MLB Power Rankings: Where every team stands in the new year
We’re around five weeks out from when the first MLB teams report to spring training, and plenty of free agents remain unsigned. So while we wait, let’s look ahead to the start of the 2025 season.
Where does every team stand heading into spring training? Can anyone catch the reigning World Series champion Dodgers for the No. 1 spot? How has the loss of Juan Soto affected where the Yankees sit — and how has he boosted the Mets’ ranking?
We asked ESPN MLB experts David Schoenfield, Buster Olney and Jesse Rogers to rank every team in baseball based on a combination of what we’ve seen so far this offseason and what we already knew from 2024. They also weighed in with an observation for all 30 teams.
Way-too-early 2025 Power Rankings
Final 2024 ranking: 2
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 1
No matter what happens the rest of the offseason, the Dodgers will enter 2025 as the favorites to win the World Series — although no team has repeated as champion since 2000. They’ve added two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell to the rotation (while losing Walker Buehler) and re-signed Teoscar Hernandez while also adding Michael Conforto to the outfield mix, which allows Mookie Betts to return to shortstop. If they also land Roki Sasaki and Shohei Ohtani is able to return to pitching, the Dodgers could match the 2022 team that won 111 games (the most wins by a National League team since the 1906 Cubs). — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 1
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 2
Philadelphia has been looking for outfield help, which led to the signing of Max Kepler, and added Jordan Romano to the bullpen after it faltered in the second half. Meanwhile, Jesus Luzardo deepens a stellar rotation. The Phillies might not be done tinkering quite yet. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 3
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 9
Whether the Yankees are able to repeat as American League champions will largely come down to the performance of their rotation. Will Gerrit Cole pitch most or all of the season? Will Max Fried, going on 11 years since his first elbow surgery, hold up? Will Luis Gil bounce back after a second-half fade? — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 10
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 18
Juan Soto. Enough said. The Mets also brought back Sean Manaea, which was huge for their rotation. Meanwhile, a reunion with Pete Alonso is still possible. –– Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 11
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 7
The Braves have been quiet so far this winter, but knowing general manager Alex Anthopoulos, that won’t last long. Pitching help — including a high-profile reliever, which there are still plenty of on the market — could be in their future. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 9
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 4
Grayson Rodriguez is capable of being the Orioles’ ace. Zach Eflin is a solid No. 2. There is upside with Dean Kremer and other rotation options. But, wow, there is almost no margin for error in this group, at a time when the team already has other championship elements in place. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 8
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 6
The Diamondbacks were the surprise winners in the Corbin Burnes sweepstakes. If Merrill Kelly is healthy and Jordan Montgomery and Eduardo Rodriguez bounce back, Arizona could go from one of the worst rotations in the majors to one of the best overnight. Of course, the D-backs’ recent history with free agent pitchers hasn’t been good: Montgomery and Rodriguez were terrible last year; Madison Bumgarner was a bust; and they had to trade Zack Greinke after three years of a six-year deal. But Burnes feels like a good bet to remain one of the best starters in the league.
Arizona also moved quickly after Christian Walker signed with Houston, acquiring Josh Naylor, who hit 31 home runs for Cleveland, to take over at first base. — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 17
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 10
You could make a case that the Red Sox are the most improved team of the winter, with the addition of Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler at the front of the rotation. However, the big X factor going into spring training? What they will get out of Trevor Story, who played just 26 games last season and hit .270 with a .429 slugging percentage after he came back in September. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 4
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 3
GM A.J. Preller has been quiet so far as the Padres have yet to make a single 40-man roster transaction. Catcher Kyle Higashioka signed with the Rangers, while Jurickson Profar and Ha-Seong Kim remain free agents, leaving holes on the roster to fill. There are also trade rumors surrounding Dylan Cease and Luis Arraez, both heading into their walk years and set to make around a combined $28 million in arbitration. Preller might be waiting to see whether the Padres land Roki Sasaki before he decides on his next move. — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 6
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 5
Money has dictated the Guardians’ winter moves as they offloaded Andres Gimenez and Josh Naylor and acquired a couple of potential starting pitchers in Luis Ortiz from Pittsburgh and Slade Cecconi from Arizona. They also re-signed Shane Bieber and brought back Carlos Santana to replace Naylor. They did need more starting pitching depth, so those moves addressed a need, but they’re going to miss Gimenez’s glove — and going from Naylor to a 39-year-old Santana could backfire. — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 7
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 11
The Astros will have a different look to them for the first time in several years as they said goodbye to Kyle Tucker and might soon to Alex Bregman. They didn’t wait for the latter player to leave before bringing in Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 16
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 8
The Cubs have the look of the old San Francisco teams that were really good at playing low-scoring games. But they have to have a better bullpen performance to play that out over the season. They were 12th in bullpen ERA, with a 3.81 mark — there must be improvement. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 13
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 14
The Royals will hope to hold the ground they gained after last year’s miracle turnaround. They re-signed Michael Wacha to a three-year deal and then traded Brady Singer for Jonathan India, losing some rotation depth but adding much-needed on-base ability (India had a .357 OBP for the Reds). If the Royals want to return to the postseason, however, they might need to improve their bullpen depth or maybe add some rotation insurance (an outfield bat would be nice, too). — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 12
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 16
The Tigers have made a couple of moves around the fringes — signing starter Alex Cobb and second baseman Gleyber Torres — but have yet to make the big move Tigers fans were hoping for. Maybe that will be Alex Bregman, which would mean an entire new-look Detroit infield: Bregman at third, Trey Sweeney taking over on a full-time basis at short, Torres at second and Colt Keith moving over to first (with Spencer Torkelson pushed to a bench role). If Detroit doesn’t sign Bregman, maybe it will invest that money in another starting pitcher. — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 15
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 12
Seattle has yet to make that signature move of the winter, but with a stellar pitching staff and a deficiency at the plate, it’s hard to imagine the Mariners won’t still trade a pitcher for a hitter. It’s that simple. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 5
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 13
Milwaukee is, in some ways, the Tampa Bay of the NL Central — consistently fielding good teams despite resource challenges. Repeating as division champions will be difficult for the Brewers, however, with the loss of Willy Adames and Devin Williams, both top-10 players at their respective positions. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 22
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 17
Texas didn’t love how some of its young hitters performed the year after winning the World Series, so it added some veteran presence to the group, including Joc Pederson and Jake Burger. The always edgy Pederson quickly declared it was time for the Rangers to wrest the AL West from the Astros. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 19
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 21
Well, the Giants finally landed a nine-figure free agent, signing shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year deal. But let’s be honest: He’s not Bryce Harper or Aaron Judge or even Corbin Burnes, the pitcher many thought the Giants might land. Adames does fill a big need, but we’ll see how his power translates to San Francisco. With the departure of Blake Snell to the rival Dodgers, the Giants probably need to add another starter, and you can’t rule them out on Pete Alonso, given Giants first basemen hit just 14 home runs in 2024. — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 21
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 23
If you like the challenge of picking a sleeper team to succeed, Cincinnati is a strong candidate. There is better depth in the rotation and some dynamic young position players, not to mention that manager Terry Francona’s teams typically outperform expectations. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 14
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 15
The Twins are stuck in payroll purgatory, unwilling to increase that figure but hamstrung in part by Carlos Correa‘s big salary ($37 million). So the 2025 Twins are going to look a lot like the 2024 Twins. That’s still a club that could win the division if Cleveland comes back to the pack, but Minnesota will need better health from its big three (Correa, Royce Lewis, Byron Buxton) and better results against good teams (the Twins were a combined 3-22 against the Guardians, Yankees and Orioles). — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 20
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 19
Underneath the concern about Tampa Bay’s home ballpark, the big league team is having a typical offseason: The Rays have traded away some of their more accomplished players in return for inexpensive depth. They once again look like a team that will contend for a wild-card spot. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 26
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 25
Washington has quietly brought in some veteran players to augment a young roster. Lefty first baseman Nathaniel Lowe will help in that department, as will pitcher Michael Soroka. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 25
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 26
The A’s augmented an underrated offensive roster with several pitching additions, including Jeffrey Springs and Luis Severino. They could win 75 games in 2025 — their first season playing in Sacramento. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 24
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 20
Executives and agents have noted the enormous remaining pool of unsigned free agents as teams wait for contract prices to drop on the second- and third-tier players. Think of it as the after-Christmas bargains. This could be where Pittsburgh does some shopping. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 23
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 22
You could make a strong case that, to date, the Blue Jays have had the worst winter of any team attempting to get better. The Hail Mary play for Juan Soto fell short. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is balking at their overtures, with the best opportunity to trade him for value — if that’s what they’re going to do — frittering away. And they can’t get other free agents to take their money. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 18
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 24
The Cardinals’ primary offseason drama has been around the question of whether they will find a trade for Nolan Arenado — not only for the player, who has a full no-trade clause, but with a team interested in trading for an aging star whose numbers have been in decline but who has an expensive deal. — Olney
Final 2024 ranking: 27
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 28
The Angels were the strike-quick team of the winter. They signed pitchers Kyle Hendricks and Yusei Kikuchi and acquired Jorge Soler in a trade with the Braves not long after the final out of the World Series. — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 28
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 29
Per usual, the Rockies have apparently decided to sit out the offseason. Yes, they re-signed catcher Jacob Stallings and signed infielder Kyle Farmer, who is 34 years old and hit .214 for the Twins — so they haven’t been completely inactive. Colorado is coming off consecutive 100-loss seasons and, given the strength of the rest of the division, might be hard-pressed to avoid a third straight such season. — Schoenfield
Final 2024 ranking: 29
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 27
Miami’s subtractions so far this winter have been much more notable than any additions. Gone are Jake Burger and Jesus Luzardo. How long will the rehabbing Sandy Alcantara be a Marlin? — Rogers
Final 2024 ranking: 30
Way-too-early 2025 ranking: 30
Most analysts feel the White Sox did pretty well in the Garrett Crochet trade, acquiring Boston’s two most recent first-round picks in catcher Kyle Teel and toolsy outfielder Braden Montgomery, plus a couple of other prospects. Next up: Luis Robert Jr.? Robert’s trade value is low after hitting .224/.278/.379 and missing 60 games, so it might make sense to wait and see whether he gets off to a better start at the plate in 2025. — Schoenfield
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Greg Wyshynski
The Dallas Stars‘ 3-1 win in Game 4 against the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night was a contrast in offensive efficiency. The Jets converted just once on 72 shot attempts. Dallas center Mikael Granlund, meanwhile, needed only three shot attempts in the game to score three goals. His hat trick was all the offense the Stars needed to take a commanding 3-1 series lead, moving one win away from their third straight trip to the Western Conference finals.
“Obviously, the job is not done. We’ve got a lot of work to do. [But] that was a good win,” Granlund said.
It was the first career hat trick for Granlund, a 13-year veteran whom the Stars acquired from the San Jose Sharks in a trade back in February. Three goals on three shots, all of them sailing past Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck, who remained winless on the road in the 2025 postseason.
Granlund’s first goal came at 8:36 on the power play, as he skated in on three Jets defensemen and fired a snap shot past Hellebuyck from the top of the slot.
“I was just shooting it somewhere and it went in,” Granlund said.
“I got a clean enough look. It was just a damn perfect shot, just above my pad and below my glove,” Hellebuyck lamented.
“Obviously, he probably wants the first one back, the wrister,” Jets coach Scott Arniel said of Hellebuyck. “At the end of the day, we’ve got to get him some run support. Get him a lead.”
Granlund’s second shot and second goal came on a play started by Mikko Rantanen, whose league-leading point total now stands at 19 for the playoffs. His outlet pass found Granlund in the neutral zone, sparking a 2-on-1 with Roope Hintz. Granlund kept the puck and roofed it to give Dallas a 2-1 lead after Nik Ehlers had tied the game for Winnipeg earlier in the second period.
“When you pass all the time, you can surprise the goalie sometimes when you shoot the puck. It’s good to shoot once in a while,” said Granlund, who had twice as many assists (44) as goals (22) in the regular season.
Granlund’s third and final shot attempt of the game was on another Dallas power play in the third period, following a double-minor penalty to defenseman Haydn Fleury for high-sticking Hintz.
Defenseman Miro Heiskanen, in the lineup for the first time since Jan. 28 after missing the last 32 regular-season games and first 10 playoff games because of a knee injury, collected the puck after Matt Duchene rang it off the post. Heiskanen slid it over to Granlund for a one-timer that brought him to his knees on the ice. After the shot beat Hellebuyck at 7:23 of the third period, waves of hats hit the ice in celebration of Granlund’s three-goal night.
It was fitting that Rantanen and Heiskanen had points on Granlund’s hat trick. This was the first game that the Stars’ so-called “Finnish Mafia” played together, as Heiskanen was injured before Granlund and Rantanen joined the team. Those three skaters joined countrymen Hintz and defenseman Esa Lindell in helping Dallas to victory.
“It was fun for sure. Fun to finally be on the ice with them,” Heiskanen said.
Goaltender Jake Oettinger did the rest with 31 saves, many of them on dangerous Winnipeg chances. But in the end, all the Stars needed were three shot attempts, while the Jets’ voluminous offensive night produced only one goal.
“Oettinger made some big stops. But we had 70 shot attempts. We have to get more than one goal,” Arniel said. “If we can’t find more than one goal, we’re not going to win hockey games, especially [against] this team.”
Dallas will attempt to close out the series on Thursday night in Winnipeg.
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David Schoenfield
Pete Rose, Joe Jackson, seven other members of the 1919 Chicago “Black Sox”, six other former players, one coach and one former owner are now eligible to be voted on for the Hall of Fame after commissioner Rob Manfred removed them from Major League Baseball’s permanently ineligible list.
Hall of Fame chairwoman Jane Forbes Clark said in a statement: “The National Baseball Hall of Fame has always maintained that anyone removed from Baseball’s permanently ineligible list will become eligible for Hall of Fame consideration. Major League Baseball’s decision to remove deceased individuals from the permanently ineligible list will allow for the Hall of Fame candidacy of such individuals to now be considered.”
Due to Hall of Fame voting procedures, Rose and Jackson won’t be eligible to be voted on until the Classic Era Baseball committee, which votes on individuals who made their biggest impact prior to 1980, meets in December of 2027.
Let’s dig into what all this means.
Why were these players banned?
All individuals on the banned list who were reinstated had been permanently ineligible due to accusations related to gambling related to baseball — either throwing games, accepting bribes, or like Rose, betting on baseball games.
Most of the banned players, including Jackson and his seven Chicago White Sox teammates who threw the 1919 World Series, played in the 1910s, when gambling in baseball was widespread. As historian Bill James once wrote, “Few simplifications of memory are as bizarre as the notion that the Black Sox scandal hit baseball out of the blue. … In fact, of course, the Black Sox scandal was merely the largest wart of a disease that had infested baseball at least a dozen years earlier and had grown, unchecked, to ravage the features of a generation.”
The most famous player, of course, was Jackson, one of baseball’s biggest stars alongside Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker in the 1910s. While many have tried to exonerate Jackson through the years, pointing out that he hit .375 in the 1919 World Series, baseball historians agree that Jackson was a willing participant in throwing the World Series and accepted money from the gambling ring that paid off the White Sox players.
While the White Sox players were acquitted in a criminal trial in 1921, commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis banned the eight players in a statement that began with the words “Regardless of the verdict of juries …”
If there was an innocent member in the group, it was third baseman Buck Weaver, not Jackson. Weaver had participated in meetings where the fixing of the World Series was discussed, and Landis banned him for life for guilty knowledge.
As for Rose, he was banned in 1989 by commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti for betting on games while he was manager of the Cincinnati Reds, including those involving his own team. While Rose denied the accusations for years, he eventually confessed. He died last September at age 83.
Who else is impacted?
Phillies owner William Cox was banned in 1943 and forced to sell the team for betting on games. Cox had just purchased the team earlier that season. None of the other non-White Sox players are of major significance, although Benny Kauff was the big star of the Federal League in 1914-15, winning the batting title both seasons. The Federal League was a breakoff league that attempted to challenge the National and American leagues.
When is the soonest Rose and Jackson could go into the Hall of Fame?
The Hall of Fame voting process for players not considered by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America — such as Rose and Jackson, who never appeared on the ballot due to their banned status — includes two eras: the Contemporary Baseball Era (1980 to present) and the Classic Baseball Era (pre-1980). The voting periods are already set:
December 2025: Player ballot for the Contemporary Era.
December 2026: Contemporary Era ballot for managers, executives and umpires.
December 2027: Classic Era ballot for players, managers, executives and umpires.
Each committee has an initial screening to place eight candidates on the ballot, so Rose and Jackson will first have to make the ballot. While it’s unclear how a future screening committee will proceed, it’s possible that both will make the ballot. While comparisons to players with PED allegations aren’t exactly apples to apples — since they were never placed on the ineligible list — it’s worth noting that Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Rafael Palmeiro were included on the eight-player Contemporary Era ballot in 2023.
Once the ballot is determined — a 16-person committee consisting of Hall of Fame players, longtime executives and media members or historians — convenes and votes. A candidate must receive 12 votes to get selected. In the most recent election in December, Dave Parker and Dick Allen were on the Classic Era ballot.
Which players have the best HOF cases?
Obviously, Rose would have been a slam-dunk Hall of Famer had he never bet on baseball and had he appeared on the BBWAA ballot after his career ended. The all-time MLB leader with 4,256 hits, Rose won three batting titles and was the 1973 NL MVP. And while he’s overrated in a sense — his 79.6 career WAR is more in line with the likes of Jeff Bagwell, Brooks Robinson and Robin Yount than all-time elite superstars — and hung on well past his prime to break Ty Cobb’s hits record, his popularity and fame would have made him an inner-circle Hall of Famer.
Whether he’ll get support now is complicated. Bonds and Clemens both received fewer than four votes in 2023. The committee usually consists of eight former players, and they may not support Rose given the one hard and fast rule that every player knows: You can’t bet on the game.
Jackson, meanwhile, was a star of the deadball era, hitting .408 in 1911 and .356 in his career, an average that ranks fourth all time behind only Cobb, Negro Leagues star Oscar Charleston and Rogers Hornsby. He finished with 62.2 WAR and 1,772 hits in a career that ended at age 32 due to the ban. Those figures would be low for a Hall of Fame selection, although the era committees did recently elect Allen and Tony Oliva, both of whom finished with fewer than 2,000 hits. And again, it is hard to say how the committee will view Jackson’s connection to gambling on the sport.
The only other reinstated player with a semblance of a chance to get on a ballot is pitcher Eddie Cicotte, who won 209 games and finished with 59.7 WAR. While his final season came at 36, the knuckleballer was still going strong, having won 29 games for the White Sox in 1919 and 21 in 1920 before Landis banned him.
For what it’s worth, the top position players in career WAR who made their mark prior to 1980 and aren’t in the Hall of Fame are Rose, Bill Dahlen (75.3), Bobby Grich (71.0), Graig Nettles (67.6), Reggie Smith (64.6), Ken Boyer (62.8), Jackson and Sal Bando (61.5).
Pitching candidates would include Luis Tiant (65.7), Tommy John (61.6) and Wes Ferrell (60.1). John was on the recent ballot and received seven votes. Others on that ballot included Steve Garvey, Boyer, Negro Leagues pitcher John Donaldson, Negro Leagues manager Vic Harris and Tiant.
Other potential pre-1980 candidates could include Thurman Munson, Bert Campaneris, Dave Concepcion and Stan Hack.
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