Ohtani Stays on Top With Historic On-Base Streak

Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers) has retained the top spot in MLB.com's second Hitter Power Rankings of the 2026 season. Through his first 17 games, Ohtani is slashing .254/.402/.508 with five home runs. More notably, he carried the longest active on-base streak in baseball — 48 games — into Wednesday's series finale against the Mets, the fourth-longest such streak by a Dodger since 1900.

Aaron Judge (New York Yankees), who challenged Ohtani for the top preseason spot, sits at No. 3. His .234/.329/.547 slash line and 150 OPS+ may look pedestrian by his standards, but he's heating up with three home runs in his last three games.

The Breakout Brigade

The biggest story of this ranking cycle is the surge of previously unranked hitters.

Yordan Alvarez (Houston Astros) debuts at No. 2. Limited to 48 games last season by injury, Alvarez has picked up right where his dominant self left off. He leads all MLB qualifiers in expected slugging (.799), ranks second in OPS (1.175), and is tied for the Major League lead with 16 walks.

Jordan Walker (St. Louis Cardinals) enters at No. 4. The 23-year-old leads the Majors with eight home runs — already two more than his total from all of last season in over 300 fewer plate appearances. His .734 SLG and 1.120 OPS suggest his long-awaited breakout is finally here.

Corbin Carroll (Arizona Diamondbacks) joins the rankings at No. 6, despite missing much of Spring Training with a broken right hamate bone — an injury historically associated with lost power. He's slashing .298/.379/.579 through 16 games and is the only player in baseball with multiple triples (3), doubles (4), and home runs (2).

Ben Rice (New York Yankees) also debuts, building on his 26-homer campaign from last season with continued elite bat speed.

Why It Matters

These rankings reflect a broader reshaping of the NL and AL's offensive hierarchy. The Ohtani–Judge duopoly is giving way to a more competitive landscape, with younger talent like Walker finally delivering on massive prospect hype and veterans like Alvarez reminding everyone what a healthy version looks like.

Kyle Schwarber (Philadelphia Phillies) holds at No. 5 with six home runs, including his first multi-homer game of the season. Since joining Philadelphia in 2022, he has 23 multi-homer games — more than anyone not named Aaron Judge.

As the season deepens, the durability of returning injury cases and whether Walker can sustain his historic pace will define how these rankings evolve.