MLB Power Rankings: A shake-up in the top 5 before the trade deadline
Tampa Bay’s 113-day reign atop the American League East is over — there’s a new division leader in town.
The Orioles not only jumped the Rays in the division but in our power rankings as well, with Baltimore making its debut at No. 2 — its highest standing in recent memory. But that was not the only change in our top five this week.
The Dodgers secured the final spot in the top three, the Rays fell to No. 4 — their lowest standing since they were fourth in our Week 1 power rankings — and the Rangers rounded out the top five.
What’s the biggest need among these top five teams — and all 30 clubs — before the Aug. 1 trade deadline?
Our expert panel has combined to rank every team in baseball 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 David Schoenfield, Bradford Doolittle, Jesse Rogers and Alden Gonzalez to weigh in with an observation for all 30 teams.
Week 16 | Second-half preview | Preseason rankings
Record: 64-36
Previous ranking: 1
After tearing the cover off the old horsehide in June when they hit .306/.371/.569 with 61 home runs in 25 games, the Braves’ offense has slowed down a bit in July — enough that the Dodgers now lead the National League in runs (the Rangers lead the majors). The Braves are still slugging a ton of home runs, so it’s not really a cause for concern, and they’re averaging 5.57 runs per game overall (through Tuesday), which would be their highest since 2003, when they averaged 5.60 per game (not counting 2020, when they averaged 5.80). The Braves made some minor moves to add pitching depth, claiming Yonny Chirinos off waivers from the Rays and acquiring relievers Pierce Johnson (Rockies) and Taylor Hearn (Rangers). Johnson is the one most likely to make an impact. He had 13 saves with the Rockies, although with a 6.00 ERA. — Schoenfield
Record: 62-40
Previous ranking: 4
The Orioles’ bullpen has been a strength for two years running and in Felix Bautista and Yennier Cano, they’ve had one of the most devastating one-two high-leverage combos in the majors this season. But with the Orioles angling for a division title and possible No. 1 seed in the American League bracket, they need to add depth to this area of strength. Part of it is because Cano has been on the back-pedal a bit in recent weeks, a slump that perhaps reached its nadir with a blown save loss to the Phillies on Tuesday.
On the other hand, recent pickup Shintaro Fujinami threw two perfect innings with three whiffs in that game. After a brutal start to the season, Fujinami’s numbers have been on the upswing and the Orioles just might be able to catch some lightning in a bottle with him. But they’ll need more of that with the deadline approaching, in addition to a need for rotation upgrades that has garnered much contention. — Doolittle
Record: 58-43
Previous ranking: 5
A lot could change about the Dodgers over these next five days, but before it does, let’s take some time to appreciate the state of their current iteration, which is in first place, once again, despite a litany of issues throughout their roster. Their rotation has been a mess, with Clayton Kershaw and Dustin May hurt, Noah Syndergaard struggling mightily and Julio Urias having an up-and-down year. They haven’t been strong up the middle, particularly at second base, shortstop and center field. Until recently, the back end of their bullpen had been a problem, too. And yet the Dodgers continue to dominate, at a time when so many high-profile teams are struggling. It’s truly remarkable. — Gonzalez
Record: 62-43
Previous ranking: 2
The month of July has transmogrified our perceptions about this year’s Rays. At the end of June, the Rays were rolling, with a win pace of 109, a runs scored pace of 913 and net-run pace of 311. Those numbers have since dropped to 97, 847 and 229. While much of the trade deadline chatter about the Rays centers on their need for rotation depth, Tampa Bay needs to regain its offensive prowess to get its championship train rolling again. During July, the Rays’ offense ranks 29th in both OPS and runs per game and is dead last in on-base percentage. Among the key strugglers: Wander Franco (.511) and Randy Arozarena (.499) have seen their OPSs plummet this month. — Doolittle
Record: 60-41
Previous ranking: 3
Texas should be as busy as anyone at the trade deadline, with bullpen help, a starter and perhaps another bat in its sights. It was a rough week for all Rangers pitchers, as they gave up 41 runs in a four-game span. It led to the highest ERA in baseball over a seven-day period ending Tuesday: 8.21. The Rangers had just one starter last six innings, taxing a bullpen that simply kept giving up hit after hit after hit to the Dodgers in a series loss. With Nathan Eovaldi getting a break this week, there’s a further emphasis on the need for pitching before Tuesday’s trade deadline. — Rogers
Record: 56-45
Previous ranking: 6
Most metrics-based projection models likely still favor the Rangers in the AL West race because of their overwhelming edge over the Astros in run differential. But let’s face it: With Houston closing in on the division leaders, the West once again seems like the Astros’ race to lose. That means first-year GM Dana Brown can make targeted additions at the deadline, as the Astros very much remain who we thought they were. Brown told reporters that the club will likely target rotation depth, bullpen help and a left-handed bat. On the latter front, Houston ranks last — by far — in plate appearances from lefty batters this season. They also rank first in OPS from that group and by a good margin, so perhaps Brown should be careful to not impact the quality of his lefty at-bats in pursuit of quantity. — Doolittle
Record: 57-46
Previous ranking: 7
As with pretty much every other contender, much of the Blue Jays’ deadline-related chatter has revolved around the possibility of adding to the rotation. One quick survey of the trade terrain and the long list of teams with remaining playoff aspirations tells you that there will be some disappointed general managers a week from now. But, of course, trading for a starting pitcher isn’t the only way to improve a club on the fly.
In the Blue Jays’ case, one area that might have an outsized impact down the stretch would be the acquisition of a good old fashioned take-and-rake slugger. While the Jays rank near the top of MLB in categories like batting average, OBP and lowest strikeout rate, they are in the middle of the pack in runs, which, let’s face it, is the category that matters most. While the question of where a three-true-outcomes slugger would play is a fair one, someone with the profile of Pirates veteran Carlos Santana (who just might be available) would be a nice complementary fit. — Doolittle
Record: 53-46
Previous ranking: 9
The early returns on Bryce Harper’s move to first base have been positive with Harper saying, “I feel very comfortable there.” That continues to lead to speculation that the Phillies will look to add a corner bat at the trade deadline, allowing them to move Kyle Schwarber to DH on a regular basis. It certainly makes sense, as Schwarber’s defensive metrics put his outfielder jump rating and outs above average rating both at a bottom-of-the-barrel first percentile in the majors. Jake Cave is hitting .231/.291/.333, so he’s not really the solution to take over in left field. Maybe somebody like the Rockies’ Randal Grichuk fits the bill or, knowing president of baseball ops Dave Dombrowski’s penchant for thinking big, perhaps one of the outfielders from the Cardinals — or Cody Bellinger, if the Cubs decide to trade him. — Schoenfield
Record: 57-46
Previous ranking: 12
The overwhelming favorite to win the division, Milwaukee is likely to be active at the trade deadline. Annually, the Brewers need help at the plate, and this July is no different. They rank in the bottom third of the majors in OPS in three of the four infield positions. The latest injury to Rowdy Tellez — he injured his finger shagging fly balls — should make GM Matt Arnold’s job easier: There’s no doubting what the team needs. The Brewers could also probably use help on the mound if they’re thinking of winning in October, not just getting there. — Rogers
Record: 55-47
Previous ranking: 11
With the trade deadline almost here, the Red Sox have a chance to make as big of an in-season upgrade as any other contender — and it’s not because of a splashy acquisition. Indeed, they started off the deadline period by trading away their most oft-used shortstop this season, Enrique Hernandez, to the Dodgers. While the struggling Hernandez had not been used there much recently, the timing of the deal coincided with some happy news for the BoSox: the impending return of Trevor Story.
Story, who has missed the entire season because of an elbow injury, has been playing in rehab outings in the minors and after the Hernandez trade was announced, manager Alex Cora said Story could return to the majors as soon as the coming weekend. Early on it was far from certain that he’d return in 2023 at all, so getting the two-time All-Star back before the start of August is a best-case scenario.
The lack of year-to-date production from Boston’s shortstops represents one of the bigger holes on any postseason contender. If Story can return at anything close to his normal production, that’s a huge upgrade at a crucial position, arguably better than anything the Red Sox might have gotten from the trade market. — Doolittle
Record: 54-48
Previous ranking: 14
Depending on where you look, the Yankees’ chances to reach the postseason have sunk to somewhere between about 1-in-5 to 2-in-5. When you look at payroll and the career profiles of this roster, you can’t help but feel that something here just isn’t right. And whatever it is, it goes well beyond the soon-to-end absence of Aaron Judge. During Judge’s absence (since June 3), the Yankees have ranked near the bottom of the majors in OPS and runs.
The one player who has been solid at the plate all season, including during the current downturn, has been Gleyber Torres. Torres has been picking up momentum of late, with a .318/.355/.506 slash line in July. That leads us to the upcoming deadline. Torres has occasionally come up in the trade rumor mill. On one hand, it makes sense, as the Yankees have a number of young infielders at or near the majors. On the other hand, none of those players, other than Torres, have hit this season. So if you trade Torres, where does that leave this moribund attack? — Doolittle
Record: 54-50
Previous ranking: 16
When the Twins beat the Mariners 4-3 on Monday, their team temperature (a Bill James-derived measure for which 72 degrees is average) rose to 103 degrees. That marked the first time all season that the Twins’ temp reached triple digits and proved this enigmatic club is actually capable of getting hot. The 14-8 spree that began June 30 improved the chances that the eventual AL Central champion will finish with a better record than at least one team from the AL East. It might also have clarified matters for the deadline approach of a Minnesota team that will have to confront underdog status no matter who they play if and when they reach the playoffs. While every team could use more pitching, the Twins’ staff is good enough that they can put their trade resources toward much-needed offensive help. — Doolittle
Record: 54-47
Previous ranking: 8
The Giants have aggressively promoted the likes of Patrick Bailey, Casey Schmitt and Luis Matos this season — and now they’re doing the same with Marco Luciano. Luciano, the team’s top hitting prospect, was called up Wednesday morning after just a six-game Triple-A stint and will take over as the everyday shortstop, at least for the foreseeable future. Leading up to that point, the Giants had scored only 11 runs in their previous seven games (six of them losses) and were in need of a spark, particularly from their middle infield. Luciano, 21, missed the first month of the season because of a back injury but had been slashing .262/.370/.490 in the minor leagues since the start of June. Brandon Crawford is nearing his way back from the injured list, but the Giants will probably find room for Luciano if he’s hitting. — Gonzalez
Record: 55-48
Previous ranking: 10
The month of July has been especially unkind to the D-backs. They’ve dropped 14 of 19 games, going from a three-game cushion to a four-game deficit in the NL West while getting swept by the Mets, Blue Jays and Reds. Their dynamic offense is slashing only .239/.317/.410 this month, but their rotation has pitched to a 5.93 ERA and their bullpen has put up a 1.38 WHIP. So, it has all been bad. And their next five series — against the Mariners, Giants, Twins, Dodgers and Padres, respectively — won’t make things any easier. The D-backs could desperately use a boost, particularly with a pitching acquisition or two. Merrill Kelly is back, at least, and he provided six innings of one-run ball against the Cardinals on Tuesday. — Gonzalez
Record: 56-48
Previous ranking: 15
Cincinnati is scouring the pitching market. A veteran arm could solidify a staff that should be stronger down the stretch as its own pitchers get healthy. The Reds are in a tight division battle with the Brewers, who have the pitching but not the hitting. Cincinnati is the opposite. While Elly De La Cruz had a rare tough week, going 3-for-19 over a six-game span, Will Benson and Matt McClain picked him up — both OPS’d over 1.000 in the same time frame. Cincinnati is in that fun “different hero every night” stage of its rebuild. If it gets a starter with experience at the deadline, an earlier-than-expected appearance in the postseason is still possible. — Rogers
Record: 55-48
Previous ranking: 13
Tuesday’s 4-1 loss to the Rays dropped the Marlins to 3-11 in their past 14 games — before Miami’s win over Tampa Bay on Wednesday — as both the offense and pitching have scuffled since returning from the All-Star break (they lost eight in a row coming out of the break to the Orioles, Cardinals and Rockies). The Marlins hit .244 with just four home runs over a 10-game stretch and even Luis Arraez hit a mere .310 over that period, although he did deliver the walk-off base hit to beat the Rockies on Sunday. Johnny Cueto made his first start since April 3 on Saturday and allowed just one run in six innings with eight strikeouts, so that’s a good sign as Eury Perez remains in the minors to help conserve his innings (he hasn’t pitched since being sent down). — Schoenfield
Record: 52-49
Previous ranking: 19
The Angels have been doing their part on the field to try to ensure that Shohei Ohtani would not be traded before the deadline as 13-game stretch that saw them lose 11 times has been followed with six wins in seven games, allowing them to remain within striking distance of the final wild-card spot with Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon out. The franchise appeared to go all-in on seeing how this plays out for the rest of the season on Wednesday night by first pulling Ohtani’s name off the trade market and then making a deal to acquire Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez from the White Sox. — Gonzalez
Record: 49-54
Previous ranking: 18
Blake Snell started against the Pirates on Tuesday, pitching six innings of one-run ball to lower his ERA to 2.61 and continue his run as one of the sport’s most dominant pitchers since the start of May. The question, of course, is whether that will ultimately be his last start in a Padres uniform. The Padres won that night’s game, but by that point they had split their first dozen games since the All-Star break and thus remained below .500. They still believe they have the makings of a championship-contending team if moves are made on the margins of the roster, but they’re running out of time. And others will undoubtedly present some intriguing trade packages for Snell and closer Josh Hader, both of whom will be free agents at season’s end. It remains to be seen whether they’ll be traded. — Gonzalez
Record: 52-50
Previous ranking: 17
What a wild two games against the Twins. On Monday, Kolten Wong hit a shocking two-run, two-out go-ahead home run in the top of the ninth — only to see Andres Munoz blow the save and the Mariners lose in the 10th. On Tuesday, they were down four runs in the eighth before rallying for seven runs over the final two frames — the first time since 1991 they rallied from that far down on the road in the eighth inning. Julio Rodriguez had his second career two-homer game in the win, including a tying blast in the eighth — on the day he was dropped from second to fifth in the batting order. It was rare high-leverage production from Rodriguez, who was so good in the clutch last season but entered Tuesday’s game hitting just .183 in high-leverage situations. — Schoenfield
Record: 51-51
Previous ranking: 20
The Guardians are close enough to the Twins that they probably won’t be looking to make any big deals (meaning trading players away, because we know they are unlikely to make any big deals to bring players in), although there certainly will be a lot of interest in some of their bullpen arms.
In the meantime, with Xzavion Curry now in the rotation, the Guardians have four rookie starters in him, Tanner Bibee, Logan Allen and Gavin Williams. Curry’s first two starts have each been three innings, so we’ll see if he remains more of an opener or whether they’ll look to stretch him out. Williams, the first-round pick in 2021, is seen as having the highest ceiling. He has been solid, if unspectacular, so far — he hasn’t generated a ton of swing-and-misses (except one start against the Royals) and the command is a little shaky — but he owns a nice four-pitch arsenal, with his four-seamer averaging 95 mph. — Schoenfield
Record: 50-51
Previous ranking: 22
While the Cubs were almost a sure team to deal a few weeks ago, they are clawing their way back to .500. The odds say it’s still a long shot for Chicago to make the playoffs but with an easy schedule this week — combined with tougher ones for rivals in Milwaukee and Cincinnati — the momentum in the division might favor the Cubs as the trade deadline approaches. It’s not so much what they’ll add but what they won’t give up: Bellinger. He has been on fire since returning from an injury in May. Since the All-Star break, alone, he has an OPS over 1.300. If the Cubs do add, it’ll be in the bullpen, where they desperately need a veteran lefty and another right-hander. — Rogers
Record: 47-54
Previous ranking: 21
The Mets remain one of the most intriguing teams to watch at the trade deadline, especially in regard to what they’ll do with Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Both have no-trade clauses and big salaries for 2024, so trading them won’t be easy.
But interest certainly has to be increasing on Verlander after he had another excellent outing Tuesday against the Yankees with six scoreless innings. He has a 1.98 ERA over his past eight starts while limiting batters to a .184 average. It’s not a completely rosy picture — he did walk four against the Yankees and had a six-walk game against the Dodgers on July 14, plus his strikeout rate isn’t overly impressive in that span. But it’s Verlander, and he’s pitching well. Factor in that the Mets’ next seven games are against the Nationals and Royals and they might just decide to let things play out. — Schoenfield
Record: 46-57
Previous ranking: 23
Retool, retool, retool. It’s not a concept the Cardinals are used to, but they have no choice after a losing weekend in Chicago in which they won Game 1 of the series only to drop the next three. Jordan Montgomery and Jack Flaherty are likely moving on, but how far will St. Louis go? Most think not that far as the division is no juggernaut, and as long as the Cardinals find some pitching for next season, they could be right back near the top of the division. Montgomery’s streak of giving up one or fewer runs came to an end at five games after he gave up five to the Cubs on Sunday. He still managed to get through six innings, though, so his stock should not have fallen much after one mediocre start. — Rogers
Record: 46-55
Previous ranking: 24
The Tigers’ postseason chances remain small, as does the likelihood of them making a splashy acquisition before the deadline. Still, the narrative of the Tigers’ season has shifted in recent weeks for the better. For a while, it seemed like the building-block young players on the roster were all either injured or struggling, but the trend has reversed in recent games.
Riley Greene has returned to the lineup and resumed his sharp upward trajectory. Spencer Torkelson isn’t there yet in terms of consistency but his numbers have been on the climb. Most importantly, the Tigers have pitched their tails off of late with young hurlers Matt Manning, Tarik Skubal and Reese Olson all playing a part in that. Their continued progress from here to the end of the season would give Tigers fans ample reason to enter the offseason with a lot more optimism than you would have thought possible two months ago. — Doolittle
Record: 45-57
Previous ranking: 25
It has been a while since the Pirates won a series as they’ve methodically moved down the standings and into last place in the NL Central. They ranked 26th in ERA over the past month and 28th over the past two weeks as no regular starter has an ERA under 4.00. All-Star Mitch Keller‘s ERA in July is over 7.00, and that’s with a seven-inning shutout included. Teams are simply squaring him up more, unlike earlier in the year when he was inducing soft contact. He’ll set a career high in innings pitched as long as he’s healthy. That’s the good news. There isn’t much of that these days in Pittsburgh. — Rogers
Record: 41-62
Previous ranking: 26
Falling to 20 games below .500 as we near the trade deadline is the exclamation mark on a horrendous season that should result in a front office shakeup. But this is the White Sox, so it’s anyone’s guess what owner Jerry Reinsdorf will do after the team’s rebuild fell flat on its face. First up, the team moved pitchers Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez in a trade with the Angels. Next to go could be Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly. Statistically, there haven’t been many worse position players than Tim Anderson, but he has gotten hot at the right time if the White Sox are thinking of trading him. He hit .378 in the first nine games after the All-Star break, driving the ball to right field like he usually does when things are going well for him. Little has this season, though. — Rogers
Record: 43-59
Previous ranking: 27
Here’s a goal: Pass the Mets and finish in fourth place! Who was taking bets before the season that the Nationals would finish with a better record than the Mets? Washington heads to Citi Field for four games this weekend, so if it takes three of four or even sweeps New York that would put pressure on that “race.” One way to catch the Mets is for MacKenzie Gore to get on a roll — or at least show some consistency. He has had a weird every-other-start-is-a-good-one thing going. Look at his runs allowed since June 10: 5, 0, 5, 1, 7, 0 (lifted early because of a rain delay), 5, 0. Overall, his whiff (74th percentile) and strikeout rates (79th percentile) are strong indicators, while his control continues to be his biggest problem. It’s a learning curve, but there is still No. 2 starter potential here. — Schoenfield
Record: 40-62
Previous ranking: 28
The Rockies’ jarring pitching issues clearly extend beyond the major leagues. Three of their top four pitching prospects, as ranked by MLB.com, were scheduled to undergo Tommy John surgery this week, right around the same time as Antonio Senzatela. The three prospects: Gabriel Hughes, the 10th overall pick in 2022; Jackson Cox, a second-round selection in that same draft; and Jordy Vargas, an international signing in 2021. Hughes, Vargas and Cox were ranked sixth, 11th and 12th, respectively, in the Rockies’ system by MLB.com. Now they might not pitch until 2025. The Rockies have already started selling off major league players, with veteran reliever Pierce Johnson dealt to the Braves on Monday. More will follow. — Gonzalez
Record: 29-75
Previous ranking: 29
This is hard to believe, but it is the Royals we’re talking about here: Cleveland beat Kansas City on Tuesday to hand Zack Greinke his 16th consecutive road loss. His last road win came on Aug. 21, 2021, when he was with the Astros. In 27 road starts since — 24 of them with the Royals — he has gone 0-16 with a 6.43 ERA. Of course, he also has just one win at home this season and is now 1-11 with a 5.49 ERA. And get this: In his career, Greinke is 65-87 in his two stints with the Royals and 159-65 with the Brewers, Angels, Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Astros. He’s still a future Hall of Famer, but this is not exactly the way you want to go out if it’s your final season. — Schoenfield
Record: 28-76
Previous ranking: 30
“Sell the team!” chants filled the air at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Tuesday night, followed by pleas of “Stay in Oakland!” It was a rare moment in time when A’s and Giants fans came together to protest the A’s impending move to Las Vegas, making up a sellout crowd of more than 40,000. These are clearly tough times for A’s fans in Oakland.
“Totally understand the sentiment in the bay and totally understand the sentiment in the ballpark tonight,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. — Gonzalez
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Bradford Doolittle
Despite a bumpier-than-expected path, the Los Angeles Dodgers might still repeat as World Series champions, becoming the first team to do so since the New York Yankees of the late 1990s. If that comes to pass, few would be surprised. At the same time, based on what we’ve seen since Opening Day, few would be surprised, also, if they fall.
Thus the Dodgers’ season can’t yet be labeled a success or a failure. If the Dodgers win another title, that’s an obvious success. Failure is a little harder to define, but consider that L.A. is one of five teams on pace to finish more than 10 games under their preseason baseline forecast. They’re also leading the tough National League West. Success or failure?
The answer is complicated. Baseball is the most quantifiable and projectable of the major sports, and forecasts are invaluable in setting our expectations for what might happen, and how to react to what actually comes to pass. Yet baseball is also paradoxically and wonderfully unpredictable.
Teams and pundits alike enter the season with a good idea of what each club’s strengths and weaknesses are, yet those observations tend to fly out the window when confronted by the reality of an actual season.
Using preseason expectations as our guide, we’re going to identify the biggest success — and failure — for all 30 teams. Plan and project all you want. In the end, the fates will have their way.
Jump to a team:
AL East: BAL | BOS | NYY | TB | TOR
AL Central: CHW | CLE | DET | KC | MIN
AL West: ATH | HOU | LAA | SEA | TEX
NL East: ATL | MIA | NYM | PHI | WSH
NL Central: CHC | CIN | MIL | PIT | STL
NL West: ARI | COL | LAD | SD | SF
Biggest success: Geraldo Perdomo
Most of the good news for Arizona this season has been on the position player side, led by a career year for Perdomo. After signing a four-year extension that doesn’t kick in until next year, the 25-year-old went out and put up the best season by a shortstop in franchise history. Already a defensive standout, Perdomo entered this season with 14 career home runs. This year, he has 19 and is on pace to drive in 100 runs. He also might get to 100 runs scored and 30 steals. It has been an MVP-level showing.
Biggest failure: The rotation
Arizona entered the season with an on-paper rotation that looked loaded — Corbin Burnes, Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly, Eduardo Rodriguez and Brandon Pfaadt. That quintet has gone 47-39 with a 4.37 ERA. Burnes went down for the season in June. Kelly was traded. And the other three all have ERA+ figures well below league average. The Arizona bullpen has been even worse, but the roster and the payroll were built on a foundation of elite starting pitching that has not held up.
Biggest success: Nick Kurtz
That Kurtz is good isn’t a surprise. That he’s this good this fast is stunning and exhilarating. After an aggressive promotion in late April, Kurtz didn’t hit his first homer until his 17th big league game. He then went deep 19 times over 49 games with a 1.078 OPS and that was only the lead-up to his 6-for-6, four-homer outburst on July 25 in which he tied the MLB record for 19 total bases in a game. In his age-22 season, Kurtz is on track to become the eighth rookie with an OPS over 1.000 (minimum 400 plate appearances) and of the eight, only Ted Williams and Albert Pujols had a younger baseball age. The A’s have found their cornerstone player.
Biggest failure: Luis Severino
The A’s made a rare splurge in last winter’s free agent market, inking Severino to a three-year, $67 million deal. Year 1 has been disappointing. Severino has gone 6-11 with a 4.82 ERA and an 87 ERA+ while posting the lowest strikeout rate (17.6%) of his career. His struggles in Sacramento have been epic: Severino is 1-9 with a 6.51 ERA over 14 starts at Sutter Health Park.
Biggest success: Hurston Waldrep
Successes have been few and far between for the Braves, but Waldrep’s trajectory seems to be one of them. The sample remains small, but Waldrep went 4-0 with a 1.33 ERA over his first seven starts in 2025 before being roughed up by Houston. He looks like a keeper, if the Braves can keep him healthy.
Biggest failure: The entire season?
The Braves are on pace to miss their forecast by 24 games, a plummet so severe that it’s hard to blame it on any one thing. Injuries have played a part, but other teams are headed to the postseason with plenty of those — the Yankees, Red Sox, Dodgers and Brewers among those with worse health metrics than the Braves. The collapse on the pitching side has been more acute than on offense, but no one is without culpability. Perhaps worst of all, the Braves have baseball’s second-worst organizational record. Things haven’t been any better in the minors.
Biggest success: Trevor Rogers
The Orioles have underperformed across the board, so it could be that we’re damning Rogers with faint praise here, but he has been a genuine revelation. Rogers began the season in the minors and wasn’t that great there, going 0-3 with a 5.51 ERA in eight starts. In the majors? The former Marlin is 8-2 with a 1.43 ERA over 16 starts with solid peripherals. Go figure. Going into what Baltimore hopes will be a bounce-back 2026 season, the Orioles’ rotation needs a lot more success stories like this.
Biggest failure: Adley Rutschman
You hate to pick on one player when the Orioles have disappointed in so many areas, but Rutschman is an avatar for a number of shortcomings. He has underperformed: Baltimore entered the season with the third-best WAR projection at the catcher position but instead rank 25th. He has been injured: According to an injury impact metric based on data from Baseball Prospectus, the Orioles rank 29th in baseball. After two straight disappointing seasons for Rutschman, and considering the arrival of elite prospect Samuel Basallo, the future of the Orioles at catcher looks a lot different than it did a couple of years ago.
Biggest success: Pitching acquisitions
You really can’t choose between Cy Young candidate Garrett Crochet or reliever of the year candidate Aroldis Chapman, neither of whom was with Boston at this time last year. Crochet has blossomed with the Red Sox, matching the dominance he showed per inning with Chicago with the workload of a true ace. Chapman, at 37, is on pace to record a career-best ERA (1.26) and his second-best bWAR (3.3, just shy of his 3.4 in 2012).
Biggest failure: In-season roster work
The Red Sox have received great production from their rookie class, headlined by Roman Anthony and Carlos Narvaez. But a team in position to challenge for the American League East title ranks 29th in my in-season acquisition index, a metric that looks at the quality and quantity of the production from players signed or traded for during the season. Boston has dealt with a lot of injuries (27th in injury impact) but has been too passive about compensating for them.
Biggest success: The offense
Things have slowed over the second half, but the Cubs’ attack has been one of baseball’s most productive and exciting over the course of the season. Chicago leads the majors in secondary average (patience and power), isolated power and team-level power-speed number. The production has come from up and down the lineup, giving the Cubs one of their deepest offenses in years.
Biggest failure: The bullpen
The Cubs’ rotation has picked up the pace over the second half, which has helped pick up the slack from the regressing hitters. But as October nears, the Cubs still lack clarity in the bullpen. With Daniel Palencia out, the relievers still lack a clear end-of-game hammer. Since the All-Star break, the Cubs’ relief ERA (4.40) is middle of the pack. For the most part, Craig Counsell has pieced things together, but the lack of impact acquisitions during the season, with the exception of Andrew Kittredge, might undermine the Cubs once the postseason arrives.
Biggest success: The rookies
According to my rookie contribution metric — basically adding up the consensus WAR figures for first-year players — the White Sox (11.61 rookie WAR) have four more wins than any other team. In Kyle Teel, Colson Montgomery, Chase Meidroth, Mike Vasil, Shane Smith, Edgar Quero and Wikelman Gonzalez, Chicago has graduated some bona fide building blocks to the majors. With a decent finish, the White Sox can avoid another 100-loss season. That might seem like a low bar for excitement, but when you’re coming off a 121-loss debacle, that’s a huge improvement.
Biggest failure: Luis Robert Jr.
The season began with reports of Roberts’ revamped approach at the plate, but 2025 proved to be another step back for one of the game’s most talented players. Robert did improve his strike zone indicators, but it didn’t pay off at the bottom line, as his OPS+ dropped two more points off his career-low of 86 in 2024. And it looks as if he’ll end the season where he has spent far too much time during his career: on the injured list. Whether you view Robert as a White Sox building block or the team’s last-best chance to generate impactful return in the trade market, none of this is good.
Biggest success: The rotation
The Reds’ pitching, in general, has kept the team on the fringe of the playoff chase all season, but the starters, in particular, have been rock solid. According to my AXE metric used in the Awards Watch series, six of the top nine Reds performers this season have been starting pitchers, led by Andrew Abbott, Nick Lodolo and Hunter Greene. Only three teams have compiled more quality starts.
Biggest failure: The flagging offense
Cincinnati’s hitters are on track to finish around their preseason forecast of 660 park-neutral runs scored. But at the midway point of the season, the Reds were on pace to finish at 693, and during the span of the regression, a trade deadline passed. Miguel Andujar has helped, when he has played, but it hasn’t been enough. The Reds rank 19th or worse at five of the nine positions by OPS, and that’s with the baked in boost of Great American Ballpark.
Biggest success: The stretch-run rotation
After years of forging a reputation as a starting pitcher factory, the Guardians’ actual performance in that area over the past couple of years hasn’t lived up to it. Until recently, that is. After ranking 18th with a 4.17 rotation ERA through Aug. 25, Cleveland is second with a 2.78 mark since. The Guardians have hung in the playoff race with a 14-5 record during that span, despite ranking 22nd with only 4.16 runs scored per game.
Biggest failure: The offense
Take your pick, really. Whatever the offensive metric, the Guardians stink in it. They’re 29th or worse in each of the slash columns, last in BABIP and 24th in isolated power. They rank 29th in OPS at catcher and shortstop, and 30th in center field and right field. There is only so much Jose Ramirez can do.
Biggest success: Attendance
The Rockies are in the pack, drawing 29,676 fans per game, down just 1,211 over last season. They are outdrawing the first-place Detroit Tigers. The world is a very strange place sometimes.
Biggest failure: Everything else
Assuming the Rockies don’t lose out — which could happen, of course — they won’t end up matching or surpassing the 2024 White Sox’s season record for losses. Still, this marks the Rockies’ third straight 100-loss season, fourth straight last-place finish and seventh straight season of finishing fourth or worse in the NL West. The Rockies are long overdue when it comes to asking hard questions about how they do things.
Biggest success: Tarik Skubal
The Tigers are closing in on their first division title in 11 years and second straight playoff berth. They are built largely on internally developed players and hold baseball’s best overall organizational record. In other words, lots more talent is on the way. Still, Skubal stands out on a team full of success stories by replicating or even bettering his Cy Young-winning 2024 campaign. He has become one of baseball’s biggest stars and the face of what Detroit has been building — and this edifice has a lot of faces.
Biggest failure: The rotation depth
Skubal’s is but one turn through the rotation, and the Tigers’ run prevention has lagged over the second half of the season. Since the break, Skubal has a 2.31 ERA with eight quality starts in 10 outings. The rest of the Detroit rotation has a 5.32 ERA with only 10 quality starts in 43 outings. If this bites the Tigers in the postseason, there will be questions about why Detroit didn’t take a bigger swing at the trade deadline.
Biggest success: Front office improvisation
The Astros are almost right at their preseason forecast, but their path to those 87-88 wins has been less than predictable. Because of that, much of the story of Houston’s season can be told in two of the measures we keep mentioning. First, the Astros rank last in the injury impact metric, meaning no team has been more affected by player absences (Yordan Alvarez especially). Second, the Astros rank first on the in-season acquisition leaderboard. Carlos Correa, Jesus Sanchez, Ramon Urias, Craig Kimbrel and others have helped keep Houston’s contention window ajar as we enter the home stretch.
Biggest failure: Christian Walker
The Astros’ offense is much less dynamic than it has been in a long time. No one player is to blame, and Alvarez’s long stay on the IL has to be kept in mind. But things wouldn’t be quite so severe if Walker had plugged what has become a longstanding hole for Houston at first base. It’s always dicey signing free agent hitters who are well into their 30s, and so it has been so far for Walker, whose OPS+ has slipped from a three-year average of 123 in Arizona to 95 in Houston. He has been better since the All-Star break, so we should hold off final judgment on the signing for now, but the bottom line is that, at the moment, Walker is barely over replacement level on the season.
Biggest success: The starting pitching
Last season, the Royals got 151 starts from their top five starters. This season, they’ve had 12 pitchers make at least two starts and depending on when, and if, Michael Wacha returns before the end of the season, none of them might qualify for an ERA title. The injuries have affected the rotation performance during the second half, but it hasn’t fallen off a cliff, and for the season, Kansas City has MLB’s sixth-best rotation ERA. Whether it’s converting relievers (Kris Bubic), developing midlevel prospects (Noah Cameron) or identifying trade targets (Ryan Bergert), the Royals have become adept at finding rotation answers that fit their system.
Biggest failure: The offense
Bobby Witt Jr. remains a superstar. Maikel Garcia has been one of baseball’s most improved players. Vinnie Pasquantino remains a high-level run producer. But other than a midseason surge, the Royals have just not been able to score consistently enough to hang in the playoff chase, despite their elite pitching-and-defense combo. They’ve tried to paper over their holes with trades during the season, but the baseline for the lineup is just too low to fix on the fly.
Biggest success: Zach Neto
With a second straight five-WAR season, Neto has become one of baseball’s top shortstops at age 24. He sat out time early in the season and his numbers for the most part are similar to 2024, save for a non-trivial uptick in slugging. As he has matured, Neto has hit the ball harder more often, while still shining in the field and on the bases.
Biggest failure: Mike Trout
During the four-year period from 2021 to 2024, Trout averaged just 66.5 games per season. But on a per-162-game basis, he had rates of 46.3 homers, 109 runs and a 160 OPS+. If he could only stay in the lineup. With a move to DH this season, Trout has indeed been more available, but his impact has ebbed. Trout’s OPS+ is 115 — solid, but not Trout-like — and his slugging percentage is a shocking .417. Maybe it’s just the adjustment to DHing, which isn’t always smooth. Trout, after all, is still only 34 years old.
Biggest success: Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Remember, we’re dealing with expectations here, so Shohei Ohtani doesn’t get credit in this context for doing the incredible things he already was doing. But it has been a banner season for Yamamoto, the most stable part of a deep Dodgers rotation that has again been riddled with injuries. Yamamoto has lived up to his pre-2024 hype but ramping up the volume, at least for a Dodgers pitcher. Already over the 162-inning minimum, Yamamoto is the first Dodgers pitcher to qualify for the ERA title since 2022.
Biggest failure: Health
Health has continued to be a general problem for the Dodgers, but it continues to be especially bad on the pitching side. L.A. is baseball’s deepest team but despite that, the injuries have come so frequently that the Dodgers have kept the transaction wire spinning all season. They’ve used 39 different pitchers, 16 of whom have started at least one game and 10 of whom have earned at least one save. How does manager Dave Roberts keep it all straight?
Biggest success: An emerging lineup
Between young players who have hit the ground running (Agustin Ramirez, Jakob Marsee) and young veterans improving as they enter their primes (Otto Lopez, Xavier Edwards and, especially, Kyle Stowers), the Marlins increasingly look like a team that can field an exciting lineup in 2026.
Biggest failure: The rotation
Injuries over the past couple of years have rocked a talented group of Marlins starters. Other than a midseason surge when the Marlins’ pitchers got hot as a group, Miami’s starters have been lit up for most of 2025, ranking 28th in rotation ERA with the second-lowest total of quality starts. Yet the talent of Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, Edward Cabrera, Max Meyer and an interesting wave of coming prospects remains tantalizing. Maybe next season it’ll all come back into focus.
Biggest success: Brice Turang
Turang’s ascension into an All-Star-caliber player is undeniable now that he has added power to an already full toolkit. He’s one of the game’s best second basemen, but more than that, he typifies Milwaukee’s transformation into MLB’s top regular-season club. He’s young, athletic, great on defense and gets on base. And he’s exciting, standing out as one of baseball’s most aesthetically pleasing players to watch.
Biggest failure: Reliever health?
Most everything has gone right for the Brewers, so it’s hard to term anything as a failure. Even the bullpen has been excellent over the course of the season. But a spate of late-season injuries has made things a wee bit more interesting as we edge toward the playoffs.
Biggest success: Joe Ryan
The Twins’ right-hander made the leap from solid midrotation starter to top-of-the-rotation ace this season. Ryan will finish with a career-high innings count and will likely match that volume with his best ERA+ (currently 126) and bWAR (4.5). Ryan’s season isn’t out of line with what he has done before on a per-inning basis, but he has done it more often. Now, as Ryan stands to earn a jump in pay per the arbitration system, we’ll see if the frugal Twins pay him or trade him.
Biggest failure: The midseason unloading
The Twins pulled the plug on their season at the trade deadline and the results since have not been pretty, on the field or off the field in terms of fan reaction. Since then, Minnesota has baseball’s second-worst record and has been drawing attendance figures lately indicative of a fan base that entered the season already annoyed by the Twins’ passive offseason. News that the franchise is no longer on the market hasn’t helped. The trajectory is bad.
Biggest success: Juan Soto
No, Soto hasn’t reinvented baseball during his first season as a Met, but he has been Juan Soto, and that has been a reminder of why he was so coveted. Soto is having a down season in the average category thanks to the vagaries of BABIP, but everything is vintage Soto. And it feels as if we forget this part: He still hasn’t turned 27. Soto has more seasons like this ahead of him, but he has some even better than this in his hip pocket. In any event, any concerns that Soto’s huge contract would be his ruination ought to be alleviated by now.
Biggest failure: The collapsing rotation
The Mets’ pitching free fall has been one of the most stunning stories of the season. Through the end of July, the Mets had baseball’s fifth-best rotation ERA (3.44). The starters ranked 27th in quality starts and 25th in innings, so they weren’t going deep, but they were effective while out there. Since then, New York’s starters have a 5.40 ERA (24th), further taxing a bullpen that has arguably been just as bad or worse. The avatar is Kodai Senga, who went from Cy Young candidate to minor leaguer in about six weeks. Maybe the rookie trio of Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat will save the day, but this is not how the Mets drew it up.
Biggest success: Bronx bombing
This isn’t a perfect Yankees team, but they’ve bashed their way back into the World Series picture in a very literal way. A stunning 59% of the Yankees’ runs this season have come via the home run. When Anthony Volpe hits his next homer, the Yankees will feature a regular lineup in which every slot is occupied by a player with at least 20 homers this season. That includes Ryan McMahon, who hit most of his dingers for Colorado, but it’s still going to be amazing to see.
Biggest failure: Devin Williams
Across the past three seasons before coming to New York, Williams gave up 26 earned runs over 148 games with a 1.66 ERA. In his first Yankees season, he has given up 33 earned runs in 61 games with a 5.30 ERA. With a strikeout rate down around 5% off his career figure and 10% from last year, Williams just hasn’t been the same pitcher, and as the season has progressed, the numbers just keep getting worse.
Biggest success: Kyle Schwarber
Already one of baseball’s most dangerous sluggers, at 32 Schwarber has never been better. He already has joined Ryan Howard as the only Phillies in the 50-homer club and leads the majors with 128 RBIs, 24 above his previous career best. He has done this with his best strikeout rate in six years and his typically high walk rate. Good timing, too: Schwarber will be a free agent this winter.
Biggest failure: Aaron Nola
Nola has always been a little up and down, but his downs have never been like his injury- and performance-plagued 2025 showing. Nola’s 6.44 ERA over 15 starts has him under replacement level, and while the Phillies’ overall rotation has been dynamite, Nola’s struggles are more pressing with Zack Wheeler gone for the season. Nola has shown flashes and remains in the rotation, but he’s running out of time before a playoff season that the Phillies will enter as one of the favored teams.
Biggest success: Paul Skenes
Yes, we expected Skenes to be this good, but who else are we going to put here? Skenes has been even better in Year 2, somehow bettering (so far) his sub-2.00 rookie ERA, dropping from 1.96 to 1.92 even while ramping up his innings total. The Pirates are 27-17 when Skenes starts so far in his career, which translates to a 99-win team over 162 games. In the non-Skenes games, they’ve won at a rate of 69 games per 162. He’s pretty good.
Biggest failure: An anemic offense
The Pirates’ lack of any kind of spending or success in developing hitters has left them with a tragic attack. The median run total for a team in a game is four. Let’s say any time a team scores more than four, it’s a win for the offense and a loss for the defense. Finishing at exactly four runs represents a push, or a tie. Using this framework, the Pirates’ pitchers have a record of 77-55-18, giving them the fifth-best winning percentage in the majors. The hitters are 44-88-18, ranking last. That’s your 2025 Pittsburgh Pirates.
Biggest success: Winning the deadline
The Padres haven’t launched since A.J. Preller’s frenetic activity at the trade deadline, but his work then was still crucial. Rather than finishing the roster as Preller probably hoped, the newcomers have helped cover for drop-offs and injuries from those already on hand. That has been especially true for the bullpen, where Jason Adam was injured and Jeremiah Estrada has hit some speed bumps. But acquisition Mason Miller has been even more electric than expected. Meanwhile, Freddy Fermin has solidified the catcher spot and Ramon Laureano, brought in to raise the floor of a struggling outfield slot, has been San Diego’s best percentage hitter since arriving.
Biggest failure: Xander Bogaerts
At 32, Bogaerts has posted his second straight subpar offensive season. His OPS+ (98) is up from last season’s 92 but remains well off the 130-ish level he reached in Boston. The change in ballparks has been more severe for Bogaerts than expected. His career slugging percentage at Fenway Park is .496 but is just .402 at Petco Park. This season, only three of Bogaerts’ 10 homers have come at home.
Biggest success: A revamped lineup
The Giants were subtractors at the trade deadline, particularly when it came to emptying out the back of the bullpen. Yet San Francisco remains on the cusp of a wild-card slot, and it’s not all because the Mets went into a spiral. The Giants have featured a top-10 offense since the end of July, featuring a stable everyday lineup that has coalesced into a nice unit. After a slow start, Willy Adames has come on strong, Rafael Devers had adapted to his post-Boston life, and Matt Chapman has been mashing. A new outfield mix featuring ex-Met Drew Gilbert and Jung Hoo Lee has become a gas to watch. The Giants are fun.
Biggest failure: Defensive range
You have to get specific, because the Giants’ overall defensive metrics are above average because of Patrick Bailey‘s off-the-charts work behind the plate. But out in the field, the Giants rank 27th in Statcast’s outs above average, a disappointing result for a club with flashy defenders up the middle and at third base with Chapman.
Biggest success: Cal Raleigh
This is perhaps the most obvious selection on the board. Raleigh is having one of the most shockingly historical seasons we’ve ever seen. To be sure, Raleigh had been plenty good before this season, one of the best all-around backstops in the game. But this? The best homer season ever by a catcher? The best by a switch-hitter — even Mickey Mantle? It’s unreal. Using the FanGraphs version of WAR, which is more laudatory of Raleigh’s framing skills, his 2025 total (8.0) ranks seventh all time among primary catchers, and he’s still going.
Biggest failure: The rotation
Again, let’s remember that we’re keeping preseason expectation at the forefront of our minds. Seattle’s rotation has been solid, very consistent. The M’s rank 17th in rotation ERA (4.08) and fifth in quality starts. But before the season, Seattle figured to have a top-five rotation at the very least. The group was supposed to be the strength of the roster. Bryan Woo has been great, but everyone else has been worse than projected, either because of injuries, performance drop-off or both. Yet the Mariners regained first place with two weeks to go. If the rotation had been what we thought it would be, they would have already clinched the AL West.
Biggest success: Matthew Liberatore
Well, we have to put something down. Frankly, even though the Cardinals have managed to stay around baseball’s middle, this has felt like a disheartening season. With just a little boost from the front office, the low bar of postseason contention in this year’s NL might have been cleared. St. Louis hasn’t received much in terms of breakout performances, though some of the younger players have shown progress. That pretty much describes Liberatore, the touted prospect St. Louis acquired way back on Jan. 9, 2020, from Tampa Bay for Randy Arozarena. Until 2025, Liberatore hadn’t been able to establish himself as a rotation regular, but he has made 27 starts and stayed within shouting distance of league average. His strikeout rates don’t scream “untapped upside!” but you never know.
Biggest failure: Season approach
Nothing about St. Louis baseball has made much sense for about a year. If the Cardinals had truly reset, that at least would have been a clear direction. As it stands, it’s still completely unclear why the Cardinals didn’t just try to build the best possible roster they could for the 2025 season. After this finally ends, the baton will pass to Chaim Bloom and perhaps he can paint a more coherent portrait. Let the Ray-ification of the Redbirds begin.
Biggest success: Junior Caminero
This has been a mildly disappointing season for Tampa Bay, but not so for its powerhouse, 21-year-old third baseman. Caminero’s 44 homers already rank second in Rays history, and he needs only two more to tie Carlos Pena’s 18-year-old franchise record. The only other age-21 player to reach 44 homers is Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews, who hit 47 in 1953. Caminero still has a shot at that mark.
Biggest failure: Close games
This has been a strange season for Tampa Bay, and not only because the Rays have had to call the Yankees’ spring training facility their home park. Tampa Bay has had a couple of stretches where it looked like one of baseball’s top teams but has been thwarted by close losses — which is the antithesis of what the last few good Rays teams have been like. This season, Tampa Bay is just 33-40 in games decided by one or two runs. Because of that, the Rays are on pace to fall 7.3 wins shy of the record predicted by their run differential, tied with Texas for the biggest shortfall in baseball.
Biggest success: Overcoming injuries
Over their past 20 games coming out of the weekend, the Rangers had won 15, the best last-20 mark in baseball. This has allowed Texas to close its sizable gap with Houston and eke closer to the Mariners. The postseason remains very much in play. During that 20-game stretch, Texas got five games from Corey Seager, zero from Marcus Semien, 10 from Adolis Garcia and zero from Evan Carter. Ace starter Nathan Eovaldi made his last appearance of the season the day before that 20-game window began. The more beat-up the Rangers are, the more they seem to thrive.
Biggest failure: Home offense
The Rangers have just a .676 OPS at Globe Life Field, while they’re at .724 on the road. Last season, they were 34 points better at home. The season before, when the Rangers won the World Series, they were 107 points better. It is a baffling thing. In his first Texas season, DH Joc Pederson has hit .155 with a .559 OPS at home. He hasn’t been great on the road, either, but his OPS is 103 points better while traveling. All of this is too bad for the hitters, but while bemoaning their fate at GLF, we should also note that the Rangers have been baseball’s best home team this season (by run differential) thanks to an absurdly-low 2.77 home ERA by the pitching staff.
Biggest success: Ernie Clement
No, really. The Blue Jays have the AL’s best record. Among all teams, they are 10th in OPS+ and 15th in ERA+, solid but not No. 1-seed solid. There are some facts that align with the standing — a 50-25 home record, and a 40-28 mark in games decided by one or two runs. Toronto leads all teams in FanGraphs’ DEF metric, suggesting the Jays have a strong claim as baseball’s best defensive team. For all that, it just feels as if there is something intangible going on with this club, and no one typifies that more than Clement, a jack-of-all trades infielder who contributes on both offense and defense. Clement is a very different kind of player than Ben Zobrist — and not as good — but there is something reminiscent of Clement on Toronto to Zobrist’s roles with championship teams in Kansas City and Chicago last decade.
Biggest failure: Jeff Hoffman
It’s hard to believe Toronto’s record in close games is as good as it is given Hoffman’s up-and-down season as the Blue Jays’ primary closer. Hoffman has 30 saves but he has blown seven games and somehow has a 9-7 win-loss record, which isn’t the kind of thing you expect to see from a 2025 closer. Heck, if he blows a couple of more saves that the Jays rescue him from, he could tie for Toronto’s team lead in wins. Seriously, though, Hoffman has been barely replacement level this season. He has been on a nice roll of late, until he gave up a ninth-inning homer to Houston’s Yainer Diaz that resulted in his seventh loss last Wednesday. If Toronto’s feel-good season is going to last deep into October, the Jays really need Hoffman to be part of the happy tidings.
Biggest success: James Wood
It hasn’t been a happy season for the Nats, who are likely to lose more games than the 91 they dropped in 2023 and 2024. That’s not how rebuilding is supposed to work. Wood has been the best player in a bad situation, adding some power to his solid rookie season percentages and improving his defensive metrics. He has struggled at home, though, and his first-half OPS — a star-like .915 — has dropped to .663 since the All-Star Game. Even the Nats’ good news is bad.
Biggest failure: The rebuild
It will continue, of course, because there is no other choice. But the post-championship reset embarked upon by the old regime of Mike Rizzo and Dave Martinez is officially kaput, and those two were put out of work on the same day in July. This offseason represents a fresh start for a franchise that very much needs one.
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