The 2021 MLB regular season is off to an incredible start. Two months in, basically every division is up for grabs, with plenty of surprises among the contenders.
Although baseball takes a back seat for most during the NBA and NHL playoffs, many enjoy wagering on MLB every day. Besides placing action on individual games and props, most West Virginia sportsbooks allow you to bet on updated futures regularly.
Since the season is entering the first month of summer, it’s time to examine these adjusted odds.
Of course, many of the favorites prior to the season are playing well, but some are not. There are also a lot of teams and players going way above expectations right now.
Let’s break down some of the most popular MLB futures and what the new betting odds look like at WV online sportsbooks.
Updated MLB futures at WV sportsbooks
The most exciting part of the young season is the parity around the league. While it’s still relatively early in the schedule, the majority of franchises are in striking distance of winning their division.
In the American League, the East Division is shaping up as one of the most competitive in baseball.
Despite the fact that the New York Yankees were massive betting favorites coming into opening day, things are very tight for four teams.
Currently, the Tampa Bay Rays hold the top spot with a record of 35-21. They’re two games ahead of the resurging Boston Red Sox, whom many didn’t project to win a whole lot.
The Yanks are in third at five games over .500, with the Blue Jays just a game behind them.
Now that teams are almost 60 games in, DraftKings Sportsbook West Virginia shows Tampa as the favorite to take the AL East. It has odds of +150, just narrowly edging out New York at +160.
Boston is next at +385, while Toronto has odds of +600 to win the division.
Since divisional opponents face one another around 18 times each season, these teams control their own fate going forward.
Other divisions are very interesting as well.
One of the most surprising might be the National League West, where the Dodgers find themselves in third place.
While they can blame a bunch of different injuries in the early going, the defending champs are looking up at two rivals in the standings.
Somehow the San Francisco Giants are leading the division after a 34-21 start to the year. They lead the Padres by a half game at the moment.
Similar to the Yankees, the Dodgers were huge favorites before April. They’re coming off a World Series victory and actually may have upgraded their roster with the addition of Trevor Bauer.
In spite of the slow start, the Dodgers still have the best odds to win the division, according to DraftKings. They’re listed at -220, while the Padres are at +175 and the Giants at +1200.
MLB MVP races
Betting on the MVP is always one of the most common futures for an MLB season.
In the American League, it appears that the Angels’ Shohei Ohtani is starting to separate himself from the pack. The youngster is one of the most exciting players in baseball, thanks to his skills both at the plate and on the mound.
Ohtani is tied for fifth in MLB with 15 home runs thus far; however, he also is very effective starting every five days. Even though he’s only 1-1, Ohtani is sporting a 2.72 ERA through his first 36 innings this season.
He’s recorded 50 strikeouts and held opponents to a .156 batting average.
After beginning the year with odds around +2000, Ohtani cut that in half after the first month. Now as the calendar hits June, he’s by himself as the favorite to win the award at +120.
Another up-and-coming talent in Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is second on DraftKings with odds of +300.
Then there is a significant drop-off. Xander Bogaerts is next at +1500, with Ohtani’s teammate Mike Trout at +1700 and Byron Buxton at +2000.
The NL also features two players above most others, but they are names you’d expect to see. Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna is the favorite at +280, but the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. is right behind him at +300.
Both were among the top names listed at sportsbooks prior to the season.
Since Acuna and Tatis are so skilled, it seems like if they stay healthy, one of them should take home the hardware for NL MVP.
The Cardinals’ Nolan Arenado and Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom are the next two players shown at +1200.
MLB Cy Young odds
One category the Mets’ ace is leading is the NL Cy Young Award. The online sportsbook has deGrom at -143 to win his third title for the best pitcher in his league.
While baseball fans have grown accustomed to seeing the pitcher dominate the last few seasons, he is reaching a new level in 2021. He’s 4-2 through the first two months, with an ERA of 0.71 and WHIP of 0.57.
The lowest earned run average deGrom’s ever finished a season with is 1.70 in 2018.
The only other two pitchers with odds even relatively close to his both play for the Milwaukee Brewers. Corbin Burnes is posted at +650, along with teammate Brandon Woodruff at +750.
It’s actually somewhat surprising that deGrom isn’t an even bigger favorite. The 32-year-old did miss some time on the IL because of tightness on his right side.
If deGrom plays in just the majority of the remaining games, he’ll probably have a great shot at earning another Cy Young.
Things aren’t too different in the AL. Preseason favorite Gerrit Cole is growing his lead based on the odds and now has firm control at books.
The Yankees’ top hurler owns odds of -134 right now on DraftKings. Cole is 6-2 through May and showcases an ERA of 1.78. His 97 strikeouts through fewer than 71 innings puts Cole in third at the moment, behind only Shane Bieber and Tyler Glasnow.
Coincidentally, those are the pitchers with the next-best odds to win the AL Cy Young. Bieber is not far behind Cole at +400, whereas Glasnow is third with odds of +650.
