MLB power rankings: The NL West dominates the first few weeks

• The first two weeks of the MLB season are in the books so it’s time to rank the best teams in the league. The SAN power rankings show off the strength of the NL west division.
• The San Diego Padres have tied the best start in team history and show no signs of slowing down with a 14-4 record.
• The NL West has four teams ranked in the top six. The Padres, Giants, Dodgers and Diamondbacks.

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We’re a couple weeks into the 2025 season so time to take a look at where the top teams stand in the first edition of our MLB power rankings. These rankings are subjective. They are not based on potential but rather on which teams are playing the best right now. The full list is at the bottom of this article.

Which team is leading the way in our power rankings?

The National League West is playing fantastic baseball out of the gate. In particular, the San Diego Padres started 11-0 at home this year, tying the best start in franchise history.

Petco Park, the Padre’s stadium, is a pitcher’s ballpark. The Padres are taking full advantage of that with a 1.27 ERA at home. They’ve allowed just one earned run over their first 99 innings.

“Every night they bring it. They’re hungry. The preparation has been really good, the execution has been equal.” Manager Mike Schildt said.

Right behind the Padres are the Chicago Cubs, who are the highest-scoring team in baseball. They’ve scored 122 runs so far, which is good for a +38 run differential. They’ll need that offense to continue after losing starting pitcher Justin Steele for the season with an elbow injury. The Cubs are also the only team to beat the Padres in San Diego, a 10 inning 2-1 thriller Tuesday night, April 15.

“We missed a lot of opportunities, they missed some opportunities a lot of you know second guessing, ‘what ifs,’” Manager Craig Counsell said. “For sure, but in the end our guys made some plays. Nico [Hoerner] had a huge hit, and we pitched our tails off.”

Coming in at No. 3 in our rankings are the New York Mets, who have won 8 of their last 10 and are 5-1 at home. Juan Soto may lament the fact that he’s not hitting in front of Aaron Judge anymore, but Pete Alonzo is no slouch. He’s batting .356 with 5 home runs, 20 RBI in 18 games.

Who are the NL West teams dominating the first few weeks?

Right behind the Mets are the surprising San Francisco Giants, another NL West squad. With a 12-5 record, they rank third in the league in run differential at +27. And they have an impressive 8-3 record away from the Bay. Is it sustainable? We’re about to find out with a series upcoming against the Phillies, Brewers, Rangers and Padres to round out April.

The Giants don’t meet their bitter rivals until June. The Los Angeles Dodgers looked unbeatable the first week of the season but have dropped to 5th on our list at the moment. After an 8-0 start has given way to a 13-6 record. They may still the best team in the league, but they’re not playing like it right now. Mookie Betts didn’t hold back when breaking it down Sunday, April 13.

“We got a long season to go, and a lot can happen,” Betts said. “This isn’t the first time we’ve sucked for two weeks so it just happens that it’s right now, so we panic and things get worse, you don’t panic and then it looks like we don’t care so what are we supposed to do?”

Following close behind Dodgers is the fourth NL West team on our list. The Arizona Diamondbacks have won three straight despite not playing close to their potential.

The Detroit Tigers, on the other hand, are playing close to their potential. We’ve slotted them between the Dodgers and the Diamondbacks in the rankings. After being swept in their season-opening series against the Dodgers, the Tigers won 8 of their last 10 games and are getting the pitching and timely hitting to make some noise. They just need to stay healthy.

Which teams are having up and down starts in 2025?

In the 7th and 8th spots, we have a few teams that have had their ups and downs so far this season. Phillies star Alec Bohm is struggling which is dragging down their offense at the moment.

The Yankees and their torpedo bats have no such issues. They are second in the league in runs scored with 103 but they’ve got a 5-5 record of late. Injuries to the starting rotation are no doubt catching up with them, but Max Fried is trying to hold things together.

“The organization’s really welcomed me in and made me feel comfortable and you know at the end of the day when you have really talented teammates you can trust them and you know lean on them and know that it’s not all up to me to shoulder everything out on the mound,” Fried said.

Rounding out the Top 10 in our power rankings are the Cleveland Guardians. They started the season on the road and didn’t play that well but came home and promptly won five straight. Yes, they’re hot now, but will they stay that way over the next three weeks?

Here’s a look at the full rankings:

MLB Power Ranking – April 16, 2025

• 1. San Diego Padres (14-4).
• 2. Chicago Cubs (12-8).
• 3. New York Mets (11-6).
• 4. San Francisco Giants (12-5).
• 5. Los Angeles Dodgers (13-6).
• 6. Detroit Tigers (10-7).
• 7. Arizona Diamondbacks (10-7).
• 8. Philadelphia Phillies (10-7).
• 9. New York Yankees (10-7).
• 10. Cleveland Guardians   (9-7).

Sometimes it’s a matter of opinion, but baseball has a way of weeding out the pretenders as the season wears on.