Braves Now -150 Favorites to Win World Series After Game 1 Victory
- The Atlanta Braves took Game 1 of the 2021 World Series by a 6-2 score over the Houston Astros
- Atlanta went from +128 underdog to -150 favorite after the win, but suffered a key injury
- See the latest World Series futures along with a preview of what’s ahead in the rest of the series
Time will tell whether the Atlanta Braves 6-2 victory over the Houston Astros in Game 1 of the World Series proves to be Pyrrhic in nature. Starting pitcher Charlie Morton was lost for the remainder of the series with a broken leg. The injury occured on a comebacker in the second inning off the bat of Yuli Gurriel.
Despite the injury, oddsmakers see Game 1 as nothing but a positive for the Braves. They went from +128 underdogs entering the series to -150 favorites heading into Game 2 on Wednesday.
2021 World Series Odds
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Braves | -150 |
| Astros | +123 |
Odds represent an average at online sportsbooks as of Oct. 26th.
The clip below shows the play on which Morton suffered the injury.
ICYMI: Charlie Morton (fibula fracture) was struck by this comebacker from Yuli Gurriel before later being removed from Game 1.#ATLvsHOU #WorldSeries #ForTheApic.twitter.com/0KikLmTfmG
— SportsGrid (@SportsGrid) October 27, 2021
Atlanta Has the Pitching Edge in Game 2
The loss of Morton, an experience playoff veteran, could be huge down the road. But looking ahead to Game 2 on Wednesday night, the edge on the mound has to go to the visitors again
Atlanta’s Max Fried (14-7, 3.03 ERA regular season) will toe the rubber against Houston’s Jose Urquidy (8-3, 3.63 ERA). Urquidy has only pitched once in the playoffs so far, and he was absolutely shelled for six runs on five hits and two walks over just 1.2 innings in a 12-3 loss to Boston.
That followed a subpar playoff performance last season, as well, when he recorded a 4.02 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in 15.2 innings.
Fried managed a 3.04 ERA in last year’s playoffs, pitching a whopping 23.2 innings for the Braves as they finished runner-up in the NL to the LA Dodgers. If Fried can pitch the Braves to a 2-0 series lead, the loss of Morton will look much less significant.
Will the Braves Continue to Dominate at Home?
Taking Game 1 of the series gives the Brave home-field advantage regardless of what happens in Game 2. Surprisingly, Atlanta was a mediocre 42-38 at Truist Park in the regular season. But they were 19-11 in the shortened 2020 season and 50-31 in 2019. They are also 5-0 at home so far in the 2021 postseason.
Houston managed a solid 44-37 road record in the regular season and are 3-2 on the road in the playoffs. But back in the surreal 2020 season they were a miserable 9-23 away from home. The last several years, their performance at home has been wildly better than their performance on the road. (We’re not here to discuss potential sign stealing, but it’s a trend bettors need to be aware of.)
With Atlanta holding a 1-0 lead, looking like a decent bet to take Game 2, and heading back to Atlanta tied 1-1 at worst, the current odds (-150) are a reasonable price.
I would bet Atlanta before the Astros at plus-money.
Sascha was a hockey player in his youth, a lawyer in his capricious mid-20s, and has been with SBD since 2014. He specializes in football, basketball, politics, baseball, and hockey.
