2024 MLB Draft Odds: Who Will Be No. 1 Overall Pick For Cleveland Guardians?

With the 2024 MLB Draft nearing, bettors can get in on the action for who the Cleveland Guardians will take with the first overall pick. The Cincinnati Reds, Colorado Rockies, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago White Sox follow suit within the top five. This year’s draft is a three-day event starting Sunday, July 14.  Let’s break down the latest odds for the MLB Draft, including the market’s interest in Oregon State’s Travis Bazzana.

Click any odds from the best sports betting sites below to place a bet. Given the market disparity, we recommend price-shopping these odds.

MLB Draft odds: no. 1 pick movement

Bazzana’s odds opened near even money before rising as high as -210 on Sunday. Nevertheless, he’s currently tied atop the betting board with JJ Wetherholt. The second baseman batted .407 with 28 homers, 66 RBIs, 84 runs, 76 walks, and 16 stolen bags in 60 games for the Beavers. His .568 on-base percentage and .911 slugging percentage also ranked second in D-I last season.

Wetherholt, a utility infielder who hit .331 with eight home runs, 30 RBIs, 30 runs, and six stolen bases in 36 games at West Virginia, has seen his odds shorten from +180 to -110.

Since March, Bazzana has been deemed one of the likelier contenders to go first overall. Conversely, Wetherholt opened the campaign as the top prospect in this draft class. Despite missing time with a hamstring issue, he notched a 1.061 OPS and nearly twice as many walks (30) as strikeouts (17).

The 21-year-old lefty fits the mold of an elite bat and up-the-middle prospect that the Guardians have valued since signing perennial MVP candidate Jose Ramirez in 2013. More importantly, Wetherholt may be willing to accept a discount on his signing bonus. In turn, he could help Cleveland save nearly $3.5 million over the slot bonus amounts for its remaining selections.

Georgia product Charlie Condon has the third-best chance of being the top pick. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel has compared the third baseman to former league MVP Kris Bryant because of his bat and potential defensive upside.

The Road Ahead

Multiple highly-touted collegiate picks have made their MLB debuts less than a year after being drafted. Paul Skenes and Wyatt Langford, who went off the board in 2023, are favored among the odds to win the NL and AL Rookie of the Year, respectively. Garrett Crochet, who’s risen within AL Cy Young odds, made his first career appearance in Sept. 2020 — the same year he was drafted.

Additionally, Spencer Strider, Matt McLain, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Brooks Lee, and Jackson Holliday are among recent draftees to reach the show within two years of being drafted.

additional MLB draft odds

Below, you’ll discover draft position markets at DraftKings Sportsbook. We’ll update this article if these odds become available elsewhere.

Chase Burns and Hagen Smith are the top pitching prospects in this class. Multiple mock drafts have Burns landing in Colorado at No. 3 overall. The Rockies have recently leaned on first-round arms because they’ve struggled to sign big-name pitchers to play in hitter-friendly Coors Field. But the market has trended in the other direction after Burns was favored to third or lower.

After exclusively eyeing sinker-ballers, Colorado pivoted to four-seam-oriented pitchers in Chase Dollander and Sean Sullivan last year.

Powerful switch-hitter Braden Montgomery (27 home runs) also has experience on the hill. However, Montgomery suffered a broken ankle before the College World Series, which could be a concern. He’s been linked as high as No. 4 overall (A’s) and as low as No. 13 (Giants).

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Chase Burns (RHP, Wake Forest)

Hagen Smith (LHP, Arkansas)

Braden Montgomery (RF, Texas A&M)