MLB Power Rankings (April 19, 2018)

1. Boston Red Sox (15-2) | Last week: 2 (+1)

I previously said the Astros had a chance to remain atop the power rankings from April to October, but the Red Sox have been too good so far to keep them out of the top spot. Boston not only closed out their series against the Yankees with two-straight wins, but they also demolished the Angels in back-to-back games by a combined score of 19-1, and will look to close out the series with a victory tonight.

 

2. Houston Astros (12-7) | Last week: 1 (-1)

Houston looks to be slowly breaking out of their offensive slump, and if so, it’s just in time, as the Angels come to town on Monday for a three-game series. Hopefully the stars in the lineup besides Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa can step up.

 

3. Los Angeles Angels (13-5) | Last week: 3

The Angels have a chance to get some redemption tonight for the dominance that Boston has displayed so far in their series, and at least Mike Trout is getting hot with his average creeping up towards the .300 mark we’ve grown accustomed to for two-time AL MVP. LA versus Houston should be fun next week.

 

4. Arizona Diamondbacks (12-5) | Last week: 6 (+2)

Arizona leads the MLB in triples, but their pitching staff is what’s carrying them right now, as their 2.97 ERA is the best in the National League. Also, they are 5-1 against the Dodgers so far this season after taking two-of-three against them over the weekend.

 

5. Los Angeles Dodgers (8-9) | Last week: 7 (+2)

Things weren’t looking good for Los Angeles after their 16-6 loss to Oakland followed by the Diamondbacks taking the series, but they’ve won four-straight games since, and will now look to keep it going against the Nationals starting tomorrow night.

 

6. Washington Nationals (9-10) | Last week: 5 (-1)

Washington did well to take two games against the Mets this week, and they need to keep the momentum going against LA this weekend. And unfortunately for everyone else in baseball, breaking Bryce Harper’s bat isn’t enough to stop him.

 

7. New York Yankees (8-8) | Last week: 4 (-3)

New York had three games postponed since the last power rankings, but they split a two-game series with Derek Jeter’s team, and Giancarlo Stanton continues to struggle with two strikeouts in three of his last four games, which had led to a .197 average so far this year.

 

8. Cleveland Indians (9-7) | Last week: 10 (+2)

The Indians also had a couple games postponed recently, but it might have been a good thing to escape the red-hot offense of the Blue Jays. Cleveland needs to take care of the sliding Orioles this weekend.

 

9. New York Mets (13-4) | Last week: 9 

New York has the second-best record in baseball, but is it here to stay? They’ve gone 3-3 over their past six, and the Phillies, Braves, and Nationals are all in the rear-view mirror. This four-game series against Atlanta that begins tonight will be huge. Perhaps Jose Reyes (0-18 this season) will finally make an impact.

 

10. Chicago Cubs (7-8) | Last week: 8 (-2)

Outside of a 14-10 victory over the Braves on Saturday, Joe Maddon’s club is really struggling. They need to start winning games with divisional opponents coming up on the schedule.

 

11. St. Louis Cardinals (10-7) | Last week: 13 (+2)

The Cardinals are soaring with five-straight wins, and they will look to finish off the Cubs tonight before getting another series against the three-win Reds, whom they swept in a four-game series over the weekend.

 

12. Minnesota Twins (8-5) | Last week: 12 

They haven’t been among the most talented teams in the league, but since 2017, the Twins have just shown a way to win games. Minnesota currently sits atop the AL Central after their 2-1 win over Cleveland yesterday.

 

13. Milwaukee Brewers (10-9) | Last week: 11 (-2)

The Brewers got Christian Yelich back from the disabled list yesterday, so hopefully their loaded outfield can help carry them in an ulta-competitive NL Central.

 

14. Colorado Rockies (11-9) | Last week 15 (+1)

Colorado took three-of-four against the Nationals before taking two-of-three against the Pirates, so they are clearly trending in the right direction. The offense will look to catch fire at home over the next week.

 

15. Toronto Blue Jays (12-5) | Last week: 18 (+3)

There’s no telling what kind of offensive outside the Jays could have if the weather cooperated over the weekend, but they are rolling heading into a tough stretch against the Red Sox and Yankees. Toronto could either climb into the top ten or see a big fall by next week.

 

16. Pittsburgh Pirates (12-6) | Last week: 16

Pittsburgh is all about the Penguins right now, but the Pirates are still surprising people, and they will look to hold up their end against the Phillies in the Battle of Pennsylvania tonight and through the weekend.

 

17. Philadelphia Phillies (10-7) | Last week: 14 (-3)

Philadelphia is probably the biggest wild card in baseball right now, as they went 8-1 against the Marlins, Reds, and Rays (three of the worst teams in the MLB), but the Braves just ended their momentum with a series win. The stretch against Pittsburgh, Arizona, and Atlanta again will say a lot about Gabe Kapler’s team.

 

18. Atlanta Braves (10-7) | Last week: 20 (+2)

If Atlanta keeps playing how they’ve been playing—particularly against Philly—the NL East will probably be a four-team race all season.

 

19. Seattle Mariners (9-7) | Last week: 19

Seattle is hoping to split their four-game series with the Astros tonight before taking on the Rangers this weekend. The offense needs to turn it back on with five runs over the past four outings.

 

20. San Francisco Giants (7-10) | Last week: 17 (-3)

The Giants’ success against the Angels, Nationals, and Dodgers to close out April could go a long way to determining if they are going to sink or swim in 2018.

 

21. Oakland Athletics (9-10) | Last week: 22 (+1)

The A’s have won four-straight games, including a three-game sweep against the White Sox where they totaled 30 runs, but they have a difficult draw with the Red Sox tomorrow after an off day today.

 

22. San Diego Padres (7-13) | Last week: 23 (+1)

The Padres, on the other hand, were just swept by the Dodgers—but it was the Dodgers. Before that, they took three-of-four against San Francisco, and now San Diego will try to start a streak against the D’Backs and Rockies to get to .500.

 

23. Detroit Tigers (6-9) | Last week: 28 (+5)

Unfortunately, the bottom-eight of the power rankings will probably be pretty bad all year if the first 15-20 games of the season is any indication, but at least Detroit has won two in a row after their weekend series with the Yankees was postponed.

 

24. Texas Rangers (7-13) | Last week: 26 (+2)

Texas was able to bounce back from a poor start to their four-game series with Houston last week to split it, 2-2, but Elvis Andrus remains a big absence in the lineup, on the field, and in the clubhouse.

 

25. Baltimore Orioles (5-13) | Last week: 21 (-4)

The Orioles have fallen off a cliff as of late, and they are suddenly 10.5 games behind in the AL East. That’s not something to write home about this early in the season.

 

26. Chicago White Sox (4-11) | Last week: 25 (-1)

I’ll keep saying it, but this isn’t the year the White Sox will compete. Fortunately, the future looks bright with Yoan Moncada and Tim Anderson in the middle of the diamond.

 

27. Miami Marlins (5-12) | Last week: 30 (+3)

The sub-par play of other teams in the MLB has made Miami look respectable in their full-blown rebuild, and picking up more wins than expected this season should help establish a better culture for the franchise.

 

28. Tampa Bay Rays (5-13) | Last week: 27 (-1)

Kevin Kiermaier is out three months after undergoing thumb surgery, so Tampa Bay will be without their best player for most of the season. Not good.

 

29. Kansas City Royals (3-13) | Last week: 24 (-5)

The Royals won the World Series three years ago. This season, they have three wins.

 

30. Cincinnati Reds (3-15) | Last week: 29 (-1)

Cincinnati wasn’t expected to compete in 2018, but manager Bryan Price was fired after a dreadful start with three wins through 18 games. The Reds have some players, including superstar Joey Votto, so perhaps they will turn it around somehow.