The National League continues to dominate in Week 7 of our MLB Power Rankings, with the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets holding the top two spots on the list. However, two American League teams are making inroads.
The Detroit Tigers, with the best AL record, surpass the San Diego Padres and the Chicago Cubs (who drop this week to 7th place), rising from 5th to 3rd. Meanwhile, the New York Yankees, leaders of the AL East, re-enter the top five after a 7th place ranking last week.
Have the Tigers reached their ceiling?
With the Subway Series scheduled for this weekend, will the Mets or the Yankees earn temporary bragging rights in the Big Apple?
Our expert panel has come together to rank each team based on a combination of what we’ve seen so far and what we already knew at the start of the 162-game marathon that is a full baseball season. We also asked MLB experts from Alofoke Deportes to give us their opinion on the 30 teams.
MLB Standings
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
Record: 28-15 Previous ranking: 1
When the season began, Clayton Kershaw was a luxury. The Dodgers seemed to have so much starting pitching depth that it was fair to wonder where the future Hall of Famer would fit in. But things have changed. Shohei Ohtani’s rehabilitation has been slow. Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and, more recently, Roki Sasaki have landed on the injured list with shoulder issues. And when Kershaw returns to the rotation on Saturday, he will serve as a much-needed boost for a pitching staff that is routinely staging bullpen games these days, just as it did for much of October.
2. New York Mets
Record: 28-16 Previous ranking: 2
Brett Baty began the season as the Mets’ starting second baseman, but was sent to Triple-A after hitting .204 with a .246 OBP in 19 games. He was recalled on May 5th when Jesse Winker went on the IL and has hit four home runs in this home series, including the go-ahead home run in the seventh inning of a 2-1 victory over the Pirates on Tuesday. With Winker out for another five to seven weeks, Baty should continue to get plenty of playing time, including at his natural position of third base, with Mark Vientos moving into the DH role.
3. Detroit Tigers
Record: 29-15 Previous ranking: 5
Javier Báez’s journey is becoming one of the most improbable baseball stories of this year, perhaps of this decade. Báez lost his starting position in August, and there were evaluators with other teams convinced that the Tigers were about to release him. But not long after that demotion, Báez, long known as a player who reliably posts and plays, told the Tigers that he was in pain. He underwent hip surgery and looked much better at the plate in spring training. When a wave of injuries created the need for a center fielder, Báez, a lifelong infielder, took on the position, and is thriving, including a walk-off home run against Boston on Tuesday.
4. San Diego Padres
Record: 27-15 Previous ranking: 3
Fernando Tatis Jr. connected on Kenley Jansen’s 2-2 cutter late Tuesday night and immediately tossed his bat aside. The ball flew a whopping 430 feet, breaking a 4-run tie, electrifying Petco Park and giving Tatis the first walk-off home run of his career. By that point, Tatis was batting .316/.389/.574 with 11 home runs and eight stolen bases, making him one of the best players in the game so far. Manny Machado (batting .340/.410/.490) and Jackson Merrill (.412/.438/.676) are also doing their part. Given the gaps at the bottom of their lineup, the stellar-level performances of star players are precisely what the Padres need.
5. New York Yankees
Record: 25-18 Previous ranking: 7
Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt is simple and direct in his communication with the players, and one thing he has told his team is: “I don’t make the lineup. You make the lineup with the way you play.” And this is where the Yankees and Aaron Boone are with third base following Oswaldo Cabrera’s devastating ankle injury: If one of the candidates hits, he will keep playing. The veteran in question now is DJ LeMahieu; if he hits, he will keep getting starts. If not, the Yankees’ search for help at third base will continue.
6. Philadelphia Phillies
Record: 25-18 Previous ranking: 8
Kyle Schwarber keeps hitting, including two home runs to drive in the three runs in a 3-0 victory over the Guardians on Sunday that completed a good 5-1 road trip to Tampa and Cleveland. Schwarber entered Wednesday’s doubleheader tied for the MLB lead with 14 home runs, while ranking sixth in OPS. After leading the majors with 200 strikeouts in 2022 and 215 in 2023 and striking out 197 times in 2024, Schwarber’s contact rate has increased in 2025, and he has reduced his strikeout rate from over 29% in the last three seasons to just over 20%. He could be on his way to his third All-Star Game.
7. Chicago Cubs
Record: 25-19 Previous ranking: 4
Justin Turner is batting below .200, but the 40-year-old veteran performed in a big way on Tuesday. After pinch-hitting early in the game, Turner hit a two-run double to win in a 5-4 victory over the Marlins. “I’m happy for him. It’s a great moment,” said Cubs manager Craig Counsell. “He’s done it so many times. It’s not fun to watch a great player struggle, but he had a moment and he did it.” That game was also the MLB debut of catcher/DH Moises Ballesteros, the Cubs’ preseason No. 2 prospect. Called up to replace the injured Ian Happ, Ballesteros was batting .368/.420/.522 in Triple-A. He served as DH for the Cubs and went 0-for-4, although he lived up to his reputation as a strong contact hitter by putting the ball in play in his four at-bats.
8. San Francisco Giants
Record: 25-19 Previous ranking: 6
Giants: The Giants recently suffered a four-game losing streak, a stretch in which they were outscored by a total of… five runs. Even when the Giants lose games, they remain competitive, which speaks well of their prospects in 2025. Equally encouraging: Willy Adames and Justin Verlander, their two big free agent additions last offseason, have seemingly regained form. Adames’ batting line was just .208/.292/.300 during the month of April, but he’s batting .264/.339/.528 in May. Meanwhile, Verlander had an ERA of 6.75 in his first four starts, but has an ERA of 2.76 in his last five.
9. Seattle Mariners
Record: 23-19 Previous ranking: 9
A Mariners team that enjoyed a remarkable run of health from its starting pitchers last year placed another of its starters on the injured list Wednesday, when Bryce Miller was diagnosed with an episode of elbow inflammation, joining George Kirby and Logan Gilbert on the sidelines. The news came after a recent four-game losing streak, which followed an 8-2 stretch. It emphasized something we should have probably learned by now: that nobody is going to run away with the American League West this season.
10. Cleveland Guardians
Record: 25-18 Previous ranking: 13
Amidst their April struggles, Emmanuel Clase revealed to the Guardians that he had some shoulder discomfort, nothing debilitating, but something that was bothering him. Cleveland backed him off, and he didn’t pitch for five days. Since that brief in-season rest, Clase has allowed just one earned run in eight appearances, and Cleveland’s bullpen, which was so dominant last year, has its closer nearing his former form. Meanwhile, the Guardians’ rotation appears to be improving, with Shane Bieber’s return drawing closer week by week.
11. Arizona Diamondbacks
Record: 23-21 Previous ranking: 10
The D-backs split a four-game series at home against the Dodgers over the weekend, during which their hitters scored 20 runs and their pitchers allowed 25. It basically encapsulated their season. The D-backs’ offense has been a force this year, ranking third in the majors in OPS, fourth in home runs, and fifth in runs per game. But their pitching staff has an ERA of 4.71, the seventh-highest in the sport. And while it’s easy to see Zac Gallen and Eduardo Rodriguez pitching better outside the rotation, the concern lies in the bullpen, especially with A.J. Puk out for an undetermined amount of time with elbow stiffness. Some good news on that front: Justin Martinez, their dynamic closer, could return as early as this week.
12. Kansas City Royals
Record: 25-20 Previous ranking: 11
Top prospect Jac Caglianone is doing his part to enter the conversation for a possible promotion later this season, crushing the pitching in Double-A. If he is going to help the Royals in the big leagues this year, it will likely be as an outfielder, and Kansas City has begun using him twice a week in that capacity in the minors. He has work to do to refine his reads and his ability to get good jumps, and longtime K.C. coach Rusty Kuntz is overseeing the effort to help Caglianone defensively. Caglianone is very open to feedback and has been spending time in batting practice getting reads on the ball coming off the bat.
13. Boston Red Sox
Record: 22-23 Previous ranking: 12
Rafael Devers’ situation is resolved: Unless something changes drastically, he will continue to serve as the designated hitter, something he has done very well this year, and the Red Sox will find other solutions at first base. Perhaps the only person who has the power to alter the trajectory of this situation is Devers himself, by going to manager Alex Cora and volunteering to take ground balls. An AL evaluator familiar with the situation is surprised that Devers hasn’t been taking grounders anyway, to give Cora alternatives at first base in case of injuries to other players and the need for a temporary solution.
14. Atlanta Braves
Record: 21-22 Previous ranking: 14
After starting 0-7, the Braves reached .500 for the first time with Tuesday’s 5-2 victory over the Nationals. The Braves went 7-3 in a 10-game stretch, with three of those wins coming in walk-off fashion and another coming in extra innings. Rookie catcher Drake Baldwin continues to sizzle at the plate, going 3-4 on Tuesday with a home run and a double to raise his line to .329/.382/.557. After starting the season 1-18, Tuesday’s big game capped a 20-game stretch in which he hit .423 with four home runs.
15. St. Louis Cardinals
Record: 24-20 Previous ranking: 23
Here come the Cardinals. St. Louis put together nine straight wins before Wednesday’s doubleheader against the Phillies: two over the Mets, three-game sweeps of the Pirates and Nationals and then took the first game in Philadelphia. The pitching staff had an ERA of 2.00 during that nine-game stretch, allowing just three home runs in 81 innings. The offense hit .267 with 10 home runs, with Willson Contreras leading the way, hitting .367 with three home runs and 10 RBIs. Nolan Arenado and Victor Scott II had OBPs over .400 during the winning streak, while Ivan Herrera returned after more than a month on the IL to help boost the lineup as well.
16. Minnesota Twins
Record: 23-20 Previous ranking: 22
The long-applied cliché about Byron Buxton might never be truer than it is now: When he’s on the field, he’s a great player. Entering the Twins’ doubleheader on Wednesday in Baltimore, Buxton had multi-hit games in 11 of the team’s previous 20, and in that span, he was batting .316, with six home runs, 15 runs and 18 RBIs to lead Minnesota’s recent winning streak. As usual, Buxton is playing solid defense in the outfield, with positive ratings in both outs above average and defensive runs saved.
17. Houston Astros
Record: 22-20 Previous ranking: 16
The Astros’ offense is still without Yordan Alvarez and still waiting for the likes of Jose Altuve and Christian Walker to get going. But the month of May has provided some encouraging signs from less established players who really need to take another step forward this season, specifically Jake Meyers, Jeremy Pena, Yandy Diaz, and Isaac Paredes. Those four have combined to hit .356/.415/.561 with eight home runs this month. The Astros are 6-6 in May, but they are still within striking distance in an open American League West. And they would be in a much worse position without the production of those aforementioned players.
18. Texas Rangers
Record: 23-21 Previous ranking: 19
An offense still trying to find its rhythm placed its best hitter, Corey Seager, on the injured list for the second time in less than two weeks on Tuesday. Seager is dealing with a hamstring strain, the same injury that kept him out from April 23 to May 2. During that stretch, the Rangers lost eight of 10, winning one game by a score of 15-2 but combining for 14 runs in their other nine. Their offense doesn’t seem to flow the same way without Seager, who is batting .300/.346/.520 in 26 games this season. His infield partner, Marcus Semien, needs to step up, now more than ever.
19. Athletics
Record: 22-21 Previous ranking: 18
The rotation is a concern and their defense is a disaster, but the A’s offense is fun. And few represent that better than Jacob Wilson, the 23-year-old shortstop who is making an early case for the American League Rookie of the Year award. Wilson returned to his roots in Los Angeles on Tuesday and went 5-4 with two home runs at Dodger Stadium, driving the A’s to an 11-1 victory over the defending World Series champions. That performance put Wilson’s batting line at .363/.389/.513, a sample of 168 plate appearances in which he had received only seven walks but had only struck out nine times. Fun.
20. Milwaukee Brewers
Record: 21-23 Previous ranking: 17
The Brewers aren’t going anywhere unless Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich start producing better results, namely, getting on base more often. Chourio is batting .265 with seven home runs, but he has drawn only four walks with 37 strikeouts, giving him an OBP below .300. Yelich also has seven home runs, but he’s batting .205 with a .301 OBP. He’s striking out 28% of the time, a considerable increase from 10% last season. The Brewers certainly have other big holes, for example, they’re last in OPS at third base, but they need their two big stars to carry this offense.
21. Cincinnati Reds
Record: 20-24 Previous ranking: 15
The Reds struggled through a 2-8 stretch that saw Hunter Greene land on the IL with a groin strain and Noelvi Marte, who had been hitting well, land on the IL with an oblique strain. Three of those losses were in extra innings, which dropped the Reds to 0-5 in extra innings, but the offense was also a major culprit, being shut out three times and scoring just one run in three other games. They managed to pull out a 13-9 victory over the Astros, scoring 10 runs in the first inning, with seven of them coming off a struggling Lance McCullers Jr. who is trying to make a comeback for Houston.
22. Toronto Blue Jays
Record: 21-21 Previous ranking: 21
The Blue Jays’ sweep of the Mariners in Seattle last weekend was a classic example of American League parity. Just when the Jays’ offense had settled into a kind of malaise, they come in and dominate the AL West leader. There will likely be more ups and downs like this during the summer as Toronto defines itself. If the Jays ever decide to move veterans before the trade deadline, George Springer is a player who could attract interest in a very, very thin outfield market. He’s off to a good start in his age-35 season while earning $24 million this year and next, and if Toronto aims to reshape its roster, his production and experience would be attractive to other teams.
23. Tampa Bay Rays
Record: 19-23 Previous ranking: 20
When the Rays announced they would play their home games at Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field this season, the assumption was that the team’s hitters, who had previously competed in the pitcher’s haven that is Tropicana Field, would get a good boost in a park that was thought to have a prevailing wind towards right field. But that hasn’t always been the case so far. Rays hitters rank 19th among 30 teams in wRC+ at their home park, although they are tied for eighth in home runs. Brandon Lowe, Christopher Morel, Danny Jansen, and Taylor Walls are hitting below .200 at home so far.
24. Baltimore Orioles
Record: 15-26 Previous ranking: 25
Even before the season began, it seemed the Orioles would need to hit enough to make up for their pitching challenges. Despite the offense’s surprisingly slow start, that remains the case, as there are few signs of a rotation change. There are some ugly numbers. Opposing hitters had a .920 OPS at Camden Yards this season before Wednesday’s doubleheader. In Baltimore’s losses, the team had an ERA of 8.59. The team’s record in games where the Orioles scored fewer than six runs: 5-19.
25. Washington Nationals
Record: 18-26 Previous ranking: 24
After approaching .500 at 17-19, the Nationals lost seven straight, scoring two or fewer runs in five of those defeats. CJ Abrams has been the only producing player at the plate, with three three-hit games in that stretch to push his average above .300. Since the World Series season in 2019, the only Nationals qualified to hit .300 were Juan Soto and Trea Turner in the shortened 2020 season and then Soto in 2021. In the history of the Expos/Nationals franchise, the only shortstops to hit .300 were Turner in 2020, Cristian Guzman in 2008, and Mark Grudzielanek in 1996.
26. Los Angeles Angels
Record: 17-25 Previous ranking: 28
From April 11 to May 4, the Angels navigated a brutal stretch in which their offense posted a .574 OPS, their pitchers recorded a 6.08 ERA, and their defense committed 13 errors, a 21-game stretch in which they accumulated just five wins. The Angels have been better since then. More competitive, at least. They took two of three from the Blue Jays, held their own with the Orioles, then played tight back-and-forth games in San Diego, rallying against closer Robert Suarez on Monday and watching Fernando Tatis Jr. walk off Kenley Jansen on Tuesday. The Angels simply aren’t being embarrassed right now. That’s progress.
27. Pittsburgh Pirates
Record: 15-29 Previous ranking: 26
The Pirates fired manager Derek Shelton, sitting in last place in the division with a 12-26 record. Bench coach Don Kelly took over as interim manager. A seven-game losing streak was the last straw. Shelton was in his sixth season as manager and, after finishing 76-86 the past two seasons, the club had higher expectations for 2025, although ownership and management did little in the offseason to improve the club. “I think he was the right person for the job when he was hired. I also think a change is needed now,” said general manager Ben Cherington in a rare statement. In more exciting news, Paul Skenes announced that he has committed to pitch for Team USA in next year’s World Baseball Classic. He is the second player to publicly commit to play, along with team captain Aaron Judge.
28. Miami Marlins
Record: 16-26 Previous ranking: 27
If you’re looking for a possible early All-Star for the Marlins, it could be outfielder Kyle Stowers, who entered Wednesday batting .287/.365/.507 with eight home runs and 27 RBIs. Acquired last July with Connor Norby from the Orioles for starter Trevor Rogers, that trade looks like a win for the Marlins. Stowers is whiffing 30% of the time, so it would be good to reduce that a bit, but he’s tied for 10th in the majors in barrels (a ball hit with an exit velocity of at least 98 mph and an optimal launch angle). The last Marlins outfielders to make the All-Star Game were Giancarlo Stanton and Marcell Ozuna in 2017.
