MLB Power Rankings: National League Teams Dominate Top 3

Atlanta's reign atop our list continues for the fourth consecutive week, as the Braves narrowly beat out the Dodgers for the No. 1 spot in Week 10.

It was a big week for the National League as the Brewers round out our top three, marking the first time this season that the top three teams have all been from the NL. The Pirates, Phillies and Padres join the trio in our top 10, as the Yankees, Rays, Mariners and Guardians represent the American League in the top 10.

At the other end of the list, the Red Sox, Astros, Royals and Tigers all still rank near the bottom despite coming into the 2026 season with playoff aspirations. Will they be able to overcome their struggles and bounce back?

Our expert panel has ranked every team based on a combination of what we've seen so far and what we already knew going into the 162-game marathon that is a full baseball season. We also asked ESPN MLB experts Buster Olney, Jesse Rogers and Bradford Doolittle to weigh in with an observation for all 30 teams.

Week 9 | Preseason rankings

Record: 42-20

Previous ranking: 1

According to three-year Statcast park factors, Truist Field is a mostly neutral venue in terms of scoring, with a slight tilt toward being a pitchers' park. This season, that tilt toward the moundsmen has become an avalanche. Through the end of May, only three parks saw a lower average run total than the 3.76 figure teams put up in Braves home games. And it's not just because of the Braves' sterling early-season pitching. Atlanta batters averaged 5.97 runs per game on the road during that period, the second-best figure in the majors, while they averaged 4.41 runs per contest, ranking 18th, at home. The road version of Atlanta's offense has hit nearly twice as many homers as the home version. What's up with the wind in Cobb County? -- Doolittle

Record: 40-22

Previous ranking: 2

Justin Wrobleski spun a gem against the Phillies in his last start as he continues to emerge for the Dodgers. He gave up just one run on one hit without walking a batter and struck out a season-high nine. It lowered his ERA to 2.87 after a couple of previous up-and-down outings. It's all part of the growth of the 25-year-old, who features a devastating slider -- opponents are hitting just .169 in at-bats ending in that pitch. Wrobleski has given up one or fewer runs in six starts already this season, giving manager Dave Roberts yet another option on the mound after Wrobleski established himself as a big leaguer last season. -- Rogers

Record: 37-22

Previous ranking: 4

It's pretty rare for a player to be traded twice within eight months, but that's what happened to Kyle Harrison -- creating plenty of reason for regret for the teams that moved him, the Giants and Red Sox. Apparently, however, San Francisco and Boston didn't envision themselves unlocking Harrison's talent in the way the Brewers did: Incredibly, he has allowed just four homers in 11 starts for Milwaukee, and only one to batters 2-9 in opposing lineups. -- Olney

Record: 36-25

Previous ranking: 5

The absence of Aaron Judge , who is being treated for a bone bruise in his shoulder, will only underscore the importance of Ben Rice , who has emerged as an early MVP candidate in the AL. Rice is producing at a pace that projects to more than 40 homers, more than 80 extra-base hits and around 120 runs and 120 RBIs. There has been media speculation that the Yankees might consider shifting Rice to catcher to squeeze Paul Goldschmidt and Giancarlo Stanton into the lineup together, after Stanton is activated from the injured list in two or three weeks. But for now, the team is inclined to leave Rice at first. -- Olney

Record: 36-23

Previous ranking: 3

Shane McClanahan has been exceptional in his return to the Tampa Bay rotation this year after missing all of 2024 and '25. Over his last seven starts he has been utterly dominant, allowing a total of five earned runs. The Rays have been relatively careful in their handling of him, which isn't surprising in light of his injury history. He has not had a start of more than 90 pitches this season, and in spite of all the zeros he has thrown up, he has yet to throw a pitch in the seventh inning of any of his starts. That kind of handling seems likely to continue as Tampa Bay aims to protect McClanahan. -- Olney

Record: 33-30

Previous ranking: 12

Seattle finally woke up from its slumber. In fact, it's the team's lumber that fueled a recent win streak. The Mariners hit 14 home runs over five games, vaulting them to the top of the AL West. There's a good chance they'll stay there considering it's June and no one else in the division is above .500. The power surge last week was widespread, as eight different Mariners hit a home run, led by Julio Rodriguez (three). Seattle might still run away with the division despite a slow start. -- Rogers

Record: 36-27

Previous ranking: 6

May was a banner month for Cleveland, if only because the Royals and Tigers -- the teams that figured to be the Guardians' primary challengers in the division -- went a combined 16-40. Cleveland played well, though, going 18-11 in May, including 10-4 on the road, while establishing itself as the front-runner in the AL Central race. A big part of that success was the rapid acclimation that hyped prospect Travis Bazzana seems to have made to big league pitching. The No. 1 overall pick from the 2024 draft led the Guardians with 32 hits, eight stolen bases and an 0.876 OPS during May. -- Doolittle

Record: 33-28

Previous ranking: 11

It's as if Don Kelly was made from the Aaron Boone mold as a manager. As a player, Kelly -- like Boone -- was known to be incredibly gregarious, highly approachable and easy to talk to for opponents, the media and, yes, umpires. But as manager of the Pirates, Kelly has shown a more fiery side. He's already got three ejections this season, after having four in 124 games last year. "What I've seen from Donnie is that he's got a really strong level of belief in players individually and what they are capable of collectively ... That belief in players comes out during the games sometimes," Pirates general manager Ben Cherington wrote in a text. -- Olney

Record: 32-29

Previous ranking: 9

The formerly flailing Phillies kept their season alive with a terrific May that will always be remembered for one player's excellence. The word "literally" gets thrown around too often, but in this case, it's an apt description for what Cristopher Sanchez did in going the entire month without allowing a run. It was literally perfect. The Phillies' 3.19 ERA in May was fourth best in baseball. If you take Sanchez out of it, the staff ERA was 3.78 -- solid, but middle of the pack. Meanwhile, the Phillies did a tremendous job of holding leads; in games in May in which they held an advantage at some point, they lost a league-low two of them. -- Doolittle

Record: 32-28

Previous ranking: 7

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The nightmare is over for Fernando Tatis Jr ., who finally hit his first home run of the season last week -- in his 59th game. Though the power hasn't been there, Tatis has been an OK contributor to the Padres' offense, which has been sporadic so far this season. His on-base percentage is now up to around .350, and despite just that one home run, his OPS+ is just under 100, which is league average. None of that is great considering his history and contract, but if the best is yet to come for Tatis, then the worst wasn't all bad. Two games after hitting that home run, he had a three-hit day -- so maybe a hot stretch is coming. -- Rogers

Record: 32-29

Previous ranking: 8

The Diamondbacks' bullpen has found its sea legs, propelling them into the playoff race. Holdovers like Ryan Thompson and Kevin Ginkel have been better versions of themselves, while Paul Sewald has regained some of his former closing form. Meanwhile, rookie Brandyn Garcia has been lights out since coming up. After a couple of rough seasons on the mound since making the World Series in 2023, Arizona might be a contender once again. Remember, the Diamondbacks were the last team to beat the Dodgers in the playoffs. Back then, the D-backs did it with pitching. They could have enough again this season -- and we haven't even seen the return of Corbin Burnes yet. -- Rogers

Record: 32-30

Previous ranking: 10

Manager Craig Counsell's rotation ranks 24th in ERA, 29th in average fastball velocity and 20th in strikeouts per nine innings. The production has been greatly affected by injuries to Cade Horton and others, of course, but the clear need for the Cubs leading up to the trade deadline will be starting pitching. Presumably, they'll be sorting through the names emerging in speculation: Tarik Skubal, Sandy Alcantara , Freddy Peralta , Joe Ryan , Robbie Ray , etc. It's worth noting: The Cubs' recent history shows that they aren't willing to make acquisitions high in prospect cost midseason. -- Olney

Record: 33-29

Previous ranking: 18

Coming off one of the most successful months the White Sox have had in years, things are looking up on the South Side. Chicago's 18-10 mark gave it the third-best May winning percentage in MLB, as it ranked fifth in run differential. The White Sox dominated at Rate Field, going 13-3 and averaging six runs per contest. As the season bends toward summer, they face a brutal stretch of their schedule in the coming weeks. After three games at Minnesota, the White Sox visit the Phillies, return home for back-to-back series against the Braves and Dodgers, then head out for three games at Yankee Stadium. Are the White Sox for real? Chances are we'll know the answer to that three weeks from now. -- Doolittle

Record: 32-28

Previous ranking: 13

Jordan Walker and JJ Wetherholt have been the headliners for the Cardinals' lineup this season, but others are having good years as well. Alec Burleson has an on-base percentage of .352, and Ivan Herrera has mustered 1.8 WAR in the first chunk of the season. As surprising as St. Louis playing over .500 into June has been, rival executives don't anticipate the Cardinals aggressively adding before the Aug. 3 trade deadline, even though they could use more offense among the outfielders and at third base. -- Olney

Record: 29-33

Previous ranking: 15

Louis Varland is a strong candidate to be part of the AL All-Star team after saving Toronto's bullpen in the first months of the regular season. With Jeff Hoffman struggling, Varland has helped to plug the closer's role with a dominant campaign so far -- just one earned run allowed in 31 innings, with nine walks and 42 strikeouts. Incredibly, he has not allowed a home run this season. He is a major reason the Jays have been able to hang on in the AL East race. -- Olney

Record: 30-32

Previous ranking: 21

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Closing in on his 38th birthday, Jacob deGrom turned back the clock once again, dazzling over five shutout innings against the Cardinals on Monday. He gave up four hits and a walk while striking out eight. It earned him his 100th career win, which seems strange for someone with so much talent who has been around since 2014. We know that his injury history has held him back from more success -- though not lately. DeGrom made 30 starts last year to go along with 12 so far this season. His career 2.61 ERA tells his story more than wins and losses do. He's a big reason the Rangers are even close in a down AL West. -- Rogers

Record: 30-31

Previous ranking: 16

Perhaps Brent Rooker is coming out of his seasonlong struggles at the plate. He has been gobbling up hits after an 0-for-14 stretch helped his batting average drop to .189 last week. But then he had a two-hit day and a home run in a loss against the Yankees, which also came with some better at-bats. Rooker's average exit veloc

_Originally reported by [ESPN](https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/48947631/mlb-2026-power-rankings-week-10-dodgers-braves-brewers-yankees-mariners)._