Our columnist Peter Schmuck wrote today that the Orioles continue to defy the odds -- literally.
Oddmakers, most of whom predicted the Orioles to be one of the worst teams in baseball, continue to see the O's as a playoff longshot.
According to offshore online sportsbook Bovada, the Orioles opened the season with 150-to-1 odds to win the World Series, the second-largest odds among all MLB teams only to the 200-to-1 Houston Astros, who actually turned out to be pretty bad.
But as teams have dwindled out of competition, the Orioles' odds have become more favorable. They had 15-to-1 odds before the wild-card games and are now 9-to-1 odds heading into the division series round.
The favorites? Of course it's the Yankees, with 4-to-1 odds
Odds to win the 2012 World Series (Heading into Division Series)
New York Yankees 4/1
Washington Nationals 5/1
Cincinnati Reds 5/1
Detroit Tigers 5/1
San Francisco Giants 13/2
Oakland Athletics 15/2
St. Louis Cardinals 9/1
Baltimore Orioles 9/1
Odds to win the 2012 World Series (Heading into Wild Card game)
Cincinnati Reds 5/1
New York Yankees 5/1
Washington Nationals 5/1
Detroit Tigers 6/1
Texas Rangers 7/1
Oakland Athletics 15/2
San Francisco Giants 15/2
Atlanta Braves 12/1
Baltimore Orioles 15/1
St. Louis Cardinals 15/1
Odds to win the 2012 World Series (Opening Day)
Philadelphia Phillies 11/2
New York Yankees 13/2
Los Angeles Angels 7/1
Detroit Tigers 8/1
Texas Rangers 10/1
Boston Red Sox 10/1
San Francisco Giants 15/1
Tampa Bay Rays 18/1
Miami Marlins 20/1
Cincinnati Reds 20/1
Atlanta Braves 22/1
St. Louis Cardinals 25/1
Arizona Diamondbacks 28/1
Milwaukee Brewers 28/1
Washington Nationals 30/1
Los Angeles Dodgers 40/1
Toronto Blue Jays 40/1
Chicago Cubs 40/1
Colorado Rockies 40/1
Cleveland Indians 60/1
Chicago White Sox 65/1
Minnesota Twins 75/1
Kansas City Royals 80/1
New York Mets 80/1
Oakland Athletics 80/1
Pittsburgh Pirates 100/1
San Diego Padres 100/1
Seattle Mariners 100/1
Baltimore Orioles 150/1
Houston Astros 200/1