With Opening Day 2009 less than one week away, the New York Yankees are considered the most likely team to win the World Series in October, at 7/2 at PlayersOnly.
The Yankees appear to have solved their problem over at first base with the addition of Mark Teixeira, an admirable offensive player that adds to an already strong offensive lineup that includes future Hall of Famers Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez. Last year Teixeira, soon to be twenty-nine years old, split his duties with Atlanta and the Angels of Anaheim. During his time with the Angels, he produced such stellar offensive totals that he actually earned himself a point for Most Valuable Player in the American League,
despite not even taking two hundred at-bats. A former All Star, Teixeira is mid-career but can be compared to the likes of Carlos Delgado and Jim Thome when they were in their late twenties.
The Yankees are not likely to falter in making the playoffs like they did last year for two more reasons. Firstly, their pitching is strong with C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte, and an aging but good Mariano Rivera. Secondly, the Yankees management will not stand for missing the playoffs two years in a row and they will not hesitate to spend millions of dollars to fill any gaps that they have in their lineup should any arise. They are, after all, the richest team in baseball and they are not as affected by random injuries as other teams are because the Yankees have the means to throw millions of dollars around to fix 'bad luck.'
Other notable favorites according to
PlayersOnly include the Boston Red Sox at 5/1 , the New York Mets at 7/1, and the Chicago Cubs at 7/1.
The longest long shots include the Washington Nationals, the Texas Rangers, the San Diego Padres, the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the Houston Astros, all set at 100/1.