By Sam Bush
The Baltimore Orioles are coming off a 115-loss debacle that left them 61 games out of first place in the American League East.
Since 1900, only three teams — the 1916 Athletics, 1962 Mets and 2003 Tigers — have lost more games in a single season than the 2018 Orioles.
Expectations for the O’s are low again this year. In fact, in Las Vegas, they’ve never been lower. Yet, with odds as long as 2,000-1, there are still a few risk takers willing to back the Orioles to win the World Series.
| New York Yankees | 5-1 |
| Houston Astros | 6-1 |
| Boston Red Sox | 7-1 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 7-1 |
| Cleveland Indians | 10-1 |
| Chicago Cubs | 12-1 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 12-1 |
| Washington Nationals | 12-1 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 12-1 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 2,000-1 |
At William Hill Sportsbooks in Nevada, New Jersey and West Virginia, more bets have been placed on the Orioles to win the World Series than 10 other teams, including a $500 wager Monday at 1,000-1 odds.
“I went in and expected to find two, maybe three of them,” Erich Zimny, vice president of race and sports at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races in West Virginia, told ESPN. “I see 39 futures bets on the Orioles to win the World Series in amounts ranging from $2 to $50.”
The Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas had taken 32 bets on the Orioles to win the World Series and another $25 bet on Baltimore to have the most wins in baseball at 2,000-1.
Attracting Most Money To Win World Series
| 1. Yankees |
| 2. Dodgers |
| 3. Cubs |
| 4. Cardinals |
| 5. Brewers |
| (At Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook) |
“People will always bet the super long shots,” SuperBook oddsmaker Randy Blum said.
The SuperBook opened the over/under on the Orioles’ season win total at 59.5. It’s the lowest season win total that SuperBook oddsmakers have ever opened on a team, and it might not have been low enough: The number had been bet down to 58.5 as of Wednesday.
“Even though we’ve taken a lot of money [on the under], we’ve only moved it down one,” Blum said. “We just think anything lower than that is kind of silly. To lose 100-plus games, it’s hard, even if you’re really bad.”
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