Expert predictions for Yankees-Dodgers World Series

Expert predictions for Yankees-Dodgers World Series

October 24th, 2024

Yankees versus Dodgers. It is a World Series showdown with all sorts of compelling storylines.

These were the two best teams during the regular season and a matchup that is incredibly rich in history and talent. You are going to want to see what happens when these two behemoths meet for the sport's ultimate prize. And everyone is going to have an opinion on what will happen.

That's why we asked dozens of MLB.com experts to make their predictions on these Fall Classic topics: Who will win this Series? How many games will be played? Who will hit the most home runs? Who will be named World Series MVP? Here is how they responded.

Who will win the World Series?

The pick: Dodgers (27 of 50 votes, 54%)

The vote on this question was mighty close, to no surprise. The Yankees and Dodgers are stacked with offensive standouts coming off of impressive performances during their respective League Championship Series. New York dispatched Cleveland in five games thanks to clutch homers from and series MVP . Meanwhile, the Dodgers' lineup, spearheaded by and , powered past the Mets in six games by scoring 46 runs, the most by any team in NLCS history.

We saw these clubs on the same diamond earlier this season; the Dodgers took two out of three in the Bronx back in June. was the star of that weekend, piling up three home runs, six hits and nine RBIs at Yankee Stadium. Yet it's important to note that Soto didn't play in that series as he was nursing a sore left forearm.

Why the Dodgers will win

  • "Both lineups are absolutely relentless, but I give a slight advantage to the Dodgers for their depth behind their superstars. The real question is, if and when the Dodgers win, will we get a photoshoot of Decoy with the trophy?" -- Doug Gausepohl, senior director, social media editorial
  • "Don't overlook the fact that the Yankees got to the World Series by beating teams that ranked 20th (Royals) and tied for 16th (Guardians) in the Majors in wRC+ this season. The Dodgers ranked first (118 wRC+), and they have been even better this postseason (122), having just made life miserable for Mets pitching. The Yankees have bats, too, of course, but the Dodgers' offensive depth will be the difference in this series." -- Andrew Simon, director, national content
  • "The Dodgers' bullpen will compensate for the rotation's shortcomings, all while Ohtani leads an offensive onslaught that will be too much for the Yankees to overcome." -- Ben Hill, senior reporter, MiLB

Why the Yankees will win

  • "The Dodgers have somehow managed not to run out of pitching through the first two rounds. I don't think they can continue to pull it off against this Yankees offense." -- Matthew Leach, director, MiLB content and strategy
  • "The Dodgers’ offense can score runs in bunches, as we saw in the NLCS when they averaged over seven per game. But Dave Roberts had to painstakingly manage a tired bullpen to defeat the Mets and now, against a Yankees club with so many weapons, I don’t think Los Angeles will have enough run prevention versus New York." -- David Venn, Spanish-language senior national reporter
  • "For all the talk of the bullpenning that's going to take place throughout the World Series, this series, to me, will come down to which team can squeeze the most out of its rotation. I give the Yankees the slightest of edges there, mostly because I trust more than anyone the Dodgers will send to the mound. L.A.'s pitching feels like it's on fumes, and the Yankees could expose that." -- Anthony DiComo, senior club reporter

How many games will it last?

Dodgers in 6 games: 15 votes
Yankees in 6 games: 13 votes
Dodgers in 7 games: 12 votes
Yankees in 7 games: 6 votes
Yankees in 5 games: 3 votes
Yankees in 4 games: 1 vote

Picking a World Series winner here is basically a toss-up. But one thing we can agree on? This Fall Classic is going to last a while. A majority of our voters think it will go six games, and 36% think it will go the distance. If that's the case, it would be our first World Series to be decided with a Game 7 since 2019.

Senior club reporter John Denton, senior manager of content operations Dan Cichalski, and senior editor of breaking news Jeff Gold were among those who said this World Series will take seven games. Gold even predicted how it will all end: "Dodgers emerge in a tight, high-scoring series with a walk-off winner in Game 7."

Who will hit the most home runs?

Juan Soto, Yankees: 10 votes
Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers: 10 votes
Aaron Judge, Yankees: 8 votes
Giancarlo Stanton, Yankees: 8 votes
Mookie Betts, Dodgers: 5 votes
, Dodgers: 4 votes
Teoscar Hernández, Dodgers: 2 votes
, Yankees: 1 vote
, Dodgers: 1 vote
, Yankees: 1 vote

Who will win World Series MVP?

Juan Soto, Yankees: 13 votes
Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers: 11 votes
Mookie Betts, Dodgers: 7 votes
Aaron Judge, Yankees: 5 votes
Teoscar Hernández, Dodgers: 4 votes
Max Muncy, Dodgers: 3 votes
Gerrit Cole, Yankees: 2 votes
Will Smith, Dodgers: 2 votes
Jazz Chisholm Jr., Yankees: 1 vote
Alex Verdugo, Yankees: 1 vote
, Yankees: 1 vote

Understandably, the totals here share a lot of similarities. Although this series is highlighted by Judge and Ohtani -- a likely MVP versus MVP showdown -- Soto is the most popular choice for Fall Classic MVP. Ohtani follows close behind, however. If the Dodgers triumph, he would probably become the first player since Betts in 2018 to win a World Series in an MVP year.

Why Soto will win MVP

  • "The Yankees made the Juan Soto trade to further their chances of playing in the Fall Classic. With the young slugger in the fold, New York will ride his hot bat to its first World Series title in 15 seasons." -- Kenny Van Doren, night editorial/social producer, MLB Pipeline
  • "Soto will enter free agency as not only a two-time World Series champion but also as a Fall Classic MVP. He’ll again rise to the occasion and end the Yankees’ title drought in his first (and possibly only) season in pinstripes." -- Jake Rill, club reporter

Why Ohtani will win MVP

  • "The population of Japan is estimated to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 124 million people, and I think more than a few of them will be tuning in to a World Series in which Ohtani is going to do as he often does and meet the moment. He's won the Japan Series, he's won the World Baseball Classic, and now he's going to win the World Series and the MVP to boot." -- Anthony Castrovince, senior national reporter
  • "Not going to overthink this: Shohei Ohtani is the best player in baseball playing in the biggest games of his life. He’s the MVP." -- Andy Werle, supervising editor, content operations

Picking Soto, Ohtani, Judge or Betts for Series MVP makes sense. But we've often seen unheralded players excel on baseball's grandest stage. Some of the more surprising names to win World Series MVP recently include Steve Pearce (2018) and David Freese (2011). Thinking outside the box for an MVP pick can be prudent.

That kind of thinking led social media editorial manager Zac Vierra to choose Verdugo. The Yankees outfielder recorded a .606 OPS during the second half of the regular season and is slashing a meager .194/.286/.258 during the playoffs. But he could be fired up to face the team that drafted him in 2014.

"Verdugo will sneak a pair of homers over the short porch, including a walk-off shot in Game 5, and his comfort hitting at Dodger Stadium will help as he smashes the go-ahead homer in Game 7," Vierra said. "Is this a wild prediction? Yes! But that is why we love baseball, because in a series packed with superstars, a role player can be a difference-maker on the biggest stage."