Beyond the top 10 teams, it really is amazing that the gap between the No. 11 Pirates (24-23) and No. 27 Twins (21-26) is so small — a separation of just three games.
Really only the Angels, Astros and Rockies are dead on arrival.
Speaking of the Angels, now owners of the worst record in the majors (16-31), Perry Minasian has to be one of the worst general managers I have seen in a long, long time. I hear he is a great guy, but that is not the bar for a GM. There are only 30 of these folks.
You mean to tell me after the seven-year run Dan Duquette had following Andy MacPhail here in Baltimore working for Peter Angelos, his resume wasn’t attractive enough for one of the absolute worst franchises in sports?
Minasian looked to improve his pitching staff this offseason by trading for Grayson Rodriguez and signing Alek Manoah as a free agent. Rodriguez made his Angels debut on May 17 and allowed seven earned runs on seven hits and four walks in just 3.2 innings.
This came after Manoah came into a sure Angels loss in the eighth inning the day before to pitch two innings and mop up. He looks to be toast. He couldn’t get out of his second inning of work, allowing six hits, three walks and nine runs (eight earned) in 1.1 innings. His ERA stood at 9.82 prior to being optioned to Triple-A.
Seriously, Minasian hired Kurt Suzuki as manager on a one-year deal and gave him that kind of support with the pitching staff. Just an utter disgrace with the money he has at his disposal.
Here are this week’s MLB power rankings:
1. Atlanta Braves (32-15, No. 2 last week): The Braves might be most well-rounded team in the big leagues this year. The addition of Spencer Strider to the rotation makes them even more dangerous. The pitching staff has lowest ERA in all of baseball at 2.94.
2. Los Angeles Dodgers (29-18, No. 4): With Mookie Betts back — two solo home runs this week — keep an eye on the Dodgers making their move. Blake Snell is out for several weeks with same operation Tarik Skubal had.
3. New York Yankees (28-19, No. 3): The loss of Max Fried is huge, but Gerrit Cole is close to a return with his rehab outings going smoothly. I’m not so sure the Yankees won’t need another solid relief arm by the All-Star break.
4. Chicago Cubs (29-18, No. 1): The Cubs have the second-best team on-base percentage (.343), but the team ERA is an unimpressive 3.99.
5. Tampa Bay Rays (30-15, No. 5): The Rays lead the Orioles by 10 games, so the idea that the O’s will suddenly overtake them seems preposterous at the moment. But this week’s three-game series between these two division rivals will be a good measuring stick for both teams.
6. Milwaukee Brewers (26-18, No. 6): OK, the Crew has Jackson Chourio, Andrew Vaughn and Christian Yelich back. As Sherlock Holmes used to say to Watson, “The game is afoot!”
7. San Diego Padres (28-18, No. 7): The Padres’ impressive three-game sweep in Seattle featured five shutout innings in Lucas Giolito’s first start. He walked the first three guys in sixth with a big lead, but still impressive.
8. Philadelphia Phillies (24-23, No. 10): The Phillies are on a 15-4 roll since Don Mattingly took over as manager. Helps that Kyle Schwarber is hot as hell and Zack Wheeler appears to be very close to his pre-thoracic-outlet-syndrome problems. The Phillies’ fleece of the Rays for Cris Sanchez continues to pay major dividends.
9. St. Louis Cardinals (27-19, No. 12): The Cardinals have to be the biggest shocker in 2026 to date. Last year, they finished 78-84 (41-55 in the last 96 games) and spent the offseason offloading high-priced guys. Can they keep it up?
10. Cleveland Guardians (26-22, No. 13): The Guardians’ starters give them a chance to win most games, their relief pitching is stellar at the back end and they lead the American League with 51 steals. And Tom Hamilton is the best radio play-by-play guy in the business.
11. Pittsburgh Pirates (24-23, No. 8)
12. Athletics (23-23, No. 11)
13. Seattle Mariners (22-26, No. 9)
14. Cincinnati Reds (24-23, No. 14)
15. Washington Nationals (23-24, No. 21)
16. Texas Rangers (22-24, No. 19)
17. Chicago White Sox (24-23, No. 24)
18. Arizona Diamondbacks (22-23, No. 20)
19. Toronto Blue Jays (21-25, No. 18)
20. Boston Red Sox (19-27, No. 17)
21. Detroit Tigers (20-27, No. 15)
22. New York Mets (20-26, No. 25)
23. Kansas City Royals (20-27, No. 16)
24. Miami Marlins (21-26, No. 23)
25. Baltimore Orioles (21-26, No. 22)
26. San Francisco Giants (20-27, No. 27)
27. Minnesota Twins (21-26, No. 26)
28. Houston Astros (19-29, No. 29)
29. Colorado Rockies (18-29, No. 30)
30. Los Angeles Angels (16-31, No. 28)