The Baltimore Orioles’ quest to repeat as American League East champs for the first time in a half-century has gone off without a hitch so far in 2024, a boost for sports betting in Maryland. At the 2024 All-Star break, the Orioles are a game ahead of the New York Yankees in the division.
So BetMaryland.com used ChampsorChumps.us to gather the leaders of each MLB division over the three previous seasons (2021 to 2023) at the MLB All-Star break. We then dissected how those teams ended up finishing the season.
Performance of MLB Division Leaders At All-Star Break
Situation | Number of Teams | Percentage* |
Won The Division | 10 of 18 | 55.6% |
Made the MLB Playoffs | 13 of 18 | 72.2% |
Made the Championship Series | 5 of 18 | 27.8% |
Made the World Series | 3 of 18 | 16.7% |
Won the World Series | 2 of 18 | 11.1% |
*Rounded to nearest whole number
With a .604 win percentage and plus-80 run differential, the Orioles look like a legit World Series threat. Caesars Sportsbook Maryland gives Baltimore the fourth-lowest title odds of any MLB team at +625, as of July 17. That’s behind the Los Angeles Dodgers (+320), Philadelphia Phillies (+375) and the Yankees (+525).
Baltimore has fallen to the No. 2 spot on Caesars Sportsbook’s AL East odds board at -105 (behind New York at -120), but it’s fair to say that the 2024 MLB season has been one to remember in the Charm City so far.
This research on how teams have finished after leading their divisions at the All-Star Break since 2021 is from BetMaryland.com and won’t be found at MD sports betting app operators.
Where O’s Stood At All-Star Break Since 2021
- 2023: 54-35 (.607) – Finished 101-61 (.623) and 1st place in AL East
- 2022: 46-46 (.500) – Finished 83-79 (.512) and 4th place
- 2021: 28-61 (.317) – Finished 52-110 (.321) and 5th place
Can O’s Win AL East Again in 2024?
The pre-ASG stretch has been one to forget for the O’s, with a 3-7 mark in the past 10 games. But it’s still safe to say that the 2024 regular season has been one to remember for Baltimore baseball fans. Check out our Baltimore Orioles World Series odds to compare operators.
The team’s current .604 win percentage would be the 10th best in club history since the franchise arrived in Baltimore in 1954. That also would be more than enough to get the O’s into the playoffs for a second straight season, which has not happened since the 1990s.
In the last two years, the Orioles entered the break with records of 54-35 (.607) and 46-46 (.500), with year-end records of 101-61 (.623) and 83-79 (.512) in those seasons. They finished first in 2023 and fourth in the five-team AL East in 2022.
Last year, Baltimore entered the break at 54-35, two games behind the Tampa Bay Rays (58-35). But the Os erased that gap by going 47-26 (.644) in the second half to finish two games ahead of the 99-63 Rays in the AL East.
This year, such a run would put Baltimore at 101-61, which equals where the club finished a year ago, when they posted their first 100-win campaign since the 1980 season. See our story about how Orioles best seasons stack up for further detail.
How Past Division Leaders Have Fared
Of the past 18 teams that led their division entering the break, 10 (or 55.6%) went on to finish in first. And 13 of the 18 (72.2%) made the postseason overall. Two of the 18 (or 11.1%) hoisted the Commissioner’s Trophy after winning it all that season. Five such teams (27.8%) made their League Championship Series.
For manager Brandon Hyde’s bunch, the first goal remains to win the AL East for a second straight season. The franchise has not won back-to-back division titles since 1973-74. But of course, the ultimate aim is the first World Series title since 1983 in the Charm City.
BetMaryland.com will provide the best Maryland sportsbook promo codes plus much more MLB coverage as the season progresses.
USA Today photo by James A. Pittman
