MLB standings reveal AL and NL favorites: Braves and Rays set themselves apart

Bullet point summary by AI

• The latest MLB standings reveal two teams stand out apart from the rest.
• The Atlanta Braves have surged to the top of the NL by winning back-to-back series against the Dodgers and Cubs.
• The Tampa Bay Rays are dominating the AL East, winning eight of their last ten games despite a recent loss.

Before we enter a weekend sure to be filled with fireworks thanks to a southside showdown between the Cubs and White Sox and a freeway series between the Dodgers and Angels, let’s take a look back at the week that was.

The Cubs and Braves, both in search of National League supremacy as the Dodgers flounder, went head-to-head, with Atlanta making a statement by winning the first two games on home turf. The Rays, meanwhile, continue to shock the AL East, winning eight of their last 10 and taking advantage of some bad luck of the rival Yankees, who lost Max Fried to an elbow injury on Wednesday.

If Thursday’s MLB standings reveal one thing, it’s that the Braves and Rays have separated themselves from the rest — at least for now.

AL East

The biggest development in the AL East is the injury to New York Yankees left-handed pitcher Max Fried, who left Wednesday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles with an elbow issue. The extent of Fried’s injury is not know as of this writing, but he’ll undergo an MRI shortly and could be forced onto the injured list. The good news for the Yankees is that Carlos Rodon recently returned, while Gerrit Cole is only a few weeks away. The bad news is that while all of this is happening, the Rays continue to take advantage.

Tampa lost on Wednesday — a rarity around these parts — but has won eight of its last 10 games. Junior Caminero is a likely AL All-Star, and the Rays starting rotation is rounding into form quite nicely. Tampa is here for the long haul.

AL Central

The Cleveland Guardians finally swept a series, taking advantage of a division full of flawed baseball teams. The Guardians are the best of the bunch, at least for right now. The White Sox reached .500 for the first time in four seasons with a win on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Twins, Royals and Tigers battle in their race to the bottom.

Detroit is particularly concerning. Losers of seven of their last 10 games, the Tigers also lost Tarik Skubal for a lengthy absence. Despite his patented ‘Skubal scope’, the Tigers won’t rush their ace back into action, and he could miss 2-3 months as a result. Detroit’s offseason additions haven’t played up to par so far, which includes Framber Valdez and Kenley Jansen. Once thought to be the favorites, Detroit is quickly falling into obscurity.

AL West

Of all the divisions in MLB, I have the least to say about the AL West. All of the top-three remain as average as can be, hovering around .500 and going 5-5 in their last 10 games. You really can’t make this stuff up.

The Athletics are a great story, but one that could fade fast with the Rangers and Mariners on their heels. Seattle was just one game away from the World Series in 2025. Are they really going to get knocked off their perch by a team without a home? Eventually, Cal Raleigh should wake up from his slumber. The Mariners pitching staff remains elite, and Julio Rodriguez has picked up the slack during Raleigh’s extended slump.

NL East

There are the Atlanta Braves, and then there is everyone else. That’s the state of the National League this week, as the Braves have won back-to-back statement series over the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs, two other NL teams that could lay claim to a regular season pennant if one existed. The Braves are the byproduct of their president of baseball operations, Alex Anthopoulos, who wasn’t afraid to take risks along the way. Whether it be trading for Chris Sale fresh off injury, replacing Freddie Freeman with Matt Olson or Brian Snitker with Walt Weiss, Anthopoulos makes the right moves more often than not.

And that doesn’t include cheap additions like Mauricio Dubon and Mike Yastrzemski, both of whom have helped keep the Braves afloat during times of trouble.

NL Central

On the other side of that heavyweight Braves-Cubs series was Chicago, which lost the first two games to Atlanta and showed they still have a long way to go to challenge the best in the NL. The Cubs also face some stiff challengers in their division, including the Milwaukee Brewers, who are very much back. What was lost in the Cubs multiple double-digit win streaks to start this season is that the Brewers, thought to be the second of a two-horse race in the Central, were merely hovering around .500.

That is no longer the case, as the Brewers and Cardinals have put some semblance of separation between themselves and the rest of the division (which is still quite good!). Jacob Misiorowski has emerged as a real NL Cy Young candidate, and Pat Murphy is managing his butt off. What else is new?

NL West

The San Diego Padres are little brother no more — or at least that’s what FanSided’s headline will be should this small half-game edge hold for the rest of the regular season. The Friars were gifted a golden opportunity this past week, as the Dodgers lost four straight games by four or more runs. Los Angeles has not looked like its typical, dominant self all season long, in fact. But the Padres split a series with the Cardinals and could lose two out of three to Milwaukee with the wrong result on Thursday.

With the Dodgers facing their first real adversity in years, it should come as no surprise that rival fans are celebrating their demise months ahead of time. LA will be fine, even with Shohei Ohtani slumping at the plate and Roki Sasaki looking like he belongs in Triple-A. Hang in there, count your rings and relax, LA.

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