Welcome to week 8 of our 2026 NL Central Power Rankings — let’s rank some teams!
1. Chicago Cubs (29-18); 2-4 this week; 78.4% chance to make postseason (FanGraphs)
The Cubs cooled off a bit this week after their second 10-game win streak of the season, dropping a pair of series against the Braves and White Sox for a 2-4 week overall.
Six players slugged a homer for Chicago this week, though none of them had more than one. Alex Bregman, who had one of those homers, had 10 hits to lead the team this week, adding a double, driving in three, and scoring six runs. Carson Kelly ranked second on the team with five hits, including a pair of doubles, as he also led the team with four RBIs.
Ben Brown turned in the best start of the week, going four scoreless innings with seven strikeouts. Shota Imanaga took the loss but looked solid, with just two runs allowed over seven innings as he struck out six. Hoby Milner and Trent Thornton each earned wins for the bullpen, while Daniel Palencia picked up the only save. Ethan Roberts and Jacob Webb also had scoreless weeks.
Chicago now welcomes the Brewers and Astros on a six-game homestand this week.
2. Milwaukee Brewers (26-18); 4-2 this week; 61.7% chance to make postseason
The Brewers took two of three over both the Padres and Twins this week, pushing them closer to the Cubs in the NL Central standings while remaining in a tie for second with St. Louis.
Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell, Christian Yelich, and Joey Ortiz (!) all homered for Milwaukee this week. Chourio, Jake Bauers, and Sal Frelick tied for the team lead with seven hits apiece, with Chourio adding two doubles to his homer and Bauers hitting four doubles to lead the team with a .733 slugging percentage. The team also swiped nine bases while being caught just twice (81.8% rate).
Jacob Misiorowski continues to mow down hitters, going seven scoreless against the Padres while striking out 10. Kyle Harrison worked five scoreless with seven strikeouts, while Logan Henderson allowed one run and struck out seven in his start. Coleman Crow also had an effective start, going five innings with three strikeouts and one run allowed. Chad Patricck, Trevor Megill, and Abner Uribe each had a save, while Shane Drohan and DL Hall had scoreless weeks for the bullpen.
The Brewers wrap up their road trip at Wrigley to begin the week before returning home to host the Dodgers over the weekend.
3. St. Louis Cardinals (27-19); 4-2 this week; 29.8% chance to make postseason
The Cardinals also took two of three against their opponents this week, as they faced the A’s in Sacramento before returning home to host the Royals.
Jordan Walker continues to have a breakout year, adding two homers and two doubles this week to lead the Cards with eight hits. Alec Burleson also had eight hits, while Iván Herrera added seven hits. Pedro Pagés, Victor Scott, and JJ Wetherholt also homered.
Andre Pallante went 11 2/3 innings over his two starts, going 1-1 with 11 strikeouts. Michael McGreevy and Kyle Leahy also had quality starts, as both went six innings with one run allowed. While the bullpen as a whole continues to struggle, closer Riley O’Brien made three scoreless appearances and picked up a pair of saves, while Matt Pushard and Matt Svanson also had scoreless weeks.
St. Louis remains home to host the Pirates before heading to Cincinnati to take on the Reds over the weekend.
4. Pittsburgh Pirates (24-23); 2-4 this week; 44.9% chance to make postseason
The Pirates took two of three at home against the Rockies this week, but they then suffered a sweep at the hands of the Phillies over the weekend, failing to score on both Saturday and Sunday in a pair of 6-0 losses.
Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn each slugged a pair of homers this week, while three players (Oneil Cruz, Konnor Griffin, and Bryan Reynolds) tied for the team lead with seven hits apiece. Overall, it wasn’t a great week offensively for Pittsburgh.
Paul Skenes went eight scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts against the Rockies this week, but he got roughed up for five runs on Sunday against the Phillies, ballooning his ERA to 2.62 (it was at 1.98 entering the day). Yohan Ramírez had a great week out of the bullpen, totaling three scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, while Evan Sisk went four scoreless with six strikeouts for the bullpen. Isaac Mattson added 2 1/3 scoreless frames.
Pittsburgh now heads on the road, as they’ll visit the Cardinals and Blue Jays this week.
5. Cincinnati Reds (24-23); 2-4 this week; 10.9% chance to make postseason
The Reds had a rough week, losing two of three at home against the Nationals before dropping two of three to the Guardians in Cleveland this weekend.
JJ Bleday, Matt McLain, and Dane Myers each had a pair of homers this week, while Elly De La Cruz and Spencer Steer led the team with 10 hits each. De La Cruz had a homer and four doubles as part of his 10 hits, scoring six runs, while Steer led the team with nine runs scored. Bleday led the team with 10 RBIs, adding three doubles to his two homers.
Chase Burns continues to impress, as he went six scoreless frames with seven strikeouts to earn the win. Andrew Abbott picked up the other win, allowing one run and striking out a pair of five innings. Not much to say about the bullpen, as every reliever allowed at least two runs with the lone exception of Brock Burke, who went four total innings (three appearances) with one run allowed and three strikeouts.
Cincinnati wraps up the road trip against the Phillies to begin this week, followed by a quick three-game homestand against the Cardinals over the weekend.
