The MLB common season is formally over and that solely means one factor: postseason baseball. The common season ended on Monday night after the Braves and Mets cut up the doubleheader, that means each groups went to the postseason and the Diamondbacks have been eradicated. There are 12 groups remaining who all have the similar purpose, but it surely gained’t be simple. The Dodgers are unsurprisingly the World Series favourite with their star-studded lineup and they're intently adopted by Bryce Harper and the Phillies and then Aaron Judge and the Yankees. But may we have now a repeat of final season and have a darkish horse run the desk?
There’s lots to get into, so let’s not waste any extra time. Let’s dive into the present World Series odds, a preview of the postseason, and my World Series greatest bets. For extra fast evaluation, try our MLB picks for the Wild Card spherical and EVERY sport all through the playoffs.
2024 MLB World Series Odds
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook and obtainable at time of publishing.
- Los Angeles Dodgers +350
- Philadelphia Phillies +380
- New York Yankees +450
- Houston Astros +850
- Cleveland Guardians +1100
- San Diego Padres +1100
- Baltimore Orioles +1300
- Milwaukee Brewers +2000
- New York Mets +2300
- Atlanta Braves +2300
- Kansas City Royals +3000
- Detroit Tigers +3000
Keep in thoughts that it is best to store round at totally different sportsbooks relying on which crew you wish to take. For instance, the Phillies are +380 at FanDuel however +475 at DraftKings.
2024 MLB Postseason Preview
Was there even a doubt that the Dodgers have been going to be the favourite? It’s been like that for the whole season so it wasn’t a shock to see Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers with sky-high expectations. But there are many questions relating to their postseason beginning rotation as a result of… it’s not nice. Could that open the door for the Phillies, Padres or Brewers to steal the National League pennant? Those 3 groups definitely have a greater postseason rotation, so the query comes down as to if offense or pitching extra essential in the postseason.
I don’t even want to consider that reply: pitching. Look at the final postseason for instance. The Dodgers have been anticipated to run the desk however received swept in the first spherical as a result of they threw Clayton Kershaw, Bobby Miller and Lance Lynn in 3 video games. And the groups that went deep into the postseason? The Phillies had Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and Ranger Suarez whereas the Diamondbacks had Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly and Brandon Pfaadt. Pitching means every part in the postseason, so which groups have the steadiness of a strong beginning rotation with an above-average lineup? That’s the way you weed out the contenders and pretenders.
We have MLB Wild Card predictions for EVERY collection, together with a +460 choose!
2024 MLB World Series Best Bet: Philadelphia Phillies (+475)
Odds obtainable at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing
The Phillies have every part you may wish to see from a postseason crew. First, they've the greatest postseason rotation of any crew: Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sanchez and Ranger Suarez. Wheeler was in the Cy Young dialogue since Opening Day and received even higher as the season went on contemplating he posted a 1.62 ERA in August and a 2.23 ERA in September. His sidekick is Aaron Nola, who had a strong 2024 marketing campaign and we are able to’t overlook about his dominance in the 2023 postseason. Nola was 3-1 with a 2.35 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 4 begins final postseason and performed a vital function in getting the Phillies to the NLCS.
Next up is the unsung hero of the rotation — Cristopher Sanchez. The lefty had a breakout 2024 season as he posted a 3.32 ERA in 31 begins. He was additionally unbelievable at dwelling as he posted a 2.21 ERA and 0.97 WHIP at Citizens Bank Park this season, so count on the Phillies to verify his begins line up at dwelling. And lastly, Ranger Suarez was practically good in the first half of the season. He’s handled some accidents in the second half, however he’s constructed for October as he posted a 1.23 ERA in the 2022 postseason and then a 1.93 ERA in 2023.
Secondly, what’s to not love about their lineup? The Phillies completed the common season ranked 4th in batting common, fifth in on-base share, fifth in OPS and eighth in wRC+. A giant cause for their success is their elite high of the order, but in addition the depth at the backside of their lineup. I’m anticipating their postseason lineup to be Schwarber, Turner, Harper, Bohm, Castellanos, Realmuto, Stott, Marsh and Rojas. That may simply be the greatest lineup in the postseason. And lastly, the Bank. I’m speaking about Citizens Bank Park, which is arguably the greatest home-field benefit in the postseason. It’s extraordinarily laborious for different groups to have success in Philly whereas the Phillies feed off the power. They’ve confirmed that they will deal with the postseason, and since their crew is even stronger this yr, I’m drawn to the Phillies as soon as once more.
Find out our knowledgeable MLB predictions for each matchup all through the playoffd
2024 MLB World Series Best Longshot Pick: San Diego Padres (+1200)
Available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing
It’s loopy to contemplate the Padres as a “longshot”, however at these odds, that’s how I'd classify them. San Diego practically stole the NL West from the Dodgers in the ultimate week of the common season however got here up simply quick. They head into the postseason as the high Wild Card in the NL and that offers them a best-of-3 collection towards the Braves. With Michael King, Dylan Cease and Joe Musgrove as the high 3 arms for the Padres, I like their possibilities of profitable 2 video games towards Atlanta.
If the Padres win the Wild Card spherical, that pins them towards the Dodgers in the NLDS. And it’s not that I dislike the Dodgers, however I believe their postseason rotation can be their demise. Jack Flaherty and Yoshinobu Yamamoto is a superb 1-2 punch and ought to be capable of win them a sport or two. However, Walker Buehler and Landon Knack struggled down the stretch in the common season and could possibly be an issue in the postseason. In quick, I imagine the Padres may knock off the Dodgers in a best-of-5 collection.
That leaves the NLCS and then the American League pennant winner, however these groups must be frightened of the Padres. San Diego has an elite 1-2-3 punch in the rotation and arguably the greatest bullpen in the postseason with Jason Adam, Tanner Scott, Yuki Matsui, Adrian Morejon and Robert Suarez. And at the plate, the Padres have an exceptional lineup that is filled with contact hitters (Luis Arraez), energy hitters (Fernando Tatis Jr.), and clutch hitters (Jackson Merrill). I anticipated the Padres to be beneath +1000, so there’s loads of worth getting them at 12/1.
Read our Atlanta Braves vs San Diego Padres prediction for Game 1 of their Wild Card collection