Odds to win 2012 World Series

Last year we witnessed the St. Louis Cardinals ride a wave of late-season momentum all the way to winning the Fall Classic. With a brand new season ahead of us, which teams do you think have the best odds to win 2012 World Series? Will the usual suspects return to glory, or will another improbable team rise out of nowhere and go complete a Cinderella story?

Believe it or not, this upcoming season should be one of the most competitive ones we’ve seen in recent memory. How close are things expected to be? To give you an idea, for the first time in a log time we will have three teams listed in a tie for the best odds to win 2012 World Series, followed by two more teams that are literally fractions away.

As we approach opening day, the three teams listed with the same exact odds to win the World Series this year are: Philadelphia Phillies, Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim! All three of these clubs are listed as 6/1 favorites, closely followed by the New York Yankees [7/1] and the Texas Rangers [8/1].

Two of those three teams had big offseasons, which is the reason they find themselves at the top of this category. Of course I’m talking about the two princes, as the Angels signed Albert Pujols and the Tigers welcomed Prince Fielder. These players have basically taken playoff teams right to the top of the list of betting favorites.

Pujols decided to follow in Tony LaRussa’s footsteps and abandoned St. Louis after winning his second championship. Agreeing to a 10-year, $254 million contract, Pujols will take his talents to Southern California to try and rule the American League West. Aside from winning a World Series in 2002, it was the greatest day in franchise history.

“This is a monumental day for Angel fans and I could not be more excited,” said LA Angels owner, Arte Moreno.

For the Tigers, reeling in a guy like Fielder only took the fourth richest contract in MLB history. Signing a 9-year, $214 million contract, the 2-time Silver Slugger Award winner placed himself in the upper echelon of the highest-players in baseball history. Averaging 38 homeruns and 108 runs-batted-in in his past 6 seasons, the Tigers will be expecting immediate production from their new first baseman.

“To me, this was probably the most unbelievable thing that’s ever happened to me in baseball — to lose a guy like Victor Martinez, and within 10 days, sign a guy like Prince Fielder,” said Tigers skipper Jim Leyland. “I’ve never had anything like that happen to me.”

So how does the rest of the league square up against the aforementioned odds favorites? Check out the complete list of the most recent odds to win 2012 World Series:

• Philadelphia Phillies 6/1
• Detroit Tigers 6/1
• Los Angeles Angels 6/1
• New York Yankees 7/1
• Texas Rangers 8/1
• Boston Red Sox 10/1
• Cincinnati Reds 15/1
• Atlanta Braves 16/1
• San Francisco Giants 16/1
• Tampa Bay Rays 17/1
• Miami Marlins 20/1
• Arizona Diamondbacks 20/1
• Milwaukee Brewers 25/1
• Washington Nationals 30/1
• Colorado Rockies 35/1
• St Louis Cardinals 35/1
• Los Angeles Dodgers 40/1
• Toronto Blue Jays 50/1
• Chicago Cubs 60/1
• Cleveland Indians 60/1
• Kansas City Royals 60/1
• Chicago White Sox 80/1
• Pittsburgh Pirates 80/1
• Seattle Mariners 100/1
• New York Mets 100/1
• San Diego Padres 100/1
• Oakland Athletics 100/1
• Minnesota Twins 100/1
• Baltimore Orioles 200/1
• Houston Astros 300/1