Be careful Yankees … the American League East is heating up.
New York has seen its division lead be completely erased because it’s now tied with the Blue Jays atop the division with the Rays only a half-game again. Each Toronto and Tampa Bay reached their highest rankings of the season this week at 10 and 7, respectively, whereas the Yankees maintain quick at No. 6.
Elsewhere within the AL, the Astros have steadily moved up our checklist to No. 4, additionally their highest rating of the season, after having ranked seventeenth as just lately as mid-Could. Houston has ridden its momentum to a seven-game lead over the Mariners, who’ve fallen to 14th after peaking at No. 8 in early June, within the AL West.
What is going to the following week and a half earlier than the All-Star break convey?
Our skilled panel has ranked each group primarily based on a mix of what we have seen to date and what we already knew going into the 162-game marathon that may be a full baseball season. We additionally requested ESPN MLB consultants David Schoenfield, Alden Gonzalez and Bradford Doolittle to weigh in with an remark for all 30 groups.
Week 13 | Preseason rankings
Document: 55-32
Earlier rating: 1
It isn’t simply that Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow have but to rejoin the rotation. It isn’t simply that Shohei Ohtani is stretched out to solely a few innings. It isn’t simply that Michael Kopech joined 11 different pitchers by touchdown on the injured checklist Tuesday. It is that the Dodgers stay on the high of the standings even whereas getting little or no from two of their most essential offensive contributors. Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts mixed to slash simply .221/.293/.303 within the month of June. The Dodgers — with their rotation shorthanded, their bullpen in flux and the highest of their lineup compromised — went 17-10 in June regardless. — Gonzalez
Document: 54-33
Earlier rating: 2
The legend of Tarik Skubal grows with every outing. When Skubal struck out 13 Twins over seven innings Sunday, it was the second time this season he has struck out that many hitters whereas throwing underneath 100 pitches. He additionally did it as soon as final 12 months. Baseball-Reference has pitch information largely full courting to 1988, and in that point, Skubal is one in all solely 4 pitchers to have three or extra such video games. Jacob deGrom has performed it 5 instances, and Freddy Peralta and Gerrit Cole are additionally at three. Skubal is as environment friendly as he’s dominant. — Doolittle
Document: 51-36
Earlier rating: 3
There have been 103 pitchers in June who threw not less than 25 innings. They mixed for a 3.76 ERA, giving up 1,261 earned runs within the combination. Solely two of these earned runs got up by Zack Wheeler, who had a 0.58 ERA over 31 innings in 5 June begins. There is a half-season to go, however Wheeler has moved into place to lastly earn his first Cy Younger Award after his second profession second-place end in final season’s balloting. The Phillies have not had a Cy Younger winner since Roy Halladay in 2010, who in flip was the primary Philadelphia Cy Younger winner for the reason that Eighties. — Doolittle
Document: 52-34
Earlier rating: 5
What was most spectacular in regards to the Astros’ surge — going 19-7 in June behind dominant pitching and dynamic performances from the likes of Jeremy Peña and Isaac Paredes — was that they did it with out Yordan Alvarez. That should proceed. On Tuesday, simply days earlier than the Astros have been on the brink of activate him off the injured checklist, Alvarez suffered a second setback in his restoration from a fracture in his proper hand. He was on the group’s spring coaching facility in Florida and reported that his hand felt sore after some swinging drills. He’ll now go see a hand specialist. The Astros can solely hope for excellent news. — Gonzalez
Document: 51-35
Earlier rating: 4
Matthew Boyd continues to make a push for an All-Star choice, beating Cleveland — the group that gave him an opportunity late final season to make a comeback after Tommy John surgical procedure in 2023 — on Tuesday with a powerful seven innings to enhance to 8-3 with a 2.65 ERA. He has lowered his ERA to 1.66 over his previous seven outings. With Justin Steele out for the season and Shota Imanaga simply again after sitting out seven weeks, Boyd has been the one regular presence within the Cubs’ rotation. He has already pitched his most innings since 2019. Now the Cubs will search for some rotation assist for him. — Schoenfield
Document: 48-38
Earlier rating: 6
The Yankees completed 13-14 in June, because the offense continued to stumble. After an .829 in OPS in April, it fell to .792 in Could and .718 in June. Aaron Decide nonetheless hit 9 dwelling runs and had a .967 OPS in June, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. was terrific with a .318 common, seven dwelling runs and 19 RBIs. However Paul Goldschmidt hit .143, Ben Rice hit .181 and Trent Grisham hit .229 with solely two dwelling runs. All three had been pink sizzling to start the season, serving to to again up Decide early. Let’s have a look at if the Yankees look so as to add a bat on the commerce deadline. — Schoenfield
Document: 48-39
Earlier rating: 9
Junior Caminero is having fairly the season. With 21 dwelling runs, he has an opportunity to develop into solely the third participant in his age-21 season to hit 40 dwelling runs, matching Eddie Mathews (47 in 1953) and Ronald Acuña Jr. (41 in 2019). He is additionally chasing a extra doubtful file: Jim Rice’s single-season file of 36 double performs grounded into (Caminero is already at 22). Caminero’s strikeout-to-walk ratio improved in June, which bodes nicely for him persevering with to mash within the second half. After a 26-6 ratio in April and 17-3 in Could, it was 18-11 in June. Keep in mind, that is his first full season within the majors. — Schoenfield
Document: 48-38
Earlier rating: 10
Brandon Woodruff will rejoin the rotation this weekend in Miami to make his first MLB begin since September 2023, when he injured his shoulder. Woodruff made 10 begins in his rehab project, a stretch that included a few setbacks when he sustained an ankle harm and was then struck by a line drive. His most up-to-date rehab begin Sunday had been his first since June 3 and he gave up 4 runs with just one strikeout in 3⅔ innings, throwing 82 pitches and topping out at 95.4 mph (averaging 93 on his fastball). Milwaukee’s rotation has eclipsed expectations, however Woodruff can be an enormous increase if he is near what he was pre-injury. — Schoenfield
Document: 49-38
Earlier rating: 7
The Mets’ stoop has deepened to the purpose the place it has modified the group’s aggressive context. On June 12, the Mets beat Washington, extending their successful streak to 6 video games and going 21 video games over .500. They held a three-game edge over the Cubs for the Nationwide League’s high mark. Then New York dropped 14 of 18. Immediately, the Mets have been main a detailed and crowded NL wild-card derby, solely a few video games from dropping out of the playoff image altogether. Evidently, issues are getting irritating at Citi Area. — Doolittle
Document: 48-38
Earlier rating: 14
Alejandro Kirk is taking part in his greatest baseball since he began the 2022 All-Star Recreation. He hit .285 that season with a 127 OPS+ however fell off to a 92 OPS+ in every of the previous two seasons. However he hit .365 in Could and .337 in June and could be on his strategy to a Gold Glove Award. He leads all catchers in Statcast’s catcher framing runs and has a caught-stealing fee above the MLB common. He trails solely Cal Raleigh and Will Smith in catcher WAR by way of FanGraphs. The Blue Jays have by no means had a two-time All-Star catcher, as Kirk, John Buck, Russell Martin and Ernie Whitt every have one choice. — Schoenfield
Document: 47-41
Earlier rating: 11
Sonny Grey threw an absolute gem final Friday, a nine-inning one-hit shutout with 11 strikeouts and no walks to beat the Guardians. The sport rating of 96 was a profession excessive for Grey and tied a Tarik Skubal begin for greatest within the majors in 2025. Certainly, it was top-of-the-line begins for a Cardinals pitcher for the reason that division period started in 1969. Shelby Miller had a 98 in 2013 (9 IP, 1 H, 13 SO) and Jaime Garcia had a 97 in 2016 (9 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 13 SO). Jose DeLeon has the very best since 1969 with a 103, which got here when he pitched 11 innings in 1989. — Schoenfield
Document: 46-40
Earlier rating: 12
The Padres completed the month of June with a dropping file — largely as a consequence of their offense, which posted the sixth-lowest OPS and scored the fourth-fewest runs per sport. Fernando Tatis Jr. slumped fairly badly, and Jackson Merrill did not produce a single dwelling run, however these two are certain to get sizzling once more. The most important downside — one basic supervisor A.J. Preller is motivated to repair earlier than the commerce deadline — is the underside of the Padres’ lineup. The Nos. 7, 8 and 9 hitters mixed to provide a .196/.280/.293 slash line final month. — Gonzalez
Document: 46-41
Earlier rating: 8
When the Giants beat the Dodgers on June 13, they have been 12 video games above .500 and tied for first place within the Nationwide League West. They’ve since misplaced 12 of 17 video games — together with seven of their previous 9 — and are abruptly combating simply to stay related heading into the commerce deadline. On Tuesday, president of baseball operations Buster Posey picked up supervisor Bob Melvin’s 2026 choice and, in mild of the latest stretch, defended the teaching employees, telling reporters: “If anyone deserves any blame from the highest, it needs to be on me.” — Gonzalez
Document: 45-41
Earlier rating: 13
Cal Raleigh is already one dwelling run away from equaling the profession excessive he set final season — in 68 fewer video games. If he manages not less than two dwelling runs within the Mariners’ subsequent 10 video games — a powerful chance, given that he’s averaging a house run each three video games — he might be one in all seven gamers ever to achieve 35 earlier than the All-Star break. None of them have been switch-hitters. And none of them, in fact, have been catchers. Earlier than Raleigh, probably the most dwelling runs a catcher had collected earlier than the All-Star break was 28, by Johnny Bench in 1970. — Gonzalez
Document: 45-42
Earlier rating: 15
Spencer Steer’s three-homer sport propelled him to NL Participant of the Week honors. His bat getting going might be essential for an offense in search of extra constant firepower from somebody moreover Elly De La Cruz. Steer hit .174 in April and .270 in Could, with solely two dwelling runs every month. He hit .302 with 5 dwelling runs in June. Matt McLain additionally obtained it stepping into June after hitting underneath .200 every of the primary two months. The Reds have additionally struggled in opposition to left-handed pitchers, one more reason they want these two right-handed bats to maintain bettering within the second half. — Schoenfield
Document: 43-43
Earlier rating: 16
The month of June was a curler coaster of highs and lows for the D-backs. It started with 4 straight wins, then three straight losses, 5 straight wins, then three straight losses, three straight wins and, shortly thereafter, 4 straight losses. By the top of it, executives from contending groups have been calling D-backs basic supervisor Mike Hazen, questioning if he’d be keen to commerce off a few of his pending free brokers, a listing headlined by Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eugenio Suarez and Josh Naylor. Hazen knowledgeable them he’s not prepared to surrender on the 2025 season. Barring a sudden, greater drop-off, that mindset ought to proceed. — Gonzalez
Document: 43-44
Earlier rating: 20
The Rangers mainly proceed to tread water, with their offense nonetheless lagging behind their pitching employees. However one constructive has emerged of late: Marcus Semien appears as if he would possibly lastly be again on observe. The Rangers’ second baseman was slashing .193/.278/.257 on the finish of Could. Since then, his slash line is as much as .321/.387/.560, with 13 walks to 16 strikeouts. The offense generally, although, continues to lag behind. The Rangers have put up a .710 OPS for the reason that begin of June, 10 factors under the league common. — Gonzalez
Document: 41-44
Earlier rating: 18
A six-game dropping streak dropped the Pink Sox underneath .500, and although the offense rebounded with 15-1 and 13-6 wins over the Blue Jays and Reds, Boston might want to determine what to do with Walker Buehler within the rotation. His ERA is now 6.45 after giving up 32 runs in 26 innings over his previous six begins, together with pitching fewer than 5 innings in 4 of the previous 5. Kyle Harrison, the important thing return within the Rafael Devers commerce, may very well be an choice; though, in his first Triple-A begin for the Pink Sox, he gave up eight hits and 4 runs in 4 innings. — Schoenfield
Document: 39-46
Earlier rating: 19
Because the season strikes past its pure midway mark, the Braves proceed to point out little indication that they’re about to shake off their seasonlong stupor. In actual fact, they fell behind the red-hot Marlins within the division after dropping their first sport of July and are nearer to the last-place Nationals than they’re to playoff competition. Regardless of the stellar return to motion by Ronald Acuna Jr., the offense hasn’t been supercharged by his presence. His season debut was Could 23, when the Braves averaged 4.12 in runs per sport, rating 18th. Since then, Atlanta has scored 4.02 runs per contest, rating twenty fifth. — Doolittle
Document: 40-44
Earlier rating: 17
Because the Guardians attempt to resuscitate an more and more lackluster season, shortstop Brayan Rocchio has been recalled, ending a six-week exile to Triple-A. Rocchio made a run at a Gold Glove final season, partially offsetting a 76 OPS+ on the plate, however this 12 months the defensive metrics have been down and the OPS cratered at 21 OPS+. He was summoned again to the majors after Gabriel Arias was injured, however Rocchio had been doing nicely within the minors, hitting .252/.353/.484 with seven homers and 7 steals over 41 video games for Columbus. The Guardians may actually use a few of that on the huge league stage. — Doolittle
Document: 42-43
Earlier rating: 22
Jo Adell was a No. 10 pick of highschool throughout the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season and debuted within the majors at 21 years outdated. His energy, arm energy and pace made many consider he was destined for greatness. Then the strikeouts piled up, the baserunning blunders manifested and the protection appeared poor. By the top of the 2024 season, Adell was a .211/.268/.381 hitter in 308 video games within the huge leagues. The primary month-plus of 2025 wasn’t significantly better. After which, it appears, one thing clicked. Since Could 21, Adell is slashing .295/.381/.628 with 13 dwelling runs in 37 video games. At age 26, possibly he has simply now figured it out. — Gonzalez
Document: 41-45
Earlier rating: 23
Because the Twins tread water within the tepid AL wild-card race, together with many of the remainder of the league, issues are trying up round their infield. Royce Lewis is again from his newest harm, slotting in at third base. Brooks Lee, who began for many of the second half of June at Lewis’ hot-corner spot, is coming off a giant month. And rookie Luke Keaschall is ramping up his exercise as he recovers from a forearm harm. In the meantime, Carlos Correa continues to languish with a 88 OPS+ and a bWAR determine at precisely substitute stage. Not less than the Twins have choices. — Doolittle
Document: 40-47
Earlier rating: 21
The Royals have historically constructed rosters that catered to the contours of their ballpark, giving them an above-average dwelling benefit, not less than after they’re good. Since Royals/Kauffman Stadium opened in 1973, Kansas Metropolis has a house successful share 17 factors higher than its highway mark, the Twelfth-largest disparity of the 30 energetic franchises. However this 12 months’s Royals have been a catastrophe on the Ok, going 20-24 with a run differential that interprets to 61.7 wins over 162 video games. Their paltry 2.84 dwelling scoring common is greater than a half-run worse than each different group within the majors. — Doolittle
Document: 37-49
Earlier rating: 24
The Orioles’ poor first half is not simply as a consequence of their failure to improve the rotation within the offseason — the failure of the offense to choose up the slack additionally shares the blame. The offense has declined from 4.98 runs per sport in 2023 and 4.85 in 2024 to 4.15 in 2025 — and that is after shifting within the left-field fence, which masks the offensive struggles much more. The Orioles have a .760 OPS at Camden Yards, however simply .654 on the highway, the place their slugging share is within the backside 5 within the majors. — Schoenfield
Document: 38-46
Earlier rating: 27
Break up the Marlins! When Miami beat Minnesota to start July, extending its successful streak to eight video games, the Fish not less than briefly moved into third place within the NL East. However the improved play began earlier than the present surge, because the win improved the Marlins to 17-13 over the previous 30 video games. They’ve been notably good away from dwelling, going 12-4 in latest weeks and averaging greater than 6.19 runs per sport, the third-best highway scoring common throughout that span. Miami’s playoff odds stay at just about zero, however not less than the group is displaying indicators of trending in the best route. — Doolittle
Document: 38-50
Earlier rating: 26
Mitch Keller’s bad-luck season would possibly lastly be turning round. After successful his first begin, Keller misplaced 10 selections in a row, however now he has gained two straight after beating the Mets 9-1 and the Cardinals 5-0, decreasing his ERA to three.64. The Pirates have scored two or fewer runs in 11 of his 18 begins. Regardless that Keller is signed by means of 2028, his title has popped up in commerce rumors, with the concept the Pirates should commerce from their rotation to improve their long-term future on offense. — Schoenfield
Document: 36-50
Earlier rating: 25
For a rebuild to really work, groups want a number of the prospects they purchase and develop to truly develop into stars. Washington clearly has one in 22-year-old James Wooden, who performed in his 162nd profession sport Saturday. At that time, his profession slash line was .273/.367/.492 with 31 homers, 105 RBIs, 95 runs and 24 steals. Wooden is on tempo to hit 42 homers this season, and if he will get there, that might push his profession mark to 51. The one gamers in Expos/Nationals historical past to hit extra by means of age 22: Juan Soto (98) and Bryce Harper (97). — Doolittle
28. Athletics
Document: 36-53
Earlier rating: 28
Catcher Shea Langeliers sat out most of June due to an indirect pressure, throughout which his membership continued to slip. However the A’s gained every of his first two video games again, and Langeliers had a significant imprint in each of them — a three-run homer in his first at-bat Monday, then a homer, a double and two vital caught-stealings Tuesday. The hope is that his return may assist maintain this season from spiraling. “Since he is been again, there is a new kind of power,” A’s supervisor Mark Kotsay instructed reporters. “You’ll be able to see the fellows having slightly extra enjoyable.” — Gonzalez
Document: 28-58
Earlier rating: 29
The White Sox have a protracted, lengthy strategy to go however the early work of Chicago’s second-year entrance workplace, led by GM Chris Getz, continues to place up some constructive outcomes. Along with a surfeit of productive rookies, together with Rule 5 steals, add the second-chance market to their checklist of successes. These are underproductive veterans in search of an opportunity to regain their footing and, in doing so, maybe create some commerce worth across the deadline. Exhibit A: veteran right-hander Adrian Houser, signed in late Could after being launched by Texas. Over his first seven begins for the White Sox, Houser has gone 3-2 with a 1.90 ERA and three.23 FIP. — Doolittle
Document: 19-67
Earlier rating: 30
The Rockies gained solely 10 video games within the month of June. A fair greater downside is that they gained one fewer in March, April and Could mixed. One constructive, although, is that German Marquez posted a 2.97 ERA in six begins. Marquez, one of many few homegrown pitching successes in Rockies historical past, is a pending free agent. And given the inordinate variety of groups nonetheless inside the vary of competition, Marquez may yield the Rockies a pleasant bundle of younger gamers in return. In fact, he would really should be traded — and the Rockies have been recognized to make fairly questionable selections this time of 12 months. — Gonzalez