Team
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Win – Loss
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Run Differential
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Previous Ranking
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#1
– Texas Rangers
|
25-14
|
+37
|
5
|
Since Last Time: The
highlight for the Rangers since the last Power 10 was a sweep of the Boston
Red Sox in early May, but the real glaring mark for this team’s staying power
is its 15-6 record against the AL West. They have used this dominance to
build a 6 game lead, and if they sustain it they will be awfully tough to
catch. Another promising stat for Texas is that they have only played 15 home
games (11-4) compared to 24 away from Arlington.
How They Have Done It: In
addition to their dominance within their division, the Rangers rank 4th
in the majors in both ERA and home runs, and 2nd in team batting. Yu
Darvish is making a strong early-season case for Cy Young, with an
astonishing 80 strikeouts in 52.2 innings pitched, to go along with a 6-1
record and a 2.73 ERA.
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#2
– St. Louis Cardinals
|
25-13
|
+51
|
8
|
Since Last Time: Mike
Matheny’s boys have been on a blistering run since the last Power 10, going 15-5
with sweeps on the road in
Washington and Milwaukee. In fact, at 14-7 the Cardinals hold the best road
record in the majors.
How They Have Done It: Rookie
Shelby Miller and Adam Wainwright held the Rockies offense hitless for 49
consecutive at bats over two games this past weekend – the longest hitless
streak in the majors since 1981. In a nutshell, that’s all you need to know
about why this team is where they are. The Chris Carpenter-less Cardinals
pitching staff has a 3.03 ERA, allowing 125 runs (112 earned) while throwing
7 shutouts and 4 complete games – all leading the major leagues. Their +45
run differential is 2nd in baseball.
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#3
– San Francisco Giants
|
23-16
|
+15
|
3
|
Since Last Time: The
Giants weathered a 5-game losing streak immediately following the first Power
10 and have since gone 10-3 over their last 13 to barely hold on to their #3
ranking. A major determining factor was winning the last 3 games in their 4
game series against Atlanta this past weekend by a combined score of 23-4. They
are also 15-6 against NL West opponents.
How They Have Done It: Led
by Pablo Sandoval and Buster Posey, the Giants offense surprisingly leads the
NL in batting average, and is 2nd in hits. Madison Baumgarner (4-1
2.18 ERA) has done more than enough to lead this staff in the early going,
and to compensate for a slow start from Matt Cain (2-2 5.04 ERA). Two
consecutive promising starts from Cain have the defending champs setting
their sights even higher.
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#4
– Detroit Tigers
|
22-15
|
+62
|
10
|
Since Last Time: Sweeps of
both Atlanta and Houston (sigh) have vaulted the Tigers in both these rankings
and their division. Losing 4 of 5 through this past weekend has opened the
door for a hot Cleveland team, who will host the Tigers for two games next
week, after Detroit does battle in Texas this weekend. Needless to say, the
Tiger’s plate will be full.
How They Have Done It: You
mean, other than Miguel Cabrera already driving in 300 runs? The reigning Triple Crown winner has been
absolutely incredible in the early going, posting astounding numbers across
the board (.369/.441/.584 with a league leading 41 RBI) to anchor an offense
that leads the majors in average, on base percentage, runs, and hits. Oh, and
the pitching staff leads the AL in ERA and strikeouts.
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#5
– Cincinnati Reds
|
23-16
|
+36
|
6
|
Since Last Time: The Reds
have posted a 12-8 record since last time, nearly identical to their 11-8
start, which was made possible by winning 7 of their past 9 games - including
sweeps of the Cubs and Brewers. The Reds have taken advantage of their early
season home schedule, posting an NL-leading 16-6 record at Great American
Ballpark.
How They Have Done It:
Johnny Cueto hasn’t pitched since April 13, yet the Reds still have the 3rd
best ERA in the NL, trailing only St. Louis and Atlanta. Joey Votto, Shin-Soo
Choo, and Brandon Phillips lead the offense which is 1st in the NL
in runs scored – thanks in large part to a league leading 31 RBI from
Phillips. How is DatDudeBP leading the
league in RBI? Choo and Votto have on base percentages of .451 and .444
respectively, so ducks are on the pond quite often for the Reds cleanup
hitter.
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#6
– Atlanta Braves
|
22-17
|
+28
|
1
|
Since Last Time: Well, a
lot has happened since the last edition of The Power 10 for Atlanta. Not only
have they gone 9-12 since our last rankings, but they have gone 10-16 since
their blistering 12-1 start. Coming back to earth was to be expected, but
they have quickly relinquished their advantage in the NL East. Things began
going south the final weekend in April when they were swept into reality by
Detroit, and that ugliness returned when they were slaughtered in San Francisco
this past weekend.
How They Have Done It: After
3 remarkable starts to begin the season, Paul Maholm has gone back to being
Paul Maholm, going 1-4 with an ERA just south of 7.00 in his last 5 starts. Last
year’s pitching sensation Kris Medlen is winless since April 9, and is just
1-5 for the season – especially glaring since he was 9-0 in 12 starts last
year.
Despite their recent struggles, obviously there’s still a lot to be
happy about in Atlanta. Mike Minor looks like the real deal, and despite
blowing 3 of his last 6 saves, Craig Kimbrel is still as rock solid as they
come. Justin Upton also launched his 1st home run since April 27 on
Monday night.
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#7
– Baltimore Orioles
|
23-16
|
+30
|
NR
|
Since Last Time: At 23-16
the O’s have been steady and consistent since day 1, helping to dispel (for
now) theories of their demise after a season that included a bloated record
in one-run and extra-inning games.
How They Have Done It: The
Orioles have an extremely well-balanced offense, which has led them to being
3rd in the majors in runs scored. Led by Chris Davis’ astounding 37
RBI, the Orioles starting lineup has 5 guys with over 20 RBI – plenty of
production to go around. No sophomore slump for Manny Machado, who gives us
every indication that he will be a force in this league for a long, long
time. Jim Johnson had been 14/14 in save opportunities before letting one
slip away last night.
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#8
– New York Yankees
|
25-14
|
+26
|
NR
|
Since Last Time: I have
waited long enough. It is time to
acknowledge the Yankees as one of the Power 10, regardless of the laundry
list of injuries that have plagued them since Spring Training. After starting
the season 1-4 the Yankees have gone 24-10, the best record in baseball
during that stretch – also outscoring their opponents by 42 runs. Another
feather in their cap – the Yankees have won games started by Justin
Verlander, David Price, Felix Hernandez, and R.A. Dickey this year. Not a bad
start to this “down” year for the Yanks.
How They Have Done It: In
case you missed my post from 2 weeks ago recapping the first month of the season,
I cover their early-season success in detail. They have simply kept stride in
May, doing those very same things that helped get them out of the gate. Their
pitching has been brilliant, really providing a nice safety net for the
injury-plagued lineup. In addition to their highly praised starting rotation,
Yankee relievers have posted a 0.77 ERA in the month of May, including an
active scoreless streak of 23.2 innings - so when they have a lead they’re
not giving it back. They’re also winning the close games, going 8-2 in
one-run games. Of course, Mariano Rivera going a perfect 16/16 in save
opportunities helps. Amazingly, Mo has more saves this season than the Angels,
Mets, Marlins and Astros have wins!
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#9
– Washington Nationals
|
21-18
|
-10
|
9
|
Since Last Time: Watching
Bryce Harper go full speed into the wall at Dodger Stadium symbolizes the
Nats season-to-date perfectly - going all out, but in a reckless, inexperienced
manor and getting a surprising smack in the face. The Nats have the look of a
team walking off the field with a bloody neck, as they continue to sleepwalk
through the season’s first two months, going a pedestrian 11-10 over the last
3 weeks. Their hold on this spot is
tenuous to say the least, but I refuse to drop them out of the Power 10 with
the roster they bring to the table every day.
There’s just too much talent on the field to meander around .500. Are they one of the 10 best teams in
baseball? Of course they are, now it’s
time for their record to reflect that.
How They Have Done It: Gio
Gonzalez and Dan Haren have strung together a couple of good starts lately,
but both came out of the gate shaky. Jordan Zimmermann’s blistering start
(7-1 1.69 ERA) has helped keep the starting rotation afloat. Stephen
Strasburg has not won since Opening Day, and the Nats have scored just 15
runs in those 7 winless Strasburg starts.
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#10
– Boston Red Sox
|
22-17
|
+18
|
2
|
Since Last Time: Since the
last edition of The Power 10 the Red Sox are 10-11, which like the Nats isn’t
awful, but when you add the footnote that they were at one point 20-8 and
have gone 2-9 over their past 11, that is a cause for concern. A faulty
bullpen is usually a catalyst to long losing streaks, making the loss of Joel
Hanrahan that much harder to swallow for Red Sox Nation. Tazawa and Uehara
are going to need to really step up to ensure this team holds late leads.
How They Have Done It: Jon
Lester and Clay Buchholz are a combined 11-0 in 16 starts this year, with Buchholz
sporting an eye-popping 1.69 ERA and Lester giving up 2.73 runs per 9. Can
they sustain this level of dominance? If the Red Sox want to remain a
contender, they better at least come close. Their offense has been getting on
base, they’re 2nd in the majors in On Base Percentage, and guys
like Mike Napoli are taking advantage – the Sox currently rank 6th
in the majors in runs scored.
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Dropped
from last rankings: Oakland A’s (#4), Colorado Rockies (#7)
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