Gerrit Cole Houston Astros
Gerrit Cole #45 of the Houston Astros pitches in the eighth inning of Game 2 of the ALDS against the Tampa Bay Rays at Minute Maid Park on October 05, 2019 in Houston, Texas. Tim Warner/Getty Images

KEY POINTS

  • The Yankees signed Gerrit Cole to a record-breaking contract this winter
  • They are now clear favorites to win the 2020 World Series
  • Cole is also favorite to win the Cy Young

The New York Yankees may have won the MLB offseason this winter by landing their white whale in Gerrit Cole. His signing immediately solved the team’s biggest issue - a lack of depth and quality in their starting rotation and has made them overnight World Series favorites.

According to the FanDuel Sportsbook, the Bombers are the current favorites to win next season’s fall classic with the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers the second and third choice picks for the World Series.

The Yankees’ odds sit at +430 while the Astros are at +550 and the Dodgers at +600. As expected, this translates to heavy odds in favor of the New York Yankees to win the American League with +170 odds at the time of writing.

With a power-heavy lineup which boasts the likes of Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez to compliment one of the league’s most dominant bullpens, the Bombers are set to have a big season. The same sportsbook gives the Bombers equal odds for finishing with over 101.5 wins as under with a money line of -115.

So, it seems like a sure thing for the Yankees to finish 2020 with a three-digit win total. FanDuel is also giving great odds for Cole to have a monster season.

They give a money line of -115 to Cole finishing either over or under 17.5 wins and either over or under 280.5 strikeouts. For comparison, in 2019 Cole registered 20 wins and 326 strikeouts with the Astros en route to the American League title.

Other odds on offer include Cole having 15 or 20 strikeout games. FanDuel is offering a -135 money line for a 15+ strikeout outing and a +1000 money line for a 20+ strikeout game. They are offering long odds on a no-hitter, however.

His odds seem slim of such a feat with a money line of +2500. Meanwhile, he has much better odds of winning the AL Cy Young which he lost out on in 2019 to teammate Justin Verlander. Cole is being given a money line of +450 to win the award for the best pitcher in the league.

By landing Cole, the Yankees have propelled themselves into pole position to win the Series and the righty is now favorite for winning the Cy Young.

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