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MLB Power Rankings: Who are the players to watch as the postseason races heat up?

The Phillies, Orioles and Dodgers hold the top three spots in our latest rankings of all 30 teams

jordan shusterman
Senior writer
·20-min read

The dust has settled following this year’s trade deadline, with a flurry of activity in the final few days resulting in some more clarity about which teams view themselves as contenders or postseason hopefuls and which teams are ready to turn the calendar to 2025.

With so many names changing teams and depth charts shuffling dramatically as a result, this week’s power rankings will survey the new landscape of the league and identify players whose roles and responsibilities will be heightened following all the deadline activity.

In my power rankings a few weeks ago, I contemplated José Alvarado’s place in Philadelphia’s bullpen considering his recent struggles, and sure enough, general manager Dave Dombrowski went out at the deadline and dealt away two promising pitching prospects to acquire a pitcher in Carlos Estévez who appears to slot in as a more traditional, Capital-C Closer for manager Rob Thomson to turn to at the end of games. That Estévez walked two in a blown save against Seattle on Saturday was an unfortunate and uncharacteristic introduction, considering that so much of his success in Anaheim this year has involved him throwing more strikes than ever. For better or worse, any contender’s closer is primed to be a main character come October, and Estévez is no exception.

Baltimore’s decision to reprise the 2023 Phillies bullpen with Craig Kimbrel, Seranthony Domínguez and Gregory Soto is a curious one on the surface, and it will surely come under serious scrutiny in the event that the trio scuffles in October. But it also makes me all the more focused on the performance of Yennier Cano, a holdover from last season’s standout Baltimore bullpen who hasn’t been quite as dominant this season but is still getting a boatload of ground balls and would seemingly be next in line should Kimbrel ever relinquish closer duties entirely.

How will the Dodgers deploy Tommy Edman once he returns? This is one of the great mystery boxes in recent trade deadline history: an ultra-versatile switch-hitter who hasn’t played all year due to injury joining a new team midseason with a largely undefined role. The most basic point of curiosity is whether manager Dave Roberts intends to mix and match enough to give Edman every-day at-bats or if Edman’s ability to play practically every position other than first and catcher will make him the ultimate insurance policy bench bat, rather than a Ben Zobrist-type who starts every game but at different positions. All of these decisions will likely be influenced by timing as well, as the returns of Mookie Betts and Max Muncy will eventually crowd the position-player picture in L.A. and limit the opportunities for Edman to accrue consistent playing time.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. provided immediate fireworks with consecutive two-homer games shortly following his trade to the Yankees, but he has cooled off considerably since. Most fascinating is New York’s decision to make Chisholm the every-day third baseman and trust that his athleticism will allow him to quickly pick up a position he has never played before — just as he did in center field with the Marlins. It has been smooth sailing so far, but I’m eager to see how Chisholm settles into the newer, brighter spotlight both defensively and offensively as the Yankees fight for position atop the AL East.

While Lane Thomas was a perfect addition for Cleveland on the offensive side, I think Alex Cobb might prove to be even more crucial for a Guardians team in dire need of some stability in the rotation as it looks to clinch another AL Central title. The 36-year-old was working his way back from a hip injury with San Francisco, and he is now scheduled to make his Guardians debut — and season debut in the big leagues — on Friday against the Twins. Recall that Cobb was an All-Star last year for the first time in his career, so while this might seem like a modest acquisition on the surface, given his age and recent injury history, it’s not far-fetched to envision Cobb emerging as one of Cleveland’s best options to start a postseason game come October.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jorge Soler are among the players who moved at the deadline and could be key difference-makers for their teams the rest of this season. (Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports)
Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Jorge Soler are among the players who moved at the deadline and could be key difference-makers for their teams the rest of this season. (Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports)

The Twins were the least active team at the deadline, making just one deal with Toronto to acquire righty Trevor Richards, who projects to slot in as a low-leverage middle reliever. The lack of moves can be viewed through two lenses: either as an encouraging sign of utmost confidence in the roster as is or as a missed opportunity to improve a team that, with the right reinforcements, could chase down the Guardians in the AL Central. The Twins might be good enough to do that anyway, but that will likely hinge on how soon Carlos Correa returns from his foot injury and whether he ends up playing hampered, the way he was last season, or looks like the All-Star he was over the first few months of 2024.

Early returns on Kansas City’s three deadline additions on the mound have been mixed, with Hunter Harvey looking awfully shaky, while Michael Lorenzen and Lucas Erceg have looked great. If Harvey keeps struggling, Erceg alone will likely not be enough to support this beleaguered bullpen unit. Whether it’s the two veteran additions from the winter in Will Smith and Chris Stratton or a younger lefty in Kris Bubic, who has looked surprisingly stellar in his transition to the bullpen since coming back from Tommy John, someone will need to step up if the Royals are going to hang on to a wild card.

As with Estévez in Philadelphia, Tanner Scott joins his new team with lofty expectations, considering the prospect cost paid to acquire just a few months of his services as a high-leverage reliever. Unlike Estévez, however, Scott will not need to continue the game-ending responsibilities from his time in Miami, thanks to the presence of Robert Suarez. In theory, this puts less pressure on Scott, but as the headlining addition to a bullpen that is now being revered as perhaps the most fearsome in baseball, his performance in the seventh and eighth innings will carry significant weight as to how we perceive San Diego’s latest big transaction. And no matter how good he has been so far, nearly every reliever is capable of a rough patch that can dramatically alter a manager’s — or fan base’s — trust.

You often hear managers or team personnel refer to players returning from serious injury around late July or early August as being “just like a big trade acquisition,” and that applies in the case of Brewers closer Devin Williams. Williams returned to the mound last week and was throwing harder than he had the previous two seasons, an encouraging sign for one of the game’s most dominant relievers and one who will need to be at his best in close games if Milwaukee is going to hang on to its lead in the NL Central.

It’d be cool if Jorge Soler can recapture the magic of 2021 and inject some life into an Atlanta lineup that needs a boost badly, but that he’ll need to play right field every day after exclusively DHing in San Francisco adds an element of risk that might counterbalance his offensive contributions somewhat. Considering how bad Atlanta’s offense has been, Soler is being asked to do a lot in his return as the lone major deadline addition, and if he doesn’t hit as expected — he hasn’t so far — the Braves will be stuck with a poor defensive outfielder and limited roster flexibility moving forward.

Arizona is fortunate that Christian Walker’s oblique injury happened before the trade deadline so it was able to scoop up veteran Josh Bell to replace him rather seamlessly. But the far more important storyline to watch for the Snakes right now is how the bullpen hierarchy shakes out in the wake of Paul Sewald’s demotion from the closer role and whether deadline acquisition A.J. Puk will ultimately claim the ninth inning or if it will be a rotating responsibility among him, rookie Justin Martinez and holdovers from last year’s magic October bullpen, Ryan Thompson and Kevin Ginkel. Even with the late-inning drama, the D-backs have played extremely well lately. If they can get their bullpen in order, they could be really dangerous once again come October.

Triston Casas seems to be nearing a return from the rib injury that has kept him out since April 20, and it’ll be interesting to see how manager Alex Cora chooses to work him back in the lineup, considering the surprisingly strong recent run from fill-in first baseman Dominic Smith, who has hit awfully well since the start of July and would seem to be worthy of regular at-bats. But with primary DH Masataka Yoshida also swinging a hot bat over the past month and an apparent reluctance to use him in the outfield, I’m not sure how these three defensively limited lefty sluggers are going to fit once Casas returns — but hey, that’s why they pay Cora the big bucks!

Seattle’s offense was so bad over the month in which it blew the division lead to Houston that it didn’t seem like it could fix its hitting woes through adding at the deadline alone. But survey the activity across the league, and you’ll find that the Mariners were just about the only team to add two everyday hitters via trade in Randy Arozarena and Justin Turner, both of whom have already made a notable impact. With Arozarena and Turner meshing immediately — and a resurgent Victor Robles in the mix as well — the attention now turns to injured superstar Julio Rodriguez, who is still working his way back from an ankle injury. Before the acquisitions of Arozarena and Turner, a fantastic finish from Julio post-injury might have been required for Seattle to make a legitimate run at the AL West title. But if J-Rod can get back and get hot down the stretch alongside his new teammates, suddenly this lineup could start to look like a strength rather than a prohibitive weakness.

It wasn’t up to Yusei Kikuchi where he got traded or how good the prospect package was to acquire him, but he is now the indirect recipient of an extra heap of pressure, thanks to the talented trio of players (Jake Bloss, Joey Loperfido, Will Wagner) Houston sent to Toronto to land the lefty. It’s not like Kikuchi wasn’t going to feel compelled to perform well regardless of which contender he landed with — pitching for any team in a postseason race heightens expectations, and free agency looms this winter — but it’s undeniable that the apparent overpay for a pitcher whose run prevention has been average at best lately will further amplify Kikuchi’s responsibility to not just reinforce Houston’s ravaged rotation but also definitively strengthen it — all the way until and well into October.

While the Mets did not end up selling at the deadline, like some might’ve expected entering the season, New York didn’t exactly go all-out to buttress the current roster and become a full-blown contender, either. The moves made provided some much-needed depth rather than top-end impact, and respectfully, it seems unlikely that Jesse Winker or Paul Blackburn or Ryne Stanek or Huascar Brazoban is going to meaningfully sway the Mets’ playoff odds. That said, Blackburn’s importance is amplified in the wake of Kodai Senga returning to the IL due to a calf strain immediately after his long-awaited return from a shoulder injury. Both Blackburn and another former Oakland arm in Sean Manaea — who has been excellent in his past two starts — will need to step it up over the final few months if the Mets want to have any chance of sneaking into the wild card.

Are any of us really surprised that Tommy Pham has been absolutely raking since being freed from one of the worst teams in baseball history and traded to a team in the middle of a postseason push? Pham brings exactly the kind of spark on and off the field that this Cardinals team needs as it tries to return to the postseason following last year’s dismal showing. After watching Pham bounce around the league a bunch since his initial departure from St. Louis in 2018, it’s cool to see him thriving back where it all began, albeit with an entirely new cast of characters.

With so many familiar faces shipped elsewhere ahead of the trade deadline, Yandy Diaz was the one Rays veteran whose name appeared plenty in trade discussions but ultimately didn’t move. We’ll see if such potential deals are revisited this winter, but I’m more curious about Brandon Lowe’s future with Tampa Bay, as another experienced bat who is quietly having an excellent season and has a team option for $10.5 million for 2025. He has been far better than Diaz this season and would seemingly appeal to even more teams if he were made available. Is this another player we could see moved this offseason to make room for the next wave of Rays infielders, or is Lowe viewed as too important to Tampa Bay’s offense to consider flipping him if the team intends to compete in 2025?

The Giants were promptly rewarded for hanging on to Blake Snell at the trade deadline, as he threw a no-hitter Friday in Cincinnati, the first of his career after numerous near-misses over the years. It was the latest in a spectacular run of outings for the decorated left-hander, as Snell has posted a 0.55 ERA in his past five starts, with 41 strikeouts and just eight (!!!) hits allowed in 33 innings pitched. After he signed late and dealt with several injuries over the first few months, it’s awesome to see Snell looking like his best self in San Francisco as the Giants try to claw their way back up the NL wild-card standings.

It made sense for Pittsburgh to target players at the deadline who could help for more than just this season; I’m just not sure that Bryan De La Cruz is good enough to pencil in as an everyday member of a winning team’s outfield. He was tracking like a Teoscar Hernandez type earlier in his career, as a right-handed corner outfielder with significant power potential that could make up for a low OBP, but his poor plate discipline and below-average defense have dampened his overall production to the point that he simply hasn’t been a very valuable player recently. He still likely represents an upgrade to some degree for a Pirates lineup that really needed a boost, but he likely needs to finish strong to guarantee himself a spot in next year’s Opening Day outfield.

Noelvi Marte is one of several young Reds not named Elly De La Cruz whose seasons have not gone as planned, as the 22-year-old was suspended for 80 games due to a positive test for a banned substance and hasn’t hit well since returning to the lineup in late June. Marte’s suspension and poor showing, combined with injuries and underperformance from Matt McLain and Christian Encarnacion-Strand, have left the state of the Cincinnati infield around De La Cruz somewhat in flux, especially after how well things seemed to be lining up by the end of last season. With CES and McLain still on the shelf, Marte is the one who has the opportunity to recapture some optimism about his place in the Reds’ plans moving forward.

Tyler Mahle returned to the Rangers rotation on Tuesday, and Jacob deGrom is expected to do the same at some point in the coming weeks as Texas looks to reinforce its rotation in time to stay relevant in the AL postseason race. But Mahle and deGrom aren’t the only two Texas right-handers working their way back from elbow surgery: Kumar Rocker, the No. 3 pick in the 2022 Draft, had surgery the same day as Mahle last May and is now in Double-A looking notably sharp as he builds his workload back up. It might depend on Texas’ place in the standings, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Rocker looks like one of the Rangers’ best options on the mound at some point over the next two months and he’s promoted for his big-league debut, if even in a relief role temporarily. At the very least, he projects to be one of the more intriguing arms in baseball entering 2025.

Isaac Paredes’ second Cubs tenure has begun under fairly unusual circumstances, as it’s rare for an established big-league star to be dealt at the deadline to a team that doesn’t have strong ambitions of making the postseason. But while Paredes isn’t playing with the added pressure of a postseason push, fans are still going to want to feel good about their new third baseman moving forward. Paredes’ home run in Tuesday’s victory over Minnesota after he went 3-for-27 in his first seven games post-trade should help.

The Tigers were already sellers at the deadline, and injuries to outfielder Riley Greene and a few key arms have made it likely the Tigers will continue to fall toward the bottom of the American League standings. With that in mind, I’m expecting another look at former No. 1 overall draft pick Spencer Torkelson at some point soon to get a better sense of where he fits into the team’s plans heading into 2025. Torkelson has been in Triple-A since early June and has really heated up the past couple of weeks, but those International League numbers will mean very little if they don’t carry over to the big leagues.

Can José Ramírez and the Guardians maintain their place atop the AL Central? (Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports)
Can José Ramírez and the Guardians maintain their place atop the AL Central? (Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports)

It has been fun watching top prospect James Wood make the transition to the major-league level in the Nationals outfield; might we see Dylan Crews join him at some point? Last year’s No. 2 pick hasn’t exactly blitzed through the minors like former LSU teammate Paul Skenes or SEC rival Wyatt Langford, but the fact that he’s already in Triple-A and Washington’s outfield appears to have room after the Lane Thomas trade suggests that there’s at least a chance we could see the 22-year-old in 2024.

Remember when Canada’s team signed one of the greatest Canadian players in baseball history? No, the Blue Jays’ signing of Joey Votto in March hasn’t been discussed much in the months since, due to a string of nagging injuries that have limited the 40-year-old Votto’s ability to get on the field, but he’s finally back healthy and recently hit his first home run for Triple-A Buffalo. In a lost season without much to look forward to over the final few months, a potential homecoming for Votto at the big-league level would be extremely cool.

The trade of Carlos Estévez to Philadelphia cleared the way for flamethrower Ben Joyce to assume the closer role in Anaheim, and he responded brilliantly, closing out a victory over the Mets with a 104.7 mph fastball to strike out J.D. Martinez — the hardest pitch thrown in MLB this season. It was the first save of Joyce’s big-league career, and it certainly won’t be the last. If he can stay healthy, his mind-blowing velocity could quickly make Joyce one of the higher-profile relievers in the game.

Even if you looked at some of the discouraging peripherals from his breakout rookie run and expected some regression from Zack Gelof in his sophomore campaign, few could have foreseen the dramatic fall-off that has taken place in Year 2. Gelof’s sharp decline stands out amid a stunningly potent Oakland offense that has seen strong campaigns at the plate from Brent Rooker, Shea Langeliers, Lawrence Butler and JJ Bleday. Last year, Gelof was one of very few Oakland hitters worth watching, and now he’s lagging far behind his position-player peers. While his stellar defense at second base likely ensures a role of some kind moving forward, I’m not nearly as confident as I was at the end of last year that Gelof is a slam-dunk member of the next good A’s team.

I’m fascinated by the split opinions on Connor Norby, who came over from Baltimore alongside outfielder Kyle Stowers in the deal for lefty Trevor Rogers. Four outlets ranked the prospects dealt away at the deadline: Two of them — MLB Pipeline (1st) and Baseball America (2nd) — tabbed Norby as one of the best prospects who changed teams due to his versatility and lengthy track record of hitting in the minors, while the other two — ESPN (16th) and FanGraphs (28th) — viewed Norby less favorably, citing his mediocre infield defense and recent strikeout issues as signs that he might be more of a role player than an everyday guy. Miami traded away so many big leaguers and acquired so many prospects that it’s probably unfair to zoom in on just one new Marlin, but Norby is one I’ll be monitoring closely, especially since we should see him in the big leagues again this season.

Is Michael Toglia, Colorado’s 2019 first-round draft pick, the first baseman of the future, or is he too volatile to rely on for the long haul? He has been the everyday guy at first base since mid-June, and results have been mixed. While only four batters with at least 250 plate appearances this season have struck out at a higher clip than Toglia (33.2%), his hard-hit and barrel rates rank among the very best in the league. It’s rare power, especially for a switch-hitter, but the mountains of whiffs might doom him to a bench role at some point if he can’t get the strikeouts in check. Ryan McMahon, Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle have secured their status as foundational parts of the Rockies’ core; let’s see if Toglia can do the same.

We’ll see if acquisition Miguel Vargas can prove himself as a good big-league hitter now that he’ll be given everyday at-bats, but honestly, I’m most focused on the two guys who didn’t get traded at the deadline in Luis Robert Jr. and Garrett Crochet. The reality is trade talks will start right back up as soon as the White Sox complete what is projecting to be one of the worst seasons in MLB history. How these two finish — from health and performance standpoints — will impact how much excitement there is for teams to trade for them before 2025.