Welcome to week 16 of the 2026 NL Central Power Rankings, where the first half closed with a little bit of everything: a Brewers club that looked worn down, a Cubs team stacking wins, a Pirates surge that changed the mood in Pittsburgh, and a Reds team still searching for traction.
- Milwaukee Brewers (59-37); 4-4 this week; 98.3% chance to make postseason (FanGraphs)
Milwaukee’s week was messy in a very specific way. The Brewers played eight games in seven days, worked through a pair of doubleheaders, and finished 4-4 after winning four of five in St.
Louis before getting swept by the Pirates in Pittsburgh. By the end, they looked like a team that had simply run out of gas to close the first half.
The offense still had some pop. Jake Bauers and Brice Turang each hit two home runs, while Sal Frelick and Joey Ortiz added one apiece. Garrett Mitchell paced the club with 10 hits, including three doubles, and Cooper Pratt chipped in nine hits with two doubles, a triple, and five RBIs.
On the mound, the Brewers had their share of bumps, but not everything went sideways. Jacob Misiorowski settled in after a slow start in St.
Louis and finished with seven innings of three-run ball and 11 strikeouts. The bullpen also delivered a few clean lines, with Bryse Wilson, Craig Yoho, Abner Uribe, Garrett Stallings, and Trevor Megill combining for 14 1/3 scoreless innings and 16 strikeouts.
Uribe and Megill each earned a save.
Milwaukee comes out of the break with a nine-game homestand, beginning with three games against the Marlins next weekend.
- Chicago Cubs (54-42); 4-2 this week; 77.0% chance to make postseason
The Cubs closed the first half in good shape, taking two of three from both the Orioles and Reds. They’re five games back of Milwaukee in the division, but they’re also sitting in the top Wild Card spot.
Chicago got plenty of power this week. Alex Bregman, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Carson Kelly, and Seiya Suzuki each hit two home runs.
Suzuki also led the team with eight hits and posted a .320/.346/.640 line, adding two doubles. Michael Busch finished with seven hits, including three doubles, and Bregman drove in nine runs.
Matthew Boyd gave the Cubs two strong starts and picked up two wins, allowing four runs over 12 1/3 innings with 10 strikeouts. Shota Imanaga and David Peterson each turned in five-inning, one-run outings, with Imanaga striking out five and Peterson striking out two.
The bullpen was sharp too, as Gavin Hollowell, Trent Thornton, and Jacob Webb combined for 8 2/3 scoreless innings and seven strikeouts. Thornton and Webb each collected two saves.
Chicago opens the second half at Wrigley, hosting the Twins over the weekend.
- Pittsburgh Pirates (50-47); 4-2 this week; 41.4% chance to make postseason
The Pirates climbed in the rankings after sweeping the Brewers over the weekend. They dropped two of three to the Braves earlier in the week, but the sweep pushed them back over .500 heading into the break.
Esmerlyn Valdez had the biggest power week of anyone in the division, going deep four times, including three homers across Saturday’s doubleheader, and driving in 10 runs. Ryan O’Hearn also made noise with a three-homer game and finished with a team-high 12 RBIs while hitting .333/.440/.810. Henry Davis, Jake Mangum, Marcell Ozuna, and Bryan Reynolds also homered, and Brandon Lowe added eight hits.
Paul Skenes bounced back after a rough stretch, winning twice while allowing four runs over 11 1/3 innings and striking out 11. Jared Jones was even more dominant in his start, throwing six perfect innings with eight strikeouts.
The bullpen held up its end too, with Brandon Eisert, Mason Montgomery, Gregory Soto, and Yohan Ramírez combining for 8 1/3 scoreless innings and six strikeouts. Soto and Montgomery each picked up a save.
Pittsburgh starts the second half on the road in Cleveland against the Guardians over the weekend.
- St. Louis Cardinals (50-45); 3-5 this week; 32.8% chance to make postseason
St. Louis also had to grind through eight games in seven days. The Cardinals lost four of five to Milwaukee to start the week, then answered by taking two of three from the Braves in a set of low-scoring games.
Jordan Walker led the lineup with nine hits, including two homers and a double, while driving in seven runs and scoring eight times. He also stole two bases. Six other Cardinals homered during the week, though no one else finished with more than five hits.
Dustin May made two starts and allowed two runs over 8 2/3 innings with 11 strikeouts. Michael McGreevy worked 6 1/3 innings and gave up one run while striking out six, and Matthew Liberatore threw six shutout innings with six strikeouts.
Kyle Leahy went three innings with two strikeouts in his start, and Gordon Graceffo and Riley O’Brien combined for nine scoreless innings out of the bullpen. Graceffo struck out six, and O’Brien picked up two saves.
The Cardinals head to Phoenix to face the Diamondbacks when the second half begins.
- Cincinnati Reds (43-52); 2-4 this week; 0.9% chance to make postseason
Cincinnati is still stuck in a tough spot after dropping two of three to both the Phillies and Cubs. That left the Reds nine games under .500 and well behind the Pirates at the bottom of the division.
There were a few individual bright spots. JJ Bleday and Eugenio Suárez each hit three home runs, while Elly De La Cruz and Sal Stewart added one each.
Bleday also led the club with six RBIs and added a steal. Spencer Steer had the most hits on the team with eight and finished the week with a .462 OBP.
Brady Singer threw 7 1/3 innings, allowed one run, and struck out five, but took the loss. Hunter Greene responded to a rough July 4 outing with seven scoreless innings and 12 strikeouts in a win. Tejay Antone and Emilio Pagán both posted scoreless weeks, combining for three innings and four strikeouts.
In Other News...
Brewers Suddenly Have A Bigger Jacob Misiorowski Concern Than Fans Realized
Jacob Misiorowskis first half was strong enough to send him to his second All-Star Game, but the Brewers are now managing something more immediate than awards season buzz. The right-hander has been one of the most important arms in Milwaukees rotation, and the clubs decision to hold him out of the series against the Miami Marlins after the break underscores how carefully it has to handle a pitcher who has carried a heavy load.
Misiorowski had already been skipped for his final start before the break and did not pitch in the All-Star Game, so the Brewers have been building in caution for a bit. The bigger question now is how Milwaukee maps out the next turn through the rotation, especially with no starter announced yet for the three-game home set, leaving the team to balance short-term coverage with the health of its best arm. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Still Found Value In An Easton McGee Trade
After Easton McGee was designated for assignment earlier in July, the Brewers still managed to turn the right-hander into a little more roster flexibility by sending him to the Royals for cash considerations. McGees Milwaukee stint was brief, with only a couple of major league appearances on the ledger this season, and the move fit the kind of low-risk, low-drama transaction that often follows a pitcher who has been shuttling between levels.
Kansas Citys announcement added the next layer to the deal, with McGee headed to Triple-A Omaha as the Royals sorted out their own pitching picture. The transaction also came with a roster note involving Nick Mears, but for Milwaukee, the more interesting part is simply that a pitcher who had already been pushed off the Brewers active mix still brought back something of value instead of disappearing outright. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Trout Just Validated What Brewers Fans Know About Misiorowski
Jacob Misiorowski has already built a reputation in Milwaukee for making hitters look overmatched, and it apparently does not stop with opposing lineups. Mike Trout recently added a little national validation to what Brewers fans have been saying all along, praising just how hard it is to do anything meaningful against the right-handers stuff. For a pitcher still in the middle of a standout 2026 season, that kind of endorsement from one of the games biggest stars only adds to the buzz.
Trout also floated a playful idea about bringing a fan into the All-Star Game to show how difficult major league pitching really is, which only underscores how extreme Misiorowskis challenge can feel from the batters box. For Milwaukee, the bigger point is simpler: the Brewers have a young arm performing at a level that is getting noticed well beyond their own clubhouse, and the leagues best hitters are starting to say the quiet part out loud. [Read more 🡒]