Without major-market teams like the Dodgers and Yankees in this year's World Series, sportsbooks are hoping the Brewers-Rays matchup can generate enough betting interest to rival recent Fall Classics.
- The Brewers are getting as high as 91% of the money to win the World Series.
- Milwaukee in six games is a popular bet at FanDuel.
- Bettors aren’t expecting the Rays to do much against the Brewers' ace.
Neither team has ever won a World Series, and the fan bases are much more localized than in previous years.
“It’s still too early to tell what kind of overall volume we’ll see, but I can’t imagine it would have more betting interest than the last two World Series,” Eric Biggio, Caesars Sportsbook’s head of baseball, told Covers this week. “Dodgers-Yankees and even Dodgers-Blue Jays drew some great ratings on TV and solid handle at the sportsbook.
“As a baseball diehard, I hope this series brings some solid interest, as these are the two most fundamentally sound teams in MLB and play a fun brand of baseball. That being said, Milwaukee vs. Tampa Bay doesn’t seem to have the same public excitement as L.A. vs. N.Y. We’ll see; I’m hoping for a fun, seven-game series!”
Bettors back Brew Crew
Bettors who are getting in on the World Series action aren’t expecting an especially competitive matchup, which could also affect business. At BetMGM, 91% of the handle is on the Brewers to win the best-of-seven series heading into Game 1.
More than 60% of the bets are backing Milwaukee as well, helping push the World Series winner odds from -165 at open to -175 on Friday.
FanDuel reported that despite a more even ticket split, the Brewers (-182) are getting 70% of the money. DraftKings told Covers that the -180 favorites are easily seeing the most action, a trend at Caesars as well.
Enjoying Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account“It’s been Brewers money so far. Milwaukee opened as -160 series favorites and are up to -180,” Biggio said.
Other avenues for action
There are, of course, plenty of other betting opportunities and markets for a series of this magnitude.
“We’ve put up a good number of props for the World Series, with Any Batter to Have a Multi-HR Game getting some attention at 3-1,” Biggio said. “Also, some people are taking a shot on a Brewers sweep, bet down from 12-1 to 9-1.”
FanDuel told Covers that the Brewers winning in six games is the operator’s most popular outcome.
In the MVP market, Milwaukee outfielder Jackson Chourio is FanDuel's most popular pick to take home the honor. He’s the +550 favorite at BetMGM, which has seen a market-high 9.6% of the handle. Chourio is third in tickets (6.4%), behind Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski and catcher William Contreras.
Milwaukee pitcher Aaron Ashby (+5,000) is BetMGM’s biggest liability in the MVP market, followed by Jake Bauers (+800) and Misiorowski (+900).
Betting Game 1
The Brewers begin their World Series quest as -190 favorites at BetMGM with Misiorowski on the mound against Nick Martinez. The online sportsbook reported Friday that 57% of the moneyline bets and 83% of the handle are on Milwaukee for Game 1. The Rays are getting just 12% of the +1.5 runline money with odds of -150.
Bettors are backing over 6.5 behind 66% of the bets and 70% of the handle. Misiorowski over 6.5 strikeouts (-135) is BetMGM’s most popular player prop for the opener. Contreras is the most-bet player to hit a home run with odds of +400, while Rays star Junior Caminero is third at +350.
Garrett Mitchell under 0.5 total bases and Misiorowski over 15.5 outs complete BetMGM's five most popular Game 1 player props.
