From the land of offseason spending comes a piece of news that may surprise some (especially those in Los Angeles and New York). The Miami Herald is reporting that the Phillies are early season favorites to win the World Series. They are 2-1 favorites to win the National League and 6-1 favorites to win the World Series. Granted these odds do not mean anything because the games are played on the field but it is interesting to see what others think of the Phillies. The Miami Marlins come in with the second best odds (are you surprised? It was The Miami Herald who reported it) and the San Francisco Giants come in with the third best odds. The two hover around 5-1 to win the National League.
The reasoning for picking the Phillies?
“Philadelphia is the NL favorite because the team returns three of its four aces from a year ago: Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels. However, despite last year's 102 regular-season victories, the bottom fell out in the postseason when the offense fell apart. The Phillies batted .226 as a team against St. Louis, but that number does not tell the whole story. Take away the 11-6 victory in Game 1 and the batting average drops down to a pathetic .181. General manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. upgraded the team's bench over the winter, but last year's problems came more from the starting lineup than the reserves. This season might not be as strong with slugged Ryan Howard out for an indefinite period of time, and the rest of the offense is loaded with aging veterans, such as Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco.”
As for the American League, the Detroit Tigers are the early season favorites with 4-1 odds to win the American League and 8-1 odds to take home the World Series.
We will see if any of this comes to fruition in October.
-Steve Dolan
Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3
Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
The reasoning for picking the Phillies?
“Philadelphia is the NL favorite because the team returns three of its four aces from a year ago: Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels. However, despite last year's 102 regular-season victories, the bottom fell out in the postseason when the offense fell apart. The Phillies batted .226 as a team against St. Louis, but that number does not tell the whole story. Take away the 11-6 victory in Game 1 and the batting average drops down to a pathetic .181. General manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. upgraded the team's bench over the winter, but last year's problems came more from the starting lineup than the reserves. This season might not be as strong with slugged Ryan Howard out for an indefinite period of time, and the rest of the offense is loaded with aging veterans, such as Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco.”
As for the American League, the Detroit Tigers are the early season favorites with 4-1 odds to win the American League and 8-1 odds to take home the World Series.
We will see if any of this comes to fruition in October.
-Steve Dolan
Follow Steve on Twitter @SDolan3
Follow Whiz Wit on Twitter @WhizWitSports
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