-1) and 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger (8-1) of the Dodgers.

Roberts likes Bellinger, the Dodgers’ cleanup hitter, who is 10-1 at the Westgate.

“He’s going to have so many players on base,” Roberts said. “All he’s got to do is knock ’em where they ain’t, and he does that pretty well.”

Bellinger hit .305 with 47 homers and 115 RBIs last season.

For a longer shot, Sunset Station sportsbook director Chuck Esposito likes Las Vegas product Bryce Harper, who is 20-1 at the MGM entering his second season with the Phillies.

“There’s definitely some value with Harper at that price,” Esposito said. “They have a new manager in Joe Girardi, they’ve got a good young nucleus, and that’s a hitter’s ballpark.”

NL Cy Young

The NL Cy Young odds also were off the board at the Westgate after favorite Jacob deGrom of the Mets left Tuesday’s intrasquad scrimmage because of lower back discomfort. But an MRI came back clean, and Blum said he planned to repost the odds.

The odds stayed up at the MGM, where deGrom is the +280 favorite to win his third consecutive NL Cy Young. The Nationals’ Max Scherzer is the +450 second choice, followed by the Cardinals’ Jack Flaherty (8-1) and the Dodgers’ Walker Buehler (10-1).

Roberts expects deGrom to win again, and Esposito likes Buehler, who went 14-4 with a 3.26 ERA last season.

“I like Buehler a lot,” Esposito said. “Look at the way he pitched last year and what they added, that ballpark and them being the favorite in the NL.”

AL Cy Young

Gerrit Cole is the +265 favorite at the MGM to win the AL Cy Young after signing a $324 million, nine-year contract with the Yankees.

He’s followed by the Astros’ Justin Verlander, the 2019 winner who is 8-1 at the Westgate.

For a longer shot, Roberts and Blum like 2017 winner Corey Kluber, who is 25-1 at the MGM after the Rangers acquired him from the Indians.

“I could see Kluber dominating and getting back into his groove,” Roberts said.

Kluber missed most of 2019 after taking a line drive off his pitching elbow in May.

“I like Kluber a lot, but I’ve got to see how this new Texas ballpark can play. The old ballpark was not pitcher-friendly,” Blum said. “Also, he’s a free agent next year, so he could easily be traded at the trade deadline.

“If he’s traded to an NL team, obviously he wouldn’t win the AL Cy.”

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tdewey33 on Twitter.