Just two weeks remain in the 2025 Major League Baseball season with some playoff races going down to the wire, while the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge and Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani are the heavy favorites to repeat as Most Valuable Player award winners.
While the sport’s biggest stars hog the hardware, USA TODAY Sports takes a look at one guy on every team who deserves a round of applause for their 2025 performance – from workhorse pitchers to former All-Stars reborn.
Baltimore Orioles
2B Jackson Holliday: The young man had a nice season at age 21! Sure, he only has a league-average 100 OPS+ but the former No. 1 overall pick made huge progress after a disappointing 2024 debut and has been one of the few bright spots in Baltimore’s season.
Boston Red Sox
SS Trevor Story: His first three years in Boston couldn’t have gone much worse, but Story has stayed healthy in 2025 and had 15 homers with 56 RBIs and an .857 OPS in 75 games from the day Rafael Devers was traded.
New York Yankees
OF Giancarlo Stanton: Has absolutely mashed since his June debut with 20 homers and 49 RBIs in 61 games and unexpectedly became an outfielder again, stepping in so that Aaron Judge could DH.
Tampa Bay Rays
SP Ryan Pepiot: Acquired from the Dodgers in the Tyler Glasnow trade, Pepiot had another strong year as a full-time starter, tossing 163 innings over 29 starts this season. He’s under team control through 2028.
Toronto Blue Jays
RP Yariel Rodriguez: With Jeff Hoffman far from a sure thing in the ninth inning, Rodriguez has been an anchor in high-leverage situations for John Schneider and Toronto.
Chicago White Sox
RP Jordan Leasure: A product of the Division II powerhouse University of Tampa, Leasure has earned a part-time ninth-inning role with 73 strikeouts in 62 appearances, racking up 12 holds and seven saves.
Cleveland Guardians
1B Kyle Manzardo: Manzardo just turned 24 and has an .801 OPS with 26 home runs in his first full season following an impressive 2024 ALCS.
Detroit Tigers
C Dillon Dingler: Has firmly established himself as the team’s catcher of the future, batting .282 with 13 homers and 55 RBIs in 390 at-bats while throwing out would-be base stealers at an elite 33.3% clip.
Kansas City Royals
SP Michael Wacha: Just went on the injured list but Wacha has turned in another strong season and helped keep Kansas City in the wild-card hunt. It’s the 34-year-old veteran’s fourth season in a row with an ERA under 3.50.
Minnesota Twins
CF Byron Buxton: Having the best season of his career with 31 home runs and a .905 OPS in – most importantly – 111 games. Maybe it’s all happening in his 30s?
Athletics
C Shea Langeliers: While Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson have earned the spotlight at various points in 2025, Langeliers has further established himself as one of the game’s premier offensive catchers with 30 homers after 29 last season.
Houston Astros
RP Bryan Abreu: Stepped into the closer’s role when Josh Hader went down and has had a few bad outings in recent weeks, but the right-hander had another season as one of the more reliable setup men in baseball and is the natural stand-in for the ninth inning.
Los Angeles Angels
OF Jo Adell: With 35 homers and 94 RBIs, Adell is becoming the player he was projected to be as an elite prospect five years ago.
Seattle Mariners
CF Julio Rodríguez: Earned an All-Star nod for an underwhelming first half, but has come alive since the break with a .904 OPS and 16 homers. Though (understandably) overshadowed by Cal Raleigh’s history-making season, J-Rod is proving that his down 2024 was just an aberration.
Texas Rangers
SP Patrick Corbin: After getting crushed over his last four years in Washington, the left-hander is one of baseball’s best comeback stories with a 4.36 ERA in 27 starts.
Atlanta Braves
1B Matt Olson: It’s been a disastrous 2025 for the Braves, but their first baseman has of course played in every single game and brought his average back up after dipping last season.
Miami Marlins
SS Otto Lopez: You’d certainly like to get more than a .700 OPS, but a 3.4 WAR season with 72 RBIs represents a more-than-solid year for the 26-year-old infielder.
New York Mets
2B/OF Jeff McNeil: The 2022 NL batting champion didn’t contribute much the two seasons that followed, but he’s played a crucial role this year, stepping in admirably in center field while posting with an OPS around .800.
Philadelphia Phillies
RP Tanner Banks: The left-hander helped steady the Phillies’ bullpen all season long as it dealt with suspensions, injuries and ineffectiveness.
Washington Nationals
P Brad Lord: Pitched his way into the rotation over the summer, maybe enough to get penciled into the picture for 2026.
Chicago Cubs
2B Nico Hoerner: He’s never going to put up big numbers, but Hoerner has raised his batting average 20 points from last year while his 5.8 fWAR entering Saturday ranked 10th in all of baseball.
Cincinnati Reds
OF Austin Hays: Hasn’t been able to stay totally healthy only totaling 95 games, but had an enormous April and has been key in a Cincinnati lineup that has had its ups and downs throughout the season.
Milwaukee Brewers
OF Sal Frelick: The 25-year-old took a huge leap forward in his second full season, raising his OPS more than 100 points on top of the defense that won him a Gold Glove last season.
Pittsburgh Pirates
RP Dennis Santana: Was Pittsburgh’s best reliever all season and took over the ninth inning after David Bednar was traded. Hasn’t been perfect as the closer, but the 29-year-old has probably earned himself the job for next year – or at least will be a hot trade chip this winter.
St. Louis Cardinals
DH/C Ivan Herrera: Still a small sample size, but proved his impressive 2024 (.301 in 229 AB) was no fluke with 15 HR, 56 RBIs and a .820 OPS in 335 at-bats this year.
Arizona Diamondbacks
SP Zac Gallen: A free agent after the season, Gallen has a 2.83 ERA in eight starts since Arizona kept him at the trade deadline. Great to see him finish on a high note after his all contributions to the club through the years
Colorado Rockies
OF Mickey Moniak: Added off the scrap heap to begin the season, the former No. 1 overall pick has performed well all year for a historically terrible team.
Los Angeles Dodgers
RP Alex Vesia: Things haven’t gone according to plan for the Dodgers’ bullpen this year, but the lefty Vesia has put together another terrific season with a 2.67 ERA in 61 games, holding opponents to a .184 average.
San Diego Padres
SP Nick Pivetta: Pivetta’s four-year, $55 million deal raised some eyebrows but the right-hander has been terrific in his first season with a 2.73 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 5.3 WAR in 29 starts.
San Francisco Giants
SP Robbie Ray: The former Cy Young winner has come all the way back after two lost seasons due to Tommy John surgery, earning an All-Star nod and is signed through next year.