Coming off a three-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox over the weekend, the New York Yankees have emerged as serious contenders on the odds to win the World Series and the American League pennant this season.
The AL East-leading Yankees (16-9) are at 20-1 odds to win the World Series and tied with the Red Sox at 7-1 to win the pennant behind a pair of AL Central teams that are virtually tied for the division lead.
The Detroit Tigers (17-9) are 3-1 to win the pennant and the 9-1 third choice to win the World Series behind the National League's Los Angeles Dodgers (6-1) and Washington Nationals (7-1) after splitting a four-game set with the Kansas City Royals (16-9) last weekend.
The Royals are the defending AL champions after claiming a wild-card berth last year and look just as strong this season at 12-1 on the odds to win the World Series and 5-1 to win the pennant.
The Houston Astros (18-7), who lead the AL West, are the biggest surprise in baseball right now, riding an MLB-best 10-game winning streak. The Astros were 75-1 to win the World Series and 40-1 to win the pennant on April 15, and their odds have plummeted to 18-1 and 9-1, respectively.
The Dodgers (16-8) have taken control of the NL West with a four-game winning streak, including a three-game sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks over the weekend, and they are also the 11-4 favorites to win the pennant.
Los Angeles' main competition in the NL looks like it will come from the Central Division, where the St. Louis Cardinals (18-6) and Chicago Cubs (13-10) appear to be the teams to beat heading into their four-game series that starts Monday at Busch Stadium.
The Cardinals are 8-1 on the World Series betting lines and 17-4 to win the pennant as owners of the league's best record thanks to an NL-best six-game winning streak, and they split two games with the Cubs to open the year.
Chicago is 14-1 to win the World Series and 7-1 to win the pennant after the team dropped two of three at home to the Milwaukee Brewers.
However, that series win for the Brewers at Wrigley Field was not enough to save the job of manager Ron Roenicke, who, as ESPN.com reported, was fired after Sunday's 5-3 victory against the Cubs. Milwaukee, an NL-worst 7-18, is 200-1 to win the World Series and 100-1 to win the pennant.
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