Three Rebuilding Teams That Look Surprisingly Competent in 2026
The Rockies, Cardinals, and Marlins have all outperformed expectations in 2026. How much of what we've seen so far is sustainable?
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Rebuild. A two-syllable word that carries a lot of weight and emotion throughout a fan base. A signal that you’d better sit back and be patient because you will have to go through tough times and endure a few long summers before your team rights the ship.
As you know, a rebuild typically consists of tearing a team down, collecting younger and cheaper assets, and losing along the way. Many believe this is the most effective way to avoid the purgatory of winning 82 games and never being good enough to push for the playoffs or bad enough to collect high draft picks.
While this typically results in lost seasons you’ll eventually forget, sometimes a team will surprise you.
Although the 2026 season is young and perhaps dishonest, the Rockies, Cardinals, and Marlins have all outperformed what we had imagined they would look like in 2026. Are these strides from a change in leadership and approach to team building, a sign of a team on the rise, or just dumb luck?
St. Louis Cardinals: 15-13 (.536)
- Projected Win Total: 69.5
- Win pace: 90
Over the past two years, the Cardinals have moved on from notable names such as Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and Brendan Donovan, making the organization’s direction clear. For the first time since the turn of the century, St. Louis was facing its first true rebuild.
Instead of bringing in proven veterans to fill out the roster, the Cardinals left the door open to younger players and provided a runway to see which would stick into the future. Of their regular nine, only two – Alec Burleson and Pedro Pages – are over 26 years old, both 27. The message to allow competition amongst their homegrown talent was clear.
Jordan Walker was given another chance and has made the most of it: a .275/.357/.549 slash with a 153 wRC+ and eight home runs, more than he has hit in either of the past two seasons. His swing looks better, and it has resulted in him lifting the ball more, which was needed to unlock his talent.
St. Louis also brought top prospect JJ Wetherholt into the mix, and he has hit the ground running. An advanced hitter with great bat-to-ball skills and enough juice to leave the yard has helped the Cardinals atop their lineup.
The offense always had enough talent to see this type of start as a possibility. They currently rank 12th in wRC+, which is better than most had predicted and the reason they have started off so hot. Pitching, well, that’s a different story.
St. Louis currently ranks 27th in ERA with a 4.77 ERA and has not found many answers. Dustin May was the reclamation project, and so far, he has been underwhelming. Matthew Liberatore and Andre Pallante are showing you they are exactly what they have always been, back-end level starters.
In the bullpen, the Cardinals have found something with Riley O’Brien. He has always had good stuff, but command held him back. Not this year. A 10.05 K/9 and only 0.63 BB/9 have pushed him into the closer’s role, where he’s excelled.
While I think the Cardinals’ pitching will eventually be more of an anchor, their offense is showing signs of sustainability. Once Michael McGreevy sees a few more of his prospect friends join him in the rotation, you could see some fun arms give the Cardinals a fighting chance each night.
Colorado Rockies: 13-16 (.448)
- Projected Win Total: 54.5
- Win Pace: 73
If you have followed baseball for some time, you know the Rockies are the most predictable team. They sign their own mediocre pitchers to long-term deals, bring in a cast of veterans, and shoot for .500.
However, the Rockies revamped their front office after an embarrassing 43-win season in 2025, and what we are seeing looks like a different organization.
Let’s start with their pitching, which has seen major improvement. The Rockies are currently 15th in team ERA with a 4.07 ERA, a major jump from their last-place 5.99 ERA in 2025. Chase Dollander has blossomed since being used behind an opener, and Antonio Senzatela looks like a completely different pitcher out of the bullpen.
The singing of Tomoyuki Sugano came with a lot of concern at the time, but he is currently pitching to the tune of a 3.42 ERA and managing Coors Field well. The front office has found a few gems in their bullpen, and suddenly the Rockies look like a team that isn’t a laughingstock.
Offensively, Colorado still has some issues. Edouard Julien has been a solid reclamation project, and Mickey Moniak is proving 2025 was not a fluke, but overall, the lineup has fallen short. The rest of the outfield is not proving their potential, and Ezequiel Tovar has been underwhelming to say the least.
Luckily, offensive help could be on the way with Charlie Condon, Cole Carrig, and perhaps Sterling Thompson and everyone’s favorite offseason story Zac Veen. The Rockies have been able to find offense in the past, but the changes they have made across their organization with pitching are what really catch my eye and make me believe the dark days are starting to see the light.
Washington Nationals: 13-16 (.448)
- Projected Win Total: 65.5
- Win Pace: 73
The Nationals were at a point in their rebuild where it looked like they might need to restart. The Juan Soto trade netted about the best package you could have hoped for, but timelines were not aligning. A new front office took over and moved MacKenzie Gore to recoup some more assets.
This season is yet another year of trying to find out which pieces are part of the core going forward. What we have seen so far is a better brand of baseball. More competitive at-bats, better base running, and smarter managerial decisions. The most important players to the rebuild are also standing out.
James Wood’s second-half slump caused some caution amongst fans. He’s since answered with a 162 wRC+ and 10 home runs while more consistently flashing his loud tools.
Daylen Lile has also cemented himself as a lineup fixture and more complete hitter batting behind Wood, giving the Nationals a one-two punch atop their lineup.
How about CJ Abrams? What more could you ask for? The power has shown up in a major way without sacrificing other areas of his game. Abrams and Wood look like a true elite duo that sets the foundation for years to come.
We knew the offense would have some talent, but the pitching staff was the main concern. Many saw the Nationals as a bottom-five, if not the worst, staff in baseball, and that is proving to be true. Zack Littell and Miles Mikolas have been two of the worst starters in baseball and are on the team simply to eat innings. Once they are replaced with younger arms, we could see some hope.
Two wins for the front office have been Foster Griffin and Gus Varland. Griffin was brought over from NPB and has pitched to a 2.67 ERA and 4.35 FIP, providing the Nationals with a steady arm in their rotation. Varland, who had some success prior to ’26, was a waiver claim that is turning into a reasonable closer.
The Nationals do not have the talent, yet, to push for the playoffs. However, I do think they have the right manager. Now it will be about finding and developing enough arms to get Washington out of the bottom of most pitching categories.
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