3 MLB Teams That Could Be Worth a Long-Shot World Series Bet in 2027

We’re a long way from knowing what Major League Baseball’s 30 teams will look like when Opening Day rolls around.

Heck, we don’t even know yet whether MLB owners and players will avoid a work stoppage that delays the 2027 season or possibly wipes it out altogether.

Even so, oddsmakers have already released futures odds for the 2027 World Series. And while the unusual conditions of this offseason make it necessary to proceed with caution, here are a few teams at a few prices that caught our eye.

Atlanta Braves (+2500)

The Braves have an MLB-high 11 players hitting free agency, but the most prominent among them are 32-year-old right-hander Tyler Mahle, a trade deadline acquisition this summer, and 37-year-old closer Raisel Iglesias.

The core is remaining intact, and if Ronald Acuna Jr. can stay healthy for a full season, there’s no reason not to believe the soon-to-be 29-year-old can produce another MVP-quality campaign.

The organization has proven a willingness to spend at acceptable levels to be competitive in the NL East, and has generally done so more intelligently than the rival Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets. Those two clubs are getting more love from the oddsmakers at DraftKings, but they shouldn’t be.

Detroit Tigers (+6000)

The Tigers didn’t live up to expectations in 2026, and as a result had to deal ace Tarik Skubal at the deadline. Even so, Detroit’s pitching staff recorded the best ERA of non-postseason qualifiers, and not all of that was the work of the now-free agent lefty.

They also posted a win total that was 13 games worse than their Pythagorean win-loss record. Some of that was owed to a relief group that did not match the caliber of the starting pitching, and maybe a little to poor situational or clutch hitting. But a solid chunk of that is plain old bad luck.

That doesn’t mean Detroit’s fortunes will skew in the other direction in 2027. But even if they played close to what their differential suggests they should have, they would’ve won the AL Central in 2026, baseball’s most forgiving division.

Washington Nationals (+15000)

The 2026 Nationals set an MLB record with 42 blown saves. The bullpen needs help, of course. But historically speaking, bullpens are the most prone to year-to-year variance, and arguably the easiest part of a ballclub to fix.

The lineup was excellent, producing the third-most runs in the game, and overall the pitching -- while needing to improve -- was better than the record suggested. The Pythagorean win-loss record of 82-80 shows this is a team on the cusp of getting good again.

The division is theoretically difficult, and it’s not clear that Nationals ownership is willing to spend just yet. But if they are, this is a team that is only a couple of pieces away from becoming very, very interesting. At this price, they’re definitely worth a flyer.