MLB betting: NL MVP, Cy Young races wide open following Jacob deGrom injury
The injury status of Jacob deGrom has added significant intrigue to the races for both the National League Most Valuable Player and Cy Young Award.
The New York Mets ace was put on the injured list a few weeks ago due to forearm tightness, but now he is out until at least September due inflammation in his pitching elbow. It’s an injury that has already caused a significant shift in betting odds at BetMGM.
Before the injury, deGrom was dominant for the first-place Mets, posting a 7-2 record with a stellar 1.08 ERA in 92 innings pitched. At the All-Star break in mid-July, deGrom was the betting favorite for both the MVP (-110) and Cy Young (-1000). Only three weeks later, he has fallen precipitously to +900 in the Cy Young odds and +1500 in the MVP odds.
The new MVP favorite is San Diego Padres slugger Fernando Tatis Jr. at -145. The 22-year-old Tatis is batting .292 with an NL-leading 31 home runs and 70 RBIs, but he’s dealing with an injury situation of his own.
Tatis was placed on the 10-day injured list on Saturday after partially dislocating his left shoulder for the third time this season. Tatis has twice returned to the lineup from shoulder issues this year, but Padres manager Jayce Tingler said surgery is an option if Tatis’ condition does not improve over the course of his IL stint.
With deGrom out indefinitely and Tatis on the mend, it opens the door for others in the NL MVP race. Trea Turner, recently acquired by the Los Angeles Dodgers in a trade from the Washington Nationals, is next at +325. His new Dodgers teammate, Max Muncy, is listed at +475 while Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman has +750 odds.
What about the NL Cy Young?
With deGrom down to +900, six pitchers have moved ahead of him at BetMGM.
The current betting favorite at +300 is Dodgers righty Walker Buehler, who is 11-1 with a 2.19 ERA. Next are Milwaukee Brewers teammates Brandon Woodruff and Corbin Burnes along with Zack Wheeler of the Philadelphia Phillies and Kevin Gausman of the San Francisco Giants all listed at +400.
Max Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young winner, is just ahead of deGrom at +750. The 37-year-old Scherzer was traded from the Nationals to the Dodgers at the trade deadline. The Dodgers are currently the World Series favorites at +300.
AL: Ohtani MVP favorite, Cy Young race wide open
Shohei Ohtani, the two-way star for the Los Angeles Angels, is a significant betting favorite to win the AL MVP. He is currently listed at -700, well in front of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at +450.
Ohtani (37 HR) and Guerrero Jr. (33 HR) are the top two in all of baseball in home runs, and are the clear frontrunners for MVP. Rafael Devers, Marcus Semien and Matt Olson are tied for third in the AL MVP odds, but are all the way down at +5000.
The AL Cy Young race, however, is much more intriguing. Three main contenders have started to separate themselves from the pack, including a pair of teammates.
Lance Lynn of the Chicago White Sox is the betting favorite at +110. Next are Gerrit Cole of the New York Yankees at +185 and Carlos Rodon, also of the White Sox, at +350.
While Lynn and Rodon have been better statistically, Cole has been popular among bettors. According to BetMGM, Cole has received 15.6% of the AL Cy Young tickets, but a whopping 56.8% of the money.
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