A fresh batch of MLB power rankings baked especially for you.
First 4
1. (1/1) Cardinals: Took out the defending champion Giants, played to a draw in a four-game series against the first-place Diamondbacks and then rallied in the finale to crush their No. 1 challenger in the NL Central, the Reds, in Cincinnati, exiting with a 7-run 10th inning exclamation point. And this week’s schedule is much easier: Mets, Marlins & Cubs.
2. (4/4) Braves: Built a 7-game lead in the NL East. Atlanta looks like they are going to cruise to a division title and camp out in our second slot for a while.
3. (5/15) A’s: A 12-2 run earned them a boost to our top 3. That they were finally cooled off by the Sox in Chicago in the last two games is but a blip on the summer radar… so we’ll let them stick above the Rangers in the power rankings this week.
4. (2/3) Rangers: Let the A’s pass them, losing the division lead for the first time since April 20. Last year it was the final day of season, so there was plenty of time to recover it this time – which they did by the end of the weekend.
The gooey center
5. (3/2) Reds: Won a series on the road in Pittsburgh, then came home and lost 4 of 6 to the Rockies and Cardinals. Cubs are there to help them get well.
6. (6/9) Pirates: Our faith in them will not waver… as long as they stay at least 10 games above .500.
7. (7/12) Red Sox: Our skepticism will not waver … maybe until they’re celebrating with champagne.
8. (9/10) Diamondbacks: Played well in St. Louis, but didn’t come away with a series win. Then Arizona let its hold on the NL West slip against the Giants.
9. (14/6) Yankees: Our power rankings can be volatile. Nowhere is that more evident than the last 3 weeks of Yankees slotting.
10. (11/5) Tigers: What a difference a week makes. The Tigers are now proud owners of a 5.5 game lead. Of course, a sweep of the second-place Indians helped immensely. Still, they aren’t climbing all the way back because the AL Central seems far behind the other two AL divisions. Every team but Detroit has at least an 8-game losing streak this year.
11. (8/13) Orioles: Losing a series in Tampa Bay after winning one against Detroit is a wash. Winning one in Houston earns no points.
12. (15/11) Giants: Took 2 of 3 from the Diamondbacks, but still can’t shake the Rockies.
13. (16/20) Blue Jays: Jose Bautista made @scoreboardpage one of the 17,256 accounts he’s following on Twitter. As our first celeb follow, he boosts the Blue Jays 3 spots this week. (We’re not above it.) Splitting with the Giants and taking a series from the Rangers didn’t hurt, either. Plus, we’ve got a feeling they’re due.
14. (13/17) Rays: Fourth place in the AL East, yet very much alive. That second wild card must look nice from that vantage point, but Tampa Bay undoubtedly has its eye on the division prize.
15. (10/8) Rockies: Keeping pace in the NL West… quietly. Their fall in the power rankings this week has more to do with others passing them than anything they did wrong.
16. (18/19) Phillies: Made it back above .500 and even passed the Nationals, then promptly lost 3 straight.
17. (19/14) Nationals: You have to be at .500 before you can be above .500. An early-season disappointment shielded by early-season disasters… so far.
18. (17/18) Padres: If you had asked fans if they’d take being ahead of the Dodgers at this point of the season, they’d probably have been okay with that. Oops.
19. (26/23) Royals: Won 6 straight and 8 of 11 after Hall of Famer George Brett became batting coach. If they stay hot, they could give Detroit a challenger. And that’s who is across the field right now. No better time to start making up ground than now. 1 down, 2 to go.
20. (27/25) Dodgers: Yasiel Puig has made this trainwreck of a team worth watching and talking about. (Player of the week honors due to a .464 average, 4 homers and 10 RBIs in his first 7. Nice debut.) Too bad it’s barely helped in the standings. Courtesy bump.
21. (20/30) Twins: Suddenly in the thick of the race – for second place in the AL Central. In reality, they’re tied for last place in the worst division in baseball.
22. (22/22) Mariners: Ended the White Sox skid with a loss at home, their 11th in 16 games against Central opponents. Starting to think leaving them at 22 all year might be just right.
23. (24/27) Cubs: Lost 5 out of 6 before salvaging the final game of the Pirates series. Moving up here but not in the standings.
24. (23/21) Angels: Got swept by the Astros in a 4-game series, which would have been unthinkable at the beginning of the season. That it’s not now shows how far the Angels and their expectations have fallen. Topped that off by splitting with the Cubs and then losing 2 out of 3 to the Red Sox.
25. (28/26) Brewers: A four-game winning streak with 2 more in Miami points to good things for Milwaukee this week. A weekend series in Cincy could nullify it.
26. (21/16) White Sox: Losing 10 of 11 after reaching .500 drops you near the bottom of our weekly power rankings. Just ask the Twins. Won last 2 against A’s to salvage split after blowing 3-0 leads in both of the first two, so perhaps they’ve turned the corner. But the next street is all hill.
Final 4
27. (12/7) Indians: Lost 12 in a row on the road and 8 overall. They have company in the skid department from their AL Central counterparts, the Twins (10), Royals (8) and White Sox (8). We overestimated their potential last week.
28. (29/28) Astros: Swept Angels while winning 7 out of 8. If that can’t get them out of our 29th spot for a week, nothing will. Even if they’ve lost their last 5.
29. (25/24) Mets: You have to be able to beat the Marlins. And they can’t.
30. (30/29) Marlins: Solidified their grip on this spot despite displaying mastery of the Mets. Against everybody else they’re 10-42.