Brewers lead the way in NL-heavy Power Rankings

It’s a very National League-centric rankings this week: For the first time since way back on May 5, the top four teams in our rankings are all in the NL. This is the sort of clustering that reminds you just how much playoff positioning and seeding matters: A team below that four is going to end up playing a No. 1 seed, while two of those top four will end up playing a short Wild Card Series for survival … and may even do so on the road. Though what might this really mean? The Tigers, who topped these rankings for a month and a half, are really struggling.

These rankings, as always, are compiled from MLB.com contributors whose names you can find at the bottom of this (and every) piece, but the words are mine. If you dislike the rankings, yell at all of us. But if you dislike the words, feel free to yell at me.

1. Brewers (previously: 1)

This is, no question, as good as it has gotten for the Brewers, really, as a franchise. The team has famously made the World Series only once, and its winning percentage is, by far, the highest it has ever reached. The Brewers are on pace to win 100 games for the first time ever; it has been 14 years since the 2011 team (which reached the NLCS before losing to the Cardinals) won 96, the current franchise record.

2. Dodgers (previously: 5)

A fun Shohei Ohtani stat to track over the next month and a half: Where he stands on the “most homers in first two seasons with a new team” all-time leaderboard. His 95 homers with the Dodgers so far are currently tied for fourth, behind Babe Ruth with the Yankees (113), Alex Rodriguez with the Rangers (109) and Roger Maris with the Yankees (100), and even with Cecil Fielder with the Tigers (95). Only one of those gentlemen, it should be said, pitched for their team during those years, and it was Ruth … who pitched in only three games (and had a 7.62 ERA).

3. Phillies (previously: 6)

On Sunday, there were many eyes on Zack Wheeler, who had his start pushed back a couple of days after having shoulder soreness after his last outing. Wheeler got through his start, pitching five innings in a win over the Rangers, but he didn’t have his usual control, and he continues to not really look like Zack Wheeler over his last five starts or so. As our Paul Casella pointed out, nearly all his pitches Sunday were down about a mile per hour from their usual numbers. There will be even more eyes on his next start.

4. Cubs (previously: 2)

We are one week away from the Cubs’ cartoonishly immense series against the Brewers at Wrigley Field, which begins with a doubleheader on Monday, Aug. 18, and lasts five games. It will be fascinating to see how close the Cubs can get to the Brewers between now and then: Traveling to Toronto isn’t ideal, but getting three games against the Pirates, none of which will be started by Paul Skenes, certainly is.

5. Blue Jays (previously: 3)

Addison Barger has been getting clutch hits for the Blue Jays all season, and his solo homer in the eighth at Dodger Stadium on Sunday was one of his biggest, giving the Jays a lead and helping them salvage the final game of a series in which they had largely looked overmatched. It doesn’t get any easier in the interleague realm this week: They get the Cubs.

6. Tigers (previously: 4)

I’m still not persuaded that the Tigers are in all that much danger of losing their iron grip on the AL Central, but it should be said that even with their win Sunday, they still are 9-17 since July 9, the second-worst record in the Majors. The worrisome part is it's the pitching that has fallen apart; they’ve got the fourth-worst ERA in the sport over that time. Is the postseason pitching arrangement going to be Tarik Skubal and “pitching chaos” again?

7. Padres (previously: 9)

The Padres are playing well enough right now that it’s making A.J. Preller’s Deadline aggression look incredibly smart while giving fans all sorts to dream about not just on down the stretch but also becoming particularly ambitious about October. One wonders if it’s worth being particularly intense in trying to run down the Dodgers. The difference between being first in the NL West (a first-round bye) and second in the NL West (potentially having to play a short series against the Cubs, which is where they’d be if the season ended today) is, well, dramatic.

8. Red Sox (previously: 11)

The young players are getting most of the attention for the Red Sox’s recent surge, but don’t overlook what Alex Bregman has been up to. He was unstoppable against the Padres this weekend and is now slashing .364/.462/.568 over his last 12 games. The Red Sox are getting what they paid for, though because of that opt-out looming, it sure looks like they’re just going to get it for one season.

9. Mariners (previously: 10)

The party keeps on cooking for the Mariners, who, with their win Sunday, have now won seven in a row. If you’re a Mariners fan, you basically just had the best weekend in two-plus decades: You saw the Mariners smoke the Rays three times, you got see Ichiro Suzuki get his number retired and you got to see Julio Rodríguez keep mashing. On another of the streaks he tends to have this time of year, he now has 12 homers in his last 26 games, tied with Kyle Schwarber for the most in baseball.

10. Astros (previously: 8)

Winning the series in the Bronx allowed them to stay in first place over the Mariners, even if they’re a spot behind them in these rankings. It is getting awfully perilous, though: If the Astros do end up slipping, it’ll be the first time they haven’t been in first place in the AL West -- the division they have dominated for nearly a decade now -- since June 3. This week’s series against the Red Sox looms: The Astros are just barely hanging on.

11. Mets (previously: 7)

Of all the ways the Mets imagined Pete Alonso tying Darryl Strawberry for the all-time franchise home run lead -- which we all knew would happen when he returned for this season -- having it happen amidst a brutal Mets collapse is not what anyone would have wanted. Alonso became the third active player to lead his current franchise in homers (Mike Trout and Manny Machado are the others; Giancarlo Stanton is the Marlins’ leader) in a game that the Mets would later find yet another way to lose. (This one involved a pitch timer violation followed by a three-run homer.)

12. Yankees (previously: 12)

You know who’s helping the Yankees stay afloat more than anyone would have thought coming into the season? Trent Grisham. He wasn’t even in the Opening Day lineup, but now he’s second on the team in homers and third in OPS-plus, as well as hitting a ton of clutch homers like his huge one against the Astros on Saturday. He is now tied with Nick Kurtz for the most homers (four) that have tied the game or given his team the lead in the eighth inning or later, and if you’re tied with Nick Kurtz for something right now, you’re definitely doing something right.

13. Guardians (previously: 16)

Remember when the Guardians lost 10 in a row and looked for all the world to be toast? Right before they lost Emmanuel Clase? Well, since they lost those 10 in a row, since July 7, they are 22-7, which is the best record in the American League. The baseball season is very long, folks. Could this team actually end up in the playoffs?

14. Reds (previously: 14)

Mets fans are tearing their hair out right now, but no team is benefitting from the (seemingly annual) Mets implosion more than the Reds, who, suddenly, find themselves only a game and a half out of the final NL Wild Card spot. The offense is the key. Heading into Sunday, the Reds had the worst slugging percentage in baseball since the All-Star break. Fortunately, on Sunday, that offense woke up, blasting the Pirates for 14 runs, tied for the second-most runs they’ve scored all year. (Remember when they scored 24 against the Orioles back in April?)

15. Rangers (previously: 13)

It sure looked for a while there that the Rangers had finally gotten their act together and were about to go on a run -- six-game win streaks will do that. Since that six-game win streak, though, they’ve lost nine of 13. The Yankees' struggles of late have made some of the AL Wild Card teams chasing them smell blood in the water, and the Rangers have been a trendy pick to be the one who takes advantage. But it’s not happening yet.

16. Royals (previously: 18)
Bobby Witt Jr.’s next homer will add his name to a rather exclusive list: He’ll be one of only four players with 100 homers and 100 stolen bases over his first four seasons. The others? Julio Rodríguez, Darryl Strawberry and Bobby Bonds.

17. Rays (previously: 15)
The Rays remain in the midst of their longest road trip in two decades -- put together to avoid all the rain Florida gets, and is currently getting, this time of year -- and they’re only hoping to still have their head above water when it ends on Aug. 17. This road trip is taking so long that by the time they come back, that homestand will coincide with the Buccaneers’ third preseason game, taking place just across the street.

18. Giants (previously: 17)
The Giants have played well since selling at the Deadline, and manager Bob Melvin sees a clear connection. “It was a wake-up call for the team,” he said. “We didn’t play well enough to add at the Deadline, but we also feel like we have enough here.” Their current Fangraphs playoff odds, if you’re keeping score, are 8.1 percent.

19. Cardinals (previously: 20)
For the first time since his final game in 2022, Yadier Molina was in uniform and in the Cardinals dugout over the weekend. Not surprisingly, everyone with the team was delighted to see him: “I think it will be a really, really cool experience for a lot of reasons,” manager Oliver Marmol said. “It’s great for the organization, the players and the fanbase. Even if it’s just for two days, I’ll take it because having that level of experience in the dugout and around the players … he just has a unique way of communicating what [success] looks like.”

20. Marlins (previously: 19)
One underappreciated aspect of the Marlins’ run of late: How much of it has been on the backs of rookies. The Marlins have gotten more at-bats from rookies this year than any other team in baseball. The A’s and the White Sox -- two teams, unlike the Marlins, not anywhere near .500 -- are second and third.

21. Diamondbacks (previously: 21)
When your team is essentially eliminated from playoff contention -- not officially, but essentially -- it can be difficult sometimes to find reasons to keep watching. So MLB.com’s D-backs beat reporter Steve Gilbert is here for you, pointing out what’s important for the team over the last couple of months. A key factor: the development of prospects Jordan Lawlar and Tyler Locklear. Definitely worth keeping an eye on.

22. Angels (previously: 22)
We’ve been waiting for Mike Trout to hit his 400th homer for a while now -- he’s still two short -- but don’t let that make you think he’s not hitting well: He had an eight-game hitting streak that ended Sunday and still has a 127 OPS+ on the season. He’s not old Trout. But he’s still pretty awesome.

23. Orioles (previously: 23)
Adam Jones, who was inducted into the Orioles Hall of Fame on Saturday (alongside Joe Orsulak and broadcaster Tom Davis), is a franchise icon already. Here’s a fun fact about him: He’s one of only six Orioles players to make five All-Star appearances. Can you name the others? They are … Cal Ripken, Jr., Brooks Robinson, Eddie Murray, Jim Palmer and Mike Mussina.

24. A’s (previously: 25)
Fun fact about the A’s: They’re the only team with four hitters with 20 or more homers. Nick Kurtz, Tyler Soderstrom, Shea Langeliers and Brent Rooker have all reached the mark. And for what it’s worth, Lawrence Butler is only five away himself.

25. Braves (previously: 24)
Since this season hasn’t exactly turned out for the Braves, let’s give their fans something to look forward to: The 2026 World Baseball Classic. Franchise legend Andruw Jones will be managing the team from the Netherlands, and he is super excited about it: “We want to win the whole thing,” he said. He’ll be managing Ozzie Albies on that team, by the way.

26. Twins (previously: 26)
I’m not sure I’d necessarily advise the “trade away more than a third of your roster” strategy to most teams, but it sure seems to have worked for the Twins. They’ve been awfully plucky lately, and even have a fun new celebration after base hits in which they pretend to hold up a book and turn a page, pointing to the team’s “new chapter.” Whatever gets kids reading!

27. Pirates (previously: 27)
You really have to read my MLB.com colleague Mike Petriello’s piece this week about Paul Skenes, which points out that he might be off to the best start of a career ever. And he wrote that before Skenes shut out the Reds for six innings on Thursday.

28. Nationals (previously: 28)
It has been sorta dire for the Nats of late, so let’s look at something positive: The return of No. 2 Nats prospect (and No. 47 overall) Jarlin Susana, who is working his way back from a UCL sprain. He’s back up to Double-A and struck out six in 4 2/3 innings in his first start there; he has now struck out 60 in 39 2/3 innings over 10 starts since returning. You may see him at Nationals Park sooner rather than later.

29. White Sox (previously: 29)
If you’re wondering how the Guardians have stayed afloat in the Wild Card chase, you should look in the White Sox’s direction. They’ve lost eight of their 10 games against Cleveland this year, with an ERA approaching 7. Sorry, Yankees: You don’t get nearly that many games against the White Sox.

30. Rockies (previously: 30)
For a while there, the Rockies were playing like just a normal bad team rather than the historically bad team they were for the first half of the year. They’ve returned to form over the last week, losing seven in a row and putting up some apocalyptically bad pitching numbers. How bad? Over a 12-game stretch, they had a 10.57 ERA, the worst by any team over any 12-game span since earned runs were first tracked in 1912. That’s not great.

Voters: Nathalie Alonso, Mark Feinsand, Daniel Feldman, Doug Gausepohl, Will Leitch, Travis Miller, Brian Murphy, Arturo Pardavila, Andrew Simon, David Venn.