Welcome to week 12 of our 2026 NL Central Power Rankings — let’s rank some teams!
1. Milwaukee Brewers (43-26); 3-3 this week; 95.7% chance to make postseason (FanGraphs)
The Brewers hold their lead atop the division with a 3-3 week that felt both much better and much worse. They dropped two of three to the Athletics in a Las Vegas slugfest before winning two of three against the Phillies in Milwaukee over the weekend.
Jackson Chourio raked this week, leading the team with 13 hits, including five homers, driving in 10, scoring eight runs, and slashing .448/.452/.966. Jake Bauers added
a pair of homers, while six other players had a homer apiece. William Contreras, who had one of those homers, added a pair of doubles as part of a nine-hit week. Andrew Vaughn went 6-for-14 with a homer, two doubles, and five walks to one strikeout.
Jacob Misiorowski continues to dominate, as he put together one of the best pitching performances I’ve ever witnessed. In a complete game shutout against the Phillies on Friday night, Miz allowed just one hit and struck out an incredible 15 batters on just 95 pitches. Kyle Harrison, who got roughed up in Las Vegas to begin the week, bounced back to toss six shutout frames against the Phils on Sunday to get the win. Grant Anderson, Coleman Crow, Trevor Megill, and Abner Uribe all had scoreless weeks for the bullpen, totaling nine innings with 10 strikeouts.
The Brewers get the day off on Monday before hosting the Guardians for three games. They’ll then head east to visit the Braves and Reds beginning Friday night in Atlanta.
2. St. Louis Cardinals (38-31); 3-3 this week; 45.8% chance to make postseason
The Cardinals also put together a .500 week, taking two of three in New York against the Mets but dropping two of three to the Twins in Minnesota over the weekend.
Alec Burleson slugged five homers for St. Louis this week, adding a double and driving in eight. Iván Herrera tied with JJ Wetherholt for the team lead with eight hits, and Herrera slugged two homers to go with two steals. Jordan Walker drove in a team-high nine thanks to two homers and two doubles.
Dustin May put together the best start of the week for St. Louis, earning the win as he went six scoreless innings with six strikeouts. Andre Pallante allowed two runs and struck out five over six innings in a winning performance, while Matt Svanson led the bullpen with 4 2/3 perfect innings across three appearances, striking out four.
The Cardinals return home for a quick three-game set with the Padres before heading to Kansas City to take on the Royals over the weekend, with an unconventional off day on Saturday thanks to the World Cup, which will host a game at GEHA Field (formerly Arrowhead Stadium) right across the street from Kauffman Stadium that night.
3. Pittsburgh Pirates (36-36); 2-4 this week; 38.3% chance to make postseason
The Pirates had a rough homestand this week, dropping two of three to both the Dodgers and Marlins as they were outscored 42-26 across the six games.
Tyler Callihan, Brandon Lowe, and Bryan Reynolds all had two homers this week, as Reynolds tied with Jake Mangum for the team lead with eight hits. Overall, Reynolds slashed .333/.407/.708 with three doubles and a pair of walks. Spencer Horwitz, Ryan O’Hearn, Nick Gonzales, and Jared Triolo each added five hits on the week.
It was a rough week for the Pittsburgh pitching staff, including ace Paul Skenes, who allowed two runs across six innings in both of his starts, though he still struck out 17 to bring him to 99 for the season. Bubba Chandler allowed two runs and struck out six over 5 2/3 innings, and Braxton Ashcraft allowed two runs and struck out four over five innings. Isaac Mattson, Mason Montgomery, Yohan Ramírez, and Dennis Santana all had scoreless weeks for the bullpen, totaling eight innings with six strikeouts.
Pittsburgh is now headed west, as they’ll visit the A’s (in Sacramento) and Rockies with an off day scheduled for Thursday.
4. Chicago Cubs (37-35); 3-3 this week; 42.9% chance to make postseason
The Cubs were on the West Coast this week, as they dropped two of three against the Rockies before taking two of three in San Francisco against the Giants for a .500 week.
Michael Busch and Ian Happ both homered twice this week, while Pete Crow-Armstrong led the offense with nine hits, including a homer, three doubles, and a triple. Seiya Suzuki and Alex Bregman both homered, as Bregman put up seven hits and Suzuki added six.
Javier Assad and Shota Imanaga led Chicago’s rotation this week, as Assad went six scoreless innings with five strikeouts and Imanaga went five scoreless with seven strikeouts. Ryan Rolison went 3 2/3 scoreless innings across three appearances (including as an opener), striking out three. Phil Maton, Hoby Milner, and Caleb Thielbar were also scoreless for the bullpen, totaling 9 1/3 innings with seven strikeouts.
Chicago will now host the Rockies for their second series in a week before an off day on Thursday. They’ll then welcome the Blue Jays to town for a three-game set this weekend.
5. Cincinnati Reds (33-37); 2-4 this week; 4.8% chance to make postseason
The Reds continue to struggle, as they dropped two of three against the Padres in San Diego before losing a weekend series at home against the Diamondbacks.
Noelvi Marte slugged three homers and a double, though he had just three RBIs for the week. Eugenio Suárez homered and tied Marte for the team lead with six hits, while JJ Bleday added two homers and two doubles. Sal Stewart and Spencer Steer also homered.
All of Cincinnati’s starting pitchers put together a solid week, as Andrew Abbott, Chase Burns, Nick Lodolo, Brady Singer, and Rhett Lowder totaled 33 1/3 innings across their six starts (Abbott made two starts), allowing 11 runs (2.97 ERA) and striking out 34. Unfortunately, none of those starts resulted in a win, as they combined to go 0-1, with the lone loss attributed to Abbott. Sam Moll and Tony Santillan were both scoreless for the bullpen.
Cincinnati wraps up the homestand to begin the week with three games against the Mets. After an off day on Thursday, they’ll head to New York to face the Yankees.
