The New York Yankees suffered a loss to the Houston Astros on Thursday, but they still go into Friday's slate with the best record in all of baseball (56-21) and best run differential (plus-150). And they've achieved all that despite playing one of the toughest schedules of all, as measured by opponents' average win percentage.
Given all that, it shouldn't be a huge surprise that the Yankees are now the consensus favorites among sportsbooks to win the World Series in 2022. Here are some details, via ESPN.com:
"The Yankees enter July as the World Series favorites at +400 at Caesars Sportsbook, followed by the Dodgers at +450. It's the first time since July 24, 2020, that the Dodgers have not been World Series favorites during the regular season, according to ESPN Stats & Information."
Los Angeles has had injury concerns this season, but it is still on pace for 102 wins. The Yankees, however, are on pace for 118, which would be a new single-season high in MLB history, besting the 2001 Seattle Mariners and 1906 Chicago Cubs record of 116 victories. But more importantly, they'll be trying to reach the World Series for the first time since defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in 2009.
The Dodgers have been a reliable juggernaut over the last decade. They've made the playoffs nine years running, have been a fixture in the NLCS five of the last six seasons, reached three of the last five World Series, winning it all in the COVID-shortened 2020 season by defeating the Tampa Bay Rays. A title would be the club's first full-season championship since 1988.
According to the SportsLine Projection System, the Yankees presently have a 100 percent chance to make the 12-team playoff field this year. The Dodgers check in at 99.9 percent.
