Who is the best team in the mlb right now

Though the first half of the season has seen plenty of change up and down our weekly Power Rankings, things mostly remained the same atop the rankings heading into the final week of games before the All-Star break.

While some first-place teams are starting to pull away, other divisions are tightening up -- and the Wild Card races in both leagues figure to remain close well into the second half.

With all that in mind, here’s a look at the final set of first-half Power Rankings -- including one newcomer into the top 5.

Biggest jump: The Mariners continued their up-and-down season, jumping four spots to No. 13. They’ve won eight straight games -- their longest winning streak since 2017 -- and have a couple of favorable matchups heading into the All-Star break. They close out the first half with a two-game set against the last-place Nationals before heading to Arlington for a four-game series against the Rangers.

Biggest drop: The Cardinals fell out of the top 10, dropping four spots to No. 14, following a tough week against the NL East. They dropped three out of four against the Braves before losing two of three to the Phillies, all while being shut out in three of those five losses. Overall, St. Louis scored just 11 runs in its seven games this week.

1) Yankees (61-25; last week: 1)
DraftKings World Series odds: 4-1
The Yankees are running away with the AL East, opening up the largest division lead in the Majors at 14 games. They also have by far the best run differential in the big leagues (+177). Offensively, New York leads the Majors in home runs, OPS and runs scored, while its pitching staff ranks second in team ERA.

2) Astros (56-29; 2)
DraftKings World Series odds: 5-1
The Astros have opened up a 12-game lead in the AL West, which figures to come in handy with AL MVP candidate Yordan Alvarez sidelined until at least the All-Star break. Houston placed the AL MVP candidate on the IL on Sunday due to right hand inflammation -- an injury that first surfaced on June 18. The Astros are hopeful that Alvarez will be ready to go coming out of the All-Star break, plus they still have a pitching staff that ranks first in bullpen ERA (2.63) and second in starters’ ERA (3.15).

3) Dodgers (56-29; 3)
DraftKings World Series odds: 4-1
The Dodgers are starting to create some separation the NL West, rattling off a perfect week that included a three-game sweep of the Rockies and a four-game sweep of the Cubs. Los Angeles’ seven-game winning streak has helped the club open up an eight-game lead over the second-place Padres and 12 1/2 games over the third-place Giants. The Dodgers remain one of the most well-balanced teams in the big leagues, with the offense leading the NL in runs per game (5.0) and the pitching staff posting an MLB-best 2.96 ERA -- including a 2.72 ERA for the starting rotation.

4) Mets (53-33; 4)
DraftKings World Series odds: 7.5-1
Though the Mets’ lead in the NL East has shrunk considerably over the past month, they still hold the second-best record in the NL -- and they’re on pace to win 101 games. There’s plenty more to be excited about in Queens at the moment. New York is sending four players -- Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Starling Marte and Edwin Díaz -- to next week’s All-Star Game, Max Scherzer returned from the IL with an 11-strikeout gem on Tuesday and Jacob deGrom has looked good in a pair of rehab outings.

5) Braves (52-35; 6)
DraftKings World Series odds: 8.5-1
The Braves were 10 1/2 games out of first place in the NL East entering June, but they have cut that deficit to just 1 1/2 games entering Monday. Atlanta has the best record in the Majors during that span, going 29-8 after starting the season just 23-27. It's been an all-around team effort during this impressive run, with the Braves ranking second in the Majors in both team ERA (3.03) and runs per game (5.7).

The rest of the field of 30

1. Padres (5)
2. Brewers (8)
3. Red Sox (7)
4. Blue Jays (9)
5. Twins (12)
6. Rays (11)
7. Phillies (14)
8. Mariners (17)
9. Cardinals (10)
10. Guardians (13)
11. Giants (15)
12. White Sox (16)
13. Orioles (21)
14. Marlins (18)
15. Rangers (19)
16. Angels (20)
17. Rockies (23)
18. D-backs (22)
19. Tigers (26)
20. Pirates (25)
21. Cubs (24)
22. Reds (27)
23. Royals (28)
24. Nationals (29)
25. A's (30)

For the first time this season, there is a new No. 1 team atop the Power Rankings. While the Dodgers have held the top spot dating to the preseason edition, the Yankees now claim the crown.

That was far from the only movement within the rankings from last week, though, so let’s take a look at how our voters ranked the 30 clubs, from top to bottom:

Biggest jump: The A’s (No. 29 to 24) and the Astros (No. 9 to No. 4) each leaped five spots, while the Giants moved up four places from No. 11 to No. 7. The Astros are 12-1 over their last 13 games and they have recorded four shutouts in their last seven contests.

Biggest drop: A pair of AL East contenders each moved down four spots this week, with the Rays falling to No. 9 and the Blue Jays to No. 11. The Rockies also slid four places to No. 19. The Blue Jays lost a two-game sweep to the Yankees before losing two of three to the Rays, who started their own week by dropping a series against the Angels. Colorado, meanwhile, dropped five straight -- including a three-game sweep at the hands of the rival Giants -- then closed the week by dropping two of three to the Royals.

1) Yankees (2 last week)
DraftKings World Series odds: 6-1
Nestor Cortes has emerged as a legitimate AL Cy Young candidate, lowering his ERA to an AL-leading 1.35 after another masterful outing on Sunday against the White Sox. It’s not just Cortes, though -- the Yankees (25-9) are tied for an MLB-best 2.74 ERA this season. Offensively, their 49 home runs are tied for the most in Major League Baseball, while New York also ranks among the top five in runs per game and OPS.

2) Dodgers (1)
DraftKings World Series odds: 4.75-1
The Dodgers (21-12) fell out of the top spot for the first time this season after losing three of four to the Phillies at Dodger Stadium over the weekend. It also didn’t help that Clayton Kershaw’s resurgent 2022 season hit a roadblock on Friday, when -- instead of making his scheduled start against the Phils -- he was placed on the IL due to right SI (pelvic) joint inflammation. The Dodgers still have the highest-scoring offense in the Majors (5.3 runs per game) and are tied with the Yankees to lead team ERA (2.74).

3) Mets (3)
DraftKings World Series odds: 8-1
The Mets (23-13) nearly pulled off another miraculous comeback on Sunday, but ultimately came up just short in an 8-7 loss to the Mariners. That capped a 3-3 week for the Mets, who rank first in MLB with a .329 on-base percentage and sixth with a 3.40 team ERA -- though their pitching depth will be tested with Tylor Megill joining ace Jacob deGrom on the IL.

4) Astros (9)
DraftKings World Series odds: 8-1
The Astros (23-12) finally saw their 11-game winning streak snapped on Saturday in a 13-6 loss to the Nationals, but Houston responded with an 8-0 victory on Sunday. Not only are the Astros 12-1 since starting the season 11-11, but they have not allowed more than three runs in any of those 12 victories -- and half of them have been shutouts. Houston's starting rotation has a 3.05 ERA (fifth in MLB), while the bullpen's 2.69 ERA ranks second among all clubs.

5) Angels (8)
DraftKings World Series odds: 25-1
This week alone, the Angels (24-13) had Reid Detmers throw a no-hitter, Shohei Ohtani hit his 100th career home run, Mike Trout turn in a multihomer game, Taylor Ward crush a grand slam and Chase Silseth toss six innings of one-hit ball in his MLB debut. Detmers obviously stole the show for this week, but Ward continues to be one of the best stories in baseball. Though he’s just two plate appearances shy of qualifying for the league leaderboards entering this week, his .385 average, .500 on-base percentage and .747 slugging percentage would all lead the Majors. But with Ward’s 1.247 OPS not eligible for the top spot, it’s instead Trout’s 1.093 OPS that leads all players. Not a bad one-two punch hitting ahead of Ohtani.

The rest of the field of 30:

1. Brewers (4)
2. Giants (11)
3. Padres (6)
4. Rays (5)
5. Twins (10)
6. Blue Jays (7)
7. Cardinals (12)
8. White Sox (14)
9. Braves (13)
10. Mariners (18)
11. Phillies (19)
12. Guardians (17)
13. Marlins (16)
14. Rockies (15)
15. D-backs (21)
16. Red Sox (20)
17. Cubs (24)
18. Rangers (22)
19. A's (29)
20. Tigers (23)
21. Orioles (26)
22. Pirates (25)
23. Nationals (28)
24. Royals (27)
25. Reds (30)

Voters: Alyson Footer, Anthony Castrovince, Paul Casella, Mark Feinsand, Nathalie Alonso, Mike Petriello, Sarah Langs, Andrew Simon, David Venn, Brett Blueweiss, Doug Gausepohl