The 2026 MLB playoff field was nearly cut in half Wednesday night. The Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees and San Diego Padres were all eliminated, and the Cleveland Guardians were the only team trailing in its series that lived to play another day.
The race to crown the next World Series champion keeps moving forward, and fans eager for an answer can look to the latest expert predictions and oddsmakers’ lines for hints.
A First-Time Title in Milwaukee?
Five MLB franchises still have never won a World Series. A few experts at ESPN think the Milwaukee Brewers could soon leave that group.
In a recent batch of bold playoff predictions, three of ESPN’s experts built their forecasts around Milwaukee winning it all. Tristan Cockcroft called for breakout star Jackson Chourio to “become the 10th player to win LCS and World Series MVPs.” Eric Karabell predicted a combined no-hitter from Jacob Misiorowski, Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill in Game 1 of the World Series. AJ Mass predicted the Brewers would “trail in every playoff game en route to a championship,” but Milwaukee already broke that forecast, never trailing in Wednesday’s win.
The support makes sense for a team that has never tasted championship glory. The Brewers won an MLB-best and franchise-record 103 games this season, and they own this postseason’s highest OPS (.688) and second-lowest ERA (1.80).
Two-Time Defending Champs Aren’t the Favorites?
Before the postseason began, more than 20 of The Athletic‘s MLB experts made World Series predictions. They did not pick the Los Angeles Dodgers, winners of the past two World Series, as the most popular choice.
The Brewers ran away with the poll, earning 56 percent of the vote. The Tampa Bay Rays finished second with 24 percent, while the Dodgers received just 16 percent. Both Milwaukee and Tampa Bay are viable picks, but that still shows less faith in a club with this much star power and recent dominance than many would expect.
“No team carries as much October hype as Los Angeles,” Katie Woo wrote. “There are rightful concerns over the drop-off in production from Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman, but their rotation of aces should carry them through any qualms on the offense. It’s the Dodgers’ title to lose, and they know it.”
Oddsmakers largely agree with that view. But if most of Woo’s colleagues are right, this year’s championship will not return to Los Angeles.