
College Football Power Rankings: How did the top 25 look in Week 7?
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adminWeek 7 has wrapped up as this week’s matchups gave us some exciting endings along with Arizona State’s upset of No. 16 Utah on Friday. Four of the 17 games with top-25 teams went into overtime as the unranked looked to make it another chaotic weekend.
After a lopsided loss to No. 1 Texas, Oklahoma drops out of this week’s top 25 as the Sooners were held out of the end zone in this year’s Red River Rivalry matchup. Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers made his return after being out for 2½ games as Texas secured its second Red River Rivalry victory in six years.
It was an exciting Saturday evening in Eugene, Oregon, as No. 3 Oregon took down No. 2 Ohio State in a matchup you didn’t want to miss. Dillon Gabriel and the Ducks’ offense showed they’re contenders for the Big Ten title even in their first year in the league.
After a 6-0 start, Army jumps four spots in our top-25 power ratings and is joined in the rankings by Navy, which remains undefeated as well, at the No. 24 spot. This is the first time since 1960 that both Army and Navy have been in the AP poll.
Here’s the latest top 25 from our college football experts, who provide their insight on each team’s Week 7 performance.
Previous ranking: 3
The Longhorns are 6-0 for the first time since 2009, and they’ve trailed for only 3½ minutes this year (after Oklahoma’s first-quarter field goal on Saturday). They’ve lost multiple running backs, including leading returning rusher from last year CJ Baxter, to season-ending injuries. And of course, starting quarterback Quinn Ewers missed 2½ games with an oblique injury only to see backup Arch Manning star in his place, yet there has been no hint of a quarterback controversy. ESPN’s FPI gives Texas a 61% chance of winning the SEC and a 32.8% chance to win the national championship, by far the best odds in the country.
The Longhorns have survived injuries, adversity, a road trip to Michigan and the annual test in Dallas against Oklahoma. At this point, their biggest obstacle is handling the expectations and the pressure, beginning with Saturday’s game against No. 5 Georgia, one of the most anticipated games of the season before a very manageable stretch at Vanderbilt, home against Florida, at Arkansas and home against Kentucky. If the Longhorns can walk the tightrope to get there, the Nov. 30 game at Texas A&M will be one of the most heated in the history of the rivalry, returning after 13 seasons with what would appear right now to be a lot on the line for both teams. — Dave Wilson
Previous ranking: 2
The Ducks took a major step toward advancing to the playoff and, potentially, the Big Ten championship in their first year in the league. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel and the Oregon offense were spectacular in the 32-31 victory over second-ranked Ohio State. Wideouts Evan Stewart and Tez Johnson showed they can make plays downfield against anyone.
Jordan James ran tough between the tackles to keep the Oregon running game rolling. And Gabriel underscored why he should be on the short list of Heisman Trophy contenders. The Ducks still have to travel to Michigan on Nov. 2. But otherwise, Oregon should be heavy favorites to win its other five remaining games. With a talented offense finding its groove, the Ducks are looking like legitimate national title contenders. — Jake Trotter
Previous ranking: 1
The controversial offensive pass interference penalty on receiver Jeremiah Smith and quarterback Will Howard‘s inexplicable decision to slide on the final play consumed the oxygen in Ohio State’s postgame news conference.
Yet the biggest reason the Buckeyes ultimately lost 32-31 at Oregon? Their defense got torched. The Ducks could’ve easily scored 20 more points.
Oregon missed a 43-yard field goal, came up with only three points off two drives that reached the 2-yard line, missed a pair of point-after tries and then had a spitting penalty that caused it to settle for a field goal. The Buckeyes didn’t force a turnover, didn’t record a sack and couldn’t slow Oregon’s running game. All-America cornerback Denzel Burke had a particularly rough night in man coverage. Ohio State’s season is far from over. But the Buckeyes will have to be much better defensively moving forward after failing their first big test. — Trotter
Previous ranking: 6
The Canes were off in Week 7, and that was probably a good thing. After back-to-back nail-biters that came down to the final play, Miami had a chance to regroup, recoup and refocus. A road trip to Louisville in Week 8 is likely the biggest obstacle still standing between the Canes and the ACC title game — and possibly an undefeated regular season — so the extra prep time helps.
More than anything, though, there’s a feeling that Cam Ward has turned this into a team of destiny. After come-from-behind wins against Virginia Tech and Cal, the latter in utterly improbable fashion, it’s hard to argue with the premise. — David Hale
Previous ranking: 4
It hasn’t been pretty or particularly flashy, but Penn State just keeps winning. The Nittany Lions are one of only three undefeated teams in the Big Ten after coming back from a 20-6 halftime deficit to USC and pulling off an overtime win. Despite a slow start, Penn State’s offense woke up from its slumber in the second half and utilized its tight end, Tyler Warren, to reignite quarterback Drew Allar.
There’s no doubt Allar is skilled — he finished with 391 yards on Saturday — but Penn State’s hopes in the second half of the season and beyond are banking on him being not just productive but consistent. The passing game is by far the part of PSU’s offense that needs the most work — it’s currently ranked 58th in the country in passing production. Yet after outlasting USC, the Nittany Lions should be favored in every game in the rest of their schedule but one: Ohio State at home on Nov. 2. — Paolo Uggetti
Previous ranking: 5
The good news for Georgia is that quarterback Carson Beck has found his groove. He passed for 459 yards and three touchdowns Saturday in a 41-31 win at home over Mississippi State, but Georgia also gave up 306 passing yards and three touchdowns to true freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr., who was making just his second collegiate start. Moreover, Georgia (5-1, 3-1 SEC) could never completely put away Mississippi State, which has now lost five straight games. Beck did throw two interceptions, but in his past 10 quarters, he has thrown for 1,038 yards and eight touchdowns.
Georgia has bounced back (at least in the win column) from an abysmal first half against Alabama on Sept. 28, but the most important stretch of the season awaits, starting with a trip to No. 1 Texas this Saturday. After a bye week, Georgia then faces Florida on Nov. 2 in Jacksonville, travels to Ole Miss the following week and returns home to face Tennessee on Nov. 16. Getting through that gauntlet unscathed will be difficult unless the Dawgs clean it up across the board and play more consistently. — Chris Low
Previous ranking: 7
It has been a shaky past two weeks for Alabama and dangerously close to being disastrous. Coming off a 40-35 loss to Vanderbilt, Alabama held off determined South Carolina in the final seconds Saturday at home to squeak out a 27-25 victory. The Crimson Tide again had trouble getting off the field on defense, as the Gamecocks were 7-of-15 on third down and 1-of-2 on fourth down. Alabama (5-1, 2-1 SEC) built an early 14-0 lead, but the Gamecocks scored 19 unanswered points to take a 19-14 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe made some big plays late to give the lead back to Alabama but also threw two interceptions. South Carolina had a chance in the final seconds to win it after recovering an onside kick, but Alabama’s Domani Jackson intercepted LaNorris Sellers in the end zone. There’s no taking away the win over Georgia last month, but Alabama hasn’t looked like a playoff team the past two weeks and has a trip to Tennessee next Saturday. — Low
Previous ranking: 8
The Tigers rolled through another opponent this past weekend, beating Wake Forest 49-14, the fourth time they scored 40 or more points this season. The offense has found a nice balance with Cade Klubnik (No. 5 in the nation in total QBR) and Phil Mafah (6.9 yards per rush), and the defense has held its past three opponents to two touchdowns or less.
Suddenly, Clemson looks like a favorite to make it back to the ACC championship game. There are some obstacles ahead — including Louisville and back-to-back road trips at Virginia Tech and Pitt. But if Clemson keeps playing consistently, the Tigers will control their destiny. — Andrea Adelson
Previous ranking: 10
The Cyclones quietly are 6-0 for the first time since 1938, following the 28-16 victory at West Virginia. Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht continues to play efficiently, throwing for 265 yards and a touchdown. Becht has posted a QBR of 64 or above in every game this season, and now ranks 25th nationally in QBR (76.3).
With running back Carson Hansen adding three touchdowns, more than he had all of last season, and Jayden Higgins producing back-to-back 100-yard receiving games for the first time in his career, Iowa State’s offense is coming together. With Kansas State beginning to roll as well, Farmageddon in Ames on Nov. 30 could be for a berth in the Big 12 title game, and potentially a spot in the playoff, as well. — Trotter
Previous ranking: 12
With a 6-0 record at the halfway point of the regular season, BYU looks like a team destined for the playoff. The Cougars might not play a ranked team the rest of the regular season and, as things sit, would be favored against every team left on their schedule. Against Arizona on Saturday, BYU might have played its best game of the season.
It tied its season high with 41 points and forced four turnovers, running away with the game in the third quarter. The offense hasn’t exactly been explosive, but with the way BYU has played with control thanks to its stout defense, it has been necessarily effective. As quarterback Jake Retzlaff continues to improve, so should the Cougars. — Kyle Bonagura
Previous ranking: 16
The Tigers’ growth on defense under first-year coordinator Blake Baker is obvious and remarkable, and showed up in huge ways during Saturday night’s come-from-behind overtime win against Ole Miss. Baker’s bunch bought a struggling Garrett Nussmeier and the offense enough time to rally and eventually win, but even if LSU had fallen short, the progress showed. Consider that LSU allowed 55 points and 706 yards — by far the highest total the Tigers had allowed — to Ole Miss in 2023, and already lost top defender Harold Perkins Jr. to a season-ending knee injury.
Continued excellence from players like Bradyn Swinson, Greg Penn III and Whit Weeks has given the defense a new streak of confidence. Nussmeier admitted Saturday was one of his worst performances, and he will need to be more efficient during a second-half schedule that includes Alabama, Texas A&M and others. But coach Brian Kelly is finally seeing his team’s performance match its preparation, which keeps the College Football Playoff very much in play. — Adam Rittenberg
Previous ranking: 13
The Irish have managed to get themselves back into playoff contention after a tough loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2. A 49-7 win over Stanford has given the Irish four wins in a row. Riley Leonard threw for 229 yards and three touchdowns in the win, while the Irish racked up 229 yards rushing and four TDs on the ground. But the road ahead looks a lot more difficult now than it did when the season began.
Georgia Tech has proved to be resilient and excellent running the ball; meanwhile Army and Navy are both undefeated. Virginia is also a vastly improved team. Still, if Notre Dame can win out, the Irish would be in great position to earn an at-large playoff spot. — Adelson
Previous ranking: 14
After a historic first half, Indiana had a chance to exhale and reflect on a 6-0 start with so many statistical ties to 1967, the last time the Hoosiers shared a Big Ten title. But to actually end the streak without a championship, IU must navigate a second-half schedule that begins with Nebraska and also features Ohio State, Michigan and Washington.
Nebraska’s 3-3-5 defense will pose the biggest challenge to date for an Indiana offense that has eclipsed 40 points in five consecutive games for the first time in team history, and boasts nine scoring drives of 10 plays or more, which matches the team’s total from 2023. Quarterback Kurtis Rourke, the first IU player since 1967 to record three or more touchdown passes in three Big Ten games, faces a Huskers defense with seven interceptions. Mikail Kamara (five sacks, 7.5 tackles for loss) and the IU defense will try to fluster Dylan Raiola in the most anticipated Hoosiers home game in many years. — Rittenberg
Previous ranking: 9
Josh Heupel said it more than once Saturday night. It hasn’t been perfect for his Vols, especially on offense, but they managed to squeeze past Florida 23-17 in overtime after being held scoreless in the first half for the second straight week. They weren’t able to overcome that drought a week ago in a 19-14 loss to Arkansas, but survived at home thanks to a defense that stood its ground in key moments. Florida led 3-0 at the half, but it could have easily been 21-0.
The Gators managed just one field goal in four trips inside the 20-yard line in the first half, and Tennessee defensive end James Pearce Jr. forced a fumble inside the 1 when he stripped the ball away from quarterback Graham Mertz. The Vols (5-1, 2-1 SEC) still have some serious polishing to do in their passing game, but they are leaning on a defense right now that has yet to give up more than 19 points in all six games this season. — Low
Previous ranking: 15
The Aggies’ passing game faltered in their only loss, a 23-13 defeat to Notre Dame, with Conner Weigman going 12-of-30 for 100 yards and two interceptions. Weigman suffered an AC joint injury in the game and reaggravated it the following week against McNeese, with redshirt freshman Marcel Reed stepping in. Reed polished off that win, then started three games in place of Weigman and accounted for eight scores with no interceptions, including six TD passes. But he never topped 178 yards in the three games and completed 54.4% of his passes on the season.
The Aggies saw the potential of their offense when Weigman returned, going 18-of-22 for 276 yards in a 41-10 blowout of No. 9 Missouri, with Weigman delivering precision back-shoulder throws and fitting passes into tight windows. The Aggies rank 112th nationally in passing at 181 yards per game, but Weigman’s efficiency could be a game changer. — Wilson
Previous ranking: 17
The Heisman Trophy résumé for Ashton Jeanty gets better every week. This time, college football’s leading rusher put up 217 rushing yards, 20 receiving yards and two total touchdowns on 34 touches in the Broncos’ 28-7 road win at Hawai’i.
Jeanty has set the bar so impossibly high that a 217-yard rushing performance against the No. 1 scoring defense in the Mountain West actually dropped his season average down to 208 yards per game. Boise State’s defense pitched a shutout in the second half and sacked Hawai’i quarterback Brayden Schager eight times. The Broncos have an idle week up next before their much-anticipated showdown with UNLV in Las Vegas on Oct. 25. — Max Olson
Previous ranking: 19
The Panthers are 6-0 for the first time since 1982 after a 17-15 win over Cal and had to rely on their defense to stay undefeated after an uncharacteristically off day from quarterback Eli Holstein. Pitt racked up a season-high six sacks and held Cal to under 100 yards rushing.
After an open date, Pitt faces six opponents that all have winning records — including SMU and Clemson (both undefeated in league play). Holstein threw two interceptions and Pitt had only 277 yards of offense, so that is one area that is sure to be emphasized on the open date this week. — Adelson
Previous ranking: 18
K-State proved its toughness late Saturday night in a thrilling 31-28 win at Colorado. The Wildcats could’ve fallen apart in a last-minute meltdown after the Buffaloes grabbed the lead with 3:12 left thanks to a fourth-down interception by Avery Johnson. The young QB rallied in the clutch, responding with a three-play touchdown drive capped by a 50-yard strike to Jayce Brown.
Running back DJ Giddens (220 total yards) was impressive all night long and now leads the Big 12 in rushing yards, and the Wildcats succeeded in applying consistent pressure to Shedeur Sanders and getting stops when they needed them. Up next is another tough road test at 3-3 West Virginia. — Olson
Previous ranking: 22
The Mustangs took the week off, but with BYU chugging along to 6-0, SMU’s lone loss looks better and better. It was a game in which the Mustangs probably outplayed BYU, too, and it’s impossible to argue the notion that the Mustangs have taken a big step forward since turning the offense over to Kevin Jennings.
The rest of the slate is manageable, too — though a Week 10 date with Pitt looms large — and the once long-shot odds for an ACC title game appearance now seem entirely reasonable. — Hale
Previous ranking: 11
Lane Kiffin has a CFP-caliber roster but likely will not get the Rebels their first CFP appearance. The team’s margin for error is gone after its second loss in three games. Undoubtedly most frustrating for Kiffin is that his offense, led by quarterback Jaxson Dart and a host of dynamic wide receivers and backs, looked shockingly ordinary in both setbacks. Ole Miss could have put away LSU with one touchdown drive in the second half but could not reach the end zone despite four consecutive possessions that went inside the LSU 30-yard line.
Sacks allowed and penalties really hurt the Rebels. Dart, Tre Harris and others continue to put up numbers, but they feel empty without the touchdowns and wins in the biggest games. Ole Miss still can gain CFP consideration by winning out, which would include a Nov. 9 home clash against Georgia. But the Rebels could easily be undefeated with a team that made clear upgrades on defense and retained most of its top pieces. — Rittenberg
Previous ranking: 25
Army just keeps rolling. The Black Knights moved to 6-0 for the season with a 44-10 romp over UAB on Saturday in West Point. They rolled to 515 total yards, with quarterback Bryson Daily throwing for 102 yards and one touchdown (on just three completions, naturally) and rushing for 136 yards and four scores.
Against an admittedly weak (to date) schedule, they’ve won by an average score of 40-10, and they’re one of just two teams (along with Indiana) who have yet to trail in 2024. They will be solid favorites in each game between now and Week 13, when they face Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium. Then they could look to either one or two games against Navy late in the year. What a story this is becoming. — Bill Connelly
Previous ranking: 23
Mizzou made an odd, mid-October trip to Amherst, Massachusetts, in search of confidence after a blowout loss to Texas A&M. The Tigers certainly didn’t find much resistance from host UMass: Brady Cook completed 14 of 19 passes for 219 yards and two scores, and Mizzou rolled to a 45-3 win. The Tigers’ offense, disappointing thus far, gained 461 yards while mostly taking the fourth quarter off.
Star Luther Burden III caught five balls for 59 yards and rushed for a 61-yard touchdown; he left the game in the third quarter with a shoulder injury that coach Eliah Drinkwitz downplayed after the game. The Tigers were preseason CFP contenders because of that offense, and it must now show up against a pair of opponents far more stout than UMass: Auburn in Week 8 and Alabama in Week 9. — Connelly
Previous ranking: 24
The Illini improved to 5-1, but their defense, which had risen to No. 12 in points allowed, cratered for the first time against a new-look Purdue offense. Illinois saw a 27-3 third-quarter lead disappear as the Boilers piled up 40 points in the final 22:43 of regulation and scored on their lone overtime possession before linebacker Dylan Rosiek stifled the decisive 2-point conversion attempt. Coordinator Aaron Henry must figure out how such a strong defense surrendered 382 yards and 14 first downs to a left-for-dead Purdue team after halftime.
Illinois can still contend in the Big Ten and for a CFP spot, but the next two weeks will be pivotal as it hosts Michigan and then travels to Oregon. The good news is the Illini continue to get strong play from quarterback Luke Altmyer (379 passing yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions against Purdue), and they sparked their run game with 177 yards and three touchdowns Saturday. — Rittenberg
Previous ranking: NR
Navy had a bye week to bask in the glow of an unbeaten start. The Midshipmen have won five games by an average score of 44-20, and that includes a potentially vital conference win over Memphis in Week 4. Quarterback Blake Horvath leads the nation in Total QBR, with 771 passing yards and 565 rushing yards.
The Midshipmen won their past two games on the road, and any hopes of an unbeaten finish will require continuing the road warrior mentality: They’ve got only two games left in Annapolis. They’ll face Notre Dame in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in Week 9, and they have only one home game between now and a potentially huge visit from Tulane in Week 12. So far, so good. — Connelly
Previous ranking: NR
After an idle week, Nebraska hits the road to face No. 16 Indiana in a showdown that will validate whichever team wins as a legitimate factor in the Big Ten race. Just as important, the 5-1 Huskers have a chance to finally break an ignominious streak. A sixth win would mean bowl eligibility in Year 2 under Matt Rhule, ending the longest active bowl game drought among all Power 4 programs. How long has it been? Nebraska’s last holiday road trip was the 2016 TransPerfect Music City Bowl, a 38-24 loss to a Tennessee squad led by Butch Davis that featured Josh Dobbs and Alvin Kamara. — Olson
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Midseason grades for all 30 MLB teams: ‘A’ is for Astros, ‘F’ is for …?
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6 hours agoon
July 10, 2025By
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David SchoenfieldJul 9, 2025, 07:00 AM ET
Close- Covers MLB for ESPN.com
- Former deputy editor of Page 2
- Been with ESPN.com since 1995
We’re past due to hand out some midseason grades, so let’s hand out some midseason grades.
As we pass the 90-game mark in the 2025 MLB season, my team of the first half isn’t the well-rounded Detroit Tigers, who do get our highest grade for owning MLB’s best record, or the explosive Chicago Cubs or Shohei Ohtani‘s Los Angeles Dodgers, but a team most baseball fans love to hate: the Houston Astros. They lost their two best players from last season and their best hitter has been injured — and they’re playing their best baseball since they won the 2022 World Series.
Let’s get to the grades. As always, we’re grading off preseason expectations, factoring in win-loss record and quality of performance, while looking at other positive performances and injuries.
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
Tarik Skubal is obviously the headline act, but the Tigers are winning with impressive depth across the entire roster.
Javier Baez is putting together a remarkable comeback season after a couple of abysmal years and will become the first player to start an All-Star Game at both shortstop and in the outfield. Former No. 1 overall picks Casey Mize and Spencer Torkelson have put together their own comeback stories, while Riley Greene has matured into one of the game’s top power hitters.
Given their deep well of prospects and contributors at the MLB level, no team is better positioned than the Tigers to add significant help at the trade deadline.
I heard someone refer to them as the Zombie Astros, which feels apropos. Alex Bregman left as a free agent, they traded Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez has been injured and has just three home runs, and the Jose Altuve experiment in left field predictably fizzled.
But here they are, fighting for the best record in the majors and holding a comfortable lead in the AL West. They’re getting star turns from Hunter Brown, Framber Valdez and Jeremy Pena, while the risky decision to start Cam Smith in the majors with very little minor league experience has paid off, as he has now become their cleanup hitter.
If we ignore the COVID-19 season, the Astros look on their way to an eighth straight division title.
This could be at least a half-grade higher based on everything that has gone right: Pete Crow-Armstrong‘s attention-grabbing breakout, Tucker doing everything expected after the big trade, Seiya Suzuki‘s monster power numbers and Matthew Boyd‘s All-Star turn in the rotation. The Cubs are on pace for their most wins since their World Series title season in 2016.
There have been a few hiccups, however, especially in the rotation with Justin Steele‘s season-ending injury and Ben Brown‘s inconsistency, plus rookie third baseman Matt Shaw has scuffled, and the bench has been weak aside from their backup catchers.
Still, this is a powerhouse lineup, and the Cubs will seek to improve their rotation at the deadline.
They just keep winning of late, going from 25-27 and seven games behind the Yankees on May 25 to taking over first place from the slumping Bronx Bombers, a remarkable turnaround over just 36 games. They went 27-9 over a 36-game stretch ending with their eighth win in a row on Sunday.
George Springer‘s recent surge has been fun to watch, a reminder of how good he was at his peak, and Addison Barger has been mashing over the past two months.
Some of the stats don’t add up to the Blue Jays being this good — they’ve barely outscored their opponents — but there might be more offense in the tank from the likes of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and a healthy Anthony Santander, and the bullpen, a soft spot, is the easiest area to upgrade.
Their success is best summed up by the fact that Freddy Peralta is their lone All-Star, but they have a whole bunch of players who have contributed between 1 and 2 WAR.
Brandon Woodruff looked good Sunday in his first start in nearly two years, so that could be a huge boost for the second half.
I’m curious to see how Jackson Chourio performs as well. While his counting stats — extra-base hits, RBIs — are fine, his triple-slash line remains below last season, especially his OBP. He had a huge second half in 2024 (.310/.363/.552), and if he does that again, the Brewers could find themselves back in the postseason for the seventh time in eight seasons.
The Rays started off slow, with a losing record through the end of April, but then went 33-22 in May and June to claw back into the AL East race — as the Rays usually do, last year being the recent exception.
Two key performers have been All-Star third baseman Junior Caminero, who has a chance to become just the third player to hit 40 home runs in his age-21 season, and All-Star first baseman Jonathan Aranda.
Due to the league wanting the Rays to play more home games early in the season, the July and August slate will be very road-heavy, so we’ll see how the Rays adapt to a difficult two-month stretch, especially since their pitching isn’t quite as deep as it has been in other seasons.
No, they’re not going to be the greatest team of all time. But they might win 100 games — even though Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki, their huge offseason acquisitions, have combined for just two wins in 10 starts.
The lineup, of course, has been terrific, with Ohtani leading the NL in several categories and Will Smith leading the batting race. By wRC+, it’s been the best offense in Dodgers history.
If they can get some combo of Snell, Sasaki and Tyler Glasnow healthy, plus Ohtani eventually ramped up to a bigger workload on the mound, the Dodgers still loom as World Series favorites.
They are on pace for 95 wins, mainly on the strength of Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suarez and Cristopher Sanchez, who are a combined 23-7 with 11.8 WAR. Jesus Luzardo‘s ERA is bloated due to that two-start stretch when he allowed 20 runs, but he has otherwise been solid as well.
But, overall, it hasn’t always been the smoothest of treks. The bullpen has imploded a few times and the offense has lacked power aside from Kyle Schwarber. Bryce Harper is back after missing three weeks, and they need to get his bat going. Look for some bullpen additions at the trade deadline — and perhaps an outfielder as well.
The Cardinals have been a minor surprise — perhaps even to the Cardinals themselves. St. Louis was viewing this as a rebuilding year of sorts — not that the Cardinals ever hit rock bottom and start completely over. They had a hot May, winning 12 of 13 at one point, but the offense has been fading of late, with those three straight shutout losses to Pittsburgh and six shutout losses since June 25.
The starting rotation doesn’t generate a lot of swing and miss, with both Erick Fedde and Miles Mikolas seeing their ERAs starting to climb. Brendan Donovan is the team’s only All-Star rep, and that kind of sums up this team: solid but without any star power. That might foretell a second-half fade.
All-Star starting pitchers Logan Webb and Robbie Ray, plus a dominant bullpen, have led the way, although after starting 12-4, the Giants have basically been a .500 team for close to three months now. Rafael Devers hasn’t yet ignited the offense since coming over from Boston, and the Giants have lost four 1-0 games.
These final three games at home against the Dodgers before the All-Star break will be a crucial series, as Los Angeles has slowly pulled away in the NL West.
This was an “A-plus” through June 12, when the Mets were 45-24 and owned the best record in baseball, even though Juan Soto hadn’t gotten hot. Soto finally got going in June, but the pitching collapsed, and the Mets went through a disastrous 1-10 stretch.
The rotation injuries have piled up, exacerbating the lack of bullpen depth. Recent games have been started by Justin Hagenman (who had a 6.21 ERA in Triple-A), journeyman reliever Chris Devenski, Paul Blackburn (7.71 ERA) and Frankie Montas, who has had to start even though he’s clearly not throwing the ball well. The Mets need to get the rotation healthy, but also could use more offense from Mark Vientos and their catchers (Francisco Alvarez was demoted to Triple-A).
At times it has felt like Cal Raleigh has been a one-man team with his record-breaking first half. But he will be joined on the All-Star squad by starting pitcher Bryan Woo, closer Andres Munoz and center fielder Julio Rodriguez, who made it on the strength of his defense, as his offense has been a disappointment.
The offense has been one of the best in the majors on the road, but the rotation has been nowhere near as effective as the past couple of seasons, with George Kirby, Logan Gilbert and Bryce Miller all missing time with injuries. They just shut out the Pirates three games in a row, so maybe that will get the rotation on a roll.
They’re just out of the wild-card picture while hanging around .500, so we give them a decent grade since that exceeds preseason expectations. It feels like a little bit of a mirage given their run differential — their record in one-run games (good) versus their record in blowout games (not good) — and various holes across the lineup and pitching staff.
But they’ve done two things to keep them in the race. One, they hit a lot of home runs. Two, they’re the only team in the majors to use just five starting pitchers. The rotation hasn’t been stellar, but it’s been stable.
The Padres are probably fortunate to be where they are, given some of their issues. As expected, the offensive depth has been a problem.
Not as expected, Dylan Cease has struggled while Michael King‘s injury after a strong start has left them without last year’s dynamic 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation (although Nick Pivetta has been one of the best signings of the offseason). Yu Darvish just made his season debut Monday, so hopefully he’ll provide a lift.
The Padres haven’t played well against the better teams, including a 2-5 record against the Dodgers, but they did clean up against the Athletics, Rockies and Pirates, going 16-2 against those three teams.
For now, the Reds are stuck in neutral. Leave out 2022, when they lost 100 games, and it’s otherwise been a string of .500-ish seasons: 31-29 in 2020, 83-79 in 2021, 82-80 in 2023, 77-85 in 2024 and now a similar record so far in 2025.
The hope was that Terry Francona would be a difference-maker. Maybe that will play out down the stretch, but the best hope is to get the rotation clicking on all cylinders at the same time. That means Andrew Abbott continuing his breakout performance, plus getting Hunter Greene healthy again and rookie Chase Burns to live up to the hype after a couple of shaky outings following an impressive MLB debut.
Throw in Nick Lodolo and solid Nick Martinez and Brady Singer, and this group can be good enough to pitch the Reds to their first full-season playoff appearance since 2013.
The Yankees have hit their annual midseason swoon — which has been subject to much intense analysis from their disgruntled fans — and that opening weekend sweep of the Brewers, when the Yankees’ torpedo bats were the big story in baseball, now seems long ago.
Going from seven up to three back in such a short time is a disaster — but not disastrous. Nonetheless, the Yankees will have to do some hard-core self-evaluation heading to the trade deadline.
The offense wasn’t going to be as good as it was in April, when Paul Goldschmidt, Trent Grisham and Ben Rice were all playing over their heads. So, do they need a hitter? Or with Clarke Schmidt now likely joining Gerrit Cole as a Tommy John casualty, do they need a starting pitcher? Or both?
From the book of “things we didn’t expect,” page 547: The Marlins are averaging more runs per game than the Orioles, Padres, Braves and Rangers, to name a few teams. They’re averaging almost as many runs per game as the Mets, and last time we checked, the Marlins weren’t the team to give Soto $765 million.
An eight-game winning streak at the end of June has the Marlins going toe-to-toe with the Braves for third place in the NL East even though the starting rotation has been a mess, with Sandy Alcantara on track to become just the fourth qualified pitcher with an ERA over 7.00.
Heading into the season, I thought that if any team was going to challenge the Dodgers in the NL West, it would be the Diamondbacks. The offense has once again been one of the best in the majors, but the pitching issues have been painful.
After the aggressive move to sign Corbin Burnes, he went down with Tommy John surgery after 11 starts. Meanwhile, Zac Gallen, Eduardo Rodriguez and Brandon Pfaadt each have an ERA on the wrong side of 5.00. Rodriguez was better in June before a shellacking on July 4, while Gallen remains homer-prone, so it’s hard to tell if improvement is on the horizon. Their playoff odds are hovering just under 20%, so there’s a chance, but they need to get red-hot like they did last July and August.
It feels like it has been more soap opera than baseball season in Boston, with the Devers drama finally ending with the shocking trade with the Giants.
If you give added weight that this is the Red Sox, a team that should be operating with the big boys in both budget and aspirations and instead seemed to only want to dump Devers’ contract, then feel free to lower this grade a couple of notches, even if the Red Sox are close in the wild-card standings.
On the field, the heralded rookie trio of Kristian Campbell, Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer hasn’t exactly clicked, with Campbell returning to the minors after posting a .902 OPS in April. A big test will come out of the All-Star break, when they play the Cubs, Phillies, Dodgers, Twins and Astros in a tough 15-game stretch.
After last season’s surprise playoff appearance, it’s been a frustrating 2025 — although I’m not sure this result is necessarily a surprise.
There were concerns about the offense heading into the season and those concerns have proven correct. They were getting no production from their outfield, so they rushed Jac Caglianone to the majors to much hype, but he has struggled and might need a reset back in Triple-A. Even Bobby Witt Jr., as good as he has been (on pace for 7.5 WAR), has seen his OPS drop 140 points.
On the bright side, Kris Bubic emerged as an All-Star starter and Noah Cameron has filled in nicely for the injured Cole Ragans, so maybe they trade a starter for some offense.
Coming off a catastrophic 2024 season, nobody was expecting anything from the White Sox. Indeed, another 121-loss season loomed as a possibility. While they’re on pace to lose 100 again, they’ve at least played more competitive baseball thanks to their pitching.
Rookie starters Shane Smith and Sean Burke have shown promise, while rookie position players Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero and now Colson Montgomery are getting their initial taste of the majors.
There has been the mix of calamity: Luis Robert Jr. has been unproductive and is probably now untradable, and former No. 3 overall pick Andrew Vaughn hit .189 and was traded to the Brewers.
The Twins are one organization that might like a do-over of the past five seasons. It feels like they’ve had the most talent in the division, but all they’ve done is squeeze out one soft division title in 2023. Now, the Tigers have passed them in talent and other factors, such as payroll flexibility.
There’s still time for the Twins to turn things around in 2025, but outside of that wonderful 13-game winning streak, they haven’t played winning baseball.
Overall, it’s been yet another bad season, despite Paul Skenes‘ brilliance. Really, do we talk enough about him? Yes, we do talk about him, but he has a 1.95 ERA through his first 42 career starts. Incredible.
Here’s an amazing thing about baseball. The Pirates are not a good team, but they recently put together one of the best six-game stretches in history. That’s not stretching the description. First, they swept the Mets — a good team — by scores of 9-1, 9-2 and 12-1. Then they swept the Cardinals — a good team — with three shutouts, 7-0, 1-0 and 5-0. They became the first team since at least 1901 to score 43 runs or more and allow four runs or fewer in a six-game stretch. And then they promptly got shut out three games in a row, making them the first to win three straight shutouts and then lose three straight shutouts.
Eighteen of our 28 voters picked them to win the AL West before the season, but it’s looking more and more like the 2023 World Series might be a stone-cold fluke in the middle of a string of losing seasons. That year, nearly everyone in the lineup had a career year at the plate, and the pitching got hot at the right time.
This year’s Rangers, though, have struggled to score runs, and while some have pointed to the offensive environment at Globe Life Field, they’re near the bottom in road OPS as well. It’s been fun seeing Jacob deGrom back at a dominating level, and Nathan Eovaldi should have been an All-Star.
Put it this way: If the Rangers can somehow squeeze into the postseason, you don’t want to face the Rangers in a short series. Indeed, if any team looms as an October upset special, it might be the Rangers.
The Nationals received superlative first-half performances from James Wood and MacKenzie Gore, while CJ Abrams is on the way to his best season. But there remains a lack of overall organizational progress, which finally led to the firings on Sunday of longtime GM Mike Rizzo and longtime manager Dave Martinez. A 7-19 record in June sealed their fate, as the rotation has been bad and the bullpen arguably the worst in baseball.
Until the Nationals figure out how to improve their pitching — or, better yet, find an owner who wants to win — they will be stuck going nowhere.
That fell apart in a hurry. Sunday’s loss was Cleveland’s 10th in a row, a stretch that remarkably included five shutouts. Indeed, the Guardians have now been shut out 11 times; the franchise record in the post-dead-ball-era (since 1920) is 20 shutouts in 1968.
There’s nothing worse than watching a team that can’t score runs, so that tells you how exciting the Guardians have been. Last year, the Guardians hit exceptionally well with runners in scoring position, keeping afloat what was otherwise a mediocre offense. That hasn’t happened in 2025 (trading Josh Naylor didn’t help either). Throw in some predictable regression from the bullpen, and this season looks lost.
We can’t give this a complete failing grade due to the emergence of All-Star shortstop Jacob Wilson (the Athletics’ first All-Star starter since Josh Donaldson in 2014) and slugging first baseman Nick Kurtz, who have a chance to finish 1-2 in the Rookie of the Year voting. Plus, we have Denzel Clarke‘s circus catches in center field.
But otherwise? Ugh. The Sacramento gamble already looks like a disaster, three months into a three-year stay. The team is drawing well below Sutter Health Park’s 14,000-seat capacity, with many recent games drawing under 10,000 fans. Luis Severino bashed the small crowds and the lack of air-conditioning.
The A’s had a groundbreaking ceremony for their new park in Vegas, renting heavy construction equipment as background props. Maybe they should have spent that money on more pitching help.
Based on preseason expectations, the Braves have clearly been the biggest disappointment in the National League — fighting the Orioles for most disappointing overall.
What’s gone wrong? They haven’t scored runs, as the offense continues its remarkable fade from a record-setting performance just two seasons ago. The collapses of Michael Harris II and Ozzie Albies lead the way, with lack of production at shortstop and left field playing a big role as well. Closer Raisel Iglesias has struggled, and the team is 11-22 in one-run games. Spencer Strider hasn’t yet reached his pre-injury level and Reynaldo Lopez made just one start before going down.
The Braves haven’t missed the playoffs since 2017, but that run is clearly in jeopardy.
The Orioles have a similar record to the Braves but have played much worse, including losses of 24-2, 19-5, 15-3 and two separate 9-0 shutouts.
They will spend the trade deadline dealing away as many of their impending free agents as possible, and then do a lot of soul-searching heading into the offseason. After making the playoffs in 2023 and 2024, will this season just be a blip? While the pitching struggles aren’t necessarily a big surprise, what has happened to the offense? Are some of their young players prospects or suspects?
After two months of Cleveland Spiders-level baseball, it would be easy to make fun of the Rockies. Especially since they recently announced Walker Monfort — son of the owner — was promoted to executive VP and will replace outgoing president and COO Greg Feasel.
On the other hand, the Rockies are doing something right: They just drew 121,000 for a three-game series against the White Sox.
Sports
Ramirez, Brown out of ASG; McKinstry among subs
Published
6 hours agoon
July 10, 2025By
admin
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ESPN News Services
Jul 9, 2025, 05:52 PM ET
The Detroit Tigers have the best record in the majors. Now they are tied for having the most All-Stars, too.
Zach McKinstry was picked Wednesday to replace Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena, who has been dealing with a rib injury. The infielder-outfielder will join Detroit second baseman Gleyber Torres and outfielders Javier Baez and Riley Greene — all AL starters — and staff ace Tarik Skubal, who also is among the candidates to start the All-Star Game on Tuesday night in Atlanta.
The five All-Stars for Detroit is tied for the most with the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, who have DH Shohei Ohtani, catcher Will Smith and first baseman Freddie Freeman starting for the NL along with pitchers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Clayton Kershaw.
Yamamoto is scheduled to start Sunday for Los Angeles, so Cincinnati Reds left-hander Andrew Abbott has been picked to replace him.
Meanwhile, Astros third baseman Isaac Paredes was chosen for the AL team in place of starting third baseman Jose Ramírez, the seven-time All-Star who wants to spend the week rehabbing an Achilles injury; Twins right-hander Joe Ryan was selected as the replacement for Astros pitcher Hunter Brown; and Brewers closer Trevor Megill was added to the NL team in place of teammate Freddy Peralta, their scheduled starter for Sunday’s game.
The shuffling of replacements gives the Astros four All-Stars in Paredes, Peña, Brown and pitcher Josh Hader. The Brewers have two in Megill and Peralta. And the Twins have two with Ryan joining two-time All-Star outfielder Byron Buxton.
“This was the goal in the offseason,” said Megill, who struck out Freeman, Andy Pages and Tommy Edman in order in the 10th inning to secure the Brewers’ 3-2 win over the Dodgers on Wednesday. “Just worked my butt off for it, and here we are.”
Ramírez was hit by a pitch in a game against Toronto on June 26 and has struggled at the plate since. The seven-time All-Star was still hitting .299 with 16 homers, 44 RBIs and 24 stolen bases through 87 games for the Guardians.
“Everybody wants to go to the All-Star Game and especially for the support from the fans,” Ramírez said. “But I feel the best thing for the team is to be able to be resting (those) days and be able to contribute to the team in the second half.”
McKinstry, Paredes, Megill and Ryan make six total replacements and 71 players between the two All-Star teams. The other substitution was Rays third baseman Junior Caminero for Boston‘s Alex Bregman, who has been dealing with a strained right quadriceps.
The Tigers have been one of the surprise stories of the first half of the season. After going 86-76 and tying for second in the AL Central last season, they were 59-34 through Tuesday — the best record in the majors.
Along with playing every infield position besides catcher, and both corner outfield spots, McKinstry entered Wednesday hitting .283 with seven homers and 27 RBIs. The 30-year-old needs just three more homers and nine RBIs to set career highs.
Peña, who is hitting a career-best .322 with 11 homers and 40 RBIs in 82 games for the Astros, has been out since June 28 with a fractured rib. He had hoped to return by the All-Star break, but he has not been cleared to resume baseball activity.
Paredes, his teammate, is headed to his second straight All-Star Game in his first season in Houston. He’s hitting a career-best .255 with 19 homers and 49 RBIs for the Astros, who lead the AL West.
“My main focus is to work hard for the team and be able to give the most I can for the team,” Paredes said, “but as you can see now with the results that I’m getting … those results allow me to get to the All-Star Game, so it feels good.”
Megill earned his first career All-Star selection by going 2-2 with a 2.41 ERA, 21 saves and 43 strikeouts in 33⅔ innings.
The 29-year-old Ryan, whose name has surfaced in plenty of trade talk recently, was one of the biggest snubs when the initial All-Star Game rosters were announced. The right-hander is 8-4 with a career-best 2.76 ERA across 18 starts, and he’s struck out 116 against just 21 walks over 104 1/3 innings for the Twins.
“The last couple years, I’ve had really good numbers at voting, then I’ve kind of scuttled the last two outings or so. I can see why optically it might not look as good,” Ryan said. “But putting it together, it was kind of a shock not to be in (this year).
“At the same time, there’s so many good pitchers in the league right now. You’ve just got to hang with them and if you don’t like it, play better. That was kind of the mindset I was trying to shift into, but to get the news and be excited to go, it makes everything kind of go away and you just think about the future and going forward.”
The Associated Press and FIeld Level Media contributed to this report.
Sports
Yankees DFA LeMahieu after ‘hard conversations’
Published
6 hours agoon
July 10, 2025By
admin
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Jorge CastilloJul 9, 2025, 04:54 PM ET
Close- ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the Washington Wizards from 2014 to 2016 and the Washington Nationals from 2016 to 2018 for The Washington Post before covering the Los Angeles Dodgers and MLB for the Los Angeles Times from 2018 to 2024.
NEW YORK — The Yankees designated two-time batting champion DJ LeMahieu for assignment Wednesday, presumably ending the infielder’s seven-year tenure with the organization despite being owed $22 million through next season.
“Tough decisions,” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said. “In the end, it ultimately comes down to how this roster sits and what’s best. You want to provide your manager with enough chess moves to deal with on a day-in and day-out basis in-game.”
Manager Aaron Boone explained that the move resulted from “an evolving conversation” in recent days that included multiple meetings with LeMahieu, a respected veteran in the Yankees’ clubhouse.
It comes a day after Boone announced that Jazz Chisholm Jr. would shift back to playing second base every day from third base, bumping LeMahieu from the team’s everyday second baseman to a bench role. Boone acknowledged LeMahieu took the demotion “not necessarily great” but emphasized that LeMahieu did not ask for his release.
“It’s been a tough couple of days,” Boone said. “Some hard conversations. And then ultimately coming to this decision, conclusion, obviously not easy for [who’s] been a great player. He’s done a lot of great things for this organization. So, difficult, but at the end [we] feel like this is the right thing to do at this time.”
LeMahieu, who turns 37 on Sunday, batted .266 with a .674 OPS in 45 games this season after starting the season on the injured list with a strained calf. He has been better since June 1, hitting .310 with a .754 OPS in 96 plate appearances as the Yankees’ primary second baseman, but Cashman ultimately decided the production wasn’t enough to offset his defensive liabilities.
The Yankees signed LeMahieu to a six-year, $90 million contract before the 2021 season — fresh off LeMahieu hitting .364 during the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign to become the first player to win a batting title in both leagues in the modern era — envisioning him as an everyday utility player bouncing between infield positions.
LeMahieu made 36 of his 55 starts last season at third base before going on the injured list in early September with a right hip impingement for the remainder of the year. That injury, according to Cashman, inhibited LeMahieu’s ability to play third base, and led to LeMahieu informing him that he couldn’t physically handle playing the position anymore.
“He was always just sharing that the recovery was really difficult,” Cashman said. “The physical toll on him to tee up at that position was a problem and so therefore that position is a problem.”
The limitation was cemented during spring training when LeMahieu strained his left calf in his first Grapefruit League game playing third base, forcing the Yankees to conclude that LeMahieu was no longer an option at the position. He only played second base in his nine rehab games before making his season debut May 13 as a second baseman with Chisholm on the injured list with an oblique strain.
Three weeks later, Chisholm, who started the season as the team’s everyday second baseman, came off the injured list to play third base despite LeMahieu’s range at second base being glaringly limited. Chisholm, who feels most comfortable at second base, accepted the assignment and returned to third base, a position he picked up last season after the Yankees acquired him from the Miami Marlins at the trade deadline through the World Series.
The calculus changed Sunday when Chisholm, with the Yankees in the midst of a six-game losing streak, told reporters that he hurt his shoulder making a throw from third base three weeks earlier and the injury impacted his throwing. Two days later, Chisholm, who had made three throwing errors in his final four starts at third base, was the Yankees’ starting second baseman again.
With Chisholm, an All-Star this season, stationed at second base, former MVPs Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger entrenched at first base and Giancarlo Stanton occupying the DH spot, playing time would have been sparse for LeMahieu.
Factoring in that the Yankees’ options at third base behind Oswald Peraza, who is also the team’s backup shortstop, would have been catcher J.C. Escarra, Cashman determined that LeMahieu’s presence hampered the team’s flexibility to an extent that would have handcuffed Boone’s in-game decision-making. Infielder Jorbit Vivas, a light-hitting versatile defender, was called up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to replace LeMahieu on the roster.
“I wouldn’t say he’s unwilling to still make the attempt and maybe spell over there,” Cashman said of LeMahieu. “But it was something that he was without sharing that was steering clear of to the extent he could.
“Because, again, like anything else, he’s got a lot of pride. He’s a great player. He wants to contribute to the team. He loves this team. He loves this organization. But he felt that was an avenue that was no longer a realistic avenue and that kind of ties our hands a little bit more moving forward.”
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