Expert Predictions for Yankees-Dodgers World Series

Yankees vs. Dodgers. It's a World Series showdown with all sorts of compelling storylines.

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

Pick: Dodgers (27 of 50 votes, 54%)

The vote on this question was very close, not surprisingly. The Yankees and Dodgers are stacked with offensive standouts due to impressive performances during their respective league championship series. New York dispatched Cleveland in five games thanks to clutch homers from Juan Soto and Series MVP Giancarlo Stanton. Meanwhile, the Dodgers lineup, led by Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts, scored 46 runs over the Mets, the most of any team in NLCS history.

We saw these clubs on the same diamond earlier this season; The Dodgers took two of three in the Bronx in June. Teoscar Hernandez was the star that weekend, collecting three home runs, six hits and nine RBIs at Yankee Stadium. Still, it's important to note that Soto didn't play in that series because he was nursing a left hand injury.

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 essentially a toss-up. But can we agree on one thing? This fruit classic will last a while. Most of our voters think it will go to six games and 36% think it will go the distance. If that happens, it will be our first World Series since 2019 to be decided by a Game 7.

Senior club reporter John Denton, senior manager of content operations Dan Sichalski and senior breaking news editor Jeff Gould who said the World Series will go seven games. Gould even predicted how it would end: “The Dodgers emerge in a tight, high-scoring series with a Gavin Lux walk-off winner in Game 7.”

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
Max Muncie, Dodgers: 4 votes
Teoscar Hernandez, Dodgers: 2 votes
Jazz Chisholm Jr., Yankees: 1 vote
Will Smith, Dodgers: 1 vote
Alex Verdugo, Yankees: 1 vote

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

Understandably, there are many similarities between the totals. While this series has been highlighted by Judge and Ohtani — perhaps the MVP vs. MVP showdown — Soto is the most popular choice for Fall Classic MVP. Ohtani followed closely, though. If the Dodgers prevail, he will likely become the first player since Betts in 2018 to win a World Series in an MVP year.

Picking Soto, Ohtani, Judge or Betts for Series MVP makes sense. But we've often seen unheralded players excel on baseball's grandest stage. More surprising names to win World Series MVP recently include Steve Pierce (2018) and David Freese (2011). It may be prudent to think outside the box for MVP picks.

Such thinking led social media editorial manager Jack Vieira to choose Verdugo. The Yankees outfielder recorded a .606 OPS in the second half of the regular season and slashed a measly .194/.286/.258 during the playoffs. But he could be fired to face the team that drafted him in 2014.

“Verdugo will sneak a pair of homers into the short porch with a walk-off shot in Game 5, and his comfort hitting at Dodger Stadium will help when he smashes the go-ahead homer in Game 7,” Vieira said. “Is that a wild prediction? Yes! But that's why we love baseball, because in a series loaded with superstars, a role player can be a difference maker on the biggest stage.”