A lot can happen in the 162-game schedule of a Major League Baseball season. It’s well known that the year progresses like a marathon and not a sprint, yet a win in April carries the same weight as a win in September.
Given that it’s early, but teams are starting to learn who they are, these are the top 10 teams in baseball after the first month of play.
10. Pittsburgh Pirates (16-16 through April, 19-17 overall)
The biggest surprise through April was watching the NL Central begin as the most treacherous division in the league. Pittsburgh comes in as the first team from that group and the No. 10 spot on this list. There was hype around the Pirates for the first time in years after this offseason of bolstering their lineup, and the increase in payroll has come to fruition early.
In fact, Pittsburgh is excelling on both sides of the ball, statistically staying top 10 in team hitting and pitching. New additions Brandon Lowe, Marcell Ozuna and Ryan O’Hearn have combined for 16 home runs, as center fielder Oneil Cruz wields nine of his own. MLB’s highest overall prospect, Konnor Griffin, has caught back up to speed after his slow start, crafting a well-rounded lineup with eight different players that can strike each night.
A three-headed snake is forming in the Bucs’ rotation, with Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller and Braxton Ashcraft each supplying quality innings. Their bullpen is staying reliable as well, with another trio of arms used to close out games in Yohan Ramirez, Gregory Soto and Dennis Santana.
It seems the Pirates are finally trying to make a postseason push, capitalizing on their closing years of Skenes.
9. St. Louis Cardinals (19-11 through April, 21-14 overall)
The Cardinals earn the title as the most unexpected team to make this list, coming in as the second squad from the NL Central. What makes this Cardinals team special is how productive they’re playing as the youngest team in the league.
Right fielder Jordan Walker shot out of the gate with eight home runs in his first 16 games. Walker perhaps jump-started St. Louis’ powerful start, currently sitting top 10 in home runs and team slugging percentage. The organization’s No. 1 overall prospect, JJ Wetherholt, has lived up to expectations in the first month of his career, swinging a .801 OPS.
This youthful team is simply clicking. They’ve matched the speed of their division and played competitively against every opponent. Although this positive start feels the most fragile of teams on this list, the exciting Cardinals deserve flowers for performing early on.
8. San Diego Padres (19-11 through April, 21-14 overall)
This opening month of Padres baseball can be summarized with underwhelming stats but the wins to back it up. San Diego’s been winning games with a bottom-five offense, having the second-fewest hits as a team. Yet, they only lost one series all April and rattled off eight consecutive wins.
One man took center stage for the Padres, and he’s going for something that hasn’t been done in 23 years. Closer Mason Miller threw 34 ⅔ consecutive scoreless innings, breaking the Padres’ franchise record. He even flirted with the all-time reliever streak, falling just seven frames shy, and bringing up early Cy Young conversations. No relief pitcher has won the award since Eric Gagne in 2003.
San Diego has been in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ shadow for the last handful of years and will need far more production offensively to threaten their division throne.
7. Tampa Bay Rays (18-12 through April, 23-12 overall)
The second true sleeper pick comes in at number seven, with the Tampa Bay Rays doing what they do best: staying as one of the most bothersome, unusually hard-to-beat teams. The Rays caught fire near the midpoint of April and ended the month winning 13 of their last 18 games.
Tampa Bay displays a spread-out attack with a veteran-led rotation that has greatly overperformed to begin the season. Thirty-five-year-old Nick Martinez has excelled while staying slated as the caboose of the rotation. He leads the team in WAR while posting a 1.71 ERA over his first seven starts.
Tampa’s lineup keeps opposing pitching staffs on their toes with a strong balance of righty and lefty batters that execute in close games. Their small-ball-centered game plan expedites players like the high-averaged Yandy Diaz and speedy Chandler Simpson. The team’s batting average increases with runners on base and in scoring position, with Jonathan Aranda as a byproduct of that, leading the AL in RBIs.
Each year, it seems the Rays threaten the leader of the AL East at some point in the season. All this club needs to do is maintain its pesky style of play to push for the postseason for the first time since 2023.
6. Cincinnati Reds (20-11 through April, 20-16 overall)
Arguably the biggest surprise through April was how lethal the aforementioned NL Central was shaping up. After the first month, no team was below .500, as the Reds come in as the third team from the division in this list.
Cincinnati’s dynamic is fully opposite of their Central rival, the forthcoming Milwaukee Brewers. The Reds aren’t playing the most fundamentally, but have brought the wins early. They tied their all-time win mark in the month of April, tallying 17 victories by executing in close games. Cincinnati’s a combined 10-2 across one-run games and affairs that’ve gone into extra innings.
The most promising variable of the 2026 Reds has been the showing of the starting pitching. The rotation is without Game 1 starter Hunter Greene and highly underrated Nick Lodolo. The 23-year-old rookie, Chase Burns, is holding it down with a 2.20 ERA as Lodolo is expected to return this May.
5. Milwaukee Brewers (16-14 through April, 18-16 overall)
Although the record doesn’t entirely reinforce it, Milwaukee’s continuing to do the small things right. Year after year, they’ve persisted to win games despite the lack of superstars, and 2026 looks to be no exception.
The Brewers simply play as a team. They are exceptionally managed by Pat Murphy and have no lone star, but a team full of scrappy players that don’t make many mental errors. Right now, no batter in this lineup besides Brice Turang has over 1.0 WAR, yet they’re excelling in many hitting stats.
They’re executing on the other side of the ball as well. An uncertain rotation spearheaded by 24-year-old Jacob Misiorowski has made up for the fourth-best team ERA. The club lost another pillar this offseason in horse Freddy Peralta, yet still fulfills.
The wins will come amid this unflashy start, as Milwaukee seeks its fourth straight division title.
4. Chicago Cubs (19-12 through April, 24-12 overall)
The Cubs turned from a sluggish start into the hottest team in baseball, holding the best record since April 14. Chicago won 10 games in a row in the opening month and has currently ignited another streak, winning their last six.
Where they fall occasionally short on averages, they make up for it with every spot in the lineup getting on base. The Cubs are managing fundamental baseball, stealing at the right time, and are currently sitting in the top five of defensive rating.
Chicago consistently rolls out the most sound outfield in the game, complemented by Seiya Suzuki, Ian Happ and Pete Crow-Armstrong. Not to mention the help of Nico Hoerner, the quietest five-tool player in the sport, and rookie Moises Ballesteros who’s producing at the designated hitter position.
The Cubs’ bullpen has outshone the rotation thus far, with the back half of their starters still settling in. Coming in as the fifth and final team from the NL Central, it’s mathematically impossible for all five teams in a division to make the postseason. However, with Chicago appearing primed for back-to-back playoff runs, the division could do the second-best thing and represent four.
3. New York Yankees (20-11 through April, 25-11 overall)
The Yankees have come out very strong in 2026 and through and through have been the best team in the American League. That’s largely thanks to New York’s starting pitching, still without Gerrit Cole, boasting the best team starting pitching ERA.
It’s time to have a conversation about whether Max Fried is a true ace in baseball. He leads the league in starts and consistently goes deep into them, all with a 2.39 ERA to show for it. He’s combated by 25-year-old Cam Schlittler in his second season, making one fewer start than Fried with a blazing 1.52 ERA.
On top of that, not only has first baseman Ben Rice been a better hitter than Aaron Judge this season, but he’s been the best hitter overall. Rice leads the league in OBP, SLG and OPS, while Judge has a league-tying 14 home runs.
If April has any tell into how the 2026 American League will unfold, it’s the Yankees to run away with.
2. Los Angeles Dodgers (20-11 through April, 22-13 overall)
The Los Angeles Dodgers are not the best active team in baseball, but they’re still pretty damn good. Although on a skid, having lost their last three series out of four, the Dodgers continue to flash what a near $300 million payroll gets you.
LA kept the best team OPS through April – although that now belongs to Atlanta – with their Avengers-esque lineup showing up early on. Seven day-in-day-out players in their lineup have over a 100 OPS+, with the rotation shoving the second-best team starting pitching ERA. Shohei Ohtani has been far more valuable as a pitcher than a hitter so far, throwing a 0.97 ERA while batting just .240.
All in all, with some unexpected help from center fielder Andy Pages and rookie Dalton Rushing, the Dodgers still stand as a tyrant.
1. Atlanta Braves (22-10 through April, 25-11 overall)
Responding after a World Series victory in 2021, the Atlanta Braves executed back-to-back 100-win seasons. Although both fell short in the playoffs, for a handful of years, the National League ran through Atlanta. Now, back in 2026, the Braves are reminding the league what it’s like for them to be at their fullest potential, leaving with the best record and the best product after the first month.
What’s making Atlanta threatening out of the gate isn’t the return of their superstar, Ronald Acuna Jr.: it’s what the lineup is doing around him. Coming off an NL Rookie of the Year award, Drake Baldwin hasn’t skipped a beat in his sophomore season. First baseman Matt Olson leads the NL in RBI, and second baseman Ozzie Albies has played in every game while maintaining a .329 average.
After April, they were top three in run differential, team OPS, team OBP, team ERA and team starting pitching ERA. We’re seeing shades of the earlier Braves teams, flashing a squad with very few weak spots in the lineup and pitching staff.
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