Something I’ve noticed among the younger crop of front-office executives in casual conversation is that some of them talk about their teams putting “points on the board.”
Note that this is not a confused misnomer. They are all well aware that baseball is oriented around runs, not points. They know the correct, formal term. But sometimes they say “points” because it sounds saucier.
Personally, I don’t advocate calling runs points. But I have no legal grounds to litigate it. Just don’t say “goals.” That’s a step too far.
Anyway, whatever you choose to call them, these are the 10 lineups best positioned to put … things … on the board this year. (And for a look at our Top 10 pitching staffs of 2026, see here.)
*Note that the lineups posted here are not necessarily projected Opening Day lineups, but rather representative samples of what the lineups could look like for the meat of the 2026 season.
1) Dodgers
- Shohei Ohtani, DH
- Kyle Tucker, RF
- Mookie Betts, SS
- Freddie Freeman, 1B
- Will Smith, C
- Max Muncy, 3B
- Teoscar Hernández, LF
- Andy Pages, CF
- Hyeseong Kim, 2B
The funny thing (well, funny to me, anyway) is that there were plenty of times during the 2025 season when the mighty Dodgers lineup appeared stagnant or unfocused or just missing that sense of urgency that garners greatness. Betts seemed to get old overnight (at the plate, at least), Hernández regressed significantly, Muncy and Smith were banged up, and L.A. got little production out of second base and left field.
What this malaise resulted in was the Dodgers, as a team, going from a 2024 weighted runs created plus (wRC+) mark that was 17% better than league average (second in MLB) to a 2025 wRC+ that was … 13% better than league average (still second in MLB).
Oh, and now they’ve brought in Tucker. So … yeah.
2) Yankees
- Trent Grisham, CF
- Aaron Judge, RF
- Cody Bellinger, LF
- Ben Rice, 1B
- Giancarlo Stanton, DH
- Jazz Chisholm Jr., 2B
- Ryan McMahon, 3B
- Anthony Volpe, SS
- Austin Wells, C
There will come a day when Judge stops routinely leading the Majors in OBP and slugging and stops hitting 50-plus homers. Maybe it’ll happen here in his age-34 season. Maybe the injury issues that have hampered an otherwise Cooperstown-worthy career will rear their ugly head again.
Until that happens, it’s the Yankees here, at No. 1 or No. 2. Take your pick. I’ll go with the Dodgers over them, because I think their floor is higher. But with Bellinger and Grisham back and Rice showing the skillset to become a true star, the Yanks are easily top two, for me.
3) Mariners
- Brendan Donovan, 3B
- Cal Raleigh, C
- Julio Rodríguez, CF
- Josh Naylor, 1B
- Randy Arozarena, LF
- Victor Robles, RF
- Dominic Canzone, DH
- J.P. Crawford, SS
- Cole Young, 2B
There’s a drop off from the Dodgers-Yankees realm to this spot, and you can go a number of ways with it. To be abundantly clear, I highly doubt the Mariners will finish in the top three in runs scored given that they play their home games in a ballpark where fly balls go to die. But when you adjust for environment, this was a top-three offense in MLB last year. Even if we all readily acknowledge that Raleigh is unlikely to hit 60 home runs again, there are reasons to suspect the M’s can be every bit as good in 2026.
For one, it seems a relatively safe bet that Rodríguez is going to put together that full MVP-caliber year his talent portends, and this could be the year. Also, Seattle will have a full season from 2025 Trade Deadline acquisition Naylor, who somehow rakes in T-Mobile Park. They’ll have offseason trade acquisition Donovan setting things up atop the order, they’ve got the underrated shortstop production of Crawford, they’ll hopefully have a healthier Robles and they’ve got upside in top prospect Colt Emerson.
So bring out the tridents for my No. 3 offense.
4) Blue Jays
- George Springer, DH
- Daulton Varsho, CF
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B
- Addison Barger, RF
- Alejandro Kirk, C
- Jesús Sánchez, LF
- Kazuma Okamoto, 3B
- Andrés Giménez, SS
- Ernie Clement, 2B
At some point last year, the Blue Jays gathered together and said, “Hey, what if we hit for both contact and power AND ran the bases really well?” They decided it was worth a shot … and wound up a couple of outs away from a World Series title. Not bad.
This year’s lineup will undoubtedly look a lot different without Bo Bichette, and striking out on Tucker in free agency hurt, too. It’s also impossible to know how the power-hitting Okamoto will adjust to MLB velocity, if Springer’s renaissance will continue in his age-36 season, if Clement will remain the human hit machine he was in October, if Varsho is ready to rock for a full 162 games, etc.
But we appear to be in prime Vladdy territory. That’s exciting. And so is the Blue Jays’ offensive ceiling.
5) A’s
- Nick Kurtz, 1B
- Shea Langeliers, C
- Tyler Soderstrom, LF
- Brent Rooker, DH
- Jeff McNeil, 2B
- Jacob Wilson, SS
- Lawrence Butler, RF
- Max Muncy, 3B
- Denzel Clarke, CF
The A’s are the inverse of the Mariners in that you have to reduce their ranking, in some measure, when adjusting to their home environs. West Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park is a launching pad.
But this young A’s offense is a launching pad, too. In fact, the A’s tied for seventh in MLB with a 103 wRC+ on the road last season. So I don’t mind aggressively ranking the team with the reigning Rookie of the Year in Kurtz, the 30-homer, 30-double potential of Rooker, Langeliers and Soderstrom, the un-strikeout-able (a term I just made up) Wilson, the breakout potential of Butler and a little McNeil thrown into the mix for good measure.
You won’t find the A’s anywhere near that aforementioned list of Top 10 pitching staffs. But this lineup is fun.
6) Mets
- Francisco Lindor, SS
- Juan Soto, LF
- Bo Bichette, 3B
- Jorge Polanco, 1B
- Marcus Semien, 2B
- Brett Baty, DH
- Francisco Alvarez, C
- Luis Robert Jr., CF
- Carson Benge, RF
There might not be a team with greater variance in potential outcomes than these Mets, who have both talent and injury risks aplenty baked into their offensive outlook.
But for as bad as things went in Queens last year, Soto was a 43-homer, 38-steal, 127-walk machine. To pair him not only with Lindor (who returned to action quickly following hamate surgery) but one of the best pure hitters in the sport in Bichette makes for a fearsome top of the order, even after Pete Alonso's departure. And the veteran Polanco is coming off a career year.
Where the Mets ultimately rank could come down to Alvarez’s health and what they get from their top position-player prospect Benge, who has pop and speed. New York could be legitimately one of the most dynamic offenses in the league … or an injury-riddled disappointment. Either way, it’s the Mets. So you know it’ll be entertaining.
7) Orioles
- Gunnar Henderson, SS
- Jordan Westburg, 3B
- Taylor Ward, LF
- Pete Alonso, 1B
- Adley Rutschman, C
- Samuel Basallo, DH
- Jackson Holliday, 2B
- Tyler O’Neill, RF
- Colton Cowser, CF
An iffy spring featuring a broken right hamate for Holliday and a right elbow issue for Westburg is an early bummer for Baltimore to overcome. That’s why the Orioles are not listed more prominently here. And obviously, this lauded core of position-player talent left a lot to be desired last year.
But the O’s added a ton of right-handed thump with Alonso and Ward, both of whom are durable. Henderson is an all-world shortstop. Young Basallo could be a beast. Rutschman, we know, has the talent to snap out of his prolonged slumber at some point.
You don’t have to squint very hard at all to see the O’s as a Top 5 offense.
8) Phillies
- Trea Turner, SS
- Kyle Schwarber, DH
- Bryce Harper, 1B
- Alec Bohm, 3B
- Brandon Marsh, LF
- Adolis García, RF
- Bryson Stott, 2B
- J.T. Realmuto, C
- Justin Crawford, CF
While the Phillies did cruise to the division crown last year, their offense was somewhat underwhelming relative to expectations. They didn’t have an elite season like they’ve had in the past. And I guess we will only find out if they become elite or if they continue to be good. Can they rise to the next level again? I don’t really know that answer. They’re the ones who will dictate that more than anything else.
Oh wait, sorry, I just accidentally repeated Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski’s oft-cited offseason thoughts on Harper, who one supposes will come into 2026 hungry to show that, yes, he’s still elite. But the comment applies to this offense at large. It’s Turner, Harper and Schwarber at the top, so it’s a Top 10 unit. But it’s also an aging unit with big questions at the bottom of the order, where we don’t yet know what No. 53 prospect Crawford can produce and where García is coming off two seasons so blah that they got him non-tendered.
9) Cubs
- Michael Busch, 1B
- Alex Bregman, 3B
- Ian Happ, LF
- Seiya Suzuki, RF
- Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF
- Nico Hoerner, 2B
- Dansby Swanson, SS
- Moisés Ballesteros, DH
- Carson Kelly, C
The Cubs ranked fifth in MLB in runs scored (793) and sixth in wRC+ (110) last year. But that production was significantly weighted toward the first half (512 runs), when Kyle Tucker was healthy and hammering the ball. The second half (281) was a much tougher watch. And while ostensibly replacing Tucker with Bregman adds a ton of intensity to this team, I’m not sure it adds more run production.
Still, the Cubbies have a high enough floor -- thanks to the underrated Busch, Suzuki and Happ, the dynamic Crow-Armstrong and the steady and durable Swanson -- to belong in the Top 10. Especially if prospect Ballesteros comes as advertised.
10) Diamondbacks
- Geraldo Perdomo, SS
- Ketel Marte, 2B
- Corbin Carroll, RF
- Gabriel Moreno, C
- Pavin Smith, DH
- Nolan Arenado, 3B
- Carlos Santana, 1B
- Jordan Lawlar, CF
- Alek Thomas, LF
Fun fact: The Snakes scored the most runs in MLB across the 2024-25 seasons (1,677).
Not so fun fact: They didn’t make the playoffs either of those years. But that’s on the pitching, ultimately, so there’s a lot to like about Arizona on a list like this.
What I don’t like is the hamate injury to Carroll, as that’s a potential power-sapper in the near-term. But if he recovers quickly, then the D-backs’ top three of Perdomo (.851 OPS in 2025), Carroll (.884) and Marte (.893) is as good and dynamic as you can find.
It gets much murkier from there, depending on what Arenado has left in the tank, if Smith and Moreno can each produce for a full season, if Lawlar can reach his ceiling, etc. But the Snakes still slink their way into the Top 10 because of their top three.
Honorable mentions: If Yordan Alvarez stays healthy, the Astros can ascend to the Top 10. … The Braves were an injury-riddled mess last year and still finished in the top half of MLB in runs scored. With health, they can rise up, though their projections are hurt by the suspension of Jurickson Profar. … The Royals moved their fences in and could be a Jac Caglianone and/or Carter Jensen breakout away from being a real handful. … The Red Sox lost Bregman but added Willson Contreras and will hopefully have a full season from superstar-in-the-making Roman Anthony. … The Tigers lack a superstar but did have a really good thing going offensively before their collapse down the stretch last season, and there is upside in their system.