We are starting to head to the most interesting stretch of the baseball regular season: August and September division races. Before you know it, the World Series will be here. And here are some things you should know about putting down any 2017 World Series future bets currently at MyBookie.
Things You Need to Know Before Betting on the 2017 World Series
Babe Ruth, Lloyd Waner, Lou Gehrig, and Paul Waner shake hands before the start of the 1927 World Series pic.twitter.com/SGa0GAlKtB
— Baseball In Pics (@baseballinpix) July 24, 2017
Home-Field Advantage Goes To …
The home-field advantage in the World Series used to rotation between the American and National League. Then in 2002, the All-Star Game in Milwaukee ended in a tie because both sides had used all their pitchers by the 12th inning. That was an embarrassment to commissioner Bud Selig because that ASG was held in his hometown of Milwaukee. So Selig created a rule going forward that the winning league of the All-Star Game would have World Series home-field advantage. Some liked it, some didn’t. Apparently, new commissioner Rob Manfred didn’t care for it too much because that’s over. The AL won the All-Star Game for a fourth year in a row, but home-field advantage goes to the team with the best regular-season record. Right now that would be the LA Dodgers should they get there. There have been 90 World Series under the 2-3- 2 format, and in only 46 of them did the team with the better regular-season record have the home-field edge. More important, of the 38 World Series to come down to a winner-take- all game (that’s 37 Game 7s and one Game 8, in 1912), only 19 had what we would consider to be this fair arrangement of the team with the better record hosting. Last year, the team with the best record was the Chicago Cubs, but it had to play Games 6-7 in Cleveland.No Repeat Winner Since…
The Chicago Cubs had been betting favorites to win the 2017 World Series this season but they have largely overachieved and are fourth on the futures odds to win it all behind NL teams the Dodgers and Nationals as well as AL-leading Houston. It’s extremely difficult to repeat in baseball. The last club to win back-to-back World Series was the Yankees, who won a third straight in 2000. The last NL team do it was the Big Red Machine in the 1970s. Cincinnati won 210 games between ’75 and ’76. That’s not to say there hasn’t been impressive runs by NL teams since that point. Most recently, the San Francisco Giants put together even-year magic, winning titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014 before running into the Cubs in the NLDS last season.Injuries Can Wreck Everything
Two of the favorites this year are the Dodgers and Nationals – and both had huge injury scares on Sunday that could affect their World Series futures. The Dodgers, who own the majors’ best record, saw ace and three-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw leave Sunday after two innings due to lower back tightness and was placed on the DL. Kershaw missed two and a half months with a herniated disk in his back last year, and the question is how his latest injury compares. “I don’t want to compare, just because there’s so many variables,” Kershaw said. “I don’t even know.”
So When Will Kershaw Return?
No timetable will be placed on his potential return until he meets with team doctors on Monday. Kershaw entered his Sunday start primed for his fourth Cy Young Award, leading the majors in wins (15) and ERA (2.07) and tied with Max Scherzer for the National League lead in innings pitched (139 1/3). Also leaving in the second inning Sunday was Washington’s Stephen Strasburg (10-3, 3.25). The Nationals, meanwhile, downplayed Strasburg’s exit after he threw 51 pitches and walked three batters, with Dusty Baker saying Strasburg had trouble getting loose. Still, this is a guy with an extensive history of injuries (eight DL stints since 2010), so it has to be a cause for concern. The Nationals and Dodgers have huge leads in their divisions, so that’s not a concern even if those two pitchers miss a while. The playoffs is another thing entirely. Thus both L.A. and Washington could target Texas Rangers ace Yu Darvish in a trade. Expect World Series futures odds to undergo a bit of a shift after the July 31 deadline if big names like Darvish, Sonny Gray and All-Star closer Zach Britton are dealt as expected.Latest 2017 World Series Odds
- Arizona Diamondbacks +1600
- Atlanta Braves +15000
- Baltimore Orioles +4500
- Boston Red Sox +550
- Chicago Cubs +580
- Chicago White Sox +35000
- Cincinnati Reds +35000
- Cleveland Indians +600
- Colorado Rockies +1600
- Detroit Tigers +6500
- Houston Astros +330
- Kansas City Royals +2500
- Los Angeles Angels +4000
- Los Angeles Dodgers +300
- Miami Marlins +35000
- Milwaukee Brewers +2800
- Minnesota Twins +3800
- New York Mets +20000
- New York Yankees +1100
- Oakland Athletics +2500
- Philadelphia Phillies +4500
- Pittsburgh Pirates +4500
- San Diego Padres +35000
- San Francisco Giants +35000
- Seattle Mariners +3800
- St. Louis Cardinals +5000
- Tampa Bay Rays +3800
- Texas Rangers +5000
- Toronto Blue Jays +6500
- Washington Nationals +500
