With June approaching, roughly two full months into the 2026 Major League Baseball regular season are complete—about one-third of the season. It's time to grade every team based on performance relative to expectations.
Arizona Diamondbacks: B+
The D-backs aimed to bounce back from a disappointing 80-82 campaign last season, and so far they're delivering. Arizona sits solidly in wild card position and within range of the first-place Dodgers in the NL West. Corbin Carroll is looking like an MVP candidate, and Eduardo Rodríguez has pitched like an ace. Corbin Burnes' eventual return will bolster the rotation.
Atlanta Braves: A
Rather than wilt after suffering pitching injuries in spring training—Spencer Schwellenbach, Spencer Strider, Hurston Waldrep, Joey Wentz—the Braves have one of baseball's top rotations thanks to Bryce Elder's new pitch and Martín Pérez's unexpected excellence. The offense has bounced back, and the Robert Suarez/Raisel Iglesias bullpen combination at the end of games is dominant. Last year's injury-riddled 76-86 season looks like a blip.
Chicago Cubs: C
If you remove the two 10-game winning streaks, the Cubs would easily get an F—but you can't do that. That's 20 wins they stacked. This is one of the weirdest early-season phenomena ever—two 10-game winning streaks followed closely by a 10-game losing streak. The rotation has been ravaged by injuries, and the offense simply vanished. Most of the team was hot during the winning streaks, then forgot how to hit. The middle grade applies: C.
Cincinnati Reds: B-
Sure, the Reds were a playoff team last season with only 83 wins, then a sacrificial lamb for the Dodgers in the Wild Card Series. They lost ace Hunter Green to injury before the season started and dealt with a Nick Lodolo injury in the rotation. Despite that, they went 20-11 through April. They started May with eight straight losses and barely stayed above .500. Breakouts from youngsters Chase Burns and Sal Stewart, plus a step forward from Elly De La Cruz, have been highlights.
Colorado Rockies: D
Little was expected from the Rox in 2026, and little has been provided. This writing finds Colorado with the worst record and worst run differential in MLB. They're on pace for 104 losses, which is plainly bad—but that would constitute a 15-game improvement over last year. The Rockies are "merely" very bad as opposed to historically awful, and that's progress of a kind.
Los Angeles Dodgers: A
Angling for the elusive three-peat this season, the Dodgers are, true to recent form, managing the...