Matt Johnson
Who is the best team in MLB? The Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Yankees, and Atlanta Braves have largely proven themselves to be the best MLB teams in 2026. What is more interesting is everything going on behind them, with plenty of playoff hopefuls either trying to stay afloat through injuries or grasping for momentum.
Let’s dive into our latest MLB power rankings. All MLB stats are as of play beginning on Friday, June 19.
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (Previously: 2)
The Los Angeles Dodgers reclaim their spot atop the MLB power rankings. What is scary is the fact that this roster is not even close to healthy yet. Los Angeles rebounded from its lost series in Chicago by sweeping the Rays at Dodger Stadium. Up next, Los Angeles gets to take on the slumping Orioles followed by a trip to Minnesota. The back-to-back World Series champions are the best team in baseball already and everyone knows acquisitions at the trade deadline will only make this team scarier.
2. Milwaukee Brewers (3)
The Milwaukee Brewers have already proven they can go toe-to-toe with the Dodgers and now they have that same chance this weekend against the Atlanta Braves. Any opportunity to watch Jacob Misiorowski feels like a gift from the baseball gods and with the way Jackson Chourio is hitting as of late, seeing him swing a bat feels the same way. Kudos to the Brewers front office for constructing a roster, with young reinforcements now coming up, that is positioning Milwaukee as a viable threat to Los Angeles.
3. Atlanta Braves (1)
This is the first time in weeks that the Atlanta Braves are dropping in our MLB power rankings. It comes at a time when Ronald Acuña Jr. (hamstring) faces an uncertain timeline for his return and Spencer Strider is on the 60-day injured list. Even amid all the injuries, Atlanta is keeping itself very comfortable near the top of the National League. We are just concerned that the timing is particularly poor for the Braves ahead of this weekend’s must-see series versus the Brewers.
4. New York Yankees (5)
The New York Yankees lineup has done some remarkable work since the Aaron Judge injury, actually averaging more runs per game without him (5.42) than with him (5.17). Mind you, that is with Giancarlo Stanton on the injured list indefinitely. New York might not be on the same tier as the Dodgers among the best MLB teams right now, but just a few summer acquisitions can firmly establish the Yankees as the clear-cut team to beat in the American League with a distant gap to second.
5. Philadelphia Phillies (4)
The Philadelphia Phillies were as patient with Andrew Painter as a contender can be. However, the plug had to be pulled on the young hurler after another disastrous outing. Add a No. 5 starter to the list of priorities for the front office at the MLB trade deadline. We expect an aggressive approach, one that positions Philadelphia to at least have a shot at reaching the NLCS.
6. Chicago White Sox (6)
It is still remarkable to see what the Chicago White Sox are doing this year. The trip to Yankee Stadium obviously did not go well, but Chicago had just taken the series against the Dodgers right before that. Plus, the upcoming White Sox schedule—Tigers, Guardians, Royals, and Orioles—bodes very well for this team potentially being seven-plus games above .500 by July 1. Who could have predicted that at the beginning of the year?
7. Cleveland Guardians (8)
After getting swept by the Dodgers, the Tampa Bay Rays fell to 5-10 this month. That is the same record as the Reds, tying for the second-worst mark in MLB this month. It always felt like the Rays roster just was not quite good enough to sustain their early-season run, and we have really seen signs in recent weeks of all that coming to fruition.
8. Tampa Bay Rays (7)
After getting swept by the Dodgers, the Tampa Bay Rays fell to 5-10 this month. That is the same record as the Reds, tying for the second-worst mark in MLB this month. It always felt like the Rays roster just was not quite good enough to sustain their early-season run, and we have really seen signs in recent weeks of all that coming to fruition.
9. St. Louis Cardinals (10)
Have the St. Louis Cardinals been great in June? No. Yet, a 9-7 record this month entering the weekend still ties for the fifth-most wins. The pitching, given expectations coming into the year, has been solid, and the young bats are demonstrating they can make adjustments to major-league pitching. Other clubs ranked lower than this will probably rise above St. Louis in the weeks to come, but we have to commend the young Cards for never falling apart thus far.
10. Washington Nationals (13)
Who would have thought coming into the year that the Washington Nationals would be one of the 10 best MLB teams in 2026? Washington’s recipe for success certainly is not typical for a club we would buy into. With that said, how can you ignore a Nationals lineup that leads MLB in runs scored (407) and slugs the baseball better than almost anyone? We just now want to see the front office add starting pitching, because that (13 quality starts, second-fewest in MLB) is the anchor that is preventing this club from reaching even further heights.
11. Seattle Mariners (9)
The San Diego Padres plummeted in our MLB power rankings last week because they’ve effectively been in a month-long slump. It also didn’t help that, statistically, the Padres lineup was the worst in MLB this season. The pitching (3.31 ERA) during the last 11 games still pushed the team to a 6-5 mark, so perhaps there is a path to San Diego buying at the trade deadline and still snagging a Wild Card spot.
12. San Diego Padres (19)
The San Diego Padres plummeted in our MLB power rankings last week because they’ve effectively been in a month-long slump. It also didn’t help that, statistically, the Padres lineup was the worst in MLB this season. The pitching (3.31 ERA) during the last 11 games still pushed the team to a 6-5 mark, so perhaps there is a path to San Diego buying at the trade deadline and still snagging a Wild Card spot.
13. Toronto Blue Jays (16)
All of Canada continues to rally behind the Toronto Blue Jays, as evidenced by the early voting results for the 2026 MLB All-Star Game. Just imagine what that support would look like if this team gets back on track. The reigning AL champions swept the Red Sox this week and now get to take on the slumping Cubs before a seven-game homestand versus the Astros and Rangers. There’s hope in Toronto, and that’s been missing.
14. Chicago Cubs (13)
After such a promising start to the year, Moises Ballesteros fell into an ugly slump. That’s a representation of the Chicago Cubs, too. There was once a time in early May when this club sat well above .500, performing like a World Series threat even amid injuries to the rotation. Unfortunately, a lack of pitching quantity and quality catches up to you. The Blue Jays (June 19-21), Mets (June 22-25), Brewers (June 26-28) and Padres (June 29-July 1) are looming, and we think there’s a real chance Chicago has a losing record by July 1.
15. Arizona Diamondbacks (15)
There are stretches where the Arizona Diamondbacks certainly look like a playoff-caliber team. At the very least this week, they once again showed they can beat the teams they’re supposed to. Bordering on the .500 line, Arizona is going to need either Geraldo Perdomo to recapture his 2025 form or it needs to hope that Jordan Lawlar can stay healthy to provide Corbin Carroll and Ketel Marte with additional support in the lineup.
16. Miami Marlins (18)
Here comes the surging Miami Marlins. Max Meyer (2.75 ERA and 1.12 WHIP) has been utterly sensational this season, taking Sandy Alcantara’s place as the ace of the rotation. It gets even better for Miami, as Eury Perez is nearing a return to the Marlins rotation. That’s added momentum for a team that is steadily climbing its way back to .500 and potentially even into the territory of buying conservatively at the trade deadline.
17. Sacramento Athletics (17)
Another week with more of the same for the Sacramento Athletics. There are flashes of a good baseball team, like the 11-2 win over the Pirates. But then the A’s falter, largely because of a bad pitching staff. A win streak is probably on the horizon, but that has a lot to do with facing two of the worst teams in MLB (Angels and Giants).
18. Pittsburgh Pirates (12)
The up-and-down Pittsburgh Pirates are starting to experience the downs more frequently. Midseason tests against the Braves, Dodgers and Marlins all went poorly and raised questions regarding whether this club has the longevity to compete for a playoff spot. We admire a competitive team that can float around the .500 mark, but now that the Pirates are here, the next thing is wanting to see consistency with victories.
19. Texas Rangers (11)
Progress can be undone so quickly, as evidenced by the Texas Rangers plummeting in our MLB power rankings. A five-game win streak early in the month lifted Texas to a 30-31 mark. The club has gone 5-8 since then. If Texas cannot handle its business to close out the month, the front office faces a very complicated decision later this summer.
20. Baltimore Orioles (20)
A small glimmer of hope we have had for the Baltimore Orioles to turn it around is fading again. They arrive in Los Angeles for a six-game trip against the Dodgers and Angels with a 35-41 mark, having lost consecutive series. The pitching (4.54 ERA, 23rd in MLB) simply is not good enough to overcome an Orioles lineup that has youngsters Gunnar Henderson, Coby Mayo, and Jackson Holliday all wildly underperforming.
21. Houston Astros (24)
Hunter Brown is back in the Houston Astros rotation. He’ll be rejoined next week by Cristian Javier, and fellow starters Ronel Blanco and Lance McCullers Jr. are just a few weeks behind that. Is there going to be a complete in-season turnaround for the Houston Astros? Maybe not. With that said, this club was 11 games under .500 in late May and now it’s just an extended winning streak away from a winning record.
22. Minnesota Twins (25)
Credit to Byron Buxton and the Minnesota Twins. Expectations were quite low for this club nationally coming into the season, but this team is performing relatively well even with injuries hitting their rotation throughout the early season. Sweeping the Rangers certainly doesn’t suggest that Minnesota should act on impulse and consider itself a Wild Card threat, but it’s at least a period where fans can appreciate a competitive, fun team.
23. New York Mets (23)
The good news for the New York Mets is that Francisco Lindor is close to returning. Unfortunately, this ball club is still seven games below .500 and it just lost starting pitcher Christian Scott to the injured list. Pretty much everything that could go wrong at Citi Field this season has. While we admire that president of baseball operations David Stearns wants to be a buyer this summer, that is hard to justify when the roster you have assembled ranks 28th in OBP and slugging and your rotation is 26th in quality starts (17).
24. Cincinnati Reds (21)
The Cincinnati Reds looked so promising early in the year, jumping out to a 20-11 mark entering play on May 1. They have the third-worst record in baseball (15-27) over the last two months, in part thanks to Nick Lodolo’s return and a struggling pitching staff (5.13 ERA). While Cincinnati is “only” three games below the .500 line right now, the team we have seen on the field in the last two months does not warrant the front office sacrificing prospect depth to improve the roster this summer.
25. San Francisco Giants (28)
The MLB trade rumors come out about a potential fire sale and the San Francisco Giants start winning a few more games, creating unneeded controversy. We will focus on the positive for San Francisco: Bryce Eldridge (.962 OPS) is becoming the cornerstone hitter at 21 years old that this franchise desperately needs. If Buster Posey can find a way to just get off one of the albatross contracts he is responsible for—Willy Adames, Matt Chapman and Rafael Devers—perhaps there is hope for the future, especially with what is going on in the minor leagues with player development.
26. Kansas City Royals (26)
Baseball can be cruel sometimes. It is already been a disappointing year for the Kansas City Royals, one that suggests this team is multiple years away from playoff contention. The glimmer of hope was the chance at Bobby Witt Jr. earning American League MVP. Now that single light is flickering with the All-Star shortstop heading for additional testing on his right knee injury.
27. Detroit Tigers (22)
Tarik Skubal rejoined the Detroit Tigers on June 13, a 3-1 loss to the Guardians. The club is now 2-5 in its last seven games, dropping to 14 games below .500, and all of this comes before a stretch against the White Sox and Yankees. Skubal effectively gave the team an ultimatum earlier this week and given how the club is performing, shipping off the two-time AL Cy Young Award winner this summer is the front office’s only option.
28. Los Angeles Angels (29)
Time is a flat circle. The Los Angeles Angels are one of the worst teams this season, Mike Trout is on the injured list and the pitching staff has been abysmal. It is pretty much the same story every year for a club that hasn’t won 78-plus games in eight years and has no bright future to speak of. The Halos have lived at rock-bottom for what feels like a decade and we cannot find a single reason to believe anything changes before Trout walks away from baseball.
29. Boston Red Sox (27)
It might be time for the fan base to send a message to the Fenway Sports Group and John Henry. An ugly start to the season for the Boston Red Sox has spiraled even further, with this club firmly establishing itself as one of the worst MLB teams in 2026. Trading away talent at the trade deadline—Aroldis Chapman, Willson Contreras and Jarren Duran—is obviously the right answer. What we wonder is when the fans stop showing up to the ballpark, because what the Fenway Sports Group has put on the field does not warrant support nor money from the city.
30. Colorado Rockies (30)
The Colorado Rockies are the worst team in baseball and one of just two clubs that entered the weekend without 30 wins on the season. Selling at the trade deadline is the obvious move and there should be interest in the likes of Willi Castro (.762 OPS) and Jake McCarthy (.777 OPS), but we cannot fathom how this club will look even worse post-July when it moves some of its top hitters.
