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RotoBaller's Kevin Larson drops his latest MLB Power Rankings. Analysis, insight, and rankings for all 30 MLB teams from worst to first as of July 28, 2025.
MLB Power Rankings: Where Does Every Team Stand?
With the trade deadline coming up on Thursday, every team’s needs have been magnified with their play coming out of the break. And while many teams will be questioning their roster needs, the main question I have on my mind is this: Who actually wants to be the best? It’s a jumbled mess at the top of our rankings with a lot of contenders struggling. But one team is actually playing like they want it all. Who is that team? Let’s find out.
30. Colorado Rockies
The Rockies shipped out Ryan McMahon this week to the New York Yankees and got two pitching prospects in return. It’s a drastic change in front office mentality from seasons past, but it won’t change their trajectory this season. The positive for Colorado right now is the return of Ezequiel Tovar. The Rockies are 5-3 with him active since coming back from an oblique strain that held him out of action for over a month. He didn’t help much in their 18-0 loss to the Orioles on Saturday but this season isn’t about winning anymore for the Rockies.
29. Pittsburgh Pirates
This week should be an interesting one for the Pirates. After taking a weekend series from Arizona, they are likely to use the trade deadline to aim for competitiveness in 2026. Names like Bryan Reynolds and Mitch Keller could be on the move and would give the Pirates a different looking roster heading into August. But that’s likely something Pirates fans would be OK with if it means getting more competitive in future seasons where it doesn’t feel like they’re wasting the talent of Paul Skenes. Expect Pittsburgh to be in plenty of trade conversations this week.
28. Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox have one of the best offenses in the league since the All-Star break. Bet you never thought you’d read a sentence like that this season. Though they couldn’t stop their crosstown rival Cubs this weekend, the White Sox are still 6-3 since the break. That boost in offense certainly doesn’t hurt the trade value of some contributors, such as Luis Robert Jr. Robert has started to find himself after a slow start and will likely be on the move before Thursday’s trade deadline. The Mets and Phillies have shown interest in the slugger and would certainly help their lineups.
27. Washington Nationals
The Nationals aren’t the league’s most competitive team, but they’re feisty enough to still make you have to worry about them a little. That’s evidenced by a 5-4 record since the break. Surprisingly they’re not being led by their stars at the top of the lineup in CJ Abrams and James Wood, rather it’s been Luis Garcia Jr. and Josh Bell that have been their most productive hitters since the break. This definitely helps the trade value of Josh Bell, who’s expected to be moved before the trade deadline. He’ll be one of many Nationals vets that are likely to be moved. Their names may not be the biggest on the market, but they have enough impact players to make them an intriguing team to watch this week.
26. Athletics
Nick Kurtz may have had the game of the year on Friday night, smacking a ridiculous four homers in a game he was 6-6 at the plate. He hasn’t just overtaken the lead for AL Rookie of the Year from his teammate Jacon Wilson; He’s absolutely smashed the door wide open and has a commanding lead now. A’s fans can at least revel in the fact that their young talent is fantastic and the future looks bright. In the meantime, expect them to offload assets like Luis Severino before Thursday’s deadline.
25. Atlanta Braves
The Braves just want this season to be done with. Nearly everything has gone wrong for them at almost every turn. At one point you could explain it as bad luck thanks to a run differential that said they should have been a .500 team. But that’s slowly turned from questionable luck into undeniable reality. And after losing five straight they are only 1.5 games ahead of the Nationals for the worst record in the NL East. They haven’t been that low in the standings since 2016 and are clearly sellers at the deadline. Marcell Ozuna has said he’ll approve any trade that sends him to a team that will give him everyday playing time. His bat has enough power to draw interest from contenders and should be shipped out before the deadline passes.
24. Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore started their sell-off this past weekend by shipping reliever Gregory Soto to the New York Mets. There are likely to be more trades involving the Orioles before the deadline as Ryan O’Hearn and Ramon Laureano are their most likely pieces to be traded. Both bats have been valuable and should attract attention. In the meantime, the Orioles enjoyed a series win over the Rockies this weekend, including an 18-0 clobbering on Saturday night. Maybe too little, too late. But hey, if it helps build confidence for this young roster then that’s a small positive for the rest of the season.
23. Minnesota Twins
It feels like we keep hearing that the Twins aren’t going to trade Joe Ryan. Yet, the trade rumors around the 29-year-old seem to keep swirling. He’s been quoted as saying that he’d prefer to stay. The Twins have to do themselves a favor by listening to offers, but are they going to get anything that sways them enough to depart with their ace? Only time will tell. In the meantime, other Twins have drawn trade interest too. The latest rumor involves the Dodgers being interested in outfielder Harrison Bader. His 109 OPS+ would certainly help a struggling Dodgers lineup. We’ll find out before Thursday if the Twins pull the trigger on any trade with Joe Ryan being the biggest possible prize on their roster.
22. Los Angeles Angels
The Angels’ run at the AL wild card has started to halt a bit. They’re 5 GB after Sunday’s win over the Mariners, but they need a little more going for them if they want to be serious. They’re just 4-6 since the break and it may have pushed them into a sellers market. Rumor is that their players on expiring contracts are available (Yoan Moncada, Luis Rengifo, Tyler Anderson, Kenley Jansen) and that Taylor Ward could be had for the right price. Los Angeles has neglected to sell in the past, but will this season be different? A run at the wild card isn’t unobtainable, but they’re chasing two teams (Seattle, Texas) who have not exactly been struggling and that makes it all the tougher to catch up.
21. Miami Marlins
Miami is 6 GB of the final wild card spot in the National League but the vibes are a bit higher with the fish. Having a nice 4-2 week helps things out, no doubt. It doesn’t change that they will be sellers, though, and longtime Marlin Sandy Alcantara is the most likely name to be moved. Alcantara has not been the same version of himself since recovering from Tommy John surgery. The 2022 NL Cy Young award winner is posting a 6.66 ERA this season, well above what we’re used to from him. That hasn’t stopped a bevy of interest in the 29-year-old, though, as top NL contenders in the Dodgers and Cubs appear motivated. Expect him to land with a contender prior to the deadline where he can hopeful regain shape as a dominant ace.
20. Kansas City Royals
The Royals find themselves in a weird position at the trade deadline and may have indicated twice this weekend that they’re not exactly going to sell. First came a trade on Saturday where they acquired Randal Grichuk from the Arizona Diamondbacks. That move was made to help improve their less-than-impressive stats vs lefties as Grichuk has generally been a platoon bat against lefties in his last couple seasons. The second was news that Seth Lugo may not be traded at the deadline as expected. Kansas City is “showing little interest” in trading away the 35-year-old. So are they going to make a run at the last wild card spot? They’re 4 GB, so it’s not unlikely, but they need to get things rolling to really make themselves serious contenders.
19. Cleveland Guardians
Another AL Central team chasing that last wild card spot, Cleveland may be more likely to trade away some of their assets than Kansas City. One name that’s popped up this week was Steven Kwan, a Cleveland mainstay for the past few seasons who’s now added a bit more power to his bat-to-ball skills. Should Cleveland depart with the 27-year-old it’d be a bit of a surprise, but there’s still a chance he moves before the deadline. Their relievers may draw a bit of interest too. The Guardians’ season has been more or less disrupted by their injury issues and the smart move may be to aim towards 2026 with this deadline.
18. Arizona Diamondbacks
The biggest trade chip this year easily belongs to the Diamondbacks as Eugenio Suarez has been absolutely crushing it with his bat. They’ve started their sell-off already, shipping Randal Grichuk to the Royals on Saturday. Expect there to be a ton of noise around Suarez this week. Rumors heated up a lot in regards to Arizona and Cincinnati getting close to a deal, but nothing has come together as of yet. The Cubs, Tigers and Mariners all would be other potential landing spots for the 34-year-old. Where he will land isn’t fully clear yet, but his value has never been higher and it will be a shock if Arizona can’t move him before the deadline.
17. St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis finds themselves sitting close enough in the wild card chase to consider themselves in it (3.5 GB) but do they actually feel like they’ll be able to grab that spot? They’ve been much more on the sellers side of conversations as of late. Ryan Helsley has been their biggest trade chip so far, but Brendan Donovan’s name popped up this weekend. The All-Star infielder is drawing interest from multiple teams with the Dodgers and Yankees leading the bunch. The Cardinals aren’t likely to deal him, but they’re listening. This signifies that the Cardinals are likely to be sellers this year and may be giving up on the wild card chase. They have quite a few holes they need to fill that aren’t limited to either their rotation or their lineup. Aiming for 2026 may be the better option for St. Louis.
16. San Francisco Giants
The Giants made the first big wave of the trade season this year when they acquired Rafael Devers last month, yet they’re just 13-20 since pulling off that trade. They’re 2.5 GB of the final wild card and have two strong pieces in their rotation with Logan Webb and Robbie Ray. But according to Ken Rosenthal, they’ll be looking to add to that rotation at the deadline. A second baseman is also a need they are targeting. The Giants need to be aggressive in order to pass the Reds and Padres for the final wild card spot. If they can obtain the right pieces, and turn their struggles around, then playoff baseball will return to Oracle Park yet again.
15. Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays may have lost their edge. Once in a strong position in the wild card race, they now sit 3 GB of Seattle and Texas for the final spot. The offense has been underwhelming in July while the pitching staff has a 4.54 ERA in the month. Taj Bradley recently got demoted to Triple-A, leaving an open spot in the Rays’ rotation. That may be something they don’t try and fill as they’re now 6-15 in July and apparently becoming more open to trading Yandy Diaz and Brandon Lowe. Things would need to change drastically over the next three days in their series against the Yankees, but that may not be likely. Tampa finds itself in a tough position headed into the deadline.
14. Cincinnati Reds
Things are looking much brighter for Cincinnati, especially after having swept the aforementioned Tampa Bay Rays this weekend. They’re in the market for additional bats and have been linked to a reunion with Eugenio Suarez, someone who would greatly help the power in their lineup. They’re also in the market for relievers. Having an additional starting pitcher wouldn’t hurt Cincinnati either, but it’s less likely they add there compared to grabbing another bat or two. Having not made the playoffs in a full season since 2013, the Reds would certainly love to return to postseason baseball and bring excitement to Great American Ballpark in October.
13. Texas Rangers
If you squinted your eyes hard enough a few weeks ago you may have been able to see a contender in Texas. Well, the Rangers now are tied for the final AL wild card spot along with Seattle. Texas has kept themselves in the race thanks mainly to their phenomenal pitching staff, but their lineup is starting to turn things around. They have a 110 wRC+ in the month of July which has helped get them to a 15-6 record in July. They have started to move away more from the idea of selling and now are in the market for both a right-handed bat and a high leverage reliever. If Texas gets both of those, and keeps up their winning ways, they’ll be in great position for a wild card spot. And at 4 GB of the Astros, the AL West title isn’t out of the question either.
12. Boston Red Sox
Boston has stumbled out of the gate a bit, posting a 4-5 record since the break. With how hot they entered the All-Star break the expectations may have been higher, but they’ve also had a tough go with the opponents they’ve had to face (Cubs, Phillies, Dodgers). The big trade news with the Red Sox as of late is that they no longer plan to trade Jarren Duran by the deadline, rather that conversation is more likely to take place in the offseason. The Padres were shot down this week when trying to trade for Duran with a trade package centered around Dylan Cease. The Red Sox won’t trade him, but they should still be in the market for a starting pitcher to help stabilize the rotation. They’ve previously been linked to Joe Ryan, but with the Twins becoming less likely to entertain offers for him they’ll need to focus elsewhere.
11. San Diego Padres
Speaking of Dylan Cease, the Padres have apparently listening to offers on and shopping the 29-year-old. They’re in desperate need of an outfielder and catcher help. The hope would be that Cease can help bring back some dynamic help, hence their interest in Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran. But with Boston shutting that option down, they’ll need to pivot elsewhere. They’ve gone .500 since the break and currently hold a one-game lead over the Reds for the final wild card spot. Padres fans can’t be feeling all that easy right now, but the odds are likely that they’ll be involved in at least one big move before the deadline on Thursday.
10. Seattle Mariners
Another team looking to reunite with Eugenio Suarez, the Mariners are in the market for bats. While trying to attack the hot corner, they addressed the other side of the infield by acquiring Josh Naylor from Arizona over the weekend. What’s one more Diamondback to acquire? GM Jerry Dipoto also stated Sunday morning that they will be aggressive in the hunt for high-end relievers. Seattle’s bullpen certainly can use the help. They’re tied with the Rangers for the final AL wild card spot and hopes feel high in Seattle. But Mariners fans know all too well that you can’t count on regular season success so they will want to see every move possible made to improve their chances at postseason success.
9. New York Yankees
A bad slide over the past two months got a bit worse over the weekend when Aaron Judge hit the IL with a right flexor strain. That’s affecting the AL MVP race but Yankee fans have to be much less worried about that. Given the arm issue, Judge likely won’t be spending much time in the outfield once he’s back. With him at DH they’ll likely want to do more to stabilize the outfield. They improved at third base this week by acquiring Ryan McMahon from the Rockies. They also acquired infielder Amed Rosario from the Nationals on Sunday. The latest rumors involve the Yankees looking for starting pitching help given the recent injury to Clarke Schmidt. Expect New York to be heavy in tons of rumors going all the way up to the deadline.
8. Houston Astros
Is anyone on the Astros’ roster safe? That’s how Houston fans have to be feeling when looking at their roster of injured players. They are battered and bruised and barely holding on. While they have been finding some success, there also have been massive lows, such as this weekend’s four-game sweep at the hands of the A’s. Houston is in desperate need of help at nearly all positions. That’s helped them show interest in Twins’ utility man Willi Castro, who’s played all over the diamond for Minnesota. Even if they only acquire Castro, they’ll need a lot more to feel confident about their chances in October.
7. Detroit Tigers
Remember that jumbled mess I mentioned at the beginning of the rankings? This is where it all starts. Detroit has shown throughout the season that they can be the best team in the majors, but they’ve been on a major slide in July. They’re just 2-12 in their last 14 games. They have a wRC+ of 80 in July, second worst in the league. Their pitching staff has a 5.41 ERA, well above what they’ve been doing this season. That only accentuates their need for more starting pitching at the deadline. They’re also going to be in the market for more bats to help get things back rolling. They’re not anywhere close to being in danger of losing a playoff spot, but they desperately need to address their issues before Thursday.
6. Milwaukee Brewers
Brewers fans were letting me have it last week thanks to putting them maybe a bit too low during their 11-game winning streak. I still have my worries about their negative regression and want to see more, but some of the areas they needed help with most may have simply been late additions. A big area I was worried about was pitching. Brandon Woodruff’s return from injury has been better than Milwaukee could have asked for, posting a 2.01 ERA in just over 22 innings. Jacob Misiorowski certainly has a flashy repertoire and is a fantastic watch, though he may be on a pitch count going forward as Milwaukee manages his workload (pulled at just 64 pitches in his start on Tuesday). As far as the deadline goes, Milwaukee has been relatively absent in rumors and may be content with their current roster. We’ll see how that plays out headed into Thursday.
5. Philadelphia Phillies
We mentioned last week that Philadelphia had initially been in the driver’s seat in the NL East but they’ve recently been slacking and now are back to being 1.5 GB of the Mets in the East. They’re 10-10 in July, which isn’t horrible, but hasn’t been enough to outpace New York. All that’s with the offense and pitching both doing relatively well statistically. That will make Philadelphia active in the trade market. They’ve recently been connected to Eugenio Suarez as well with Alec Bohm on the IL. An additional arm in the starting rotation wouldn’t hurt either to help with the postseason with Aaron Nola on the IL, but Philadelphia is more likely to target a bat.
4. New York Mets
Speaking of those Mets, they’ve now won seven games in a row. That’s gotten them the lead in the NL East and puts them in a great position heading down the stretch. They already got their first trade down by acquiring reliever Gregory Soto from the Baltimore Orioles. The more Soto’s you have on the roster the better, right? They’ve also been linked to Luis Robert Jr. of the White Sox, clearly putting them in the buyer’s market on the prowl for bats. Additional starting pitching would be helpful for New York as well given their injury history. Look out for the Mets heading into Thursday’s deadline.
3. Los Angeles Dodgers
Constantly in trade rumors, the Dodgers need to do something to get things back on track. They’re just 8-13 in July, also known as the exact same record as the Colorado Rockies. Both hitting and pitching has severely lacked for the Dodgers in July. They’re still leading the NL West, but they’re just four games ahead of San Diego in the NL West. They’re too good not to get it turned around, but this is a major lull for them. As far as trade rumors go, they’re interested in Harrison Bader from the Twins and Brendan Donovan from the Cardinals. They clearly will be looking for a bat to get the lineup going and may be in the need for additional pitching. They’ll be a team to watch at the deadline, as they usually are.
2. Chicago Cubs
Chicago had a subpar week for the norm they’ve built this season, going 3-3 with a series loss to the Royals and then taking a series from their crosstown rivals over the weekend. As far as needs for the Cubs, they will be in the market for both starting pitching and a third baseman. That makes them a solid landing spot for Eugenio Suarez, yet their name hasn’t popped up anywhere near as often as division rival Cincinnati. Starting pitching will also be a key need for the Cubs, which has them now showing interest in Nationals ace MacKenzie Gore. That will be a hefty price tag to pay if Washington is willing to let him go, but one the Cubs may think is worthy in order to compete in October.
1. Toronto Blue Jays
Our new number one team is the Toronto Blue Jays, AKA the only team over the past couple weeks that’s playing like it actually wants to be the best. They’re on an 8-2 run since the break and have the best record in the majors. The bats have been on fire and the pitching has been very formidable. But if there’s one thing Toronto will need in order to compete in October it’s going to be more reliable starting pitching. They’ve been linked to Padres’ starter Dylan Cease, someone who’d certainly help stabilize that rotation. They’ve also shown interest in Pirates’ starting Mitch Keller. They’ll be on the hunt to improve their pitching. If they do they’ll be in a great spot to compete in October. Toronto is our new number one this week.
