NL Central Odds Update: Cardinals, Brewers Still in Two-Horse Race

The NL Central has been mainly on the struggle bus in 2023, with the Milwaukee Brewers currently leading the pack with the top odds.

We’ll dive into each team in the division with their odds of winning it from FanDuel Sportsbook. 

If we’re looking at our expectations for the Milwaukee Brewers entering the season, they’re about where we thought they’d be at 27-22. There’s merit in discussing them being slightly above where we had placed them in terms of their record, but we had a strong hunch they’d be in the mix for the NL Central. However, one worrisome trend surrounding the Brewers is that they currently sit with a negative run differential. The bread and butter of this organization is their starting rotation, and they’ll need a lot from that group if they have hopes of coming out on top in the division. With the juice attached to their price at -125, it’s hard to invest in that number with where we stand as the end of May looms. 

The St. Louis Cardinals entered the year as the favorite to win the NL Central. Throughout April and early May, they looked anything but a contender and struggled to assemble victories. That’s changed as May is set to conclude, where the Cardinals now find themselves just six games back of the division lead. For a team that once sat 14 games below .500, you can see the high level of play they are now playing. Luckily for St. Louis, no one has run away with the NL Central, and it’s just a whole lot of mediocrity. The Cardinals own +200 odds, and there’s some value worth considering at that price point. 

The signings of Dansby Swanson and Cody Bellinger have at least given the Chicago Cubs some respectable pieces in their batting lineup. Both have gotten off to solid starts in their first seasons with the Cubs. On May 25, the Cubs sit 4.5 games back of the Brewers for the top spot in the division but have struggled lately with a 3-7 record over their last ten games. 

The Pittsburgh Pirates got off to a shockingly good start to the year and led the NL Central for a large portion of the first two months. They’ve now come back to earth and sit one game above .500, but we can’t take away the notion that there are certainly some positive pieces this team has. The Pirates are long shots to win the NL Central at +1000, and it’s just not a price we feel very good about right now, even in a wide-open division. 

We’re still not at the point yet in the Reds rebuild where you’re seeing tangible young pieces inserted into their lineup to make you excited about watching the team. There are some respectable pieces on this roster, but it’s hard to see them staying in the NL Central race, despite them sitting just six games behind the division-leading Brewers. 

Odds for all five NL Central teams on the FanDuel Sportsbook.