MLB Power Rankings (Week 3)

1. Braves

The Braves still need a fifth starter to replace Spencer Strider if they want this party to continue, but aside from that, this team is nearly impeccable. Their offense has picked up right where it has left off, but it has been Marcell Ozuna carrying the load instead of one of their young franchise cornerstones. The scariest part about this early success is that their best player, Ronald Acuna, has been slumping a bit to open the season as he is still homerless. Once Acuna gets going, this team is not going to lose many games.

2. Yankees

Juan Soto has been everything the Padres wish they were getting when they traded for him at the 2022 trade deadline. Obviously, Soto will not continue to hit near .350 but if he continues to hit anywhere close to this pace, the Yankees are the team to beat in the AL. Like the Braves, their star player is slumping with Aaron Judge hitting just .207 to start the season so this team could become even better.

3. Dodgers

The Dodgers' record is a bit deceiving as they have lost 7 games but only 3 of those games were decided by more than 2 runs so every time this team takes the field they are extremely competitive and do not give away any easy wins. The offense is the obvious strong point of this squad but the pitching has been surprisingly solid with their biggest liability, Gavin Stone, offering a strong outing in his last start. If the Dodgers can establish a consistent pitching rotation, they will be an extremely tough out.

4. Rangers

The Rangers have not been particularly explosive with just 15 homers this year, but they have still been productive nonetheless. The most impactful aspect of this team has been their ability to get on base with a .351 OBP. The home runs will definitely come for this team since they were the 3rd most powerful team in the MLB a year ago. If the Rangers power comes back, their high on base rate will lead to humungous offensive numbers. 

5. Brewers

I have a feeling this will not last, but we have to enjoy it while we can. When you think of the Brewers, do you think of sluggers? I certainly don't, with Rhys Hoskins being the only true prototypical slugger on the team. Yet, no team is hitting more homers than the Brewers right now with an incredible 1.64 home runs per game to begin the season. I certainly do not see this pace holding up so once they regress to the norm they will likely lose a fair bit more games, but they seem like the favorites to win the NL Central right now.

6. Orioles

Should I just make this whole section about Colton Cowser? Sure, why not? Cowser is certainly living up to his high draft pedigree with production all over the field. Cowser came out of the weekend as the hottest player in all of baseball. Cowser went 10 for 23 over the past week with 8! XBHs. Originally, Cowser came into the season as nothing more than a platoon option, but he has forced his way into an everyday player. For all the youth that led many to be excited about the Orioles, Cowser was a name that was seldomly brought up so if Cowser is half the player he has been over the past week, the Yankees better watch out.

7. Phillies

The Phillies are not performing very well but they are still finding a way to deliver wins with a 9-8 record. They have a negative run differential and rank 24th in runs scored. This is too good of a team to keep playing this way so if they are winning games while playing like this, wait until they find their offensive rhythm, they will go on a big run.

8. Cubs

The Cubs may have gotten the steal of the offseason. Sure Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto have been amazing to start the year, but did they cost two lowly pitching prospects? Well Michael Busch did and he looks to be an absolute steal. Busch has a ridiculous 188 OPS+ to start the year and he fills a hole in the Cubs lineup that they were desperately missing. Aside from Cody Bellinger, the Cubs did not have any formidable lefties to terrorize right handed pitchers but they have gotten just that with Busch currently holding a 1.204 OPS against righties to open the season. This is by far the best Cubs offense since 2016 and we all know what happened that year.

9. Guardians

The Guardians should probably be a bit higher on this ranking but besides a series loss to the Yankees, who have they really beat? I have a sense that question will become a bit of a theme this season given the division they play in, but the AL Central has shown improvements with the Royals and Tigers both playing well. But it will be hard to tell how good this team truly is until we get to October.

10. Diamondbacks

Can we just skip to a month from now when Eduardo Rodriguez and Jordan Montgomery are closing out this rotation and the Diamondbacks are the 3rd best team in the NL? Well we can dream, but until that happens this team is going to be a bit up and down but the talent on this team is undeniable.

11. Pirates

I do not know how long Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales will continue to pretend to be good pitchers, but as long as they keep performing at this high level, the Pirates will be legitimate playoff contenders. There are a ton of question marks surrounding this team at the moment, but that should not stop you from enjoying the stellar baseball they have been playing at the moment.

12. Rays

The Rays continue to win in Ray ways. They have a gross -18 run differential but they still find ways to win close games with great situational hitting and pitching. If you want to see exciting, explosive baseball then you should likely look elsewhere, but if you like fundamentals then the Rays are your team.

13. Red Sox

The young Red Sox pitching staff is getting it done. They rank first in the majors in ERA so they are not just keeping opponents in check, they are dominating them. I am not sold that the pitching staff is truly this good as shown by their series against the Orioles. The Red Sox are not true contenders, but their opening schedule has led to a lot of success for the squad.

14. Royals

Is the entire Royals offense having a breakout season at once? It sure seems that way. The pitching staff does not seem to have what it takes to have an entire season of favorable production so they will likely prevent this team from competing even if this offensive outburst persists.

15. Astros

I do not know what to say about this team. The pitching has been a huge disappointment with both Hunter Brown and JP France taking confidence destroying losses this past week. Once Justin Verlander returns this week, this issue will be patched a bit; but Brown and France have to be major reasons for concern right now. The Astros will likely turn it around soon, but they have to be monitoring the starting pitching market as the season goes along.

16. Blue Jays

Justin Turner has been a great addition to this team. He brings a level of consistency this offense has desperately needed. Sure players like George Springer, Bo Bichette and Vlad Jr have had streaks of offensive output that are as hot as any player in the MLB, but consistency is just not an aspect of their game. The top third of their offense has been slumping a bit to start the season so once they start hitting, Justin Turner's consistent offense will make this Blue Jays offense a tough matchup for any pitcher.

17. Padres

I have absolutely nothing negative to say about this Padres offense with even Jake Cronenworth showing All Star form. The pitching on this team has been a HUGE issue. Besides Dylan Cease who has been fantastic, I would not bet on any of these starters to get a quality start. The Padres need another starter if they want to be a serious playoff contender.

18. Angels

Boy Mike Trout and Taylor Ward sure are good huh? Somehow the dynamic duo has led this team to a winning record. With no high end pitching talent and very shallow offensive production, the Angels will not be consistent winners.

19. Mets

How can Franky Lindor be this bad? I know it is early, but a .129 average is too low to be chalked up to small sample size. Something is obviously wrong with the SS and to keep a .129 blackhole in the heart of your lineup will lead to poor offensive production no matter how good the rest of your offense performs.

20. Reds

Anytime a righty takes the mound against the Reds, they are a vaunted offense; but when a lefty takes the mound, this lineup becomes full of holes. The lack of consistency keeps the Reds from being a true playoff contender, but they can score as many runs as any team in the majors when the conditions are right.

21. Tigers

The Tigers hype was fun but the Pirates were the best team they have played and they still have a negative run differential. The Tigers have at least shown they can beat up on bad teams, but they will not be playing bad teams all year. 

22. Athletics

I was here all along. Yes, the A's nearly have a winning record after two weeks of play. HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT. Do not be fooled, this is not a winning team so it will not last, but the franchise seems to be going in a positive direction for the first time in a decade. 

23. Mariners

The Mariners need to do something about Julio Rodriguez. I have no suggestions, but he is a far better player than this. He has been nothing but a liability for this team. Until Julio gets going, this team will not win many games.

24. Giants

Boy does Spring Training really matter. Blake Snell looks to be the biggest ripoff of the offseason. He needs to be sent down to the minors to ramp up at this point because he is just offering up batting practice. The pitching as a whole needs to really pick it up for this team.

25. Twins

Where is this offense? They have scored just 53 runs this year and there is not a single batter in this lineup who has offered anything close to steady production. Royce Lewis cannot get healthy quick enough because the Twins need him back now.

26. Cardinals

Nothing is going right for this squad right now. Their offense looks disjointed. Their pitching is getting teed up. Baseball has become a game that revolves around youth and the Cardinals have really proved it.

27. Nationals

The offense actually looks fairly decent, but the pitching just ain't there. They have only gotten a single quality start from their starters so far this season. No matter how good a bullpen is, that is not a recipe for success; but this Nationals bullpen is especially vulnerable so this pitching staff will cost the Nationals a bunch of losses.

28. Marlins

Edward Cabrera is coming back Monday! Besides that there is nothing positive to report.

29. Rockies

Kris Bryant hit his first homer of the season before Ronald Acuna did so get ready for Bryant's 2nd MVP. I kid, but the Rockies do not get many highlights so you have to celebrate them when they happen.

30. White Sox

The White Sox have scored 34 runs so far. 34! The next lowest run total is 48. The White Sox are in a league of their own and not in a good way.