2023 MLB playoff odds: Braves enter as World Series favorites, Rangers an underdog in Wild Card Series
The 2023 Major League Baseball playoffs begin on Tuesday (Oct. 3). For the second straight year, there are 12 playoff teams, and postseason action gets started with the best-of-three Wild Card Series. The top two division winners in each league received a bye to the LDS. Here's how it lines up:
Byes
Wild Card Series
Below are the gambling odds for the postseason. We'll start with the odds to win each Wild Card Series. The Rays, Twins, Phillies and Brewers will host all necessary games in this round.
Wild Card Series odds
None of this is particularly surprising nor compelling from a gambling perspective. It's possible there's value on the D-backs, but the Brewers' aces are pretty scary. I thought about the Rangers, too, but they are just so unreliable at this point with all the extreme hills and valleys. The best bet here very well might be the one with the steepest odds in the defending NL champion Phillies facing off against a far inferior Marlins team.
Odds to win American League
- Astros: +200
- Orioles: +280
- Rays: +500
- Rangers: +700
- Twins: +800
- Blue Jays: +800
The Orioles finished with 101 wins in the regular season and they sit below the 90-win Astros here. The Astros are more vulnerable than they've been in a long time, but they are still a great bet to advance to the World Series. The Rangers might have value, but, again, they are just so unreliable.
Odds to win National League
- Braves: +115
- Dodgers: +225
- Phillies: +675
- Brewers: +900
- Diamondbacks: +1800
- Marlins: +1800
No surprise that the Braves are odds-on favorites to take the NL after finishing with an MLB-best 104 wins. The Phillies probably carry the best value here, but there's no value in a loss and the Braves are easily the best team. Pick your poison here.
Odds to win World Series
- Braves: +275
- Dodgers: +475
- Astros: +500
- Orioles: +650
- Rays: +1200
- Phillies: +1400
- Rangers: +1600
- Brewers: +1800
- Blue Jays: +1800
- Twins: +2000
- Diamondbacks: +3000
- Marlins: +3300
Again, there's no surprise that the Braves are the favorites and that number isn't too bad at all considering how many people believe the Braves are going to breeze through this tournament. That's a nice number on the Orioles, given that they won 101 games. The Phillies are enticing there at +1400 while the Rangers, Brewers and Blue Jays merit a look.
