The fourth edition of the Straight Arrow News Major League Baseball power rankings comes just ahead of the four-day All-Star break. For a couple of clubs riding amazing winning streaks, things have really changed in just one month’s time.
As for the rest, most could use a few days off to get right.
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This subjective list begins with the team that has been near the top all season. The Detroit Tigers still have the best record in baseball at 59-34, even though they are 16-10 since the last power rankings. They’ve won five straight and will send four players to the All-Star Game. Second baseman Gleyber Torres, in his first season with the Tigers, knows what the team’s success means to Detroit.
“I know how they played last year,” Torres said. “I know a little bit about the NFL team and also the hockey team. The fans show really, really good support. It’s going to be the moment to represent Detroit, represent the fans at the All-Star Game and keep doing the right work for the second half, because as a team, we have to finish strong.”
The Tigers’ 112-run surplus is the American League’s second-best. They look like they’ll be in the mix until the very end.
Which teams are chasing the Tigers’ tail?
The Astros are perhaps the hottest team in baseball, winning 19 of their last 27 games. They ranked ninth in SAN’s last power rankings.
The Astros somehow continue to produce without Kyle Tucker, now with the Chicago Cubs, or Yordan Alvarez, out since May 2 with a broken right hand. The team recently swept the Dodgers in Los Angeles, outscoring them 29-6 in a three-game series. Joe Espada is in the running for manager of the year and credits the team’s good pitching.
“These last two series have been outstanding,” Espada said. “How to navigate these right-handed hitters. A lot of credit to our pitching coaches just getting these guys ready. All those lefties going through all those righties. Even the guys out of the pen. It’s just been really fun to watch.”
The Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers come in at Nos. 3 and 4 in SAN’s latest rankings. L.A. is about to get Tony Gonsolin and Blake Snell back in the starting rotation and may soon get full starts from Shohei Ohtani. The question now is whether they can overcome the loss of third baseman Max Muncy, who recently suffered a knee injury.
The Brewers also got a pitching boost as former ace Brandon Woodruff made his first start in 651 days in a strong outing against the Marlins. Pairing him with young phenom Jacob Misiorowski is a playoff-worthy one-two punch. “The Miz,” as he is now known, beat the Dodgers Tuesday, striking out 12.
Which teams are taking up space in the middle of the pack?
The Cubs have been in the top five all season, mostly because of their offense. Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong are All-Stars, and Seiya Suzuki, leading the league in RBIs, should be. The Cubs lead the majors with a 119-run surplus. Manager Craig Counsell put the long season in perspective.
“There’s going to be losing streaks, there’s going to be winning streaks,” Counsell said. “It’s really just show up the next day and play right, play well together, improve. That’s the mantra. You just got to keep doing that over and over, and it gets boring, and I answer the same question a lot. But it’s how you have to think in this game.”
At No. 6 is another red-hot team. The Toronto Blue Jays, winners of 10 straight, are now in first place in the American League East. George Springer leads the offense, and the bullpen is one of the best in baseball with a combined 28 saves.
Right behind the Jays are the Philadelphia Phillies, who have been consistently good but flying under the radar all season. Trea Turner, another All-Star snub, is the only player in the majors with more than 100 hits. The starting pitching has been fantastic. Zack Wheeler was named MLB’s Pitcher of the Month for June and threw a one-hit, 12-strikeout gem Sunday to beat the Cincinnati Reds.
Which teams stayed in the top 10?
The New York Mets were at No. 2 in our rankings a month ago but hit a terrible slump in June, at one point losing 14 of 17 games. They have recently righted the ship, winning five of six games, and they’ll be getting pitchers Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea back into the rotation very soon.
The San Francisco Giants also hit the skids a bit, going 13-14 since the last rankings. The Rafael Devers trade has yet to pay off; they are 10-11 since he came over from the Red Sox. The Giants, however, remain within striking distance of the Dodgers, just five games back in the tough National League West.
The New York Yankees remain in the top 10 but they are hanging on by a thread. They have won two straight games but had lost 17 of 23 before that. Aaron Judge is still hitting homers, with 34 so far this year, but the pitching has been rough. To help out, they called up one of their top prospects, right-hander Cam Schlittler, to make his Major League debut against the Mariners on Wednesday.
Those same Mariners continue their rollercoaster season and seem to be on the upswing. The Tampa Bay Rays also continue to hang around and the San Diego Padres still feel very much like contenders despite a rough patch in June.
The pre-All-Star break rankings may not mean much in September, but it’s certainly nice to end the “first half” in the top 10. The next milestone, the July 31 trade deadline, is sure to shake things up even more.
