World Series MVP odds, predictions: Expert picks with Shohei Ohtani favored, plus one unsung Blue Jay to watch

There is no shortage of star power in the 2025 World Series ... so who will take home individual hardware?

By Kate Feldman

Oct 22, 2025 at 10:11 am ET • 2 min read

Getty Images

October is when stars are born -- and MVPs are named. In recent years, the World Series has seen award-worthy performances from top talents like Freddie Freeman, Corey Seager (for two different teams!), Stephen Strasburg and George Springer. We also saw Steve Pearce take home the hardware in 2018, one of the most unlikely MVP winners in MLB history. So who will get the honors this year? Only time will tell, but we at least know the contenders, as the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays are set to face off in the 2025 World Series.

The beauty of baseball is that nothing's predictable, but what's the fun in that without a little reckless speculation? As such, your CBS Sports MLB experts are here to predict the 2025 World Series MVP.

Below are picks from our MLB writers about who will play the hero for his team in the Fall Classic.

Award	R.J. Anderson	Mike Axisa	Dayn Perry	Matt Snyder
World Series MVP	Mookie Betts	Ernie Clement	Blake Snell	Shohei Ohtani

Anderson: Mookie Betts, SS, Dodgers. Betts didn't have his best regular season. He isn't having a good postseason, either. But I'm picking him because he's a tremendous player and -- just as importantly -- I would love to see his selflessness rewarded with more hardware. You can't take for granted Betts' willingness and ability to move around the diamond as the Dodgers have needed him to over the years. There aren't many players who could ping-pong from the outfield to the infield and back and forth. It's a testament to his talent and to his priorities that he does it without issue.

Mike Axisa: Ernie Clement, Blue Jays. Why not? I nailed Jorge Soler as the 2021 World Series MVP. Sometimes the off-the-board pick pays off. Clement (a 40-to-1 longshot via FanDuel) has had a monster postseason -- the guy's hitting .429/.444/.619 with more than twice as many extra-base hits (five) as strikeouts (two) -- and he's been excellent against lefties in 2025. Unless it's a sweep, the Blue Jays will see Snell twice this series, plus there's a chance the Dodgers will carry five (!) lefty relievers in their bullpen again (they did in the NLCS). Anthony Banda and Alex Vesia are trusted late-inning arms, so there's a chance Clement will run into an at-bat (or multiple at-bats) against a lefty late in a close game, and get The Big Hit.

Dayn Perry: Blake Snell, LHP, Dodgers. Snell's been on a roll of dominance since early September, and the Brewers can certainly testify to that fact. Given his velocity and strikeout chops, he's capable of that kind of dominance in any given start. Snell is getting the ball in Friday's Game 1. It says here the series goes long enough for Snell to get two starts, and it further says here that he'll shove in those two starts.

Matt Snyder: Shohei Ohtani, SP/DH, Dodgers. Ohtani, the World Series MVP favorite, hadn't even done that much before Game 4 of the NLCS and he still won MVP of that series. No player in MLB history comes closer to being able to make the normally hyperbolic phrase "single-handedly won the game" a reality. He'll do enough in the games he doesn't pitch to keep himself in the conversation and then once we add the pitching line to the equation he takes it home.