It’s far too early to make accurate predictions about which teams are going to go to the league finals in 2019, let alone to say who is going to win the World Series. The season kicks off on March 20, following Spring Training, in what is the historic 150th anniversary of professional baseball. The World Series, of course, takes place at the end of October.
East Coast rivals
The Boston Red Sox are obviously hoping to hang onto the Championship, but the New York Yankees – among others – are just as keen to take it away from them. Certainly in terms of the American League East, these are the two teams to be watching once the season gets underway. Both won exactly 100 games each in 2018 before meeting in the playoffs. Right now, the defending champions are favorites to win the American League East for the fourth consecutive season, but it is close. Nearly as many pundits say that the Yankees could take it. It looks like the old East Coast rivalry is playing for high stakes yet again.
Indian territory
Over in the American League Central, the Cleveland Indians look likely to maintain their lockdown. With José Ramírez and Francisco Lindor keeping up the pressure infield, and Carlos Carrasco, Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer heading up a solid rotation, their only real challengers are the Minnesota Twins or the Chicago White Sox. Right now, however, the Indians are looking pretty unbeatable in their division. They will also be hosting the 90th Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Progressive Field on July 9.
Tracking the odds
At this stage, the odds on various teams taking home various titles are still pretty volatile, but they should firm up once the play begins. Fans looking for the latest odds and hoping to place an early wager should look into the Points Bet first deposit bonus as a great way to make the most of their money. The odds will start to change dramatically once the season gets underway, but putting your dollars down now could mean a more substantial winning later on if your predictions turn out to be correct.
Out West
Over in the American League West, the Houston Astros are the unchallenged favorites. They’re coming off two seasons of 100 straight wins each and they won the World Series in 2017. Many think that they could do it again. They’ve got a killer line-up headed by Alex Bregman, with Gerrit Cole and Justin Verlander in rotation and Michael Brantley making up for a departing Charlie Morton in outfield.
The National League
Looking at the National League, in the East the Washington Nationals look set to make up for a disappointing 2018 as they go into the next season with an impressive line-up of starting pitchers (Patrick Corbin, Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg) and a solid mix of experienced and younger players elsewhere.
In the NL Central Division, the Milwaukee Brewers, the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs are almost neck and neck, but it’s a clearer picture in the National League West, where the Los Angeles Dodgers are the favorites by far. If we had to pick one team to win in Central, then we’d have to go for the Cardinals, but the Dodgers are the number one choice to win the league overall and go forward to the World Series.
World Series predictions
Could the 2019 World Series end up being between the Astros and the Dodgers? Certainly, it looks like the American League will be between Houston and whoever comes out of the East – the Red Sox or the Yankees. It really is too close and too early to call, but many are already saying that the Astros are the team to watch. If it comes down to a 2017 rematch, then it could well go the same way, with the Astros coming out on top over the Dodgers in a run of games that will be a joy to watch.
As we said at the start, it really is way too early to be making predictions such as these. The fact is that the Red Sox still have a great chance of holding their ground, and the Yankees have everything to play for. Yes, the Astros are looking good, but so are many other teams. A lot can change over the course of a few months. Baseball should always be capable of throwing us a few surprises, and as the season unfolds, it’s to be hoped that even the sharpest expert will be caught out at least once.
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