Here are my MLB power rankings. For my latest on the Orioles, click here.
1. Tampa Bay Rays (51-24, No. 1 last week): I guess I faded the Rays in my preseason mock rankings because I didn’t think Tyler Glasnow would come back at this level. But I also didn’t envision Zach Eflin stepping up as a legit No. 2 starter. Then again, I didn’t see them losing two top-tier starters in Jeffrey Springs and Drew Rasmussen, either.
2. Atlanta Braves (46-26, No. 3): The Braves are 14-3 in their last 17 games. They did exactly what very good teams are supposed to do — thump the likes of Detroit, Washington, Colorado and the not-so-good New York Mets. Interesting week ahead as they face red-hot Philadelphia and surging Cincinnati.
3. Texas Rangers (44-27, No. 2): Even without Jacob deGrom, things were looking very good for the Rangers, but suddenly Martín Pérez has sprung a leak and Jon Gray had a lousy outing against Toronto. But Nathan Eovaldi has been everything and more the Rangers knew they needed. Dane Dunning is giving them some solid innings and Andrew Heaney has still been a bit of an enigma.
4. Arizona Diamondbacks (43-29, No. 5): This is the team none of us really know. The one thing I know is that the D-Backs were 23-18 in late May. Since then, they have gone 20-11 and taken a firm grasp of the suddenly shocking NL West.
5. Baltimore Orioles (44-27, No. 4): The Orioles maintain their spot as second-best in AL East, but the true test comes in the form of a brief two-game series in St. Petersburg. Everybody in Baltimore wants to know when the Orioles raid Norfolk for Grayson Rodriguez, Jordan Westburg and Colton Cowser. All three entered the season as top-100 prospects. Not so sure that Josh Lester, Ryan McKenna and Cole Irvin ever were ranked that high.
6. Miami Marlins (41-31, No. 10): At one point, the Marlins were ranked No. 21 and were just 20-21. Since then, they have gone 21-10. Here’s the surprising thing: While the starting pitching is good, the numbers don’t jump out at you. Among those in the original rotation, only left Braxton Garrett has an ERA under 4.00 at 3.88. In fact, reigning NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcántara is just 2-5 with a 4.97 ERA. But young phenom Eury Pérez has jumped in and gone 4-1 with a 1.80 ERA and 1.09 WHIP. The bullpen has gotten a major boost from A.J. Puk, who has unlocked his amazing talent.
7. Los Angeles Angels (41-33, No. 11): Skipper Phil Nevin has his team streaking (10-3 in the past two weeks). But the latest question is whether or not the team can stay on a roll after losing two infielders — shortstop Zach Neto (oblique strain) and third baseman Gio Urshela (left pelvic fracture) — to the injured list. Another infielder, Anthony Rendon, has a bruised wrist after being hit by a pitch.
8. Toronto Blue Jays (39-34, No. 9): I doubt very seriously the brain trust of the Jays had a 39-34 record in mind when they acquired outfielder Daulton Varsho and reliever Erik Swanson via trade and signed veteran right-hander Chris Bassitt to a three-year, $63 million deal. Not that all three haven’t had their moments, but to date this looks like a team that is less than the sum of all its parts.
9. San Francisco Giants (39-32, No. 16): Another team has turned its season around since late May. The Giants began the season 17-23 but have gone 22-9 since. They have a nice rotation that includes Logan Webb, Alex Cobb (now on the IL with an oblique strain), Alex Wood and Anthony DeSclafani. Bullpen ace Camilo Duvall has been super. But is it all revolving around turning the catching over to rookie Patrick Bailey? Bailey has three homers and 19 RBIs in 22 games.
10. Los Angeles Dodgers (39-33, No. 8): Manager Dave Roberts’ squad only holds onto a top-10 ranking because many of the teams at this level had even worse weeks. Remember when the Dodgers were 26-15 and in front of the Diamondbacks by three games? Since then, the Dodgers are just 13-18 and have slipped below the D-Backs and Giants.
11. New York Yankees (39-33, No. 6)
12. Houston Astros (39-33, No. 7)
13. Minnesota Twins (36-36, No. 12)
14. Milwaukee Brewers (37-34, No. 13)
15. Philadelphia Phillies (38-34, No. 20)
16. Cincinnati Reds (37-35, No. 23)
17. San Diego Padres (35-36, No. 15)
18. Boston Red Sox (37-35, No. 18)
19. Seattle Mariners (35-35, No. 19)
20. Cleveland Guardians (33-38, No. 18)
21. Chicago Cubs (33-38, No. 26)
22. New York Mets (33-38, No. 21)
23. Pittsburgh Pirates (34-36, No. 14)
24. Chicago White Sox (31-42, No. 22)
25. Detroit Tigers (30-40, No. 24)
26. St. Louis Cardinals (29-43, No. 25)
27. Colorado Rockies (29-45, No. 28)
28. Washington Nationals (27-43, No. 27)
29. Kansas City Royals (19-52, No. 29)
30. Oakland Athletics (19-55, No. 30)