The Brewers keep rolling in Week 21, in the wake of a 22-0 rout of the Mariners on Tuesday, holding on to the No. 1 ranking for the second week in a row after usurping the Dodgers for the top spot.
Though the majority of our top 10 has stayed the same, the Braves have taken at No. 3 ahead of the Rays, and the Padres jump to No. 9 as the Diamondbacks drop two spots to 11th. San Diego, on an 8-2 run, has launched itself into the National League wild-card conversation, currently sitting in the third spot.
The biggest riser of the week are the Orioles, who have firmly entrenched themselves in the American League wild-card race and sit at No. 16, up from No. 22. Toronto follows them as the second-biggest riser, jumping up five spots to No. 18 and joining the crush of teams fighting for the final AL wild card.
Our expert panel has ranked every team based on a combination of what we’ve seen so far and what we already knew going into the 162-game marathon that is a full baseball season. We also asked ESPN MLB experts Bradford Doolittle, Buster Olney and Jesse Rogers to weigh in with an observation for all 30 teams.
Week 20 | Second-half preview | Preseason rankings
Record: 78-49
Previous ranking: 1
Milwaukee recovered nicely after being swept in San Diego, taking three of four from the Dodgers — and it came just when the Brewers needed to create more space in the NL Central. They extended their lead to five games with wins on Saturday and Sunday, while the second-place Cubs were losing to the Cardinals at home. It was a huge turn for the MLB-leading Brewers as Chicago had been closing the gap since the trade deadline. Cy Young favorite Jacob Misiorowski bounced back after giving up a season-high two home runs in his previous start, going six innings against L.A. on Saturday while surrendering only a run. — Rogers
Record: 77-51
Previous ranking: 2
Closer Edwin Diaz, back on the injured list because of neck inflammation, proved to be no more effective after his previous long IL stint than he was before it. Diaz had a 10.50 ERA when he was injured in April, and somehow that number went up during his first seven outings after being activated on Aug. 4, the day after the trade deadline. Nothing has looked right with Diaz, who simply hasn’t produced the top-end whiff rates he has been known for — and for which the Dodgers paid handsomely last winter via free agency. Given their insistence on wedging him into the closer role regardless of how he’s throwing, it’s imperative that, one way or another, Diaz gets right before October. — Doolittle
Record: 74-53
Previous ranking: T-4
If not for Misiorowski, Chris Sale probably would be the front-runner for the NL Cy Young Award, with an assist from the Atlanta staff. The left-hander made each of his first two starts of the season on four days of rest. Since then, Sale has had at least five days of rest between starts, and usually more than that — a formula that is working for him. With the Braves about to face the Brewers in what could be a pivotal series in the race for seeding in the NL playoffs, Atlanta backed up Sale to start him in the series opener Friday, giving him a week between starts. — Olney
Record: 76-50
Previous ranking: 3
Freddy Peralta‘s performance has started to stabilize in his first starts with the Rays. The assumption among rival front offices was that Peralta would be helped by his move from New York to Tampa Bay in the midst of his last season before reaching free agency, due to the Rays’ ability to help pitchers and his riding four-seam fastball playing better in The Trop. Peralta had a 4.99 ERA when he joined the Rays, and he gave up seven runs in 3⅔ innings in his first start with Tampa Bay. But he has followed that with two better outings, giving up five runs over 10⅔ innings. — Olney
Record: 74-54
Previous ranking: 5
Alex Bregman quietly had one of the better weeks among all hitters. Yes, his first three-homer game created some headlines, but he followed that with a three-hit game Monday while continuing to earn his share of walks and keeping the line moving for the Cubs. The best version of Bregman has him hitting doubles to right and right center while pulling homers to hitter-friendly left field at Wrigley — at least when the wind is blowing out. Over the course of six games last week, he had the highest OPS in baseball. — Rogers
Record: 71-55
Previous ranking: 6
A good season for a shortstop would be around plus-eight defensive runs saved — and George Lombard Jr. was at that after 2½ weeks in the big leagues. The Yankees have good pitching and an improved defense, with Lombard in the mix and Cody Bellinger coming back. The real question remains: Can they hit enough to carry them through the playoffs? And it appears there’s a strong chance the Yankees could face Boston’s great pitching in a wild-card series. Aaron Judge ‘s possible return will continue to be the big X factor in the AL. — Olney
Record: 68-59
Previous ranking: 7
Garrett Crochet is slowly ramping up his throwing program and mentioned to reporters recently that he believes he’ll be able to come back soon enough to work out of the Boston bullpen in the last weeks of the season. Crochet demonstrated early in his career that he could be a major weapon working in relief. The Red Sox might well face the Yankees in the first round of the postseason, and Boston could start Sonny Gray, Ranger Suarez and Payton Tolle — and if, in fact, that scenario develops, Crochet could play a big role working against a Yankees’ lineup stacked with left-handed hitters. — Olney
Record: 70-58
Previous ranking: 8
David Dombrowski’s comments last October about Bryce Harper kicked off a conversation about whether Harper would still be an elite player this season, his 15th year in the majors — and the numbers indicate that, yes, he remains elite in his offensive production. Harper has 25 homers and is on pace to reach 30 again; his .381 OBP ranks 10th among all hitters, and he’s 20th in slugging percentage (.492). With a strong finish, he could be among the few players who reach 100 runs this season. — Olney
Record: 68-60
Previous ranking: 10
What has been more stunning: the turnaround of the Padres’ offense, or that it was ever that bad to begin with? To be sure, it was pretty bad … until it wasn’t. You can pinpoint the nadir as July 10, a couple of days before the All-Star break. At that point, San Diego was on pace to score only 631 runs this season and to be outscored by 78. Now, the Padres have upped that offensive pace to 690 and have amazingly pushed their scoring margin into positive territory. During that span, they rank in the top five of the majors in scoring per game and team OPS. So much for those over-the-hill narratives. — Doolittle
Record: 66-60
Previous ranking: 11
The White Sox’s rotation has been thin since the All-Star break, and though manager Will Venable and his staff have done a good job of leveraging their hot relievers to stay afloat, Chicago runs the risk of burning out the bullpen if some of its starters don’t get going. The White Sox rank 25th in rotation ERA (4.68) since the All-Star break and have gotten only eight quality starts in 31 outings. Six of those seven have come from Sean Burke and Anthony Kay, while deadline pickup Luis Castillo has one quality start over his first three White Sox outings.
Castillo is obviously a key to the rotation getting deeper behind Burke and Kay, but Chicago also badly needs early-season phenom Davis Martin to find himself. After posting a 3.41 ERA over 18 starts before the break, Martin has a ghastly 8.48 ERA over his first seven second-half starts. — Doolittle
Record: 67-61
Previous ranking: 9
Whatever is at the root of the mystery surrounding Ketel Marte, one thing that is certain is that his absence couldn’t come at a worse time for the Diamondbacks. With both the Phillies surging in front of them and the Cardinals, Marlins and Pirates lurking behind, a prolonged funk could knock the Diamondbacks out of the chase before things really heat up. They’ve been around break-even overall the past couple of weeks, but the offense has been tailing off. The overall numbers haven’t been bad, so the downtick in scoring can be traced to a temporary run of bad luck in high-leverage spots. Still, though this hasn’t been Marte’s best season, he still leads the Diamondbacks in homers and RBIs. Arizona has to hope that however long Marte is away, these recent game trends don’t spiral. — Doolittle
Record: 64-63
Previous ranking: 12
The Triple Crown is in some doubt for Yordan Alvarez as he’s in the midst of a power slump. He has hit only one home run since July 28, allowing others to catch up in that category. Junior Caminero has six in the same timeframe, pulling to within one homer of Alvarez. The latter player still has a decent lead for the batting and RBI title. With Aaron Judge out most of the year, Alvarez is a near shoo-in for AL MVP and comeback player of the year. — Rogers
Record: 65-63
Previous ranking: 17
The highs and lows of baseball hit Joshua Baez hard, as he followed his historic three-homer MLB debut by failing to get a hit in his next four games. The strikeout bug is starting to follow him as he racked up six in the span of three games after his breakout. Still, the power is more than evident — and no one can take away his moment at Wrigley Field in his first career game Saturday when he became the talk of the league. — Rogers
Record: 61-66
Previous ranking: 14
Shortly after the trade deadline and the departure of Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize, Detroit manager A.J. Hinch called a meeting with his players and told them, in so many words: We are still in the playoff hunt — and we know this, because if we weren’t, there’d be more guys in here who would’ve been traded. Maybe the Tigers’ surge was helped along by Hinch’s motivational talk, or maybe the AL is just mediocre. Either way, they’re still in the fight. The big question is whether they’ll have enough starting pitching to carry them through in the fight for the third and final AL wild-card spot. — Olney
Record: 64-64
Previous ranking: 13
The Marlins’ struggles in a key series with Philadelphia this week was a setback, but if they continue to hang in the NL wild-card race, it’s probably going to be because of a ballyhooed rotation that has been dazzling of late. Miami ranks second with a 3.12 rotation ERA since the All-Star break, even as the club has dropped 19 of 31 games in that span. The surge has come despite the injury to Max Meyer. No team has featured as lethal of a top two as Miami has since the break, with Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez combining for a 1.95 ERA with 11 quality starts in 13 outings. Meanwhile, Janson Junk, Tyler Phillips and Ryan Gusto have all been consistently solid. The starting pitchers have been leading the way for the Marlins; now it’s time for the rest of the club to follow. — Doolittle
Record: 61-66
Previous ranking: 22
Baltimore might or might not continue its recent surge in the standings, but either way, it has been a successful first season for Pete Alonso after he signed a five-year, $155 million deal with the Orioles. His performance for them is typical for his career: He leads the AL in games played, and he’s on pace to hit more than 35 homers and drive in more than 100 runs. And sources say that Alonso has had a strong and positive influence within the Orioles’ clubhouse. — Olney
Record: 62-65
Previous ranking: 15
Texas did not have a good week at the plate, compiling one of the lowest OPS figures in the majors over a six-game span that included ugly series losses to the Angels and A’s. The Rangers scored a total of seven runs in four consecutive defeats at the hands of the also-rans of the AL West. They’re still in the thick of the playoff race — both for the division and wild card. Now they get a week of home games — where they’ve played much better this year — including a rematch with the lowly Angels. It’s a chance for Texas to improve its position before a tough trip to Chicago and Milwaukee. — Rogers
Record: 62-66
Previous ranking: 23
Alejandro Kirk‘s offensive performance underscores how much the Toronto catcher was missed early in the season, when he was out for two months because of a thumb injury. Kirk has been raking, batting .364 since the All-Star break with a .557 slugging percentage. At the same time, the Jays have slowly climbed back into the crowded race for the AL’s third wild card. Kirk went 3-for-6 with a double, a home run and three RBIs in the Jays’ series-opening win in Tampa Bay. — Olney
Record: 63-65
Previous ranking: 19
The Twins’ decision to add at the deadline was refreshing, and though they haven’t exactly caught fire, at least three of the players the front office traded for have shined since joining the club.
Dean Kremer has posted two quality starts in three outings for the Twins with a 3.12 ERA and 2.97 FIP, both numbers markedly better than his pre-trade results in Baltimore. In the bullpen, manager Derek Shelton has leaned hard on ex-Brave A.J. Minter, and the lefty has responded by giving up only one run in his first 10 outings for Minnesota. Jeff Hoffman has been so-so thus far, but going back to an earlier pickup from Toronto, Tommy Nance has a 1.35 ERA in 14 appearances since joining the Twins. Whether these additions will be enough to boost Minnesota into a surprising playoff appearance remains to be seen, but so far, the pickups have been strong. — Doolittle
Record: 61-66
Previous ranking: 16
Despite an unusually aggressive trade deadline, the Guardians remain ice cold, and if things don’t get rolling soon, Cleveland runs the risk of falling out of an AL Central race that’s virtually impossible to fall out of. The pickups — Jo Adell, Foster Griffin and Nathaniel Lowe — have been more fine than dynamic, though Adell and Lowe have contributed to a modest uptick by the offense of late. As for Griffin, he was supposed to add to an already elite group, but the Guardians’ pitching has been struggling. Since the All-Star break, the vaunted bullpen has a 4.47 ERA (22nd in MLB) and has converted only three of eight save opportunities. — Doolittle
Record: 63-66
Previous ranking: 20
Esmerlyn Valdez continued a fine start to his career with another solid week at the plate despite not hitting a home run. He had hits in six of seven games — including three multihit games, though he also struck out nine times in the span of five games — before going 0-for-5 on Monday. He’s still learning, and if he can bring down his strikeout percentage just a little, the 22-year-old will be even more dangerous as his 15% walk rate stands out, as does his .888 OPS. — Rogers
Record: 60-67
Previous ranking: 21
It was another tough week at the plate for Cal Raleigh, who went just 2-for-16 over a five-game span as the Mariners continue their puzzling free fall in the AL. The stretch saw his batting average drop to .158 at one point, the lowest it has been since mid-May. He did homer Monday, his 13th of the season. At the same time last year, Raleigh had 46 home runs. His season mirrors that of the Mariners, who are still in the playoff race but with much to overcome. — Rogers
Record: 61-67
Previous ranking: 18
Rival executives note that Washington’s decision to shift CJ Abrams from shortstop to second base occurred after the trade deadline, when the Nationals engaged in trade conversations about Abrams with other teams in the hope of extracting a huge package of prospects. Now that they’ve decided to keep Abrams — at least for the rest of the season — they’re moving him to second, where he’s less likely to hurt the Nationals with his spotty defensive play. There are no such questions about his offensive production: Abrams is third in the majors in RBIs, and his .884 OPS is 11th. — Olney
Record: 61-66
Previous ranking: 24
Hunter Greene‘s latest injury, necessitating Tommy John surgery, adds insult to an already subpar year for the Reds, who now have to potentially account for his loss next season as well. The unfortunate turn of events could basically tank two years for Cincinnati, unless the team has a plan to overcome it. The Reds were behind from the start of this year, when Greene was out because of bone chips in the same elbow that needed surgery. At least they’ll have a head start in replacing him for next season, but the loss still stings — both for 2026 and 2027. — Rogers
Record: 58-70
Previous ranking: 25
Who would’ve imagined that in mid-August, the Mets’ cleanup hitter would be Carson Benge — a rookie on a minimum salary for a big-market team with the second-highest payroll in baseball. But Benge has earned every bit of his place there with a solid offensive performance in his first year in the majors. JJ Wetherholt and Sal Stewart are likely the front-runners for the NL Rookie of the Year award, but Benge should get down-ballot consideration for his offense, as well as his defense. He has plus-five defensive runs saved to go with nine assists. – Olney
Record: 54-74
Previous ranking: 27
It’s more than a few days late and a whole lot of dollars short, but the Royals have played better baseball since the All-Star break. With the lineup looking healthier than it has been in a couple of months, Kansas City might have an opportunity to finish strong and get a better sense of how to approach the offseason. When Maikel Garcia and Vinnie Pasquantino were activated from the IL at the start of the Royals’ homestand Monday, it marked the first time that those two and Bobby Witt Jr. all started in the same game since June 13.
Their struggles have been deeper than ailing hitters, but a stable lineup was part of the formulation for this year’s roster. Kansas City has five more weeks or so to demonstrate why that was a good idea. — Doolittle
Record: 52-74
Previous ranking: 26
Ace Logan Webb has been one of the hottest pitchers in baseball since the All-Star break. Though his first half was solid, the second-half surge has brought his season numbers right in line with career results that have marked Webb as one of the most consistent performers in the game.
Over six second-half starts, Webb has gone 3-0 with a 2.56 ERA. He’s going to fall short of 200 innings for the first time since 2022, but for 2026, he remains a reliably consistent starter and is starting to climb up the career leaderboards for a Giants franchise that has featured a lot of great hurlers. He’s up to 16th in career bWAR and 12th in strikeouts, with both lists topped by the great Christy Mathewson. Webb is signed through 2028 and shows no signs of slowing down, so his rise on these lists should continue. — Doolittle
Record: 50-77
Previous ranking: 29
The Rockies might or might not finish last again, but either way, the 2026 season has featured a number of bright spots that point to a better future. One of those has been hard-nosed rookie Cole Carrigg, a well-balanced switch-hitting centerfielder who figures to be a fan favorite given his hair-on-fire style of play. Carrigg’s break-in season has just been hustle and grit — he has produced on offense and defense. His standout tool is a cannon of a throwing arm that features 99th percentile velocity among outfielders. But he also has shown a nice mix of patience and pop at the plate. Carrigg needs to balance home-road splits that are a little puffed up by Coors Field at present, but he looks like a keeper in the long term. — Doolittle
Record: 49-78
Previous ranking: 28
Baseball’s IL continues to be filled with A’s as they added another to their walking wounded, with Tyler Soderstrom ending his season because of hip surgery. He was on fire before deciding on the operation, earning hits in every game he played in August. He joins Nick Kurtz, Shea Langeliers, Brent Rooker and Mark Leiter Jr among those who won’t finish the season on the field. The injuries tanked the team’s season, which otherwise showed promise. A healthy A’s squad has offensive firepower, but the team just never completely clicked this season because of those injuries. — Rogers
Record: 50-77
Previous ranking: 30
Reid Detmers pitched a gem Saturday, shutting out the Royals over eight innings while striking out 11. There was a reason he was well sought-after around the trade deadline and why the Angels held out for a high return for him. He’s just now tapping into his potential as evidenced by that outing, in which he also gave up only two hits without issuing a free pass. His off-speed stuff has been nearly unhittable this season, and Saturday was no different. — Rogers
