With the 2026 MLB All-Star Game fast approaching (and me being out of the office from Friday through Monday), we need to update our MLB power rankings! We have a new team sitting at the top of the list, as well as plenty of movement throughout the top 10. Let's run down the power rankings and briefly evaluate how each squad looks at the moment.
1. Milwaukee Brewers, 58-34 (↑1)
The Milwaukee Brewers may be two games behind the Dodgers for the best record in the Majors, but it does feel like the Brew Crew is playing slightly better right now. Though both LA and Milwaukee are each 7-3 in their last 10 outings, the Dodgers losses have come against the Athletics, Rockies, and Padres, who are all .500 or worse. Meanwhile, the Brewers were on a four-game win streak before their loss to the St. Louis Cardinals last night. Over the last 15 days, Milwaukee is second in opponent batting average allowed (.208) and ninth in runs allowed (56) while ranking tied for third in hits (137). They're banging on all cylinders.
2. Los Angeles Dodgers, 61-33 (↓1)
The Dodgers have the best record in baseball, but that's to be expected with their insane lineup and dominant pitching staff. With all the weapons this team has, you'd think they would be more than two games ahead of Milwaukee for the best record in the MLB. Regardless, they're one of the three best teams in the league. They have the largest run differential in baseball at +164, which is 31 more runs than the next closest team. In the last 30 days, LA ranks fourth in runs scored (153), but its defense could be better since it's 14th in runs allowed during that stretch (122).
3. Tampa Bay Rays, 54-36 (No change)
When it comes to the American League, it's the Rays and then everybody else. Tampa has a five-game lead for the best record in the AL, and it's 7-3 in its last 10 outings. Over the last 15 days, they rank second in defense (34 runs allowed) and seventh in offense (68 runs scored). More importantly, the Rays are 6-2 against the New York Yankees this season. If they beat the Yanks one more time, then they will have home-field advantage over New York if these two teams were to meet in the playoffs. Today's game will have massive implications for the Yanks and the Rays.
4. Chicago Cubs, 52-40 (No Change)
The Cubbies are 8-2 in their last 10 games, which puts them in a tie with the Boston Red Sox for the best record in baseball. Since June 23rd, the Cubs have the highest winning percentage in the league (.800). During that stretch, they lead the MLB in runs scored (103) and RBIs (98) while ranking second in home runs (27). If the season ended today, Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong would be my National League MVP. He leads the MLB in Wins Above Replacement (5.6) and is ranked in the top 10 in hits (tied for fifth, 102), home runs (tied for 10th, 21), total bases (sixth, 187), on-base percentage (tied for 10th, .386), slugging percentage (tied for ninth, .542), and OPS (seventh, .928). He is a legitimate threat to dethrone Shohei Ohtani as the NL MVP.
5. Miami Marlins, 51-42 (↑8)
I don't think anybody saw the Miami Marlins looking like one of the best teams in the Majors, considering they have the second-lowest payroll in the league ($80.39 million). Still, they have put together a phenomenal stretch of baseball recently, with the best record in the MLB since June 17th (15-4). They're also tied for the longest active winning streak in the league at five games. During this recent run, they're fourth in scoring (114 runs) and sixth in team ERA (3.51). Not to mention they're fifth in runs allowed (74). Shortstop Otto Lopez is the star of the show. He has the highest batting average (.345) and the most hits (126) in baseball this season.
6. Philadelphia Phillies, 51-42 (↓1)
The Phillies are still one of the best teams in the league, but they fell a spot after the Marlins' impressive run. Since the beginning of May, Philadelphia has the third-best record in the league (39-23) behind only the Brewers and Dodgers. Offense continues to be the team's strength with the sixth-most runs scored in baseball over the last 30 days (143). Unfortunately, the picthing staff has not held up its end of the deal. Phillies' pitchers have a 5.04 ERA over the last 30 days, which ranks 25th in baseball. That number jumped to an astonishing 7.07 in just the last week! If this team wants to win the NL, they need to get more from their pitchers.
7. Atlanta Braves, 53-38 (↓1)
Long gone are the days when the Braves were the best team in baseball. Though they have the fourth-best record in the Majors, they have faltered as of late. Since the start of June, Atlanta is 13-18, which is the seventh-worst mark in the league. The Braves are being hit with a perfect storm of ineptitude. Since June 1st, they're tied for 27th in scoring (128 runs), while ranking just 15th in team ERA (4.49). Since pitching is this team's bread and butter with a 3.61 ERA on the season (fifth in the MLB), Atlanta will need its pitchers to step up their game. Otherwise, they could be overtaken by the Phillies or Marlins for first place in the NL East.
8. St. Louis Cardinals, 48-43 (↑2)
Had I released this list yesterday, the Cardinals would've been ranked lower since they were on a four-game losing streak. But after snapping that slide with an impressive 5-1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers, they move up a few spots. St. Louis' pitchers have been really good over the last two weeks, with the sixth-best ERA (3.37) and the seventh-fewest runs allowed in the league (49). Right fielder Jordan Walker gets a lot of credit, since he leads the MLB in RBIs (70). However, we also have to give second baseman JJ Wetherholt his flowers. He is tied for the seventh-best WAR in baseball (3.8), while ranking fourth in homers (13) and on-base percentage (.358) amongst second basemen.
9. New York Yankees, 50-42 (↓1)
The Yankees should be thankful the White Sox lost yesterday. Otherwise, their ranking would've been even worse. Over the last 30 days, the Pinstripes have been one of the worst offensive teams in baseball, with the second-lowest batting average in the Majors (.213). At the same time, they're last in on-base percentage (.276) and 25th in slugging percentage (.390). Even with the seventh-best ERA in the league during this run (3.73), they're still just 11-16, which puts them in a three-way tie for the fifth-worst record in baseball. They're 2-8 in their last 10 contests, but did secure an important win against the Rays the other day. The fact that they're nine games above .500 means they still deserve a spot in the top 10.
10. Pittsburgh Pirates, 47-46 (↑5)
It might seem strange to have a team that is only one game above .500 in the tenth spot, but the Pirates have had impressive wins recently with victories over the Nationals, Phillies, and Braves. Pittsburgh is 6-4 in its last 10 outings and beat the Nationals the last two times they faced them, so the Pirates leapfrog Washington. Surprisingly, Pittsburgh has the second-most runs scored in the MLB over the last two weeks (83). However, their rotation has not been able to get the job done. They have a 5.13 ERA during this recent stretch, which ranks 23rd in baseball. If the pitching staff were able to return to its regular-season average ERA of 4.26 this year, the Pirates would be in a much better spot than they are now.
11. Washington Nationals, 48-46 (↑3)
The Nats' ascension continues thanks to the most impressive offense in the MLB, with a league-leading 508 runs scored. Washington is at or near the top of several key hitting categories, including slugging percentage (second, .435), home runs (tied for first, 132), and RBIs (first, 484). Outfielder James Wood is also setting the league on fire with the third-best OPS in all of baseball (.948). However, the bullpen issues persist. The Nationals have the most blown saves in the MLB with 25. They have only converted 27 of their 52 save opportunities. For as good as the offense has been, Washington is only two games above .500 because the team has allowed the third-most runs in the league this season (495).
12. Seattle Mariners, 47-46 (↓1)
We shouldn't hold Seattle's recent two-game slide against them, since they lost to the Marlins, who have been red-hot, as we previously discussed. The Mariners are 5-3 in their last eight outings and just won back-to-back series. If they can steal a win tonight in Miami, they'll be in a position to go up by more than one game in the race for the AL West. Normally, we think of hitting when it comes to Seattle, but they’ve been so good recently because of their pitching staff, which has allowed the fewest earned runs in baseball over the last two weeks (29). If Seattle's offense can show some more signs of life (47 runs scored in the last 15 days, 26th in the MLB), then they could easily run away with the division.
13. Chicago White Sox, 47-44 (↓4)
Chicago is in the middle of a two-game skid. However, those losses came against the Boston Red Sox, who - for some reason - have been one of the hottest teams in the MLB over the last two weeks. Regardless, the White Sox just recently took the lead in their regular-season series against the Cleveland Guardians, giving them full control of the AL Central for the time being. Chicago is one of the best power-hitting teams in the Majors with 125 home runs this season, good for fourth in the league. The problem is that they have only had 15 homers over the last two weeks, which is tied for 16th in baseball. Considering the Sox have allowed the eighth-fewest earned runs in the league during this stretch (46), it's fair to say that the offense has let the team down.
14. Texas Rangers, 46-46 (↓2)
The last time out, the Rangers were above .500. Now, they’re exactly .500. If this trend continues, they will have a losing record the next time we release our power rankings. For now, though, they sit at .500 and have been fairly impressive recently with 11 wins in their last 18 games. But, they took a little bit of a tumble in the power rankings because they're 2-4 in their last six outings. At the end of the day, though, that doesn't matter. All that matters is that the Rangers are a half-game behind Seattle in the AL West divisional race. Even if that doesn't work out, Texas would be the third Wild Card team in the American League if the season ended today.
15. Minnesota Twins, 46-47 (↑4)
Don't look now, but the Twins are right back in the playoff hunt with their recent four-game winning streak. They won their first road series against the Yankees in years and also have a two-game advantage in their current series with the Cleveland Guardians. They're tied with three other teams for the highest winning percentage in the MLB since June 28th (.778). Their pitching staff has been elite during this recent run, with the second-best ERA in the Majors behind only the Mariners (2.62). Since they're only a half-game back from the Rangers for the final Wild Card spot in the American League, it's not far-fetched to think that the Twins could make the playoffs.
16. Cleveland Guardians, 47-46 (↓9)
The Guardians are playing them out of a postseason berth. They experienced the biggest fall of any team from last week's power rankings. Cleveland has the second-longest active losing streak in the Majors, and just lost multiple games to the Twins and White Sox, with whom they are in direct competition for the AL Central and a wild card spot. Over the last month, they have had the second-fewest runs scored in the Majors (93). When your offense is that bad, it doesn't matter that your pitchers have the ninth-best ERA in baseball (3.82).
17. San Diego Padres, 46-46 (↑1)
The Padres might have moved up one spot in the power rankings, but they're still stuck in no-man's land. They are 4.5 games back from the last wild card spot in the National League. However, they deserve to move up on this list simply because they ended that horrendous eight-game losing streak. Since then, they're 3-1 with wins over the Dodgers and the Diamondbacks. Either way, their deficiency is still at the plate. San Diego has scored the fewest runs in the MLB this season, with only 362. They've been better in the last month, though, with 112 runs, which is 19th in the league. Obviously, that's still bad, but at least it's not dead last!
18. Arizona Diamondbacks, 45-47 (↓2)
The Diamondbacks are in the same boat as the Padres. The only difference is that Arizona has a losing record and just recently dropped two games to San Diego, so they come in one spot below the Padres. Since June 20th, the D-backs are 6-11 (.353), which puts them in a tie with the Braves for the fourth-lowest winning percentage in baseball during that span. Since the 20th, Arizona is 24th in runs scored (69) and 21st in team ERA (4.83). To be fair, they have faced a tough stretch of opponents like the Rays, Cardinals, and Brewers, but there's no excuse for being outscored 14-5 by the Padres over the last two days.
19. Boston Red Sox, 42-48 (↑4)
I cannot get a read on the Red Sox. Like six weeks ago, Boston was the laughing stock of the American League. Now, they're on the longest active winning streak in baseball (five games) and are tied with the Cubs for the best record by a team in its last 10 outings (8-2). They're not defeating world-beaters, but they have recent wins against the Nationals, Mariners, and White Sox, who are all playoff-caliber teams with winning records currently. They're probably too far gone to actually make a postseason push, but there's no reason why Boston fans can't feel good about how their team is playing right now.
20. Houston Astros, 46-49 (↓3)
The Astros just can't seem to put it all together. They're a lackluster 5-5 in their last 10 games, which is not good enough when you haven't been above .500 since April 7th. To nobody's surprise, they continue to let other teams put up gaudy numbers with 130 runs allowed over the last month, which is the 10th-most in baseball. Now, though, their offense is slowing down. They have only scored 119 runs during this stretch, which puts them in a three-way tie for 14th in the MLB. This is a team that relies on power-hitting. When the bats cool down, this is one of the worst groups in the Majors.
21. Detroit Tigers, 42-50 (↑4)
Not only are they on a four-game winning streak, but the Tigers are 7-1 in their last eight outings! The only downside is that they have basically played cupcakes during this stretch, with games against the Yankees, Rangers, and Athletics. But, you can only play who's in front of you, and - right now - the Tigers are beating those teams. That will probably change once their series against the As concludes and they have to take on the Phillies. But for now, the Tigers look much improved compared to the last time we saw them.
22. Toronto Blue Jays, 44-49 (↓1)
They went 3-3 since the last time we did our power rankings, which means they didn't gain any ground in the American League. Amazingly, the AL is so weak that they're only 2.5 games back from a Wild Card spot, even though they’re five games below the .500 mark. Toronto has been a joke offensively, with only 99 runs in the last month, which puts them in a tie with the Giants for the third-fewest in baseball. At the same time, the pitching staff has been underwhelming with a 4.24 ERA, which is tied for 12th in baseball. When you aren't generating offense, a +4.00 ERA won't cut it.
23. New York Mets, 39-54 (↑4)
Ever since they fired manager Carlos Mendoza, the Mets have been playing slightly better, going 5-7 in their last 12 games. However, they're still tied for the eighth-worst record in the MLB during that span. Since June 20th, New York is 5-13, which is the third-worst mark in baseball, ahead of only the Athletics and the New York Yankees. Either way, the Amazin's have been anything but that this season. At least the Mets are doing better than their crosstown rivals during this stretch. Plus, they're 3-1 in their last four games with two wins against the Braves. Maybe things are starting to look up in the Big Apple? Eh, probably not.
24. Cincinnati Reds, 42-49 (No change)
Each time we check in on the Reds, they seem to be worse and worse. Since the beginning of June, the Reds have been the worst team in the MLB, with a 12-21 record. They are tied with the Braves for the fourth-fewest runs scored in the league during that span (128). Granted, the Reds are really bad, but they're not lower on our list because they have had to face a monstrous schedule recently, with 12 combined games against the Brewers, Phillies, and Pirates ever since they won their series against the New York Yankees in late-June.
25. San Francisco Giants, 38-54 (↑1)
The Giants move up a spot, not because they're playing well, but because other teams look far worse. San Francisco is 11-14 over the last 30 days, which isn't awful, but it's obviously not good either. In fact, the Giants have the 10th-lowest winning percentage in baseball over the last month (.440). During this stretch of abysmal play, they are tied with the Blue Jays for the third-fewest runs scored in the MLB (99). Meanwhile, their pitchers have the ninth-highest ERA in baseball (4.82). To make matters worse, All-Star second baseman Luis Arraez no longer has the highest batting average in the MLB. That honor now belongs to Miami's Otto Lopez.
26. Baltimore Orioles, 42-51 (↓4)
There are very few redeeming qualities to the Orioles. They're 3-7 in their last 10 matchups and find themselves in the middle of a three-game losing streak. They also haven't won a series since June 21st. Over the last 30 days, Baltimore is tied with Cincinnati for the eighth-worst record in baseball, with a .407 winning percentage. On top of that, they're 23rd in slugging (.396) and 22nd in OPS (.711) during that stretch. Lastly, they are 4-9 since June 23rd, which gives them the third-lowest winning percentage in baseball (.308). Ever since they opened the season 15-15, Baltimore has not been able to get back to the .500 mark, which means they have had a losing record since the beginning of May.
27. Colorado Rockies, 38-56 (↑1)
They might be tied with two other teams for the second-fewest wins in the MLB this season, but the Rockies have actually been somewhat entertaining recently. I bet you didn't know that Colorado has the most runs scored by any team in the Majors over the last 30 days (166). It's too bad that they have the fourth-most runs allowed in the MLB during that stretch (151). Otherwise, this team might actually be more involved in the Wild Card race. Regardless, other squads have been so terrible that the Rockies continue to slowly creep up the list. But let's not kid ourselves, they're still one of the most inept teams in baseball.
28. Kansas City Royals, 38-55 (↑2)
Make no mistake about it, the Royals are still one of the worst teams in the Majors. The good news for the Kansas City faithful is that two other squads have been worse than the Royals recently. Unfortunately, that doesn't negate the fact that Kansas City has the third-highest ERA in baseball this season (4.86). Over the last month, that number jumps to 6.11, which is the second-worst mark in the MLB ahead of only the Athletics. Though KC has the ninth-most runs scored in the league over the last month (139), they don't have enough offense to counteract their horrendous pitching rotation.
29. Athletics, 41-51 (↓9)
We're not that far removed from the A's being one of the better teams in the AL West. Hell, they had a 2.5 game lead in the divisional race on May 24th! Since that day, though, the Athletics have had the second-worst record in the MLB, going 15-25 in their last 40 games. What's most fascinating is that they have been good offensively during this stretch, with the 10th most runs scored in baseball (192). However, the pitching has been catastrophic, with a league-worst 6.22 ERA since May 24th. The Athletics went from a possible division winner to the absolute basement of the MLB in the blink of an eye.
30. Los Angeles Angels, 37-56 (↓1)
It's no longer just my opinion that the Angels are the worst team in the MLB. They now have the statistics to back up that claim. Los Angeles has the fewest wins in baseball, as well as the lowest winning percentage (.398) in the league. The Angels are tied with the Rockies for the fewest road wins in the MLB, with just 16 in 47 games. Over the last two weeks, they have had the second-worst offense in the Majors (36 runs). The pitchers haven't been atrocious during this run, with a 4.74 ERA (17th in baseball), but when you're one of the worst offensive teams in the league, you expect more from your pitching rotation.
