If you're a Boston Red Sox fan, you have plenty of reasons to feel good about them this October.
Let's just ignore the bullpen for one second because they won 108 games with the bullpen they have, so it couldn't be that terrible (even if guys did start to struggle in September because they were overworked). How about we go straight into the betting odds because those are what really matter. They exist specifically so that these companies can make a living, so they do them as fairly as possible--and they know their stuff which is good.
Essentially, you're going to love what you hear from them, Red Sox fans. Here's what they say:
Postseason odds from @BovadaOfficial:
— Maureen Mullen (@MaureenaMullen) October 2, 2018
To win the WS:
BOS 3/1
HOU 13/4
LAD 6/1
CLE, MIL 9/1
ATL, NYY 11/1
CHC, OAK 14/1
COL 18/1
...
That's right, folks: the Red Sox are favored to win it all. By no means are they overwhelming favorites, but they are favorites nonetheless. And this might be my favorite news I have heard all day: that expectations are high for the Red Sox among neutral parties. That shows you just how good they are this year. It's not like those people who thought Boston College was really good at football this year because they started the year at 3-0 thanks to lopsided wins over UMass and Holy Cross. This is real deal type stuff.
What's interesting too is that there's a lot of opportunity for redemption among Red Sox players who have struggled in the postseason for the past couple of seasons (cough, cough, David Price).
The club is better than it has been in recent memory too so who knows? Maybe that playoff experience coupled with a ton of career years and JD Martinez in the middle of the order is what this team needs to thrive in October. We will find out soon enough, and I can't wait for it.