Every day, Pinstripe Alley offers updates on what the Yankees’ top American League opponents are up to through the Rivalry Roundup. The AL East is well-trodden ground there, but with the season’s first full month coming to a close, we’re going to take a peek around MLB as a whole and check in with each of the other five divisions. Who’s surprising? Who’s underwhelming? Who’s simply mediocre at the moment? Read on and find out.
(Note: Records and standings are up to date through games played on Saturday, May 31st.)
The NL Central was a disappointment last year, sending only the Brewers to the playoffs. The Cubs and, especially, the Cardinals underperformed expectations, putting pressure on both teams coming into this offseason. While they took different paths — the Cubs made several blockbuster moves centered around adding three-time All-Star Kyle Tucker into the fold while the Cardinals largely stood pat, failing to execute on their plan to move third baseman Nolan Arenado — each has bounced back in a major way this season. Let’s take a look at a division that boasts four playoff hopefuls as we move into June.
Top Position Player: Pete Crow-Armstrong (3.3 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Ben Brown (1.3 fWAR)
There’s something magical about watching a top prospect fulfill the loftiest expectations heaped upon him before our very eyes. A Mets first-round pick in 2020 sent by their front office to the North Side of Chicago in a 2021 Trade Deadline move for Javier Báez, Pete Crow-Armstrong has blossomed after being ranked as the No. 16 prospect in all of baseball before the 2024 campaign. He leads the NL in WAR, is second in Outs Above Average, and already has 50 RBI.
The 23-year-old joins Kyle Tucker to form one of the most dynamic offensive duos in baseball, with Seiya Suzuki and journeyman catcher Carson Kelly also hitting the cover off the ball in a surprisingly deep lineup.
That’s been the driver of the Cubs’ success, with their pitching looking a bit thin, particularly after ace Justin Steele went down for the season with an elbow injury. Ben Brown has racked up 1.3 fWAR (good) but has an ERA of 5.72 (bad). Chicago has been leaning on a trio of well-traveled hurlers in their mid-30s (Jameson Taillon, Matthew Boyd, and Colin Rea), all of whom have acquitted themselves well, but that may not be a sustainable formula. Shota Imanaga, who missed almost all of May with a hamstring strain, should be back soon, giving the Cubs’ rotation a much-needed boost as they look to stave off challengers to their spot atop the division.
Top Position Player: Brendan Donovan (2.2 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Matthew Liberatore (1.8 fWAR)
Just when everyone had written them off, the Cardinals are back in the heat of the playoff race. The top stories of their offseason were the club’s failed attempts to trade away 10-time Gold Glover Nolan Arenado, who reportedly vetoed a move to the Astros, Paul Goldschmidt walking in free agency, multiple starters departing, and the team’s transition from longtime president of baseball operations John Mozeliak to Chaim Bloom, who is set to take over from his predecessor next season. And yet, this team which on paper looked weaker than last year’s disappointing squad is seven games above .500.
They’ve done it less through star power and more through depth. Of the six pitchers who’ve started games for St. Louis, only one has been below average by ERA+ (Andre Pallante, who has a 97 mark). Brendan Donovan has been an invaluable Swiss army knife, leading the league in hits and doubles while seeing time around the diamond. Masyn Winn has continued to develop too, more than just an outstanding defender at the six. And a veteran bullpen has been sturdy, led by Ryan Helsley, who converted all nine of his save opportunities in May. It hasn’t been the flashiest formula. That’s also what may give it staying power.
Top Position Player: William Contreras (1.5 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Chad Patrick (1.6 fWAR)
The Brewers’ modus operandi has been baked in for several years: trade stars approaching free agency and retool to compete despite fielding a team with a bottom-10 payroll. This year, it was Devin Williams’ turn to be shown the door in exchange for Yankees starter Nestor Cortes and farmhand Caleb Durbin. That deal is yet to bear fruit, with Cortes making just two starts before landing on the IL and Durbin posting a .618 OPS (albeit with some fun moments). With Williams now in the Bronx, Milwaukee’s bullpen has fallen off a cliff; only the Nationals’ unit has allowed more runs among all NL clubs. The Brewers, known as a well-coached, fundamentally sound operation under defending NL Manager of the Year Pat Murphy, have also committed the second-most errors in the Senior Circuit.
The team’s ability to stay above water can largely be attributed to a rotation that’s allowed the second-fewest runs in the league. Freddy Peralta has stepped up and pitched like an ace — opponents are slugging just .180 against his changeup as he’s posted a 2.77 ERA.
Rhys Hoskins has returned to form, slashing .276/.374/.475, while William Contreras remains among the elite two-way backstops in baseball and Sal Frelick has posted a .766 OPS thus far in his age-25 season. After making the playoffs six of the last seven seasons, it’s way too early to count Milwaukee out.
Top Position Player: TJ Freidl (1.7 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Nick Martinez (1.6 fWAR)
A trendy playoff pick this offseason due to their young, talented roster and hiring of future Hall of Famer Terry Francona to take the helm, the Reds have been underwhelming thus far. A man who looks like a superstar at his best, Elly De La Cruz, is hitting just above league average, though the tragic recent news of his sister’s illness and passing sadly feels like it had to be weighing on him; baseball understandably means so much at a time like that.
Spencer Steer and Matt McLain were expected to be mainstays in the lineup and have hit well below it. Gavin Lux was red-hot in April after coming over from the Dodgers but cooled off in May with a .694 OPS. There have been some positive surprises too — after an injury-marred 2024, TJ Friedl is hitting above .300, as is Austin Hays, who hit .255 last year between Baltimore and Philadelphia. Of interest to Yankees fans, old friend Jose Trevino is having a nice bounce-back season with a .288/.322/.477 triple slash in 119 PA.
The Reds also have one of the most exciting rotations in baseball. Only Brewers and Mets starters have allowed fewer runs in the NL. Andrew Abbott has a ridiculous 1.51 ERA in nine starts and ace Hunter Greene has struck out 66 while walking only 11.
The Reds actually have the same run differential — plus-30 — as the second-place Cardinals, giving credence to the notion that this talented squad has the pieces in place to turn their season around.
Top Position Player: Oneil Cruz (1.6 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Paul Skenes (2.3 fWAR)
To no one’s surprise, it’s the Paul Skenes Show in Pittsburgh. He’s struck out 77 against 18 walks while allowing just four long balls, posting a 2.15 ERA in the process. The possible Team USA ace also has a 4-5 record, even losing a game in which he held the powerful Phillies to one run on three hits in eight innings of work on the road. That’s because the Pirates’ offense has been utterly anemic.
Only the Rockies have scored fewer runs in the NL. Of the 20 players who’ve taken at least five at-bats for the Bucs this year, just three — Oneil Cruz, Andrew McCutchen, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa — have been at or above league-average by OPS+. Cruz has been particularly electric, swatting 12 homers while swiping an NL-best 18 bags. He ranks in the 100th percentile in everything from hard-hit rate to arm strength to bat speed.
But two freak athletes do not a winning ballclub make. Manager Derek Shelton found that out the hard way when he got canned after a 12-26 start, replaced on May 8th by bench coach Don Kelly. Of course, how much can truly be laid at Shelton’s feet (albeit in his sixth season) is up for debate given the lackluster roster given to him by GM Ben Cherington and owner Bob Nutting. Pittsburgh has played around .500 since then, but still appears destined to finish last in the division by a healthy margin.