2024 MLB division series round betting guide: Props, picks, futures
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Todd Zola, Fantasy
The 2024 MLB division series round is here, with four best-of-five showdowns ready to get going. In each series, Games 1, 2 and 5 (if necessary) will take place at the home stadium of the division winners that earned a bye into this round of the playoffs.
Check back every day to see the latest odds for each game as well as a few betting tips on some of the prop bets available to be made on each contest.
For more on the MLB playoffs, check out each team’s odds to win the World Series here.
All odds accurate as of publish time. Series odds reflect the lines as of the start of Game 1. For more, go to ESPN BET. 
Detroit Tigers vs. Cleveland Guardians
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Series line: Tigers (+105), Guardians (-125)
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Series result: Tigers sweep (+600), Tigers in 4 (+400), Tigers in 5 (+400)
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Series result: Guardians sweep (+550), Guardians in 4 (+325), Guardians in 5 (+450)
Zola’s series pick: Playoff baseball is intriguing since runs are harder to come by, but the successful teams usually hit more homers. The Guardians’ offense is ideal for this scenario, and they manage their pitching as well as any team in the postseason. That said, they will face Tigers LHP Tarik Skubal in Game 2, so predicting a sweep is aggressive. So is anticipating the Guardians to sweep both games in Motown, but that’s where I am going, avoiding betting simply on the Guardians to defeat the Tigers and calling it in four games.
Game 1: Progressive Field, Cleveland, Saturday, Oct. 5, 1:08 p.m. ET (TBS)
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Game 1 line: Tigers +1.5 (-175), Guardians -1.5 (+145)
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Game 1 money line: Tigers +130, Guardians -155
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Game 1 O/U: 7.5 runs, Over (+110)/Under (-130)
Game 2: Progressive Field, Cleveland, Monday, Oct. 7, 4:08 p.m. ET (TBS)
Game 3: Comerica Park, Detroit, Wednesday, Oct. 9, TBD, (TBS)
*Game 4: Comerica Park, Detroit, Thursday, Oct. 10, TBD, (TBS)
*Game 5: Progressive Field, Cleveland, Saturday, Oct. 12, TBD, (TBS)
New York Mets vs. Philadelphia Phillies
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Series line: Mets (+150), Phillies (-180)
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Series result: Mets sweep (+900), Mets in 4 (+500), Mets in 5 (+550)
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Series result: Phillies sweep (+425), Phillies in 4 (+300), Phillies in 5 (+280)
Zola’s series pick: The Phillies are one of the few teams with three solid starting pitchers, although their bullpen is suspect. The Phillies are favored over the Mets, and they are my choice to advance. The safe play is just picking the Phillies to win the series. I’m going to be more adventurous, however, and I will back the Phillies to win in four.
Game 1: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Saturday, Oct. 5, 4:08 p.m. ET (FOX)
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Game 1 line: Mets +1.5 (-145), Phillies -1.5 (+120)
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Game 1 money line: Mets +155, Phillies -185
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Game 1 O/U: 7.5 runs, Over (+110)/Under (-130)
Game 2: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Sunday, Oct. 6, 4:08 p.m. ET (FS1)
Game 3: Citi Field, New York, Tuesday, Oct. 8, TBD, (FOX/FS1)
*Game 4: Citi Field, New York, Wednesday, Oct. 9, TBD, (FOX/FS1)
*Game 5: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Friday, Oct. 11, TBD, (FOX/FS1)
Kansas City Royals vs. New York Yankees
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Series line: Royals (+170), Yankees (-210)
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Series result: Royals sweep (+1300), Royals in 4 (+600), Royals in 5 (+500)
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Series result: Yankees sweep (+360), Yankees in 4 (+250), Yankees in 5 (+320)
Zola’s series pick: Of the four divisional series, this is the toughest for me to handicap. The odds disagree as they have the Yankees as the heaviest favorites in this round. My issue is that the Yankees’ pitching, on paper, should be better than the Royals’, but there are a lot of question marks in the New York rotation while the Royals are healthy and in a groove. Yankees bats should be better than their counterparts, but they are fueled by homers and the Royals staff yielded the fewest long balls in MLB. For the second straight round, the Royals are my upset special. I’m taking them to win the series, but I am also hedging a bit by calling the series to go five games (+170).
Game 1: Yankee Stadium, New York, Saturday, Oct. 5, 6:38 p.m. ET (TBS)
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Game 1 line: Royals +1.5 (-130), Yankees -1.5 (+110)
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Game 1 money line: Royals +170, Yankees -205
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Game 1 O/U: 7.5 runs, Over (-120)/Under (Even)
Game 2: Yankee Stadium, New York, Monday, Oct. 7, 7:38 p.m. ET (TBS)
Game 3: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Wednesday, Oct. 9, TBD, (TBS)
*Game 4: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Thursday, Oct. 10, TBD, (TBS)
*Game 5: Yankee Stadium, New York, Saturday, Oct. 12, TBD, (TBS)
San Diego Padres at Los Angeles Dodgers
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Series line: Padres (+115), Dodgers (-135)
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Series result: Padres sweep (+750), Padres in 4 (+425), Padres in 5 (+450)
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Series result: Dodgers sweep (+500), Dodgers in 4 (+340), Dodgers in 5 (+320)
Zola’s series pick: The Dodgers and Padres opened the season in South Korea, and now they meet to decide who represents SoCal in the NLCS. The Dodgers finished five games ahead of the Padres in the NL West and are slight favorites. However, the Padres’ starting pitching is in much better shape, plus the San Diego bullpen is solid. Since the Padres are getting plus odds as the underdog, I’m taking the Padres to win the series while also picking them to defeat the Dodgers in four games.
Game 1: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, Saturday, Oct. 5, 8:38 p.m. ET (FS1)
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Game 1 line: Padres +1.5 (-190), Dodgers -1.5 (+160)
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Game 1 money line: Padres +115, Dodgers -135
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Game 1 O/U: 7.5 runs, Over (-115)/Under (-105)
Game 2: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, Sunday, Oct. 6, 8:03 p.m. ET (FS1)
Game 3: Petco Park, San Diego, Tuesday, Oct. 8, TBD, (FOX/FS1)
*Game 4: Petco Park, San Diego, Wednesday, Oct. 9, TBD, (FOX/FS1)
*Game 5: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, Friday, Oct. 11, TBD, (FOX/FS1)
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Jeff Passan
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Jeff Passan
Senior MLB Insider
- ESPN MLB insider
Author of “The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports” -
Jesse Rogers
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Jesse Rogers
ESPN Staff Writer
- Jesse joined ESPN Chicago in September 2009 and covers MLB for ESPN.com.
Right-hander Justin Verlander and the San Francisco Giants are in agreement on a one-year, $15 million contract, sources told ESPN on Tuesday, continuing the future Hall of Famer’s career at age 42 in one of the pitcher-friendliest stadiums in baseball.
Verlander, entering his 20th major league season, is considered perhaps the best pitcher of his generation, with the most innings pitched, strikeouts and wins among active players. A three-time Cy Young Award winner, Verlander is coming off the worst season of his career and joins a Giants team likewise looking for better results than 2024. The deal is pending a physical.
Shoulder and neck injuries limited Verlander to 17 starts, and over his last seven he posted an 8.10 ERA. With a falling strikeout rate and climbing home run rate, Verlander began to show signs of aging after a career in which he seemed impervious to it.
After a dominant 13-year stretch with the Detroit Tigers, Verlander found a second life after joining the Houston Astros in 2017. He won Cy Youngs in 2019 and 2022 — and after the latter signed a two-year, $86.6 million contract with the New York Mets. Verlander spent 16 starts with the Mets before being traded back to the Astros in August 2023.
Over his career, Verlander is 262-147 with a 3.30 ERA over 3,415⅔ innings. He has struck out 3,416 batters, walked 952 and won a pair of World Series with the Astros.
Returning to Houston wasn’t an option for 2025. With Oracle Park a dream for pitchers, Verlander gravitated toward the Giants, whose rotation includes right-hander Logan Webb, left-handers Robbie Ray and Kyle Harrison, and a number of other options for the fifth spot, with right-hander Hayden Birdsong seen as the likeliest candidate.
The Giants had spent a month with limited action before signing Verlander. A month ago to the day, they agreed with shortstop Willy Adames on a seven-year, $182 million contract.
San Francisco, which hired former star catcher Buster Posey as its president of baseball operations in September, went 80-82 last season and finished in fourth place in the National League West, which is arguably the best division in baseball.
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Kyle Bonagura, ESPN Staff Writer
Northern Illinois will join the Mountain West as a football-only member in 2026, the school and conference announced Tuesday.
“What a great opportunity for NIU Athletics as we expand our horizons, adapt to this new national model of college athletics and prepare to start a new chapter in the history of NIU Football,” NIU athletic director Sean T. Frazier said in a statement.
In addition to NIU, the Mountain West will include Air Force, Hawai’i, UNLV, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State and Wyoming in 2026.
The move is another fallen domino in college sports’ ongoing conference realignment process that caught up to the Mountain West in the fall, when Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State announced they were leaving for the new-look Pac-12, which collapsed in 2023.
“We are excited about adding Northern Illinois football to the Mountain West,” commissioner Gloria Nevarez said in a statement. “In evaluating NIU, the MW Board of Directors and Directors of Athletics carefully considered and were impressed by its history of football success and its commitment to academic excellence.”
It is unclear what conference NIU’s remaining sports will compete in once it moves to the Mountain West for football. The school said it will continue discussions with the Mid-American Conference — where it has participated since 1997 — but will also review opportunities in “several of the regionally based multi-sport conferences.”
The Mountain West also recently announced the additions of Grand Canyon and UC Davis for sports other than football (Grand Canyon does not have football; Davis will remain at the FCS level).
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Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior Writer
Georgia added another potential playmaker to its receiving corps on Tuesday, as former Texas A&M standout Noah Thomas committed to play for the Bulldogs in 2025.
Thomas, who has one season of eligibility remaining, led the Aggies with 39 catches for 574 yards and eight touchdowns this past season.
On Sunday, the Bulldogs added former USC receiver/kick returner Zachariah Branch, who was the No. 9 overall player and No. 4 receiver in ESPN’s transfer portal rankings. He had 1,863 all-purpose yards with the Trojans in two seasons and returned two kickoffs for scores in 2023.
At 6-foot-6, Thomas gives the Bulldogs a much-needed target in the red zone, which they were lacking this past season. His best performance came in a 43-41 loss in four overtimes at Auburn on Nov. 23, with five catches for 124 yards with two scores. He had six receptions for 109 yards and one score in a 21-17 victory over Arkansas on Sept. 28.
Earlier Tuesday, receiver Dillon Bell announced that he’ll return to Georgia for one more season. The junior had 43 catches for 466 yards with four touchdowns in 2024.
The Bulldogs are expected to lose their top two receivers: Dominic Lovett, who has exhausted his eligibility, and Arian Smith, who announced he’s forgoing his senior season to enter the NFL draft. Receiver Anthony Evans III also entered the transfer portal.
The Bulldogs led all FBS teams with 36 receiver drops this season, according to ESPN Research.
Georgia also landed two safeties from the transfer portal on Tuesday: Miami’s Jaden Harris and UAB’s Adrian Maddox, who had committed to Florida on Sunday. Harris started 13 games for the Hurricanes this past season and had 40 tackles, 1.5 sacks and 1 interception.
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