Tampa Bay Rays odds – The kids are all right

When it comes to 2009 Tampa Bay Rays odds (+900 to win the World Series), few teams can consider themselves among the top three in all of baseball AND wonder if they’ll finish third in their own division. That may seriously be the case for MLB odds this year, as the Rays share a division with the powerful—and retooled—Yankees and Red Sox.

Sports betting lines: Tampa Bay World Series odds at +900

• Evan Longoria ready to become a superstar
• David Price will dominate when he gets called up
• Bullpen has gone from a weakness to strength

Those who bet on MLB should be careful not to underestimate Tampa in 2009. Yes, Boston and New York should be stronger, but the Rays’ 2008 were no fluke. They’re the most dynamic, talented young team in baseball and, scarily enough, they can still get better.

All those years of stockpiling MLB betting prospects finally paid off for the Rays last season. How many dynamic young bats did the Rays collect? Well, they’ve said goodbye to former stalwarts Aubrey Huff, Rocco Baldelli and Delmon Young without blinking over the last few years. The Rays have a nice mix of seasoned veterans—patient bopper and free-agent signing Pat Burrell joins Carlos Pena and Carl Crawford, who should bounce back now that he no longer has to be the go-to guy—and emerging prodigies.

Leading the way are two budding superstars: Evan Longoria and B.J. Upton. Longoria, a can’t-miss prospect, surprised many online betting fans with his strong defense last year but his prodigious power was no surprise. He hit 27 homers in 448 at-bats last season and should develop into a perennial 40-homer threat as soon as this season.

After many worried Upton would be a bust, he has reminded people why he was once the top prospect in baseball by showing blinding speed and increasing power. Upton only slugged nine homers in the 2008 regular season but jacked seven in the playoffs, so Rays betting fans know the long flies are coming.

Perhaps the biggest reason why the Rays odds are a strong MLB pick is that their pitching, an Achilles’ heel for so many years, is now rock-solid. Scott Kazmir, James Shields and Matt Garza lead a young, fiery group that can miss plenty of bats. The most talented arm of all, David Price, will join the rotation in a couple of months. He showed he was major-league ready in the 2008 MLB betting playoffs but the team is keeping him in AAA long enough to delay his arbitration eligibility another year – the same stunt they pulled with Longoria last season.

2007 and 2008 were night and day for the Rays’ bullpen. Even if Troy Percival breaks down, Grant Balfour, Dan Wheeler and J.P. Howell are all guys the Rays can trust with the ball in the ninth inning. They consistently mowed down the competition while protecting Tampa leads last season and that shouldn’t change in 2009.

You can bet the Rays are undoubtedly a contender in the World Series odds again, but they’re still no guarantee to even reach the postseason. They should win 90 games with little trouble, but the season will come down to their head-to-head performance against the BoSox and Yankees. Online betting fans have to wonder if two months without David Price could be tiny difference that leaves the Rays on the outside looking in come October.

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Before his arm flamed out, Dale “Skip” Lalonde was famous for his high-90s heat and power at the plate. He retired young but never turned his back on baseball, earning the nickname “Skip” for his high-school coaching prowess. A true student of the game, he loves crunching the numbers when he handicaps baseball. Email Comments@BetOnline.com.