Whether it be injuries suffered by star players or failing to live up to high expectations, these franchises have yet to showcase the form needed to contend throughout this MLB season.
During March 2025, plenty of excitement was building around the league for the potential of numerous franchises, including those such as the Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves and Arizona Diamondbacks, only for those hopes to be dashed in relatively quick fashion. Between the three teams listed, the expectations for all were set through the roof, as the Braves are consistently one of the best teams in baseball while Boston and Arizona made significant upgrades in the offseason. While it was known beforehand that ace starting pitcher Spencer Strider was set to miss the first month of the season as he recovered from elbow surgery, no one could have anticipated he would injure his hamstring right after making his 2025 debut, putting him back on the shelf for an additional number of weeks.
The same could be said for outfielder and 2023 National League (NL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) Ronald Acuna Jr., who only just returned from his rehabilitation from a torn ACL suffered last season. With both now back in the fray, the Braves will hope to improve from its record of 27-31, as only the Miami Marlins, Colorado Rockies and Pittsburgh Pirates currently have worse results across the NL. Atlanta can ill-afford to fall behind in the NL East division as well, given the current form of the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies which have already jumped out starts of 38-22 and 36-23, respectively. At the time of writing, the Braves sit 10 games behind the Mets for first place in the division and 8.5 games behind the Phillies, but needing to make up just 5.5 games to reach the third NL Wild Card spot held by the St. Louis Cardinals.
Operators such as bet365 maintain some level of confidence in Atlanta despite the poor results from April and May, listing the franchise with odds of +125 to reach the postseason for an eighth consecutive season. With a roster that still contains Strider, Acuna, 2024 NL Cy Young Chris Sale and an extremely deep lineup of talented hitters, the Braves should never be counted out of the Playoffs until an “e” is placed next to its name in the standings (meaning “eliminated”). At +125, those could be the most favorable odds bettors receive on Atlanta’s chances of qualifying for the postseason in 2025, but it could also be a smart play to see where the Braves stand at the MLB trade deadline, scheduled for July 31.
Staying in the NL, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ record of 28-31 comes as a disappointment given the offseason signing of Corbin Burnes to a six-year, $210m contract in an effort to push the franchise over the hump of being a World Series contender. With a rotation that featured Burnes, Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly, the Diamondbacks were prepared to ride its pitching into the postseason along with a lineup which included Corbin Carroll, Ketel Marte and Geraldo Perdomo.
On bet365, however, the Diamondbacks have odds of +240 to reach the postseason and sit in fourth place for the NL West behind the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants. Currently 7.5 games behind Los Angeles for first place in the division, it was always hard to believe Arizona would take the NL West crown from the Dodgers in 2025 given the immense talent residing on the Diamondbacks’ main rival’s roster.
With odds of +240 to reach the postseason, though, the Diamondbacks will need vast improvement from a multitude of players to turn things around, and will now be without Burnes for the foreseeable future after he departed his latest start with an elbow injury. Despite always hoping for the best with pitcher injuries, Burnes’ facial expressions and mood as he came out of the game seemed to indicate a serious issue, and Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo already described the ailment as a “gut punch” to the team.
The new Arizona ace has a MRI scheduled for June 3, as the team will continue to await word on the severity of the injury while holding out hope it carries enough talent to still be a Playoff contender in 2025. Facing an uphill climb in a division that seems stacked to the brim with postseason contenders, it will certainly be a challenge for Arizona to cash its +240 odds to make the Playoffs from bet365 as it currently sits three games under .500.
Heading over to the American League (AL), the Boston Red Sox made a number of moves this offseason in the hopes of reclaiming its glory as not only a Playoff contender, but a challenger for the World Series trophy in 2025 as well. The Red Sox won titles in 2004, 2007, 2013 and 2018, but have failed to even reach the postseason for three consecutive years and have finished with a record of 81-81 or worse in each of the three.
Having traded for ace pitcher Garrett Crochet and signed third baseman Alex Bregman to a three-year, $120m contract, Boston seemed prime to make a genuine run at the World Series and challenge the New York Yankees for the AL East crown. As things stand today, however, Bregman is now on the injured list with a leg injury while Crochet has almost single-handedly carried the Red Sox pitching staff to a record of 29-33 on the season, good for fourth place in the division.
The move for Crochet has paid dividends in fairness to Boston, as the former Chicago White Sox hurler has generated a 1.98 earned run average (ERA), 101 strikeouts and a record of 5-4 over just 82 innings up to this point in the season. Crochet also signed a six-year, $170m extension with the Red Sox to maintain his services past 2030, assuring Boston would have a front-of-the-rotation arm for years to come despite so much uncertainty surrounding its pitching staff.
Featuring a lineup that still contains Rafael Devers, Jarren Duran and Wilyer Abreu, the Red Sox should produce enough runs to at least remain competitive while Bregman is out, but will also need more from pitchers such as Walker Buehler and Lucas Giolito, both of whom were signed this offseason with the intention of adding quality depth to the rotation. With odds of +270 to reach the postseason currently on bet365, the Red Sox have plenty of improvements to make over the next four months, but whether those will be enough to find itself competing come October remain to be seen.
