Congratulations, at last, to the Brewers who, for the first time all season, are atop these Power Rankings. They’re actually the fourth team to hold the No. 1 spot this year, and the others are, like them, from the National League: The Dodgers (who had been No. 1 for the past two months before this week), the Braves and, for one week back in May, the Cubs. The way the Brewers are playing right now, it sure looks like they’re going to be here for a while.
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: 2)
The Brewers remain on pace for the first 100-win season in their history. They’ve actually won 90 games or more 12 times, with seven of those coming in the last 18 years and five coming in the last eight. This is as good as it has ever been for Brewers fans.
2. Dodgers (previously: 1)
Sure, the Dodgers fell out of first place in the Power Rankings this week, but it sure isn’t because of anything they did wrong. In fact, they haven't lost since last Sunday, and remember, they’re about to get Shohei Ohtani back on the mound. He’s also warming up at the plate again: He has eight homers, five doubles and a triple in his last 24 games.
3. Rays (previously: 3)
Junior Caminero, a month ago, felt like the only guy who was going to be able to make a run at Yordan Alvarez for AL MVP, but August has been his worst month of the season: He’s hitting .250 with a .315 OBP with five homers, which isn’t terrible, but not enough considering the way Alvarez has been playing.
4. Braves (previously: 4)
Careful, Braves: That division lead is getting smaller and smaller as the Phillies get hotter and hotter. You know what would help? Ronald Acuña Jr. getting going. Heading into Sunday night’s game in Williamsport, he was 3-for-29 with 4 RBIs and 13 strikeouts in his last seven games.
5. Cubs (previously: 5)
This was absolutely the week that “Pete Crow-Armstrong isn’t just chasing Shohei Ohtani for MVP, he has passed him” went mainstream, and for good reason. The Cubs have had only three 10-WAR seasons from their position players in the last 100 years: Rogers Hornsby in 1929, Ernie Banks in 1959 and Sammy Sosa in 2001. It sure looks like they’re about to have a fourth.
6. Yankees (previously: 6)
It probably didn’t surprise any Yankees fans to hear that Giancarlo Stanton is unlikely to return this year after he strained his left calf while rehabbing his right calf, but still, it’s a bummer for a guy who still has some “he could make a Hall of Fame case” defenders. He has played a total of 101 regular-season games over the past two seasons. That 13-year, $325 million contract he signed more than a decade ago finally ends next year (assuming the Yankees don’t pick up his 2028 option), and it makes you wonder how much longer the 36-year-old will play at all.
7. Phillies (previously: 11)
This Phillies season has been a journey, to say the least, but it’s fair to say they are at a high point right now. They’ve now won nine in a row, tied for their longest winning streak in 15 years, and they’re winning games in every possible way: Huge blowouts, wild comebacks, great pitching, clutch hitting, overwhelming power, fun small ball. They are much closer to first place in the NL East than you probably realize. It is all happening. Again.
8. Red Sox (previously: 7)
The Red Sox have the best record in baseball since the All-Star break, but even more fun, they lead the Majors in comeback wins since then with 15. They have 32 comeback wins on the season … which means they’re about to match their first-half comeback total already.
9. Padres (previously: 10)
The Padres, along with the Phillies’ hot streak, are starting to make the NL Wild Card race less of a race. It’s the pitching that’s doing it: They’ve got the second-best ERA in baseball (at 3.14, trailing only the Yankees at 2.54) during their MLB-best run of 21-7 over their last 28 games. They’re now at 68 percent odds to make the playoffs according to Fangraphs Playoff Odds.
10. White Sox (previously: 8)
Five of the final 10 White Sox series of the season are against teams in their division, which is to say: They’re all against teams with a losing record. With the Cardinals’ loss to the Phillies on Sunday, dropping them to .500, the White Sox have no teams with winning records left on their schedule.
11. Diamondbacks (previously: 9)
When the Diamondbacks traded for Nolan Arenado in the offseason, they were mostly just hoping he could provide steady defense and veteran leadership to a team that needed it. They’ve certainly gotten that, but they’re also getting his best season since 2022, when he led the NL in WAR. He already hit one milestone this season at 2,000 hits, but he’s 26 homers away from 400. He won’t get there this year, but the D-backs have gotten all they hoped for and more from Arenado.
12. Astros (previously: 12)
The Astros just finished a 12-game stretch in which they played teams under .500 (the Mariners, A’s, Angels and Giants), and they went 5-7. They had a chance to create some distance between themselves and everyone else in the AL West. Instead, they’re under .500 for the first time since July 29, which is why they’re now tied with the Rangers for first in the division.
13. Cardinals (previously: 15)
The Cardinals had an absolutely brutal series in Philadelphia this weekend -- an extra-inning loss Friday, a blowout loss on Saturday and blowing a 4-0 ninth-inning lead (with two outs!) in a 6-4 loss on Sunday -- but you can make a strong argument it’s about to get worse. Injuries to starters Andre Pallante and Hunter Dobbins, along with a pitch count limit on Kyle Leahy, have the Cardinals perilously short on pitchers. It will be important to remember how fun the first five months of this season were, because the last one may be rough.
14. Marlins (previously: 14)
The Marlins get four games against the Nationals next weekend, and you can’t blame them for looking forward to them. After their win against them Sunday, the Marlins are 8-1 against the Nationals … and 59-63 against everybody else. Alas, those games next week are the final ones against the Nats in 2026.
15. Blue Jays (previously: 18)
It would have been nice to have won that series in The Bronx over the weekend, but there are still plenty of reasons for Jays fans to be encouraged moving forward: The Jays do not have a single game against a team currently over .500 … the rest of the season. Sure, the Jays aren’t over .500 themselves, but still: That’s extremely helpful.
16. Rangers (previously: 16)
The Rangers just had the easiest stretch in their schedule, and they did not take advantage of it. They went 6-7 against the A’s, Angels and Nationals over the last fortnight. This week is much much tougher: They’re on the road against two first-place teams, the White Sox and the Brewers.
17. Tigers (previously: 13)
You’re not hearing a lot of “how could they trade Tarik Skubal when they’re in the thick of a pennant chase” talk lately. The Tigers have fallen off a cliff, losing five in a row and eight of their last nine. The offense hasn’t been great, but the rotation is having serious problems, with an ERA near six over those nine games.
18. Guardians (previously: 17)
Any team (and especially its offense) will look better when it gets to play the Rockies at Coors Field, but still: The Guardians will take runs however they can get them. One way they’re getting them is from trade acquisition Jo Adell. He has an .861 OPS with the Guardians since coming over from the Angels. His 15 RBIs in his first 16 games with the Guardians were the most in a player’s first 16 games with Cleveland for more than a decade.
19. Orioles (previously: 20)
The Orioles were unable to finish off their sweep against the Rays on the heels of a sweep at the hands of the Yankees, but in the AL Wild Card chase, a bad week won’t knock you out of anything. Of all the things that have gone wonky with the Orioles this year, the Pete Alonso signing has absolutely not been one of them. During his 14-game hit streak that ended on Sunday, he hit .481 with seven homers. He could carry them to the playoffs on his own.
20. Twins (previously: 19)
The Twins have had such an unusual season -- they sweep the Braves and then stumble immediately against the Padres – that it’s important to remember that they’re actually quite shorthanded. That looks like it won’t be the case when next season starts: Pablo López has missed this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in February, but he showed progress this week by playing catch for the first time since the surgery. “It was nerve-wracking,” López said. “I felt like I was warming up to throw a postseason game, because they let me do my normal pre-throw routine, which I had to figure out on the spot. I was trying to remember. So I went through some muscle memory, transitioned from one station to the other. But once I got out there, I was able to just feel the arm path.”
21. Pirates (previously: 21)
The “struggles,” such as they are, of Paul Skenes, at least compared to expectations, have distracted from what the real issue of the Pirates’ second-half fade has been: Their once-impressive hitting has faded considerably. They’re hitting .227 and slugging. 347 over their last 24 games.
22. Mariners (previously: 23)
Just when it looked like you could finally write off the Mariners, they went out and won their series against the previously red-hot Cubs, getting themselves right back in the AL Wild Card race … and of course the AL West as well. Their tough Interleague stretch continues this week with three at home against the Phillies before a fascinating road series against equally desperate Toronto.
23. Nationals (previously: 22)
Remember when the Nats were the highest-scoring team in baseball? That is not what they look like right now. Thanks to injuries and their trades at the Deadline, their depleted lineup is averaging less than four runs a game for their last 24 games.
24. Mets (previously: 25)
It is a very Mets thing that they’ve been one of the best teams in baseball since the Deadline -- especially since the two other best teams since the Deadline are the Padres and Phillies, two teams the Mets would theoretically be chasing -- but progress is progress, and the Mets have made some. Among the many good signs, the best are how good rookies Carson Benge and Nolan McLean have been. Benge, in particular, has been outstanding; he’s hitting .360 in his last 23 games and is the only rookie with 15 homers and 15 steals.
25. Reds (previously: 24)
Two fun trivia questions in the wake of JJ Bleday’s cycle on Saturday. First: Who are the other three Reds to hit for cycles in the last 80 years? And second: Who are the other players to hit for the cycle this year? Your answers: The Reds were Elly De La Cruz, Eric Davis and Frank Robinson, and the 2026ers are Pete Crow-Armstrong, Bryce Harper and Tristan Peters.
26. Royals (previously: 27)
It hasn’t been a great season for the Royals, but it has been a great week. They have now won eight games in a row, really messing things up for the Tigers, who had been in the Wild Card chase just a week ago. Now? Heck, if the Royals stay hot, maybe they can make a run to get out of last place.
27. Giants (previously: 26)
The Giants have had a miserable few weeks, so let’s look to the Minor Leagues for something to be happy about. You don’t have to look far: Their No. 1 prospect, and MLB Pipeline’s No. 17 overall prospect, Josuar Gonzalez had four hits on Saturday and, since being promoted to Single-A San Jose, has a .379/.476/.609 slash line with 25 RBIs in 21 games.
28. Angels (previously: 28)
How have the Angels gotten out of last place in the AL West? Well, the A’s collapse has had something to do with it, but from the Angels’ angle, it’s the pitching. If you can believe this, the Angels, entering Sunday, had the lowest team ERA (2.70) and opponent average (.206) in the Majors since the beginning of August.
29. Rockies (previously: 29)
The Rockies have been better this year than last year, which isn’t saying much, though you still can’t blame them for reaching toward the past nevertheless. On Sunday, the Rockies unveiled a statue of Hall of Famer Larry Walker, and they’ll be revealing another next month of fellow Hall of Famer Todd Helton.
30. A’s (previously: 30)
It is truly remarkable how depleted the A’s are from injuries right now. This week, shortstop Jacob Wilson went on the IL with an injury that manager Mark Kotsay said is “likely season-ending.” He joins Nick Kurtz, Shea Langeliers, Brent Rooker, Tyler Soderstrom and Denzel Clarke as A’s position players on the IL. This is a good young team with excellent young hitting. Try to remember that for the next month of the year. It’ll be hard.
Voters: Jason Catania, Dan Cichalski, Theo DeRosa, Mark Feinsand, Jason Foster, Rick Gold Jr., Jared Greenspan, Will Leitch, Brent Maguire, Travis Miller, Arturo Pardavila, Shanthi Sepe-Chepuru, Andrew Simon, Ismail Soyugenc, David Venn, Andy Werle.