The Toronto Blue Jays entered the all-star break sporting their best first-half record since 1992, and they’ll return to action this weekend poised to strengthen their odds to win the World Series at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The Blue Jays opened the campaign as a +1000 bet to claim their first World Series title since 1993, trailing only the Chicago Cubs and the San Francisco Giants. However, they fell as far as +1800 after their record dipped four games below .500 in mid-May.
But Toronto has caught fire since then, taking a 32-17 record over their past 49 games to Oakland, where they kick off the second half of the season with Friday night’s Blue Jays vs. A’s betting matchup at O.co Coliseum. Their World Series odds have bounced back to +1000.
Despite that torrid pace, the Blue Jays continue to lag in the AL East standings, deadlocked with the Boston Red Sox for second place, two games back of the Baltimore Orioles.
The Blue Jays have enjoyed success against their AL East rivals this season, posting a division-best 23-19 record against AL East opponents, but they are just 7-6 against Boston this year, and 5-5 over 10 dates with the Orioles, according to the OddsShark MLB Database.
Toronto’s middling record against the Red Sox and Orioles brings more attention to the 15 games remaining on the schedule against their primary rivals, including a pair of three-game series against Boston and Baltimore to close out the regular season.
The Red Sox were perched as the American League squad with the best World Series odds for most of the first half of the season, but recent inconsistent play, including an uninspiring 10-16 record in June, has impacted their title futures, which have fallen off to +1400.
Conversely, Baltimore has emerged as one of the surprise stories of the MLB season.
After stumbling to an 81-81 finish a year ago, the Orioles opened 2016 as a long +4000 wager on the World Series odds. But after powering to the top of the AL East with a 51-36 record, the club is now up to +1400 on those futures.
The Cubs continue to lead the way as the +325 World Series betting favourites, followed by the Giants at +500, the Texas Rangers at +700, the Cleveland Indians at +750, and the Washington Nationals at +900.
