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. The most popular MLB futures bet is 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, and who will be named the most valuable player.
World Series Futures
When it comes to MLB futures, World Series betting is by far the most common amongst baseball bettors. As soon as a team is crowned as World Champions, sportsbooks will open the next futures market, and it will stay open until another World Series winner 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 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.
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. This is when baseball bettors wager on the teams they think will represent the American League and National League in the Worlds Series.
In order for these two 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 pennants, teams need to get through the Wild Card round, the American League Divisional Series or National League Divisional Series (ALDS or NLDS), as well as the American League Championship Series or National League Championship Series (ALCS or NLCS).
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 both 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 just 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 it? An example of this would be who will lead the show in dingers throughout the regular season?