Entering June, it’s Kansas City’s pennant to lose.
Oddsshark.com has the Royals listed as a 9/2 favorite to repeat as American League champions and return to the World Series. Not surprisingly, the Royals also own the best odds of any American League team to take home a World Series championship at 10/1 odds.
Kansas City does have company, though. Detroit, Houston, the New York Yankees, Seattle and the Los Angeles Angels aren’t far behind in the minds of oddsmakers.
The Tigers and Astros are at 11/2 and 15/2 odds respectively, while the Mariners are 17/2, the Angels are 8/1 and the Yankees are 9/1.
The odds differ from what the actual standings currently look like. The Yankees are tied atop the AL East at 26-25 with the Tampa Bay Rays (currently at 18/1 odds), while the Astros lead the AL West by 4 1/2 games at 31-20, which happens to be the best record in the American League.
The Mariners, currently with the fifth-best odds to win the pennant, are below .500 at 24-26.
However, the two teams with the best odds at representing the American League in the World Series aren’t even leading their division. The Royals and Tigers are second and third in the AL Central, behind the Minnesota Twins at 30-19.
The Twins are 8-2 in their last 10 games, and entered the season at 200/1 odds to win the World Series. Now, the Twins are still long shots, at 20/1 to win the AL pennant, and 40/1 to win the World Series. Two weeks ago, the Twins were 80/1 odds to win the World Series.
The division races are still up in the air in the AL, with the AL East having a tight race with the Yankees going off at 5/2 odds, Boston at 11/4, Baltimore at 7/2, Tampa Bay at 15/4, and Toronto at 5/1.
In the AL Central, the Royals are the favorite at 5/4, with Detroit slightly behind at 13/10. There’s a wide gap between the rest with the Indians at 8/1, the Twins at 10/1 and the White Sox at 12/1.
The Astros hold a narrow margin over the Mariners in the AL West at 8/5 to 37/20. The Angels are 19/10, while the Rangers are 14/1, which have gone from 50/1 odds to win the West two weeks ago to its number now. Texas also is 50/1 to win the World Series, a far cry from its 200/1 odds two weeks ago.
Oakland is now the longest shot to win the World Series and pennant in the AL. The A’s are 50/1 to win the West and the AL pennant, and are 100/1 to win the World Series.
