For most of this season, it's felt like the only serious baseball was happening in the National League. The Senior Circuit boasted three legitimate heavyweights in the Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, plus talent-rich contenders like the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies behind them. The American League, on the other hand ... well, it's like if there was a magnet located at .500 trying to drag every team down.
Five teams have already cracked 80 wins in the NL to just two in the AL (the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees). There's a real chance that somebody will make the American League playoffs with a non-winning record as the expanded Wild Card has resulted in a slap fight for the No. 6 seed. You'd be forgiven for not taking anything that happens on the Junior Circuit seriously.
And yet, our latest MLB Power Rankings show that there might be some diamonds in the admittedly rough AL standings at the moment. The league is home to two of our biggest risers this week, the Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros, each of which is more than capable of surprising in October if they peak at the right time. Who else is trending in the right direction with just weeks to go in the regular season? Let's get into it.
30. Los Angeles Angels
The Angels played some baseball games this week, but who are we kidding: All fans care about is the fact that Arte Moreno will no longer own this team as of early 2027. That’s a bigger victory than anything happening on the field in recent memory, as arguably the worst owner in the sport can no longer hamstring his franchise with a unique blend of miserliness and megalomania. Of course, it’ll be a long road back to respectability, but this is a start.
–Chris Landers FanSided.com editor
29. Colorado Rockies
The best thing the Rockies have done lately is deny they had a problem with Cardinals pitcher Hansel Rincon's hat. Shoutout Hunter Goodman, but the most important strides being taken within the Rockies organization are in the minor leagues and perhaps in ownership, as the Monforts could sell up to 35 percent of their stake an inject some real money into the roster. That'd be lovely, as Denver is a great baseball market. Fans show up even if the team stinks, as it has for the last half-decade.
-Mark Powell, FanSided.com
28. Athletics
The A’s are just looking for some silver linings amid a lost season, and they might be finding some of late. The offense carried them to an impressive series win in Seattle, as guys like Henry Bolte, Zack Gelof and Lawrence Butler continue to thrive – offering hope that they can be meaningful contributors next year, when the likes of Shea Langeliers, Nick Kurtz and Brent Rooker hopefully come back healthy. Now, about that pitching staff …
–CL
27. San Francisco Giants
The Giants are unlikely to move on from Tony Vitello after just one season. Frankly, it'd be rude of them not to give him an extra season. Vitello transitioned from college baseball just one season ago. That's not an easy ask, and he took a large salary from Buster Posey to do so. One would hope that contract came with a lot of leeway.
-MP
26. Kansas City Royals
The Royals cooled off a bit this week with series losses against Miami and Toronto. And, really, a random winning streak in late August and early September does little to functionally change the tough questions that are coming to Kansas City this offseason, as JJ Picollo tries to figure out whether a change is needed – and whether to keep investing around Bobby Witt Jr. or trade assets like Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo.
–CL
25. New York Mets
The Mets spent a lot of money for nothing this past offseason. They will be at the center of MLB lockout talks, but it does seem as though Steve Cohen believes in David Stearns moving forward. The Mets won't have much of a choice in whether Bo Bichette stays or goes. Cohen refused to loan money to Mark Walter, which could have major ramifications on the Dodgers down the line. Again, none of this has anything to do with the on-field product. The Mets will not make the playoffs this season. It was a failure, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel with a team this talented.
-MP
24. Detroit Tigers
Detroit isn’t technically buried in the Wild Card race just yet, but after failing to gain ground in games against the Guardians and Twins this week, they’re pretty dang close. The pitching has held up its end of the bargain even without Tarik Skubal; the lineup, on the other hand, continues to disappoint, and the Tigers will need to do some serious work this winter figuring out which of their homegrown bats should be part of the future moving forward.
–CL
23. Seattle Mariners
If you were looking for a microcosm of Seattle’s 2026 season, you could do a lot worse than this week, which started with great vibes stemming from two rousing wins at Fenway Park and then quickly unraveled amid an ugly series loss at home to the lowly A’s. The Mariners’ pitching has come unglued of late, which is a tough development for a team that was hoping to just figure its lineup out and make a late run. That feels very, very unlikely now, and the question is how Jerry DiPoto will handle a pivotal offseason if Seattle does in fact fall short of October.
–CL
22. Washington Nationals
Oh, your lineup features James Wood and CJ Abrams? The Nationals have an embarrassment of riches, and most of it is under the age of 26. Wood himself is bound to lead the home run race in the National League sooner rather than later. What Washington really needs is a rotation they can count on. Cade Cavalli. The Nationals traded Foster Griffin to the Guardians at the deadline. Do they have more pitchers stocked on the farm? Truly, that is the question.
-MP
21. Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati did nothing at the trade deadline. FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray quoted shocked rival execs earlier this week in the Baseball Insiders newsletter. Reporter Pat Ragazzo did much of the same when scouts and agents mentioned how surprised they were that the Reds did...literally nothing. It's been a month since then, and nothing has changed for the Reds. They are a mediocre baseball team, perhaps soon headed for an ownership sale.
-MP
20. Minnesota Twins
The Twins boast a young, exciting offense that’s proven capable of scoring runs in bunches. And yet, Minnesota has struggled to climb back toward .500 – and a Wild Card spot – thanks to a rotation that ranks near the bottom of the league in ERA since Aug. 1. That problem won’t likely get much better with Joe Ryan on the IL, and this is simply asking a lot of guys like Zebby Matthews, Dean Kremer and Connor Prielipp.
–CL
19. Baltimore Orioles
Every time it seems like the O’s might finally be finding something, they take another dispiriting step back. Case in point: Losing consecutive series to both the Rockies (yikes) and Red Sox this week, and losing important ground on both Toronto and Cleveland in the Wild Card chase as a result. As luck would have it, Baltimore faces the Jays and Guardians next, so a hot week can totally flip the script on this season. But just as the pitching staff has righted the ship a bit, the offense has disappeared, which makes this team awfully hard to trust.
–CL
18. Texas Rangers
What started out so strongly turned into a dud of a weekend for the Rangers, which won the opener against Tampa only to drop the next three and give up more ground in both the division and Wild Card races. Some ugly bullpen implosions haven’t helped, as a unit that overperformed for much of the year has come crashing back to Earth at the worst possible time. Once again, it feels like Texas doesn’t have enough around its big-name stars to support a playoff run – if those stars can even be healthy and in form at the same time.
–CL
17. Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates are just five games back! Leave it to Pittsburgh to get their hopes up about the Buccos just before football season. Traditionally, this is the time the Pirates tend to fade into summer memories, while the Steelers take centerstage. The expectation this year is that Pittsburgh might actually have a chance at the NL Wild Card. A second-half slump hasn't helped matters. It'd take a monumental collapse from either the Padres or Diamondbacks to make Pittsburgh's postseason dream a reality.
-MP
16. Miami Marlins
The Marlins are four games back of an NL Wild Card spot, much like the Cardinals. Unlike St. Louis, Miami plays in a much smaller market. Sandy Alcantara has a team option for 2027, so Miami can keep him around, barring a season-ending lockout. Otto Lopez is one of the best hitters in the National League. The Marlins have pieces. The question remains whether they'll actually keep those players long enough to make a postseason run.
-MP
15. Cleveland Guardians
Cleveland caught fire to climb back into the Central race … only to then drop consecutive series to Toronto and Kansas City before a frustrating four-game split at home against the Tigers. Kids like Angel Genao, Travis Bazzana, Brayan Rocchio, Angel Martinez and Chase DeLauter are trying to hold down the fort offensively around Jose Ramirez, but that’s a tough ask, and there simply isn’t enough trustworthy pitching behind Gavin Williams and Parker Messick. The result is a team that can look plenty interesting but is hard to imagine stringing two or three weeks of great play together. You know, like the Guardians.
–CL
14. St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals have plenty of young assets on the way. Even Chaim Bloom would have to admit (off the record, of course) that this group arrived ahead of schedule. Jordan Walker is a future MVP candidate. JJ Wetherholt, when healthy, could've won NL Rookie of the Year. Even St. Louis' rotation has some young arms who could make an impact as early as next April. They will not make the playoffs in 2026, but the fact we're even discussing it says a whole lot about this coaching staff.
-MP
13. Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto suddenly finds itself among the hotter teams in the AL, taking series from Cleveland and Kansas City this week to climb back into possession of a Wild Card spot (if only barely). An offense that’s frustrated all year has finally woken up a bit, and “a bit” is all you need if you can roll out Dylan Cease, Jose Soriano and (hopefully) Trey Yesavage in a playoff series. Whether the Jays have enough power to survive in October is an open question, but this is an interesting team to monitor entering the home stretch.
–CL
12. Chicago White Sox
The White Sox didn’t take as much advantage as they would’ve liked in a week that featured crucial series against the Astros and Twins. The Guardians don’t seem ready to make them pay in the AL Central standings, but Chicago also has to survive a looming trip to Cleveland, And overall, this has the feel of a team with promising pieces in both the lineup and rotation but without the necessary depth to maintain consistency in the highest-leverage spots. They’ve been middling record-wise for a while now, and at a certain point, that’s just who you are.
–CL
11. San Diego Padres
Uh, what happened to the Padres? San Diego's battle with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final NL Wild Card spot is well-documented. AJ Preller opted to buy at the MLB trade deadline, and not sell off the likes of Mason Miller. On paper, that's great. San Diego is a mid-market team operating like the Dodgers. The Padres are never really out of it, and they responded by taking the final NL Wild Card spot for themselves last week. But...what happens if they lose out? No one wants to talk about that outcome.
-MP
10. Houston Astros
I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but is Houston’s pitching … actually kinda good now? The bullpen has been solid for a while now, and Hunter Brown and Pete Lambert have really stabilized what is at least no longer an outright liability of a starting rotation. All of which is an awfully interesting development for a team that we know will be a fearsome lineup to face come October. It was a bit of a frustrating weekend against Arizona for Joe Espada’s club, but this team is quietly stacking wins and stretching its lead in the AL West.
–CL
9. Arizona Diamondbacks
Sure, the Ketel Marte drama is unpleasant. Marte missed a couple of weeks dealing with...well, we still don't really know. Ken Rosenthal reported a death in the family. It's not just that Marte is missing time, but that he fails to report it to the coaching staff or front office in time. Instead, he doesn't show up to Fenway Park in Boston, despite flying with the team and being on the lineup card. Yet, the boos haven't impacted Marte that much, and he is a tremendous player when healthy. He can get over the September blues, and some playoff wins can cure whatever is ailing Diamondbacks fans.
-MP
8. Boston Red Sox
Boston felt like it was nearing rock bottom, following up a tough weekend in the Bronx with an ugly series loss to the struggling Mariners at Fenway. And yet, as they’ve done all summer, Chad Tracy’s club responded, beating up on the O’s in Baltimore to stay within shouting distance of the Yankees for the top Wild Card spot. The Red Sox are almost certainly destined for a best-of-three series against New York next month, but getting Roman Anthony and Adley Rutschman healthy and on track is a hugely positive sign entering October.
–CL
7. Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies are arguably the best NL Wild Card team — they are certainly in the running for that title as of this writing — but an NL East title is within their reach. Unfortunately, the early division deficit may be too much to overcome. After Ronald Acuña Jr. dunked on Philly Sunday afternoon, I feel like I have to mention it. Philadelphia has a complete team on paper. Dave Dombrowski built an immaculate postseason rotation and a powerful lineup to boot. This could be their last run.
-MP
6. New York Yankees
New York keeps on chugging along despite a depleted offense, in large part thanks to a pitching staff that’s allowed more than three runs just nine times since the start of August. And yet, the Rays’ continued success means they’ll likely have to get through the AL bracket the hard way, and there are still lots of questions around 1) whether they can score enough runs in October and 2) whether a bullpen suddenly relying an awful lot on Paul Blackburn is actually built to last. If Judge is the boost this lineup needs and the pitching stays healthy, they can hang with anyone. But those are some very big ifs.
–CL
5. Chicago Cubs
The Cubs will move up in our power rankings until they face the Brewers. Like clockwork, Chicago had to face Milwaukee at Wrigley this week, and it did not go well. The Brewers are seemingly the only team that has a plan against Pete Crow-Armstrong. The result is ugly, as Chicago's pitching cannot keep the Brewers lineup at bay. Yes, the Cubs are fifth on this list, but the NL postseason is likely to go through Milwaukee. Wrigley north won't be so friendly in the playoffs.
-MP
4. Tampa Bay Rays
Once again, it seemed like the clock might be striking midnight for the Cinderella Rays, who dropped a home series to the Mets and then lost the opener against the Rangers in a game in which Shane McClanahan wound up on the IL due to forearm tightness. But once again, Tampa found a way to get back up, nabbing two straight tight wins to keep the Yankees at arm’s length in what’s arguably baseball’s most competitive division. Will the Rays’ pitching injuries and lack of offensive firepower catch up to them in October? Maybe, but they’ve almost wrapped up the top seed regardless, and they simply know how to win.
–CL
3. Atlanta Braves
The Braves have a couple of statement series against the Phillies. It's important for us, as supposed MLB pundits, to keep those in perspective. That is why the Braves are ranked third despite an impressive comeback victory over the Phillies on Sunday afternoon, in which Ronald Acuña Jr. sent a message directly to everyone at Citizens Bank Park. The Braves can be really good. Their rotation, per usual, gives me the ick.
-MP
2. Los Angeles Dodgers
How can the Dodgers still rank second in our MLB Power Rankings? Oh, do I have bad news for you. Yes, Shohei Ohtani could be IL-bound. The two-way sensation does not look right. Yet, even with Ohtani's injury, the Dodgers have a four-deep postseason rotation and a lineup that could win a World Series on its own. We feel good about Los Angeles no matter if Ohtani can play (or not). That is what makes them so scary.
-MP
1. Milwaukee Brewers
If there is one team that can beat the Dodgers, it is likely the Milwaukee Brewers. These two teams are on a collision course for the NLCS, and if they don't beat themselves in a long, grueling seven-game series (a real possibility), whoever emerges will be the World Series favorite. Jacob Misiorowski is the NL Cy Young favorite for a reason, and has been even better than Tarik Skubal this season. Where the Brewers will be tested in the postseason is their depth, and their endurance.
-MP
Add us as a preferred source on Google