With the unofficial first half of the 2026 MLB season over, it's time to evaluate each team's performances thus far. Here are midseason grades for all 15 American League teams. We'll evaluate the National League on Tuesday.
The Athletics were shaping up to be a surprising contender early on - in fact, they were in a playoff spot as recently as June 26. Unfortunately, that will probably be the high point of their season, as the A's have dropped 13 of 14 to fall 14 games below .500 and 6.5 games back of the final wild-card spot. We'll go a bit easier on them given how many injuries they've had to deal with, but given how wide open the AL is this year it does feel like the A's have squandered a great opportunity to accelerate their timeline.
Expectations were sky-high in Baltimore after a busy winter headlined by the signing of Pete Alonso. But the Orioles just haven't lived up to the hype (even if Alonso has been worth every penny). Baltimore's five games under .500, owns a minus-19 run differential, and is in a dogfight with Boston and Toronto to stay out of the AL East basement. Alonso is one of two qualified Orioles with an OPS above .800, while the pitching staff has been very inconsistent. Yes, the Orioles are just two games out of the playoffs, but like so many other AL teams that's a product of luck from this bizarre season. However you slice it, the 2026 Orioles have been a disappointment to this point.
It's July 13, and we still don't really know who the 2026 Boston Red Sox are. Longtime manager Alex Cora was fired in April amid a slow start. A slew of injuries, most notably to Roman Anthony and Garrett Crochet, have gutted the roster. And the team remains under .500 and out of a playoff spot. Yet, the Red Sox also own a plus-27 run differential and are baseball's hottest team of late, having won nine straight heading into the break to pull within a half-game of a wild-card spot. So again we ask: just who are the 2026 Red Sox? Will they buy or sell at the deadline? It's just impossible to say right now.
Even White Sox superfan Pope Leo XIV didn't see this miracle coming. Just two years removed from losing a modern-day record 121 games, the White Sox enter the break atop the AL Central and would get a bye to the ALDS if the playoffs started today. They have three players with 20-plus homers, a quiet breakout ace in Davis Martin, and one of baseball's most exciting rookies in Munetaka Murakami. Will Venable's club is winning by playing a gritty, determined, and fun brand of baseball that's got the South Side buzzing like it's 2005, and they've already exceeded even the most optimistic of preseason expectations. These White Sox are playing with house money the rest of the way - and that might make them even more dangerous.
The Guardians have managed to withstand José Ramírez's hand injury and Steven Kwan's offensive downturn to continue playing solid baseball. Most of that is thanks to pitching. The duo of Gavin Williams and potential AL Rookie of the Year Parker Messick lead the charge in the rotation, while All-Star closer Cade Smith anchors a dependable bullpen. The bats could be Cleveland's undoing, though, as the Guardians are tied for the fewest runs scored in the AL and rank last by wRC+. Ramírez will be back soon, but he and Travis Bazzana can't do it alone. Still, the Guardians haven't let the White Sox run away with the division, and that makes it a positive first half.
The Tigers spent several months scuffling and have generally played below expectations. Tarik Skubal missed time after elbow surgery while trade rumors grew louder. The sell-off appeared imminent ... until June 29, when Detroit suddenly won seven of 10 going into the break to pull within 6.5 games of the White Sox and 3.5 games of a wild-card spot - although they're still eight games below .500. That run, and that run alone, bumped a surefire D grade up a couple notches. While the Tigers' first half has still been disappointing, they've at least made things interesting.
On the one hand, the Astros are in the thick of the playoff race, sitting 1.5 games out of a wild-card spot and three back of the division-leading Rangers. On the other hand, the perennial contenders head into the break with a sub-.500 record, a minus-47 run differential, and one of the worst pitching staffs in baseball. Yes, injuries have been a factor - Hunter Brown, Josh Hader, Jeremy Peña, and Carlos Correa are just a few of the Astros who've missed extended time - and they've also been a bit better since June. But they're still barely treading water, and are in danger of wasting an all-time great season from Yordan Alvarez. The Astros simply have to be better in the second half.
The Royals are one of only two AL teams that are certified sellers. In fact, the presence of Bobby Witt Jr. and the positive growth of youngsters Jac Caglianone and Carter Jensen are the only reasons the Royals aren't sinking any lower. It's a bitter disappointment for a franchise that returned to the playoffs two years ago on the back of a generational superstar, but has been backsliding ever since. Management should at least be able to capitalize on this strange season and sell the likes of Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo, Lane Thomas, and maybe even Daniel Lynch IV for youngsters who can help this team rebound in 2027.
Mike Trout is (mostly) healthy and enjoying his best season in almost a half-decade. José Soriano and Walbert Ureña are enjoying under-the-radar breakout seasons on the mound. Jo Adell robbed three homers during a game in April. Everything else has been a disaster for the AL-worst Angels, who've all but clinched an 11th straight losing season. None of the Halos' major offseason additions have made an impact, the final straw that led to general manager Perry Minasian's firing last month. Restocking a barren farm system at the trade deadline - assuming Arte Moreno allows interim GM John Mozeliak to strip down this roster - will be the only way for L.A. to salvage something out of another lost season.
Hey look, it's another team that should be selling but is somehow in contention. The 48-49 Twins are in tied with Seattle for the No. 6 seed and just three back of the AL Central lead. Byron Buxton's injured again and Royce Lewis has been inconsistent, but Joe Ryan's enjoying a Cy Young-caliber year that might keep him in Minneapolis through the deadline given how tight the standings are. The Twins are playing better baseball than most anticipated, and even if it is a product of luck - like almost all of the rest of the AL - they're still in this thing. You've got to tip your cap.
Lost in the furor over the Yankees' recent struggles is the fact that Aaron Boone's club is one of the seven MLB teams with more than 52 wins. They're also the lone AL team with a positive run differential that's greater than 35. That's quite the feat considering they've been without Aaron Judge and Max Fried since May, while key hitters like Cody Bellinger, Paul Goldschmidt, and Austin Wells have simply underperformed. But the Yankees, for all of their faults, are still a very good team that's going to get the best hitter in the world back at some point in the second half. It could be better, sure, but things may also feel much worse than they actually are. The Yankees are in a great spot.
So many Mariners have played below their capabilities, most notably last year's AL MVP runner-up Cal Raleigh (a .581 OPS during an injury-shortened season). And yet the reigning AL West champions - losing record and all - are in a playoff spot. Randy Arozarena's been one of the few catalysts for a largely anemic offense that ranks 26th in the majors by runs scored. The Mariners' vaunted rotation has been very good, but not quite great. Still, there's plenty to be positive about, and Seattle should be in control of its own destiny. As we've seen in the AL this year, things could be a lot worse.
There's no place like home, apparently. The Rays' return to Tropicana Field has also seen them return to the top of the AL East standings. Yandy Díaz and Junior Caminero are both having MVP-worthy seasons, Drew Rasmussen's a potential Cy Young finalist, and Bryan Baker's been nearly untouchable in the ninth inning. Kevin Cash's Rays have been the AL's best all-around team by far, and are showing no signs of slowing down.
A recent surge has propelled Texas to the top of the AL West despite an offensive downturn from Evan Carter and more injury troubles for Corey Seager. The Rangers have hit just 109 home runs despite possessing quite a few big power bats, and should be hitting better overall. But they do have a couple of great veteran starters in Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom, who are quietly leading a solid rotation that racks up the Ks. This is another team that was expected to play better given their roster and offseason moves - but it's a weird season in the AL, and the Rangers are managing to take advantage of it.
It's been a difficult year for the reigning AL champions. A slew of early injuries to key players left the Blue Jays in a big hole, leaving them with a long road back to October. The struggles of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who didn't hit a homer at Rogers Centre in the first half, continue to mystify. It hasn't all been doom and gloom: Louis Varland's morphed into the AL's best closer, Kazuma Okamoto's carried the offense, and marquee offseason addition Dylan Cease is leading the AL in strikeouts. The Jays are also, somehow, just 2.5 games out of a playoff spot despite sitting six games below .500. It's all there for this team if they want it. But the Blue Jays came into this season in championship-or-bust mode, and that makes this first half unacceptable.
