With the Major League Baseball regular season nearing its conclusion, Kalshi has announced new partnerships with five teams, including the reigning World Series champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers. The prediction market operator revealed on Tuesday that it secured exclusive, multi-year branding partnerships with the Dodgers as well as the Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres, and San Francisco Giants. However, it's important to note that Kalshi does not currently offer sports event contracts in Massachusetts, where a legal challenge from the state attorney general is pending, blocking these markets until the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court makes a ruling.
Of the five teams, three—the Dodgers, Padres, and Giants—are based in California, a significant market for prediction market activities, especially since sports betting is illegal there. This announcement means that nearly 25% of all MLB clubs now have partnerships with prediction market operators, bringing the total to seven teams across the league. The New York Mets became the first MLB team to partner with a prediction market when they signed with Novig in late July, just prior to Polymarket’s agreement with the New York Yankees.
Kalshi issued a statement on X, expressing enthusiasm about the growing engagement of baseball fans with their platform, stating, "Baseball fans have made Kalshi part of how they engage with the game. We’re excited to keep investing in them and in the sport."
Fans of the respective teams could begin noticing these collaborations immediately, as they debut when the Braves host the Dodgers in a three-game series at Truist Park. Kalshi’s initiatives will encompass in-stadium signage, social media promotions, online content, radio spots, and various fan activations.
In the matchup's opening game, Tyler Glasnow (3-0, ERA 2.72) is scheduled to pitch for the Dodgers. At 3 PM ET, Kalshi projected a 60% probability of the Dodgers defeating the Braves, with Shohei Ohtani given a 27% chance of hitting a home run, while Braves first baseman Matt Olson had a 20% probability. Additionally, Glasnow had a 59% likelihood of achieving at least six strikeouts.
The Dodgers are set to start a six-game road trip but will return home to face the St. Louis Cardinals on September 1. As part of their partnership with Kalshi, the franchise plans to rename the Golden Glove Bar, located beneath the left field pavilion near Centerfield Plaza, to the Kalshi 435 Club. Fans can expect Kalshi-specific offers and unique on-site activations during the season in Centerfield Plaza. Over the past year, Kalshi reported an approximately 36-fold increase in baseball-related trading volume.
Adam Barrick, head of sports partnerships at Kalshi, commented on the initiative, saying, "The idea is that fans are already engaging with their favourite teams on Kalshi, so it only makes sense to extend that fandom to some of the most beloved baseball teams in America."
As for current World Series odds, the Dodgers were pegged at a 34% likelihood of winning the 2026 World Series. If a Kalshi customer placed a $100 bet on that probability, the payout would be around $282. The New York Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers were the next closest contenders, each with about a 10% chance of winning. The Yankees also led the American League favorites with a 24% chance, followed by the Tampa Bay Rays at 22% and the Red Sox at 15%.
As the Dodgers aim for a third consecutive title, Ohtani is also striving for his own third straight National League MVP. Recent polling results from MLB.com, where 37 experts shared their views anonymously, indicated that Ohtani is currently trailing Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow Armstrong, who secured 29 first-place votes. Armstrong’s odds on Kalshi to win MVP are at 67%, while Ohtani stands at a distant second.
Before the regular season commenced, Polymarket announced its partnership with MLB as the exclusive prediction market exchange partner, following a Memorandum of Understanding with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission to establish a framework for prediction markets.
MLB did not issue a statement regarding the Kalshi partnerships on Tuesday, and among the five clubs involved, only the Red Sox made a brief mention of the deal on social media, posting an emoji indicating approval.
