Three live long shots who could win the 2016 World Series.

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If you had placed a World Series future bet on the Houston Astros or the Texas Rangers before Opening Day last season, you would have been very happy come October.

Both of these American League teams ended up making the postseason despite being 100/1 long shots to win the World Series, and while in the end, both the Rangers and Astros ended up falling short of the Fall Classic it goes to show there is real value to be had in World Series futures

Heck, you probably would have been thrilled with a wager on the eventual World Series champion Kansas City Royals, or the Toronto Blue Jays. They both entered the season at 25/1 and met in the ALCS.

While it is the Cubs who are big 4/1 faves to win it all this season, remember it was all about the Nationals last year and they didn't even make the postseason.

So, as players congregate at spring training, let's look at three live long shots to win the World Series and try to find this year's Houston or Texas.

Chicago White Sox (25/1)

Currently the White Sox are the only team on the board at 25/1 and since the defending World Series champs started their last year, this is a good place to start. Last year the South Siders were hoping to make a big jump last year, but could never really find their groove and ended up finishing fourth in AL Central at 76-86.

But that hasn't stopped the White Sox from trying to go for it all again this year. They brought in former Reds third baseman Todd Frazier to finally give slugger Jose Abreu some protection and balance to their lineup. If Adam Eaton and Melky Cabrera can consistently get on base, there will be plenty of opportunities to score. Brett Lawrie comes in to take over at second base and Dioner Navarro and Alex Avila gives them catcher/DH depth.

What could take the Pale Hose over the top is the potential at the front end of their rotation. Led by All-Star Chris Sale, along with Jose Quintana and a full year Carlos Rodon and this unit could be a very dangerous one. Sale led the majors in strikeouts/9-innings (11.82) to go along with a 3.41 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. With David Robertson anchoring the bullpen, the White Sox could be ready to make a move in the Central

Seattle Mariners (40/1)

The Mariners have been one of those teams the last few seasons that make you ask, 'what could happen if they ever put it all together?'

Unfortunately for the Mariners and their fans, they just haven't. They entered last season as one of the sexy pics to make the jump to the post season, but came out of the gate losing seven of their first 10 games and never recovered, finishing the season 4th in AL West at 76-86. Will 2016 be the year it changes for the M's?

Everything for the Mariners starts with their rotation, headed by superstar Felix Hernandez, whom had a down year by his standards last season. 'The King's' ERA was above 3.50 for the first time since 2007, so even a slight bounce back to the norm is a boost. Retaining Hisashi Iwakuma and bringing in Wade Miley and Nathan Karns was big. If talented youngster Taijuan Walker can figure it out, this rotation could be very, very good. Adding Joaquin Benoit and Steve Cishek to what was a terrible bullpen should also help a lot.

As for the offense, everything is fueled by Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz. People thought Cruz would struggle moving from Baltimore to Seattle, but he still finished 2nd in the bigs with 44 homers to go along with 93 RBIs. If Cano can bounce back from his worst season since 2008 and they get what is expected to be a more balanced lineup with the addition of Adam Lind ans Nori Aoki, then the M's can contend in the AL West this year.

Tampa Bay Rays (60/1)

The Rays continue to do what they do. Try to extract the maximum talent from a payroll that regularly ranks near the bottom of the league. And 2016 will be no different.

What also shouldn't be any different about the Rays this season is their starting pitching. From Scott Kazmir to David Price, the Rays have always featured great starters over the years and 2016 could feature some very good ones and it all starts with budding superstar Chris Archer. Archer pitched to a 3.23 ERA a 1.14 WHIP and had the fourth highest strikeouts/9-inning ratio in the bigs. That's a good starting point.

The Rays are also banking on getting mostly-healthy seasons from Alex Cobb (out until midseason after Tommy John surgery), Matt Moore and Drew Smyly, who all suffered or were recovering from injuries last season. Throw in Jake Odorizzi coming off a breakout campaign (3.35 ERA, 1.15 WHIP in 2015) and this starting rotation could be even better than the one that finished sixth in starters ERA last year.

Tamp Bay's biggest problem will be supporting those pitchers with enough runs to win games, beginning with Evan Longoria. If the Rays' all-time leader in most offensive categories can have a bounce back season that's a start. A full season from Desmond Jennings wouldn't hurt either. Add in the rise of center fielder Kevin Kiermaier and the additions of Corey Dickerson and Steve Pearce and the Rays could have just enough timely hitting to become a contender.
 

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Rays starting staff could be even stronger if top prospect Blake Snell gets the call up.
 

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The rookie Snell gets the call tomorrow.
I don't think it's any surprise the Rays are starting him here knowing the Yanks struggles against lefties continues.
He's worth a bet at a nice price tomorrow.
Yanks also seem to struggle vs. pitchers they see for the first time.
Rays are also worth a bet the other two games this series with lefties Moore tonight and Smyly Sunday.
 

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