The Cubs and Tigers are surging into the playoff race as September baseball is underway in our latest MLB power rankings.
1. Philadelphia Phillies (81-56) | Last week: 1
The Phillies are firmly back on track after taking three of four games versus the Braves to end the week, including last night’s 3-2 win where Nick Castellanos had a walk-off single and all three RBI. Something to keep in mind for October scheduling: Philadelphia is now 36-12 in night games at Citizens Bank Park.
2. Los Angeles Dodgers (82-55) | Last week: 2
Los Angeles took series against the contending Orioles and Diamondbacks over the past week, so they are a very strong No. 2 in the power rankings. However, the struggles versus the Phillies mentioned last week keeps them here, especially after Philadelphia handled Atlanta.
3. Milwaukee Brewers (80-57) | Last week: 5 (+2)
A third team in the NL leaps into the top three with the Yankees and Baltimore sort of treading water recently, but Milwaukee is legit as the only team in baseball to reach 40 wins both at home and on the road. They could very well overtake the Dodgers for the best record by next week with the Cardinals and Rockies coming to town.
4. New York Yankees (79-58) | Last week: 3 (-1)
New York continues to search for the right combination of players around Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and Jazz Chisholm Jr., and there is now less than a month to get things figured out. Fortunately for them, Baltimore hasn’t been able to get going themselves, so the Yankees remain atop the AL East… at least for now.
5. Baltimore Orioles (79-59) | Last week: 4 (-1)
The Orioles get a chance to beat up on the White Sox to begin this week before hosting the Rays, but they haven’t won a series versus a team with a winning record in two months. For as good as Zach Eflin has been in Baltimore (5-0 with a 1.95 ERA), the Orioles won’t get where they want to go if Corbin Burnes (7.36 ERA in August) doesn’t pitch like an ace.
6. Cleveland Guardians (78-59) | Last week: 6
Despite going 3-4 last week, Cleveland expanded their AL Central lead by a half game ahead of a huge road trip to face the Royals and Dodgers. We’ll see if six perfect innings by veteran Alex Cobb yesterday keeps him hot the rest of the way after he missed most of the season.
7. Houston Astros (75-62) | Last week: 12 (+5)
Speaking of hot, the Astros flipped the switch after dropping two games versus the Phillies to begin the week—winning five-straight games, including a four-game sweep of the Royals. Plus, it sounds like star slugger Kyle Tucker could return this week from his tricky shin injury that’s kept him for three months.
8. Arizona Diamondbacks (77-60) | Last week: 7 (-1)
The Diamondbacks must feel a lot better about the week with a 14-3 win over the Dodgers yesterday, but they couldn’t gain ground in the NL West by dropping the home series to LA (and the Mets before that). Still, Arizona remains a very dangerous club as they sit atop the wild card standings.
9. San Diego Padres (78-61) | Last week: 8 (-1)
San Diego is tied with the Diamondbacks as others suddenly emerge in the NL wild card race, and former Rockies catcher Elias Díaz is a very interesting addition for them in the playoff push. If they can make it to October, the 33-year-old could be a key defensive piece behind the dish.
10. Minnesota Twins (74-62) | Last week: 9 (-1)
Getting swept at home versus Atlanta moves Minnesota down a spot, but the looming matchup with Kansas City this weekend will be massive in the division race. It’s just tough to win games with when a starting pitcher allows nine earned runs in just 2.0 innings—which happened twice over the past seven days.
11. Kansas City Royals (75-63) | Last week: 10 (-1)
12. Atlanta Braves (74-63) | Last week: 11 (-1)
13. New York Mets (73-64) | Last week: 13
14. Chicago Cubs (71-66) | Last week: 19 (+5)
15. Boston Red Sox (70-67) | Last week: 14 (-1)
16. Detroit Tigers (70-68) | Last week: 20 (+4)
17. Seattle Mariners (69-68) | Last week: 15 (-2)
18. St. Louis Cardinals (69-68) | Last week: 18
19. San Francisco Giants (68-70) | Last week: 16 (-3)
20. Tampa Bay Rays (67-69) | Last week: 17 (-3)
21. Toronto Blue Jays (67-72) | Last week: 23 (+2)
22. Texas Rangers (65-72) | Last week: 24 (+2)
23. Cincinnati Reds (65-73) | Last week: 21 (-2)
24. Pittsburgh Pirates (63-73) | Last week: 22 (-2)
25. Washington Nationals (61-76) | Last week: 25
26. Oakland Athletics (59-78) | Last week: 26
27. Los Angeles Angels (57-80) | Last week: 27
28. Miami Marlins (51-86) | Last week: 29 (+1)
29. Colorado Rockies (51-87) | Last week: 28 (-1)
30. Chicago White Sox (31-107) | Last week: 30