2026 MLB Rookie of the Year Odds: Best AL and NL Futures Bets

And we conclude Awards Week with a scan through the Rookie of the Year markets. 

Unlike Cy Young and MVP, we don’t have overwhelming favorites here, though the top NL candidate Konnor Griffin at +280 has a similar price tag to Aaron Judge for AL MVP. 

It’s hard to make the case that he should command that number. Yes, the Pirates SS looks like a generational prospect. It's just that he’s not even 20 years old yet and has all of 98 PA’s above A ball and the Pirates are kind of cheap and he’s not a lock to make the Opening Day roster. I’m going to pass on Griffin and dig in on some others.

Kevin McGonigle (½ unit, +900 BetMGM)

It’s a similar dilemma to Griffin here. 

McGonigle is almost as good a prospect but may not make the Opening Day roster. But you get a way better price here at +900 and McGonigle is a year and a half older than Griffin with a shade more experience. He had 206 PA’s at AA and then raked in the Arizona Fall League and won MVP there. Also the Tigers are all on winning this season. McGonigle’s bat is ready as he had a whopping 182 wRC+ across two minor league levels last year. The question is whether his glove can handle SS in the majors, or even 3B. If the Tigers think it can, Zach McKinstry is not going to block him as he’s a nice player who profiles better at super utility anyway.

Samuel Basallo (½ Unit, +1000 everywhere)

It's a little leap of faith here as Basallo projects as a strong side platoon bat in a bit of a time share with Adley Rutchman at catcher and Tyler O’Neil at DH. But its notably similar to how Drake Baldwin profiled to start last season and he won the NL ROY. And Basallo is a better hitter as he slashed .270/.377/.589 as a 20 year old in AAA, with 23 homers in 321 PA’s. He did get 118 PA’s with the Orioles and hit just .165, though his 4 homers and 8.9% Barrel% were encouraging for a young player on his first turn through the league.

JJ Wetherholt (½ Unit, +500 BetRivers)

Its yet another uber-prospect, but the advantage here is that Wetherholt is a virtually lock to make the Cardinals Opening Day roster. After the winter selloff, Wetherholt basically has 2B all to himself. The natural SS has a 154 wRC+ across AA and AAA last year, with 17 homers and 23 steals in 496 PA’s. 

His plate skills were elite as he had a 14.5% BB% vs.a 14.7% K%. He’s not quite as good a hitting prospect as Griffin (or McGonigle for that matter) but he’s still excellent and he could pile up some impressive counting stats across the board, even on a lousy Cardinals team.

Sal Stewart (½ Unit, +1100 DraftKings)

The Reds 1B got the call late in 2025 and raked in his 58 PA’s, putting up a .355 wOBA with 5 homers.His EV was an elite 95.4. Yeah it was just 58 PA’s, but he was a 21 year old in his MLB debut. The Reds lineup looks a bit crowded at the 1B-3B-DH spots, but Stewart already profiles as their third best hitter and he can maybe play a little 2B as well. I love this as a higher odds play.