The Miami Marlins celebrate on the field after defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park to secure a berth in the 2023 MLB playoffs. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

This long shot to win the World Series could be worth betting on

By Chelena Goldman | Last updated 10/2/23

The calendar changing to October means that postseason baseball is about to get underway and there are only a few teams who can duke it out and win the World Series.

MLB fans and bettors alike know about the favorites to hoist the Commissioner's Trophy in roughly a month's time. (The Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros have locked in those positions and that's no surprise.) What about the team with the longest odds to win it all? Is that team worth betting on?

The bracket is set.

Who’s winning it all? pic.twitter.com/oeh3zvIs3h
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) October 1, 2023

At DraftKings, the Miami Marlins are the 35-1 long shots to win the 2023 World Series after making the postseason as the second wild-card team in the National League. However, the Marlins' long odds don't necessarily make them a bad bet given their playoff history.

The Marlins -- called the Florida Marlins before 2011 -- entered the 1997 postseason as a wild-card team before defeating the Cleveland Indians to win their first World Series behind a star-studded lineup including outfielder Gary Sheffield and second baseman Luis Castillo.

Miami won the 2003 World Series after entering that postseason as the NL wild-card team yet again. That Marlins team notoriously defeated the heavily favored New York Yankees despite being outscored by the Bronx Bombers 21-17 in that six-game series.

The Marlins' journey to beat their current long odds starts on Tuesday, Oct. 3 when they face off against fellow NL wild-card team the Philadelphia Phillies. The 2022 NL champs, for the record, are listed at 13-1 at DK to win it all.

The winner of that series will face off against the Atlanta Braves, who are roughly 3-1 favorites to win the World Series in 2023 after finishing the regular season with a league-leading 104-58 record.

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