The Dodgers have pretty much had the National League West on lock for over a decade, with 11 division titles since 2013.
The AL Central has been dominated by Cleveland and Minnesota, the NL East by the Phillies and Braves, and the NL Central by the Brewers and Cardinals. Now that could all be changing.
The Tigers haven¡¯t won a division title since 2014, and the Mets have struck out since 2015. The Padres are going on nearly 20 years without winning the NL West, and the Cubs last won the NL Central in a full season 2017.
All of those teams are either in first place or, in the Padres¡¯ case, within a half-game. And they all have chances to prove they belong among the league¡¯s elite this week. Five series to watch also includes an AL East showdown of two 2024 playoff teams.
Yankees at Orioles
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)
Head to head: The 2024 postseason participants meet for the first time in 2025. Last year, Baltimore won eight of the 13 games between the teams, with a 4-3 record at Camden Yards. Baltimore has won two straight season series after the Yankees won the previous six.
Storyline: The Orioles are trying to get back in the mix of a wide-open American League. Baltimore ranks 27th in baseball in batting average and 19th in runs, but the Orioles¡¯ 33 home runs are tied for ninth best. Baltimore is last in baseball in ERA at 5.37, more than a run and a half worse than the Yankees 3.70 mark, and its minus-39 run differential is worst in the AL.
Watch out for: Aaron Judge. He¡¯s 6-foot-7 and about 280 pounds, so you can¡¯t miss him, but he¡¯s playing at an absurd level even for the game¡¯s top slugger. Even if his .406 average won¡¯t last, you can¡¯t deny that he¡¯s improved his hit tool during his 30s to add to his prodigiously unparalleled power. Judge has batted .311 since his age 30 season of 2022 after batting .276 in his 20s.
Tigers at Astros
3 games (Monday-Wednesday)
Head to head: The teams face off for the first of two 2025 series. Houston took four of six games in 2024, but the Astros only outscored the Tigers 29-27. Since the teams began playing in 1998, Houston has gone 50-38 with a plus-4 run differential.
Storyline: Are these two 2024 playoff teams heading in opposite directions? After sweeping Houston 2-0 in the Wild Card round of the 2024 postseason, the Tigers are proving they belong among the league¡¯s elite, with an AL-best 18-10 record. Houston¡¯s contention window remains open, but the Astros are looking up at the Rangers and Mariners in the AL West.
Watch out for: What Houston does best, the Tigers have done slightly better. The Astros are fourth in baseball with a 3.18 ERA, but Detroit is second at 2.80. Detroit sends Jack Flaherty, Reese Olson and Jackson Jobe to the mound in Houston this week. They have combined for 88 strikeouts in 83 1/3 innings.
Diamondbacks at Mets
3 games (Tuesday-Thursday)
Head to head: The teams play their entire six-game season series over the next nine days and square off first at Citi Field. Last season, the teams split four games in Queens before the Mets took 2 of 3 in Arizona.
Storyline: Arizona makes a difficult trip through the top of the NL East, ending the week with a series in Philadelphia. It¡¯s nothing the D-backs aren¡¯t used to, having already played 10 games against teams currently residing in first place in their divisions. This series will make 13, and it has a ¡°something¡¯s gotta give¡± theme. The Mets are baseball¡¯s best pitching staff by ERA, and Arizona has scored the second most runs.
Watch out for: Eugenio Su¨¢rez attempting to continue his power surge against top-notch pitching. With his four-homer game on Saturday, Su¨¢rez became the first to 10 home runs in 2025. Arizona misses Tylor Megill and his 1.09 ERA, but will face David Peterson, Kodai Senga and Clay Holmes, who have combined to allow just three home runs in 86 2/3 innings.
Giants at Padres
2 games (Tuesday-Wednesday)
Head to head: The division rivals meet for the first time in 2025. Last year, the series was as close as any can get. The teams split the first 12 games before San Diego took the final game in extra innings at Oracle Park to finish off a three-game sweep.
Storyline: In a division many believed could be a Dodgers runaway, the Padres and Giants are still trying to take charge a month into the season. The Giants, at 19-10, sit atop the NL West for now, a half-game better than the Dodgers and 1 1/2 games ahead of the Padres. Only the Mets have more wins than San Francisco, and only three NL teams have scored more runs. One of them is Arizona, which lurks 3 1/2 games out in the NL West.
Watch out for: A two-game series, even between the league¡¯s best, doesn¡¯t guarantee a prime pitching matchup. But this series has one, between San Francisco¡¯s Logan Webb and first-year Padre Nick Pivetta. Both carry ERAs under 2.00 into the season¡¯s second month, and they¡¯ll meet in a potential classic at Petco on Tuesday.
Cubs at Brewers
3 games (Friday-Sunday)
Head to head: The teams meet for the first time in 2025 after Milwaukee took eight of 13 games from the Cubs last year. Milwaukee has won three straight season series between the teams, going 24-21 against Chicago over that span.
Storyline: The Cubs are trying to take back the NL Central from Milwaukee, which has won the division the last two years and three of the last four. Chicago hasn¡¯t won the division in a 162-game season since 2017, when the Cubs were defending their first World Series championship in 108 years. The Cubs¡¯ 17-11 record is four games better than the Brew Crew.
Watch out for: League-leaders you might not have guessed. Milwaukee second baseman Brice Turang tops the Senior Circuit in hits (36) and runs (26). The Cubs¡¯ Pete Crow-Armstrong leads the NL with 12 stolen bases, tied with Oneil Cruz and one ahead of Elly De La Cruz. Crow-Armstrong's speed is unquestioned, and now the rookie outfielder is keeping pace with the game's best runners.