{"id":640627,"date":"2026-03-24T12:41:22","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T12:41:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/640627\/"},"modified":"2026-03-24T12:41:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T12:41:22","slug":"nl-central-2026-regular-season-standings-predictions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/640627\/","title":{"rendered":"NL Central 2026 regular season standings predictions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coming off their third consecutive NL Central crown, the Brewers are once again among the most-doubted teams, as many pundits have picked the Cubs to leapfrog Milwaukee.<\/p>\n

For the third straight offseason, the Brewers traded a key arm (Corbin Burnes before 2024, Devin Williams before 2025, and now Freddy Peralta) while also losing a few other key players in Jose Quintana, Tobias Myers, Isaac Collins, Caleb Durbin, and Nick Mears. They also added Luis Rengifo, Gary S\u00e1nchez, Akil Baddoo, and a whole bunch of youngsters. The Cubs did reload with a few pitchers and Alex Bregman, but they also lost Kyle Tucker. The Pirates have a guy named Paul Skenes, and they added a few offensive options to the group around him in the form of Marcell Ozuna, Ryan O\u2019Hearn, Brandon Lowe, and Jake Mangum. The Reds \u2014 who a lot of people forget snuck into the playoffs last year \u2014 brought old friend Eugenio Su\u00e1rez back, along with JJ Bleday and Nathaniel Lowe, but they also are without Hunter Greene to begin the season. Lastly, the lowly Cardinals unloaded their veterans, sending Brendan Donovan, Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray, and Willson Contreras away in a series of trades.<\/p>\n

As a reminder, here\u2019s how the NL Central shook out in 2025:<\/p>\n

Milwaukee Brewers: 97-65
Chicago Cubs: 92-70 (5 GB)
Cincinnati Reds: 83-79 (14 GB)
St. Louis Cardinals: 78-84 (19 GB)
Pittsburgh Pirates: 71-91 (26 GB)<\/p>\n

Here are our contributors\u2019 NL Central standings predictions for 2026.<\/p>\n

Milwaukee Brewers: 94-68
Chicago Cubs: 91-71 (3 GB)
Cincinnati Reds: 85-77 (9 GB)
Pittsburgh Pirates: 78-84 (16 GB)
St. Louis Cardinals: 74-88 (20 GB)<\/p>\n

I know that everyone outside of Wisconsin seems to think that the Cubs have overtaken the Brewers, but haven\u2019t they been saying that for three years in a row, now? Chicago will be helped by the return of Justin Steele. They traded for Edward Cabrera, which might be a nice move, but he\u2019s also only one year removed from having a 4.95 ERA and walking nearly five batters per nine. They have some young players who will probably improve. They swapped Kyle Tucker for Alex Bregman, who is an older and worse player. But if Pete Crow-Armstrong doesn\u2019t hit 31 homers again, it\u2019s difficult to excuse his .287 OBP. The infield looks good today, but it\u2019s getting older. There are still some questions about the pitching staff.<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, Cincinnati could surprise us, but Hunter Greene just had surgery and won\u2019t pitch until July, and I\u2019m not sure how much Eugenio Su\u00e1rez moves the needle. Pittsburgh has been getting some hype, but this was a dreadful offense last season that added Ryan O\u2019Hearn, Brandon Lowe, and 36-year-old Marcell Ozuna. Is that enough to get them from terrible to average? I kind of doubt it, and their defense \u2014 which no longer includes Ke\u2019Bryan Hayes \u2014 will be worse.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t know. I guess I just think that the team that had the best record in the league and creatively addressed the loss of its star pitcher deserves the benefit of the doubt.<\/p>\n

Milwaukee Brewers: 91-71
Chicago Cubs: 89-73 (2 GB)
Cincinnati Reds: 85-77 (6 GB)
Pittsburgh Pirates: 82-80 (9 GB)
St. Louis Cardinals: 64-98 (27 GB)<\/p>\n

As I said last year, the only thing I\u2019m confident about at this point is that the Cardinals are not going to be good. You could easily make an argument for any of the other four teams in the division, but I\u2019ll give the Brewers the upper hand just because they\u2019ve proved they\u2019re the team to beat over the last three seasons. I think they can fend off the rest of the division for at least one more season.<\/p>\n

The addition of Alex Bregman sounds great on paper, but it seems like everyone forgets that they also lost Kyle Tucker. The Reds were a sneaky playoff team in 2025, but they\u2019re going to be without their ace in Hunter Greene for the first half of the season. The Pirates got better offensively, but, as Paul said above, is it enough?<\/p>\n

Milwaukee Brewers: 93-69
Chicago Cubs: 89-73 (4 GB)
Cincinnati Reds: 86-76 (7 GB)
Pittsburgh Pirates: 80-82 (13 GB)
St. Louis Cardinals: 69-93 (24 GB)<\/p>\n

Every year, it looks like the Brewers\u2019 roster got worse over the offseason, and everyone thinks they\u2019re due to come crashing down to Earth. And every year, that crash never materializes. Even with Freddy Peralta\u2019s departure, the Brewers have a much deeper starting rotation picture heading into 2026 with plenty of talent and upside, even if they\u2019re lacking proven experience. Give me the Brewers to win 90-plus games again.<\/p>\n

The Cubs continue to make the gap closer with the Brewers, and they finally started acting like a big-market team this offseason. They\u2019ll be in the hunt, but the Brewers continue to prove they\u2019re the better team. The Reds looked better under Terry Francona last year, and I suspect they\u2019ll continue to get better in his second year. The Pirates have made some additions as well and should be better. But they are still the Pirates, and I can\u2019t put them any higher than fourth in the division until they prove otherwise. In last place, I have the Cardinals. They traded away all of their quality veterans and have embarked on a rebuild. St. Louis rarely ever bottoms out, but for the time being, they look like a non-threat in the division.<\/p>\n

Milwaukee Brewers: 91-71
Chicago Cubs: 90-72 (1 GB)
Pittsburgh Pirates: 82-80 (9 GB)
Cincinnati Reds: 78-84 (13 GB)
St. Louis Cardinals: 70-92 (21 GB)<\/p>\n

With the regular season about to start, I\u2019m left at basically the same place as I was at the start of last season. The Cubs are still right at the brink of being great, while the Brewers once again traded away a couple of key players (this time Freddy Peralta and Caleb Durbin). Once again, the media is hyping up the Cubs and sees this as their year to shine and maybe compete against the Dodgers. However, there\u2019s one thing I\u2019ve learned in the last several years: Don\u2019t bet against the Brewers. Until the Cubs prove otherwise, I\u2019m believing in the Brewers.<\/p>\n

Looking down the standings a bit, the Pirates are a team that\u2019s becoming more and more concerning. They already have Paul Skenes to lead the rotation, and they\u2019ve been building up again. This might be the year that they\u2019re back over .500. The Reds are in a tough spot following the injury to Hunter Greene, and the Cardinals are looking at another rebuilding year.<\/p>\n

Milwaukee Brewers: 92-70
Chicago Cubs: 90-72 (2 GB)
Pittsburgh Pirates: 81-81 (11 GB)
Cincinnati Reds: 79-83 (13 GB)
St. Louis Cardinals: 72-90 (20 GB)<\/p>\n

I\u2019m picking the Brewers to win the NL Central, as they\u2019ve done four of the last five years. Despite the losses of Freddy Peralta, Caleb Durbin, and a couple of other contributors, the depth and versatility that the Brewers currently have \u2014 both on the major league roster and in the minors \u2014 will ensure that they don\u2019t slip too far from last year\u2019s 97-win season. The Cubs did lose Kyle Tucker, who\u2019s now in Los Angeles, but they picked up Alex Bregman from the Red Sox and made a couple of other additions that will help them win games next year. The battle for the NL Central crown should be a dogfight.<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh was active this offseason, signing Ryan O\u2019Hearn, Gregory Soto, and Marcell Ozuna and acquiring Brandon Lowe from the Rays to bolster their lineup. They still have one of the best pitchers on the planet in Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes. Cincinnati also added Eugenio Su\u00e1rez, but will be without ace Hunter Greene until around the All-Star Break, and they lost Gavin Lux, Austin Hays, and Brent Suter from last year\u2019s team. They\u2019ll be in the Wild Card race, but won\u2019t seriously compete for the division.<\/p>\n

St. Louis, on the other hand, is clearly rebuilding after trading Brendan Donovan, Willson Contreras, Nolan Arenado, and Sonny Gray. Chaim Bloom will get the Cardinals back to contention eventually, but it probably won\u2019t happen this year.<\/p>\n

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