The Tigers fought off a tough KC club in the 1st series and now have battled their own bullpen and injury woes against the Orioles - to be the only unbeaten team left in the MLB a. Add that to one of the weaker divisions, and you see the #1 ranked team in our list this week.
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Well, we have seen one week come and go. It is important to realize that only about 3% of the entire season has gone by.
People tend to panic when their team isn’t doing so well, and some fanbases are ready to project their club as a playoff contender.
While it is still a good idea never to bury yourself with a bad first few week or 2, as long as you are hovering around the .500 clip, you should be fine.
How we do these rankings at the MLB Reports is based on 1 thing. The chances of the club winning the World Series.
After all, that is why we have 45 days of Spring Training, 186 days in the regular season, and another 30 or so in the playoffs.
Some teams will have their number predicated on the strength of their divisions are not.
Nearly 47% of any teams schedule is within their own division. So the AL East and NL West would be tough divisions.
The NL East and AL Central have 2 playoff contenders in each division, while 3 teams may be easier opponents.
The Nats have the best depth in the NL for all facets of the game, and are clearly in the easiest division in the NL. I know Miami is 5 – 1, but that is a small sample. The Braves also will see their injuries catch up to them. With the Los Angeles Dodgers having injury trouble, it has only cemented the DC clubs status as the top favorite. The Cards are right behind them as well.
Yes, I am not giving much respect to the Indians in 2014 with that pitching staff.
The AL West and NL central have 3 or 4 teams in each that could compete for the Division or Wild Card, and the Astros and Cubs should be fattening up these clubs win totals.
So here is the 1 – 30 MLB Team Rankings. * Denotes division leaders
1. *Detroit Tigers: Back to Back walk off wins to start, and now are asserting themselves with 2 big offensive attacks on Baltimore. Starting Pitching is great, still hate the Bullpen.
2. Washington Nationals: Like their 1st series versus the Mets with a sweep, since lost 2 to the Braves. The Starting Pitching is deep, along with the lineup, Bullpen and bench.
3. *St. Louis Cardinals: Who doesn’t love this team. They are the model franchise in the NL.
4. *Tampa Bay Rays: 4 – 2 start sounds about right. Wil Myers looks great as does the 1 – 5 starters.
5. Los Angeles Dodgers: Yes I am ranking them ahead of the Giants, despite dropping the 1st 2 games of this weekend series.
Injuries and mental lapses could be the downfall. Can the team just not hire a helicopter for Yasiel Puig to be on time? (via Deion Sanders style.)
That trip to Australia brutal for the club.
6. *San Francisco Giants: 5 out their 1st 6 games have seen wins, and they have many players who can carry them for stretches of time. Tim Hudson looks great.
San Fran could be ahead of LA with one more big week.
7. *Atlanta Braves: They are weathering the 1st month pretty well so far. Big performances by Aaron Harang and health squad.
8. Texas Rangers: Their Bullpen ERA look more like a popular TV shows Nielsen Ratings right now. Having Yu Darvish back today is vital for the team’s success.
9. Kansas City Royals: 2 tough losses to the Tigers, and now have got it together to even their record. Love the young talent on this squad.
10. Oakland A’s: Jim Johnson costs them 2 games, and they could easily be 4 – 1, instead of 2 – 3. Good news is LA and Tex both slow out of the gates.
11. Pittsburgh Pirates: Francisco Liriano trying to buck the trend of “Bret Saberhage Syndrome” of never having back to back good seasons.
2 wins on their last at bat was a great way to start the season.
12. Boston Red Sox: Weird schedule sees them play the Brewers for their 2nd series of the year. Good to see David Ortiz hitting after poor Spring.
Xander Bogaerts looks good, Grady Sizemore still on the field – and Mike Napoli is always a behemoth in April.
13. New York Yankees: All of the old guys are struggling, but Jacoby Ellsbury looks like his 2013 self. Masahiro Tanaks is a savior for this ranking.
Who the hell knew about Yangervis Solarte before this week too? Mark Teixeira on the 15 Day DL is not the end of the world, as he is a Mendoza April guy anyway.
14. Los Angeles Angels: Josh Hamilton with back to back nights of HRs, and it looks like he is running much better.
Impressive start for Tyler Skaggs last night bodes well. Good rebound this weekend – albeit versus the Astros.
15. Cleveland Indians: Doubting Thomas’s will never give this team credit, however they could fly under the radar again in 2014.
16. *Seattle Mariners: King Felix Hernandez is already 2 – 0, the young hitters look decent, and MLB Reports has said all along we love James Paxton. 4 – 1 start and full value for it.
17. Cincinnati Reds: Poor 1 – 4 start is not great, although losing via a Grand Slam to the Mets shows you how much they miss Aroldis Chapman.
18. Milwaukee Brewers: These guys could be 4 – 1 if not for a brilliant performance wasted by Matt Garza earlier in the week.
Winning a series versus the Red Sox is a good sign.
19. Toronto Blue Jays: Jose Reyes is hurt again, to quote Joe Pesci in (My Cousin Vinny when Fred Gwynne tells him, he is in contempt of court) - “There is a effin surprise.”
20. Arizona Diamondbacks: That trip to Sydney killed these guys too. 1 – 7 will be tough to recover from.
Mark Trumbo with a 3 game HR streak and Paul Goldschmidt just had a 26 games hit streak (dating back to last year) broken yesterday.
21. Baltimore Orioles: I don’t know why enough is not being said about how devastating the Manny Machado injury has been?
Also can’t count on 54 HRs from Chris Davis again.
22. Philadelphia Phillies: 2 wins out of 3 by Cliff Lee, who proved all traditional statisticians are up against claiming wins as much of important, when you give up 8 ER in 5 IP, but still pick up a win.
23. Colorado Rockies: The Rockies will mash all year. Charlie Blackmon is the latest CF to do so. Scary to think how solid this offense could be in 2014. Wish the pitching matched it.
24. Miami Marlins: Giancarlo Stanton and Jose Fernandez could solely carry this team to respectability.
Casey McGehee is threatening to be the NL Player of the Week with 11 RBI. Hot start is just a small sample size, but should boost the Marlins fans confidence.
25. NY Mets: I guess Boomer Esiason was right (Mets 2 – 0 with Daniel Murphy and 0 - 3 without.) Not right Boomer – just a coincidence. Lucas Duda is the new Ike Davis
26. Chicago White Sox: Jose Abreu looks the part.
27. Minnesota Twins: Good for Ron Gardenhire to get his 1000th win. Moving right along Twins…
28. Chicago Cubs: 11 hits for Emilio Bonifacio in the 1st 3 games, too bad the rest of the team couldn’t match him. Have been Shutout 2 times already.
29. San Diego Padres: 4 straight losses after the Home Opener…yep, get used to it this year at Petco Park.
30. Houston Astros: Better to catch the Yankees off guard in the 1st week of the year. 2 losses straight to the Angels followed. Stockpile those #1 Draft picks Houston!
I believe the Orioles are in for a tough year without Manny Machado being 100%. Toronto losing Jose Reyes should see these teams duke it out in the AL cellar for the first portion of the year. The Baltimore squad also have one of the hardest “Strength of Schedules” in the game today. While I think the end record may be near .500 (same with the Blue Jays), it won’t be enough in the vaunted AL East.
*** The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of mlbreports.com ***
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Tagged: 30 MLB Team Power Rankings: April, aaron harang, al central, AL East, AL West, All 30 MLB Teams, American league, arizona diamondbacks, aroldis chapman, Atlanta Braves, baltimore orioles, boomer esiason, boston red sox, carlos gonzalez, casey mcgehee, charlie blackmon, chicago cubs, chicago white sox, chris davis, cincinnati reds, clayton kershaw, cleveland indians, cliff lee, colorado rockies, daniel murphy, david ortiz, deion sanders, detroit tigers, emilio bonifacio, felix hernandez, francisco liriano, fred gwynne, giancarlo stanton, grady sizemore, houston astros, ike davis, jacoby ellsbury, james paxton, jim johnson, joe pesci, jose abreu, jose fernandez, jose reyes, josh hamilton, kansas city royals, la angels, la dodgers, lucas duda, manny machado, mark teixeira, mark trumbo, masahiro tanaka, matt garza, miami marlins, milwaukee brewers, minnesota twins, my cousin vinny, national league, new york mets, new york yankees, NL Central, NL east, nl west, oakland athletics, paul goldschmidt, philadelphia phillies, pittsburgh pirates, san diego padres, san francisco giants, seattle mariners, st louis cardinals, tampa bay rays, texas rangers, toronto blue jays, tyler skaggs, washington nationals, wil myers, xander bogaerts, Yangervis Solarte, yasiel puig
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