After an exhilarating October of playoff baseball, the World Series begins Friday with another chapter in the storied rivalry between the Yankees and the Dodgers.
The history, the tradition, iconic uniforms and superstars on both teams — what more could we possibly ask for as baseball fans?
This will be the 12th all-time meeting between the Yankees and the Dodgers in the Fall Classic, and there will be a World Series-record five former MVPs between the two teams (Ohtani, Betts, Freeman, Judge and Stanton).
And although it won’t be announced until weeks after this series ends, it is a mere formality that Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge will be the winners of this year’s relguar-season MVP awards, making it the first time in over a decade both MVPs are participating in the World Series (Buster Posey and Miguel Cabrera in 2012 being the last time).
Not only do these two ball clubs have storied history, but they have some recent history as well.
The Dodgers visited the Bronx in early June, winning the first two games of a three-game series, before the Yankees salvaged the finale. It’s worth noting, however, that Yankees slugger Juan Soto missed that series with a forearm injury.
Was the series in June a precursor of things to come?
My bet here is “Dodgers in 7 at +475” (available at DraftKings).
How important is a Dodgers vs. Yankees World Series to the MLB?
With all the star power on each side, we should be looking at an ultra-competitive series. The tiebreaker for me is the Yankees’ inability to get length from their starting pitchers.
Through nine postseason games, the Yankees’ starters are averaging 4.8 innings per start.
Against a ferocious lineup and with a bullpen that doesn’t have enough quality arms to compensate for short outings, I think the Dodgers’ vicious lineup is what ultimately carries them to a series victory.
The Yankees got here by beating AL Central opponents Cleveland and Kansas City. The step-up in class now as they face the Dodgers is a major jump in competition and one that will ultimately prove too much for a Yankees team that lacks great pitching.
In what should be a great series, I think the Dodgers win it in a winner-takes-all Game 7.
Will Hill, a contributor on the Bears Bets Podcast, has been betting on sports for over a decade. He is a betting analyst who has been a host on VSiN, as well as the Goldboys Network.
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