How To Bet On World Series

The 2020 World Series is finally here. It feels like forever ago that the 2020 MLB season was put on hiatus due to a global pandemic.

Fast forward to a shortened season that was almost interrupted by a COVID-19 outbreak, and it’s easy to say few people ever thought we’d actually get here.

Even crazier? The literal path to the 2020 World Series when you consider this matchup.

Tampa Bay had a 3-0 series lead in the ALCS and almost blew it. They survived a game seven against the Astros to return to the World Series for the second time ever.

It was the opposite on the other side. The favored Dodgers fell behind 3-1 against the Braves. They battled back, forcing a game seven and then prevailing, punching their ticket to the big show for the third time in four years.

It’s been an unconventional journey through these playoffs, but the World Series is finally here on Tuesday, October 20th, with the Rays and Dodgers preparing to battle.

2020 World Series betting can finally commence.

For tips on how and where to bet on the 2020 World Series, read on.

Betting on the World Series is unique every single season. No matter what the matchup is, of course, the main focus for sports bettors should always be to have a safe, enjoyable experience.

Well, and also to win money.

To maximize that aspect, though, you want safe World Series betting sites that you can trust. Ideally, they also offer elite customer service, have a variety of World Series prop bets, and competitive odds.

Having great World Series promotions, welcome bonuses, and positive reviews all play into where you should bet on the World Series, in 2020 and really any year.

1. World Series betting odds At virtually any point during the season – and even in advance of it – we can take a peek at the odds for the winner of the next World Series. The futures market will list out all teams in contention, from favorites all the way down to longshots.
2. World Series Winner: Another popular bet to place is on the winner of the entire series. This type of bet will have better payouts than wagering on a single game, but it’s obviously a bit more difficult since your team needs to win the entire series and not just a single game. In a single game, one pitcher can easily be the difference, but.

Betting on the World Series is available all season long in the form of futures bets. It’s simple — find a team that you like and bet on them at their odds to win it all. For example, the Dodgers were +380 to win the World Series before the start of the 2020 season. If you bet $100 on LA to win it all before the season began, you would have.

The above World Series betting websites should check all of those boxes, and more. Which sites you should bet on can also differ depending on which team you like, so be sure to shop around for the best possible pricing.

• Rays to Win Series (+175)
• Dodgers to Win Series (-205)
• Rays to Win Game One (+152)
• Dodgers to Win Game One (-165)

The 2020 World Series wasn’t official until very late on Sunday night, and some of the online betting sites have yet to release official odds.

BetOnline is one sportsbook that does have odds up, as you see above. The Rays come in as considerable underdogs, despite having a pretty good resume.

The Rays not only finished with the second most wins in the majors in 2020, but they took out two powerful offenses in the Yankees and Astros.

Tampa Bay’s pitching and timely hitting makes them extremely dangerous, while their +175 series price is obviously pretty tempting. I’d shop around once more sites drop odds, and I’d also be interested to see alternative lines, but that’s a pretty nice price.

The Dodgers are the understandable favorites. They haven’t been able to cash in on that in the past, but they ended the year with the best record in baseball, and they just took out a very good Braves team.

You can see odds for the 2020 World Series, both for the series itself, and for game one. The pricing is obviously different, but you can get a little more bang for your buck if you just bet on L.A. on a per-game basis, compared to the series price.

World Series props, player props, and so much more should follow, while you should also be able to bet on who will win the World Series MVP award at some point.

For now, betting on the Rays on an individual game basis is not a bad idea, but the Dodgers at -205 to end the year as champions stands out as the safest bet to make.

This isn’t really that shocking of a World Series matchup. I mean, it is in the sense that before the 2020 MLB season began, the Rays weren’t favored to get here.

They were still on everyone’s radar, as they snuck into the playoffs on the heels of stellar pitching, terrific management, and 96 wins in 2019. But in a division with the New York Yankees and a league where you have to get past the Houston Astros, betting on the Rays to win the World Series still felt like a pipedream.

It shouldn’t have felt weird once the season started, though, as Tampa Bay marched to the second best record in baseball.

L.A. was always supposed to be here. They’ve been a title favorite since last season ended, and the narrative of “unfinished business” rages on with this team reaching the final series of the year for the third time in four seasons.

Despite having all of the bats and stellar pitching – and ending the season with baseball’s best record – the Dodgers were really up against it in the NLCS. They weathered the storm, however, and now they’re here to claim what they believe is rightfully theirs.

With that, here’s a quick look at why each team can win the 2020 World Series.

Tampa Bay did what they were supposed to. They held their ground, they knocked out the Yankees and Astros, and now they’re here to deny the Dodgers of the holy grail.

Fundamentally, the Rays can totally do that.

They have elite starting pitching with Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, and Charlie Morton leading the charge. But whether or not their aces come through, they have one of the best bullpens in the league, and it’s stepped up in a big way in the tensest of moments.

And let’s not ignore their defense, which has dropped instantly memorable plays in these playoffs.

Tampa Bay’s offense isn’t the most reliable bunch. They certainly come up big in the clutch, as evidenced by this awesome long ball from Mike Brosseau that sent the Rays to the ALCS in the first place.

MIKE BROSSEAU TAKES CHAPMAN DEEP AND THE RAYS TAKE THE LEAD ?
(via @MLB)pic.twitter.com/oU3MbLk2Ow

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 10, 2020

But when they battled the Astros in this last series, their sticks worked their way to more than four runs just once. In contrast, they’re going up against a Dodgers lineup that did that three times in the NLCS.

Tampa Bay has the pitching, from top to bottom, to control games, manage them, and squeeze out wins. It’s quite arguable they do not have the bats to win shootouts, however, and it’s worth wondering if they’ll generate enough offense consistently to win even when their arms do their job.

That said, the Rays have won and can win with defense.

They have the pitching to silence even the mightiest of bats. If their offense can chime in at the right times, they have the potential to deny the Dodgers once more.

The Rays have excellent pitching and stellar defense. But the Dodgers have a pretty wide advantage offensively. Just go look at the season hitting stats for these teams.

L.A. is known mostly for their power and ability to score in bunches, but they also boasted the league’s 10th best batting average. Tampa Bay was 22nd.

The Dodgers also cranked out the 8th most hits per game. The Rays ranked 21st. L.A. was also quite good in terms of discipline at the plate (5th fewest strikeouts), while Tampa Bay finished (gulp) dead last.

Offensively, the Rays were actually 10th in home runs per game. The Dodgers, meanwhile, were first.

In every meaningful hitting category, the Dodgers have the edge.

Their lefties can murder even the best of right-handed pitchers. And when Snell and other southpaws toe the rubber, Los Angeles still has guys like Enrique Hernandez, Chris Taylor, A.J. Pollock, Justin Turner, Will Smith, and of course Mookie Betts, to make them pay.

And I’m not even talking about their lefties who can still knock lefties around, too.

L.A. is just full-blown stacked at the plate. If this series gets beyond the arms and comes down to the sticks, it’ll be over in a hurry. And frankly, the Dodgers don’t necessarily need to smack a bunch of home runs to win.

They proved that in the NLCS. The Braves proved to be quite the tough out, yet the Dodgers won their last two games despite scoring just seven total runs.

Los Angeles is more experienced. They’re deeper. They have more star power. And they can match Tampa Bay’s main strength.

Yes, Clayton Kershaw hasn’t lived up to his name in the playoffs, but what better time than now?

'I can't put all the blame on [Clayton Kershaw], but it's not a coincidence that he struggles in the postseason. This is habit forming here for him.'
DP reacts to last night's Dodgers loss. pic.twitter.com/56ICzKAM2P

— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) October 16, 2020

The skeptics assume he’ll fail, but this is still one of the greatest pitchers in MLB history. He has to come up big at some point, right?

Tampa Bay is probably the fun underdog to root for here, and certainly that will be the case from a betting perspective. But the Dodgers are the better team, and they also have the narrative of “finally getting one” in their favor.

This just feels like the year of the Dodgers at this point. Maybe the Rays make them work for it, but L.A. is the better team. If you’re looking for a bet when it comes to the series itself, L.A. is the way to go.

World Series Betting Tips for 2020

Every single World Series matchup is different. That understandably impacts how you bet on the World Series each year, so while there are World Series betting tips you can go to, you do need to start over with each new series.

Based on how things have gone throughout the sports betting season, we can probably assume something weird takes place in the biggest baseball series of the year, too.

You should brace for that, but we still want to lean on classic World Series betting tips.

• Study Pitching
• Consider Experience and Management
• Note Hitting Stats & Splits
• Track Injuries and Lineups
• Factor in World Series Odds
• Game/Series Location

There is much more that goes into betting on the World Series before the season even starts, but now this is a pretty good place to start.

The number one thing to consider before placing bets is pitching. Most people can be swayed by the starting pitching (and that’s still very important), but you should know as much as you can about the bullpens, how they’re utilized and how they perform.

On top of that, going back and researching how managers make decisions throughout games, how they use players, when they sub people out – the list goes on – can help you decide how to bet.

There are other obvious things like monitoring player injuries, roster moves, injuries, and the final starting lineups for each game. For instance, Adam Duvall is ineligible to play in this series thanks to an injury.

Especially when looking at single games independently, you’ll want to restart your research each time.

If you’re just betting on the series winner, you’ll have to consider each team’s regular season, their playoff run, and how the matchups compare.

Don’t forget to shop around for the best World Series odds, whether you’re just looking for a better price on a bet you like, or you just want to see how everyone is pricing things.

Game location will usually be a big deal for each game and the series as a whole, when you consider “home field” advantage. That won’t really be the case in 2020, as the entire series will be played in Arlington.

In a sense, that’s halfway between L.A. and Tampa Bay, so it’s unclear what that will mean. Both teams have largely been playing at neutral sites in the playoffs, but we can factor in neutral site performance, as well as how teams fared on the road.

For this matchup some quick-hitting talking points to chew on.

• Rays Ranked 11th in Fielding Percentage
• Dodgers ranked 1st in Home Runs (hitting)
• Rays ranked 6th in Stolen Bases
• Rays ranked 1st in Strikeouts (hitting)
• Rays ranked 2nd in walks (hitting)
• Rays ranked 6th in strikeouts (pitching)
• Both were Top 5 in fewest walks allowed (pitching)

In isolation, this really just tells us little nuggets about how these teams did during the regular season. However, it suggests the Rays are a sound defensive team, and a volatile team at the plate.

L.A. has the edge in the power department, and they’re also quite lethal when it comes to their pitching. This is just the tip of the iceberg, of course.

For betting on the 2020 World Series specifically, you’ll want to consider whatever data you can get your hands on, the latest World Series odds, and my prediction as to who will win the 2020 World Series.

But successfully betting on the World Series isn’t just about listening to one betting analyst, and it certainly isn’t about locating odds at a handful of World Series betting websites.

Beyond everything I’ve just said, you’ll always want to keep an open mind with any kind of baseball betting, and the World Series is no exception. Heck, after the wild ride the 2020 MLB playoffs just took us on, we need to keep our betting heads on a swivel.

For a little extra insight for every single game, be sure to check out our detailed World Series betting previews in our MLB picks section. Our MLB betting experts will walk you through each game and guide you to the best bet each time.

Betting on the 2020 World Series doesn’t have to be hard. If you pick the right World Series betting sites, listen to the right advice, and trust your gut, you should come out with some profit.

If you’re betting on who will win the 2020 World Series, I don’t see much of a way around the Dodgers. They’re stacked, they just completed an insane comeback, and it really feels like this is their year.

As for individual games, you can play the pricing game, you can consider momentum in the series, and you can try to trust pitcher matchups to a certain degree.

At the end of the day, World Series betting is great for two things; enjoying baseball at a championship level, and making some extra cash.

Hopefully this World Series betting guide helps put you down a path of success for this year’s title series. Good luck with your bets, and enjoy the games!

Legal World Series betting happens across the globe, with Major League Baseball being a worldwide attraction. The yearly seven-game series is played between the winner of the National League and American League, and is regularly one of the most-watched and bet on sporting events of the year. The World Series gives those betting on baseball’s highest honor all the more opportunities to cash in as well. Each pitch, each hit, and each home run not only cement that player in history but also could be the difference between a win or loss for a baseball bettor. Some of the best players in the MLB come from countries such as Panama, the Dominican, Japan, Mexico, and the Caribbean Islands, all of which are rife with sportsbooks. And while every active sportsbook in America will surely have odds listed for this year’s World Series, not every state has a local sports betting avenue.

However, before you book a trip to another state this October, you should keep in mind that you can legally bet on the World Series from your home. That is because, through online sportsbooks, the best and most expansive lines for the series are right at your fingertips. This is the case whether you’re using a desktop or mobile device. Throughout this guide, we’ll cover how you are able to use these sportsbooks along with what those World Series betting lines mean and the current betting odds for the World Series are.

2021 World Series Betting Odds

The 2020 World Series ended with the Los Angeles Dodgers winning their seventh World Series title and snapping their 32-year drought. Although the 2021 season has yet to start, legal sportsbooks have already listed the odds for the 2021 World Series winner with a familiar face atop the odds board. The Los Angeles Dodgers are favored to be the first team to win back to back World Series titles since the New York Yankees did it in the 1999-2000 seasons. Right behind the Dodgers though are a few teams ready to take the title away from the champions. The World Series betting odds at the top have a few teams listed under +1500 odds.

Odds To Win The 2021 World Series

• Los Angeles Dodgers +300
• New York Yankees +600
• San Diego Padres +750
• Chicago White Sox +1000
• New York Mets +900
• Atlanta Braves +1100
• Toronto Blue Jays +1800
• Tampa Bay Rays +2500
• Minnesota Twins +2000
• Oakland Athletics +2200
• Houston Astros +2500
• Cincinnati Reds +3500
• St. Louis Cardinals +2500
• Cleveland Indians +4000
• Washington Nationals +5000
• Los Angeles Angels +4000
• Chicago Cubs +4000
• Philadelphia Phillies +4500
• Boston Red Sox +5000
• Milwaukee Brewers +6600
• Miami Marlins +7000
• Arizona Diamondbacks +12500
• San Francisco Giants +8000
• Colorado Rockies +15000
• Baltimore Orioles +12500
• Seattle Mariners +10000
• Detroit Tigers +12500
• Kansas City Royals +12500
• Texas Rangers +15000
• Pittsburgh Pirates +20000

Betting on Which League Will Win the World Series

Another way to bet on the World Series is by choosing which league will win the title. The MLB has two leagues that are similar to Conferences in other sports. The American League and the National League will send their two best teams to compete in the World Series and instead of betting on the individual teams sportsbooks have given bettors the opportunity to just bet on the league. An advantage of betting on a prop like this is that it allows bettors to bet on the World Series without having to risk just placing bets on an individual team. This is a good way to hedge any bets lost on World Series Betting odds when your team has already been eliminated.

League to Win the World Series

• American League +170
• National League -200

Can I Legally Bet On The World Series?

Yes, and you can do so by a couple of different means. In order to legally bet on the World Series, you can either visit a retail sportsbook in a state that has legalized them or you can simply turn to online offshore sportsbooks. Several states across the country have launched official sportsbooks since the federal prohibition on doing so, known as the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, was repealed by the US supreme court in May of 2018. Many states are now looking to join the ranks and regulate a sports betting industry in their borders, but the wheels of state government may turn slower for some than others. For baseball fans in that position or any in the country, they will be glad to know that they can still access online offshore sportsbooks without fear of being penalized by their state. These legal sports betting sites have served American bettors for over two decades and have always posted competitive betting lines for the World Series.

COVID-19 and the World Series

The coronavirus pandemic has definitely taken a hit on the MLB season as not only did the season start late but there have been several outbreaks of the virus amongst different teams. The coronavirus could certainly impact the World Series if an outbreak occurs on one of the teams or if there are certain players not playing due to it. This is something to definitely take note of when betting on the World Series. If any other updates on the World Series come as a result of the virus, you can find that information here.

Where To Bet On The World Series

Depending on where you live, there could be numerous places to bet on the World Series. There are now over a dozen states that have retail sportsbooks in some form or another. Some state’s allowed their commercial casinos to build a sports betting parlor in their establishment, while others gave that right exclusively to their tribal casinos. In each of these venues, you can surely find odds for the World Series at any point in the year. Some states even have regulated online/mobile sports betting platforms so you could bet on the World Series from anywhere inside the border of the state.

How To Bet On World Series

However, for most of the country, this luxury doesn’t quite exist yet. That doesn’t mean they can’t find somewhere to bet on the World Series. They simply have to turn to the internet to find all the latest World Series odds through online offshore sportsbooks. These sites have World Series odds for every team in the MLB and can be accessed from anywhere you are as long as you have an internet connection. Sites like BetOnline, Bovada, and SportsBetting have been the go-to place for MLB bettors for the better part of two decades now. While there are many sports going on at the same time as the World Series, these online sportsbooks have never missed a beat and offer odds for each game in the series.

How To Bet On The World Series

World Series Runlines – This wager type is essentially like betting on the point spread. The favorite to win that particular World Series game will be signaled with a minus sign and the underdog will have a plus sign. The number attached to the favorite will be the number of runs they have to cover, while the underdog only has to make sure they come within that number. For example, let’s say the Red Sox are favored at (-2.5) against the Dodgers who are listed at (+2.5). The Red Sox will have to win the game by three or more runs in order for a bet on them to pay out. Meanwhile, the Dodgers can either win the game outright or lose by no more than three points for a bet on them to pay out.

World Series Straight Moneylines – This wager type is arguably the simplest one to make. With this bet, you are simply picking who you think will win the game, no matter what the final score is. Favorites and underdogs are still assigned, however, that is determined by the potential payout for picking that team. For example, if the Houston Astros and the Cleveland Indians are playing in the World Series, one of the games may have the Astros favored at (-150) betting odds to win the game while the Indians are at (+125). This means that you would need to bet 150 dollars on the Astros in order to win 100 dollars, while a hundred dollar bet on the Indians would payout 125 dollars. These are not the minimum amounts you have to bet, rather they are a representation of the payout ratio. Some online offshore sportsbooks will take in World Series bets for as low as 50 cents.

World Series Totals Bets – This is an interesting bet type because it isn’t actually concerned with who wins or loses the game, rather, how many points will both teams combine to score at the end of the game. Let’s suppose the Yankees and Phillies are playing in the World Series and the line is set at 7.5 for the first game of the series. Your bet will be whether or not you think the combined final score will go “over” 7.5 points or “under” 7.5 points. This bet type is best if you’re not really sure who is going to win the game but you know how the match is going to be contested. The reason that these come with half points is to ensure that that the sportsbook doesn’t predict the amount exactly because that would effectively result in a “push” meaning that they would return all bets from either side of the line.

Other Ways To Legally Bet On The World Series

World Series Player/Team Props – Player props and team props for the World Series aren’t necessarily concerned with the outcome of the game at all, but instead how the some of the stats in the game shakeout. Common player prop bets will include how many home runs a certain player will get, how many strikeouts a pitcher will get, or how many innings a pitcher will play to name a few. Team props are similar, but they don’t necessarily count which player attributes to the overall stat. Common team props that are featured for the World Series are total team hits, runs, or RBI’s for any given game.

World Series Future Bets – Future bets for the World Series are some of the most popular wagering types. A very common example of a future bet is picking who you will believe will win the series and in how many games, before the series actually begins. Placing this bet from the start will sometimes grant you the highest possible payout. Although, if you place a bet on a team that’s down 3-1 in the series to come back and win in game seven and you get it right, you can look forward to a substantially large winning bet. World Series Future bets also aren’t restricted to October, as betting lines for an MLB champion can be found all throughout the regular season and into the postseason.

Mobile Betting On The World Series

Mobile betting is one of the best ways to get in on the action as everyone you stand becomes a location for sports betting. All the same World Series odds you would find at a retail land-based sportsbook is available from mobile betting apps and websites. You do not need to travel to a physical sportsbook to take action on the World Series. Every year, the World Series will bring in several betting odds, prop bets, wager types, and other winning opportunities. You do not have to miss out on betting on the World Series simply because you do not have time to take off work and travel to a physical casino. You can bet on the World Series from the palms of your hands thanks to mobile sports betting.

World Series Live Betting

As if the World Series itself wasn’t enough to excite you, World Series live betting will keep you on the edge of your seat for every single game no matter what the score. Live betting on the World Series unlocks the door for even more wagering possibilities and allows you to potentially win big on events that are happening within a game as it is being played in real-time. Every pitch, every hit, every steal, and every second of the game is another chance to place a bet, but you have to be quick. Live betting lines for the World Series are updated continuously throughout the game so once the odds change they won’t come back. So while some may think baseball is a slow game, bettors will have to make fast decisions and find out almost instantly how those decisions pan out.

The Difference Between Land-Based & Online Sportsbooks

As mentioned before, not every state has land-based sports wagering facilities. However, that is not the only factor when comparing the difference between land-based and online sportsbooks. Right off the bat, the most glaring difference between the two comes in terms of costs. Land-based sportsbooks often come with the price of gas to get there or possible plane ticket, expensive food and drink once you are there, potentially weighted lines when you try to bet, and a possible mandatory stay if it’s at a private resort. Since the World Series is a best of seven matchup, this could also potentially extend your visit or cause you to travel back and forth to one.

When it comes to online sportsbooks, specifically those located offshore, signing up is free and you can do it wherever you are. To add to this, you can even qualify for bonuses by simply depositing money into your account, giving you greater funds to be able to place your World Series bets. The number of betting lines also tends to be more expansive than land-based sportsbooks, and because the sites are operated overseas, you never have to worry about weighted lines that home team biases make.

Is it worth it to shop lines for the World Series?

Not only is it worth it to shop lines for the World Series, but it is worth doing for any game you’re thinking of putting action on. The reality is that not every sportsbook will post the same odds for the same World Series game. Some may have a team listed at (-130) to win a World Series game while the next sports betting site may have the same team favored at (-150). By simply taking the time to compare odds you could save yourself 20 dollars. The best online offshore sportsbooks will allow you to view their lines for free and becoming a member of these sites also comes with no cost.

Are There Any Sportsbook Bonuses That Are Available For The World Series?

There are plenty of sportsbook bonuses for the World Series when using an online offshore sportsbook. They technically have bonuses that are available all year round and what you earn from those can be put directly into your World Series bet. State-regulated sportsbooks may also have bonuses, but more often then not, they won’t have as many as their online competition. For example, offshore sportsbooks can give you bonuses for using cryptocurrency, while state-regulated platforms can’t.

How do I receive my World Series betting payouts?

Just like deposits, this will depend on if you plan to use a state-regulated online sportsbook or one that operates overseas. For those that use options provided by their state, you may be able to receive your payouts through digital wallets such as Neteller, Skrill, or PayPal. However, other states that have their online sportsbooks provided by casinos, may require you to actually go to the casino itself to pick up your cash. You may also have to call and ask those casinos if they can mail your check instead if you are just visiting and forget to cash your ticket.

When it comes to online offshore options, payouts are received much in the same way that deposits are made. This means requesting a check sent to you, a bank wire, or a money order. Two important aspects to note is that if you can not request your winnings via Bitcoin or cryptocurrency if you didn’t make your deposits through that method and you can not receive your payout to be sent back to your debit or credit card. There is a cashier that you can contact at these sites to be able to help you in the event that you have trouble withdrawing your funds.

What is the legal age to bet on the World Series?

It depends on the state but most states require you to be at least 21 years old to bet on sports. This includes the World Series. If you are of legal age you can find access to betting lines at the many online sportsbooks on offer. If you are underage you will be unable to bet on the World Series as no sportsbook international or regulated will allow you to make an account. Some states require you to be 18 years old. It is best to research the state you wish to bet in before you attempt to bet on the World Series.

World Series Prop Bets

How Many World Series Betting Sites Can I Join?

As much as your heart desires. Each site will only let you create one account, but they do not prevent you from going to another online sportsbook in order to bet on the World Series. It is actually recommended that you have an account with multiple sites because then it allows you to shop lines, allowing you to save money and potentially win more on your World Series bet.