MLB Power Rankings (Week 1)
1. Dodgers
Yamamoto believers can take a deep sigh of relief now. He came out in a rain shortened start on absolute fire working 5 near perfect innings on just 68 pitches. If he truly is as advertised I just do not see how this Dodger team could be beaten in a 7 game series when healthy. They scored at least 5 runs in every game this weekend and their starting pitching was just as good allowing a total of 4 runs over the weekend (and that was with temporary starter Gavin Stone taking most of the damage). If we are being nit-picky, they could use another bullpen arm, but I am sure they will address that sooner or later.
2. Braves
The Braves did what the Braves do opening weekend. They scored a bunch of runs while riding above average pitching to wins. Chris Sale did not come away with a win on Sunday, but he looked good especially with runners on base as he was able to get out of a bases loaded no out jam while allowing just one run. The Braves will continue to play solid baseball day in and day out.
3. Yankees
I really wanted to have the Yankees leapfrog the Braves this week, but that just is not realistic until their rotation gets a bit healthier. Man this offense is as advertised though. They played hard pulling off comeback wins against a talented Astros pitching staff. They are getting great production from every slot of their lineup and they look like they are nearly ready to make the leap and join the elite tier of MLB offensive juggernauts.
4. Rangers
Rangers should feel proud to come away with a hard fought series win over a talented Cubs team. The new young core looks to already be gelling with the existing offensive core. Wyatt Langford has looked ready for this moment, collecting a hit in every game so far. Evan Carter has been commanding the strike zone with 5 walks over the first series. Once this team gets a somewhat healthy rotation, the sky is the limit.
5. Diamondbacks
I was aware of all the additions the Diamondbacks had made over the offseason, but seeing it all come together for the first time left me in awe. All the pieces of this lineup have fit together perfectly, never allowing the opposing pitcher to relax. Sure this was just against the Rockies, but keep in mind that the DBacks have reinforcements coming with Eduardo Rodriguez and Jordan Montgomery ramping up their activity as they get ready to join the rotation. The future is now in Arizona.
6. Orioles
The Orioles offense looked just as good as last year if not better with Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson already looking like they have taken the next step in their development. The pitching did leave a bit to be desired, allowing a weaker Angels offense to score 4 runs in two of three games, but they are also dealing with injuries so I am sure some of the kinks will get ironed out as we roll into the summer.
7. Phillies
The Phillies did not have a great opening weekend but they were playing the Braves after all. Most encouragingly, their ace Zach Wheeler looked like he was in midseason form, blanking an elite Braves offense. Better days are ahead for this Phillies team.
8. Astros
Those Yankees sure are good huh? Even though the Astros starting pitching looked solid, the Astros are still winless. They definitely need to add an arm or two to bridge the starters to Josh Hader. Not playing the Yankees will certainly benefit the Astros but things do not get any easier this week as they have to go through two playoff teams in the Blue Jays and Rangers.
9. Twins
The Twins beat the Royals as expected. The Twins should be coasting for much of this season, but it will be interesting to see how they fare when they face some higher caliber pitching.
10. Mariners
11. Blue Jays
If this Blue Jays offense can prove to be consistent, they will instantly become contenders. This Blue Jays rotation continues to be nasty so a strong offense would make the AL East race very interesting.
12. Cubs
Man it feels like the Cubs season is already over thanks to their best player, Justin Steele, getting injured Opening Day and likely facing an extended absence. But that is an over reaction as this Cubs team is too deep to collapse from a single injury. The Cubs already got an injection of new hope following a dominant MLB debut from the Japanese import Shota Imanaga.
13. Tigers
I was not hyping up the Tigers last week for no reason. They proved they can do the little things to win baseball games after coming away with a sweep despite scoring just 11 runs over the weekend. Now, they will not get to play the White Sox every game, but they should still find success thanks to playing in the weakest division in all of baseball.
14. Brewers
No Corbin Burnes? No Brandon Woodruff? No Craig Counsell? No problem. The Brewers were still able to maximize their talent and squeak out a sweep over the Mets. Do not expect utter domination out of this squad, but they play great situational baseball so they will squeeze out a lot of close wins.
15. Rays
Evaluating the Rays following their opening weekend is a bit tough. Sure they came away with a series split, but they did not look particularly good. Besides Randy Arozarena, none of their hitters inspired any kind of confidence, but they still somehow scored more than 4 runs per game over the series. The Rays will find ways to win games, but it does look like they will take a bit of a step back this season.
16. Giants
I must admit, I was wrong. This is not your typical Giants offense. They look like they can compete with just about any pitcher and it all starts with the Korean import Jung Hoo Lee. Lee is already proving to be one of the MLB's toughest outs. If this offensive production is not a mirage, the Giants are serious playoff contenders in a stacked NL West.
17. Pirates
Playing the Marlins is a huge boon for any team, but you still have to be a decent team to come away with a sweep. The offensive production was also a bit skewed since all four of the Marlins starters they faced were left handed and the Pirates crush left handed pitching, but they were still super productive so this offense cannot be ignored.
18. Reds
The offense looked really good with an average of more than 7 runs per game. I love the platoons they have set up as they will likely never look completely overmatched regardless of the handedness of the opposing pitcher. The Reds pitching does look like it may hold the team back though as they allowed 5 or more runs in two of the three games against the Nationals.
19. Mets
The Mets looked a bit over matched against the Brewers. After Alonso and Lindor, the lineup did not seem like it stood much of a chance against the Brewers pitching. Scoring less than 3 runs per game just won't cut it especially in the NL East.
20. Guardians
The Guardians looked good to open the season, but they were just playing the A's and they still got shut down by the middling Paul Blackburn. I am going to need to see more from this team before I have any faith in their ability to win meaningful games.
21. Padres
I do not know if it was just me, but the Padres looked worse than their scores would indicate. They were bad with runners in scoring position both offensively and while pitching, but I may just be overreacting to a small sample size. I truly believe the Padres postseason hopes all come down to Dylan Cease. If he is his 2022 self, the Padres will be a winning team, but if he continues to regress, they just do not have the pitching depth to survive.
22. Cardinals
The top half of this Cardinals lineup is fairly decent, but the rest of this team leaves a lot to be desired. I cannot point to a Cardinal pitcher who I would feel confident in their ability to get a win. Their bullpen is a disaster allowing 11 ERs over the opening series. The Cardinals have far too many holes to offer real competition at this point in time.
23. Red Sox
The Red Sox were one of the bigger surprises over the opening weekend. They offered strong offensive output while getting a couple of decent starts from young inexperienced starters. I am not ready for a full endorsement of this team, but they do seem like they could be headed in the right direction.
24. Angels
I have absolutely nothing positive to say about this team's pitching, but their offense did look much better than I assumed they would be. Mike Trout has not lost any pop in his bat following all the injuries. As long as Trout can remain healthy, this team will at least be somewhat competitive.
25. Royals
Is this the year Brady Singer finally puts it all together and breaks out? Probably not, but boy did he sure look good on Sunday. Aside from Bobby Witt Jr., do not expect any kind of consistency from this team, but as shown on Sunday, they can have random spurts of greatness and surprise any opponent.
26. Athletics
The offense looked decent over the opening weekend. Sure it only led to a single win, but I think they have officially moved out of the basement of the MLB and are no longer the league's doormat.
27. Marlins
What can we honestly expect from a rotation composed of Jesus Luzardo, AJ Puk, Ryan Weathers, Trevor Rogers and Max Meyer? Besides Luzardo, this team will be getting beat up early and often.
28. Nationals
The pieces of this offense look good, but with no pitching in sight, 2024 can be nothing but another year of transition for the franchise.
29. Rockies
How did Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery and Michael Lorenzen go unsigned for so long when the Rockies rotation exists. I understand it is hard to convince free agents to play for a bottom feeder like the Rockies and have to play half their games at Coors, but if they tried throwing a bunch of money at them, at least one of them should have gone for it. This rotation is abysmal and will keep the Rockies in the basement of the National League for the entire season.
30. White Sox
This team just got swept by the Tigers. Is any analysis required?
Comments
Post a Comment