Orioles, Rays Continue To Jockey For AL East Supremacy
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00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:02 Craig, what did this weekend show you
00:04 about these two teams in the race
00:06 for the top spot in the AL East?
00:09 Yeah, it's really fascinating what
00:12 can happen over the course of a 162-game season.
00:15 The Rays in April and then into May
00:17 looked like they were going to win 110 games,
00:20 go on to win the pennant, win the World Series.
00:22 They have been one of baseball's worst teams in July
00:25 all of a sudden now.
00:26 They've gotten cold.
00:27 I don't know if you would say it's
00:28 at the right time or the wrong time,
00:30 but they built such a massive lead
00:32 that you wouldn't have expected the Orioles to catch them.
00:34 But look, as of right now, I think
00:36 this is going to be right down to the end.
00:38 We know that Tampa Bay is not going
00:39 to lose every game the rest of the season.
00:41 They're going to start winning again.
00:42 But what I find fascinating is the jockeying
00:45 that these teams are probably going to do over the next week
00:48 and trying to make their teams better.
00:50 Baltimore in particular, I do think, as we've talked about,
00:53 has a great shot not just to win the division,
00:55 but to win the pennant.
00:56 They're going to have to add a pitcher or two.
01:00 And if it's a significant name, I
01:02 think the Orioles still have a great shot to win.
01:04 And those odds, Ben, that we talked about about a week ago,
01:07 they are thinning both to win the division
01:10 and to win the pennant.
01:11 I mean, we're running out of time on this.
01:12 If you're not going to do it now,
01:14 you're never going to get better odds because the Orioles are
01:17 going to add.
01:18 And if it's Otani or if it's Stroman
01:20 or if it's a big pitcher, they got a great shot to win it.
01:25 The O's are still giving you a plus money price
01:28 at this moment.
01:29 Maybe not the O's, but the odds maker
01:30 is giving you that plus money number on Baltimore.
01:34 Plus 130 in the American League East.
01:37 The Rays still booked as an odds on favorite.
01:40 Minus 135 despite the fact in the month of July,
01:44 to echo Craig's point, Tampa is 4 and 14
01:48 and now trails Baltimore by two games
01:51 in the divisional standings.
01:52 The Rays still, Craig, the third best price
01:55 to win the World Series at plus 550.
01:58 Tampa still booked as the favorites
02:00 to win the American League pennant.
02:02 So Craig, there is some resilience,
02:04 it seems, for the Rays, at least as the odds makers expect.
02:09 What do you think the final 60 games or so of this MLB season
02:14 hold for Tampa Bay?
02:16 Tampa Bay still very good.
02:17 I expect them to get better over the next week.
02:19 They recognize this is probably the best roster
02:21 that they've had in several years.
02:24 2020 is sort of hard to indicate just because it
02:26 was such a short season.
02:28 And I thought they played well in the postseason,
02:30 by the way, in 2022.
02:31 But this is a team that's built to win right now.
02:34 They have a very deep farm system to make trades.
02:37 So I think that they can accomplish things.
02:40 In terms of odds, it's interesting
02:41 that you mentioned that.
02:42 I still actually like Tampa Bay to win the division.
02:46 But it's a tremendous amount to me of interest
02:49 to take the Orioles still to win that World Series.
02:52 When we did this show last week, Ben, they were 30 to 1.
02:55 You saw that graphic you just showed.
02:57 That's 15 to 1 in a week that has changed.
02:59 And if they add another player, that thing
03:02 is going to be inside of 10 to 1 in a week.
03:04 So it's like either get on--
03:06 the time to get on board with the Orioles is now or never.
03:09 Because pretty soon, everyone is going to recognize
03:12 what kind of shot they have.
03:13 I mean, I think that the Astros, the Orioles, and the Rays,
03:17 those are the teams to beat in the AL.
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