MLB Power Rankings: St. Louis Cardinals surge, while NL East plummets
Much has changed in a week, as our MLB Power Rankings top 10 shakes up a bit; with the rise of the St. Louis Cardinals — and fall of the NL East contenders.
MLB Power Rankings early in the season flip flop back and forth more than presidential campaigns, with this past week being no different. The St. Louis Cardinals went from pretenders to true contenders within a matter of three days, after two epic-walk-off wins against the Chicago Cubs.
Meanwhile, the three-headed monster of the NL East dropped off a bit, allowing the pre-season favorite Washington Nationals to creep back into the divisional race. Speaking of the east, the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are separating themselves from the pack.
The wild, wild (NL) West saw a power shift, with the Los Angeles Dodgers fate shifting from good, to the bad, to the ugly — after losing their best offensive player in Corey Seager to a season-ending injury and their ace Clayton Kershaw for the time being.
The Arizona Diamondbacks are the current Sheriff in town, not only in the NL West, but the entire National League. Also out West, Ichiro is making a move from the field to the executive suite for the Seattle Mariners. Albert Pujols joined the 3,000 hits club, with a workman-like opposite single to right field in Seattle.
Want to be mesmerized? A time-lapse of EVERY hit in Ichiro’s MLB career. pic.twitter.com/nW3FrWWigN
— MLB (@MLB) May 7, 2018
As we approach the quarter mark of the MLB season, things will begin to solidify more by the time we hit the All-Star break, but in the meanwhile, let the craziness ensue.
Without further ado, our Week 15 MLB Power Rankings.
*Week 4 MLB Power Rankings and records are through Sunday’s games.
MLB Power Rankings: No. 30-26
Previous: . Baltimore Orioles. 30. team. 11. The Baltimore Orioles nose-dive into the depths of the loaded AL East continues, losing six games in a row. It’s officially time to wave that white flag and for them to trade <a rel=. 8-26 (Last: AL East)
team. 61. The Cincinnati Reds historically bad start to the season has not improved much, where they currently sit in the cellar in a top-heavy NL Central. The bat of <a rel=. 8-26 (Last: NL Central). Previous: . Cincinnati Reds. 29
128. The lack of effective pitching for the Chicago White Sox is the reason for their downfall, with a team ERA of 5.08. Their .242 team batting average doesn’t help either, so don’t look for the Southsiders to get better anytime soon. Maybe they should play the Kansas City Royals each game and they’d have a fighting chance — with five of their victories coming from their division foe.. 9-23 (Last: AL Central). Previous: . Chicago White Sox. 28. team
The Kansas City Royals had a stellar week, relatively speaking, winning one of three from the Boston Red Sox, the best team in MLB — hanging with them the entire three-game set. They carried that momentum with them against the Detroit Tigers, winning three of four games in the process. <p>Don’t expect this to remain the trend for the Royals, but there may be a glimmer of hope of not finishing the season in the cellar.</p>. 11-23 (4th: AL Central). Previous: . Kansas City Royals. 27. team. 7
126. The Texas Rangers don’t have much to cheer about in 2018, especially with their <a href=. 10-23 (Last: AL West). Previous: . Texas Rangers. 26. team
MLB Power Rankings: No. 25-21
82. The Miami Marlins appeared to have a great week, but appearances often are deceiving. Two of their victories came against the lowly Cincinnati Reds, which isn’t much to write home about. <a rel=. 13-23 (Last: NL East). Previous: . Miami Marlins. 25. team
team. 63. If it wasn’t for <a href=. 14-19 (3rd: AL Central). Previous: . Detroit Tigers. 24
127. The San Diego Padres finished the week by taking two of three from the scuffling Los Angeles Dodgers but were no-hit in the first game of such series by a quartet of Los Angeles pitchers. Remember, the Padres roster is full of a bunch of youngsters, with the team taking their lumps now. The rebuild will take time, but there is hope on the horizon.. 13-22 (Last: NL West). Previous: . San Diego Padres . 23. team
Previous: . Minnesota Twins. 22. team. 2. A recent three-game winning streak allows the Minnesota Twins to move up three spots. But for you Twins faithful, don’t get your hopes up, with three of the four weekly wins against the lowly Chicago White Sox. <p>The coming week will tell much about the Twins, who play a short two-game stint against the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals, then four games in Anaheim against the Los Angeles. As Liam Neeson says, “Good, luck!”</p>. 13-17 (2nd: AL Central)
71. It appears the Los Angeles Dodgers are embracing the Six Flags “free-fall” ride, after another horrendous week. Adding insult to injury, they lost Corey Seager for the<a href=. 15-19 (4th: NL West). Previous: . Los Angeles Dodgers. 21. team
MLB Power Rankings: No. 20-16
team. 21. After winning eight games in a row, the Tampa Bay Rays have leveled out a bit, but are playing solid baseball. It’s unfortunate they play in the loaded AL East — yes, the Toronto Blue Jays are good, too. <p>The one-two punch of <a rel=. 15-17 (4th: AL East). Previous: . Tampa Bay Rays. 20
Washington Nationals. 19. team. 90. It’s only a matter of time before the Washington Nationals remembered they were the Washington Nationals. The trendy pick to win the 2018 World Series stumbled in April, but are right back on track. <p>Offensively, the Nats are nowhere near their capabilities (.241 team batting average), but they won’t stay down for long.</p>. 18-17 (4th: NL East). Previous: 20th
17. team. 40. The good times keep rolling in the Bay area, with the San Francisco Giants continuing their winning ways. Unfortunately for them, it seems that everyone else within in their division can’t lose, either.. 19-15 (3rd: NL West). Previous: . San Francisco Giants
9. The Chicago Cubs still don’t know what hit them, after being stunned by the St. Louis Cardinals on back to games in walk-off fashion. Coming into the week, the Cubbies were atop the NL Central, now they sit in fourth place after losing five in a row. Don’t count them out just yet, though.. 16-15 (4th: NL Central). Previous: . Chicago Cubs. 16. team
MLB Power Rankings: No. 15-11
96. <a href=. 18-16 (3rd: AL West). Previous: . Oakland Athletics. 15. team
The <a href=. 17-15 (3rd: NL East). Previous: 12th. New York Mets. 14. team. 3
6. It was a rough week for the Philadelphia Phillies, losing four divisional games, including two to the lowly Miami Marlins. They really need to get their offense going, or they won’t stay in the NL East race for long.. 18-15 (2nd: NL East). Previous: 8th. Philadelphia Phillies. 13. team
18-16. Previous: 11th. Toronto Blue Jays. 12. team. 39. The Toronto Blue Jays are the surprise team of not only the AL East but the entire American League. Going 3-4 this week brought them down to earth a little, but they are a team with a tremendous amount of fire-power — enough to even hang with the Yankees and Red Sox.
108. One of the hottest teams in MLB, the Colorado Rockies are firing on all cylinders. With the struggles of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Colorado Rockies are the favorite to snag one of the wild-card spots, especially if their pitching keeps up.. 20-15 (2nd: NL West). Previous: . Colorado Rockies. 11. team
MLB Power Rankings: No. 10-6
4. After the Pittsburgh Pirates swept the St. Louis Cardinals the week before last, the Washington Nationals returned the favor, sweeping them in a four-game set. However, they salvaged the week, after taking the series from the Milwaukee Brewers.. 19-16 (3rd: NL Central). Previous: 7th. Pittsburgh Pirates. 10. team
62. The Seattle Mariners got a little taste of reality, falling back to earth after the Los Angeles Angels handled them two out of three games. <p>Meanwhile, Ichiro’s transition into the front-office will be a smooth one, with no one knowing the game of baseball quite as well as he does.</p>. 19-14 ( 3rd: NL West). Previous: 10th. Seattle Mariners. 9. team
team. 17. The future is now for the Atlanta Braves, <a href=. 19-14 (1st: AL East). Previous: 6th. Atlanta Braves. 8
Previous: 13th. Milwaukee Brewers. 7. team. 76. The Milwaukee Brewers continue their streaky play, yet remain in second place behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central. The only consistency for the Brewers is their elite bullpen, who is still without <a rel=. 20-15 (2nd: NL Central)
team. 102. <a href=. 21-13 (1st: AL West). Previous: 14th. Los Angeles Angels. 6
MLB Power Rankings: No. 5-1
20-12 (1st: NL Central). Previous: 9th. St. Louis Cardinals. 5. team. 33. What a magical week for the St. Louis Cardinals, who bounced back after a dreadful week in Pittsburgh. <a href=
Houston Astros. 4. team. 135. The Houston Astros drop from the top spot in our rankings and in the AL West, for now. However, their lineup and pitching are too good not to outlast the Los Angeles Angels during a full 162 game season.. 21-15 (2nd: AL West). Previous:
team. 8. <a rel=. 23-11 (1st: NL West). Previous: . Arizona Diamondbacks. 3
2. team. 43. The New York Yankees went 6-1 against the past two American League champions and did so with ease. <a href=. 24-10 (2nd: AL East). Previous: . New York Yankees
Next: Pujols joins the elite 3,000 hits club
25-9 (1st: AL East). Previous: . Boston Red Sox. 1. team. 14. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are on a collision course, with round 2 of their fight, ugh season series resuming today. Meanwhile, <a href=