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The trade deadline has come and gone and the MLB futures odds are rounding into shape as the season’s home stretch is on the horizon.
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Aaron Judge and Paul Goldschmidt have fully established themselves as massive favorites to hoist their respective league’s trophies this fall, and it will take a borderline miracle to usurp either from their statuses atop the mountain. Still, as the old saying goes, it ain’t over til it’s over.
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Here are the latest MVP odds.
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Odds to win AL MVP
| Player (Team) | Odds to win MVP |
|---|---|
| Aaron Judge (Yankees) | -900 |
| Shohei Ohtani (Angels) | +500 |
| Jose Ramirez (Guardians) | +8,500 |
| Yordan Alvarez (Astros) | +25,000 |
| Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (Blue Jays) | +25,000 |
| Julio Rodriguez (Mariners) | +25,000 |
Odds courtesy of FanDuel as of August 29, 2022.
AL MVP favorites
Aaron Judge, New York Yankees (-900)
After going through a nine-game stretch without a home run, his longest such drought of the season, Aaron Judge blasted off three times in four games to bring his season total to 49. With just over a month to go, how high will he go?
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The impending free agent outfielder is slashing .293/.393/.655 and he’s swiped a career-high 14 bags while. After injuries compromised Judge in the immediate aftermath of him winning AL Rookie of the Year in 2017, he’s put questions about his durability behind him in a big way and he should easily eclipse the 52 homers from that season at some point over the next couple of weeks.
No one else has done nearly enough to close the gap and the AL MVP seems destined to be Judge’s barring a wild September.
Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels (+500)
Shohei Ohtani is fascinating to watch every time he is in action. Whether it be him at the plate or toeing the rubber, there’s always a chance for something special to happen. Ohtani currently sits at 11-8 on the year with 176 strikeouts in 128 innings of work, arguably being the lone bright spot for the perennially disappointing Angels. After a stomach bug derailed a start against the Tigers, Ohtani returned to flummox the Blue Jays on the weekend, striking out nine over seven shutout innings while allowing just two hits and a walk.
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On the other side of the ball, he has a slash line of .265/.358/.516 with 28 home runs, 77 RBI, and 11 stolen bases. If anyone could mount a comeback against Judge, it’s Ohtani, but it’s looking increasingly out of reach with every passing week.
Jose Ramirez, Cleveland Guardians (+8,500)
Even though he’s a distant third on the odds board, Jose Ramirez keeps hanging around. The Cleveland third baseman is slashing .283/.353/.548 with 26 home runs, 38 doubles, four triples, and 14 stolen bases. He’s second in the AL in total bases (256) and is pacing the junior circuit in doubles. He’s slowed down a bit in August, batting .263 with five homers and four doubles in 25 games.
Odds to win NL MVP
| Player (Team) | Odds |
|---|---|
| Paul Goldschmidt (Cardinals) | -1,450 |
| Nolan Arenado (Cardinals) | +2,500 |
| Freddie Freeman (Dodgers) | +3,500 |
| Trea Turner (Dodgers) | +4,000 |
| Mookie Betts (Dodgers) | +5,000 |
| Francisco Lindor (Mets) | +5,000 |
| Austin Riley (Braves) | +5,000 |
| Pete Alonso (Mets) | +8,500 |
| Manny Machado (Padres) | +8,500 |
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Odds courtesy of FanDuel as of August 29, 2022.
NL MVP favorites
Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals (-1,450)
Goldschmidt leads MLB with a .338 batting average and could ride a batting title all the way to MVP glory. After batting .286 in July, Goldy has been on fire in August, batting .374 with nine home runs in 25 games. As the Cardinals fight for playoff positioning, his solid play will remain integral to the team’s success. That recent string of otherworldly hitting has seemingly cast his lead out of reach in the MVP race, too.
Goldschmidt finished second in MVP voting twice with the Arizona Diamondbacks (2013, 2015) and third another time (2017). He could finally break through during what is shaping up to clearly be his best season yet.
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Nolan Arenado, St. Louis Cardinals (+2,500)
Goldschmidt isn’t the only Cardinal flying high at the right time. Nolan Arenado opened August with a 10-game hitting streak where he hit .421 with six home runs and four doubles over 43 plate appearances. After a brief slump, he went 7-for-16 in three games against the Diamondbacks. Then, following a brief spell on the paternity list to welcome his son into the world, he returned to the lineup with a 4-for-4 effort with his 27th home run of the year.
Altogether, Arenado is slashing .306/.370/.567 while playing Gold Glove defense at the hot corner once more.
Freddie Freeman, Los Angeles Dodgers (+3,500)
Freddie Freeman’s debut season with the Dodgers has been a rousing success even if it doesn’t result in him winning his second NL MVP. Freeman is second only to Goldschmidt in batting average (.326) and has been a stable addition to an already formidable lineup. His 155 wRC+ would be the second-best of his career, trailing just his 2020 MVP campaign of an insane 186.
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Understanding MLB MVP odds
Most sportsbooks will display odds in the American format as listed above. When Trout ran away with the MVP award in 2019 his odds had a minus (-) sign ahead of the number for a large part of the season.
That means that a bettor in August had to wager $1,000 to win $100 by betting on Trout to win MVP. Before the season starts, almost every player will have a plus (+) sign ahead of their odds.
That means a bettor would have profited $3,300 for a $100 wager on deGrom before the season started.
If American odds aren’t your thing, simply use a tool like our odds converter to switch the odds to decimal or fractional format. Most online sportsbooks also give you the option to change the odds format that you see.
This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here
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