Identifying 3 Low-Risk, High-Reward 2020 World Series Punts

Now that the MLB and the Player’s Association got their act together and the 60-game regular season is slated to start at the end of July, baseball will be back in our lives sooner rather than later. That means it’s time to start locking in some 2020 World Series winner bets!

Remember that the Washington Nationals started last year 19-31 before going on a crazy run. Variation is always present, so there’s a realistic chance that a club or two will drop some jaws. These three could result in a gigantic payout and here's what they need to do in order to shock the baseball community. (Note: Odds found on DraftKings)

Kansas City Royals (+50000)

Offense: Get creative on the basepaths. Last year, the Royals stole 117 bases, which ranked second in the Majors. Meanwhile, they ranked 28th in home runs (162). Expect Adalberto Mondesi and Whit Merrifield to make things happen on the basepaths, where 2019 breakout Jorge Soler, Hunter Dozier and a healthy Salvador Perez will be there to drive them in. This roster doesn’t have a ton of firepower, so manufacturing runs will be difficult if swiping bags isn’t part of the daily gameplan. I expect Mondesi to start producing at an All-Star level sooner rather than later and it's him in particular who can really make things happen on the basepaths.

Pitching: Channel their 2015 bullpen philosophy. In case you forgot, the Royals wrote the book on modern-day bullpen usage and won the 2015 World Series because of it. Last season, Kansas City’s bullpen was a weak point, as indicated by their 5.07 ERA (4th-worst). However, their 4.55 FIP ranked 16th, which creates a sliver of optimism. Since Danny Duffy, Brad Keller, Jake Junis and the rest of KC’s starting pitchers don’t exactly create a positive outlook, perhaps newcomers Trevor Rosenthal and Greg Holland (the closer on that 2015 club) will show some of the upside they once had when called on from the 'pen.

X-Factors: Brady Singer, Jackson Kowar. Two of Kansas City’s top prospects could make an appearance in the shortened season: Brady Singer and Jackson Kowar, both of whom were teammates at the University of Florida. Both spent time at High-A Wilmington and Double-A Northwest Arkansas last season and could instantly inject talent into the back end of the starting rotation. Singer had a 3.82 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 148.1 innings pitched while Kowar had a 3.94 ERA and 1.24 WHIP over 148.1 innings pitched last season.

A $5 bet on the Royals to win the World Series would win $2,500 with these odds. 

Seattle Mariners (+50000)

Offense: Make a statement with plate discipline. Despite going 68-94 last season, Scott Servais’ club ranked 5th in the MLB in walk percentage (9.5%). Although they accompanied that with a 25.5% strikeout percentage (4th-highest), young projected starters Shed Long, Kyle Lewis, Evan White and Jake Fraley will need to pick their spots and avoid chasing pitches as they settle into their Big League roles.

Pitching: Miss bats. Seattle’s starters struck out just 6.92 batters per 9 innings last season (MLB-low) while their bullpen struck out 8.63 per 9 (26th). While their bullpen was one of the luckiest last year, as indicated by a .271 BABIP (2nd-lowest), Seattle’s starters were haunted by a .306 BABIP (9th-highest) on all of those batted balls. Adding Taijuan Walker and Kendall Graveman could help the rotation while Carl Edwards Jr. could also boost the bullpen in that regard.

X-Factor: Kyle Lewis. He broke onto the scene with six homers and 13 RBIs in just 18 Major League games last season and since this offense won’t exactly be ripe with power, he will be given the opportunity to produce immediately. 

A $20 bet on the Mariners to win the World Series would win $10,000 with these odds.

Miami Marlins (+75000)

Offense: Get production from the newcomers. Miami added Jonathan Villar, Jesus Aguilar, Corey Dickerson and Matt Joyce and Matt Kemp might also be in the mix. Assuming that Brian Anderson, Isan Diaz and Jorge Alfaro continue to develop, this offense might actually be formidable if Villar builds off of his five-tool 2019 campaign, Aguilar regains his 2018 form in which he smacked 35 home runs and both Dickerson and Joyce produce in their platoon against right-handed pitchers. I’m very high on this offense, which feels a bit weird to write.

Pitching: Get production from the bullpen. Last year, the Marlins had an MLB-worst 5.10 xFIP which was actually worse than their 4.97 ERA (6th). The projected rotation of Caleb Smith, Pablo Lopez, Sandy Alcantara and Jordan Yamamoto isn’t as bad as it looks on paper, but this bullpen needs to be better than the one that converted just 55% of its 49 save chances last year. Newcomer Ryne Stanek is the lone newcomer in the projected bullpen, which is a concern, but there might be help on the way, which leads to my next point.

X-Factors: Sixto Sanchez and Edward Cabrera. Featuring a high-90s fastball, there’s a chance that Miami could use Sixto Sanchez in the bullpen during the shortened season, especially given his health and durability concerns. Look for the 21-year-old Sanchez and 22-year-old Edward Cabrera to both make an appearance at some point. Sanchez posted a 2.76 ERA and 1.07 WHIP over 114.0 innings in High-A and Double-A last season while Cabrera posted a 2.23 ERA and 0.99 WHIP over 96.2 innings at those levels. 

A $50 bet on the Marlins to win the World Series would win $37,500 with these odds. 

Are you a believer? Capitalize on these odds! But first, select your state below and get some exclusive risk-free bets!