The Houston Astros enter the World Series as favorites over the Philadelphia Phillies, not really a surprise to anyone tracking baseball since the start of the season.
The Astros, two years removed from a World Series appearance and entering their fourth appearance in the last six years, have been among betting favorites to win the World Series all year. Entering May, their odds were tied for fourth shortest at +1000 while the Phillies were tied for 12th at +2000.
Philadelphia has plenty of momentum on its side, though, after sweeping the Cardinals in the Wild Card round and losing just a single game in each of its series against the Braves and Padres.
Odds for the Astros to win in five, six or seven games can all be had at +400 at BetMGM. Though they haven’t lost a game all postseason, a sweep gets +750 odds. The most likely Phillies outcomes are wins in six or seven games at +600 odds each. A Phillies sweep gets +1400 odds.
As for MVP, the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez is favored to win at +600 odds, followed by Bryce Harper at +700, then Justin Verlander, Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman all at +1000. Jose Altuve and Kyle Schwarber each have +1300 odds, and Aaron Nola is at +1500.
The Phillies are getting -155 odds to cover 1.5 points Friday in Game 1, but the Astros are favored to win at -165. The over/under line is set at 6.5 runs.