The 2025 MLB Playoffs have already delivered plenty of drama through the first two rounds. As October inches closer to the Fall Classic, the latest World Series odds from BetMGM offer a clear favorite entering the league championships series.
Looking to become the first team to win back-to-back titles since the Yankees won three straight at the turn of the century, the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers carry unique pressure as the favorites to capture another World Series.
Standing in the way of Los Angeles in the NLCS are the Milwaukee Brewers. Despite owning baseball’s best record during the regular season, skeptics remain for Milwaukee thanks to a string of recent postseason flameouts.
Two teams with minimal recent postseason history battle in the ALCS when the AL East champion Toronto Blue Jays host the AL West champion Seattle Mariners. Although both franchises are relative newcomers to this stage of the postseason, plenty of big bats and star power make that series compelling.
The big question remains: Can anyone stop a Dodgers dynasty from forming?
Los Angeles remains the big favorite
Defeating Philadelphia in the NLDS significantly boosted the Dodgers’ World Series odds. Eliminating the Phillies — a team some analysts considered the best in baseball — elevated the Dodgers from +200 to +120 odds. After an up-and-down season featuring plenty of injuries, Los Angeles is rounding into form while becoming the clear frontrunner to win another World Series.
Opening with preseason title odds of +400, L.A. is seeking its third World Series title this decade. Huge preseason expectations haven’t stopped the Dodgers recently, as they opened 2020 (+385) and 2024 (+350) as favorites and delivered titles during both seasons.
Seeking their eighth World Series title since moving to Los Angeles in 1957, the Dodgers own considerably more historic and recent postseason success than any other remaining team. This is Los Angeles’ fourth trip to the NLCS in the last six years. The star-laden core of World Series MVP favorite Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman is talented and experienced enough to carry the Dodgers if they get hot.
For the NLCS, Los Angeles (-220) owns a sizable advantage in series-winner odds over the Brewers (+180). This despite the NL Central champs sweeping the regular season series by outscoring the Dodgers 31-16 over six games across July.
The Brewers (+400) are the biggest underdog left among the four remaining teams. Milwaukee entered Game 5 of the NLDS against the Cubs with +750 odds and received a notable boost by eliminating their division rivals.
Opening the season at +3500 odds, the Brewers have continually defied expectations by achieving the best record in baseball. Milwaukee’s franchise-record 14-game winning streak highlighted an incredible summer march to a third straight NL Central title.
That said, can Milwaukee get the proverbial monkey off its back? Postseason results continue to elude the Brew Crew — even with seven playoff appearances in the past eight years. The franchise owns zero titles and no World Series appearances since 1982. Milwaukee’s last league championship series came against the Dodgers during a seven-game series loss in 2018.
It’s impossible for the Brewers to match the star power of Los Angeles. The Dodgers’ MLB-leading payroll doubles Milwaukee’s payroll this season. But with homefield advantage and a dominant bullpen, the Brewers can make things interesting if timely hitting continues.
American League contenders close to same odds
Over in the American League, World Series odds for the Toronto Blue Jays (+325) and Seattle Mariners (+340) are relatively similar entering the ALCS.
Opening with modest preseason odds (+6000), Toronto surprisingly blitzed the AL East during the regular season, thanks in part to the American League’s best home record. A monster ALDS from superstar slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. punctuated a balanced Blue Jays offense in advancing past the Yankees.
The Blue Jays (-125) are favored over the Mariners (+105) in series winner odds for the ALCS after capturing the regular season series 4-2. Seattle took two out of three games on the road in Canada during April. The Blue Jays retaliated in the Pacific Northwest with 21 runs during an impressive three-game sweep in May. Toronto’s active West Coast fanbase annually travels to Seattle for its “Canadian Invasion” each regular season, with Blue Jays fans often a notable presence at Mariners games.
On the ropes against Detroit in the ALDS, Seattle jumped from +750 odds entering Game 5 to +340 after the iconic 15-inning win. One thing to keep an eye on is whether the Mariners will have enough left in the tank for Game 1 of the ALCS after the long and emotional Game 5 win over the Tigers.
Seeking its first trip to the World Series, Seattle opened the season at +2500. Expectations were already high for the Mariners in the AL West before catcher Cal Raleigh delivered a dream offensive season as one of the AL MVP front-runners. The combination of Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez is an elite one-two punch capable of taking over a game. A potent offense and sound starting pitching give Seattle plenty of firepower to stay in the series.
On the flip side, Joe Carter’s memorable World Series-clinching walk-off against the Phillies in 1993 — earning Toronto back-to-back titles in the process — was the last time the Blue Jays participated in the Fall Classic. Should Toronto win the World Series, it would have the lowest preseason odds of any winner since the 2003 Florida Marlins (+7500 preseason).