Home MLB MLB 2020 MVP and Cy Young odds: Favorites, long shots and sleepers

    MLB 2020 MVP and Cy Young odds: Favorites, long shots and sleepers

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    While fans and bettors wait patiently for MLB to release the official 2020 schedule, we found out some exciting news on Saturday as it pertains to Opening Day matchups. According to the New York Post, the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals will host the New York Yankees on Thursday July 23 in primetime. The Yankees will no doubt start free-agent addition Gerrit Cole (20-5, 2.50 ERA last season) while the Nats are expected to counter with either Max Scherzer (11-7, 2.92 ERA) or Stephen Strasburg (18-6, 3.32 ERA).

    The betting odds won't be posted until the schedule is unveiled. But with a pair of studs toeing the rubber and so many elite position players occupying the batter's box, bettors can't help but wonder if a potential Cy Young or MVP winner will be taking the field. 

    Over the past few days, ever since the MLB return to play announcement became official, oddsmakers have slowly unveiled more offerings to baseball bettors. First it was props, followed by futures and win totals. Now we have the Cy Young and MVP odds. 

    Before we delve into the odds, let's take a look at the last 5 award winners since 2015.

    MVP
    2019: Mike Trout (AL), Cody Bellinger (NL)
    2018: Mookie Betts (AL), Christian Yelich (NL)
    2017: Jose Altuve (AL), Giancarlo Stanton (NL)
    2016: Mike Trout (AL), Kris Bryant (NL)
    2015: Josh Donaldson (AL), Byrce Harper (NL)

    Cy Young
    2019: Justin Verlander (AL), Jacob DeGrom (NL)
    2018: Blake Snell (AL), Jacob DeGrom (NL)
    2017: Corey Kluber (AL), Max Scherzer (NL)
    2016: Rick Porcello (AL), Max Scherzer (NL)
    2015: Dallas Keuchel (AL), Jake Arrieta (NL)

    Now let's dive into the 2020 MVP and Cy Young odds at DraftKings for the shortened 60-game season.

    AL MVP
    Mike Trout %plussign% 200
    Aaron Judge %plussign% 800
    Francisco Lindor %plussign% 1000
    Anthony Rendon %plussign% 1400
    Alex Bregman, Matt Chapman, Josh Donaldson, Gleyber Torres %plussign% 2000
    Jose Ramirez, George Springer %plussign% 2500
    Xander Bogaerts, Shohei Ohtani %plussign% 3000
    Giancarlo Stanton %plussign% 3300
    Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Rafael Devers, DJ Lemahieu, JD Martinez, Yoan Moncada, Marcus Semien %plussign% 4000

    Just as in years past, all MVP talk begins and ends with Trout. It's hard not to lay the chalk on a player who has won three of the last six awards. Plus he enjoys extra protection in the lineup as he's expected to hit 2nd in front of free agent pickup Anthony Rendon. Judge and Stanton are coming off injuries. Bregman and Springer have value at longer-shot odds but will the anti-Astros bias hurt them post-cheating scandal? One dark horse to keep an eye out for: Devers. The young Red Sox third baseman is entering his 4th season and coming off a breakout campaign where he hit .311 with 32 homers and 115 RBIs.

    NL MVP
    Mookie Betts %plussign% 550
    Cody Bellinger %plussign% 700
    Christian Yelich %plussign% 700
    Ronald Acura Jr %plussign% 900
    Juan Soto %plussign% 1000
    Nolan Arenado, Javier Baez, Bryce Harper %plussign% 1800
    Fernando Tatis Jr %plussign% 2000
    Kris Bryant, Freddie Freeman, Manny Machado, Ketel Marte %plussign% 2500
    Pete Alonso %plussign% 3000
    Anthony Rizzo, Jacob DeGrom %plussign% 3300
    Paul Goldschmidt, Max Scherzer, Corey Seager, Trevor Story %plussign% 4000

    Betts is the favorite and won the award in 2018 but now he must switch leagues and acclimate to a new team during an unconventional offseason. That's a tall task. Bellinger and Yelich have better payouts and have won the last two NL MVPs. The real value may rest with a couple young pups in 22-year-old Ronald Acuna Jr (.280, 41 homers, 101 RBIs) and 21-year-old Juan Soto (.282, 34 homers, 110 RBIs). Freeman is intriguing based on the price. Harper seems to be flying under the radar and you would expect him to be more comfortable in Philadelphia in Year 2. 

    AL Cy Young
    Gerrit Cole %plussign% 275
    Justin Verlander %plussign% 700
    Blake Snell %plussign% 900
    Mike Clevinger %plussign% 1000
    Shane Bieber, Tyler Glasnow, Charlie Morton %plussign% 1200
    Lucas Giolito %plussign% 1800
    Carlos Carrasco, Corey Kluber %plussign% 2200
    Jose Berrios, Zack Greinke, Lance Lynn %plussign% 2500
    Eduardo Rodriguez %plussign% 2800
    Hyun Jin-Ryu %plussign% 3500

    Cole, who missed out on the Cy last year to teammate Verlander, opens as the favorite. He is entering Year 1 with the Yankees after signing a 10-year, $360 million deal. Run support shouldn't be an issue, however Cole will have to play half of his games in hitter friendly Yankee Stadium. Verlander is a perennial contender but is coming off groin surgery in March, although he should be ready for the season. Berrios is entering his prime at age 26 and has improved his won-loss record and ERA all four years in the major (14-8, 3.68 ERA last year).

    NL Cy Young
    Jacob DeGrom %plussign% 350
    Max Scherzer %plussign% 400
    Walker Buehler, Jack Flaherty %plussign% 800
    Stephen Strasburg %plussign% 1200
    Clayton Kershaw %plussign% 1500
    Luis Castillo %plussign% 1800
    Yu Darvish %plussign% 2000
    Trevor Bauer, Patrick Corbin, Aaron Nola %plussign% 2200
    Max Fried, Dinelson Lamet %plussign% 2800
    Mike Soroka %plussign% 3000
    Chris Paddack %plussign% 3300
    Sonny Gray %plussign% 4000

    Can anyone dethrone DeGrom? The Mets ace has won the Cy two years in a row and doesn't seem to be slowing down. Scherzer has won it three times but has a lot of miles on his arm at age 35. Buehler (14-4, 3.26 ERA) is a rising star at 25-years-old and pitches for the best team in baseball. Strasburg has great value at %plussign% 1200, especially with extra rest coming off a postseason where he was nearly unhittable. Three-time winner Kershaw is entering his age 32 season and continues to produce, coming off a 16-5, 3.03 ERA season. Soroka is an interesting longshot after posting a 13-4, 2.68 ERA campaign as a 21-year-old rookie. 

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    Josh Appelbaum is a Sports Betting Analyst at VSiN and has been working in the betting industry since 2011. He has been with VSiN since 2019, contributing data-driven articles to VSiN.com, hosting the Morning Bets and Market Insights Podcasts and appearing on VSiN and DraftKings programs such as Follow the Money, The Lombardi Line, Sharp Money and The Sweat. He is a contrarian bettor and also the author of The Everything Guide to Sports Betting.