Welcome to week 15 of our 2026 NL Central Power Rankings — let’s rank some teams!
1. Milwaukee Brewers (55-33); 5-2 this week; 98.3% chance to make postseason (FanGraphs)
The Brewers continue to roll, as they took three of four from the Reds before winning two of three in Arizona against the Diamondbacks.
Jackson Chourio and Garrett Mitchell both slugged a pair of homers this week, with Mitchell also tying Brice Turang for the team lead with 10 hits. Mitchell batted .526/.571/1.105 with three doubles and a triple, driving in five. Joey Ortiz, Jake Bauers, Christian Yelich, and Turang also homered.
Jacob Misiorowski had a strange stat line against the Reds, allowing five runs but just one earned over five innings, striking out 10. Brandon Sproat had a pair of solid starts on paper, too, totaling 9 1/3 innings with three runs allowed (2.89 ERA) and 11 strikeouts. The bullpen was great this week, with no pitcher allowing more than one earned run. Aaron Ashby picked up a pair of wins to extend his league lead to 12 on the year, while Chad Patrick went 6 1/3 scoreless frames across three appearances and Trevor Megill went a perfect 3-for-3 in save opportunities.
Milwaukee now faces a gauntlet of eight games in the next seven days, as they’ll face the Cardinals for a rare five-game series before a three-game set in Pittsburgh.
2. St. Louis Cardinals (47-40); 4-2 this week; 42.5% chance to make postseason
The Cardinals took a pair of series against contending teams, winning two of three in Atlanta before taking two of three from the Cubs at Wrigley. I have them leapfrogging the Cubs this week due to that series win, and the fact that the Cardinals are now 4-2 against Chicago this season.
Nathan Church slugged three homers this week, while Jordan Walker continued his strong season with a pair of homers, a pair of doubles, and a team-high nine RBIs. Five other players added a homer apiece, including JJ Wetherholt, who led the team with eight hits in 25 at-bats.
Kyle Leahy and Andre Pallante both picked up wins with scoreless outings, as Leahy went five frames with six strikeouts and Pallante went 5 2/3 innings with two strikeouts. Michael McGreevy (six innings, two runs, three strikeouts) and Matthew Liberatore (10 innings over two starts, four earned runs, 12 strikeouts) also had solid weeks, and Ryne Stanek, Riley O’Brien, and Ryan Fernandez combined for 7 2/3 scoreless innings for the bullpen, striking out six.
St. Louis hosts the Brewers and Braves to end the first half, playing eight games in the next seven days.
3. Chicago Cubs (50-40); 4-2 this week; 72.4% chance to make postseason
The Cubs had a bit of a strange week, dominating the Padres in a three-game set — capped off by a 23-3 win on Wednesday — before dropping two of three to the Cardinals over the weekend, including a 17-1 loss in Friday’s series opener.
Dansby Swanson swung the cover off the baseball for the second consecutive week, with nine hits, including three homers and a double, driving in 11. Michael Busch, Michael Conforto, and Pete Crow-Armstrong added two homers each, and Seiya Suzuki and Alex Bregman also homered.
Shota Imanaga put together the best week among starters, making a pair of starts with four runs allowed over 11 frames (3.27 ERA) and striking out a team-high 12. Jacob Webb, Jordan Wicks, and Ryan Rolison each picked up a save, with Webb, Caleb Thielbar, and Gavin Hollowell all having scoreless weeks for the bullpen.
Chicago is now on the road until the break, as they’ll head east to face the Orioles and Reds for three games each following an off day on Monday.
4. Pittsburgh Pirates (46-45); 4-3 this week; 38.5% chance to make postseason
The Pirates went 4-3 against the Phillies and Nationals this week, splitting four with their in-state rivals before taking two of three in Washington over the holiday weekend.
Bryan Reynolds and Endy Rodríguez both slugged a pair of homers this week, with Reynolds totaling eight hits. Nick Gonzales went off with a team-high 13 hits, batting .481/.533/.667 with a homer and two doubles, while Esmerlyn Valdez added 11 hits, including a homer. Three other players also added a homer each.
Despite a rotation headlined by a few solid arms in Bubba Chandler, Paul Skenes, and Braxton Ashcraft, the week was highlighted by bullpen performances. Jared Jones turned in the best start (four innings, one run allowed, six strikeouts), and six relievers — Tyler Callihan, Carmen Mlodzinski, Mason Montgomery, Yohan Ramírez, Cam Sanders, and Evan Sisk — combined for 13 2/3 scoreless innings with 17 strikeouts.
Pittsburgh has an off day on Monday before wrapping up the first half at home with a pair of three-game series against the Braves and Brewers.
5. Cincinnati Reds (41-48); 2-5 this week; 2.3% chance to make postseason
The Reds continued their struggles this week, as they were only able to salvage the series finales against the Brewers and Orioles for a 2-5 week, pushing them to seven games below .500.
Sal Stewart led the offense by slugging .571 this week, as he slugged a pair of homers and three doubles as part of a seven-hit week. Elly De La Cruz led the team with nine hits, including a homer, in his return from injury, while Jose Trevino had six hits in just 11 at-bats (.545 average), including a homer. Three other players added a homer each.
Nick Lodolo turned in a pair of solid outings, totaling 11 frames with just one run allowed and eight strikeouts. Chase Burns went six quality innings, allowing two runs and striking out four in a win against Jacob Misiorowski and the Brewers, while Caleb Ferguson and Pierce Johnson both had scoreless weeks for the bullpen.
After an off day on Monday, the Reds will stay home through the All-Star break, as they’ll host the Phillies and Cubs.
