Sports betting is now legal in Massachusetts just in time for Opening Day. That means citizens of Massachusetts can wager on their hometown baseball team, the Boston Red Sox. After their 91-win season in 2021, the Red Sox followed it up with a last-place finish in 2022. And it only got worse during the offseason, as the Sox lost numerous players from their starting lineup to free agency. I’ve analyzed Boston’s odds to win the AL East and World Series and provided a best bet for their 2023 season.
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MLB Boston Red Sox AL East Odds
The AL East was one of the best divisions in baseball last year. It was the only division that had 4 teams win at least 80 games, but unfortunately for Sox fans, their team wasn’t one of them. Boston finished at the bottom of the AL East with just 78 wins, while the Yankees came 1 win short of a 100-win season en route to another division title. But with the Yankees, Blue Jays and Orioles stocking up for the 2023 season, let’s check out the odds to win the AL East (provided by DraftKings Sportsbook).
New York Yankees +125
Toronto Blue Jays +205
Tampa Bay Rays +340
Boston Red Sox +1500
Baltimore Orioles +2500
Check out our AL East division preview
MLB Boston Red Sox World Series Odds
Boston’s World Series title in 2018 seems like an eternity ago. There has been plenty of turnover from that team, and that has caused 2 last-place finishes in the last 4 years. The stars of their 2018 team included Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi, J.D. Martinez and Xander Bogaerts, who have all found new homes for the 2023 season. And while the team still has Rafael Devers and Chris Sale, the Red Sox appear to be outmatched in their division and American League. It seems out of the cards for Boston to make the playoffs this season which would make it rather difficult for them to win the World Series. We’ve listed their World Series odds below, along with the 3 favorites to win it all.
Houston Astros +600
New York Yankees +750
Atlanta Braves +750
…
Boston Red Sox +6000
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MLB Boston Red Sox 2023 Preview
When looking at the team the Red Sox have assembled for the 2023 season, there’s a lot more to dislike than like. They lost Bogearts, Martinez, Nathan Eovaldi and Michael Wacha to free agency when they could have dealt them at the trade deadline last year for prospects. Instead, Boston was forced to build a bridge to their future by signing veterans Corey Kluber, Adam Duvall, Justin Turner and Kenley Jansen. If it was 2018, these players would be major additions to the team. But it’s 2023 and those players are closer to the end of their careers than the beginning.
Boston’s biggest weakness will be their starting rotation, and their offense is not good enough to make up for their below-average pitching. With the way the Yankees, Blue Jays, Rays and Orioles look heading into 2023, this might be another last-place finish from the Red Sox.
Don’t miss our MLB 2023 season preview!
MLB Boston Red Sox 2023 Season Best Bet: Finish 5th in AL East (+185)
Available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing
Since 3 teams from the AL East made the playoffs last year and I anticipate that 4 clubs will have records good enough to compete for a postseason berth in 2023, the AL East is once again the strongest division in baseball. The Red Sox, who are in a small rebuild after losing some key players this winter, are the only team I don’t see having a shot to get to the postseason. With the loss of Bogaerts and Martinez, their offense suffered, and the starting rotation lost its two best pitchers in Eovaldi and Wacha. Boston’s bullpen was the only area I thought it could have improved, but having an all-tar closer is not that crucial if you aren’t winning at the end of the game.
In 2023 the starting rotation will be Boston’s Achilles’ heel, and it’s a flaw that will prevent this club from succeeding. It is quite unlikely that the Red Sox will finish with a better record than the Yankees, Blue Jays, or Rays, leaving only the Orioles to fight with them for the last spot in the division. However, the Orioles are emerging from a rebuild while the Red Sox are just beginning one. Boston will likely finish last in the AL East rankings; I don’t believe it will win 80 games this season.
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