The MLB season has arrived, and although the playoffs are a long way away, it's never too early to start speculating about which teams will be playing in October.
For anyone interested in making predictions about which MLB teams will make the playoffs, Kalshi allows users to place real money on the outcome in most states. Additionally, we have a Kalshi promo code to help get you started.
MLB Postseason Qualifiers Odds, Predictions
A few teams are extremely likely headed to the postseason, so let's get them out of the way. The Dodgers are the only team above 90% odds, and with the talent on the roster in Los Angeles, the high praise is warranted. The same goes for the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, and New York Mets, who aren't quite as secure as the Dodgers, but with greater than 70% odds to make the postseason, those three are also widely considered surefire contenders.
The Yankees aren't alone atop the AL East, though. The Toronto Blue Jays are the reigning AL pennant winners and were only a few outs away from being World Series Champions. The Philadelphia Phillies serve the same role in the NL East. The Philies are behind the Mets in postseason odds, but will challenge the Mets at the top of the division, and at worst will be a solid wild-card team.
Near the 60% range is where things get interesting. The Chicago Cubs are the implied NL Central favorites, even though the Milwaukee Brewers took home that crown last year. However, the Brewers traded away ace Freddy Peralta in the offseason, while the Cubs reloaded by signing Alex Bregman in free agency to fill the void in the lineup left by Kyle Tucker joining the Dodgers.
The Cubs should win the NL Central, while the AL Central also had a team make big additions in free agency. That team is the Detroit Tigers, who bolstered the front-end of their rotation by adding Framber Valdez on a massive deal in free agency, and added back-end depth by bringing franchise legend Justin Verlander back for his age-43 season. Detroit should make the postseason again in 2026, even though Cleveland and Kansas City will also challenge for the AL Central title.
Some of the more interesting bets come from the probable wild-card teams. In the National League, the Atlanta Braves have similar odds to American League teams like Detroit and Toronto, yet Atlanta missed the postseason entirely in 2025. Bettors are expecting a bounce-back year from the Braves now that they will have a full season of Ronald Acuña Jr., and considering they made the postseason every year from 2018 to 2024, I think that bounce-back is likely.
The San Diego Padres have lower postseason odds than the Braves, but given San Diego's consistency in recent years, even with important players like Dylan Cease, Luis Arraez, and Robert Suarez leaving in free agency, I think the Padres are being slightly undervalued. After all, the Cincinnati Reds snuck into the final NL wild-card spot last year, and this San Diego roster is more experienced and likely more talented than the Reds were in 2025.
In the American League, the picture is way more murky. The Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, and Houston Astros have all had some odd trends in the past three years. Baltimore won 91+ games two seasons in a row — both culminated in postseason appearances — but then finished 2025 under .500.
The Rangers won the World Series in 2023, but haven't made the postseason since, with an 81-81 finish in 2025 and a 78-84 record in 2024. The Astros, meanwhile, were the model of consistency in the AL, making postseason appearances every year from 2017 to 2024, with two World Series titles in that span.
If you're going to believe in one of those teams, a healthy Astros squad would be the right pick, even with Valdez's departure to Detroit. The Orioles are the most interesting upside play of the bunch, although there is obviously a lot more risk involved in picking a team that just went under .500 and finished last in its division.
What is Kalshi?
Different than a traditional sportsbook and available in most states, Kalshi allows users to make predictions across several unique markets, including sports, entertainment, elections and even weather.
Also, Kalshi’s refer-a-friend program is a "win-win" for prediction market traders. By inviting a friend to the platform, both you and your friend receive a $25 credit once they meet the initial trading requirements.
Kalshi operates on a contract-based system where users buy "contracts" (priced between 1–99 cents) based on whether they believe a specific event will happen. The price of each contract fluctuates in real time based on market sentiment, and like the stock market, traders can sell positions early to lock in profits (or minimize losses).
