MLB Rankings - Week 20
This week’s MLB Blogger Rankings still have the New York Yankees on top, followed by the Tampa Bay Rays.
The NL East leading Atlanta Braves slip into third place, as the AL Central leading Minnesota Twins land in fourth.
Another division leader, the San Diego Padres out of the NL West remain steady in fifth; the Boston Red Sox move to sixth place and the surging Philadelphia Phillies have pushed themselves into the seventh spot on the list.
Biggest losers were the AL West leading Texas Rangers, as fans lose confidence in the slumping team. Rangers get away with this sudden decline due to how weak their division has been in 2010.
The winners of this week are the Baltimore Orioles. The O’s show signs of life, moving out of the #30 spot for the first time all season. If you can believe it the Seattle Mariners and Pittsburgh Pirates ranked worse than the O’s.
The O’s made a good move hiring Buck Showalter as their new skipper. To get the ball finally rolling in Baltimore, with nothing to lose this season is a credit to the owners.
Other teams like the New York Mets and Seattle Mariners should take note.
Agree or disagree???? Bring it on....
| RANK | TEAM | PREV | REC | COMMENTS |
| 1 |
|
1 | (78-48) | Injuries (Pettitte, A-Rod) suddenly become more serious in the stretch run. Pounding the hapless Mariners helps keep the Yankees in top form. |
| 2 |
|
2 | (78-48) | Financial docs show that even when the team was losing, the Rays made a profit. If that doesn't distract, the Rays are cruising. |
| 3 |
|
5 | (73-53) | D-Lee doesn't bring much power to this lineup, but another great bat in the lineup will help this team's divisional chances. |
| 4 |
|
6 | (72-54) | Twins are killing, and are enjoying a constant pull-away from first |
| 5 |
|
4 | (75-49) | Chase Headley's bat has been heating up and the Padres just keep winning. |
| 6 |
|
7 | (72-54) | This injury-shredded Sox team has continued to be competitive but has to win some big games to make it to the playoffs |
| 7 |
|
8 | (70-55) | A healthy Phillies lineup with Oswalt in a groove? The Phightin's are again the NL team to watch. |
| 8 |
|
3 | (71-54) | Lucky for the Rangers the AL West breeds no competition for a playoff berth. Still, can the Rangers hang with the rest of the AL? So far, not so good. |
| 9 |
|
9 | (68-55) | Trailing the Reds by 3.5 games in the NL Central, the Cardinals 11 games are against the Pirates, Nationals and Astros. Very good news. |
| 10 |
|
13 | (65-60) | 5-5, lost 2 straight. Getting bested by the Red Sox in a rain delay a microcosm for season |
| 11 |
|
11 | (68-57) | A five game losing streak, and sub-par pitching is causing the White Sox to slip away |
| 12 |
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10 | (72-54) | The Cardinals salvaged two consecutive victories at home against the Giants, however, they went 3-5 in the past 10 days while the Reds went 8-2. That swing has them sitting 3.5 games ahead of the Reds in the NL Central. |
| 13 |
|
12 | (71-56) | Andres Torres (5.4 WAR this season) is a player more people should know about. |
| 14 |
|
20 | (62-62) | Was firing the manager really that much of an improvement in Florida? |
| 15 |
|
14 | (65-60) | After a tough June and July, Ubaldo Jimenez is dealing once again in August. |
| 16 |
|
19 | (62-62) | Cahill keeps winning, but bats continue not hitting. |
| 17 |
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17 | (63-63) | 87 weeks left in the season...it's time to see what the others can do. |
| 18 |
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15 | (64-62) | Since coming over to the Dodgers, Octavio Dotel has walked 8.22 batters per nine innings. He has good stuff. He just can't control it. |
| 19 |
|
16 | (63-62) | Nothing much to say here as the Mets near their annual elimination. |
| 20 |
|
18 | (62-65) | Finally beat the Red Sox, but need to capitalize on the Rangers slump which the Halos can't seem to do. |
| 21 |
|
21 | (59-66) | By continuing to play .500 baseball, the Brewers sit comfortably in third place in the NL Central. Such is life when your division contains the Cubs, Pirates and Astros. |
| 22 |
|
22 | (53-73) | Strasburg should be shut down for the rest of the year, ticket sales be damned! |
| 23 |
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24 | (50-75) | They're scrappy, but they haven't been able to really pull anything together. |
| 24 |
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23 | (53-74) | The Cubs fittingly saw Lou Piniella off to retirement by getting thrashed by the Braves 5-16 at home. |
| 25 |
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27 | (49-77) | Edwin Jackson has been on a roll (1.35 ERA, 2.61 xFIP) since being traded to the White Sox. |
| 26 |
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26 | (53-73) | Royals continue to not impress. |
| 27 |
|
30 | (44-82) | Congrats. You're 1 loss away from your 13th consecutive losing season |
| 28 |
|
25 | (56-69) | Houston and Cincinnati are the only two NL Central teams that don't have games within the division this week. The Astros travel to New York and Philadelphia. |
| 29 |
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28 | (49-76) | King Felix's incredible performances on the mound are being wasted on a disastrous team. |
| 30 |
|
29 | (42-84) | The Pirates play NL foes St. Louis, Milwaukee and Chicago this week and they're a combined 15-18 this season against those team, which isn't bad for the Pirates. |
