For the first time in franchise history, the Miami Marlins were eliminated from a postseason series, after rolling to World Series titles in each of their first two trips to the playoffs. They fell to the Atlanta Braves, who advanced to the National League Championship Series, where they will face the Los Angeles Dodgers starting Monday night from Globe Life Field, the home of the Texas Rangers. The American League Championship Series opened on Sunday night, with the Tampa Bay Rays holding off the Houston Astros, 2-1, to take the early lead in the series, which is being played at Petco Park in San Diego.
Let’s take a look at the updated MLB betting odds for each of these four teams to claim the Commissioner’s Trophy as the winner of the 2020 World Series.
MLB News:
Updated Odds to Win the World Series
| Team | Odds |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | +150 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | +180 |
| Atlanta Braves | +400 |
| Houston Astros | +700 |
The Houston Astros were already a relative long shot after finishing the shortened regular season with a record below .500. Thanks to the dreadful play of the Angels, Mariners and Rangers, though, Houston finished in second place in the American League West and automatically advanced to the postseason. Their bats caught fire in the first two rounds of the playoffs, as they knocked off Minnesota and Oakland, but in the series opener against Tampa Bay, they left ten men on base. Jose Altuve staked them to an early lead with a solo shot in the first inning. Then Houston put men on first and second with nobody out. Kyle Tucker had the misfortune to hit a line drive up the middle, where shortstop Willy Adames waited for it. He caught the drive and stepped on second to double up Alex Bregman. The Astros would load the bases in the first but would not score any more runs as Martin Maldonado flied out harmlessly to bring the inning to a close. After that, Blake Snell settled in for Tampa Bay, and the Rays tied the game with a fourth-inning home run from Randy Arozarena and took the lead when #9 hitter Mike Zunino singled in a run with two outs. That was all the offense the Rays would need.
The Tampa Bay Rays have an edge on the Astros that would not normally play as important a role — depth of pitching staff. Normally, postseason series offer off days for travel. However, that is not what will happen in either LCS. The games will take place over seven days if all seven games turn out to be necessary. Charlie Morton is the slated starter in the second game for the Rays, against Lance McCullers Jr for the Astros. If McCullers can’t lead the Astros to a win in Game 2, then the series could get really short, as the middle of the Houston rotation gives up a lot of offense. Jose Urquidy permitted four home runs in his ALDS start against Oakland, and Zack Greinke permitted two. The Houston bullpen has a lot of youth, led by Cristian Javier, but behind him is a set of relievers who have been largely uneven.
The Atlanta Braves have not lost a game in this postseason, and they are led by likely MVP Freddie Freeman, who hit .341 this season. He also hit .423 with runners in scoring position. Ronald Acuna Jr missed ten games due to a hamstring injury, but he still delivered when he hit leadoff, with a .250 average and a .406 on base percentage. Catcher Travis d’Arnaud led all catchers in RBI this season and is the Braves’ cleanup hitter. He has NLDS experience with the Dodgers a year ago, and he drove in seven runs in three games with a pair of homers and a pair of doubles. Atlanta led MLB in on-base percentage (.349) and came in second in batting average (.268). If you take away their 103 home runs (Second just to the Dodgers, they still scored 3.0 runs per game, the third-best total in the National League.
The Los Angeles Dodgers led MLB in batting average, home runs and team ERA during the 2020 regular season, and they also enter the NLCS without having lost a single game in the postseason. They have 2019 National League MVP Cody Bellinger, who has hit .362 in his last 13 games, with at least one hit in each of his five postseason games. In Game 2 against San Diego, he hit a home run, and he had three RBI and a triple in the Game 3 series finale. For the Dodgers, Will Smith is the everyday catcher — and the DH when he doesn’t catch. When he’s not behind the plate, Austin Barnes has done nicely, and has contributed with his bat as well, with two hits in each start. As a team, the Dodgers have the third-lowest strikeout rate in MLB (20.3%), well below the 24.5% the Braves posted (21st).
MLB Betting Odds
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