With obvious exception, it seems to me that countless fans exist for one purpose. And that purpose is to complain. To complain about moves their team's front office makes. To complain about moves their team's front office doesn't make. To complain about which players are playing. To complain about which players aren't playing. To complain about how some players behave themselves. To complain about the manager. To complain about the beat reporters. To complain about ESPN. To complain about the stadium atmosphere. To complain about the umpires.
Even when a team is playing near-flawless baseball and participating in the World Series, so many fans still find a way to complain by pointing out perceived disrespect from opposing fans and the national media. Even with everything going well, fans still find a way to feel like they're being done wrong.
That's the fan landscape. Sure, there are some fans who get it. There are some fans who don't get so riled up. There are some fans who just like taking in a baseball game. But - at least on the internet - so many fans just want to bitch. It's like baseball gives them a means of releasing all the stress they've bottled up from other areas of life.
Yesterday, though, the World Series ended. The 2010 season was brought to a close when Brian Wilson struck out Nelson Cruz with a high and tight fastball. Suddenly, Giants and Rangers fans fell in with everybody else who'd already run out of reasons to complain days or weeks earlier. With the season over and little in the way of new news, there wasn't anything to complain about anymore. So many people must've felt lost.
So Tuesday morning Bodog.com released its preliminary 2011 World Series odds. And now there's stuff to complain about again. New stuff. Next-year stuff.
Braves fan: You gotta be kidding me with this
Reds fan: Don't you even start
Odds pasted below for your perusal. Me, I can't find anything worth complaining about, but then I'm just some unfeeling old man.
| Yankees | 4/1 |
| Phillies | 6/1 |
| Red Sox | 10/1 |
| Giants | 10/1 |
| Cardinals | 14/1 |
| Rays | 14/1 |
| Twins | 16/1 |
| Rangers | 16/1 |
| Braves | 18/1 |
| Rockies | 18/1 |
| Reds | 20/1 |
| Padres | 20/1 |
| White Sox | 22/1 |
| Dodgers | 22/1 |
| Angels | 25/1 |
| Cubs | 30/1 |
| Tigers | 35/1 |
| Marlins | 35/1 |
| Mets | 40/1 |
| A's | 40/1 |
| Blue Jays | 50/1 |
| Astros | 65/1 |
| Brewers | 65/1 |
| Mariners | 70/1 |
| Orioles | 75/1 |
| Diamondbacks | 80/1 |
| Indians | 80/1 |
| Nationals | 80/1 |
| Royals | 125/1 |
| Pirates | 150/1 |
0 recs | 35 comments
A year ago, by the way, the Giants were 16/1
The Yankees were 10/3, and the Red Sox were 6/1.
Jeff Sullivan - November 2, 2010
Hey if Maz were still playing, those odd would be different, bubba.
msb - November 2, 2010
By the way-- the found footage of that game is to air
Nov. 13th
msb - November 2, 2010
We should be higher
Dewey N - November 2, 2010
So bet
greymstreet - November 2, 2010
Sounds like you are getting a deal then
Tell me how that goes in October
HitKing69 - November 3, 2010
I'll call you in November when I'm done counting all my money
d0nkey - November 3, 2010
What's left of it
HitKing69 - November 3, 2010
Complaining is sexy.
All the hot girls dig it.
fiftyone - November 2, 2010
Let's get this going
If everybody here had $100, which team would they take?
wobbly wobbly - November 2, 2010
Pirates.
Kirk - November 2, 2010
Sorry, I'm going to be "that guy"
$100 budget I’m taking the 3 AL East teams.
$55 on the Yanks to win $220
$20 on the Rays to win $280
$25 on the Red Sox to win $250
jack lockner - November 3, 2010
Edward
CapSea - November 3, 2010
Royals
MT Olson - November 3, 2010
Red Sox.
Patrick Stites - November 3, 2010
Reds.
slamcactus - November 3, 2010
Marlins
I know, sounds crazy.
baetown415 - November 3, 2010
Rangers.
Gonna have a ton of money to spend in the offseason, probably the biggest lock to win a division… Just looks good from here.
lailaihei - November 3, 2010
sorry im going to be "that guy"
$100 budget I’m taking the 3 AL East teams.
$55 on the Yanks to win $220
$20 on the Rays to win $280
$25 on the Red Sox to win $250
jack lockner - November 3, 2010
Oh, that guy, with the reply.
yuniform - November 3, 2010
You might want to consider turning off ESPN when trying to figure out who will win it all
pdb - November 3, 2010
I think it's a logical bet
ESPN won’t shut up about the AL East, but they’re three really, really good teams.
marc w - November 3, 2010
That they are
but the question seemed to be “which team would I bet $100 to win it all on” and any of those three bets this year would have resulted in the bettor winning $0.00. Past performance future results and all that, but I try as much as possible to reject the school of thought that says “always bet on the Yankees to win” because they’ve won twice in a decade.
pdb - November 3, 2010
So you would NOT bet on the three AL East teams because...why?
You probably wouldn’t bet on it at all, I know, and I wouldn’t either. But if someone gave you $100 and you wanted to maximize your (slim) chances, are you honestly saying it’s a bad strategy to spread it on Bos/NY/Tam? Doing so at this time a year ago would’ve been hands-down the smartest bet. yeah, it lost this year, but New York and Tampa were both amongst the best teams in baseball. They probably will be again.
marc w - November 3, 2010
I didn't say it was a bad strategy at all
it was more a reflexive, knee-jerk reaction to “it’s always New York or Boston” (or Tampa in this case). I’m not a betting person, so I’d most likely take the $100 and go to Belmont Station and buy beer instead, but if I were forced to bet $100 I’d put it all on any team that wasn’t in the AL East just on general principle. And no, that may not be a “good” strategy, but it at least shows that I’m willing to consider the possibility that a team outside the AL East can win it all.
pdb - November 3, 2010
What!!!!
Why the hell aren’t we lower?!?!?!?!? There is no way we should be better than the Royals and Orioles!!!!
Does that count as bitching?
seanchristopher - November 3, 2010
Had I not followed LL all these years
I never would have believed that baseball blogging is probably comparable to war in making you grow old before your time.
Fett42 - November 3, 2010 via mobile
/Kellen Winslow
Jeff Sullivan - November 3, 2010
Some people just naturally grow old before their times
Dewey N - November 3, 2010
Like Father Christmas
Dewey N - November 3, 2010
They say England is a small country but you couldn't fit it all in here, nope, not by a long shot
Aaron Campeau - November 3, 2010
Without doing any analysis, it seems like Boston and Minnesota are the best bets
based on talent level and in Minnesota’s case, likelihood of making the playoffs.
The Angels at 25-1 seems like the worst bet except for the Nationals
seattlebruin - November 3, 2010
Not after the Angels sign Crawford and Beltre.
Then they’ll be sitting pretty.
Jack Moore - November 4, 2010
betvega has slightly different odds, including the Mariners at 100-1 and Minnesota at 20-1
seattlebruin - November 3, 2010
I didn't think I'd have anything to complain about.
Then I saw that the Astros are equal to the Brewers (and mostly, that the Astros are better than 100-1 odds). I think I’ll just laugh about that instead, though.
Jack Moore - November 4, 2010
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