The Dodgers just blew the 2026 World Series race wide open.
After Los Angeles landed Tarik Skubal in a blockbuster trade with the Detroit Tigers, sportsbooks wasted no time adjusting the board. The back-to-back American League Cy Young Award winner is now part of an already loaded Dodgers roster, and the immediate reaction from oddsmakers was as loud as the move itself.
According to UnderDog on X, the Dodgers are now the overwhelming favorite to win the 2026 World Series, and the gap between Los Angeles and everyone else has grown into a chasm.
UnderDog’s updated World Series probabilities show the Dodgers at 41%, a staggering number in a sport where chaos usually keeps everyone honest. That kind of projection says plenty about how much respect the market has for a roster that just added one of baseball’s premier arms.
The Yankees sit second at 12%, but they’re a long way behind. The Brewers, Braves, and Rays fill out the rest of the top five, though none come close to matching Los Angeles in the updated outlook.
For the rest of the league, the trade deadline just got a lot more frustrating. Plenty of contenders were hoping to land frontline pitching, but Skubal ended up changing hands in the biggest deal on the board, and now everyone else has to chase a Dodgers team that looks like it’s operating on a different level.
That’s been the Dodgers’ calling card for years: swing big when the window is open. This move fits that pattern perfectly, and it does more than upgrade the rotation. It changes the feel of the entire postseason race.
Of course, nothing is decided on paper. There are still two months left in the season, and baseball has a way of humbling even the most dominant projections.
But right now, the message from the odds is unmistakable: after adding Tarik Skubal, the Dodgers aren’t just leading the field. They’re the team everyone else is trying to catch.
In Other News...
Braves Just Cleared Two Roster Spots For A Bigger Deadline Shift
The Braves used the deadline to shuffle the margins of their roster, dealing catcher Joey Bart to the White Sox and sending outfielder Eli White to the Red Sox in separate moves. In return, Atlanta picked up right-hander Duncan Davitt and minor league reliever Tyler Uberstine, with the latter optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett, a sign these were as much about clearing space as adding immediate help.
Those openings matter because the roster is not done changing. Atlanta has a potential return behind the plate looming in Sean Murphy, and another outfield addition in Lane Thomas could soon fit into the mix as well, giving the club a little more flexibility for the stretch run. For a team trying to line up the right pieces after deadline day, the next round of moves may end up being the more interesting part of this one. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Catching Picture Is Finally Changing At The Right Time
Joey Barts brief run as Atlantas backup catcher has come to an end after the Braves and White Sox struck a trade that sends him to Chicago for rookie right-hander Duncan Davitt. Bart had been filling in behind the plate for Atlanta, but the clubs catching picture is now shifting with the roster moving toward a different look.
Davitt arrives with a little bit of big league experience already, having made two major league appearances with Chicago before the deal. For the Braves, the rookie is expected to work out of the bullpen, giving them another arm as they reshape the back end of the staff and prepare for the next step in the catching rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Take Another Rotation Gamble With Tyler Mahle
The Braves dipped back into the rotation market with another move aimed at stabilizing the back end of their staff, acquiring right-hander Tyler Mahle from the Giants for right-hander Anthony Molina. Mahle has logged 18 starts this season in San Francisco, and while the results have been uneven, Atlanta is clearly banking on a change of scenery and a different voice to get more out of him down the stretch.
Jeremy Hefner now gets the challenge of helping Mahle sharpen things up in Atlanta, where the Braves have made it a priority to keep searching for usable innings. Molina had only thrown five innings for the club in 2026, so this is the kind of deal that says the Braves are willing to keep tinkering if they think there is still a path to more reliable starting help. [Read more 🡒]