Road Warrior: Justin Verlander, Astros Are Biggest Road Favorites Since 2005
Justin Verlander. Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Betting Odds: Houston Astros vs. Baltimore Orioles
- Astros moneyline: -462
- Orioles moneyline: +406
- Over/Under: 10
- First pitch: 1:05 p.m. ET
>> All odds as of Sunday afternoon. Download The Action Network App to get real-time MLB odds and track your bets
The Astros and Orioles have simply been playing on different planets this season, and nothing better shows that gap then Sunday's matchup.
The Houston Astros are 77-40 (.658), the best record in Major League Baseball.
The Baltimore Orioles are 38-78 (.328), the second-worst record in all of baseball, ahead of just the Detroit Tigers.
In the betting world, the Astros have managed to profit bettors $502 on a $100 per-game basis in 2019, despite being on average -184 favorites this season.
The Orioles have lost bettors $1,321 this year, which is the fifth-worst mark in baseball entering play on Sunday.
On Sunday, the Astros and their starter pitching Justin Verlander are MASSIVE -462 favorites on the road, which is the largest mark for a road favorite in the Bet Labs database (which dates back to 2005).
Not to mention, the Astros opened as -340 favorites at about 3 p.m. ET yesterday and the line has moved almost consistently up since hitting the market.
Prior to Sunday, no team has been listed as a road favorite of -400 or higher in the Bet Labs database. And only 14 teams have even been a -300 favorite or higher.
Those 14 teams are 12-2 on the moneyline, beating their opponents by 3.1 runs per game.
With Verlander and the Astros closing at -462, they are the second-biggest favorites — home or road — since 2005. And Verlander will now join a very exclusive club, too.
Astros closed as -419 favorites…
Largest Favorites in Bet Labs (Since 2005):
2016 Dodgers (-485) vs. ATL (W, 4-0)
2007 Twins (-435) vs. WSH (L, 3-1)
2017 Indians (-434) vs. DET (W, 2-0)
2019 Astros (-419) vs. SEA pic.twitter.com/JzZagF9Wu9— The Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) August 4, 2019
In that span, only one starting pitcher entering Sunday has been listed as a favorite of -400 or higher in multiple starts: Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw, who hit that mark in 2016 and 2017. He won both games at home in Dodger Stadium.
Today, Justin Verlander will join this list after being a -419 favorite against the Mariners just last Sunday!
Since 2005, there have been 1,289 different pitchers to start a game in Major League Baseball, according to the Bet Labs database…
- 79 have been listed as a -300 favorite or higher overall.
- 7 have been listed as a -400 favorite or higher overall.
- 6 have been listed as a -300 favorite or higher on the road.
- One has been listed as a favorite of -400 or higher on the road .. Justin Verlander.
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