2023 MLB Future Bet: Here's Your Long Shot to Win the World Series
Major League Baseball’s Opening Day (March 30) is less than a week away, so it’s time to get your prognosticating caps fixed just right and get your head around who’s going to win this year’s World Series.
The usual suspects are the favorites (Yankees, Dodgers, Astros, Braves, Mets), of course, but there’s always one team that’s under the radar.
We’re here to find that team.
Predicting the ultimate world champion of the Fall Classic is tricky because baseball is an odd game, with too many regular-season games that lead to injuries.
It’s a long haul is what I’m saying, and the grueling heat across America this summer will be brutal. Promise you that.
Remember too that I’m going with a long shot. A true one, so, let’s look at the odds as of Friday, March 24, 2023:
The odds are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook but don’t overlook all of the other great gambling options available in your state including DraftKings Sportsbook, BetMGM, and more.
2023 World Series Odds
Houston Astros +600
Los Angeles Dodgers +750
Atlanta Braves +750
New York Yankees +850
New York Mets +900
San Diego Padres +1000
Toronto Blue Jays +1200
Philadelphia Phillies +1500
Seattle Mariners +2000
St. Louis Cardinals +2000
Tampa Bay Rays +2000
Cleveland Guardians +2500
Minnesota Twins +3000
Chicago White Sox +3500
Los Angeles Angels +4000
Milwaukee Brewers +4000
San Francisco Giants +5000
Texas Rangers +5000
Boston Red Sox +6000
Chicago Cubs +8000
Miami Marlins +10000
Baltimore Orioles +10000
Detroit Tigers +12000
Arizona Diamondbacks +12000
Kansas City Royals +15000
Pittsburgh Pirates +20000
Cincinnati Reds +25000
Colorado Rockies +30000
Washington Nationals +50000
Oakland Athletics +100000
Yeah, it may seem like a weird pick to choose the Mariners, in the same division as the defending World Champion Astros, but this is a long-shot bet we’re talking about. Meaning, a team that’s 20-to-1 odds or longer.
Seattle is at that sweet spot. Right at 20.
The Mariners got their first taste of postseason play in 21 years in 2022. They were eliminated by the Astros in a historic 18-inning classic AL Division Series finale.
Even after that sweeping (3-0 series) setback, Seattle manager Scott Servais remained upbeat and looked at the positives heading toward 2023.
“The number of young players that played huge roles for us in this series -- it is going to benefit us just immensely going forward,” Servais said. “It's a brotherhood in that clubhouse, and it is something that's going to serve us well and certainly serve our core – all the players — well going forward as we took a huge step as an organization this season.”
Seattle’s upcoming success starts with 22-year-old Julio Rodriguez, the dazzling outfielder who won the American League Rookie of the Year award in 2022.
He’s a do-it-all dynamo who’s quickly become known as Mr. Mariner. Teammates respond to this sort of kid, who arrived a lot like the original Kid, Ken Griffey Jr.
Seattle won 90 games last season, for the second straight year under Servais, and has since added All-Star outfielder Teoscar Hernandez (57 home runs from 2021-22) and Gold Glove second basemen Kolten Wong to the bunch.
Their starting pitching rotation is stout: Luis Castillo, Robbie Ray, George Kirby, and Logan Gilbert. A fifth starter will emerge from the last few days of spring training.
Houston, meanwhile, no longer has Justin Verlander and star second baseman Jose Altuve is expected to miss at least the first two months of the season.
The M’s must get a jump on the AL West Divison right out of the gate.
Some long-shot bettors are picking the Angels to make a World Series run, but even facing the incomparable talents of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout – perhaps in their final season as teammates – shouldn’t be too daunting. After all, the other L.A. team won just 73 games in 2022.
Seattle will host the 2023 All-Star Game this summer and here’s saying that the Emerald City’s darling Mariners – the only MLB franchise that’s never reached a World Series – will have home games for the Fall Classic at T-Mobile Park in October.
They’re going to make it so might as well call it in now for them to win the whole damn thing … it will be about time.
