2026 MLB Playoffs: Wild Card Matchups and World Series Futures Odds

Following a wild end to the regular season that was disrupted by weather in the Northeast, the 2026 MLB playoffs get underway on Tuesday afternoon. In the best-of-3 Wild Card round, it's Braves vs. Phillies, Padres vs. Cubs, Yankees vs. Red Sox and Astros vs. White Sox. The Brewers, Dodgers, Rays and Guardians are the four teams who earned a bye and will advance automatically to the divisional round.

The latest 2026 World Series odds at FanDuel Sportsbook list the Dodgers as the +230 favorites (risk $100 to win $230) to win it all, followed by the Brewers at +500. The Rays are +750, with the Yankees (+800), Guardians (+1000) and Braves (+1400) next in the MLB futures odds. Before making any 2026 World Series picks, be sure to see the MLB futures picks by SportsLine's Angelo Magliocca.

Magliocca is a hugely profitable MLB capper who uses his deep knowledge of baseball to find value on player props, sides and totals. He is coming off another strong season at SportsLine. Over the 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025 MLB seasons, Amags is up 133.4 units at MLB betting sites on straight bets and parlays -- all publicly documented -- while winning an additional 25.3 units on ladder plays. He produced those results, in part, by leveraging the strikeout prop market. Anyone following could have seen strong returns at betting sites.

Now, he has zeroed in on the 2026 World Series odds and just locked in his teams to fade and follow in the MLB playoff bracket. You can head to SportsLine now to see his picks.

Top MLB playoff futures

After evaluating the 2026 MLB playoff bracket, Magliocca is fading the entire AL East at the best betting apps, saying that he doesn't like the value on the Rays (+750), Yankees (+800) or Red Sox (+1600) to win it all. They're all on the same side of the AL bracket, meaning two are guaranteed to be eliminated before the ALCS. Even though the Rays have the bye, he ultimately thinks the Yankees have the best chance to survive, but that will set them up for failure in the ALCS.

"I think the Yankees will be hard to get past here for both the Red Sox and Rays, but it's October and nothing is a given," Magliocca told SportsLine. "With this side of the bracket having the three best AL teams, I'm staying away from backing any of them to win it all. It feels like a 'crabs in the pot' type of deal, where they beat up on one another, drag each other down and lose the ALCS to a lesser opponent after making it through the gauntlet."

How to make 2026 World Series picks

Instead, Magliocca has locked in on a pair of longshot teams, including one that is perfectly positioned to make a "magical run" through the bracket.

So what are the best 2026 World Series picks, and which longshots should you back? Visit SportsLine now to see which teams you need to jump on, all from the expert who is up more than 133 units on MLB picks since 2022, and find out.