With another great week of baseball in the books, here are our week 18 power rankings: (stats current as of 28 July)
30. Texas Rangers (Last Week: 30)
Even though we're at the beginning of the second half, the Rangers are already in disaster mode. Texas is over 20 games out in the AL West, and that's not going to change any time soon. Now would be a good time for the Rangers to see if they have some talented pitching prospects in their farm system.
29. Chicago Cubs (Last Week: 28)
The Cubs continue to be a work in progress and are all but out in the NL Central. There's no news within the organization about any big trades that could shape the team's future this week, but the Cubs still have some time before the trade deadline to make some moves.
28. Houston Astros (Last Week: 27)
The Astros are competing with the Texas Rangers for last place in the AL West. Houston looked headed in the right direction a few weeks ago, but they've taken a turn for the worse as young slugger George Springer was placed on the 15-day disabled list after injuring his left quadricep.
27. Colorado Rockies (Last Week: 29)
The Rockies now have Justin Morneau and Troy Tulowitzki on the disabled list, which puts a damper on the most productive lineup in Major League Baseball. Unfortunately for Colorado, the team with the best offense has the league's worst pitching, as the Rockies' staff has averaged an unacceptable 4.91 ERA.
26. Arizona Diamondbacks (Last Week: 26)
The Diamondbacks hang in spot number 26 this week, and Martin Prado's bat has heated up recently. Prado has four extra base hits in the last seven days, and has driven in six runs in that timespan. Prado's patience at the plate has helped supplement a lineup that's been carried by the bat of Paul Goldschmidt, who has managed to put up numbers that will keep him in the NL MVP conversation.
25. Philadelphia Phillies (Last Week: 24)
With the trade deadline rapidly approaching, the Phillies have to be considering trading some veteran experience to bring some new talent to town. A team that dominated the NL East a few seasons ago has quickly regressed, and the Phillies aren't even in contention for the postseason. Philadelphia will need to make some adjustments in a hurry to remain relevant.
24. San Diego Padres (Last Week: 25)
San Diego's offense has been a joke this season. The Padres have scored 320 runs this season, which is 60 runs fewer than the second-lowest total in baseball. Somehow, the Padres are in third place in the NL West. Is there a bat out there that can help this team? What can the Padres trade for it?
23. Minnesota Twins (Last Week: 23)
The Twins stay at the 23 spot this week, and this team is a couple of arms away from being able to make noise in the AL Central. Phil Hughes has been the ace for Minnesota this season, but he's only been able to hold down a 4.10 ERA. The Twins will have to find more stable arms if they want to keep pace with the Tigers and Royals.
22. Boston Red Sox (Last Week: 21)
Last week, the Red Sox were staring down the Tampa Bay Rays for last place in the AL East standings. This week, the Rays have raced past the Red Sox, creating a three game gap between the two teams. The Red Sox are a team to watch before the trade deadline, as they're trying to jettison players to speed up their rebuilding efforts. Keep an eye on Jon Lester, John Lackey and Koji Uehara over the next few days.
21. New York Mets (Last Week: 20)
The Mets have pieced together a starting rotation that's kept New York in the running for the NL East. Rookie Jacob deGrom has pitched like a veteran in July, winning all four starts since July 8th. In that span, deGrom has posted an outstanding 0.66 ERA.
20. Chicago White Sox (Last Week: 18)
The White Sox drop a couple of spots this week, but they remain a team to watch in the second half. Chicago is finally healthy, except for closer Matt Lindstrom, and the Sox are only eight games out of the AL Central race. They'll have to rely heavily on ace Chris Sale, who has been pulverizing opposing batters since his return from the disabled list.
19. Miami Marlins (Last Week: 22)
The Marlins move up a few spots this week, as they have been finding ways to win games. Miami's trying to stay on pace in a loaded division that contains the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals, and they have their work cut out for them. Casey McGehee has provided a good bat alongside Giancarlo Stanton in the month of July, recording 27 hits and hitting for a .314 average.
18. Tampa Bay Rays (Last Week: 19)
The Rays continue to move up in the rankings, and Joe Maddon's team continues to win games. Tampa Bay has won nine of their last 10 and moved up to fourth in the AL East -there's a big question hanging over the Rays with the deadline looming, though: do they move ace David Price?
17. Cleveland Indians (Last Week: 16)
The Indians are in third place in an AL Central race that's cooled off thanks to the Detroit Tigers creating some space at the top of the division. Carlos Santana has been explosive for the Indians, homering five times in the Tribe's most recent series against the Royals.
16. Cincinnati Reds (Last Week: 15)
The Reds have had a tough stretch, only winning two of their last 10 games, while dropping to six games back in the NL Central race. Last week, the NL Central had the top two teams tied, followed by two teams that were only a few games out of first place. Cincinnati's struggles have landed them in third place this week, and they're still looking for some answers.
15. Kansas City Royals (Last Week: 17)
The Royals are five games out of first place in the AL Central going into this week. Kansas City hasn't had a bad season, but they've been mediocre at the plate this season. Kansas City has struggled to score runs, even though they have fourth-best batting average in the Majors at .263.
14. Seattle Mariners (Last Week: 12)
The Mariners are continuing to lose pace with the two hottest teams in the league at the top of their division. Seattle is now 11.5 games back of the Oakland A's and Los Angeles Angels, who are both battling to be the top team in Major League Baseball. Felix Hernandez has continued his reign as "King" this year though, and he still boasts an amazing 1.99 ERA.
13. Pittsburgh Pirates (Last Week: 14)
The Pirates are just three games out of first place in the NL Central, despite being in third place. Pittsburgh has been the best team in baseball at getting on base so far this season, as the Bucs have an on-base percentage of .334. The Pirates will need to look into upgrading their pitching, which has been the weak link in their team this season.
12. New York Yankees (Last Week: 11)
The Yankees have allowed the Toronto Blue Jays to pass them for the second place spot in the AL East, with New York now sitting four games out. The Yankees look to return to the second-place spot, and they should be helped by a series this week with the league's worst team, the Texas Rangers.
11. Toronto Blue Jays (Last Week: 13)
The Blue Jays have been on a tear, winning seven of their last 10 games and moving into second place in the AL East. The Jays have been a productive offense this season, but the team has lacked pitching at critical times. Toronto is a team that will have to make a decision before the trade deadline if they want to make a postseason run.
10. St. Louis Cardinals (Last Week: 6)
The Cardinals are only two games out of first place in the NL Central, but St. Louis has Major League Basball's second-worst offense. The Cardinals have had a tough time scoring runs this season, only posting 384. St. Louis has a surplus of pitching that could allow them to make a move before the trade deadline for another bat.
9. Atlanta Braves (Last Week: 8)
The Atlanta Braves headlined Sunday's Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, as Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Bobby Cox were all enshrined. Maddux and Glavine were two of the most dominant pitchers to ever play the game, and Cox was a fiery, passionate manager ejected 159 times in his legendary career.
8. San Francisco Giants (Last Week: 5)
The Giants fell out of first place in the NL West this weekend after being swept by their bitter divisional rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers. San Francisco acquired starting pitcher Jake Peavy from the Boston Red Sox and signed second basemen Dan Uggla after Uggla and the Atlanta Braves parted ways last week.
7. Baltimore Orioles (Last Week: 7)
The Orioles continue to hold on to first place in the AL East, and they owe a lot of their success on offense to free agent signing Nelson Cruz. Cruz has blasted 29 homers this season for Baltimore, who lost one of their best players, Matt Wieters, to season-ending surgery.
6. Milwaukee Brewers (Last Week: 10)
The Brewers regain a spot in our top 10 this week after reclaiming first place in the NL Central back from the St. Louis Cardinals. With injuries that have limited Yadier Molina's season, the best catcher in the National League has been Jonathan Lucroy. Lucroy has quietly hit .310 so far this season, and the set the table nicely for both Ryan Braun and Carlos Gomez.
5. Los Angeles Dodgers (Last Week: 9)
The Dodgers are riding high right now, fresh off of a sweep of San Francisco that landed them in first place in the NL West. Clayton Kershaw has added even more to his resume for another Cy Young Award this season, after tossing his league-best fourth complete game against the Giants this past Saturday.
4. Detroit Tigers (Last Week: 3)
The Tigers are sitting on a five game cushion at the top of the AL Central. Miguel Cabrera has been his usual self this season, as he leads Major League Baseball with 81 runs driven in. He's had some help from Victor Martinez, who has hit 21 home runs along with a .320 average, and the two have propelled the Tigers to the top of their division.
3. Washington Nationals (Last Week: 4)
The Nationals have created a small amount of space at the top of the NL East, now leading the Atlanta Braves by 1.5 games. Washington has had a productive month, winning 12 of their 20 along with catching the Braves for first place in a battle that will continue throughout the rest of the season.
2. Los Angeles Angels (Last Week: 2)
The Angels continue to grind out wins, and they've now won 16 of their 22 games in the month of July. In that span, the Angels have scored 116 runs, the most in baseball. If Los Angeles can somehow get Josh Hamilton healthy and firing on all cylinders, they'll be able to put even more pressure on the division-leading Oakland Athletics.
1. Oakland Athletics (Last Week: 1)
The Oakland A's are the no-suprise number one team in our power rankings this week. The A's have won seven of their last ten games, and this team is built for postseason success. If this loaded Oakland team doesn't make a deep run, it'll come as a major shock.
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