NL Central Futures: Who Will Win the NL Central This Year?
Updated September 23, 2026
Updated September 23, 2026
The NL Central spent parts of the season looking capable of producing a genuine fight at the top, but Milwaukee eventually created clear separation from the rest of the division. The Brewers have already secured the crown, leaving the current futures picture with a settled result and four clubs below Milwaukee whose seasons took very different paths. Chicago remains headed for meaningful October baseball, Pittsburgh has finished with an encouraging late push, while St. Louis and Cincinnati are looking ahead to next season.
Milwaukee has been the class of the NL Central for much of the season, and its place at the top of the futures market became increasingly secure as the summer moved along. The Brewers combined dependable pitching with a lineup capable of producing from several spots, allowing them to avoid the extended downturns that can reopen a division race.
Jacob Misiorowski has developed into the leading arm of the staff and the NL Cy Young futures favorite, while Jackson Chourio, Brice Turang and William Contreras have helped give Milwaukee a balanced offensive group. Even after wrapping up the division, the Brewers have continued playing well enough to strengthen their position for October.
Chicago put together a season that would have been good enough to contend for a division title in many circumstances. The problem was that Milwaukee rarely provided an opening. The Cubs remained the closest pursuer for much of the stretch run, but the distance between the clubs eventually became too large to overcome.
Pete Crow-Armstrong has been one of the defining players of Chicago's season, supplying power, speed, and elite defensive value that put him at the forefront of the NL MVP race. The Cubs have enough talent to remain relevant in the postseason, even though their division futures position disappeared once Milwaukee clinched. Their attention has now shifted from catching the Brewers to securing the best possible postseason path.
Pittsburgh's season has been uneven, but the closing weeks have offered a much better picture than the middle portion of the schedule suggested. The Pirates have played some of their best baseball late, with Jared Jones delivering excellent work on the mound and Konnor Griffin making an impact after returning to the lineup.
Paul Skenes did not have the dominant season many expected, yet Pittsburgh still found enough improvement elsewhere to climb into third place. The Pirates are no longer part of the division futures conversation, but their late play gives the organization something meaningful to carry into the offseason.
St. Louis entered the year in a transitional phase, and the season largely reflected that status. The Cardinals never developed into a serious threat to Milwaukee late in the schedule, but there were useful signs from younger players who could become part of the next competitive roster.
Alec Burleson and Jordan Walker provided encouraging stretches, while several younger players received valuable major league opportunities. That makes the season easier to view as part of a longer roster-building process rather than simply a failed division chase. St. Louis sits near the bottom of the completed futures picture and is now focused firmly on what comes next.
Cincinnati has endured the most disappointing season in the division relative to the club's hopes of competing. The Reds have struggled to find consistent production around their best players, and the pitching staff has also had difficult stretches that kept the team from sustaining a serious push.
Elly De La Cruz remains the centerpiece of the roster and has finished the season with some impressive offensive performances. Sal Stewart has also supplied an encouraging young bat. Those pieces offer reasons for optimism, but the overall season never developed into a genuine NL Central race for Cincinnati.
