Oct. 29 (Bloomberg) -- The Philadelphia Phillies have already won the World Series -- at least in Las Vegas.

Bets placed on the Phillies to beat the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5 were paid out even though the game was suspended because of rain two nights ago with the score tied at 2-2. The game was postponed until tonight.

According to Nevada Gaming Commission rules, if a Major League Baseball game is rained out, sports books use the score from the last completed inning, John Harper, senior oddsmaker at Las Vegas Sports Consultants, said in an interview. The Rays tied the game in the top of the sixth and umpires stopped play before the Phillies had their turn to bat. Most Las Vegas sports books are erasing that run and using the 2-1 score at the end of the fifth inning to determine that Philadelphia won.

``I'm sure there are disgruntled bettors because people see it as a 2-2 game and they're stuck with a losing ticket,'' said Harper, whose company supplies odds to sports books. ``It's a break for someone who had a Philly ticket.''

Philadelphia was the favorite in Game 5 at -170, meaning that someone would have to bet $1.70 to win $1, Harper said.

``Being a World Series, it was a highly bet game,'' said Jeff Sherman, assistant manager of the Hilton Race and Sports Book in Las Vegas, without disclosing specific figures. ``It affected a lot of people. We were answering questions all day.''

Incomplete Inning

Baseball last year abandoned a rule that wiped out runs scored during an incomplete inning halted by rain. Most Las Vegas sports books, though, have their own rule which requires a full inning to be completed to be considered official.

Sherman said several regular-season baseball games were decided in a similar fashion after being stopped by rain.

``It hasn't had as much notoriety as its getting now because it's a rare instance,'' he said. ``When we had this during the regular season, we get people who say, `Oh, I didn't know that.' Now it's just on a lot larger scale.''

Proposition bets, such as which team would hit more home runs in the game, were refunded because they require the game to go a full 8 1/2 or nine innings. Bettors who wagered on the total number of runs scored also got their money back.

While the majority of regular bettors know the rules, Sherman said, the World Series usually entices novices to lay down some money on their favorite team.

``It's just because they want to watch the World Series,'' Sherman said. ``They come up and a lot of people think they get their money back because the last thing they see is 2-2, suspended. But in fact if you had the Rays, you had a losing ticket. And if you had the Phillies, it's a winning ticket.''

Phillies Lead Series

Officially, the Phillies have a 3-1 lead in the best-of- seven championship series and need one more victory to capture their second World Series after winning the title 28 years ago.

Vegas sports books are still taking wagers on the completion of the game, putting Philadelphia at -160 and Tampa Bay at +150. If the Rays win, a $1 bet will pay out $1.50.

Philadelphia has the advantage because they have 12 outs to score runs while Tampa Bay has nine, Harper said.

The game will resume at Citizens Bank Park at 8:37 p.m. with Rays reliever Grant Balfour scheduled to face a pinch hitter for pitcher Cole Hamels, followed by the top of the Phillies order with Jimmy Rollins and Jayson Werth.

To contact the reporter on this story: Danielle Sessa at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia at dsessa@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 29, 2008 00:01 EDT