SOURCE: Las Vegas Review-Journal

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The baseball betting handle dramatically declined in September with the NFL stealing the public's attention. But interest is picking up again with the Cubs, Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees in the playoffs.

"I don't know that we do write a bet on baseball once football season starts," Walker said.

The Yankees are 3-1 favorites to win the World Series, followed by the Red Sox (7-2) and Cubs (4-1). If two of those three teams reach the World Series, Walker said it would be a best-case scenario for the sports books.

"If the Cubs get in there against the Red Sox or Yankees, that will be as big as it gets," he said.

The Cubs' odds to win the World Series soared as high as 75-1 during the season, creating liability for some books. But a World Series featuring the Cubs could generate enough business to offset that exposure, according to Walker.

It has been a unique year in baseball with no teams winning or losing 100 games. There is no clearly dominant team in the American League, with Boston (96-66), Cleveland (96-66), New York (94-68) and the Los Angeles Angels (94-68) involved in a photo finish.

The Yankees are minus-200 favorites over the Indians in an AL division series that begins Thursday.

"I definitely think the Indians are a live 'dog," Walker said. "The Indians are my pick to win the whole thing."

Walker said he prefers Cleveland because of its strong pitching. The Indians will start C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona in the first two games. But the Yankees swept six games between the teams this season.

The Red Sox are minus-170 favorites in the series against the Angels. In today's opener, Boston right-hander Josh Beckett, a 20-game winner, is a minus-160 favorite against Angels ace John Lackey.

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