The Pittsburgh Pirates are coming out of irrelevance and into the limelight, with BetMGM reporting they are the most bet team to make the 2026 MLB postseason
Key Takeaways
- The team hasn’t had a winning record since 2018.
- Bettors picked the Pirates to win the NL Central more than they chose any other team to win a division.
- Nineteen clubs still lead the Pirates in World Series odds.
While every team in every sport begins its season with dreams of reaching the playoffs and competing for a championship, those ambitions have generally felt very far-fetched for the Pirates.
This year’s team already looks much different from last year’s, which finished 71-91 and last in the division. The arrivals of Marcell Ozuna, Ryan O’Hearn, and Brandon Lowe should add more firepower to the offense, while young pitchers Jared Jones and Bubba Chandler will be tasked with adding quality starts behind reigning Cy Young winner Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller.
The Pirates’ +220 odds (31.3% implied chance) to reach the playoffs at BetMGM are easily their best since 2017, per Sports Odds History. They also highlight the difference five years can make, as the team was a whopping +10,000 to qualify for the postseason entering the 2021 campaign.
Here’s how the Pirates' preseason odds to make the playoffs have looked for the past 10 years.
- 2026: +220 (TBD)
- 2025: +400 (missed)
- 2024: +450 (missed)
- 2023: +1,500 (missed)
- 2022: +1,500 (missed)
- 2021: +10,000 (missed)
- 2019: +550 (missed)
- 2018: +800 (missed)
- 2017: +185 (missed)
Bettors backing Buccos
While the Pirates' recent history has been forgettable at best, bettors at BetMGM are buying the newfound hype.
BetMGM shared with Covers that the Pirates have received more tickets than any other team in the “Make the playoffs” market. Fittingly, they were supported by more wager money than all other clubs.
Bettors’ optimism didn’t end with the playoffs. The Pirates (+600 to win the NL Central) are also the most popular pick and the biggest liability to win the division out of all teams despite only being fourth in odds to win the Central. The Chicago Cubs (+110), Milwaukee Brewers (+240), and Cincinnati Reds (+500) are all ahead of them, while the St. Louis Cardinals (+3,000) bring up the rear.
Other books are noticing a similar trend.
“There’s a lot of love for the Pittsburgh Pirates,” Caesars Sportsbook’s baseball lead Eric Biggio told Covers this week. “Their win total went from 70.5 to 78.5, as they actually spent some money this offseason.”
Completing such a huge turnaround will require not just improved team play but also huge individual performances.
Skenes, the best player on the roster, is a +220 favorite in Cy Young odds in what would be his second straight Cy Young season. His two-year career marks stand at a record of 21-13, a 1.96 ERA, and a 0.95 WHIP.
The 23-year-old is also +4,000 to win NL MVP, putting him below 12 of his peers. He was sixth in MVP voting a year ago, although the winner, Shohei Ohtani, claimed all 30 first-place votes.
World Series outlook
Even with the piling support for Pittsburgh, the Pirates still have a long way to go to climb the list of World Series odds.
The Dodgers are huge +220 favorites to win what would be their third straight title. The Pirates sit all the way back at +6,600, putting them behind 19 teams.
