Every week, we ask a selected group of our baseball writers — local and national — to rank the teams from first to worst. Here are the collective results.
Ah, September. For fans of teams who are still “in it,” the time has come to live and die with every pitch. For everyone else, it’s just the time of year when rosters expand by two players. Depending on the team, maybe it’s a true prospect, or perhaps just a really fast guy in case you need a pinch-runner.
This week, we tried to include the Bad News Bears in our rankings to see if they would finish in not-last among AL teams, but no dice. So instead, we’re taking a look at one player — perhaps a true September call-up, perhaps just “spiritually the same thing, even if he was technically called up in some other month” — who could play a bigger role in 2027.
Assuming there is a 2027, of course. Get it together, fellas.
Record: 89-56
Last Power Ranking: 1
Call-up to watch: C Bo Naylor
One problem with identifying a Brewer for this exercise is that their pre-season prospects and potentially interesting call-up guys now fall mostly into three camps:
Already playing pretty pivotal roles for the team with the best record in baseball (Cooper Pratt, Logan Henderson, Luis Lara, etc.)
Too young to really be considered for this exercise (Jesús Made, Luis Peña, etc.)
Currently injured (Brian Fitzpatrick, Jihwan Bae)
So let’s go with Naylor, who ran out of runway in Cleveland and was traded to Milwaukee on Aug.1. Check out these 2026 numbers:
Cleveland: .143/.200/.238 (.438 OPS) in 90 PAs
Columbus (CLE AAA): .225/.344/.438 (.781) in 189 PAs
Nashville (MIL AAA): .283/.353/.550 (.903) in 68 PAs
I’m including the number of plate appearances so we don’t go too wild over the turnaround, but it’s not entirely nothing, either.
How does this apply to 2027? Look, I don’t think the Brewers will decline their option on William Contreras in 2027, but he’s making $9.4 million this year. Given Milwaukee’s penchant for penny-pinching (and the fact that Jeferson Quero is lurking in Triple A), you never know.
Or if we’re looking to ride a hot hand, Thomas Pannone just threw a perfect game for Triple-A Nashville. — Levi Weaver
Record: 87-57
Last Power Ranking: T-2
Call-up to watch: IF Alex Freeland
Hands up if you remember that Freeland was the Dodgers’ Opening Day second baseman. It’s been a wild ride for the 25-year-old, who went into the season thinking he was the future, only to lose playing time steadily in the first half and eventually spend his August with the Oklahoma City Comets, where he posted a solid .350 OBP.
Freeland has a month to make his case for the postseason roster, but he’s also looking to put himself back in the organization’s plans. A few months ago, he was right in the middle of them. — Grant Brisbee
Record: 85-59
Last Power Ranking: T-2
Call-up to watch: IF Kyle Farmer
OK, we had to move the goalposts on this one. At 36, Farmer does not exactly represent a youth movement for the Braves. But the high-end talent in Atlanta’s farm system isn’t quite ready for the majors, especially given the plug-and-play nature of the starting lineup. Farmer offers experience off the bench. — Andy McCullough
Record: 81-64
Last Power Ranking: 6
Call-up to watch: Corner IF/DH BJ Murray Jr.
If the Cubs hadn’t signed Alex Bregman last winter, we might be talking about Murray as a potential third baseman of the future (he’s played 2,411 innings there in the minor leagues).
So maybe first base (where he has played 1,603 minor-league innings)? Maybe, but Michael Busch isn’t a free agent until 2030.
DH? Now we might be talking. Going into Monday’s action, the team leader in games played at DH was Moisés Ballesteros (43 games), who the Cubs have since traded to the Angels for reliever Ryan Zeferjahn. After that, it’s Michael Conforto, who will be a free agent this winter.
Murray, 26, has a career line of .257/.372/.431 (.803 OPS) with 73 home runs over 581 minor-league games. A bit of math tells me that’s about a 20-home-run pace over 162 games. Would you like a bit more pop from a DH? Sure. But if he can spell Bregman and Busch (he’s also played a bit of left field lately), it’s an interesting profile. — Weaver
How a 90-mile stretch could decide the World Series
Ken Rosenthal
Record: 85-58
Last Power Ranking: 4
Call-up to watch: RHP Ty Johnson
Johnson was taken in the 15th round in the 2023 draft. He was one of the guys in the deal you hadn’t heard of when Tampa Bay traded Isaac Paredes in 2024. He struck out 12.13 guys per nine innings with a deceptive delivery. He mostly makes sense against right-handed hitters, so he will have to be deployed carefully. Yup, sounds like a perfect Tampa Bay Ray. — McCullough
Record: 81-62
Last Power Ranking: 5
Call-up to watch: SS George Lombard Jr.
Lombard, a first-round pick in 2023, has supplanted Anthony Volpe as the franchise’s shortstop of the future. Lombard returned to the lineup this past week after missing a few games with a knee injury. Still only 21, Lombard was rated No. 6 on Keith Law’s prospect rankings back in May. But for a Yankees fanbase scarred by the recent struggles of hyped rookies like Volpe and Jasson Domínguez, there won’t be much of a grace period for Lombard to go through growing pains. — McCullough
Record: 81-63
Last Power Ranking: 7
Call-up to watch: RHP Alex McFarlane
Phillies manager Don Mattingly is trying to build a bridge to closer Jhoan Duran. Part of that solution could be McFarlane, who debuted in July and has been rising in the bullpen hierarchy. But then on Sunday, McFarlane blew a save by serving up a three-run blast to Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. So, who can say? The thing about rookie relievers is they will break your heart. They are designed to break your heart. — McCullough
Record: 80-65
Last Power Ranking: 8
Call-up to watch: 1B Mickey Gasper
Tyler Kepner wrote a wonderful story last week about Gasper, a 30-year-old former 27th-round pick who has become the No. 2 hitter for the Sox. An injury to Masataka Yoshida opened the door for Gasper. He looks like he belongs. — McCullough
Record: 75-68
Last Power Ranking: 9
Call-up to watch: RHP Tanner McDougal
If we needed another reminder that big-league debuts can be really difficult, McDougal debuted against the Reds in August and promptly gave up three walks, one hit-by-pitch, and got one out.
A 27.00 ERA and 9.000 WHIP are comically small sample numbers that should drop this month after McDougal was (literally) the September call-up for Chicago.
McDougal, Keith Law’s No. 6 White Sox prospect this year, has not had the best 2026. A flexor strain cost him two months. He has walked far too many hitters (28 in 44 1/3 innings), and the rest of his numbers are near or at career-worst levels.
Is that because he’s in Triple A for the first time? Or a lingering issue from the injury? Someone knows, but it’s not me.
So to set expectations, I would look more for “How does his stuff look?” and “How is his mound presence?” and less for things like “Did he get his ERA back into single digits yet?” — Weaver
Record: 76-68
Last Power Ranking: 11
Call-up to watch: C Ethan Salas
Salas has been one of the very best prospects in baseball since he was a teenager, but his stats have always been tricky to evaluate because of his age. He’s been four to five years younger than the average player at every minor-league stop, so his raw stats always required heaps of context. It’s why his worst seasons looked so bad, and it’s why his best seasons were only moderately impressive, at best.
He hit an unambiguously smashing .326/.410/.539 in 105 plate appearances at Triple A this season, though, with more walks than strikeouts. Those are exciting numbers for a 34-year-old journeyman catcher, much less a 20-year-old prospect. He’s still younger than his peers, but he’s about to be evaluated based on his production, not his age. The Padres are right to be excited. — Brisbee
Record: 77-68
Last Power Ranking: 10
Call-up to watch: LF Tommy Troy
Troy was the 12th pick in the 2023 draft out of Stanford, and he’s steadily marched through the Diamondbacks’ system, without ever having a true breakout season or pushing for an everyday role. He hit .313 with a .411 OBP in Triple A this season, but he also hit just four home runs in 201 at-bats. He might have four major-league tools, but the lack of a fifth could keep him in the utility closet.
Of course, those four tools could be super helpful if they’re all humming at the same time, so Troy will get a chance on a team that’s already designated two outfielders (Jorge Barrosa, Max Kepler) for assignment this month. It remains to be seen if he’s a starter, but the Diamondbacks will take a helper for the time being. — Brisbee
Record: 73-72
Last Power Ranking: 12
Call-up to watch: RHP Daniel Espino
He’s still just 25, which is a little wild, given how long we’ve been hearing about the guy. But after injuries kept him out of game action for 1,241 days, the kid who came up as a can’t-miss ace finally made his MLB debut this year, albeit as a reliever.
So far, so good — going into Monday’s action, he had 15 strikeouts in eight innings. Here’s hoping he can stay healthy and be yet another “pitching factory” success story in Cleveland next year. — Weaver
Record: 73-71
Last Power Ranking: 14
Call-up to watch: RHP Ronel Blanco
Former everyday center fielder Jake Meyers was close to being the call-up to watch, as he got promoted right on Sept. 1. Then the Astros appeared to say, “Stop watching that call-up,” and demoted him in favor of Jorge Barrosa, a recent waiver claim. It’s a tough business.
Blanco wins by default, then, even if he’s not really a traditional call-up, but a veteran who’s been rehabbing from Tommy John surgery in the minors. While his breakout 2024 season was always slightly suspect (2.80 ERA vs. 4.15 FIP), he’s still a pitcher who could really help the Astros in their quest to win the AL West and/or finish above .500. — Brisbee
Record: 72-73
Last Power Ranking: 13
Call-up to watch: 1B Deyvison De Los Santos
The Marlins don’t have a ton of at-bats to provide De Los Santos, but it will be interesting to see what he does with them. He hit for massive power in the minors for Arizona back in 2024, which enticed Miami to pursue him as part of the A.J. Puk trade that summer. His power slackened in 2025 before a slight resurgence this season. De Los Santos hit 21 homers with a .496 slugging percentage for Triple-A Jacksonville. — McCullough
Record: 72-73
Last Power Ranking: 16
Call-up to watch: LHP Ricky Tiedemann
Tiedemann opened the 2024 season at No. 52 on Keith Law’s prospect list but underwent Tommy John surgery that summer and has been working his way back ever since. He missed all of 2025. Working as a reliever this year, he made a big-league debut for a one-outing cameo in August. He can help the Jays’ bullpen piece together innings as they claw back into the wild-card race. — McCullough
Record: 71-73
Last Power Ranking: 18
Call-up to watch: RHP Khristian Curtis
No fewer than nine players have made their big-league debut this season with the Pirates, so there were some options here, but guys like Esmerlyn Valdéz and Konnor Griffin have surpassed this exercise.
Nobody else really sticks out to me, so let’s take a look at Curtis. Before this season, he was No. 12 on Keith Law’s Top 20 Pirates prospects list, and going into Monday’s action, he had a 1.64 ERA in three long-relief appearances this year. That looks fun if you don’t dig much deeper into things like FIP (3.46 is still good, but not 1.64) or K/BB (seven strikeouts, six walks).
But hey, MLB debuts are hard even when you’re getting more than one chance per month. His minor-league numbers suggest that the 24-year-old has some things to be excited about (10.2 K/9) and some things left to figure out (4.4 BB/9), which means he’s a pretty good fit for this exercise! — Weaver
Record: 72-73
Last Power Ranking: 17
Call up to watch: IF/C Leo Bernal
Bernal is a top-100 prospect with a chance to be a true dual-threat catcher, combining the best parts of Iván Herrera’s bat and Pedro Pagés’ glove. He’s had some rough hiccups defensively, with costly misplays in his third career start, but he’s also been hitting the snot out of the ball. He’s still on track to be The One Who Was Promised for some of the pickiest catcher aficionados in the business. — Brisbee
Record: 70-75
Last Power Ranking: 15
Call-up to watch: OF Heston Kjerstad
In a development that assuredly did not shock fans on the South Side of Chicago or in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens, Luis Robert Jr. landed on the injured list this past weekend. Less than a week after Baltimore spent $5 million to claim him off waivers, Robert injured his hamstring. So it goes. That could mean more at-bats for Kjerstad, who has never put it all together since being chosen at No. 2 overall in 2020. — McCullough
Record: 71-73
Last Power Ranking: 19
Call-up to watch: C Logan O’Hoppe
Feels like a loophole to include a guy with nearly 1,500 plate appearances as a “September call-up,” but that’s essentially the position O’Hoppe has worked himself into. Once the expected face of the Orange County Angels of Los Anaheim, he was one half of the return for a 19-year-old infielder who hasn’t played above A-ball.
So that’s a reset.
But after posting a .941 OPS in 18 games in Triple A, O’Hoppe is back in the big leagues and entered play on Monday with a .357 batting average. He’s been strictly a DH so far, which is where it gets interesting.
Does Texas see the 26-year-old as a potential catcher of the future? Kyle Higashioka has a mutual option for 2027, and Danny Jansen is signed through 2027, so there are options: Let Higashioka walk? Trade Jansen? O’Hoppe as a full-time DH or first baseman?
It would be a coup if they can fix his defense and make O’Hoppe the franchise catcher the Angels could not. But if he hits, they’ll find a spot for him somewhere. — Weaver
Record: 66-78
Last Power Ranking: 23
Call-up to watch: LHP Andrew Sears
Yeah, I know. At the time of this writing, Sears was already back in the minors, having been a temporary call-up to start the second game of a doubleheader against the Guardians last Friday. So does he really count as a call-up?
I’m going with yes, and assuming the Tigers will find room for the southpaw to get a little more big-league action this year. So far, it’s been limited to that start and two relief appearances, so let’s turn our attention to his minor-league numbers instead.
In 58 1/3 innings across four levels this year, his 2.16 ERA and 1.029 WHIP look a lot like the sort of arm the Tigers should want a better look at. Throw in the 10.3 K/9, the 3.1 BB/9 and especially the 0.3 HR/9, and it’s no wonder Sears was Keith Law’s No. 9 Tigers prospect this year.
Now that the Tigers are well and truly out of the AL wild-card race — I’m like 95 percent sure — it’s time to see who’s going to help in 2027. I’d certainly be interested to see if Sears passes that test. — Weaver
Record: 67-79
Last Power Ranking: 21
Call-up to watch: C Harry Ford
The former first-round pick has acquitted himself well after a slow start to his career in Washington. Acquired this past offseason from Seattle, Ford did not make the Opening Day roster and hit .206 in his first two months with Triple-A Rochester. His production picked up as the summer progressed, and he entered Monday’s games with a .707 OPS while splitting time with Keibert Ruiz since being called up to the majors in July. — McCullough
Record: 67-77
Last Power Ranking: 22
Call-up to watch: 2B Michael Arroyo
Most of the teams in baseball are using their two extra roster spots on boring old relievers, but the Mariners have spent the last couple of weeks promoting their best prospects. They started with left-handed starter Kade Anderson, then promoted monstrous outfielder Lazaro Montes (38 home runs in the minors this season) shortly after. If you’ve ever been Mariners-curious, now’s the time to dive in. They’re secretly a lot of fun now that they’ve given up.
Arroyo doesn’t quite have the same prospect hype as the other two, but he’ll get the nod here because he’s a top-100 prospect worth paying attention to. He’s a middle infielder on a team with a 21-year-old shortstop and a 23-year-old second baseman, so he’ll have to fight for his playing time. No time like the present. — Brisbee
Record: 68-76
Last Power Ranking: 20
Call-up to watch: OF Walker Jenkins
Some of these teams were challenging, to say the least. (Sorry, Royals.) But the Twins made it easy, calling up Jenkins, who started the year as Keith Law’s No. 1 Twins prospect and the No. 11 prospect in the sport.
He was limited by injuries earlier this year, but still managed a .323/.417/.559 (.976 OPS) line in 73 games across three levels, mostly in Triple A, with some rehab assignments thrown in for good measure.
Ignore the .115 average in his first 31 plate appearances. I know we’re getting used to stupendous feats in big-league debuts, but it’s still not that easy. If you’re looking for early candidates to win the AL Rookie of the Year in 2027, you could do much worse than Jenkins. — Weaver
Record: 69-75
Last Power Ranking: 24
Call-up to watch: IF Juan Brito
Brito was No. 9 on Keith Law’s preseason Guardians prospects list, but then did not-a-whole-lot at the plate in Triple-A Columbus and even less (17 strikeouts in 56 plate appearances, .505 OPS) in a 15-game audition in the big leagues in Cleveland.
That’s the sort of prospect a front office might be inclined to buy low on, and that’s just what Cincinnati did, acquiring Brito and a 19-year-old pitching lotto ticket for Nathaniel Lowe at the deadline.
His .364 average (1.156 OPS) in Cincinnati so far is based on a tiny sample size and heavily skewed by a 3-for-4 performance on Sunday (he was 1-for-9 before that). But the rest of 2026 is less about numbers and more about process, and showing the higher-ups in Cincinnati that he’s ready for a legit opportunity in 2027. — Weaver
Record: 66-78
Last Power Ranking: 25
Call-up to watch: RHP Jonah Tong
When the season began, the Mets envisioned Tong as part of the youth movement in a rotation alongside Nolan McLean and Christian Scott. McLean has been excellent this season. Scott is showing signs of promise. But Tong underperformed for most of the summer in the minors. After 23 outings with Triple-A Syracuse, he finished the minor-league season with a 4.54 ERA. His inability to throw strikes has lowered his ceiling. But the big-league club gave him a shot for the final month, hoping he can benefit from the experience. — McCullough
Record: 64-81
Last Power Ranking: 26
Call-up to watch: IF/OF Matthew Lugo, I guess?
Apparently I’m not allowed to write “I don’t know, man.”
The thing is, most of the Royals’ top prospects are between the ages of 18 and 20, so they’re not getting called up this year. Carter Jensen has been up all year, so he doesn’t count. Beck Way has been shut down for the rest of the season. Connor Thomas, Eric Cerantola, Mitch Spence and Carlos Durán have football-score ERAs. Nolan Hoffman is 29. It’s a weird season.
The best I can do is Lugo, whom the Royals claimed off waivers from the Angels in June. He has a career .336 OBP in 627 minor-league games.
Sorry, that’s the best I’ve got. Maybe the real September call-up was the 16-11 August record the Royals made along the way. — Weaver
Record: 60-85
Last Power Ranking: 27
Call-up to watch: LHP Cesar Perdomo
Perdomo’s fastball is in the low-90s, but he’s a left-hander with a plus changeup and location, which gives him a chance at 300 wins, give or take. His minor-league numbers weren’t stellar, but some of that can be blamed on the Pacific Coast League. Also, note that change-and-location wizards do much better when they get to pitch in front of a major-league defense. Although Perdomo is on the Giants now, so that shouldn’t help him much.
Ha ha, just a little gallows humor, folks. One thing we do know, though, is that the Giants are high enough on Perdomo to add him to a crowded roster situation before they had to. They think the change-and-location wizardry can play at the highest levels. Based on the results of Perdomo’s first two outings (10 IP, 1 ER), they might be right. — Brisbee
Record: 55-88
Last Power Ranking: 28
Call-up to watch: 2B Adael Amador
Amador was a consensus top-40 prospect before the 2024 season, but that was a Rockies organization from which no light (or prospects) could escape. The switch-hitter struggled to make hard contact, and after he was promoted too soon in 2024, his cameos in 2025 weren’t much better.
These are the new Rockies, however, and they appear to have some sort of bizarre new organizational philosophy of “making their players better.” Amador’s bat control and plate discipline always gave him a chance, and the 23-year-old has started his third stint in the majors with a flurry of doubles and extra-base hits. If he keeps it up, it wouldn’t be the most remarkable turnaround season in baseball, and it wouldn’t make the top 100. It would just be more evidence that development isn’t always linear. — Brisbee
Record: 54-90
Last Power Ranking: 30
Call-up to watch: IF/OF Kyren Paris
“We’ll always have Paris,” I say.
“Yes. As a memory of happier times,” she responds.
“No, as an example of a player who gets ludicrously hot at the start of a season, only to come back down to earth,” I tell her. “You think we’d learn, but every year, there’s someone like him and we forget. Do you realize he had a 1.500 OPS or better for most of last April? People were talking about him like he was the organization’s future, but now he’s just a September call-up on a bad team, and almost two full seasons have passed. The good news is that he was raking in Triple A this year, at least, and he’s still just 24. He still has a chance.”
I turn around and she’s gone, already on the airplane and far away from me. Good for her, I think. Good for her. — Brisbee
Record: 58-87
Last Power Ranking: 29
Call-up to watch: RHP Yunior Tur
Tur is a tall right-hander who was signed out of Cuba shortly after turning 20, but he didn’t make his minor-league debut until 2023, which means he’s still a prospect, even if his age (27) doesn’t suggest as much. He’s a lanky-but-strong 6-foot-6, with top-tier stuff and no idea where to put it, walking 41 batters in 61 1/3 Triple-A innings this season.
Yes, this is the most exciting September call-up for the A’s this season. Adjust your fantasy team’s roster accordingly — Brisbee