Assigning Grades for Every MLB Team Halfway Through 2024 Season

Here at the halfway point of the 2024 MLB season, all the teams around the league are no longer strangers to us. We know them pretty well.

At least, well enough to assign them grades for how they've done so far.

Everyone should know how this works by now, but anyone who doesn't should know it's all pretty straightforward. Good teams get good grades and bad teams get bad grades, and everyone in between—which notably constitutes a lot of teams this year—falls somewhere in the middle of those two extremes.

This said, records and numbers aren't the only things that matter. Whether you want to call it "energy" or "vibes," how it feels like each team's season is going matters in conjunction with how it's actually going. Not just as much, mind you, but more than not at all.

In any case, we'll go in alphabetical order by city and check teams off three at a time.

Arizona Diamondbacks: C-

Record: 41-44, 4th in NL West

Run Differential: Minus-14

After a surprise run to the World Series in 2023, the Diamondbacks' plan for 2024 seemed clear: Ride a stacked rotation and a more versatile lineup all the way back to the playoffs.

As such, it's not the best sign that the last time Arizona was over .500 was all the way back on April 2.

Injuries and Jordan Montgomery's stumbles have rendered their rotation largely helpless to the tune of a 4.80 ERA. The Snakes are otherwise still waiting on the Corbin Carroll of 2023 to show up. He has only two home runs and 14 stolen bases after becoming the first rookie to ever achieve a 25-50 season.

Atlanta: B-

Record: 46-37, 2nd in NL East

Run Differential: Plus-51

For a team that's lost Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider for the year and has generally had an off-kilter vibe since Day 1, Atlanta is doing an admirable job of hanging around.

It's clear that the offense is not going to be what it was in 2023, but pitching and defense are always good things to fall back on. Atlanta hurlers are second to only Philadelphia's in Fielding Independent Pitching, while its fielders have committed an MLB-low 33 errors.

How far this team can go nonetheless remains a thorny question, especially given its 16-17 record since Acuña tore his ACL. Suffice it to say the phrase "World Series or bust" doesn't apply like it did last year.

Baltimore Orioles: A

Record: 54-31, 1st in AL East

Run Differential: Plus-114

The Orioles have likewise been hit hard by injuries, particularly by way of season-ending Tommy John surgeries for Kyle Bradish and John Means. Accordingly, their own World Series aspirations have an asterisk.

And yet, there they are with the second-best record and the best run differential of any team in the American League.

Despite the arm owies, Orioles starters boast an AL-low 3.32 ERA. And with MLB-leading marks for home runs and OPS, the club's Gunnar Henderson-led offense is an easy pick for the best in either league.

Boston Red Sox: B

Record: 45-39, 3rd in AL East

Run Differential: Plus-35

There were times earlier when the wheels seemed primed to come all the way off for Boston. But the worst never arrived, and now the Red Sox are on an 12-5 run since June 12.

The club's improved pitching is still a storyline, and the offense has more recently been coming around. Rafael Devers and Jarren Duran have a thunder and lightning thing going on, while speed has become a big component in general. The Red Sox are stealing 0.94 bases per game, up from 0.69 in 2023.

Defense remains a sore spot by way of an MLB-high 65 errors, with another being an 18-28 record against winning teams. All the same, the low expectations that were attached to the Red Sox at the outset are no longer relevant.

Chicago Cubs: D+

Record: 39-47, 5th in NL Central

Run Differential: Minus-32

It hasn't always been bad for the Cubs this season. They were eight games over .500 on April 26 and alone in first place three days later. It seemed like they were going places.

Just not to the cellar, that is, yet that is where they find themselves after dropping 36 of their last 57 games.

The rotation is doing its part with a respectable 3.82 ERA, but ample support from the offense and bullpen just haven't been there. And with a 10-19 record within the division, the Cubs might as well be actively sabotaging their game of NL Central Catch-Up.

Chicago White Sox: F

Record: 24-63, 5th in AL Central

Run Differential: Minus-163

The White Sox are on pace to lose 117 games and get outscored by 300 runs, so don't proceed with the rest of this blurb expecting anything positive.

They're bad. Really bad. They've scored 23 fewer runs than any other team, and all against a pitching backdrop that includes an MLB-high 325 walks and 109 home runs.

Lest anyone think it can't possibly get worse, it absolutely can. Luis Robert Jr., Garrett Crochet and Erick Fedde are the best players the White Sox have, and all three could be playing on new teams come July 31.

Cincinnati Reds: C

Record: 40-45, 4th in NL Central

Run Differential: Plus-16

The Reds have probably already had their worst stretch of the season. Remember when they lost 20 out of 26 between April 25 and May 23? That was brutal.

Now it's a question of when their best baseball will come, and their run differential isn't the only thing hinting it could come eventually. Their pitching enjoyed a 3.74 ERA in June, while their offense also woke up with a season-high .725 OPS for the month.

What the Reds really need is better fortune in one-run games, for which they have 15 losses against seven wins. As they've dropped four out of their last six such contests, their progress could be going better.

Cleveland Guardians: A

Record: 53-30, 1st in AL Central

Run Differential: Plus-99

The hot start the Guardians got off to in April had the feeling of a thing that wouldn't last. And especially in context of their weak starting pitching, their AL-best record still feels suspect.

Yet what the Guardians do well, they do very well. With a league-low 490 men left on base, they're not in the habit of stranding baserunners. And their Emmanuel Clase-led bullpen is terrifying, as it boasts the lowest ERA of any bullpen by half a run.

Cleveland is a modest 17-13 since May 27, but it hasn't mattered. Their lead in the AL Central has more than doubled in this stretch, from 2.5 to 6.0 games.

Colorado Rockies: F

Record: 29-56, 5th in NL West

Run Differential: Minus-142

The good news for the Rockies is that the White Sox exist, and that they therefore have a buffer between them and the dishonor of being the worst team of 2024.

This is nonetheless on track to be the worst year the Rockies have ever had, as their .341 winning percentage doesn't even live up to last year's winning clip of .364. It's as if pairing a punchless offense with the worst bat-missing pitching staff in the league is a bad idea.

The Rockies entered this year ranked 16th in payroll, so this is not a case of a team not trying. It's a case of a team being very bad at trying.

Detroit Tigers: D+

Record: 38-47, 4th in AL Central

Run Differential: Minus-24

The Tigers were five games over .500 on May 1, at which time they could look back and see victories in four straight series.

To say it's been a bumpy road since then would be understating it. The 20-34 record is bad enough, and then you have other matters like Kerry Carpenter's back injury and Spencer Torkelson's demotion.

The best thing the Tigers have going for them is the rotation trio of Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty and Reese Olson, yet even that may not last. Flaherty, who's on a one-year contract, is an obvious trade candidate, and rumors are even starting to swirl around Skubal.

Houston Astros: C

Record: 43-42, 2nd in AL West

Run Differential: Plus-34

The Astros are still down several of their best pitchers, not to mention Kyle Tucker for about a month at this point. From these angles, their outlook remains bleak.

Yet the comeback is underway, as the Astros are fresh off climbing back into the race by way of a 17-8 record in June. They still have a lot that works, including an offense with an MLB-leading .263 average and Hunter Brown's increasingly compelling breakout.

The trick will be continuing to play in games decided by more than one run. The Astros are 5-15 in actual one-run games, but they played only two such contests in June.

Kansas City Royals: B+

Record: 47-40, 3rd in AL Central

Run Differential: Plus-51

A year after losing 106 games, the Royals have had a winning record for all but the first eight days of this season.

General manager J.J. Picollo should take a bow for Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans, and for extending Bobby Witt Jr. in February. Even the $288.7 million they'll pay him over the next 11 years doesn't feel like enough, as he's already surpassed his rWAR total from 2023.

Warning signs include a shaky bullpen and a 12-15 record in June, but the Royals would nonetheless be in the playoffs if the season ended today. Don't say you saw it coming, because you didn't.

Los Angeles Angels: D

Record: 36-48, 4th in AL West

Run Differential: Minus-66

If anything, it's surprising that the Angels are "only" 12 games under .500.

Their two most expensive players (Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon) are on the injured list, as are two of their primary starting pitchers (Patrick Sandoval and José Soriano). Add in Jo Adell's stalled breakout and Reid Detmers' demotion, and you get a less-than-pretty picture.

Yet even if I'm tempted to hit the Angels with a "Good job, guys," that would be going too far. Only four teams have a worse run differential than they do, and even their 15-11 run in June comes with the caveat that six of those wins were against Oakland and Detroit.

Los Angeles Dodgers: A-

Record: 53-33, 1st in NL West

Run Differential: Plus-120

With Mookie Betts, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Walker Buehler and Max Muncy on the injured list and Clayton Kershaw still yet to throw a pitch this season, it feels like the Dodgers are taking on the competition with one arm tied behind their back.

That the fight is going well perhaps says something about the competition, but it says more about the Dodgers themselves.

It certainly helps to have Shohei Ohtani as he vies for his third MVP, much less fellow newcomers Tyler Glasnow and Teoscar Hernández. And also just a special talent for digging up capable hurlers, as even the injuries aren't keeping Dodgers pitchers from ranking second in MLB with a 3.38 ERA.

Miami Marlins: F

Record: 30-55, 5th in NL East

Run Differential: Minus-121

It's already been two months since the Marlins waved the white flag on their 2024 season, sending Luis Arraez to the Padres in a trade on May 4.

The Marlins have improbably gotten better since then, as even 21-30 looks good in comparison to the 9-25 record with which they began this season. Yet whatever hope this implies doesn't really exist in real life.

That is, not unless someone can heal all those injured pitchers and infuse more power into an offense that is tied for last in MLB with 68 home runs.

Milwaukee Brewers: B+

Record: 51-35, 1st in NL Central

Run Differential: Plus-75

Inasmuch as any team was favored to win the NL Central this year, the Brewers certainly weren't. FanGraphs gave them just a 17.6 percent chance to win the division on Opening Day.

That number is now 77.9, and it's still the offense that deserves the lion's share of the credit for flipping the script. No National League team has raised its slugging percentage from 2023 as much as Milwaukee has.

Even if starting pitching remains the Brewers' biggest weakness, their bullpen is only getting stronger. It posted a 2.18 ERA in June, with Trevor Megill and Bryan Hudson combining to allow one run in 24.1 innings.

Minnesota Twins: B-

Record: 48-37, 2nd in AL Central

Run Differential: Plus-43

Is it a jerk move to note that the Twins are a game under .500 on either side of their 12-game win streak from earlier in the year?

Probably, but it's the truth all the same. And one generally doesn't feel confident in this rotation, which only has a 4.40 ERA and has also surrendered an MLB-high-tying 74 home runs.

The lineup is coming around, however. A weak schedule was a factor, sure, but it was still encouraging to see Carlos Correa, Royce Lewis, Byron Buxton and Carlos Santana fuel an .814 OPS for the month. It felt like this offense realizing its very real, very high upside.

New York Mets: C+

Record: 42-41, 3rd in NL East

Run Differential: Plus-15

There's where the Mets' season seemed to be going, and there's where it's going now after a 16-8 romp through the month of June.

There are still major issues with this roster, most notably concerning the pitching side of things. But a lineup that always had the potential to be the best in New York is clicking, as it led MLB with an .865 OPS and the NL with 153 runs in June.

The Mets are supposedly in buy mode now, and why not? The NL wild-card race is wide open and figures to stay that way for the rest of the year.

New York Yankees: A

Record: 54-33, 2nd in AL East

Run Differential: Plus-101

It's lately begun to feel like 2022 all over again for the Yankees. Since peaking at 28 games over .500 on June 14, they've lost 11 out of 15 and have been hit hard by injuries.

Not great for the vibes, perhaps, but let's not lose sight of the fact that this is still one of the elite teams in MLB. And this Yankees team has things the 2022 iteration did not, such as Juan Soto and a rotation nowhere near as Gerrit Cole-centric.

Plus, Aaron Judge is hotter now than he was at any point two years ago. He has 26 homers in his last 51 games, for which "Bonds-ian" is the only adequate adjective.

Oakland Athletics: F

Record: 31-56, 5th in AL West

Run Differential: Minus-106

After dropping 112 games in 2023, the A's opened this year by threatening to be competitive. They went 11-11 through their first 22 contests.

Man, does that feel forever ago. Such is what can happen when a team goes on a 14-39 run, and this one has been especially painful for Oakland's rotation. It has a league-worst 5.39 ERA in this span.

Unless Mason Miller is pitching, the best thing to do with the A's now is to simply not pay them any mind. Basically, what their fans are already doing.

Philadelphia Phillies: A+

Record: 56-29, 1st in NL East

Run Differential: Plus-123

The one blemish on the Phillies is that they've played the easiest schedule of any team in MLB. They have, in the parlance of our times, been living a charmed life.

Of course, how good they indeed are has a lot to do with how bad they've made their opponents look. There certainly isn't a better starting rotation than theirs, which leads the majors with a 2.95 ERA.

That the Phillies are also scoring 5.0 runs per game is impressive considering that Trea Turner got healthy just in time for J.T. Realmuto, Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber to go on the IL. But at this point, getting everyone back for October is all that matters.

Pittsburgh Pirates: C

Record: 40-44, 3rd in NL Central

Run Differential: Minus-37

The Pirates aren't a good team, necessarily. And least of all on offense, where they're tied at the bottom of the National League with a .227 batting average.

They nonetheless have been getting better, going 23-22 since May 11. If that date otherwise sounds familiar, it's the day that Paul Skenes arrived and took his place alongside Mitch Keller and fellow rookie Jared Jones in a rotation that ranks seventh in MLB with a 3.65 ERA.

The Bucs have also done a good job of making their wins count, entering Tuesday with winning records against all three NL divisions.

San Diego Padres: B

Record: 46-43, 2nd in NL West

Run Differential: Plus-27

From how many key players they're missing due to injuries and how disappointing Manny Machado has been, it feels like the Padres should be a team on the brink.

That they're not speaks to how well Luis Arraez, Jurickson Profar and Jackson Merrill are carrying the offense, and more so to how nasty this pitching staff is. The Padres lead MLB with 772 strikeouts, with 245 coming just from Dylan Cease and Michael King.

This club also seems to have more fight in it than the 2023 iteration, though I may just be saying that because they're the only NL West team with a winning record against the Dodgers.

San Francisco Giants: D+

Record: 42-44, 3rd in NL West

Run Differential: Minus-27

With the exceptions of Jordan Hicks and the suddenly scorching Matt Chapman, the less said about the Giants' big offseason haul, the better.

It also feels like a small miracle that the Giants are scoring as many as 4.48 runs per game. Theirs is a long-form style of offense, as their .248 average is solid but they're below the league average with 87 home runs and last with 28 stolen bases.

This is to say it's likewise a small miracle that the Giants are only two games under .500. That will have to do for the good news, at least until Blake Snell, Jorge Soler and Robbie Ray show up and lead a second-half resurgence.

Seattle Mariners: B

Record: 47-40, 1st in AL West

Run Differential: Plus-4

The Astros' and Rangers' first-half struggles have much to do with the Mariners being in first place. Let's also grant their offense is just no good at all. It ranks last with a .217 average and first in strikeouts with 888 strikeouts.

But the pitching? Yeah, that part is pretty darn good.

The 3.56 ERA is nice, and nicer still are the league-best 3.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio and the AL-low 625 hits allowed. Just on this account, one can envision the Mariners making a deep playoff run in the style of the Giants of the early 2010s.

St. Louis Cardinals: C

Record: 44-40, 2nd in NL Central

Run Differential: MInus-37

When you compare that record to that run differential, the notion that the Cardinals have been the luckiest team in the National League begins to make sense.

Good pitching can have this sort of effect, however, and that is what the Cardinals have gotten amid a 29-16 run since May 12. Their ERA in this span is 3.60, good for sixth in the league.

You also have to admire how St. Louis' 20-something hitters have taken the spotlight away from Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado. Especially Alec Burleson, who had an .824 OPS and seven long balls in June.

Tampa Bay Rays: D+

Record: 43-42, 4th in AL East

Run Differential: Minus-52

Every time I look at the Rays, I expect to see a team in free-fall. Yet by the grace of luck the likes of which only the Cardinals know, they're just not doing that.

You have to hand it to them for going 16-7 in one-run games, and also for coming around offensively in recent weeks. They averaged just south of two home runs per game in winning nine out of 13 to finish up the month of June.

Yet home runs have also been a theme for the pitching staff, which ranks second in surrendering 115 of them. The Rays have also been a punching bag within the AL East, going 10-17 against divisional foes.

Texas Rangers: D

Record: 39-46, 3rd in AL West

Run Differential: Minus-3

It always looked like the Rangers were going into 2024 intending to punt on the first half, so what's befallen them so far shouldn't be that surprising.

The air has nonetheless been thoroughly sucked out of the room, and what is surprising is how much of a problem this offense has been. That they've gone from co-leading the AL in home runs to ranking in the middle of the pack with 88 is something nobody saw coming.

The defending World Series champs would still be in the race if they were in the National League, but they're not. If their planned second-half surge falls short in any way, so will their playoff aspirations.

Toronto Blue Jays: D-

Record: 39-46, 5th in AL East

Run Differential: Minus-52

The Blue Jays are the best of the six last-place teams throughout MLB, so at least they have that going for them.

Even if it's been worse than expected, the failures of the 2024 Blue Jays aren't all on the offense. Pitching and defense were meant to carry this team, and the former just hasn't been good enough. Indeed, there's no defense for an MLB-high 116 homers.

It does bear noting that the Blue Jays have played only 22 games against other teams with losing records, but it's hardly an excuse. Simply by virtue of being an AL East team, they should have planned on their schedule being difficult by default.

Washington Nationals: C

Record: 39-46, 4th in NL East

Run Differential: Minus-22

There's a point in every rebuilding cycle when the team in question closes the gap between bad and good by becoming interesting.

That is where the Nationals are in 2024, and how they've gotten here is encouraging. CJ Abrams looks like a proper cornerstone on which to build an offense, while starters MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin and Mitchell Parker all have ERAs in the 3.00s.

James Wood's arrival has only heightened the intrigue around the Nationals, and fellow top prospect Dylan Crews may not be far behind in his own right. It all amounts to good vibes for a franchise that lost 289 games across the three previous seasons.

Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant.