It was an exciting day. And the last week smoothed out some edges in all the division races around the league. Buckle up everybody, we\u2019re almost into September.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/USATSI_26906295-scaled.jpg\")
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John Jones-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
1. Brewers<\/p>\n
Milwaukee wasn\u2019t a team caught in a division game Friday. But there were fireworks.<\/p>\n
Facing the spiraling Giants,\u00a0William Contreras<\/a>\u00a0launched a walk-off shot with two outs in the ninth to secure the 81st win of the season for the Brewers. It was a nice bounce back after\u00a0Shelby Miller<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Aaron Ashby<\/a>\u00a0blew their 4-2 lead over the seventh and eighth inning, and marked their second win in a row after they went just 2-3 against the Cubs the last week.<\/p>\n The Brewers are now 25-8 in the second half and are the only team with 80 wins or more. They continue to look like the best team in baseball, and will play a key role in the AL and NL East divisional races, as they face the Blue Jays and Phillies from August 29 to September 4.<\/p>\n 2. Dodgers<\/p>\n The Dodgers snapped out of their funk last week with a massive series against the Padres.<\/p>\n In LA, the Dodgers took three of four from their division rivals, providing extra space in the division heading into Monday.\u00a0Mookie Betts<\/a>\u00a0has helped with his recent resurgence, as the former MVP has hit .344 and slugged .475 in his last 15 games.\u00a0Clayton Kershaw<\/a>\u00a0has also been an added bonus to the rotation, pitching the Dodgers to four wins in his last four starts, going at least 5 2\/3 innings in each outing.<\/p>\n The only issue? The Dodgers split a series in Colorado against the Rockies, and there\u2019s been some drama with\u00a0Teoscar Hern\u00e1ndez<\/a>\u2018s defense in right field. It hasn\u2019t been good, and cost the Dodgers a win. Betts reportedly went to Dave Roberts to talk about the defensive alignment, but a change is uncertain. Now, after Friday\u2019s 2-1 loss in San Diego, the Dodgers and Padres are knotted up atop the NL West. We\u2019ll see how the other two games go, as the Dodgers are 8-3 against the Padres.<\/p>\n 3. Phillies<\/p>\n Philadelphia got horrid news last week.\u00a0Zack Wheeler<\/a>\u00a0had a blood clot in his shoulder, requiring surgery to remove with no timetable for return. Usually losing an ace is detrimental to a team with World Series aspirations, but fortunately for the Phillies, they\u2019ve got about two more.<\/p>\n Cristopher S\u00e1nchez<\/a>\u00a0has been absolutely brilliant this season, pitching to a 2.46 ERA with 169 strikeouts in 25 starts. He\u2019s third in the NL in ERA, and had a stellar outing Tuesday against the Mariners (6 1\/3 IP, 12 SO, 2 BB, 2 ER).<\/p>\n Pair that with\u00a0Jes\u00fas Luzardo<\/a>\u00a0(2.32 in last five starts) and\u00a0Ranger Suarez<\/a>, plus the return of\u00a0Aaron Nola<\/a>, and Philadelphia can survive the loss of Wheeler. It also helps that the offense is getting a vintage J.T. Realmuto<\/a>, who\u2019s slashing .311\/.360\/.515 with five homers (only five homers in first half) in the second half.<\/p>\n 4. Padres<\/p>\n The Friars squeaked by with a 2-1 win over the Dodgers Friday. It tied them for first in the NL West, but a series against the Dodgers earlier in the week prevented them from asserting themselves.<\/p>\n They went 1-3 in LA against the Dodgers in the beginning of the week, preventing them from taking control in the division. Actually, their entire 2025 season against the Dodgers has prevented them from being a top team in the NL. Both teams are 73-56, yet the Padres are 3-8 against their rivals.<\/p>\n If they played .500 ball, or for the argument one game under, the Padres would hold a two-game lead over the Dodgers. But hindsight is always 20\/20, and the Padres are doing just fine.<\/p>\n The bullpen is still elite.\u00a0Yu Darvish<\/a>\u00a0turned back the clock to 2013 Friday in their 2-1 win. The only thing missing from the Padres game is the long ball. Especially from\u00a0Fernando Tatis Jr.<\/a>\u00a0He\u2019s gone 120 plate appearances without a homer (July 24).<\/p>\n 5. Tigers<\/p>\n Detroit went back to their winning ways last week.<\/p>\n They swept the Astros at home, took three of four against the Twins, and before that won a series against the White Sox. The real series to dissect was the Astros series, where Detroit pitching held Houston to two runs over three games.<\/p>\n Jack Flaherty<\/a>\u00a0was dominant in the series opener, striking out nine over seven scoreless innings. And then\u00a0Tarik Skubal<\/a> continued his brilliance with 10 punchouts over seven scoreless the next day, which saw the Tigers win 1-0 in extras.<\/p>\n 6. Cubs<\/p>\n The Cubs are just 17-16 in the second half, and a lot can be attributed to the offense regressing.<\/p>\n Pete Crow-Armstrong<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Kyle Tucker<\/a>\u00a0are the biggest proponents of the offense stalling. PCA is slashing .224\/.280\/.411 with just five walks in his last 30 games, and Tucker just .232\/.348\/.373 since his newly disclosed hand injury suffered on June 1 against the Reds.<\/p>\n Still, a 3-2 record against the Brewers last week helped the Cubs climb to seven back in the division and to the first NL wild card spot. With no games left against the Brewers, the Cubs might be finished in the NL Central, but there\u2019s a lot of baseball left. And the postseason seems likely barring a major collapse.<\/p>\n 7. Blue Jays<\/p>\n There\u2019s been no team as consistent as the Blue Jays all season.<\/p>\n Outside their 11-4 month, the Jays have gone above .500 every month of the season. August is no different, as they\u2019re 11-8, and picked up two series wins last week over the Cubs and Rangers.<\/p>\n The real difference maker continues to be\u00a0George Springer<\/a>. He\u2019s thrived in the DH spot, posting a .965 OPS with 17 homers in 57 games. It\u2019s been a stark difference from his 33 games in RF this season, where he posted a .788 OPS with only three homers.\u00a0Anthony Santander<\/a>\u00a0could return this season, but it may be best to leave the 35-year-old Springer as the DH.<\/p>\n 8. Yankees<\/p>\n The Yanks have gotten some serious juice from the return of\u00a0Giancarlo Stanton<\/a>.<\/p>\n The former MVP has produced video game numbers, slugging .943 over his last 15 games, and .747 over his last 30 with 12 homers. He, along with\u00a0Aaron Judge<\/a>\u00a0(who is the 2025 AL MVP, I don\u2019t want to hear Big Dumper) and\u00a0Cody Bellinger<\/a>\u00a0(.270\/.323\/.492 with 24 homers), have finally formed a dangerous trio atop the Yankee lineup.<\/p>\n The offense was still number one in most offensive categories before Staton\u2019s return from injury, but now it is at the level of World Series contender. The only issue has been the bullpen blowing leads. Jake Bird<\/a>\u00a0was optioned to Triple-A,\u00a0Camilo Doval <\/a>has a 7.36 ERA, and\u00a0David Bednar<\/a>\u00a0has blown multiple leads in the ninth.<\/p>\n 9. Red Sox<\/p>\n Boston this low on the list every week feels criminal.<\/p>\n They\u2019re 70-59, in second place in the AL East, and have a series with the Blue Jays in September to possibly take the division, which they currently trail by only five games.<\/p>\n They took the first two games against the Yankees in the Bronx Thursday and Friday, and have the potential to win the series with\u00a0Garrett Crochet<\/a>\u00a0on the mound Saturday.\u00a0Roman Anthony<\/a>\u00a0was a big culprit in Friday\u2019s win, providing insurance in the ninth with a two-run homer. The kid has 17 doubles in only 60 games, and could turn those two baggers into four with some more time in the majors.<\/p>\n 10. Astros<\/p>\n Houston really struggled last week, dropping a series to the Orioles at home, followed by a road sweep in Detroit, where they scored only two runs.<\/p>\n So why are they No. 10 0n the list? Well, for one, they\u2019re still in first place in the AL West. And secondly, they bounced back Thursday and Friday with wins over the Orioles in Baltimore.<\/p>\n The offense also won\u2019t be a problem for too long. We\u2019ve said it all year, but\u00a0Yordan Alvarez<\/a>\u00a0is on his way back. The DH picked up three hits in his second rehab start, and looks to add even more juice to a team that added\u00a0Jes\u00fas S\u00e1nchez<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Carlos Correa<\/a>\u00a0at the deadline.<\/p>\n Rest of the Field<\/p>\n 11. Mariners
12. Mets
13. Reds
14. Guardians
15. Royals
16. Cardinals
17. Diamondbacks
18. Rangers
19. Giants
20. Rays
21. Orioles
22. Marlins
23. Braves
24. Angels
25. Pirates
26. Twins
27. Nationals
28. Athletics
29. White Sox
30. Rockies<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/XWBcyxX7-e1686140012520.jpg\")
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