With spring training in full swing, Stan “The Fan” Charles previews his preseason power rankings by predicting the order of finish in each division for the 2025 season. The National League is up first.
Each team’s 2024 record and finish in last year’s final power rankings are noted as well.
NL East
1. Philadelphia Phillies (95-67, No. 3)
Manager: Rob Thomson
The Mets may have made the loudest noise and spent the most money in the game, but I’m not sure they have the overall roster to get past this veteran Phillies squad. Philly has a powerful offense led by Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Nick Castellanos, Alec Bohm and Trea Turner. This team also has a deep, top-flight rotation. The one weakness Dave Dombrowski has shown throughout a distinguished career has been underestimating the value of a deep bullpen. Signing former Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano could be a bold gamble or a high-risk move that doesn’t pay off. With the hard-throwing Jeff Hoffman not around anymore, I’m not sure the ‘pen is deep enough, but the Phillies will have enough juice to fix that in June or July.
2. New York Mets (89-73, No. 11)
Manager: Carlos Mendoza
It looks as if head of baseball operations David Stearns made an excellent choice in giving Carlos Mendoza his first big league managing job. That decision may even trump the big dollars owner Steve Cohen throws around. The Mets’ lineup is powerful but ultimately not very deep, so Starling Marte and Luisangel Acuña become two key bats off the bench. The rotation was not a great strength a year ago and it’s already down Sean Manaea (oblique) and Frankie Montas (lat). Stearns might have to jump back into free agency to re-sign Jose Quintana after all. A.J. Minter is helpful addition to the ‘pen. Like the Phillies, they’ll have the wherewithal to add ahead of the deadline.
3. Atlanta Braves (89-73, No. 9)
Manager: Brian Snitker
Now that Ronald Acuña Jr. is back, will all be well with the Braves? Certainly, getting the former NL Rookie of the Year and MVP back is a huge assist to the entire lineup. But the Braves lost starters Max Fried and Charlie Morton to free agency and they most likely won’t get hard-throwing ace Spencer Strider back until the middle of the summer. Yes, they have reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale. I know they like Spencer Schwellenbach, too. But do Grant Holmes, Reynaldo López and Ian Anderson excite you as part of an Opening Day rotation?
4. Washington Nationals (71-91, No. 25)
Manager: Dave Martinez
In 2021, GM Mike Rizzo saw his 2019 championship team dissolve before his very eyes. Stephen Strasburg was a lost cause. Max Scherzer and Trea Turner were approaching free agency. Rizzo made a bold gambit, trading Scherzer and Turner to the Dodgers for right-hander Josiah Gray and catcher Keibert Ruiz. A year later, Juan Soto turned down a 15-year, $440 million offer. Rizzo shipped him off to San Diego along with Josh Bell for shortstop CJ Abrams, lefty MacKenzie Gore and outfielders Robert Hassell and James Wood. The trades kick-started Rizzo’s rebuild. Former No. 2 overall pick Dylan Crews may be the best of the bunch. He could be NL Rookie of the Year in 2025. The rotation and bullpen need to be upgraded before the Nationals can really be a player in this division, but I like that they brought back Kyle Finnegan for the back end of the bullpen.
5. Miami Marlins (62-100, No. 28)
Manager: Clayton McCullough
First-year skipper Clayton McCullough worked for the Dodgers organization for the past 10 years — six as a minor league field coordinator and the past four as the major league first base coach. He replaces Skip Shumaker, who was hired by former GM Kim Ng. This looks to be a roster almost as bad as the White Sox a season ago. They do get ace Sandy Alcantara back from Tommy John surgery. He’ll be one of the most valuable arms on the trading block this season. I’ll be keeping an eye on former Orioles prospect Connor Norby and his progress, but not much else.
NL Central
1. Milwaukee Brewers (93-69, No. 6)
Manager: Pat Murphy
I do see some slippage on the part of the Brewers, who now have to contend with improved Cubs and Reds squads. But reigning NL Manager of the Year Pat Murphy has the pulse of this club and the players compete for him. A key will be how outfielder Christian Yelich returns after back surgery last August. The Brewers lost shortstop Willy Adames and a sensational closer in Devin Williams, but they did club 196 home runs a year ago and we should see an even better version of young outfielder Jackson Chourio in 2025. The rotation can be solid with the addition of savvy lefty Nestor Cortes and the return of Brandon Woodruff.
2. Chicago Cubs (83-79, No. 15)
Manager: Craig Counsell
It’ll be fascinating to see if the Cubs are able to extend star outfielder Kyle Tucker. His addition brings the Cubs closer to the Brewers, who were 10 games better than the Cubs a year ago. Ryan Pressly is coming off a down season in Houston on the heels of losing his ninth-inning gig to Josh Hader, but he’ll close in Chicago. The Cubs are counting on a couple young players to take over everyday roles: Pete Crow-Armstrong (center field) and former Terp Matt Shaw (third base). If these two are ready, they’ll probably be enough to lift the Cubs up to first in the division.
3. Cincinnati Reds (77-86, No. 22)
Manager: Terry Francona
The Reds made a few interesting offseason pickups in starter Brady Singer, outfielder Austin Hays and relievers Scott Barlow and Taylor Rogers, but by far the single most important change was bringing in Terry Francona to lead a team that while not entirely supported by ownership had underperformed under David Bell. If pitching coach Derek Johnson can get through to Singer and talented lefty Nick Lodolo, the sky is the limit for a team that will learn how to win under Francona.
4. Pittsburgh Pirates (76-86, No. 23)
Manager: Derek Shelton
You can’t exactly say that there is light at the end of the tunnel, but you can accurately say there is a meteor named Paul Skenes flashing through the tunnel. Grouping Skenes with a solid mid-rotation arm in Mitch Keller and a flame-thrower in Jared Jones gives the Pirates a good chance to win three of every five games. However, the offense and the bullpen are awfully suspect. GM Ben Cherington has made progress, but owner Bob Nutting hasn’t spent any money. As such, Cherington and his manager only have one arm free. The other is tied behind them.
5. St. Louis Cardinals (83-79, No. 16)
Manager: Oliver Marmol
The good news for Cardinal Nation is that last preseason I picked Cleveland and Milwaukee to finish up the creek, so there is a chance I could be wrong. Still, I think this is the worst Cardinals team I have seen in a long while. I fail to see any aspect of the game — except maybe the ninth inning — where the Cardinals will excel. They aren’t White Sox bad, but I expect them to plummet to the bottom of this division. Chaim Bloom, who will succeed John Mozeliak as president of baseball operations, will have his hands full in getting the Redbirds back to relevance.
NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (98-64, No. 1)
Manager: Dave Roberts
The reigning World Series champs may just be the most formidable team in modern history. Offseason signings Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki join Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tony Gonsolin and (eventually) Shohei Ohtani in the rotation. Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May and Emmet Sheehan are waiting in the wings. The club also added high-leverage arms Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates to the bullpen. The lineup is star-studded and deep. It’s hard to not see the Dodgers winning this division by 10-12 games.
2. Arizona Diamondbacks (89-73, No. 12)
Manager: Torey Lovullo
The Diamondbacks inked ace Corbin Burnes to the largest contract in club history and brought in Josh Naylor via trade to replace Christian Walker at first base. The ill-fated two-year Jordan Montgomery contract may be dealt away by Opening Day. A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez form a very strong 1-2 punch late. The D-Backs got off to a slow start a year ago, which they’ll need to avoid this time around. As good as the rotation is, the lack of a true winning pedigree keeps me thinking they aren’t in the Dodgers’ class.
3. San Diego Padres (93-69, No. 2)
Manager: Mike Shildt
It’s not always about the personnel or the people in charge of personnel. Sometimes it’s timing. The death of former owner Peter Seidler set off an internal struggle as to who will run the club, but John Seidler was recently approved as the club’s control person. So far, president of baseball operations A.J. Preller has been able to navigate the uncertainties. He added a solid starter in Nick Pivetta, but the losses of reliever Tanner Scott and infielder Ha-Seong Kim are both problematic. Skipper Mike Shildt did a marvelous job a year ago, but can he outmaneuver the off-field distractions hanging over the Padres?
4. San Francisco Giants (80-82, No. 19)
Manager: Bob Melvin
New president of baseball operations Buster Posey made a really nice splash in signing shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million deal. That strengthens the Giants up the middle, as he joins catcher Patrick Bailey and Korean center fielder Jung Hoo Lee. But there is very little else that gives any real sizzle or length to a pedestrian lineup. The pairing of Logan Webb and Robbie Ray atop the rotation is formidable if Ray comes back healthy, but the idea that Justin Verlander is going to find the Fountain of Youth at the age of 42 in chilly San Francisco is lost on me. The trade of lefty reliever Taylor Rogers smells of a salary dump.
5. Colorado Rockies (61-101, No. 29)
Manager: Bud Black
The good news is the Rockies finished 20 games better than the 41-121 Chicago White Sox a year ago. The bad news is if not for those White Sox, the stench in Denver would be beyond the pale. If MLB had relegation, the Rockies would move down one or maybe even two levels. I don’t see much hope. The shame is Bud Black is a decent manager and deserves better.
Photo Credits: Colin Murphy/PressBox