PHILADELPHIA -- Winter power rankings are always a little unfair. Nobody’s played a game. Nobody’s blown a save. Nobody’s had to explain why the ninth inning felt like a campfire story that got away from them.
So we rank what actually exists right now: roster shape, roster risk, and the momentum of the last week of news. And in this division, the last week’s news keeps circling the same idea:
The teams that survive October are the teams that can manufacture outs—especially the ones that start in the sixth inning.
1) Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies are still the standard here, but the headline of their winter isn’t the lineup. It’s the math problem on the pitching side.
Start with the rotation. You don’t just “replace” a pitcher like Ranger Suárez; you absorb the innings and the matchups and the stability. Suárez is gone—signed by Boston—and the Phillies do get Draft compensation because he left after receiving a qualifying offer. That’s the responsible part. The hard part is the reality: the 2026 staff now needs to be built with more contingency.
And the biggest contingency is Zack Wheeler. MLB’s own injury tracker notes his thoracic outlet decompression surgery and the typical recovery window; that’s not a small variable for a club that’s used to penciling him in like a constant. The rotation can still be a strength, but health, depth, and defined roles will determine what it actually looks like once camp opens.
A major question mark is the readiness of prospect Andrew Painter. Will he be able to step up and assume a spot in the starting rotation straight out of camp?
The bottom line: they’re still No. 1 because the baseline is high, the roster is built to contend, and their problems—while real—are the kind good teams try to solve in February instead of discovering in August.
2) New York Mets
The Mets’ last week of headlines reads like a front office that got tired of being discussed in hypotheticals and decided to become a fact.
Signing Bo Bichette, trading for Luis Robert Jr., and acquiring Freddy Peralta to sit near the top of the rotation. That’s three moves that directly change how you plan games in the NL East—because they touch the premium spots: impact bat, center field, top-end starter.
The immediate follow-up question is the only question that ever matters with the Mets: how clean is the fit? Early reports have Bichette already working at third base, which is where this becomes either clever roster engineering or just expensive discomfort.
They’re second because the ceiling is loud, but there’s a lot of new wiring here—and in February, new wiring always comes with the faint smell of smoke.
3) Atlanta Braves
Atlanta’s week is the story of what they haven’t done yet.
MLB.com’s reporting has been consistent: the Braves have been looking to add a frontline starter, and the names still on the board come with cost—either money, age risk, or draft compensation.
The Martín Pérez minor-league deal fits the other half of the Braves’ identity: depth, insurance, upside bets that won’t hurt you if they fail. But it’s also not the kind of move that changes the way the Phillies or Mets sleep at night.
They’re third because they’re still dangerous, still organized, still capable of winning the division. But right now, their winter feels like it’s waiting for the one move that finishes the picture.
4) Miami Marlins
Miami’s last week has been more about spring infrastructure than major-league fireworks.
They announced their non-roster invitees, with MLB.com noting the group is headlined by top prospects—an indicator of where the Marlins’ next push is supposed to come from. That’s not nothing. Prospect-heavy camps are often the first chapter of a team’s next identity.
But in a division where the top is spending, trading, and tuning for October, the Marlins are still in the “assemble and discover” phase.
5) Washington Nationals
The Nationals are acting like a team that understands where it is: not at the headline table, but not asleep, either.
They claimed lefty Richard Lovelady off waivers from the Mets—another bullpen move aimed at creating more usable innings and more matchup choices. This is what a pragmatic build looks like in January: a lot of small decisions designed to raise the floor, because raising the ceiling takes time.
Loading Phillies schedule...
Loading NL East standings...
Support the Mission. Fuel the Movement.
You’re not just funding journalism — you’re backing the future of youth baseball in Philly.
👉 Join us on Patreon »