Bettors with early shots on D-backs, Rangers in line for windfall

Only a handful of bettors predicted the Arizona Diamondbacks and Texas Rangers would be the last teams standing. The few who did, though, stand to make big scores on one of the most improbable World Series matchups ever.

Arizona entered the season as a huge long shot to win the World Series, upward of 180-1, and attracted minimal interest from bettors. When the season opened in late March, only 1.1% of bets on the World Series at BetMGM sportsbooks was on the Diamondbacks. The Rangers were given more of a chance -- listed in the middle of the pack at 50-1 -- but like the Diamondbacks received little support at sportsbooks.

The opening odds of the Diamondbacks and Rangers meeting in the World Series were 1,750-1 in the winter at BetMGM. According to betting archive SportsOddsHistory.com, it's the second-most unlikely matchup in World Series history, behind only the 1991 series between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.

Veteran sports bettor Brad Feinberg didn't get in that early, but on June 10, after scouring through Caesars Sportsbook's odds on potential World Series outcomes, he decided the Rangers beating Diamondbacks at 400-1 was worth a $200 bet.

"Arizona and Texas were both in first place," Feinberg said. "I thought the math on it at the time was beneficial for taking the 400-1 bet."

Nearly five months later, Feinberg's $200 bet is worth $80,000 if the Rangers -- now a -170 favorite to win the World Series -- beat the Diamondbacks. Feinberg said he has made a hedge bet on the Diamondbacks to win the series and has locked in an approximately $50,000 profit.

Dave Menashe, a 46-year-old bettor from Brooklyn, New York, also recently locked in some profit on the World Series. On March 30, Menashe placed a $500 bet on Arizona to win the World Series at 180-1 with DraftKings. The bet would pay $90,000 if the Diamondbacks beat the Rangers and would be the biggest score of Menashe's betting career.

"Everyone was talking about the Padres, the Yankees and Mets with their high payrolls," Menashe told ESPN. "I was like, 'They're overlooking the D-backs.' I texted my friend that they're young and have good pitching. The payout was ridiculous, so I went ahead and did it.

"Definitely my biggest score, 100 percent," he added.

However, a bet he made in June might turn out to be even bigger. On June 5, Menashe placed a $505 three-leg parlay at approximately 628-1 odds on the Denver Nuggets to win the NBA championship, the Jacksonville Jaguars to win the Super Bowl and the Rangers to win the World Series. With the Nuggets leg of the parlay complete, if the Rangers knock off the Diamondbacks, Menashe will need the Jaguars to win the Super Bowl to win $318,000.

"That ticket's crazy," Menashe said. "I don't think the Jaguars will win the Super Bowl, but I think they're going to go far in the playoffs, which I could start to majorly hedge. I'm in a great position here."

Additionally, Menashe placed a $25,000 hedge bet on the Rangers in the World Series that would net $14,700.

The Rangers and Diamondbacks combined for 174 regular-season wins in 2023, the fewest ever in a World Series matchup, excluding shortened seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Both franchises are just two years removed from losing more than 100 games. Six teams all time have reached the World Series within two years of losing 100 games; the two with the most losses of any of those teams are facing each other this year.

The Rangers are a -170 favorite over the Diamondbacks in Friday's Game 1 in Arlington, Texas.