Nationals World Series Odds (+140) Still Well Behind Astros (+100) After Sweeping Cardinals
- The Nationals have made it to the World Series for the first time in franchise history
- Washington finished the regular season 74-38 after starting 19-31
- The Nationals swept the Cardinals after barely surviving the Brewers and Dodgers in their first two playoff series
The Washington Nationals just completed one of the most dominant sweeps in NLCS history. Now they’ll get to rest for the 2019 World Series while the New York Yankees and Houston Astros duke it out in the ALCS.
The Nats are posted at +140 in the updated World Series odds. Are they a good bet right now or is the American League champ destined to keep the Nationals franchise out of the winner’s circle?
2019 World Series Odds
| Teams | Odds |
|---|---|
| Houston Astros | +100 |
| Washington Nationals | +140 |
| New York Yankees | +500 |
*Odds taken 10/16/19
Nats Bring Out The Brooms In NLCS
In one of the fastest-played NLCS series, the Nats swept the St. Louis Cardinals as easily as can be. Not only did the series take the minimum number of games, the Cards were hardly in it. The Nationals won the series by a combined score of 20-6 while allowing a total of 20 hits in the four games.
There were a number of dominant pitching efforts for the Nats and it didn’t just come from Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. Game 1 starter Anibal Sanchez lasted 7.2 innings and held the Cardinals to just one hit.
In Game 4, Patrick Corbin became the first starter in MLB history to strikeout 10 batters through four innings.
Add in Scherzer and Strasburg, who combined for 14.0 innings of work with just one run allowed while striking out 23 and walking just two, and you have a rotation that is as good as any.
If the Nats continue to pitch like this, they’ll be hard to stop.
Can The Nats Keep This Up Against Yankees, Astros?
While we don’t know who the Nats will face, we do know they should have a slight-to-decided advantage in starting pitching. If they face the Astros, the trio of Scherzer-Strasburg-Corbin is arguably slightly better than Gerrit Cole-Justin Verlander-Zack Greinke right now, largely because Greinke is proving a weak link.
If they face the Yankees, they’ll have a huge edge on the mound.
The question is, can the Nats carry their momentum over into the World Series? While they looked great after the NLCS, remember that this team was essentially an out away from losing in the Wild Card game. They also needed an eighth-inning rally in Game 5 against the Los Angeles Dodgers to survive.
They do feel like the team of destiny, going 74-38 to finish the regular season after starting 19-31, but I still view this team as having more flaws than the Astros and Yankees.
What’s The Best Bet?
If the price were higher, I’d take a flier on the Nats’ World Series odds here. At +140, I’m inclined to wait until we’re through the ALCS. If they play the Astros, I’d side with Houston.
If the Nationals play the Yankees, which I’m not expecting, I would bet the Nationals at that point.
For over 15 years, Dave has been working in mainstream media and sports betting. He hosted a station on Sirius Satellite Radio for four years, and is currently a senior writer for AskMen. He's interviewed hundreds of hundreds of high-profile sports stars like Shaquille O'Neal and Floyd Mayweather.
