It wasn’t long ago that the New York Mets looked like they would run away with the 2022 NL East Division title. All the best online betting sites for Major League Baseball initially had their NL East title odds in a vice grip. Nobody was touching them.
And then the Atlanta Braves happened.
The reigning 2021 MLB World Series champions have rebounded following a less than stellar start to put real pressure on the Mets in the race to win the National League East. Linemakers are starting to pick up on their rise, too. Just look at the odds to win the 2022 NL East Division at the moment, courtesy of Bovada:
| Division Winner |  |
|---|---|
| New York Mets | -175 |
| Atlanta Braves | +170 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | +1700 |
| Miami Marlins | +15000 |
| Washington Nationals | +250000 |
Indeed, the Mets continue to pay out worse than even money while the Braves are nearly 2-to-1 underdogs. But that 2-to-1 used to look more like 5-to-1…or worse. Is it possible the Braves might complete their turnaround and dethrone the previously untouchable Mets? Heck, is it possible the Philadelphia Phillies, who continue to hang around, make life difficult on New York before season’s end? We could pretend the Miami Marlins or Washington Nationals have a legitimate shot of crashing this race, but we know you’re smarter than to believe as much.
If you haven’t already bet on the 2022 NL East race, make sure you’re double-checking these MLB futures before settling on any predictions. The pennant race doesn’t wrap up until the end of the season, and our baseball betting odds on the NL East are accurate entering games on Thursday, June 29. They will assuredly shift many times prior to the end of the year.
Of course, among the benefits of betting MLB futures is all the time you have to find the top sites at which to place wagers. We’ve compiled a list of the best legal online sportsbooks operating in the United States and even have reviews on the best 2022 World Series online betting sites to boot.
For the first time in approximately forever, the New York Mets appear uniquely vulnerable.
Four losses still separate them from the second-place Atlanta Braves, but that lead hardly feels safe with more than half of the season left to play. Especially with New York’s bat beginning to suffer. They still rank in the top 10 of on-base plus slugging percentage, but they’ve slipped to eighth, down from the top three, during their latest bout of mortality.
If we’re being honest, this team feels like it needs to make some upgrades behind the plate at the deadline. Catcher, specifically, has become a position of concern. New York’s masked army has one of the lowest batting averages in the league at the position—something that may not fly with the Braves currently on fire.
Remember when Max Fried, the Braves’ primary ace, looked like he was speeding toward a down and disappointing season?
Yeah, we don’t remember that, either.
Though Fried struggled through his first four outings of the year, his issues feel like a lifetime ago. He has gone 7-0 with a 2.35 ERA in his 10 starts since—and the Braves are 8-2 overall in those games.
Anyone waiting for Fried to slow down shouldn’t hold their breath. This is more of his norm. Fried now has a 2.82 ERA over the past three MLB seasons—the sixth best mark among all pitchers, bar none, in baseball.
Couple his rise with the ascension of the Braves’ bats over the past couple of months, and the reigning champs are yet again a real threat.
Don’t sleep on the Phillies—not entirely, anyway.
Philadelphia has quietly worked themselves within eight games of the NL East-leading New York Mets despite spending so much of the season flailing around. And they have a pitching staff on the rise to thank.
Both Aaron Nola and Zach Wheeler are straight dismantling opponents at the moment. The control they’ve both showed over their pitching arsenal, even deep into the count, verges on legendary. Combine this with a 10th place ranking in on-base plus slugging percentage, and the Phillies are flying under the radar as a more complete team than meets the eye.
Granted, their latest stretch will say a lot more about their NL East title odds than anything so far. The Phillies have one of the toughest schedules heading into the All-Star break, and if they emerge from it still over .500, both the Mets and Braves will be on notice.
Let’s make something clear: The Braves and even the Phillies are worthy challengers to the AL East Division throne. But we’re inclined to trust the New York Mets.
For starters, it isn’t like the Mets have fallen off a cliff during their recent rut. What’s happening now is just that—a temporary slump. They’ll be fine.
We’re also baking in New York’s potential to improve at the trade deadline. The Mets have one of the deeper stores of assets among World Series contenders, and we’re confident they’ll use it to make an upgrade at catcher and acquire one more arm in advance of their postseason push. We recommend pouncing on them before they become 2-to-1 or even 3-to-1 favorites.
Take a look at this list of the top online sportsbooks so you can decide which one to use for all of your 2022 MLB betting:
About the Author
Around the age of 12, Dan realized, sadly, he’d never become a professional basketball player. It turns out people under 6’0” who can’t dribble or shoot aren’t touted prospects. Who knew?! Anyway, once it became clear he could play professional sports, he figured the next best thing to do was cover them. So, that’s what he did. And continues to do. Dan has worked in the pro sports analysis industry since 2011, giving him almost 15 years total experience. Though started out covering and continues to be enamored by the NBA, he has spent the past decade or so expanding his expertise and analysis to the NFL, NHL, MLB, tennis, esports and golf. Over the past few years, Dan has cannonballed into full-on sports betting news coverage. He remains fascinated by the impact the legalization of gambling in the United States is having on the country. It has, in so many ways, changed everything about how we consume sports. Is that good? Bad? Does it all even out in the end? His coverage has always and will continue trying to reconcile the duality of this industry, pro sports at large and their influence. In his spare time, Dan enjoys honing his weightlifting, eating enough sweet potatoes to feed a rather large family, binge-watching his all-time favorite shows (Psych is the goat!) and hanging out with his three dogs, all of whom are Cockaliers, Thor, Wade and Cosmo. Typically, though, if he’s not eating or sleeping, Dan is watching or covering sports—and loving basically every minute of it.
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