Hitter Power Rankings get a rare change at the top

When we last checked in on the Hitter Power Rankings, we asked: “Can anyone dethrone Aaron Judge?”

It seemed like the answer would be no. But baseball is full of surprises. Therefore, our latest top 10 features not only five new names, but also, for the first time in 2025, a new No. 1.

As always, the Hitter Power Rankings are based on a formula, constructed by MLB.com’s data team, that considers players’ recent performance, season-long performance and performance over the past 365 days. Those three categories are weighted so as to place the greatest emphasis on the first two.

Here are the newest Hitter Power Rankings. (All stats are through Tuesday’s games.)

1. Cal Raleigh, Mariners (Previously: 2)
Heading into play last Tuesday, it still didn’t seem like Judge’s supremacy was under threat. Then, Raleigh put together a week for the ages. Over his next seven games, through this Tuesday, he hit .483/.545/1.207 with six home runs and 15 RBIs. He now leads the Majors in homers (32) and RBIs (69) and seems well on his way to one of the greatest offensive seasons in baseball history by a catcher (as well as by a switch-hitter).

2. Aaron Judge, Yankees (1)
Coupled with Raleigh going bananas at the plate, Judge finally cooled off a bit over the last few weeks, for the first time all year. Of course, for most hitters, a .708 OPS and two homers over an 11-game span would not be a notable slump, but that’s the bar Judge has set for himself. He still leads the Majors by a significant margin in average (.364), OBP (.464) and slugging (.724) this season.

3. Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers (5)
This is the Hitter Power Rankings, so Ohtani’s recent return to the mound doesn’t officially factor into our calculation. Still, one could be excused for forking over some bonus points to a player who homers, triples and drives in five runs in a game in which he also was the starting pitcher. (And it’s not even the first time he’s done that.) Ohtani also has perfected his power stroke. After hitting 127 homers in 566 games over his first five MLB seasons, he’s walloped 125 more in just 372 games since the start of 2023.

4. Juan Soto, Mets (10)
Remember when there was consternation over the relatively slow start to Soto’s tenure with the Mets? Well, he’s now 10th in the Majors with a 151 OPS+ -- not far behind red-hot starter Pete Alonso (seventh, 163 OPS+) -- and rising quickly. Soto, unsurprisingly, leads the Majors with 66 walks, and the power has come on, too. He has nine homers and a .711 SLG since May 31.

5. Ketel Marte, D-backs (9)
It’s not as if Marte is massively overlooked anymore. He’s on his way to a second straight All-Star Game start, a year after earning his second top-five NL MVP Award finish. But he still might not be appreciated enough for his bat. Among hitters with 750 plate appearances since 2024, Marte is sixth in batting average (.299), fifth in OBP (.387), third in slugging (.573) and fourth in OPS+ (163), behind only Judge, Ohtani and Soto.

6. Byron Buxton, Twins (not ranked)
With Buxton, it’s so easy to get hung up on all of the “what ifs.” Second overall pick in the 2012 Draft. Top-ranked prospect. Flashes of elite performance interrupted and undercut by repeated injuries. But that makes it all the more important to just sit back and enjoy the show when he’s healthy and in a groove. After a scalding-hot couple of weeks (1.344 OPS, seven homers since June 10), Buxton has a top-five OPS among those with 400-plus plate appearances over the past calendar year.

7. Riley Greene, Tigers (not ranked)
Detroit’s offense is fifth in runs per game this year, up from 20th in 2024. A lot of that comes down to resurgent performances from players who struggled last season. Then there’s Greene, who took a clear step forward to All-Star status in ‘24 and has just continued his upward trajectory this year, slugging .538 with 17 homers and 61 RBIs in his first 78 games. Most of that production has come since April 28, with Greene slashing .340/.394/.624 over that stretch.

8. Ronald Acuña Jr., Braves (not ranked)
These rankings do take performance over the past 365 days under consideration, so the fact that Acuña didn’t play a game from last May 27 through this May 22 certainly dings him. But given what the 2023 NL MVP has done since returning, a spot in the top 10 could no longer be denied. Acuña has been roughly the best player in baseball (again) going back to the day of his season debut, a stretch that includes a .692 SLG. So much for rust.

9. James Wood, Nationals (not ranked)
A freakishly talented, lefty-hitting outfielder is tearing it up in his age-22 season with the Nationals. Fans in the District could be forgiven for thinking this sort of thing happens all the time -- see also: Bryce Harper’s 2015 and Soto’s ‘21 -- but it doesn’t. Wood has played the equivalent of one full season (159 games) since debuting last July 1, and he’s hit .273/.366/.495 with 31 homers and 104 RBIs in that time, as one of the youngest players in the league. Another good sign: He’s shown clear improvement in 2025.

10. Elly De La Cruz, Reds (not ranked)
After his electrifying, breakout performance in 2024, many were expecting De La Cruz to take another leap forward this year, perhaps even to MVP-winning heights. The switch-hitter’s first two months didn’t quite live up to those sky-high hopes, but since the calendar flipped to June, he's slashed .338/.420/.727 with seven homers. Once again, EDLC is taking over games. The arrow is certainly pointing up here.

Honorable mentions: Kyle Schwarber (Phillies), Jeremy Peña (Astros), Pete Alonso (Mets), José Ramírez (Guardians), Will Smith (Dodgers), Pete Crow-Armstrong (Cubs), Jacob Wilson (Athletics), Jonathan Aranda (Rays), Eugenio Suárez (D-backs), Kyle Tucker (Cubs)