MLB Power Rankings: Where All 30 Teams Stand as Playoff Race Enters Final Week
One week.
That's all that remains of the 2019 MLB season, yet only the Houston Astros, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals have clinched playoff spots.
In the American League Central, the Minnesota Twins have a four-game lead over the Cleveland Indians, while the Indians are tied with the Tampa Bay Rays for the No. 2 wild-card spot behind the Oakland Athletics. One of those teams is going to wind up on the outside looking in.
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The National League Central is still up for grabs with the Milwaukee Brewers trailing the Cardinals by three games. The Brew Crew are in a virtual tie with the Washington Nationals in the wild-card standings, while the Chicago Cubs are four games back and the New York Mets are 4.5 out.
Our weekly power rankings remain fluid. Teams rise and fall based on where they were ranked the previous week. If a team keeps winning, it will keep climbing—it's as simple as that.
Here are the rankings:
| 1 |  Houston Astros (102-54) |  |
| 2 |  New York Yankees (102-55) | |
| 3 |  Los Angeles Dodgers (100-56) |  1 |
| 4 |  Atlanta Braves (96-61) |  1 |
| 5 |  Oakland Athletics (94-62) | |
| 6 |  Tampa Bay Rays (92-64) | |
| 7 |  Minnesota Twins (96-60) | |
| 8 |  Cleveland Indians (92-64) | |
| 9 |  St. Louis Cardinals (89-67) | |
| 10 |  Milwaukee Brewers (86-70) | 1 |
| 11 |  Washington Nationals (85-69) | 1 |
| 12 |  New York Mets (81-74) | 1 |
| 13 |  Arizona Diamondbacks (80-76) | 1 |
| 14 |  Chicago Cubs (82-74) | 2 |
| 15 |  Philadelphia Phillies (79-75) | 1 |
| 16 |  Boston Red Sox (81-74) | 1 |
| 17 |  Cincinnati Reds (73-83) | 1 |
| 18 |  San Francisco Giants (75-81) | 1 |
| 19 |  Texas Rangers (75-81) | 2 |
| 20 |  Seattle Mariners (66-90) | 1 |
| 21 |  Colorado Rockies (67-89) | 1 |
| 22 |  San Diego Padres (70-86) | |
| 23 |  Chicago White Sox (68-87) | 2 |
| 24 |  Los Angeles Angels (70-86) | |
| 25 |  Toronto Blue Jays (63-93) | 1 |
| 26 |  Pittsburgh Pirates (65-91) | 3 |
| 27 |  Kansas City Royals (57-100) | |
| 28 |  Baltimore Orioles (51-105) | 1 |
| 29 |  Miami Marlins (54-101) | 1 |
| 30 |  Detroit Tigers (46-109) | |
Teams That Impressed
The St. Louis Cardinals (6-1) continued their impressive late-season run with a series win over the Washington Nationals and a four-game sweep of the rival Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
With an NL-best 45-23 record since the All-Star break, the Cardinals are headed back to the postseason after missing the playoffs three straight years. Last year marked the first time they had gone three straight years without a playoff appearance since 1999.
The emergence of Jack Flaherty, who has a 1.05 ERA in 13 starts since the All-Star break, has been a huge development.
While the Cardinals have clinched a playoff spot, they have not yet wrapped up the NL Central title. The Milwaukee Brewers (6-1) kept pace with a series win over the San Diego Padres and a three-game sweep of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Since MVP candidate Christian Yelich saw his season end abruptly Sept. 10 with a fractured right kneecap, the Brewers have pulled together to go 11-2 with a plus-26 run differential. That has left them tied with the Nationals atop the NL wild-card standings and kept them at three games back in the NL Central.
The New York Mets (4-2) and Arizona Diamondbacks (4-2) have not had their slim playoff hopes extinguished quite yet after solid weeks.
That said, with 76 losses, the D-backs' magic number for elimination from the wild-card race stands at one entering play Monday. The 74-loss Mets are at three and are 4.5 games back for a postseason berth.
Among other contending teams, the Houston Astros (4-1), New York Yankees (4-2), Oakland Athletics (4-2), Minnesota Twins (5-2) and Cleveland Indians (5-1) all took care of business with a pair of series wins last week.
No team ranked below the Diamondbacks, who entered last week in the No. 14 spot, won more than one series last week.
Teams That Disappointed
The Chicago Cubs (1-6) might not be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs, but for all intents and purposes, the four-game sweep they suffered at home versus the Cardinals spelled the end of their playoff hopes.
Watching star third baseman Kris Bryant be helped off the field with an ankle injury in Sunday's game was just salt in the wound.
After a brutal week that included five straight one-run losses, the Cubs' playoff chances dipped from 76.7 percent Sept. 16 to a meager 2.6 percent heading into the final week of the season, according to FanGraphs.
The Boston Red Sox (2-4) were officially eliminated from the postseason picture Friday, one year after steamrolling their way to a World Series title.
"It's kind of been coming for a while now the last couple weeks," pitcher Rick Porcello told reporters. "It's tough. We put a lot of work into it, had high expectations—especially for guys in this clubhouse. We came up short, I don't know what else to say. It's been a tough year."
In a week where few non-contenders were able to play spoiler, the Texas Rangers (1-4), Colorado Rockies (2-4), San Diego Padres (2-5), Los Angeles Angels (2-4), Pittsburgh Pirates (0-6), Kansas City Royals (2-5), Miami Marlins (2-4) and Detroit Tigers (2-5) all suffered a pair of series losses.
Players of the Week
AL Hitter: Miguel Sano, Minnesota Twins
Stats: 9-for-27, 2B, 3B, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 6 R
After making his first All-Star appearance in 2017, Miguel Sano took a major step backward during an injury-marred 2018 campaign, hitting just .199 with an 84 OPS+ and 13 home runs in 71 games while spending some time in the minors.
The 26-year-old former top prospect didn't play his first game this season until May 16 after undergoing heel surgery in March, but that hasn't stopped him from slugging a career-high 33 home runs.
While he is hitting just .248 and carries a 35.8 percent strikeout rate, his .927 OPS would rank seventh in the American League if his 424 plate appearances were enough to qualify.
When he hit home run No. 30 on Tuesday, he became the fifth Twins player to reach that mark this season, joining Nelson Cruz (40), Max Kepler (36), Mitch Garver (31) and Eddie Rosario (31). It's the first time in MLB history that a team has had five 30-homer hitters.
AL Pitcher: Mike Fiers, Oakland Athletics
Stats: 1 GS, W, 8.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K
Veteran Mike Fiers has been the Athletics' most consistent starter this season, going 15-4 with a 3.91 ERA and 1.19 WHIP while tallying 19 quality starts—tied for 13th among all pitchers.
However, he entered his most recent start with something to prove.
He had an unsightly 18.78 ERA in three September starts and had to leave his Sept. 14 outing against the Texas Rangers after just 1.2 innings with nerve irritation in his right arm.
Fiers came back strong Friday with eight shutout innings of two-hit ball against the Rangers in what was his most dominant outing since he no-hit the Cincinnati Reds on May 7.
"Last couple of starts have been not ideal, and getting late into September here, I kind of had a bad September, so I needed to get the ball rolling and come back healthy," Fiers told reporters.
The A's appear to be ticketed for the American League Wild Card Game, and Fiers has to be the odds-on favorite to take the ball for Oakland in that all-or-nothing contest.
NL Hitter: Pete Alonso, New York Mets
Stats: 8-for-23, 2 2B, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 7 R
With three more home runs last week, Pete Alonso became just the second rookie in MLB history to reach the 50-homer mark, joining New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (52 in 2017).
Alonso is swinging a hot bat right now with eight home runs and a .980 OPS in 20 games during September, so he is well-positioned to surpass that two-year-old record.
He's also trying to hold off Eugenio Suarez (48) and Cody Bellinger (46) for the MLB lead as he looks to put the finishing touches on a brilliant campaign that—no disrespect to Braves right-hander Mike Soroka—will almost certainly end in National League Rookie of the Year honors.
"[Fifty homers] was within the realm of possibility, but I wasn't really shooting for it," Alonso told reporters. "It's tough to wrap my mind around it. I'm just focused between the lines every single day. I don't think this is truly going to settle in until I can sit back after the season."
All that remains on the Mets' schedule is a four-game series with the Miami Marlins and a three-game set with the Braves. Alonso has hit 12 of his 50 home runs against those teams.
NL Pitcher: Mike Foltynewicz, Atlanta Braves
Stats: 1 GS, W, 8.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K
One of the breakout pitchers of 2018, Mike Foltynewicz posted a 2.85 ERA and 1.08 WHIP with 202 strikeouts in 183 innings to finish eighth in NL Cy Young Award voting.
Expected to lead the staff this season, he instead suffered a sore elbow during spring training and then scuffled to a 6.37 ERA through 11 starts before he was optioned to the minors June 23, a day after a start against the Nationals in which he allowed eight hits, two walks and eight earned runs in four innings.
The 27-year-old took the demotion in stride and worked through his issues, returning to the MLB rotation Aug. 6. With each start since his return, he has looked more and more like his 2018 self.
"It has been a long year, so over the past six, seven starts, I'm really glad to show the team I've still got it and can still go out there and win, keep the boys in it," Foltynewicz told reporters.
Foltynewicz has pitched to a 2.35 ERA and 1.08 ERA in nine starts since returning from the minors, and his eight shutout innings against the San Francisco Giants on Friday made him the winning pitcher as the Braves clinched the NL East.
Three months after Foltynewicz was sent to the minors, it looks like he has solidified his place in the playoff rotation.
Must-See Upcoming Matchup
Cleveland Indians vs. Washington Nationals (Friday-Sunday)
The Indians will likely be fighting for a playoff spot during their final series of the regular season, looking to overtake the Rays or Athletics for a wild-card spot.
They have a 48.2 percent chance of reaching the postseason, according to FanGraphs.
The Nationals will also have something to play for in this series as they battle for the right to host the NL Wild Card Game, which they will play against the Brewers if things hold.
While the Nationals have played well at home (42-31) and on the road (43-38), the Brewers have been much better at Miller Park (49-32) than they have been away from home (37-38).
These won't be the only two teams with something to play for during the season's final weekend, but it looks like the only matchup that will have playoff implications for both teams.
The young trio of Zach Plesac, Adam Plutko and Aaron Civale is lined up to start for the Indians. However, after an off-day Monday, they could shuffle things for their series with the Chicago White Sox to make Mike Clevinger or Shane Bieber available.
Meanwhile, the Nationals have Austin Voth, Patrick Corbin and Max Scherzer in line to start, so they're ready to make things hard on Indians hitters.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs and accurate through Sunday's games.
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