When you start a new playthrough in MLB The Show 25‘s Franchise Mode, there are a few different ways you can start. One of the more popular choices throughout the years has been to take a struggling organization and turn it into a world-class championship contender. Another route is simply to take your favorite team and run them the way you think they should be in real life, allowing you to take some frustrations out in the virtual world.

However, if you’re looking to compete for championships right away in Franchise Mode, then you want to consider a select few teams in MLB The Show 25. These teams have the best all-around rosters, favorable divisions, some major up-and-coming prospects, or all of the above. Essentially, these teams are in a “win-now” mentality, and if you take them over, you’ll be firmly within a championship window.

Below, we’ve ranked the top 10 “win-now” teams to take on in MLB The Show 25 Franchise Mode.

10. Baltimore Orioles

Despite being considered a “contender” for multiple years, the Baltimore Orioles haven’t been able to make a deep postseason run since the mid-2010s. However, in 2025, the Orioles are set up nicely in Franchise. You have All-Star Adley Rutschman behind the plate and MLB The Show 25 cover athlete Gunnar Henderson at short to headline a fairly deep roster of position players. The roster only gets deeper when you consider young talent like Jackson Holliday, Colton Cowser, and Samuel Basallo, with the first two already on the roster. Basallo is such an intriguing catching prospect that he might force Rutschman to first base at some point.

Pitching is something the Orioles need a little more of after Corbin Burnes departed for the desert in 2025, but that’s always something you can address at the trade deadline or in the offseason. Overall, Baltimore has a fairly deep roster, an enticing farm system, and enough talent under contract to remain contenders for years to come.

9. Texas Rangers

The Rangers came back down to Earth in 2024 after going on a miracle run in 2023 to take home the World Series. While it remains to be seen whether or not Texas can rebound enough to at least win the AL West, the team has a solid roster to win in Franchise Mode. All-Stars Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, and Adolis Garcia headline a deep lineup that also has plenty of young talent sprinkled throughout. Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter are the two biggest names, but the Rangers also have some top prospects that could make an impact sooner rather than later.

On the mound, Texas has some veterans in Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob DeGrom to fill in space for the next year or two. However, Kumar Rocker and Jack Leither are the potential future aces in the Rangers organization, and both could be All-Star candidates in 2025 if they perform to their standards. The AL West is always going to be competitive, but you should be able to lead the Rangers to pennants with their current roster in MLB The Show 25.

8. Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona has put together a sneaky deep and strong roster over the past several seasons. A mixture of homegrown talent and decent free agent signings has the Diamondbacks ready to contend again after a down year in 2024. While the snakes are always going to be overshadowed by the other giants in the NL West, don’t discount what they bring to the table.

The rotation is one of the strongest in baseball, and the top guys are under control for the foreseeable future. Zac Gallen and Corbin Burnes are about as good of a 1-2 punch as there is in baseball. We won’t talk about Jordan Montgomery. On the field, Ketel Marte and Corbin Carroll make up arguably the best duo in the MLB in terms of both offense and defense. Mix in veterans like Josh Naylor, Eugenio Suárez, and Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and you have a solid team capable of keeping up with the other top dogs in the National League.

7. San Diego Padres

We can make all the jokes we want about the Padres and their postseason woes over the past few years, despite the massive payroll employed on the field. However, on paper (and that’s what matters in MLB The Show 25), San Diego still has one of the best rosters in baseball. Fernando Tatis Jr. is a bona fide superstar who elevates the players around him, regardless of what position he’s at. Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, Jackson Merrill, and Jake Cronenworth are all All-Star caliber players who make up the meat of the batting order.

In the rotation, Dylan Cease and Michael King are either franchise players going forward or juicy trade chips you can use to beef up the farm system or depth in the Majors. You might want to hang on to one of them, though, as the Padres don’t have great depth on the backend of the rotation. San Diego is always willing to spend, of course, so you can use your large bank account to give out huge contracts to free agents even if you part with both of the pitchers. With a great roster and a willingness to spend, the Padres are set up great for Franchise.

6. Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox seem to either finish in last place or first place year after year. They have their down swings and then all of a sudden, their moves pay off, the farm system comes up huge, and the team starts winning at a rapid pace. 2025 seems to be the year that Boston rebounds from one of its worst slumps in recent memory. The biggest attraction of using the Red Sox in Franchise is its tremendous pool of prospects. “The Big Three” of Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, and Marcelo Mayer all look like franchise players who should be featured at the heart of the Sox’s lineup for years to come.

Alongside them, you have All-Stars like Rafael Devers and Jarren Duran in the lineup, with other young talent such as Wilyer Abreu filling in the gaps. On the pitching side of things, Garrett Crochet looks like the next great Red Sox southpaw, while Brayan Bello and Tanner Houck have Cy Young potential. Boston has the best farm in baseball, a great roster in the Bigs, and plenty of capital to use to go out and get even more talent.

5. New York Mets

Okay, let’s get this out of the way first: The Mets have Juan Soto for the next decade plus. He’s one of the best pure players in baseball, and that should remain for the bulk of his career. With that out of the way, the Mets have a great supporting cast around Soto and the biggest spender in the league in owner Steve Cohen. Soto is joined in the middle of the lineup by MVP candidate Francisco Lindor, fan-favorite Pete Alonso, and solid bats in Mark Vientos and Jesse Winker. The Mets also have Luisangel Acuna on the rise, who could become a star in his own right.

The rotation for New York has seen better days, and it should be the first area you address when trying to improve the roster. However, the Mets have plenty of trade chips and capital on hand to beef up the pitching staff and the farm system. With Stevie Cohen and Juan Soto locked in for the Metropolitans, though, you’re going to be set in Franchise for years to come.

4. New York Yankees

Regardless of whether I put the Mets over the Yankees or vice versa, one side is going to be angry. Truth be told, the Mets and Yankees are interchangeable in their respective slots. The sole reason I placed the Yankees ahead of the Mets is recent success. The Yankees have been to a World Series more recently than the Mets, and the roster looks a little more complete all around, at least in 2025.

You have reigning MVP Aaron Judge doing his thing in the middle of the order and the outfield, but there might not be another All-Star alongside Judge outside of pitchers. Anthony Volpe, Jazz Chisolm Jr., and Austin Wells are all decent pieces, however. The real story with the Yankees is how their long-awaited farm system players, like Jasson Dominguez, will fare in the Majors. You also have Gerrit Cole (currently out for the year in the MLB but not in Franchise Mode), Max Fried, and Devin Williams headlining an above-average pitching staff. Last but not least, it’s the Yankees, of course, you’re going to be in a win-now mentality with them in MLB The Show 25.

3. Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are up next, and they’re a difficult team to rank. While the Phillies easily have one of the best rosters in baseball, it’s an aging one with a core that might not last much longer. Philly is in a win-now mode, but the championship window is closing rapidly. 2025 and maybe 2026 might be the final years where the Phillies are in contention for a World Series, and that’s not even factoring in the harsh NL East division they play in, which could prevent them from securing a playoff spot. However, if you want to win in 2025 alone, the Phillies are one of the best choices. Their outlook just isn’t as strong as other teams on this list.

In 2025, though, Philly employs a superstar lineup featuring the likes of Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and Nick Castellanos. Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott are a great defensive pairing in the infield, while the pitching staff shouldn’t let up many runs if Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler both stay healthy.

2. Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves have been one of the best teams in the MLB for years, and that’s not changing anytime soon. While Atlanta has lost some key pieces recently, like Max Fried, they’ve also been able to retain a shocking number of young, impactful players. Guys like Ronald Acuna Jr., Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, Spencer Strider, and more are all locked up for the foreseeable future. There are also veterans, such as Matt Olson and Chris Sale, who continue to lead their positions while on fairly team-friendly deals.

The Braves’ strategy of locking up young players early has proven to be a highly effective strategy and one that’s now copied all across the league. If you use Atlanta in Franchise, you’ll reap the benefits of this strategy while maintaining arguably the second-best roster in baseball.

1. Los Angeles Dodgers

I mean, who else did you expect? The Dodgers are the class of the MLB, and it looks like that trend will continue until the current ownership group decides to finally sell the team right before all of that deferred money kicks in during the 2030s. LA has the best big three in baseball, sporting a trio of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman. Freeman is closer to being on the way out due to age, but Ohtani and Betts will continue to be perennial MVP candidates for the next several years. Behind the trio are tremendous bats in Teoscar Hernandez, Tommy Edman, Will Smith, and Max Muncy.

If the lineup wasn’t scary enough, take a look at the rotation and bullpen. Studs everywhere. Blake Snell, Sasaki, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and eventually Ohtani make up the terrifying starting five while Kirby Yates, Tanner Scott, and Blake Treinen headline the bullpen. There’s not one weakness with the Dodgers aside from injury concerns, and that tends not to play as huge of a factor in Franchise Mode.

Honorable Mention: Cleveland Guardians

Death. Taxes. Cleveland being a threat out of the AL Central. The same old song and dance has been repeated for the past decade, as Cleveland has continually been one of the most consistent teams in the American League. While the roster isn’t anything spectacular, there are plenty of “glue” guys who make quiet impacts and help fuel championship runs every season. Of course, you also have superstars like Jose Ramirez and Emmanuel Clase that will always be in the running for end-of-season awards from 2025 and on.

Working around the superstars, the Guardians have some decent trade chips in the Majors and Minors you can use to acquire more superstar talent. Specifically, Cleveland could use help in the infield and the backend of the rotation. However, the current roster in place is good enough to win the Central and potentially the World Series with some smart decision-making in Franchise.

That does it for our top 10 win-now teams to use in MLB The Show 25 Franchise Mode. Did we miss any teams you think should be on the list? Let us know in the comments below.