Welcome to week 26 of our 2026 NL Central Power Rankings — let’s rank some teams!
1. Milwaukee Brewers (98-58); 5-1 this week; Clinched NL Central
The Brewers just keep rolling, with another 5-1 week as they took two of three from the Pirates in Pittsburgh before sweeping the Orioles on the road, guaranteeing a winning road trip with three games to go.
Jackson Chourio, Bo Naylor, and William Contreras all homered this week, while Joey Ortiz led the team with seven hits, including a double and a triple. It was a fairly balanced attack overall, as 12 players had at least
one RBI, led by three apiece for Chourio, Christian Yelich, and Cooper Pratt.
Robert Gasser led the rotation with one of the best starts of his young career, working seven scoreless in a 1-0 win on Saturday night, allowing just three hits and three walks while striking out a pair. Jacob Misiorowski made two short starts, totaling eight scoreless innings with a team-high 11 strikeouts. Shane Drohan, Chad Patrick, Antonio Senzatela, Garrett Stallings, and Abner Uribe all had scoreless weeks for the bullpen, totaling 13 2/3 innings with 17 strikeouts.
Milwaukee now wraps up the road trip with three games in Philadelphia before returning home for three games with the Cardinals next weekend.
2. Chicago Cubs (87-69); 4-2 this week; Magic Number of 1 for NL Wild Card
The Cubs had a solid week against the Braves and Reds, taking two of three from both to move to 87-69 on the season and putting them one step closer to clinching a playoff spot, as their magic number sits at just one, meaning they need a win or a D-backs loss to lock things up.
Pete Crow-Armstrong is just stat padding his NL MVP victory at this point, slugging four homers, swiping two bags, and driving in nine as part of a 10-hit week to lead the Cubs. Six others added a homer apiece, including Michael Conforto and Seiya Suzuki, who each had six hits on the week.
David Peterson, Shota Imanaga, Kevin Gausman, and Matthew Boyd all turned in solid starts this week. Peterson led the way with a pair of victories, allowing two runs over 12 innings with 14 strikeouts, while Imanaga went six innings with one run allowed and eight strikeouts. Gausman went 5 2/3 innings with two runs allowed and six strikeouts, and Boyd went five innings with two runs allowed (one earned) and four strikeouts. Daniel Palencia, Colin Rea, Caleb Thielbar, and Ryan Zeferjahn totaled 7 1/3 scoreless innings for the bullpen, striking out eight.
Chicago closes out the regular season with a three-game set at Wrigley against the Marlins before visiting the Red Sox for three games over the weekend.
3. Pittsburgh Pirates (79-77); 4-2 this week; Eliminated from Postseason
The Pirates started the week with a pair of losses against the Brewers but bounced back to win four straight, salvaging the finale against Milwaukee before sweeping the Royals.
Brandon Lowe slugged four homers and drove in eight this week, while Oneil Cruz and Rafael Flores added two homers each. Konnor Griffin tied Cruz and Flores with nine hits this week, with three doubles and four RBIs.
Wilber Dotel turned in the best week among Pittsburgh’s “starters” as he worked as the opener and made two relief appearances, totaling 4 2/3 innings with one run allowed and four strikeouts. Brandon Eisert, Antwone Kelly, Mason Montgomery, and Yohan Ramírez combined for 15 1/3 scoreless innings in relief, striking out 17, with Montgomery picking up three saves.
Pittsburgh wraps up the regular season with three games against the Cardinals at PNC Park before three games in Detroit against their interleague rivals.
4. St. Louis Cardinals (76-80); 2-4 this week; Eliminated from Postseason
The Cardinals had another rough week, going dropping two of three to both the Giants and Nationals to wrap up their home slate for 2026.
Iván Herrera helped guide St. Louis to a win on Sunday with a pair of homers as part of a six-hit week, while Leo Bernal and Alec Burleson also homered this week. Bernal also led the team with nine hits, driving in four.
Quinn Mathews turned in a pair of solid outings, totaling 13 2/3 innings with four runs allowed and 11 strikeouts. Matthew Liberatore also had a quality outing, going six frames with one run allowed and two strikeouts, while George Soriano and Ryne Stanek led the bullpen, totaling 2 2/3 scoreless innings with three strikeouts.
St. Louis spends the last week of the season on the road, as they’ll visit the Pirates and Brewers for three games apiece.
5. Cincinnati Reds (72-84); 2-5 this week; Eliminated from Postseason
The Reds are just waiting for the 2026 season to come to a close, as they’re coming off yet another rough week, losing three of four to the Dodgers and two of three to the Cubs in their final homestand of the season.
Elly De La Cruz led the offense with two homers and a double as part of a seven-hit week, also swiping three bases. JJ Bleday, Dane Myers, and Sal Stewart also homered, with Stewart’s six hits ranking second on the team.
Andrew Abbott had the best start of the week, which isn’t saying much, as he went just 4 2/3 innings with one run allowed and five strikeouts. While the rotation had a rough week, the bullpen fared much better — Tejay Antone, Graham Ashcraft, Brock Burke, Luis Mey, Emilio Pagán, and Tony Santillan totaled 15 scoreless innings, striking out 15.
Cincinnati closes out the year on the road, visiting the Braves and Blue Jays for three games each.
