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2026 NL CENTRAL PREVIEW
Reds/Bucs surprise contenders?

By MLB.com staff
03/21/2026

Milwaukee and Chicago figure to be the top two teams in the NL Central again in 2026, but Cincinnati made the postseason a season ago, and Pittsburgh's offseason work has been lauded by many as one of the best of the league. So much so that a few prognosticators have picked the Pirates sneaking into the postseason as the third wildcard. We here at MLB.com don't think they're quite there yet, but they are most certainly in better position to make such a run this time around, given some good luck that goes their way.

It's also an interesting time in the division with perennial contender St. Louis down on their luck, but there still appears to be a clear vision under new management that's led by baseball ops chief Chaim Bloom. Gone are franchise mainstays Nolan Arenado, Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray, and Willson Contreras; all dealt off in trades. Bloom himself has not called it a 'rebuild' specifically, but did note that it would be a 'one-to-two year review' of the organization from top-to-bottom before they felt they could move forward.

Later today, we'll go over what many think might be the weakest division in baseball, the AL Central.

1. MILWAUKEE BREWERS

ADDED: LHP Angel Zerpa, INF David Hamilton, C Gary Sanchez, LHP Kyle Harrison, OF Jett Williams
LOST: 1B Rhys Hoskins, LHP Jose Quintana, RHP Freddy Peralta, RHP Tobias Myers, C Danny Jansen, OF Isaac Collins, RHP Nick Mears, INF Caleb Durbin

Another offseason, and another year of second-guessing what the Brewers have done. Matt Arnold and the front office in Milwaukee, however, is one of the best in the business as they continue to churn out quality teams despite moves that might make you scratch your head initially. First, they traded a solid outfielder (Collins) and reliever (Mears) to the Royals for a decent lefty (Zerpa). Then, they deal away one of the game's best starters in Freddy Peralta (along with Tobias Myers) to the Mets, but manage to nab two excellent young players in Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat.

Then another big trade right before the spring when they trade away a Rookie of the Year finalist in Caleb Durbin to the Red Sox, along with Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler, to Boston for a pretty good haul -- lefties Kyle Harrison and Shane Drohan, along with second baseman David Hamilton. Harrison is likely to slot into a rotation spot, while Hamilton appears to be on his way to being in their Opening Day lineup at second base. Drohan posted a 2.02 ERA in Triple-A last season, and is in line to be one of the first re-called if injuries strike in the rotation.

On paper, the Cubs appear to be the better team and did more to try and improve the team, but there's something in the sauce that just won't let us go against Milwaukee until someone else can knock them off. Pat Murphy is incredibly underrated as a skipper, and they have tremendous veteran leadership with guys like Andrew Vaughn and Christian Yelich.

2. CHICAGO CUBS

ADDED: 3B Alex Bregman, RHP Phil Maton, RHP Edward Cabrera, RHP Hunter Harvey, RHP Dylan Floro, LHP Hoby Milner
LOST: OF Kyle Tucker, RHP Aaron Civale, RHP Michael Soroka, RHP Ryan Brasier, INF Willi Castro, OF Owen Caissie

It should be another fantastic race in the NL Central between the Brewers and Cubs; and honestly, it could go either way as to whomever wins the division, with the Reds potentially playing a role. Despite losing Tucker out of the lineup, there's still plenty of punch to go around with Bregman, Michael Busch, and arguably the best overall outfield in baseball headlined by one Pete Crow-Armstrong. Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki, who is likely going to be pressed back into defensive duty with Tucker gone, will flank PCA on the left and right side.

There is some reason to mope, at least early on. Matthew Boyd and Justin Steele are both on the injured list to begin the season, with Boyd only expected to miss the first week or two. Steele is expected to be out until around the All-Star break, but Jed Hoyer and the Cubs did a nice job of backfilling the rotation in the meantime in grabbing Cabrera from the Marlins. It cost them Owen Caissie, who is likely to start in one of the corner outfield spots for the Fish this year, but has three years of club control remaining, including this season.

The signings of Floro, Harvey, and Milner; along with the returning Caleb Thielbar, also deepen the middle relief in front of second-year flame-throwing closer Daniel Palencia, who came out of nowhere to post thirty-two saves with a 2.35 ERA in 61 1/3 innings of work. Palencia's breakout year didn't stop the Cubs from trying to pursue other closing options such as Edwin Diaz and Devin Williams, who signed with the Dodgers and Mets, respectively, but Palencia can hold his own with the best of them.

3. CINCINNATI REDS

ADDED: 3B Eugenio Suarez, OF Dane Myers, OF JJ Bleday, LHP Brock Burke, RHP Pierce Johnson, LHP Caleb Ferguson, RHP Max Scherzer
LOST: INF Gavin Lux, OF Austin Hays, OF Miguel Andujar, RHP Zack Littell, RHP Nick Martinez, LHP Wade Miley

What would the Reds do for a follow-up after their first postseason appearance since 2020? It took them until late in the process, but they brought back former third baseman Eugenio Suarez on a one-year deal to help lengthen the lineup. When Hunter Greene went down with an injury, they reached an agreement to bring on Scherzer on an incentive-laden one-year deal.

After hitting 53 bombs between the D-Backs and Mariners, Suarez should get close to that again in the bandbox that is GAB. While he shouldn't displace Ke'Bryan Hayes at third base, they needed another competent bat to serve as the DH after losing Austin Hays in free agency to the White Sox, and they are hoping that Myers and Bleday (moreso Bleday in this case) can return to pre-2025 form and solidify the outfield both offensively and defensively.

Closer Emilio Pagan was also brought back on a two-year deal, and signed former Rockie and Brave Pierce Johnson to toss high-leverage frames in front of him. Burke, Ferguson, and Sam Moll form one of the better southpaw bullpen trios in the league, giving them a fairly deep bullpen in front of a rotation that will be without Hunter Greene for the first few months, but still has some staying power with lefties Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo, along with Scherzer and fellow veteran Brady Singer.

4. PITTSBURGH PIRATES

ADDED: DH Marcell Ozuna, 1B Ryan O'Hearn, 2B Brandon Lowe, OF Jhostynxon Garcia, OF Jake Mangum, LHP Mason Montgomery, RHP Jose Urquidy
LOST: RHP Mike Burrows, RHP Johan Oviedo, DH Andrew McCutchen, INF Isiah Kiner-Falefa, OF Tommy Pham

The Brew Crew and the Cubs should still be the favorites in this division, but it's hard to argue that the Pirates didn't help themselves the most in the entire National League this offseason. With the additions of Brandon Lowe, Ryan O'Hearn, Marcell Ozuna, and youngster Jhostynxon Garcia to man one of the corner outfield spots, the Pirates have the look of a playoff contender with Paul Skenes and Mitch Keller fronting the rotation, with a bullpen that's solid and led by closer Dennis Santana and Gregory Soto, now back with his original team.

They had to dip into their starting rotation depth to get Garcia and others like Mangum and Lowe to bolster the lineup, which was one of the three worst offenses in baseball a season ago. With Lowe likely to get most of the reps at second and Jared Triolo to take over at short, the Pirates could still use another bat to man third base; but if they find themselves in the thick of the playoff race, there is room to add to the roster down the road. Also, as of this writing, Andrew McCutchen remains unsigned; but with Ozuna on the roster, a reunion seems unlikely.

Additionally, Pittsburgh made more headlines for the moves they didn't make, such as making a $150 million offer to Kyle Schwarber, who ended up going back to Philadelphia. They also were in on Framber Valdez, Bo Bichette, and Dylan Cease, who all ended up signing elsewhere. With the Cardinals in full-on rebuild mode, perhaps Ben Cherington and the Bucs' brass feel this is their chance to make some hay and get out of the NL Central cellar.

5. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

ADDED: RHP Dustin May, RHP Richard Fitts, RHP George Soriano, RHP Ryne Stanek, LHP Hunter Dobbins
LOST: INF Brendan Donovan, RHP Sonny Gray, 1B Willson Contreras, 3B Nolan Arenado, RHP Andre Granillo

Not one other franchise went through as much upheaval as the Cardinals did, as they have gone through a near-teardown of the big league roster, trading away such veterans as Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray, and Brendan Donovan. They also found a taker for Willson Contreras in the Red Sox, and as a result will undoubtedly have one of the youngest rosters in the league for 2026. And there isn't much of a doubt they'll be selling at the deadline, with others like Lars Nootbaar and Jojo Romero still on the squad.

They did sign a couple of veterans for the pitching staff in May and Stanek; along with trading for Soriano to help fill out the bullpen. Otherwise, will be running out a good number of pre-arbitration players at nearly every position, including potentially JJ Wetherholt at second base. They've also been stretching out incumbent closer Kyle Leahy for a rotation role in 2026; along with moving Fitts, who mainly started games for the Red Sox last season, into a long relief role.

Their first pick in the 2024 draft, Wetherholt rocketed through the minors, and barring some sort of surprise or injury, he should be in their Opening Day lineup at second base. Another top prospect, Jesus Baez, is also still on the spring roster, but has yet to see a pitch above Double-A, so it's unlikely he'll begin with the Cardinals at third base despite a decent spring for him. Nolan Gorman, who split time between first, second, and third base last season, is expected to make the full-time move to third base with Alec Burleson and Lars Nootbaar splitting time between first base, left field, and DH.

Some of the young pitching they acquired in the trades such as Dobbins and Brandon Clarke will likely have to wait to be seen by Cardinals fans (Dobbins due to injury), but Chaim Bloom and the rest of the Cardinals' front office are hoping for a year or two of pain for long-term gain.