GAMBLERS BELIEVE THEY’LL GET BETTOR
By BRIAN COSTELLO
July 11, 2007 -- The Bronx isn’t the only place that still believes in the Yankees. The sports books in Las Vegas keep taking enough money to keep the odds on the disappointing Bombers lower than you would expect.
The MGM Mirage has the Yankees at 15-1 to capture their 27th World Series crown. The Wynn Casino has them at 12-1. Those odds have risen since March, when the Yankees were the favorites to win it all; MGM had the Yankees at 7-2 and Wynn had them at 4-1 at the beginning of the season.
The Yankees’ dismal first half has dropped them from the role of favorite, but bettors see the potential for a turnaround in the second half.
“At 15-1 there are still a lot of people that bet them,” said Jeff Stoneback, the sports book manager at MGM Mirage. “They’ve got the potential. If you look at it, they’re 15-1. Toronto has basically the same record as them and Toronto is 250-1. Obviously people have a lot more faith that the Yankees have the potential to catch fire and go on a run here.”
John Avello, director of race and sports operations at Wynn, said this is the highest he can remember the odds getting on the Yankees in the last decade. He also believes bettors will flock to them if they get on a hot streak in the second half.
“The Yankees always draw play regardless of how things are going,” Avello said. “All it’s going to take is for them to have a run and have a shot at the wild-card spot and people will start betting them again. It’s a team that’s just bet every year.”
The favorite to win the World Series is now the Red Sox. The team with the best record in baseball is 11-5 at Mirage and 4-1 at Wynn.
In the National League, the Mets opened the season as the favorite and remain in that role. Mirage has the Mets at 4-1 to win the World Series after opening the season at 5-1. Wynn has the Mets at 6-1 after starting the year at 7-1.
The Mets sit in first place in the NL East but have not been as dominant as expected. The men who set the lines said the Mets are the best in a mediocre league.
“Let’s face it, the National League is pretty wide open right now,” Avello said. “The Mets were playing really well and looked like they were going to be a team that won 100 games and difficult to beat in October, but lately they’ve shown they’re not invincible, either.”
Of all the teams with low odds, the most shocking is the Chicago Cubs. The star-crossed franchise is seeking its first World Series title since 1908 and has underachieved this season. Still, their odds of winning it all are 5-1.
“The only team that has a higher number of (betting) tickets written than the New York teams is the Cubs,” Stoneback said. “People always bet the Cubs and the Packers.”
Vegas is watching New York closely to see what the two teams here do. The many people who laid money down on the Bombers view them like most of their fans: They’re too talented to be this bad. At what point will the idea of a comeback in the standings fade?
“I think people will still look at them if they are five or six (games) out going into September,” Avello said. “There’s still time to rally. They have the veterans. You look at a guy like (Derek) Jeter; he can make things happen. It takes more than one guy, but it takes one guy to solidify the team and get momentum going. Jeter is that kind of guy.”
Odds to win AL
TeamOpenCurrent
Yankees3-17-1
Tigers4-12-1
White Sox5-1200-1
Angels6-12-1
Red Sox6-1Even
Twins7-112-1
Indians15-14-1
Odds to win NL
TeamOpenCurrent
Mets3-12-1
Dodgers4-14-1
Cardinals5-125-1
Phillies7-18-1
Padres8-15-1
Brewers20-13-1
Cubs25-14-1
Odds to World Series
TeamOpenCurrent
Yankees4-115-1
Mets5-14-1
Tigers8-14-1
White Sox8-1400-1
Red Sox10-12-1
Indians30-18-1
Brewers50-17-1
Cubs75-15-1
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