Superstar pass rusher Myles Garrett walked through the cavernous cement tunnels of SoFi Stadium well after Cleveland’s 2023 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. A black SUV pulled up next to him; the window rolled down. Inside was Sean McVay.

“I didn’t f—ing sleep all week because of you,” the Rams head coach told Garrett, laughing. Ahead of that game, McVay and his offensive coaches had agonized over how to slow down Garrett, a player so dominant in his nine NFL seasons that he has twice won Defensive Player of the Year honors and broke the league’s single-season sack record last season.

Now, Garrett will play for McVay following Monday’s landscape-altering trade agreement between the Rams and Browns. In exchange for Garrett, Cleveland will receive third-year pass rusher Jared Verse (a first-round pick in 2024), a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-rounder and a 2029 third-rounder.

Garrett has had many complimentary interactions with coaches in his illustrious career. But McVay’s comments, Garrett once told The Athletic, would always stand out to him because of the Rams coach’s status in the league and his directness — and also because the two might never have crossed paths if Garrett had not left the locker room that day exactly when he did.

“The timing was impeccable,” he said. Years later, it would be again.

With a potential window to trade Garrett opening on June 1, the Rams and the Browns had been discussing a trade involving Garrett for months, starting in late March. By Saturday, it was agreed to but for a few final details, multiple league sources said. But if not for the specific timing of many variables — Garrett’s disappointment with Cleveland; his no-trade clause and recent contract adjustment; the Browns’ shift in team-building strategy; L.A.’s willingness to give up a favorite young player; even the Rams’ controversial first-round selection in April’s NFL Draft — such a seismic move could never have happened.

Even a few days before it became official, the trade’s magnitude still felt a little unbelievable to the people involved. As one high-ranking team source put it: “This is gonna break the NFL.”

The Rams have coveted Garrett for years. He’s one of McVay’s favorite players — ever. The coach believes Garrett could eventually be regarded as the best outside pass rusher of all time.

Featuring him within the defense, the Rams’ decision makers believe, will give them a similar advantage to the one they enjoyed with future Hall of Fame defensive lineman Aaron Donald. Donald’s dominance required the attention of multiple players on every snap, similar to Garrett — whose double-team rate on pass rush snaps was nearly 60 percent last season, per Pro Football Focus, the second highest of any defensive lineman. When an offense dedicates its blocking and protection plan to either stopping or shifting the play direction away from one player, it becomes vastly more predictable to their opponent. Further, Garrett’s ability to win quickly and close on the quarterback, and to convert that pressure into hits and sacks, has long reminded the Rams of the benefits Donald used to give the second and third levels of their defense, especially the secondary in coverage.

McVay and his coaching staff used to joke with each other: “Who is the best cornerback on our roster? … It’s Aaron Donald.”

Aaron Donald was an offense-wrecking star for Sean McVay and the Rams. (Harry How / Getty Images)

L.A. first called the Browns to inquire about Garrett’s availability in 2022 as the Rams attempted to repeat as Super Bowl champions, according to a league source.

That season was ultimately disastrous, due to the Rams’ injuries and McVay’s own burnout. Cleveland also was not open to trading Garrett at the time. Rams leadership discussed moving for him again the following offseason before ultimately opting for a teardown into 2023, rebuilding their roster through strong draft classes that spring and in 2024.

Meanwhile, the Browns were mired in the disastrous results of their 2022 trade for quarterback Deshaun Watson, which cost Cleveland three future first-round picks. The Browns also gave a fully guaranteed $230 million contract to Watson, who was embroiled in multiple sexual assault allegations at the time. He was ultimately suspended for 11 games after an NFL investigation into the allegations, then missed more time due to injury. From 2022 through 2025, the Browns went 26-42. Watson has played in just 19 of those 68 games, as his salary and the vacuum of picks acted as anchors on Cleveland’s roster.

In February 2025, with Cleveland coming off a 3-14 season, Garrett requested a trade, to no avail. Though he received a four-year, $123 million contract extension from the Browns in early March of that year, the perception of a philosophical schism between him and the team lingered.

Garrett had expressed a desire to compete for championships, a possibility still years away for Cleveland. His new deal also carried a no-trade clause, a powerful tool that players view as a way to maintain some control.

By the time the 2025 season ended, he had claimed the single-season sack record but had played in just three postseason games over nine years. In an open rebuild, the Browns had drafted well in 2025, their roster featuring several young starters and key contributors. And Garrett had acquired a significant position of influence in the organization — yet the organization was not winning.

At the start of this offseason, the Browns hired a new head coach in Todd Monken, the former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator. Monken was set to be the fourth head coach of Garrett’s career. He had also been chosen over then-defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz — a coach to whom Garrett was very loyal, and who angrily resigned after Monken was hired.

At the end of March, the Browns and Garrett agreed to a contract modification that deferred a total of $29 million in bonus payments over the next three years. Because the modification created no immediate salary-cap space for the Browns and pushed around $10 million in guaranteed money for Garrett from March to a week before the start of the regular season in September, it immediately told teams that his trade window was open — even if Cleveland general manager Andrew Berry publicly denied it.

With Garrett’s contract adjusted, the Rams saw a sliver of possibility. They had already decided they could move future picks for the right player — engaging earlier that month with the Eagles on a potential A.J. Brown trade before backing out.

So they dialed up the Browns. Other teams did, too. Berry fended off multiple trade calls after the contract broke, a league source said.

Then the NFL’s general managers, head coaches and other team executives arrived in Scottsdale, Ariz. for the league’s annual meetings.

As a long line of high-ranking NFL personnel filed into a ballroom at the Phoenix Biltmore at the end of March, McVay caught sight of Berry and beelined toward him.

Laughing, McVay bumped Berry’s shoulder and ribbed him about the rule change proposal the Browns had recently submitted for consideration to the NFL’s competition committee, on which McVay serves.

The Browns suggested in the proposal that teams should be able to trade draft picks five years in advance, instead of three as currently allowed. The proposal had some support — including publicly from members of the Rams’ own executive team — but not much, and it was not expected to pass, although it drew much discussion between organizations. McVay shut the proposal down completely in a televised appearance before it advanced into formal committee circulation. (It’s unusual for members of the Rams’ leadership group to disagree privately, even if they might do so in public.)

The proposal, especially in tandem with Garrett’s adjusted contract, drew more speculation: First the Browns made Garrett more tradeable — were they now trying to increase compensation flexibility for interested teams?

“Myles is a career Brown,” Berry said, when asked by Cleveland-area reporters at the league meetings whether he could unequivocally say that the Browns would not be trading Garrett. “He is one of the faces of our organization. I think we’ve been very clear both past and present in terms of our goals. I understand all the questions. I’ll be honest, I don’t really want to waste a ton more breath on the topic.”

Myles Garrett set the single-season sack record in the 2025 season, but the Browns finished in last place, far from the playoff chase. (Dylan Buell / Getty Images)

But that friendly interaction between McVay and Berry at the league meetings previewed many weeks of continued conversations between the two teams. The Rams stayed persistent, with Berry and L.A. general manager Les Snead bouncing terms off of each other frequently during that time.

Nothing was officially agreed upon until a few days ago. But by the NFL Draft, the teams’ joint confidence that they’d get the trade done in large part informed the Rams’ surprising pick at No. 13, Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, multiple team and league sources said.

The selection itself was controversial at the time, in part because few analysts predicted that Simpson would actually go in the first round, much less in its top half. McVay also was surly in his press conference after the first night of the draft, which did not help the optics around the pick and stirred speculation that Simpson was not his preferred choice. Privately, though, McVay had raved to people about Simpson for a couple of weeks and believed the team could develop him into a legitimate starting quarterback, especially given the cushion of time the Rams still expected to get from reigning MVP and current starter Matthew Stafford.

(McVay has since explained that he didn’t want to tout the pick in his news conference out of respect for Stafford — who incidentally had not yet agreed to the terms of his new contract — and league sources said he was additionally reacting to a personal situation that had occurred right before the news conference.)

It was true that Stafford’s age (38), plus backup Jimmy Garoppolo contemplating retirement, had already prompted more urgency on the part of the Rams than in previous offseasons to figure out a longer-term solution for a post-Stafford era.

But securing the future of that position also meant the Rams could use other first-round picks to make a major trade — and in this case, their sights were firmly set on Garrett. “If you’re gonna trade future first-round picks for a player, you had better know who your quarterback is gonna be,” said a high-ranking team source.

The Rams once put together a roster full of star players, many of whom were acquired via trade, and they won Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles. This season, L.A. again hosts the Super Bowl and the Rams believe they are following a similar formula. Where that championship team featured Donald, cornerback Jalen Ramsey, receiver Cooper Kupp and Stafford, this one will feature Garrett, cornerback Trent McDuffie (for whom they traded as free agency began and then extended on a four-year, $124 million contract), receiver Puka Nacua and Stafford. This time, though, they hope to be cost-controlled at quarterback on the other side of a title run and “built better” overall, in the words of a team source.

Nacua and other players currently on rookie deals are due extensions soon; the combination of those finances, factoring in Garrett’s and McDuffie’s contracts (the Rams don’t plan to change Garrett’s existing deal right now, multiple team sources said) and an uncertain Stafford timeline further encouraged their pick of Simpson. They also didn’t want to get caught among other teams aiming to maneuver into the upper first round for a quarterback next spring.

Meanwhile, league sources believe the Browns are gathering ammunition with an eye on next year’s touted quarterback class, should their current options at the position not take a step forward. Moving away from Garrett also signals a more complete shift into their young roster after back to back years of drafting well.

Now Verse figures into that equation for Cleveland. League sources said that getting one of the Rams’ young pass rushers back in a trade was crucial for the Browns. Verse, the 2024 Defensive Rookie of the Year with two years left on his rookie deal plus a fifth-year option, fit the bill.

“As we embark on a new era of Browns football with a young core and a replenished asset base, we felt this move was important to our transition,” said Berry in a statement released by the team on Monday afternoon. “Chief among the considerations to make the decision was the inclusion of Jared Verse, a player our fan base will love.”

For McVay, the idea of parting with a player from the Rams’ young core was his only reason for pause throughout the process. He also did not want the details to leak before he got a chance to speak with Verse. The teams agreed to try to keep everything as quiet as possible until the two could speak, according to multiple league sources. A source with knowledge of their conversation said that Verse handled it “with pure class.”

Monday afternoon in Cleveland, the Browns hosted their annual charity golf outing at Akron’s Firestone Country Club.

Monken, scheduled for a media availability as per the event’s tradition, spoke to local reporters about the possibility that Garrett could be traded, among other topics. He mostly did not discuss the superstar player he still had not met with in person since becoming Cleveland’s head coach.

He said that, as it related to Garrett’s status and the roster itself, the day was no different than any other since he took the job.

About 50 yards from Monken’s scrum, and minutes before news of the trade broke, Berry paced back and forth in a parking lot while talking on his phone.

It was sunny and mild, a perfect Ohio day. It would actually be very different than any other.

Every week,​ we​ ask a selected group of our baseball​ writers​ — local and national — to rank the teams from first to worst. Here are the collective results.

Two months into a major-league season, the picture starts to clarify. We’ve got a feel for the really good teams and the really bad ones, too. We’ve got our eyes on the teams we can’t quite believe are where they are this deep into the season. And we’re setting the landscape for the individual award races that we’ll talk about the rest of the way.

This week, we’re looking at the top award candidates for each team. While the MVP races might feel the slightest bit stale, the Cy Young race in the National League might be an all-timer. The Rookie of the Year races in both leagues are unusually strong. And all those surprising teams mean the Manager of the Year races are crowded with contenders, proving our preseason predictions wrong.

All stats are through Monday morning unless stated. 

Record: 38-22
Last Power Ranking: 1

Top awards candidate: Shohei Ohtani, NL MVP

Oddly enough, Ohtani probably has a better shot at MVP than Cy Young, thanks to a loaded cast of thriving NL pitchers. Cristopher Sánchez, Jacob Misiorowski, Chase Burns and Chris Sale have all been sensational, but none of them also boasts a .400 on-base percentage. So, ho hum.

Ohtani remains the favorite to win his fifth MVP award, and his fourth in a row, which would tie Barry Bonds’ record (2001-04). During that stretch, Bonds’ record-setting home run binges and unparalleled walk rates and OPS marks twisted our brains into a pretzel shape. Ohtani has done similar things in recent years, as we ponder how such a prolific hitter could also thrive on the mound. Well, here he goes again, this time showcasing the arm — he has a 0.82 ERA and hitters have a .447 OPS against him — more than the bat. — Zack Meisel

Record: 40-20
Last Power Ranking: 2

Top awards candidate: Chris Sale, NL Cy Young Award

Oh boy, the National League Cy Young Award race already looks incredible — to the point that Sale’s 8-3 record and 2.01 ERA look only pedestrian. After all, the left-hander allowed eight whole runs in May — which is seven more than Cristopher Sánchez and Jacob Misiorowski combined to yield. But there are still four months to go, and it’s hard to count out Sale over the long run, as long as he stays healthy, of course. The 2024 winner has revitalized his career with Atlanta and has served as a leader for a surprisingly dominant pitching staff. — Tim Britton

Record: 36-23
Last Power Ranking: T-3

Top awards candidate: Cam Schlittler, AL Cy Young Award

The competition for the American League Cy Young Award isn’t quite as captivating as it is in the senior circuit, thanks to injuries to last year’s top three finishers. Schlittler has surged to the forefront of a race with a lot of new faces, including Chicago’s Davis Martin and Cleveland’s Parker Messick. Throwing 90 percent fastballs, the 25-year-old Schlittler has allowed six earned runs over his last eight starts, covering more than 50 innings. His ERA and FIP are both below 2.00, and only Dylan Cease is striking out hitters at a higher rate in the AL. — Britton

Record: 36-21
Last Power Ranking: 5

Top awards candidate: Jacob Misiorowski, NL Cy Young Award

No qualified starting pitcher in the American or National League has more strikeouts, a lower WHIP or a lower opponents’ batting average than The Miz. Among qualified NL starters, he’s second in ERA to Cristopher Sánchez. The control issues that bit him in the second half of last season have seemingly gone away, and those who are fortunate enough to make contact aren’t barreling the ball.

Here’s the kicker: He’s doing it all while throwing 100 mph or faster, consistently.

He opened his start on Sunday against the Astros by firing 14 straight pitches at 100 mph or higher.

Yeah, that’s scary. — Johnny Flores Jr.

Record: 36-21
Last Power Ranking: T-3

Top awards candidate: Kevin Cash, AL Manager of the Year

The majors’ longest-tenured manager is at it again, leading the Rays to the American League’s best record through two months. As usual for Tampa Bay, an excellent pitching staff has been supplemented by a bunch of different contributors on the offensive end. You’ve got to give Cash credit — heh heh — for getting the most out of that lineup. Nothing about the personnel suggests it should be second in the AL in runs per game. Heck, nothing about every other stat the Rays’ offense is compiling suggests it should be second in the AL in runs per game. Yet, here they are. — Britton

Record: 32-29
Last Power Ranking: 11

Top awards candidate: Insert Mariners Starting Pitcher Here, AL Cy Young Award

No, that’s not an error that snuck past an editor. It’s a call for one of these Seattle starters to take charge. Emerson Hancock sports the best ERA of the bunch. Bryan Woo is smiled upon most favorably by fWAR. Logan Gilbert has the best strikeout rate in the group. George Kirby leads the pack in innings. Any of the four could get on a roll for a few months and crash an AL Cy Young Award party that is operating with an open invitation. It’s Cam Schlittler, Nick Martinez, Davis Martin, Parker Messick, José Soriano — five pitchers without extensive, award-winning track records — at the top. And then a bunch of Mariners and other pitchers who could use the first two months as a springboard into a banner season. So, pick the Mariner you trust most. — Meisel

Record: 32-28
Last Power Ranking: 6

Top awards candidate: Pete Crow-Armstrong, NL Gold Glove

By season’s end, PCA is unlikely to live down the “Little League homer” he allowed against the Milwaukee Brewers and David Hamilton, a player with a 76 wRC+.

🚨 DAVID HAMILTON LITTLE LEAGUE HOME RUN 🚨 pic.twitter.com/P2rUVVfTiw

— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) May 21, 2026

However, let’s try and shift the narrative.

PCA leads all outfielders in Outs Above Average with 12. The next closest, Boston’s Ceddanne Rafaela, has 9. Those 12 OAA are second to just Bobby Witt Jr.’s 15 for the MLB-wide lead. Among all position players, PCA is tied with Cody Bellinger for the Defensive Runs Saved lead with 13.

Crow-Armstrong’s 2.4 fWAR is good enough for 13th in baseball, almost all of it attributed to his defense, though the bat is picking up.

When the 24-year-old called his defensive miscues “genuinely laughable,” he was correct. — Flores 

Record: 32-28
Last Power Ranking: 8

Top awards candidate: Brandon Lowe, NL Silver Slugger

Let me preface this by saying, Konnor Griffin will almost certainly get down-ballot Rookie of the Year votes, and counting out Paul Skenes for the Cy Young would be ill-advised.

Instead, allow me to highlight a rare drought that could end this season.

The Pirates have not had a Silver Slugger winner since Andrew McCutchen in 2015. It’s the longest active drought for that award among all teams. Even the Rockies, White Sox and Marlins have had a more recent winner than Pittsburgh.

The only Pirate to win at second base was one Johnny Ray in 1983. Lowe can change that, but it’s going to take a strong finish.

Between qualified NL second basemen, the fWAR leaderboards look like this:

1. Xavier Edwards: 2.6
2. JJ Wetherholt: 2.5
3. Brandon Lowe: 2.3

In wRC+:

1. Edwards: 148
2. Lowe: 142
3. Brice Turang: 137

Lowe leads everyone in homers and slugging percentage by a comfortable margin. Edwards isn’t going anywhere, and neither is Wetherholt, making the Silver Slugger yet another fascinating awards race in the NL. That Pittsburgh could end an awards and playoff drought in the same season is all the more reason to watch the club. — Flores 

Record: 34-27
Last Power Ranking: 9

Top awards candidate: Cade Smith, AL Reliever of the Year

This year, MLB Awards Week will be a bit longer, as the BBWAA will award its first AL and NL Reliever of the Year, an award our Jayson Stark has been campaigning for for years.

Barring injury — even then, he’d probably still win off his early dominance alone — Mason Miller will take home the NL award.

As for the AL, well, it’s complicated.

Toronto’s Louis Varland and Boston’s Aroldis Chapman have ERAs of 0.29 and 0.48, respectively  Neither comes close to Smith’s league-leading save total of 20.

I have no clue how my fellow BBWAA members will vote, and whether they’ll value the save, WAR, ERA, or some combination. All I know is Smith will firmly be in the conversation. — Flores 

Record: 32-26
Last Power Ranking: 7

Top awards candidate: Mason Miller, NL Reliever of the Year

His ERA is 0.72. His FIP is 0.48. He has struck out 51 percent of the hitters naive enough to step into the batter’s box against him this season. Is your head spinning yet? His fastball has averaged 101.2 mph. His slider has induced a 63 percent whiff rate. Are you spellbound? Speechless?

He leads all pitchers in whiff rate, strikeout rate, barrel rate, hard-hit rate, expected batting average, expected slugging percentage, expected ERA and expected to be name-dropped at hitters’ therapy sessions. Hitters are 0-for-13 with 11 strikeouts against him when he’s pitching on zero days’ rest. He has allowed a .338 OPS at home and a .338 OPS on the road. His .119 opponent slugging percentage is lower than the league-average pitcher’s slugging percentage (.142) in the final year before the universal designated hitter was instituted. The new CBA ought to include a provision in which his ninth innings are simulated to further reduce the average time of game. — Meisel

Record: 32-27
Last Power Ranking: 10

Top awards candidate: Corbin Carroll, NL MVP

Carroll ranks in the top 10 in the NL in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, wRC+, and if he could just pitch at a Cy Young level, he’d have a great shot at NL MVP. He ranks fourth among NL hitters in fWAR, a tick behind the three sluggers in front of him. Though he has socked only seven homers, he ranks third in the NL in extra-base hits, in part, because he has twice as many triples (eight) as anyone else. Perhaps a fairer representation here is to say he’s a candidate to be an MVP finalist. Or, even fairer: He’s one of the more entertaining hitters to watch in the NL. — Meisel

Record: 32-28
Last Power Ranking: 21

Top awards candidate: Miguel Vargas, AL Silver Slugger

Originally, I had Munetaka Murakami for AL Rookie of the Year, a position I defended in The Athletic’s Season Predictions 2.0. That was before Murakami landed on the IL. He’ll still get down-ballot RoY votes and will be in the conversation for Silver Slugger at first base, but the Steiner Math says his odds have drastically gone down.

Instead, let’s turn our attention to Vargas.

If you eliminate Kevin McGonigle from the mix, who’s primarily a shortstop, Vargas is tied for the fWAR lead among AL third baseman (1.9), is third in wRC+ (134), tied for first in homers and first in runs scored.

After a rough second half in 2024 following his trade from the Dodgers, Vargas has improved in each of the following two seasons, showing the promise that had him among the sport’s top prospects in 2023. That promise should end with a shiny silver bat for his mantle. — Flores 

Record: 31-27
Last Power Ranking: 12

Top awards candidate: JJ Wetherholt, NL Rookie of the Year

The Cardinals’ 2024 first-round pick has been at the center of a competitive St. Louis club, contributing on both sides of the ball. If the season ended today, Wetherholt would unanimously win the award. It’s hard not to imagine that being the case in September, either.

Wetherholt’s 2.5 fWAR leads all rookies, AL or NL. At nine homers and seven stolen bases through the first 1/3 of the season, he should comfortably finish at 20/20. He’s leads in Outs Above Average (10) among all qualified second basemen.

When it comes to Defensive Runs Saved, Wetherholt is second to the Mariners’ Cole Young, with nine. That’s six more than Platinum Glove winner Brice Turang. The rookie record for DRS as a second baseman is 12. Which is to say, if he keeps pace, it’s not just Rookie of the Year that Wetherholt will be taking home this year. — Flores 

Record: 29-31
Last Power Ranking: 13

Top awards candidate: Josh Jung, AL batting champ

Jung was an All-Star as a rookie in 2023, but this is truly his breakout season, with a .316/.372/.495 slash line through the first two-ish months of the season. That batting average leads the AL and trounces every average he recorded in his previous few seasons. It helps that he’s sliced his strikeout rate from 25.2 to 15 percent. The more captivating thing to monitor is whether he can fend off a loaded field of third basemen to win a Silver Slugger Award. To this point, Jung’s 145 wRC+ outpaces that of Junior Caminero, Miguel Vargas, José Ramírez and Maikel Garcia. — Meisel

Record: 30-29
Last Power Ranking: 14

Top awards candidate: Cristopher Sánchez, NL Cy Young

What’s the most dominant stretch of starting pitching you’ve ever seen, and how close is Sánchez to surpassing it? He just completed one of the greatest months we’ve ever seen: 39 innings, 25 hits, 45 strikeouts, three walks, zero runs. Zero runs. Let’s go back to 1920 and see who else has thrown at least 30 innings in a month without allowing a run:

1988 Orel Hershiser

That’s the list! Sánchez is trying to chase down Hershiser’s record scoring streak, and even with Jacob Misiorowski throwing 103, the most remarkable number in this remarkable Cy Young race is still that zero. — Britton

Record: 29-31
Last Power Ranking: 15

Top awards candidate: Louis Varland, AL Reliever of the Year

Jeff Hoffman’s loss has been Varland’s gain late in games for the Blue Jays. Replacing Hoffman as Toronto’s closer in late April, Varland is 8-for-8 in saves and has allowed one — that’s one — earned run all season. Varland is striking out 35 percent of opposing hitters, and it’s especially enjoyable to watch him follow Tyler Rogers out of the Toronto ‘pen. Varland’s curveball is five mph harder than Rogers’ fastball. — Britton

Record: 31-30
Last Power Ranking: 19

Top awards candidate: Blake Butera, NL Manager of the Year

It’s June, and the Nationals are in second place, which puts the start of this season on par with the memorable opens to 2005 and 2012 for Washington. Butera probably doesn’t mind comparisons to Frank Robinson and Davey Johnson, then. The Nats haven’t lost a series in their last six, and that includes series wins over Atlanta, Cleveland and San Diego in the last three. The offense still leads the league in scoring, and the pitching staff’s ERA went from 5.11 in April to 4.08 in May. The wild-card landscape in the NL is tougher than in the AL, but the Nats are very much part of the conversation.  — Britton

Record: 30-29
Last Power Ranking: 22

Top awards candidate: Elly De La Cruz, NL Gold Glove

As far as I can tell, the tallest shortstop to ever win a Gold Glove is Cal Ripken, who was listed at 6-foot-4. This, however, was before MLB began using laser tracking to have definitive height measurements. In other words, Iron Man was probably closer to 6-foot-2.

Enter De La Cruz, who, at an official 6-foot-6, could set a record.

If he does win out, assuming his hamstring injury isn’t season-cratering, then it would be a deserved honor. De La Cruzleads all NL shortstops in Outs Above Average (six). He’s prevented five runs, also an NL lead. He’s also third in defensive value on FanGraphs for shorstops.

What De La Cruz can do at his height is astounding. For reference, Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is also billed at 6-foot-6. I don’t think he could foul bait himself into doing things like this:

Our shortstop, Elly De La Cruz. @ellylacocoa18 pic.twitter.com/LJrLAauVfU

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) May 16, 2026

— Flores 

Record: 25-33
Last Power Ranking: 20

Top awards candidate: Ceddanne Rafaela, AL Gold Glove

At the start of the season, the Red Sox were a popular pick to win the division and maybe even the pennant, with Roman Anthony a dark-horse MVP candidate, Garrett Crochet an obvious Cy Young frontrunner and Alex Cora a reasonable choice to win Manager of the Year. Alas, two months in, Anthony and Crochet are on the IL, Cora is enjoying time with his family, and the Red Sox are in last place. Rafaela is pretty easily the best defensive center fielder in the American League, and just about the only young position player living up to his potential in Boston this season. — Britton

Record: 28-31
Last Power Ranking: 16

Top awards candidate: Shea Langeliers, AL Silver Slugger

If you’re feeling frisky, you could swap out Silver Slugger for AL MVP. Stop. Stop laughing. It’s legitimate. Langeliers ranks fifth in the AL in fWAR, eighth in wRC+, eighth in home runs, eighth in batting average and fifth in slugging percentage. He’s simply having a splendid season, with a .293/.365/.544 slash line. And before you shrug it off as a cute start for a guy who plays half his games in Sacramento, know that since the All-Star break last year, he ranks second in the AL in fWAR (behind only Bobby Witt Jr.), second in average and second in slugging.

This year, he rates well at blocking pitches behind the plate and rates above-average in throwing out potential base-stealers. So, yeah, MVP isn’t far-fetched, but we’ll play it safe for now with a Silver Slugger Award. — Meisel

Record: 26-34
Last Power Ranking: 24

Top awards candidate: Juan Soto, NL MVP

Visualizing a Met winning an award right now is kind of like Homer Simpson imagining what it would take to defeat Drederick Tatum: Something bad has to happen elsewhere. For the time being, Soto is building another case for a top-five finish in the MVP balloting. He’s homered in nine of his last 15 games, entering Monday, and is on pace for the best slugging percentage and OPS+ of his career for a 162-game season. — Britton

Record: 27-34
Last Power Ranking: 27

Top awards candidate: Yordan Alvarez, AL MVP

The Astros have endured a rotten first half of the season, but there’s no inkling they’d consider trading Alvarez this summer. Can you imagine the price tag if they did choose to shop him? Houston could surely obtain more than, say, a reliever of Josh Fields’ caliber. Fields had a few solid years with the Dodgers, pitching to a 2.61 ERA across 117 1/3 innings. In exchange for Fields in 2016, the Dodgers coughed up Alvarez. Let’s all take a moment to empathize with the Dodgers for that folly.

A decade later, Alvarez is at the peak of his powers. He leads the AL in home runs. He’s fourth in average, second in on-base percentage, second in slugging, second in OPS, second in wRC+, second in fWAR and first in opposing pitchers saying obscenities. — Meisel

Record: 28-32
Last Power Ranking: 26

Top awards candidate: Rico Garcia, AL Reliever of the Year

Last year, Garcia was designated for assignment three times. This year, it wasn’t until May 19 — 22 appearances and 20 innings in — that Garcia allowed his third hit of the season out of the Baltimore bullpen. The 32-year-old journeyman has been a revelation for the Orioles, allowing one hit all of April and a measly six in all of May. Opponents are hitting .086 off him. It’s even worse for righties, who are 1-for-35. Credit to Michael Massey. — Britton

Record: 28-33
Last Power Ranking: 17

Top awards candidate: Byron Buxton, AL Silver Slugger

Normally, when players turn 30, they begin to see a drop off. That’s not been the case with Buxton. He’s been every bit as good, if not better, in his Age 30-32 seasons than he’d been at his “peak” of 26-29.

That production should get him his third All-Star nomination in July and his second Silver Slugger come November.

Among all American League outfielders, Buxton is fourth in fWAR (2.0), tied for first in homers (17) and third in wRC+ (142). He leads in ISO, 18 points ahead of power slugger Aaron Judge.

If there’s one thing that can cut into Buxton’s chances, it’s his outfield usage and health. As The Athletic’s Dan Hayes reported, Buxton is nursing a sore right hip flexor muscle and a bum right shoulder, shifting him from center field to the DH spot. If he were to fall into the DH race, then he’d be up against Yordan Alvarez and Ben Rice. No thank you. — Flores 

Record: 27-34
Last Power Ranking: 18

Top awards candidate: Xavier Edwards, NL Silver Slugger

Second base is a surprisingly loaded field in the National League, with Brandon Lowe, JJ Wetherholt, Luis Arraez and Brice Turang also having excellent years. But Edwards has been the best of them to this point, rebounding from a mediocre 2025 to fulfill the considerable prospect promise he had despite being traded twice earlier in his career. Edwards’ offense is fueled by his outstanding plate discipline: He doesn’t chase, he doesn’t swing and miss, he doesn’t strike out, and he mitigates one of the slower bats in the league by always finding the sweet spot. — Britton

Record: 23-38
Last Power Ranking: 23

Top awards candidate: Kevin McGonigle, AL Rookie of the Year

Baseball’s consensus No. 2-ranked prospect entering the 2026 season, McGonigle has not just been one of the best rookies in the AL or NL but one of the best position players outright this season. His 2.4 fWAR ranks in the Top 20 of all players, leading all AL rookies and just .1 behind JJ Wetherholt.

No rookie has more hits or doubles than McGonigle. He’s second in walks to Munetaka Murakami and his 35 strikeouts are among the fewest of qualified rookies. Based on xSLG, McGonigle should probably have a few more homers — .407 actual vs. .447 expected. The defense, however, is still a work in progress.

Still, for a Tigers team that has had almost everything go wrong this season, McGonigle is one of the lone bright spots. — Flores 

Record: 23-37
Last Power Ranking: 28

Top awards candidate: Luis Arraez, NL batting champ

A decade ago, Major League Baseball renamed the batting titles after Rod Carew (AL) and Tony Gwynn (NL). Since then, Luis Arraez has made a habit of collecting the hardware. Arraez trails only Miami’s Otto Lopez in the NL race this year and if he can catch him and fend off everybody else over the next four months, he’ll win his fourth batting crown with his fourth different team. And, fine, if you don’t consider this a traditional award worthy of this space, we can pivot to Matt Chapman vying for his sixth Gold Glove Award. Although, come to think of it, you know who’s been surprisingly proficient defensively at second base this year? Arraez. — Meisel

Record: 23-38
Last Power Ranking: 29

Top awards candidate: Mike Trout, AL Comeback Player of the Year

You thought he was done. It’s OK, you can admit it. You thought he was too old, too injured, too tired of the Angels’ misguided ways. You didn’t think this was possible that Trout could still produce like one of the league’s most imposing figures at the plate. Here he is, on pace for 38 homers and career-high-shattering 151 walks. Here he is, parading around with a .903 OPS, like it’s 2022 or something. The best part is he’s stayed on the field. He has started 59 of the Angels’ 60 games. He’s always on base. He’s walloping the baseball. He’s resisting pitches out of the zone. And all of his output is coming in spite of plenty of ineptitude around him. What’s old is new. — Meisel

Record: 23-37
Last Power Ranking: 25

Top awards candidate: Bobby Witt Jr., AL MVP

Royals fans, I think this is the year.

The league-leader in fWAR is putting up another five-tool season. He should, at the very least, have another 20-20 season, potentially 20-40. No one has more Outs Above Average than Witt’s 15, or has generated as much defensive value as he has.

With Aaron Judge looking mortal — and by mortal, I mean not putting up a wRC+ that mirrors the speed of F1 cars or an OPS that looks like the seating capacity of a small theater — attention can turn to Witt.

It’s been 46 years since the Royals have had an AL MVP. If he keeps it up, that won’t be the only accolade he’ll have for his age-26 season. 2026 All-Star, Silver Slugger, Gold Glove, Platinum Glove and AL MVP winner Bobby Witt Jr. has a really nice ring to it. — Flores

Record: 23-38
Last Power Ranking: 30

Top awards candidate: T.J. Rumfield, NL Rookie of the Year

Look, this assignment is as difficult as a kindergartner trying to complete calculus homework. Antonio Senzatela has pitched wonderfully, but Mason Miller exists, so the Reliever of the Year Award doesn’t seem attainable. Mickey Moniak has been the club’s most productive hitter, but he’s on the injured list and there’s plenty of competition in a Silver Slugger race.

Sigh.

We’ll go with Rumfield, acquired in January from the Yankees for Angel Chivilli. Is that enough to earn Paul DePodesta Executive of the Year? No? OK, we’ll stick with Rumfield, who ranks fourth among NL rookie hitters in fWAR, second in average, third in homers, third in slugging and second in OPS. — Meisel

Liverpool are in advanced talks with Andoni Iraola as they look to appoint a new head coach following the sacking of Arne Slot.

Iraola left Bournemouth at the end of the season and is the clear favourite for the role at Anfield.

Liverpool are keen to make an appointment at the earliest possible opportunity and want a manager who fits their preferred playing style, which is to deliver front-foot, aggressive football.

No approaches have yet been made with regard to Iraola’s potential coaching staff, but the 43-year-old Spaniard is keen on bringing his assistant at Bournemouth, Tommy Elphick, a lifelong Liverpool fan, with him.

BBC Sport understands that Elphick has had no contact yet from the Reds but would be interested in the opportunity.

The hiring process is being led by Richard Hughes, Liverpool‘s sporting director, who previously worked with Iraola at the Cherries.

The Reds sacked Slot on Saturday, just a year after the Dutchman guided them to the Premier League title.