MLB Power Rankings: New York Yankees staking claim
The Call to the Pen staff assembled their power rankings and brought them together for another edition of our weekly rankings. Each writer ranked every team from 1st to 30th, with the 1st place vote being worth three points and the last place team earning 0.1 points. The numbers were crunched, and below are your official Call to the Pen power rankings.
1. Texas Rangers
“They’re so consistently good it’s starting to get kind of boring.” – Spencer Hendricks
2. New York Yankees
“They have a .794 OPS as a team, and it’s still not the best in the AL.” – Spencer
“Things are starting to click for the Yankees. This team should be able to score enough runs to make up for its shortcomings, and Andy Pettitte’s early results have been excellent.” – Brian Vaughan
3. Washington Nationals
“The Nats have a great rotation and a great Bryce Harper. They’re not going anywhere.” – Spencer
“It’ll be hard for the Nationals to ever slip into a prolonged losing streak with this much pitching. The Strasburg innings limit can’t apply if they’re narrowly leading the East in September, right?” – Brian
4. Tampa Bay Rays
5. Chicago White Sox
“Everyone wrote Chicago off before the season. But pitching and defense have them at the top of the AL Central” – Glenn
“The White Sox are 17-9 on the road and just 14-15 at home. Then again, what do you expect from a team that plays at a stadium with a bleak name like The Cell?” – Spencer
6. Los Angeles Dodgers
“Matt who? The Dodgers keep rolling like they don’t even need their superstar” – Glenn DuPaul
“Another four weeks or more without Matt Kemp could mean the Giants have time to close the gap.” – Brian
7. Toronto Blue Jays
“Brandon Morrow is nasty in every sense of the word. If they can get the starter they’re looking for on the trade market… look out” – Glenn
“I love this team; I suspect I’m a Canadian at heart.” – Spencer
“The Jays just aren’t going away, as their starting pitching has progressed nicely and their offense is just getting started.” – Brian
8. Baltimore Orioles
9. Cincinnati Reds
10. St. Louis Cardinals
“A terrible series against the Mets doesn’t change how dynamic the St. Louis offense is, but the pitching staff has been rife with bad luck and bad performances.” – Brian
11. Atlanta Braves
“When they aren’t busy losing eight straight, the Braves have been very good this year.” – Spencer
12. Los Angeles Angels
“This is the team we all were expecting to see at the beginning of the season” – Glenn
13. Boston Red Sox
14. Miami Marlins
15. San Francisco Giants
“he Giants are getting surprising production out of their uninspiring outfield trio: Melky Cabrera, Angel Pagan, and Gregor Blanco.” – Spencer
“The Giants have a terrible lineup, but so do the Dodgers, and San Francisco has the edge on the mound.” – Brian
16. Cleveland Indians
17. New York Mets
“The win-loss record has probably throw a few people off, but this is a team with peripherals that prove they’re headed for the cellar against much more talented division mates.” – Brian
18. Detroit Tigers
“One of the more befuddling teams in all of baseball so far.” – Spencer
“Cabrera and Fielder are performing as expected, but pretty much every starting pitcher in the non-Verlander division has been brutal.” – Brian
19. Philadelphia Phillies
20. Seattle Mariners
“Once the sporadic bursts of runs calm down, things will look a little uglier.” – Brian
21. Arizona Diamondbacks
22. Pittsburgh Pirates
23. Kansas City Royals
24. Oakland Athletics
25. Milwaukee Brewers
“Greinke and Gallardo could wriggle this team back into contention, but the lineup has a lot of black holes right now.” – Brian
26. Houston Astros
“They’ll be good again before too long under Luhnow’s watchful eye, but it won’t happen while they’re still in the National League.” – Spencer
27. Colorado Rockies
“The Rockies are 7-3 in their last 10, but they’re going to need Tulowitzki back to do much more damage. Oh, and a pitching staff. They need a pitching staff.” – Brian
28. Minnesota Twins
29. Chicago Cubs
30. San Diego Padres
“Carlos Quentin is back, just in time to raise his stock enough to be flipped for prospects, of course.” – Glenn
” At 16.5 games back in early June, San Diego has a 0.2 percent chance of making the playoffs. Wow.” – Spencer
“The Padres own both the worst record and most yawn-inducing roster in all of baseball. Not even a 2.000 OPS from Carlos Quentin can do the trick.” – Brian