Who is the best team in MLB? Before diving into the MLB schedule, Sportsnaut’s 2023 MLB power rankings take a weekly look across baseball, evaluating all 30 teams and separating them into tiers.
Bookmark this page for weekly updates on the best and worst teams in MLB, carrying you from Opening Day 2023 through the World Series.
What’s the best MLB team right now? Here’s our MLB power rankings at the end of the 2023 regular season.
2023 MLB power rankings: Worst MLB teams this season
30. Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics were the worst MLB team in 2023. It was always expected, the byproduct of the lowest payroll in baseball and an organizational direction that places zero emphasis on being competitive. In terms of positives, Zack Gelof (126 wRC+ in September, 12 home runs since Aug. 1) seems to be a building block for the future.
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29. Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals were bad all year, but the final months of the season at least provided some sources of hope. Bobby Witt Jr. (11 home runs, 20 steals, 132 wRC+) and MJ Melendez (20 RBI, .481 SLG, 126 wRC+) have proven to be the cornerstone that Kansas City can build its lineup around moving forward. Unfortunately, the Royals’ pitching remains awful and Salvador Perez’s trade value has cratered.
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28. Colorado Rockies
It seems unbelievable that a team that has spent over $310 million in payroll over the last two seasons only has a 126-195 record to show for it. Signing Kris Bryant and Jurickson Profar backfired for the Colorado Rockies and this is still by far the worst pitching staff in MLB over the last two seasons. The farm system is nice, but it’s difficult to trust Colorado’s issues with player development. Our long-term forecast for the Rockies isn’t bright.
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27. Los Angeles Angels
The 2023 season was a disaster for the Los Angeles Angels. It started with Artre Moreno turning down $2.5 billion offers for the franchise, robbing this club of desperately needed changes at the highest level. Months later, Los Angeles sacrificed its farm system for half-season rentals that it gave up on after less than a month. To make matters worse, Shohei Ohtani is leaving in free agency and Moreno remains the Angels’ owner moving forward.
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26. Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox at least realized it was time to reset this season and become a seller. As we’ve seen throughout MLB, being too late to realize that can be costly. While the White Sox got the timing right, Chicago seems to have messed up by staying in-house with their new general manager. Perhaps this team can be turned around by 2025, but a general manager with a shaky track record as an evaluator in a club that has its own problems, are major concerns as we head into the winter.
25. Washington Nationals
There’s only one thing the fans are looking forward to this offseason. After delaying a sale during the 2023 season, the Lerner family is now expected to move forward with its process. If the right ownership group can take over and they seriously invest money in player development and international scouting, perhaps the Nationals can be relevant by 2025.
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24. St. Louis Cardinals
While the St. Louis Cardinals might not have been the biggest disappointment in MLB this season, they were in the mix. Unlike clubs like the New York Mets and San Diego Padres, though, there seems to be a chance of the Cardinals’ window closing completely. Trading Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado might be the best thing to do long-term, but no one will be surprised if the Cardinals’ front office uses this offseason to attempt a 2024 run.
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23. New York Mets
The 2023 season was a complete disaster for the New York Mets. Steve Cohen spent more money on a team than anyone in MLB history and nearly $350 million didn’t even get him to a .500 record. Yet, the Mets’ front office correctly changed directions at the trade deadline to overhaul its farm system. With David Stearns now at the helm and plenty of quality starting pitchers available this winter, the Mets could become a contender in 2024.
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22. Cleveland Guardians
The Cleveland Guardians finished the regular season with one of the lowest-scoring lineups in MLB, demonstrating once again that their approach might be broken. It’s great to have an arsenal of pitchers and multiple batters who can post a .270-plus batting average, but all of that is wasted when you have one of the highest left-on-base rates in the majors. Something needs to change in Cleveland.
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21. Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates were 20-9 heading into May. They finished 20 games below .500 for the remainder of the season. On the bright side, Ke’Bryan Hayes (.309 BA, 136 wRC+ since Aug. 1) looks like he could become an All-Star selection next summer. Plus, Pittsburgh still has a very good farm system and more of the young talent will debut in 2024.
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20. Boston Red Sox
Chaim Bloom was part of the problem for the Boston Red Sox. However, it’s also evident that owner John Henry and the Fenway Sports Group used him as a scapegoat. Cutting payroll in recent years has taken a toll on this roster, while also influencing the disastrous Mookie Betts trades and other moves that have backfired. If the organization’s approach doesn’t change, the Red Sox will keep repeating seasons like this one.
Final MLB power rankings: Outlook for Yankees, Padres
19. Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers showed a lot of fight late in the year. Since August 1, Detroit had the ninth-best record (29-24) in baseball with their pitching staff responsible for a 3.83 ERA in 470 innings. Between that and guys like Spencer Torkelson (15 home runs, 134 wRC+ and Kerry Carpenter (.310/.367/.503) playing at All-Star levels in the last two months, it seems like Detroit might be a team to watch in 2024.
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18. San Francisco Giants
Here’s what you need to know about the San Francisco Giants. In the final three months of the season, San Francisco had the worst lineup in MLB (.222/.300/.356, 82 wRC+, 272 runs scored) and there were clearly problems in the clubhouse. In order for the Giants to turn things around, Farhan Zaidi must completely change everything he does. Moving on from skipper Gabe Kapler might be a step towards that, but there’s a lot of work left to do.
17. New York Yankees
A major disappointment for the New York Yankees. Not only did New York miss the postseason for the first time since 2016, it struggled to stay at .500. New York had one of the worst records in MLB since June 1 with the lineup becoming a recurring issue. Perhaps things can be turned around, but we’re not ruling out the Yankees going forward with a youth movement in 2024.
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16. Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds have to view this season as a success, even if it didn’t end how anyone wanted. Christian Encarnacion-Strand looked great in September and Spencer Streer is obviously a long-term piece in the lineup. There’s one thing that has to be noted entering the winter. Elly De La Cruz slashed .198/.288/.352 with a 34.5% strikeout rate in the final two months of the regular season.
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15. San Diego Padres
It’s hard to know exactly what has gone wrong for the San Diego Padres all these years. Already loaded with talent, adding Xander Bogaerts and Seth Lugo somehow made this team worse. San Diego had flashes where it looked like a World Series contender, but the Padres would always follow it up with an ugly week that pushed them back down the standings. Now, after several disappointing years, San Diego plans to slash payroll and that will make free agency way more interesting.
Related: San Diego Padres to drastically slash payroll in 2024
14. Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs looked like a legitimate threat heading into mid-September. Then, everything unraveled. From Sep. 10-30, Chicago went 6-11 as the Miami Marlins (11-7) and Arizona Diamondbacks (9-8) surged past them. It’s a crushing end to the season for the Cubbies, but this is still an improvement after failing to win 75 games in 2021 or ’22.
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13. Seattle Mariners
It just wasn’t quite enough for the Seattle Mariners. They looked like one of the best teams in baseball for the majority of the summer, but two bad stretches proved costly. If not for an awful June (9-15) or a poor month of baseball to close out the season (11-17), Seattle is playoff-bound. Instead, the Mariners’ front office has a long offseason to try and find ways to get this team over the hump.
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2023 MLB power rankings: Ranking playoff teams
12. Miami Marlins
We’ve been skeptical of the Miami Marlins this year. On the one hand, this team entered the weekend ranked 26th in runs scored and 19th in OBP and it didn’t even crack the top 15 for key pitching stats. Yet here the Marlins are in the playoffs. Miami deserves credit, but we’re still going to project an early exit for a ballclub that finished 10 games below .500 against teams with a winning record in 2023.
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11. Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks are postseason-bound for the first time since 2017 and only the second time since 2012. Sure, that ranked 14th in team ERA (4.23) and 13th in runs scored (745) might not have a long shelf life in October, but getting here matters. Led by rookie Corbin Carroll, the Diamondbacks’ future is much brighter than their 2023 championship hopes.
10. Minnesota Twins
We’ll start with the positives for the Minnesota Twins. They are 32-22 since August 1 with a strong 3.86 ERA, including a 3.78 ERA from the starting rotation. Minnesota also finished 11th in OBP (.325) and runs scored (762) in the final two months. Unfortunately, the Twins also have a .500 record versus .500-plus teams this year and that is not a positive sign from a team that benefitted from playing in a weak division.
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9. Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays were fighting for their playoff lives all year. Ultimately, thanks to Texas, Canada gets to experience postseason baseball once again. There’s a lot of talent to love, both in the Blue Jays’ lineup and rotation, but it has rarely translated into consistency. Ranking 15th in runs scored in the last two months of the regular season, Toronto needs its best hitters to step up because the Blue Jays’ rotation (3.77 ERA) has done its part.
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8. Houston Astros
The Houston Astros will be experiencing playoff baseball once again, but it was far too close for comfort. Houston went 12-14 in September, putting them in the same company as the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates. There’s no denying Houston has the lineup to defend its World Series title, but that 4.26 ERA in September, including an ERA of 5-plus from the starting pitchers suggests Houston could have a serious problem when it faces a top lineup.
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7. Texas Rangers
The Texas Rangers are headed back to the playoffs for the first time since 2016. We were skeptical of the Rangers’ lineup coming into the year but they finished as a top-3 lineup in baseball. That would seemingly inspire confidence heading into October. Yet, the injuries to the Rangers’ rotation and a 30-25 record in the last two months with a 4.48 ERA are warning signs of a brief stint in the postseason for Texas.
6. Philadelphia Phillies
It wasn’t always pretty for the Philadelphia Phillies, but the reigning National League champions punched their ticket to the postseason. Philadelphia does have the fourth-most wins in the majors since June 1. Although, a 4.40 ERA in the last 308 innings pitched with a fringe top-10 lineup does raise some questions about whether or not the Phillies even make it back to the NLCS.
5. Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays entered the regular season with expectations that Shane McClanahan, Wander Franco, Brandon Lowe, Drew Rasmussen and Jeffrey Springs would be core contributors for them as World Series contenders. Instead, Tampa Bay made it with reserves, call-ups and the likes of Yandy Diaz and Randy Arozarena leading the way. Just keep the absences in mind as we head into October, especially since Tampa Bay hasn’t been nearly as dominant since its hot start in April.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers
Dating back to August 1, the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup has scored the second-most runs in the majors (322) with an excellent .278/.352/.467 slash line and a 123 wRC+. As for the Dodgers’ bullpen, it posted the lowest ERA (2.11) in September. Yet, our concern with Los Angeles as it heads into the playoffs is the starting rotation with a 4.60 ERA in the last two months of the regular season.
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3. Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers had the second-most wins in September and dominant pitching gets the credit. This past month, the Brewers’ rotation had the lowest ERA (2.74) in the majors with opponents managing just a .193 batting average. The bullpen (2.18 ERA, .196 BAA) was also phenomenal. We do have some concerns regarding Milwaukee’s lineup, but the Dodgers’ pitching injuries and other teams missing key players push Milwaukee up the 2023 MLB power rankings for the playoffs.
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2. Baltimore Orioles
Just a few years ago, the Baltimore Orioles struggled to win 50-plus games in a season. The Orioles were perennially at the bottom of the MLB standings, in a rebuild that felt like it would last forever. Fast forward to 2023, Baltimore is a 100-win team with an AL East crown and young stars leading this team into the playoffs. We doubt Baltimore has the pitching to make it to the World Series, but there’s no denying the regular-season success.
1. Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves finish the regular season at No. 1 in the 2023 MLB power rankings. It’s fitting, the Braves have been the best MLB team in 2023. While Atlanta has gone through some ups-and-downs, it delivered the most consistent stretches of excellence all season. With one of the best lineups in baseball and a strong bullpen, Atlanta is our World Series favorite heading into October.
Statistics via FanGraphs
2023 MLB power rankings FAQ
Who is the best team in Major League Baseball right now?
The Atlanta Braves are the best team in Major League Baseball right now. Entering play on September 30, the Braves led MLB in slugging (.500), OBP (.343), runs scored (933) and batting average (.275).
Which team has the most home runs in 2023?
The Atlanta Braves hit the most home runs in 2023, becoming the only MLB team to hit 300 home runs this season.
Who has the best offense in MLB 2023?
The Atlanta Braves have the best offense in baseball. The Braves have scored the most runs (858) and they lead the majors in batting average, slugging, OBP and OPS.
Who is the worst team in the MLB?
The Oakland Athletics were the worst team in MLB, finishing the season with just 49 wins.
What are the MLB power rankings?
MLB power rankings are evaluations of all 30 teams in Major League Baseball, ranking them from best to worst based on MLB standings, stats, past success and talent.
How are MLB power rankings calculated?
Sportsnaut’s MLB power rankings are calculated by the standings, run differential, preseason expectations, 2023 performance and projections for the remainder of the regular season.