PADRES NOW ONE OF WORLD SERIES FAVOURITES

Landing a pair of aces to front a once-ragged rotation has thrust the San Diego Padres near the top of the 2021 World Series odds. The Padres jumped from 12-1 to 7-1 at SportsBetting.com to win the World Series behind only the Los Angeles Dodgers (4-1) and New York Yankees (6-1). San Diego entered the playoffs as a wild card last season and outlasted the St. Louis Cardinals in a wild opening-round series in which pitching was a problem for the Padres due to injuries and quality in the rotation. The Padres might have solved that problem this week. San Diego's rotation after a flurry of moves could include adding ace starting pitchers Blake Snell (Tampa Bay Rays) and Yu Darvish (shown, Chicago Cubs), putting the team in position to compete in a series with front-loaded favourites like the Dodgers. The Los Angeles rotation is anchored by Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw. Tampa Bay dropped from 11-1 to 14-1 after losing Snell. The Cubs dropped to 40-1 from 25-1 last week. Toronto is listed at 28-1.