The snow is melting and the days are getting longer, which can only mean one thing: baseball season’s right around the corner. There’s no season quite like MLB’s season — a 162-game marathon that comes down to a month-long sprint to a chance to win it all.
Last year, that sprint was won by the Los Angeles Dodgers with a historic World Series win over the New York Yankees. This was due in large part to their signing Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani, who signed a 10-year, $700 million contract before the 2024 season, won NL MVP in his first year with the Dodgers. He’s set to return to being a two-way player this season.
As we approach the start of the 2025 season, it should come as no surprise that the Dodgers are the favorite to win the World Series.
All odds are via FanDuel Sportsbook and are subject to change.
MLB World Series Odds
Los Angeles Dodgers (+240)
A year after adding Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the Dodgers added Rōki Sasakii, the top arm in free agency, this year.
The Dodgers were the wire-to-wire favorite to win the 2024 World Series thanks to Ohtani’s historic performance where he became the first player in MLB history to hit 50+ home runs and steal 50+ bases in a season.
Ohtani finished the year with 54 home runs and 130 RBI while slashing .310/.390.646 with 59 stolen bases. While the Dodgers struggled with injuries last season, they got another strong season from Freddie Freeman (153 hits, 22 HR), Mookie Betts (19 HR and 75 RBI while moving to the infield) and Will Smith (20 HR, 70 RBI).
Los Angeles fought through a tough National League postseason slate before beating the Yankees in the World Series in a gentleman’s sweep that was highlighted by a walk-off grand slam from Freddie Freeman in Game 1.
The Dodgers have strong pitching depth behind Yamamoto and Sasaki, but many of their key arms have struggled with injuries in the past.
Still, even that might not be enough to stop a Los Angeles repeat.
New York Yankees (+700)
Oddsmakers seem to think this year’s World Series will be a repeat of last year’s Fall Classic, as the Yankees have the second-best odds to win the World Series — albeit with much worse odds.
Although the Yankees lost Juan Soto — he signed a 15-year, $765 million contract with the Mets in the offseason — they refilled their roster by adding lefty starter Max Fried, closer Devin Williams, outfielder Cody Bellinger, and first baseman Paul Goldschmidt.
The Yankees finished last year with a record of 94-68 before beating the Royals in the ALDS and the Guardians in the ALCS before falling to the Dodgers in the World Series.
They still probably need to add one more infielder and could be without a big power bat in their lineup due to Giancarlo Stanton’s elbow troubles, but it’s New York and then everyone else in the American League.
Atlanta Braves (+950)
The winner of the 2021 World Series, the Braves backed into the postseason last year on the last day of the regular season by beating the Mets in the second game of a doubleheader before being swept by the Padres in the Wild Card Series.
Last year, starting pitcher Chris Sale had a bounce-back year for the ages by earning the National League Triple Crown (18 wins, 2.38 ERA, 225 strikeouts). While both Fried (3.25 ERA in 29 starts) and Reynaldo López (1.99 ERA) were also All-Stars in the rotation. And though Fried left for the Yankees, his spot in the rotation should be filled by Spencer Strider, who threw only nine innings last year before undergoing Tommy John surgery — a procedure to repair a torn elbow ligament.
And Strider won’t be the only reinforcement the Braves are expecting back, as 2023 MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. will return in April after missing most of last year due to an ACL injury.
Acuña is one of the finest players in baseball when healthy, though he’s already said he may “take it easy” on the basepaths when he returns from injury.
The Braves were quiet in the offseason (their biggest moves were getting rid of Jorge Soler and Travis d’Arnaud). But they should benefit from the additions of two of their biggest stars.
Philadelphia Phillies (+1000)
The second of three National League East teams in the top-five, the Phillies are looking to bring another championship since the Eagles won Super Bowl LVIII. The Phillies went 95-67 in the last year’s regular season but ended up being upset by the Mets in the NLDS.
One of the oldest teams in MLB, they’re bringing back their core for another season after last year’s success. Zach Wheeler went 16-7 with a 2.57 ERA as the rock of their rotation, while Cristopher Sánchez and Ranger Suárez were All-Stars. They also added to their rotation by trading for Jesus Luzardo from the Marlins.
It’s the same faces on offense too. Bryce Harper (30 home runs), Trea Turner (.295 average, 62 RBI) and Alec Bohm (97 RBI) are all coming off All-Star seasons, while Kyle Schwarber earned some down-ballot MVP votes after a 38-homer season.
They brought in former All-Star closer Jordan Romano to close after they lost Jeff Hoffman in free agency, but their bullpen is still a question mark.
New York Mets (+1100)
The Mets won the offseason with their signing of Soto. Now we’ll get to see if they can translate that into a championship during the season. Soto led the American League in hits last year (128) and is a career .285 hitter in seven MLB seasons at only 27 years old. He’s driven in 109 runs in each of the past two seasons and is one of the hottest hitters in MLB history.
He’s joining a team that advanced all the way to NLCS last year (where they lost in six games to the Dodgers) and has Francisco Lindor, who hit 33 home runs with 91 RBI last year en route to a runner-up finish in the MVP race.
The Mets also re-signed slugging first baseman Pete Alonso to a two-year deal — with an option for the second year. The Mets also re-signed starter Sean Manaea to a three-year deal and brought in Clay Holmes and Frankie Montas to help their rotation. But both Manaea and Montas suffered injuries that could impact their availability for Opening Day.
This is a team that’s entering the season with a World Series Or Bust mentality. We’ll see how it all works out.
The Best of the Rest
- Baltimore Orioles (+1500)
- Houston Astros (+2000)
- Boston Red Sox (+2000)
- Texas Rangers (+2200)
- Chicago Cubs (+3000)
- Baltimore Orioles (+1500)
- Houston Astros (+2000)
- Boston Red Sox (+2000)
- Texas Rangers (+2200)
- Chicago Cubs (+3000)
