MLB World Series predictions: Expert picks for 2026 champion, pennant winners

Here are the title predictions from our CBS Sports MLB staff for the 2026 season

By Kate Feldman Mar 24, 2026 at 9:00 am ET • 2 min read

Keytron Jordan, CBS Sports

Is the 2026 MLB season just a slow march to another Dodgers World Series title? Only time will tell.

While the Dodgers are looking for their third straight championship, plenty of other teams are in the hunt. We've got 162 regular-season games before that, but Opening Day is cause for some predictions. We've already picked our division winners; now it's time for the playoffs. Below, your CBS Sports MLB experts have selected their prediction for American League and National League pennant winners, plus the World Series champion.

Let's rock.

2025 World Series predictions player headshot

Mike Axisa player headshot

Kate Feldman player headshot

Julian McWilliams player headshot

Dayn Perry player headshot

Matt Snyder AL winner

Mariners NL winner

Cubs World Series winner

Dodgers

Blue Jays

Mariners

Explanations

Mike Axisa: I know, I know, picking the Dodgers is boring, but they're the best team in the league and they've shown they can rise to the moment in October. They're not guaranteed to win the World Series. They're just the team most likely to do it. I think the Mariners are the best team in the American League, but I'm not confident enough in them yet to pick them over the Dodgers. I'll be boring and pick Los Angeles again. So it goes.

Kate Feldman: It's a boring choice but the Dodgers are the team to beat and I don't think anyone is capable of doing so.

Julian McWilliams: Maybe I'm too caught up in baseball's pull toward redemption and storybook endings, which teams aren't owed. But the Blue Jays were two outs from a title last year and it's hard to see a path where they don't push through this time. Yes, I know it's hard, but they have the experience, the veterans, the youth and the hunger to bring it all together.

Dayn Perry: I feel that these are the best two teams on paper, so why get cute? It's easy to forget how perilously close the Dodgers came to losing the World Series last season, and I think the 2026 Mariners are likely to be better than the 2025 Blue Jays. It's baseball, so who knows, but I'll go with the M's in the Fall Classic upset.

Matt Snyder: Yes, yes, I know all about the Dodgers. I also know that the small samples that are playoff series lend themselves to fluky/funky outcomes at times. After the Dodgers took two straight World Series, they're due some poor fortune in the postseason this time around. I'll go with the Dodgers bowing out in the NLDS and the Cubs riding depth to the pennant on the 10-year anniversary of them finally getting the job done. On that note, though, it's the Mariners' turn. They snap the drought this time. It's a well-rounded roster that is built for both the regular season and the postseason. Last year was but an appetizer.