A night after being held to two runs, bettors are hoping the Houston Astros can get to Atlanta Braves starter Max Fried early and often.
Houston managed eight hits but could only get two runs across the board against Charlie Morton and the Atlanta bullpen. Morton lasted just 2 1/3 innings before a broken bone in his right leg led to an early exit. A.J. Minter, Luke Jackson, Tyler Matzek and closer Will Smith allowed two runs the rest of the way.
Now, Atlanta hopes for some length from Fried, who has completed at least six innings in two of his three postseason starts this year.
However, according to data released by BetMGM on Wednesday morning, the most popular prop bets are on Houston scoring and scoring early.
Houston to win while both teams score at least three runs is the most-bet of the day. That prop has +290 odds (bet $100, profit $290) and is a way to grab Houston at a better number than the -115 moneyline if you believe in a game script that has a lot of runs scored.
One of the most popular plays in Game 1 was Atlanta to score first. Bettors are going the other way in Game 2, taking Houston to score first at +115 while hoping starting pitcher Jose Urquidy can limit the damage early.
And after seeing the Braves put up six runs on 12 hits, bettors are taking the plus-money odds of +120 that they go over 4.5 runs on Wednesday.
Atlanta is the new series favorite after taking Game 1. Entering the World Series, Atlanta was +120 to win it all. Now the Braves are -155 favorites. The Astros are now +135 underdogs.
The prop bets counting for runs fits with the betting market on the total. According to The Action Network's PRO data, most of the money is on over 8.5 runs. Subscribe here to see the exact number and find out which side the sharps are taking.
