Hey, did you hear the big news? The Mets not only snapped their 12-game losing streak on Wednesday with a 3-2 home win versus Minnesota, but they also won Thursday’s rubber game, 10-8. New York is now on a two-game winning streak entering Friday’s series against Colorado. Holy Moly!
The most fascinating part of this whole NL East April standings debacle is that, despite losing a dozen games in a row, the Mets aren’t even in last place right now. Why? Because the Phillies have dropped nine straight contests and could challenge New York’s recent losing streak if they don’t show up to play in Atlanta this weekend. We’ll be highlighting that series below.
As I was making my top five list today, four series stood out as must-haves, while choosing a fifth was a toss-up. I can’t ignore key division contests like Philadelphia and Atlanta, even though the Phillies’ 8-17 record is tied with Kansas City for the worst in MLB. It’s a crucial series for the Phils. I’m certainly not tossing aside the Pirates and Brewers three-game set. Right now, any matchups within the NL Central will pair franchises above .500. Today, this is the best division from top to bottom in baseball. Every team is within 2 ½ games of first place.
We also have battles of division leaders highlighted this weekend, with the Dodgers hosting the Cubs and the A’s heading to Arlington for a series versus the Rangers. Hard to leave those matchups off the list. With four down and one to choose, the most difficult decision is between two series that, if both were the same length in games, would make this an easier choice. However, because the Padres (17-8 record) and Diamondbacks (14-11 record) are only playing on Saturday and Sunday, I can’t get overly excited about a two-game get-together, regardless of whether it’s between division rivals who are playing fairly well overall. Two games never feel like a true series. It feels like two games, and that’s it.
As I mentioned in Monday’s series preview, if the D-backs had taken care of business against the White Sox at home this week, they’d probably force my hand and would make the top five. Instead, Chicago took two of three games, and now Arizona has lost some momentum after winning four straight series heading into this week. Therefore, in its place, you will find, arguably, the American League’s most hated rivalry over the last 10 years. The Astros welcome the Yankees to town for three contests.
Now that you’ve gotten an idea of how I decided on the top five series of the weekend, the next step is deciding the proper ranking for each, 1-5. Let’s get to it.
No. 1: Cubs (16-9) at Dodgers (17-8)
Series length: Three games (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
There’s only one place to begin, and that’s with the Chicago Cubs. I know one thing for certain: both the Phillies and Mets are thankful to be finished playing the Baby Bears this month. It’s because of those two NL East squads that Chicago is on its current winning streak. Following a 13-7 loss at Philadelphia on April 13, the Cubs outscored the Phillies and Mets 66-27 over a nine-game span. Those nine games were all wins (six of which were versus the Phillies and three against the Mets). Entering Friday, Chicago is on a huge momentum surge as they begin a six-game road trip against the NL West’s co-division leaders, starting in Los Angeles and ending in San Diego.
This is probably a good time to be facing the two-time defending World Series champs. The Dodgers just lost their first series of ’26 against the San Francisco Giants, 2-1. Before that, they split four games against the lowly Colorado Rockies. I’m sure they aren’t worried about the Cubs, but if there’s one team they probably don’t want to face right now, it’s Chicago.
The starting pitching matchups this weekend at Dodger Stadium aren’t exactly blockbuster, but I’m looking forward to Sunday’s series finale, which is expected to see Cubs southpaw Shota Imanaga (5 GS, 2-1 record, 2.17 ERA) take on Dodgers lefty Justin Wrobleski (3 GS, 3-0 record, 1.88 ERA). Both pitchers are coming off starts in which they allowed one run over seven frames.
Last year’s season series was close. Chicago won four of seven meetings.
No. 2: Phillies (8-17) at Atlanta (18-8)
Series length: Three games (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
The bottom line for Philadelphia is that they’ve been outscored 64-23 over their current nine-game slide. That’s horrific for a franchise that was considered by many to be the favorite to win the NL East title for a third consecutive campaign.
Last weekend, Atlanta swept the Phils, with the boo birds chirping constantly from the stands at Citizens Bank Park. Now these division rivals meet for another trio of contests, this time at Truist Park in Atlanta. The home team is coming off a 3-1 series win at Washington. Atlanta still hasn’t dropped a series in 2026 and, entering Friday, has MLB’s best record at 18-8. They also have the best run differential in baseball at +65, lead MLB with 150 runs scored, and have a 3.12 ERA that tops the National League. Yeah, Atlanta is good, and definitely better than originally expected.
The Phillies are 9 ½ games behind Atlanta in the division. A series loss this weekend would mean a guaranteed double-digit deficit in the standings. This is about as must-win an April series as there can be. The one hope Philadelphia might have heading into Atlanta is that veteran ace Zack Wheeler will make his season debut on Saturday following thoracic outlet decompression surgery on his right shoulder. However, if he pitches as he did during his five rehab appearances between Triple-A and Double-A (20 IP, 5.85 ERA), then the road squad could be in trouble.
No. 3: Pirates (14-11) at Brewers (13-11)
Series length: Three games (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
Finally, the Brewers are about to begin division play in 2026. As a reward, they get to face the reigning NL Cy Young winner, Paul Skenes, in Friday’s opener. Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff (2-0, 3.42 ERA) will face Skenes in what could be a terrific pitching duel. I expect both to go deep into this contest, especially considering that the Pirates’ ace had his previous start versus Tampa Bay cut short by rain. Skenes threw 64 pitches over four scoreless frames in that outing. Anything less than six innings pitched on Friday against the defending NL Central champs would be a disappointment.
The Buccos had a rough go of it last season versus the Brew Crew. Pittsburgh dropped 10 of its 13 head-to-head contests with Milwaukee. This is a much bigger series for the Pirates. It’s a chance for them to prove that they belong with the big boys of the NL Central after suffering through seven consecutive losing seasons coming into ’26. I don’t know if we can fully trust that Pittsburgh is a legit playoff contender yet, but a series win on the road this weekend would certainly give their fans more confidence going forward.
No. 4: Yankees (16-9) at Astros (10-16)
Series length: Three games (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
I mentioned it earlier, and I’ll say it one more time. This is the most hated rivalry in MLB. You might be able to convince me that the Padres and Dodgers are right there based on their recent regular-season and playoff history. However, based on the last 10 years, this is the one for me. Between Houston’s playoff dominance of the Yankees (4-0 playoff series record versus New York since 2015), plus all of the garbage can banging and supposed wire-wearing shenanigans by the ‘Stros, this is as close to a bitter rivalry as we have right now in Major League Baseball.
The difference now, even compared to three years ago, when Houston swept New York out of the 2022 ALCS, is that the Astros aren’t nearly as dominant as they once were. Key players from those World Series teams have left, and they are currently dealing with injuries to important pieces, including closer Josh Hader (60-day IL with biceps tendinitis) and 2025 All-Star shortstop Jeremy Peña (10-day IL with a hamstring issue). If New York is ever going to exact some revenge on the last-place Astros, this is at least a good place to begin. Beat them while they’re down.
The Yankees are coming off an impressive three-game sweep in Boston to make it six straight wins. No one is playing better in the American League than the first-place Yanks, who enter Friday with a 2 ½ game lead in the AL East.
Even if you don’t believe that this rivalry has the same feel as it once did, there are still plenty of reasons to tune in. The Astros are only 3 ½ games back in the AL West despite being six games under .500. They’ll be very familiar with the AL East over the next week-plus, with series on the road versus Baltimore and Boston following this one.
It’s MLB’s best pitching staff ERA, taking on the league’s worst. The Yankees’ 3.07 team ERA ranks No. 1, while the Astros’ 5.81 mark ranks 30th.
No. 5: Athletics (13-12) at Rangers (13-12)
Series length: Three games (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
It’s still very early. The AL West is kind of a mess right now due to the poor play of the aforementioned Astros, as well as Seattle’s sluggish start (11-15 record). Nonetheless, these are your top two squads in the division entering this weekend. The Rangers and A’s split a four-game series in Sacramento last week.
If I were to pinpoint a difference between these first-place franchises right now, it’s the run differential. The Rangers have a +15 run differential and an expected win-loss record of 14-11 based on that number. Their record is about where it should be. On the other side, the A’s have a -15 run differential, and should be playing under .500 with an expected win-loss of 11-14. This is all theoretical, of course, and you can find this information on MLB.com’s standings page.
I’ve never felt that the numbers tell the whole story when it comes to wins and losses. There are a lot of unseen happenings and details that can make all the difference in the world for an up-and-coming squad like the Athletics. However, it’s probably true that they are playing better than they should be based on certain statistics, but here they are anyway, with a chance to take a road series versus a division rival. If the A’s take this series, there’s a great chance that they will sit alone atop the AL West at month’s end. The struggling Royals come to town next week for three contests before the calendar turns to May.
Missed the top five
Tigers (14-12) at Reds (16-9): Three games
Red Sox (9-16) at Orioles (12-13): Three games
Guardians (14-12) at Blue Jays (10-14): Three games
Rockies (10-16) at Mets (9-16): Three games
Twins (12-13) at Rays (13-11): Three games
Angels (12-14) at Royals (8-17): Three games
Nationals (11-15) at White Sox (10-15): Three games
Mariners (11-15) at Cardinals (14-10): Three games
Marlins (12-13) at Giants (11-14): Three games
Padres (17-8) at Diamondbacks (14-11): Two games
