As we look ahead to the Yankees vs. Dodgers in the 2024 World Series, one sports betting aspect that will be attacked by gamblers and discussed by prognosticators will be the World Series MVP. It’s a fun thing to predict in our sport because I can go in so many different ways. Just look at the NLCS. Who had Tommy Edman winning the NLCS MVP for the Dodgers?
This is where baseball differs from other major team sports. In football, you can usually just guess the quarterback on whatever team you think is going to win. In basketball, just take the superstar from the team you believe will win the series. Here in MLB land, it could be a superstar, a mid-tier guy, a relative nobody or anything in between. Just take a look back at the last 10 World Series MVPs.
Madison Bumgarner (2014) and Salvador Perez (2015) were star-level players, but not superstar-level. Ben Zobrist (2016) was a great all-around player but not a star. George Springer (2017) was a star, but not the Astros‘ best player. Steve Pearce (2018) was a bench player. Stephen Strasburg (2019) probably qualifies as a superstar. You could probably make the argument for Corey Seager (he won two in 2020 and 2023). Jorge Soler (2021) wasn’t an everyday starter. Jeremy Peña (2022) was an everyday player but definitely not a star.
It’s just such a lovely mixed bag.
Go back further and you’ll get stuff like Scott Brosius and Mariano Rivera back-to-back or Pat Borders between Jack Morris and Paul Molitor. How about Bucky Dent between Reggie Jackson and Willie Stargell or Don Clendenon before Brooks Robinson and Roberto Clemente?
Of course the best players are the likeliest to win the award, because they are, yes, the best players. Baseball in small samples lends itself to Steve Pearce-like surges, though. And the star power in this series means that Juan Soto and Mookie Betts are the second-best players on their respective teams.
With that in mind, here are the odds for World Series MVP. You can make a prediction or bet on someone or ignore. Whatever you desire this week, baseball fans. This is our Christmas.
2024 World Series MVP odds
All odds via FanDuel sportsbook. Check out the latest FanDuel promo code for betting action on the 2024 World Series.
- Shohei Ohtani: +220
- Aaron Judge: +490
- Juan Soto: +550
- Mookie Betts: +700
- Giancarlo Stanton: +950
- Max Muncy: +1600
- Freddie Freeman: +2700
- Teoscar Hernández: +2700
- Tommy Edman: +3300
- Gerrit Cole: +3500
- Gerrit Cole +3500
- Gleyber Torres +4000
- Will Smith: +4500
- Enrique Hernández +4500
- Jazz Chisholm Jr. +6000
My pick: Mookie Betts, +750
Mookie was my gut pick. Ohtani and Judge are obviously the chalk picks and since I’m taking Dodgers to win, Betts gets the nod over Soto. I also love Betts’ lineup spot sitting behind Ohtani and in front of several power bats for the Dodgers.
Plus, Betts is now 13 for 38 (.342) with four doubles, four homers, 12 RBI and nine runs in his last nine games. And he’s plenty familiar with Yankee Stadium from his Red Sox days.
Longer shot pick: Teoscar Hernández +2700
He’s cooled off, but Hernández probably would’ve won the MVP in the NLDS if there were such a thing. It shows what damage he can do in a short period of time, as he hit .333 with two homers and seven RBI in those five games against the Padres. He’ll be hitting in the middle of a lineup that features Ohtani and Betts at the top, which means tons of RBI chances and you know World Series MVP voters love gaudy RBI totals.
Longshot pick I: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, +20000
The Dodgers’ rotation is in shambles with seven starting pitchers on the injured list, Jack Flaherty coming off a disaster of an outing and Walker Buehler having been shaky all year. In Yamamoto’s last two outings, he gave up two runs in 9 1/3 innings while striking out 10. He’s likely to get two starts in a long series, but what if the Dodgers close the Yankees out in five and Yamamoto dominates twice? There’s a chance he’d take home the hardware then, especially considering the circumstances with the banged-up pitching staff.
Longshot pick II: Luke Weaver, +25000
I have the Dodgers winning, but wouldn’t be surprised to see the Yankees win this one. It seems very close to a toss up. I will, however, be shocked if Weaver wins the MVP. Still, you can squint your way there and with these odds (which means you could bet $10 to win $2500), it’s not a bad bet.
Couldn’t you envision a scenario where the Yankees win this in seven games and Weaver gets four saves and works eight dominant innings, holding a one-run lead every time? It isn’t likely, of course, but he has a much better chance than the other names listed that low.
