MLB Futures Betting Odds

MLB Lines Legend

What Are MLB Futures?

Which MLB team will win next year’s World Series? Did you know you can bet on that at any time during the season? Oddsmakers set futures odds in the preseason and adjust them during the year to reflect the strength or weakness of teams.

For example, the top contender may be +180 to win the World Series. That means a $100 bet would pay out a $180 profit. The worst team might be +2500. In that case, a $100 wager would pay $2,500 as a huge long shot.

But the chances of that happening are pretty slim, so look for good value – a team that is a “sleeper” pick as in a fantasy league or a team you feel is underrated and due for a good playoff run.

An MLB futures wager is betting on a baseball event that will occur a little later in the year. This could be something ranging from as simple as an MLB division winner all the way to end-of-season awards for individual players. The most popular baseball futures bets include wagering on which team will win the World Series, who will win the American League and National League pennants, which pitcher will come away with the Cy Young Award, and who will be named the most valuable player.

For a full list of MLB futures odds, see the below list:

World Series Futures

When it comes to MLB futures odds, World Series betting is by far the most common among baseball bettors. As soon as a team is crowned as world champions, sportsbooks will open the next baseball futures odds market, and it will stay open until another MLB champion is determined the following year.

You’ll notice that the odds will change throughout the course of the season, but once your MLB futures bet has been placed, the baseball betting futures odds at which you made that bet are firmly set until a team wins the World Series.

Let’s say the New York Yankees (+125) were the preseason favorites to win the World Series, with the Los Angeles Dodgers not far behind at +225. A $100 wager on the Bronx Bombers would profit $125 if they were to win it all, while a $100 wager on the boys in blue would profit $225 if they were to take home the hardware.

If you are completely torn and don't feel confident enough to wager on one team, most sportsbooks allow you to wager on which division you believe will produce that season's World Series champion.

That means you could wager on the NL East to produce the World Series victors, which would then give you five teams to back, such as the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies, that could hypothetically help you win your bet.

You can use our odds calculator to see how much you would win, depending on the odds and amount wagered. You’ll see odds formats of American, decimal and fractional, with implied odds included as well.

Pennant Betting

Another common MLB futures wager is pennant betting on both National and American League futures. This is when baseball bettors wager on the teams they think will represent the American League and National League in the World Series.

In order for these teams to advance to the World Series, they have to qualify for the playoffs and win a few series first. In order to win their respective MLB conference pennants, teams need to get through the wild-card round, the American League Division Series or National League Division Series (ALDS or NLDS), as well as the American League Championship Series or National League Championship Series (ALCS or NLCS).

While you may not think they will go deep within the World Series race, you could find value on "sleeper teams" that start the year with low odds but have enough upside to possibly win the pennant.

This could mean backing a squad that was mediocre the prior season. In this case, let's say the San Diego Padres are favored at -185 to win the NL West, whereas the Arizona Diamondbacks are valued at +5000. Taking a flier on the massive underdog could land you a huge payday if you think they could realistically upset the oddsmaker's projections.

Seasonal And Performance Awards

This is where MLB futures get really fun. You can bet on things like which players will win the American League and National League MVP, which pitchers will win the AL and NL Cy Young awards, and who will win Rookie of the Year in the AL and NL. Some online sportsbooks might even offer betting odds on Gold Gloves, Silver Slugger awards and Manager of the Year, but those markets are a little harder to find sometimes.

There are also many other futures categories like the number of RBIs a particular player will have or whether their batting average will be OVER/UNDER a certain percentage. And don’t forget about home runs. Chicks dig the long ball, you know, so why not bet on who you think will lead the major leagues in dingers in the regular season?