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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 September 8, 2025.
MLB Power Rankings: Where Does Every Team Stand?
If you haven’t been paying attention, the American League wild card race has all of a sudden turned into a chaotic mess that has four teams all within 2.5 games of each other. The National League doesn’t have the same chaos but one team is trying to make it real interesting. And three division races look to be heading down to the wire. It’s heating up in September. Now let’s see where every team stands as we hit the home stretch.
30. Colorado Rockies
One of the few bright spots for the Rockies this season has been Hunter Goodman’s breakout. The catcher has 29 homers on the year, the most homers a Rockies catcher has hit in a single season. It’s a nice silver lining for the Rockies knowing they likely have a special player on their hands. They obviously need quite a few more to be able to be competitive, but for now they can celebrate Goodman’s success.
29. Chicago White Sox
Speaking of bright spots in lost seasons, the White Sox have to be more than happy with what they’re getting from Colson Montgomery. The rookie has hit 18 homers in 53 games. Stretch that out over a full season and that’s a 50+ HR pace. Will he be able to keep that up in 2026 once the league truly has a book on him? Only time will tell. But Chicago at least one bright spot in yet another lost season on the south side.
28. Washington Nationals
It’s not quite as rosy in Washington thanks to second half slides from James Wood and CJ Abrams. They have gotten good production from rookie Daylen Lile, who’s hit for a 135 wRC+ since the All-Star break. He’s been the most productive hitter out of Washington’s regular lineup. Nationals fans will have to hope he can keep this up next year and that James Wood can regain his first half form. If that happens, and Washington can have productive and efficient pitching, there’s a chance they could surprise teams in 2026. But that’s still a ways away and there aren’t many positive signs for their rotation’s future right now.
27. Minnesota Twins
With a 3-7 record in their last 10 games, Minnesota is simply just waiting for their season to be over. They’ve battled consistent injuries in both their lineup and their rotation, making it incredibly hard for them to stay competitive. Pablo Lopez made his return to the rotation this week with six innings of two-run ball. That, along with Luke Keaschall’s continued production in the lineup, has Twins fans thinking maybe next year will be better. But that’s all too common of a thought in Minneapolis.
26. Pittsburgh Pirates
Who cares if the Brewers swept the Pirates this weekend? Pittsburgh swept the Dodgers earlier in the week and that’s what’s really going to matter in their eyes. Pittsburgh is 11-6 in their last 17 games, giving Pirates fans some confidence that maybe things can turn around next year if they put it all together. Most Pirates players have been expecting positive regression and some of that’s being realized. Bryan Reynolds is one of those players and has hit for a 160 wRC+ over the last 14 days. If more of that positive regression is realized then the last few weeks of the season may actually be fun in Pittsburgh.
25. Atlanta Braves
It was a tough week for the Braves with their schedule and the record showed it too. Facing the Cubs and Mariners, both playoff contenders, Atlanta went 2-4. Sunday’s loss got a bit laughable, but they’re not exactly sweating it based off how things have gone for them in 2025. They’ll host the Cubs and Astros this week, a six game stretch that looked incredibly intriguing at the start of the season but now looks a bit dreadful.
24. Miami Marlins
At least it looks like Sandy Alcantara is back. The former Cy Young winner has posted a 3.32 ERA in his last six starts, much improved from who he has been for most of this season. Jakob Marsee continues to fill the void left by Kyle Stowers on offense, helping Miami feel like a solid offensive core could be building for 2026. But the late season fall after getting so close to the wild card still has to sting a bit. The pieces in Miami look like they may be there for competitiveness in the next few seasons, but can they put them all together and stay consistent? That will be the question for Miami in 2026.
23. Los Angeles Angels
Things haven’t quite gone the Angels’ way since the trade deadline when they decided to hold onto some of their key players instead of selling off. Now they must finish the season with assets they could have turned into prospects. Their starting pitching has been a key area holding them back with four of their starters, all throwing 30 innings or more, posting an ERA of 4.40 or worse. That may be good news for playoff contenders as Los Angeles will finish the season with four of their six series being against teams currently in the playoffs. There’s a chance to play spoiler but they’ll need their pitching to improve if they want to ruin someone else’s season.
22. Athletics
The offensive powerhouse type games aren’t slowing down for the A’s any time soon. In each of their three wins this week they scored 10 runs or more. That’s the positive side of A’s baseball right now and is pretty much the only way they’re able to win. If their offense isn’t there then they simply lose. In their three losses this week they only scored more than one run once. It’s not a great spot to be in knowing you need an offensive explosion to win, but the A’s aren’t competing right now so it’s not the worst thing at all. They’ll host Boston and Cincinnati this week in what’s sure to be a plethora of high scoring games.
21. Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles pulled off one of MLB’s most miraculous wins of all-time on Saturday night, coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the bottom of the ninth while being no-hit for 8.2 innings. A Jackson Holliday solo shot broke up Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s no-hitter and the rest is history. Baltimore’s faced an uphill battle all season with injuries ravaging their hopes for this season. But a win like Saturday’s is generational and can build tons of confidence in players for future seasons. Never say never in Baltimore.
20. St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals are heating up. With a 7-3 record in their last 10 games, they’ve gotten themselves to within 4.5 games of the Mets for the final wild card spot in the NL. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, they’re stuck in a group of four teams that are all within 4.5 games and, coincidentally, three of them are also 7-3 in their last 10 games. It has to feel like they just can’t get the break they feel they need. There may be some luck involved too as their offense has been noticeably anemic, yet they somehow have still found a way to win those seven games in their last 10. If they want to make a miraculous run, the offense has to show up now.
19. Cincinnati Reds
The Reds find themselves on the opposite end of the four teams chasing the Mets. While Arizona, San Francisco and St. Louis are hot, Cincinnati is on a slide. They’re 4-6 in their last 10 games. And while they haven’t lost any ground on the Mets, it’s the fact that they’re no longer alone in the chase. A series win over the Mets this weekend should give them confidence that they can catch up, but their remaining schedule is going to test them. They start a nine game road trip this week by heading to San Diego and then the A’s in Sacramento.
18. Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks aren’t finished with yet. A 7-3 run has got them back within shouting distance of the Mets. And the big surprise here is it’s been the pitching that’s driven their success, posting a 3.66 ERA in the last 14 days. They’ve generally been a team that’s thrived with offense due to a lack of pitching so this has been a welcome change. Unfortunately for the DBacks they’ll have to go the rest of the season without Lourdes Gurriel Jr. as he tore his ACL and was place on the injured list this week. The shorthanded DBacks will be on the road this week, starting with an important series in San Francisco on Monday.
17. San Francisco Giants
The last of the four NL teams chasing the Mets, it’s probably the Giants who have the fewest question marks all around. The offense has been blistering hot, hitting for a 156 wRC+ over the last 14 days. They may have started to cool off in St. Louis this weekend, but Giants fans have to hope it’s just a blip in the radar. The pitching has been decent, led by Logan Webb and Justin Verlander (remember him?). Robbie Ray hasn’t been his best self over the last 30 days, throwing to a 5.74 ERA. The Giants will need him to turn it around if they want a chance to catch the Mets. They start a very important series against Arizona on Monday.
16. Tampa Bay Rays
Junior Caminero has been lighting it up with his bat, hitting his 40th and 41st homers of the season this week. His bat had helped the Rays get back into the wild card race in the American League. A sweep over the Mariners to start the week got them within two games, but losing a weekend series to the Guardians has them four games back now. That may come back to haunt them as their remaining schedule shows little relief outside of a couple series. They start this week on the south side of Chicago to face the White Sox and then head on up to Wrigley over the weekend.
15. Cleveland Guardians
The Guardians almost admitted defeat after the deadline thanks to multiple player scandals that put them in a tough situation. Even releasing Carlos Santana to let him go play with a contender seemed to be an admission that they couldn’t make a run. But here they are just 2.5 games back of the Mariners for the final wild card spot. Kyle Manzardo has been leading the Guardians’ offense, posting a 127 wRC+ over the last 14 days. He’s the only Guardian with a wRC+ over 100 in this span, though, and they’ll need all their hitters to show up in order to snag the last wild card spot. They open up this week with a tough four game series against Kansas City.
14. Texas Rangers
If you looked at the Rangers’ lineup now compared to what it was on Opening Day you’d probably think the worst has happened and they’d be on a sinking ship, waiting for the season to end so that it can all finally be over. But that’s not what’s happening at all. They’re now just 1.5 games back of the final AL wild card spot after going 7-3 in their last 10 games. Can they realistically keep this up without so many of their stars in the lineup? We’re about to see just how real they are with Milwaukee coming to town to start the week before a weekend trip to Queens to face the Mets.
13. Kansas City Royals
We still have the Royals above the Rangers, even though the Rangers are ahead of them in the standings, simply because Kansas City doesn’t really have a makeshift lineup. For the most part, they’ve been healthy. That may start to change, though, if Bobby Witt Jr. continues to have back issues. He left Friday’s game against the Twins due to back spasms and didn’t play at all over the next two days. Needless to say, the Royals need him healthy in order to make a run. At 2.0 GB of the Mariners for the final spot in the AL, they need to hope he can play this week. They have a very important week on deck, starting with a four game series in Cleveland followed by a weekend trip to Philadelphia. A week without Witt may be the end of their playoff hopes.
12. Seattle Mariners
The Mariners may have taken out all their frustration from the last two weeks on the Braves Sunday as they exploded for 18 runs and five home runs. This was after another 10-run performance on Saturday. To say they were much needed may be an understatement. Seattle got itself into a bit of a pickle after being so close to the Astros for the AL West lead and then sliding over the past couple weeks. It’s allowed the four teams behind them to have hope and that can be dangerous for the Mariners. After their splashy trade deadline the pressure is on in Seattle to not just make the playoffs, but to make moves in October.
11. New York Mets
As soon as it looked like they may have gotten out of their rut they dug themselves back in a hole. Most of that is due to losing three of four to the Marlins last week, but it’s giving the teams behind them in the wild card race a bit of hope. Not as much as the Mariners are giving their AL foes, but the NL teams at least can think there’s a chance thanks to the Mets inability to step on the gas. They’ve got a four game lead now, but that may look much different after the beginning of this week as they travel to Philly for a four game series that they absolutely need to split at a minimum.
10. Houston Astros
No team may be more thankful for the Mariners’ faults than the Astros. It’s hasn’t quite allowed them to sit comfortably with the AL West lead at 2.5 games, but it has covered up their own faults as of late. Houston’s season has been defined by injuries, but as of the past few weeks they’re starting to get more reinforcements. It still hasn’t amounted to anything dominant from them, though. They’re 22-26 since the All-Star break. A sub-.500 record isn’t what we’re used to from the Astros, but it’s what’s happening right now. Their nine-game road trip continues this week with stops in Toronto and Atlanta. If they don’t want the Mariners to cut into their 2.5 game lead they’re going to have to step it up.
9. Boston Red Sox
Boston salvaged their weekend series in Arizona with a win on Sunday. While they’re not necessarily in danger of losing a playoff spot, it did deliver a bit of a blow to their hopes at winning the AL East. They’re now 3.5 games back of the Blue Jays. Not an insurmountable deficit, but it makes things all that much more difficult. With where they’re at in the standings their best option is likely to simply stay healthy and prep for October. One of their options that needs to get healthy is Wilyer Abreu. He is recovering from a calf injury and may not be back in September, but needs to be healthy in October. His bat can provide a ton of power from the left side of the plate. If he’s healthy, and the rest of Boston’s lineup is too, they can be a surprising force in the playoffs.
8. San Diego Padres
San Diego may want to see if there’s a way to get the Colorado Rockies on their schedule more often so that they can snap out of this funk they’ve got themselves in. Prior to this weekend’s series win over the Rockies they had gone 2-7 in the nine games prior. Luckily for them they’re not in danger of losing their playoff spot but this is not a funk that they want to find themselves in. They start a seven game homestand this week against the Reds, who are going to be fighting for their playoff lives, and then the Rockies come to town. If San Diego wants to get back on the right track they’ll want to look for a 5-2 record this week.
7. New York Yankees
Don’t look now but the Yankees are starting to figure things out again. They’re 10-3 since losing a four game series to the Red Sox and are starting to look like a true threat in October. The lineup has been crushing hitting for a 133 wRC+ over the last 14 days. Trent Grisham and Jazz Chisholm Jr. have been the big power sources, hitting 13 homers between the two in that span. New York is getting hot at the right time, but the true question about them will be if they have enough pitching to get through October. The staff has been very solid over this span, but they need to stay in this form in October if they want to represent the American League in the World Series for the second straight season.
6. Los Angeles Dodgers
So we have to talk about THAT loss. The Dodgers went 1-5 this week, which is already bad enough. But even if they had gone 5-1, nothing could have stung like the loss they suffered on Saturday night. Yoshinobu Yamamoto was working on his third career no-hitter, the first in Major League Baseball, and had made it through 26 outs. But after Jackson Holliday hit a solo shot off him to make it 3-1 the Dodgers called on Blake Treinen and Tanner Scott to record the last out. Ultimately they didn’t record it and it became one of the worse losses in Dodgers history. That’s part of the reason they’re now only one game ahead of the Padres for the NL West lead, something they should be thankful for given San Diego’s recent faults. The NL West is likely to come down to the wire.
5. Chicago Cubs
It’s a pretty good thing that the Cubs are set where they are in the NL playoffs because not much can change their positioning. They got things somewhat corrected recently with series wins over the Rockies and Braves, but they lost a series this weekend to the faltering Nationals. To make things worse Pete Crow-Armstrong fouled a ball off his leg on Saturday and was held out of Sunday’s game and potentially could be out for longer. Their only goal right now is to stay healthy. With a seven game deficit to the Brewers in the NL Central, and a five game cushion in the NL wild card, they’re going nowhere in the standings. So Chicago’s main goal needs to simply be to stay healthy. From there, they can hope their strong offense overcomes their pitching questions in October.
4. Detroit Tigers
It seems like neither the Tigers or Blue Jays want to have the best record in the American League. The Tigers had it recently, but they’re in a bit of a rut going 4-9 in their last 13 games. Is part of that the comfort of controlling the AL Central for basically the entire season? Potentially. But Tigers fans would feel a whole lot better if they could get on a run to end the season. They’ll need to get back on the right track this week but that may be tough as they visit the streaking Yankees in the Bronx.
3. Toronto Blue Jays
Still the best team in the American League, but by a hair. They started this week with a series win against the Cincinnati Reds, much needed with the Yankees and Red Sox hot on their tracks. A weekend series loss to the Yankees didn’t help their cause as they now hold just a 2.5 game lead over New York. The playoffs are clearly within sight for Toronto and the priority needs to be healthy. But they’ll want home field advantage where they can get it, especially with their 45-24 record at the Rogers Centre this season. They’ll look to get back on track at home this week as they host the Astros and the Orioles.
2. Philadelphia Phillies
Maybe a switch flipped after losing Zack Wheeler for the season as Philadelphia has turned on the jets recently, posting a 7-3 record in their last 10 games. They lead the NL East by seven games, so that race is essentially locked up. Their biggest question is going to be just how far they can go in October without Wheeler. He’s been their workhorse on the mound in October and will have to be replaced. Cristopher Sanchez is likely to be the guy Philadelphia calls on, but he only has two starts to his name in the postseason. Regardless, he’s going to be a key piece to any potential success Philly has in the postseason.
1. Milwaukee Brewers
Still at the top and that’s not likely to change for the rest of the season. Milwaukee lost a series to the Phillies to start the week but a weekend sweep against the Pirates helped get them back on track. Brice Turang, William Contreras and Caleb Durbin all have helped drive their success at the plate, each hitting three homers and posting a wRC+ of 160 or greater over the last 14 days. Freddy Peralta has also been dominant on the mound, not allowing a single earned run over his last five starts. In that same span he hasn’t allowed more than three hits. Come October he will be the man that Milwaukee calls on in do-or-die games. If he can stay healthy, and the lineup can stay hot, Milwaukee will be a true threat in October.
