The boys of summer are back — at least in the minds of the sports betting public.

Now that the Super Bowl is officially in the books and the NFL season is over, the pitchers and catchers of Major League Baseball are getting ready to report. That means for fans of America’s Pastime, it’s time to take a look at how your favorite team is expected to perform in the upcoming season and where the sportsbooks think they rank.

For avid fans of New York’s baseball teams, both the Yankees and the Mets have an intriguing season ahead of them.

Yankees play favorites
The Bronx Bombers are once again the odds-on favorites to take home the 2020 World Series title. Following an offseason where they stepped up to the plate by signing prize free-agent pitcher Gerrit Cole to a massive $324 million contract, the returning crew of power hitters, including Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and DJ LeMahieu are likely to lead the team into a playoff push.

That means it doesn’t matter which sportsbook you go to. The Yankees are going to be the favorites in plenty of categories, but for those looking to pick up a little extra value, it’s best to shop around.

In New Jersey, both PointsBet and DraftKings have the team at +350 to become the World Series champions, while FanDuel gives bettors just a little better odds at +375. This is in comparison to other top-flight teams that are expected to vie for the title including the Los Angeles Dodgers (+550), Houston Astros (+600), and the defending champion Washington Nationals, who sit around +1500 depending on the sportsbook.

Of course, if the Yankees are the favorites to win the World Series, they are also going to be the top choice to take their own division in the American League East. For this category, PointsBet is offering the best deal at -278. DraftKings takes the middle ground at -286 while FanDuel is offering an even -300. Of all six divisions in baseball, the Yankees are considered the biggest favorite to win their division other than the Dodgers, who currently are being offered at -625 (and has high as -1000).

All three of the aforementioned sportsbooks have the Yankees’ season win total set at 101.5. Both DraftKings and PointsBet offer both sides at -110, essentially letting you take your pick but paying vig either way. FanDuel, on the other hand, is offering a worse price on the over at -132 but giving bettors a superior price on the under at +105.

The signing of Cole has also led to some player-specific bets being offered, including his regular-season win total, regular-season strikeouts, a no-hitter prop (+2000), more than 20 strikeouts in a game (+3000 on DraftKings), and Cole to win the AL Cy Young Award (+430 on FanDuel).

Mets are armed and ready
While the Yankees are expecting nothing less than greatness, the Mets are more of a dark horse in the 2020 season. The National League team’s rotation is still led by back-to-back Cy Young award winner Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard as well as a rock-solid bullpen that, if healthy, is likely to keep the Mets competitive. With the return of the 2019 Rookie of the Year Pete Alonso and dodging the distraction of having Carlos Beltran as their manager in 2020, the Mets might have what it takes to surprise some people — just as they did during a second-half surge last year.

For those who think this team has the potential to make something big happen in 2020, here are some of your best bets across the board:

The Mets are still a top-10 team in terms of World Series betting futures, with DraftKings, FanDuel, and PointsBet all offering them at +2000. Players can get the Mets to make it out of the NL as league champions at +1000 on both FanDuel and DraftKings.

However, to even get to the postseason might be a difficult road for the Mets, who are playing in an extremely competitive division. Of the three sampled sportsbooks, DraftKings is currently offering the best value of divisional odds at +325, behind the Atlanta Braves (+180), Washington Nationals (+250), and Philadelphia Phillies (+300). Both FanDuel (+280) and PointsBet (+260) are more optimistic, ranking the Mets higher than the Phillies.

When it comes to setting the total wins for the Mets, players have plenty of options. DraftKings has the total at 85.5 and is offering -118 for the over and -106 for the under. PointsBet has the number at 86.5 and offers both the over and under at -110. Finally, FanDuel sets the line at 87.5 wins and offers the over at +100 (even money) and the under at -122.

Of course, odds and lines can move depending on the news. With plenty of time before the first pitch is thrown out on March 26, sharp bettors will shop all of the sportsbooks until they think the price is right.

This article is a reprint from NJOnlineGambling.com. To view the original story and comment, click here.