Over the last two weeks I wrote articles asking the question “Are the ____ a Good Defensive Team” for each of the 30 MLB teams.
I got repeated requests to rank the teams from 1 to 30. I think that’s extremely difficult to do, one because it’s hard to figure out and two because the thing I kept bumping into this year was how much parity there was once you got past the very best teams.
So rather than ranking the teams, let me give you a tiered assessment. The teams are listed in alphabetical order within their tiers and you can read a more detailed assessment by clicking on the team name.
Tier 1 – Excellent
Excellence should be tough to attain, so we’re only categorizing two teams as such.
The Blue Jays are a stacked defensive team, in particular in the middle of the field. They have our 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, Daulton Varsho, a terrific double play combo featuring Fielding Bible winners Ernie Clement and Andrés Giménez (though both won at positions other than those they’ll play most in 2026), and catcher Alejandro Kirk. Plus they have a much improved first baseman, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. They have two backups who would contend for Fielding Bible Awards if they played regularly, Myles Straw and Nathan Lukes.
The Cubs are right there with them. Their primary defensive lineup will feature seven position players who are above MLB average (Seiya Suzuki being the exception). They too are great up the middle with center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, second baseman Nico Hoerner, and shortstop Dansby Swanson, the latter two of whom have won Fielding Bible Awards. Ian Happ is no slouch in left field either. He’s won four straight Gold Gloves.
Tier 2 – Good
I wanted to have at least 10 teams tiered in good or excellent, so there are eight teams here. If I was picking the third-best team, I’d probably lean to the Brewers because their projected starting outfield of Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell, and Sal Frelick is so good. They’re going to take away a lot of extra-base hits. The infield isn’t as good as the outfield but Joey Ortiz and Brice Turang are a good middle-infield combo.
The Red Sox have a defensive outfield that is as good or better than the Brewers’ and they patched up the weaknesses in their infield. The Dodgers have a middle infield that matches the Brewers’ and they always seem to be among the best teams in our Positioning Runs Saved stat.
The Diamondbacks should be much improved with the additions of Carlos Santana at first base and Nolan Arenado at third. If Jordan Lawlar handles center field alright, they’re potentially very good in the outfield too.
Everyone else on this list was a good defensive team last year and returns at least a couple of high-level players.
Tier 3 – Average
To me the Phillies are the most notable team in here and their move up to average is the product of one move, swapping out Nick Castellanos for Adolis García. In 2025, the Phillies would have been 27 Runs Saved better in right field with Garcia. That difference would have meant finishing 15th in Runs Saved instead of 22nd.
Also, in my opinion the Royals have the best case among these teams to be listed in the ‘Good’ tier. My primary reasons for excluding them were not having Freddy Fermin and (perhaps overly harsh) their playing Jonathan India at second base.
The Giants are a bit of an oddity in that they have two outstanding defensive players (Patrick Bailey and Matt Chapman), a good center fielder (Harrison Bader) and nothing else that stands out. Is that enough to be a ‘Good’ defensive team? I’ve put them here for now.
Tier 4 – Below Average
There is the potential for most of the teams on this list to prove me wrong in a noticeable way. Once shortstop Konnor Griffin comes up to the majors the Pirates defense should be considerably improved. They ranked 10th in Runs Saved last year but don’t have Ke’Bryan Hayes and took a step back with their offseason acquisitions, which is why they’re listed here.
The Astros have a good case to be on the average list, particularly if Christian Walker bounces back at first base. Two of their best defensive players will be on the bench (Nick Allen and Cam Smith) to start most games. And the team is starting Jose Altuve at second base. His -52 Runs Saved over the last five seasons are worst among second basemen.
The Rockies ranked 14th in Runs Saved two years ago before sinking to 30th last year. There are three very good defensive players on the roster in center fielder Brenton Doyle, shortstop Ezequiel Tovar and third baseman Kyle Karros such that it wouldn’t be surprising if they pulled themselves up a bit.
Lastly, shout out to the A’s fans who responded on Reddit when I referred to the team they root for as below-average. They’re confident this team is better than the 30th, 29th, and 26th it’s ranked the last three seasons. I think I need it proven to me before I say it.
Tier 5 – Decidedly Below Average
The Angels ranked 28th in Runs Saved last year, didn’t address their biggest positional weakness, and their plan to improve this involves putting Mike Trout back in center field. He has -13 Runs Saved there over the last five years.
The Nationals got positive Runs Saved from two positions last season and didn’t notably change things up either. The Twins were in a similar boat and did little (they were positive at two positions, first base and left field, the two lowest-ranked spots on the defensive spectrum).
The White Sox are lacking in standouts, although to their credit most of their defensive lineup is pretty young. Shortstop Colson Montgomery is by far their most valuable defensive player.
Predicting is hard. We’ll almost certainly be wrong about some of these by year’s end. You’re welcome to let us know when we are. But we hope you’ll notice when we’re right too. And we’ll pledge to you now that we’ll revisit this at season’s end to see how we did. Even if the answer is: Not well.
