Welcome to the 11th week of our NL Central Power Rankings! We’ll release these rankings each week to grade all five teams and place them one through five. As everyone knows with power rankings, these should be taken as gospel and they’re obviously 100% accurate. Without further ado, let’s rank some teams!
1. Chicago Cubs (39-24); 4-2 this week; 98.5% chance to make postseason (Baseball Reference)
The Cubs started June with a series win over the Reds before taking two of three against the Nationals this week. They’re now in Detroit for a big series between two of the top teams in baseball.
Michael Busch, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Ian Happ all had solid weeks for the Cubs, with Busch leading the way with a pair of homers and six RBIs, hitting .500/.611/1.071 over 14 at-bats. Crow-Armstrong homered and stole five bases as he hit .318/.423/.500, while Happ led the team with eight hits and slashed .308/.357/.538.
Ben Brown went 13 innings across a long-relief appearance and a start, allowing two runs and striking out a team-high 16 batters. Matthew Boyd worked a strong 7 1⁄3 innings, allowing two runs and striking out six, though he took the loss in a 2-0 game against the Nationals. Ryan Pressly, Caleb Thielbar, Daniel Palencia, and Drew Pomeranz were also solid, with Colin Rea going 5 1⁄3 scoreless innings in his lone appearance.
Chicago wraps up the road trip with a series in Philadelphia to begin the week before entering a four-game weekend series with the Pirates.
2. Milwaukee Brewers (34-30); 4-2 this week; 44.5% chance to make postseason
Milwaukee’s win streak ended at eight with Tuesday’s loss to the Reds, but they’ve still won nine of their last 10, including a sweep of the Phillies. They’re beginning a 10-game homestand this weekend with the Padres.
Jackson Chourio hit a pair of homers and led the Crew with 11 hits, slashing .407/.407/.667 in one of his best weeks of the year. Rhys Hoskins cooled off a bit but still collected six RBIs, while Christian Yelich continues to swing the bat, hitting .409/.458/.545 with nine hits, including a homer.
Chad Patrick made a pair of strong starts, allowing three runs over 12 innings against the Phillies and Padres. He also struck out a team-high 12 batters. The Quinn Priester-DL Hall combo continues to look strong, while Rob Zastryzny, Trevor Megill, Abner Uribe, Jared Koenig, and Nick Mears all had strong showings from the bullpen.
The Brewers’ homestand continues with the Braves and Cardinals through next weekend.
3. St. Louis Cardinals (35-28); 3-3 this week; 43.1% chance to make postseason
The Cardinals had one of their roughest weeks in a while, dropping two of three to both the Rangers and the Royals. They’re now home for six games, beginning with the Dodgers this weekend.
Alec Burleson, Willson Contreras, and the catching tandem of Iván Herrera and Pedro Pagés led the offense this week, as all four of those players homered. Contreras led the team with eight hits, while Burleson’s .400 batting average led the squad.
Sonny Gray picked up a pair of wins, allowing no runs over 13 1⁄3 innings with 15 strikeouts in a great week for him. Erick Fedde was solid in his start, allowing two runs over six innings despite taking the loss. Out of the bullpen, JoJo Romero worked 1 2⁄3 scoreless frames and picked up the other win on the week, while Phil Maton, Matt Svanson, and John King all worked scoreless outings.
St. Louis’ homestand wraps up with the Blue Jays to begin the week before they head to Milwaukee to take on the Brewers for four games.
4. Cincinnati Reds (30-33); 1-4 this week; 2.2% chance to make postseason
The Reds dropped two of three in Chicago against the Cubs before losing two of three to the Brewers at Great American Ball Park. They wrap up their homestand against the Diamondbacks this weekend.
Elly De La Cruz had a solid week at the plate, hitting a homer, swiping a pair of bags, and slashing .286/.474/.571 with four hits and five walks. No players hit over .300 on the week for Cincinnati, with Gavin Lux’s .357 OBP second to De La Cruz’s .474 mark. TJ Friedl tied De La Cruz for the team lead with four hits, slashing .222/.300/.278.
While the offense was dismal, the pitching was far better. Nick Lodolo worked six scoreless frames in his start, striking out five, while Hunter Greene struck out seven over five innings, allowing two runs to the Brewers in a no-decision. Scott Barlow, Lyon Richardson, and Taylor Rogers led the bullpen, with Emilio Pagán picking up the lone save.
After finishing up with Arizona on Sunday, they’ll hit the road to take on the Guardians and Tigers next week.
5. Pittsburgh Pirates (24-40); 3-3 this week; <0.1% chance to make postseason
The Pirates managed to win their weekend series against the Padres before dropping two of three to the Astros at home. The homestand continues with the Phillies this weekend.
The Pirates’ offense was fairly quiet, but there were still a few standouts. Bryan Reynolds and Isiah Kiner-Falefa tied for a team-high seven hits, with Reynolds also homering as he hit .318/.400/.500 with a team-high four RBIs. Andrew McCutchen homered twice, while Jared Triolo went 3-for-5 and walked twice in limited opportunities.
Paul Skenes continues to contend for the Cy Young Award, going eight innings and allowing one run, though he did take the loss. He also struck out a team-high eight batters. Bailey Falter made a pair of starts, allowing four runs over 10 innings, while Mike Burrows went 5 1⁄3 scoreless innings in his start. David Bednar, Caleb Ferguson, and Chase Shugart all worked three scoreless outings from the bullpen.
After the Phillies get out of town on Sunday, the Pirates will finish up their homestand against the Marlins. They then head to Chicago to take on the Cubs for four games next weekend.