Re-examining the Pirates’ betting odds for the 2020 season

As it turns out, there will be an attempt for baseball to be played in the year 2020. We will have 60 games, a normal 10-team playoff format, and a DH in the National League.

The second “Spring Training” starts on July 1 with actual games slated to begin on July 24. This of course all hinges on the idea that Major League Baseball will be able to keep the coronavirus at bay and no outbreaks occur. We shall see.

A shortened season does nothing but help the Pirates. The smaller the sample, the more likely it is that a lowly team can make a run. Think about this when placing your futures bets for the 2020 season.

Pirates odds

On FanDuel, the Pirates have +16000 odds to win the World Series. In other words, if you bet $100, you would win $16,000. The value is there.

Only the Orioles, Mariners, Tigers, Royals, Giants, and Marlins have worse odds at +33000. If you’re wondering, the Dodgers are the favorites at +380.

On DraftKings, the Pirates are seen as more of a threat as their World Series odds sit at +10000. They hold those same +10000 odds to win the National League. To win the NL Central (which has never happened), the Pirates are at +8000.

Player futures

This where one can make some real money. Any player can get hot and win the MVP or Cy Young over two months. In the National League, it would be wise to go against the grain and stay away from the popular chalky picks for MVP. In the American League, Mike Trout is still Mike Trout. It would be hard to ever bet against him. In terms of the Cy Young in both leagues, things could get super random.

On both FanDuel and DraftKings, the Pirates have two players with listed odds for the MVP and Cy Young awards. They are Josh Bell and Joe Musgrove.

FanDuel likes Bell’s chances to win the MVP (+5500) a lot more than DraftKings does (+8000).

Keep in mind that from May 1 to July 6 last season (60 games), Bell hit .312/.384/.679 with 21 home runs, 22 doubles, and 63 RBI. Yes, I cherrypicked the best 60 game stretch where Bell went bonkers last season, but it does show that an insane hot streak could win an MVP in 2020.

In terms of the Cy Young, FanDuel likes Musgrove’s odds (+6500) a lot more than DraftKings (+15000).

On FanDuel, there are some additional season leader odds.

• Bell is at +5000 to lead all of baseball in home runs. He is also +6500 to lead the majors in runs.
• Bryan Reynolds is at +3700 to lead the majors hits.
• Keone Kela is at +3000 to lead the majors in saves (I like this one).