Ranking the 7 best lineups in the National League heading into 2025

It is now the middle of January, and given that teams are still making additions, these power rankings are yet final. However, as they sit, it's essential to remember which teams may have the edge over other teams based on their specific strengths.

This time, we're diving into the best lineups in the National League as they currently appear on paper from a projection standpoint. Let's dive right in with an in-depth analysis of who will be on top and why I expect specific teams to take a step back.

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7. San Diego Padres

Key additions: Nobody impactful, but this team is loaded

After losing out on the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes, the San Diego Padres haven't done much this winter. Still, they possess a potent lineup with an NL sixth-best runs per game mark of 4.67. Bursting onto the scene was rookie sensation Jackson Merrill, who will be an integral part of the team's future. Elsewhere, mainstays Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, and Xander Bogaerts are still in the mix.

Two-time batting champ Luis Arraez will command lead-off duties, with role-players such as Jake Cronenworth to round out a strong top-six in the lineup. San Diego has strengths in all areas of their roster, and their offense should have no problem producing runs at a high clip in 2025. After nearly toppling the Dodgers in the postseason a year ago, it's a reminder that this team is already locked and loaded to win.

6. Chicago Cubs

Key additions: Kyle Tucker

The Chicago Cubs' big offseason move to this point was acquiring superstar Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros. The Cubs have long needed a superstar capable of producing 30 HRs and 100+ RBIs, and they finally have somebody to eclipse that mark for the first time since 2018. Even though the Cubbies were short a bat in 2024, they still produced the seventh-most runs in the NL, which should easily continue in 2025.

Of course, with the addition of Tucker came the subtraction of Cody Bellinger. His season wasn't as great as his Comeback Player of the Year campaign in 2023, but it's still a blow that takes enough away from a team that Tucker alone doesn't catapult them into the top three. That being said, Michael Busch had a solid rookie season, and former top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong started to turn the corner at the end of 2024, accumulating a 154 wRC+ in August.

With Seiya Suzuki, Ian Happ, Nico Hoerner, and Dansby Swanson still in the mix, this team has the upside of the best baseball offenses, but it will require steps forward from its younger players.

5. Atlanta Braves

Key additions: A healthy Ronald Acuna Jr., Ozzie Albies, and Austin Riley.

We shouldn't forget how much of a powerhouse the Atlanta Braves were offensively in 2023. A slew of devastating injuries in 2024 saw them take a step back, but with a healthy Ronald Acuna Jr. coming back into the fold, good things are on the horizon for this colossal sleeping giant. Not only was Acuna on the shelf for most of the season, but Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley got bit by the injury bug in 2024, and the idea of everybody returning healthy should put the league on notice.

We worried about Acuna's knee injury when he returned from an ACL tear. He followed up his 2022 injury season with the first-ever 40/70 season MLB has ever seen. Do you think we should be worried this time? More will be revealed as he makes his way back. Matt Olson will be key to returning to his 2023 version of himself when he launched 54 homers and 139 RBIs. He will need to find some middle ground between his 6.5 WAR in 2023 and the 2.6 mark he had in 2024.

4. Philadelphia Phillies

Key additions: Nobody. They're just good.

The Philadelphia Phillies have been quiet regarding adding another bat to their lineup this winter, but that's because it's a very low priority, given the strength of this offense already. The team added Max Kepler, who's projected to be seventh in the team batting order. Still, things remain mostly the same, with Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, Nicholas Castellanos, and Alec Bohm at the top.

The Phillies were third in the National League in runs per game with 4.80, likely remaining the same in 2025. Steamer projects monster years from both Harper and Schwarber, including a 142 wRC+ from the former, as well as a slugging percentage north of .500. Philly is a team loaded to win now. They should have no problem advancing to the postseason as long as they don't get hit hard by the injury bug.

3. New York Mets

Key additions: Some guy named Soto

The addition of Juan Soto to the Mets instantly put the team in the conversation of having one of the best-projected lineups on paper heading into 2025. I currently have them fourth instead of third on my list because the fallout of losing Pete Alonso creates a hole in this lineup we didn't see coming. Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Alonso are an incredible big three, and I still believe that Alonso should stick with the Mets, where he will succeed most. In the meantime, role players Brandon Nimmo, Jeff Mcneil, Mark Vientos, and others stack this lineup from top to bottom.

Youngsters Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez are looking forward to taking steps forward. If they do, it's easy to envision this team breaking the 5.00 runs per game plateau, and they will need to do so with a rotation that errs on the side of questionable outside of its top three. Still, the Mets should have no problem scoring runs in 2025. Soto takes a lot of pressure off the guys in the middle of the order, and with more protection in the lineup, we should see a spike in production from other players on the team.

2. Arizona Diamondbacks

Key additions: Josh Naylor

The Arizona Diamondbacks had the most runs per game in 2024, with a staggering mark of 5.47. They lost Christian Walker, a key bat in the heart of their order, but replaced him with Josh Naylor, who launched a career-high 31 home runs and 108 RBIs in 2024. Naylor had a much better offensive season than Walker, which gives this team even more upside than it had a season ago.

Let's not forget that Corbin Carroll had a down year, and any bounce-back from him gives this team one of the highest ceilings in baseball. Ketel Marte has quietly been one of the best second basemen in baseball and earned his second All-Star appearance in 2024. This is a potent lineup with a lot of speed that can score runs quickly. Given how stacked the NL West is, it's no surprise they are only number two on this list.

1. Los Angeles Dodgers

Key additions: Brought back Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman

After being the second-best offense in 2024 with a runs-per-game mark of 5.26, I'm giving the top spot to the Dodgers, who should continue to gel in year two of the Shohei Ohtani era. Mostly stealing headlines this winter are the additions of Blake Snell and, more so, Roki Sasaki, but let's not forget: this team's projected starting lineup looks like something you would construct in franchise mode of MLB The Show.

Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez, Max Muncy, and Will Smith lead the way in this stacked lineup that still consists of Michael Conforto, Tommy Edman, and Hyeseong Kim thereafter. 1-9, this team has threats up and down. The top five in their lineup all recorded a wRC+ of 134 or higher in 2024, and there isn't much reason to believe that trend won't continue heading into next season.