Inside The Standings – Power Rankings as of May 25

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Another new feature for ITM readers begins today as we publish the first installment of Inside The Standings – Power Rankings.  

Many of you are probably familiar with the concept from other sites you frequent – but I think you’ll see that new contributor Peter Houston is providing a ton of quality in-depth information surrounding each Club’s level of play thus far.

Welcome to ITM Peter, and let the debate begin.

MLB Power Rankings May 25th

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (30-15) – Who needs Manny anyway? His replacement, speedster Juan Pierre, has been hitting .400 since taking over. Their offence still leads the NL in runs scored, largely because of their balanced attack, 5 players have 25 + RBIs. With Chad Billingsley being Chad Billingsley and Randy Wolf quietly having a great year, the Dodgers have the fewest runs allowed in the Majors. Fifteenth-round pick Eric Stults has been pitching well and Clayton Kershaw, 21, is on his way to becoming a star. The bullpen has also been solid. Oh ya, they’re playing airtight defence, too. 

2. Boston Red Sox (26-18) – David Ortiz hit his first home run of the season on May 20th. What? In all fairness, now that Kevin Youkilis and his .400 average are back, the Red Sox don’t have many holes in their lineup. The rotation has been shaky, but Josh Beckett and Jon Lester will join Tim Wakefield in the sub-4.00 ERA club before long. Once the starters begin pitching half decent, the already stellar bullpen will have some breathing room. For now, the Red Sox are relying on their offence, led by the hot bat of Jason Bay (13 HR, .419 OBP, .617 SLG), and it’s working.

Gallardo is leading the way.

3. Milwaukee Brewers (26-18) – Really? Yes. If the Dodgers don’t need Manny, the Brewers don’t need C.C.  Their rotation has been effective with Dave Bush and Yovani Gollardo leading the way. The bullpen has the second lowest ERA in the NL – Trevor Hoffman’s has a 0.00 ERA and is a perfect 11 for 11 in save opportunities. The big question is can they keep it up? Their offense is less of a question mark but was quiet in a series sweep at the hands of the Twins this week.

4. Texas Rangers (26-17) – Is this team for real? Some in the media think so, but I have my doubts. Their lineup and defence are excellent, but not the pitching. Aside from Kevin Millwood, none of their starters have an ERA below 4. And the thing is, no one expects them to. Factor in that their bullpen has 4.93 ERA and I don’t see this club making the playoffs. 

5. Toronto Blue Jays (27-20) –The Blue Jays have come back down to earth, but the landing might have been a bit rougher than expected. The Jays were swept by the Red Sox and then by the light hitting Braves.  After only scoring 10 runs in total in the six games to start the road trip, the offence that has been leading the way most of the year needs to pick it up again if the Jays are to be successful. Their starters have posted solid numbers, but this inexperienced group may struggle to keep it going.  A point of concern for the Jays in the upcoming weeks should be the sub-par production from the 3 and 4 spots in the order. Eventually the likes of Marco Scutaro and Aaron Hill will slow down and the pressure will be on Alex Rios and Vernon Wells to start hitting like real 3 and 4 hitters. 

6. New York Yankees (25-19) – Uh oh, here they come. They’ve won 10 out of 12 and A-Rod has been scorching. The Yankees are back in business. Mark Teixeira is starting to bump his average up, and Robinson Cano and Jorge Posada are producing. Pitching wise, things haven’t been ideal in New York. However, C.C. is settling down, Joba Chamberlain and Andy Pettitte are pitching decent. Chien-Ming Wang returned to the club and made a 3 inning relief appearance. Even though he allowed 2 runs, he still lowered his ERA from 34.50 to 25.00. The big problem right now is the bullpen. If they don’t start performing, and soon, their names are going to start popping up either on the trade block or minor league rosters.

7. St Louis Cardinals (26-18) – Here’s an interesting stat: St. Louis’ starters have allowed four runs in their past 46.2 innings (0.77 ERA). Joel Pineiro is looking good and Adam Wainwright could be one of the most underrated starters in the league. Their bullpen has been good and Ryan Franklin has only blown one save. But aside from Albert Pujols and Ryan Ludwick, their lineup doesn’t have much to offer. If Chris Duncan can start producing the power he’s displayed in years past and Skip Schumaker can keep getting on base, there’s hope. But then again maybe none of those things will be necessary now that Chris Carpenter is back.

8. Detroit Tigers (24-18) – If Justin Verlander and Dontrelle Willis keep pitching to their potential, then Detroit’s rotation could be scary good. That’s because they’ve also got Edwin Jackson (4-2, 2.55 ERA) and first round pick Rick Porcello (5-3, 3.55 ERA). Even though Magglio Ordonez is struggling, Miguel Cabrera, Curtis Granderson and Brandon Inge should be able to carry the load for now. Looks like the Tigers could be in place to snatch a division now up for grabs.

Despite this ugly swing, Ibanez has been one of the NL's best.

9. Philadelphia Phillies (24-18) – The only team with a worse ERA than the Phillies in the National League is the Washington Nationals. Not good. Their closer, Brad Lidge, is only 8 for 12 is save situations and has an ERA of 9.15. There’s no doubt they can hit the ball. Raul Ibanez is absolutely mashing (.352 AVG, 17 HR, 43 RBI) and the Phils already have a couple other guys who can hit (namely Chase Utley and Ryan Howard). Jayson Werth has also been giving good production but the Phillies need Jimmy Rollins to turn it around. But most of all – they need their starters to turn it around. Cole Hamels appears to be settling down slowly and surely Joe Blanton won’t have a 7.11 ERA all year…

10. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (23-20) – The Angels have been hurt by injuries to the likes of John Lackey, Ervin Santana and Vladimir Guerrero. Now that they are all back, they should start turning things around and take over the AL West.  Joe Saunders and Jered Weaver help form one of the best rotations in the league. Their offence, which is better than it has played, should be good enough because of their great pitching. Look for the Angels to start moving up in coming weeks.

11. Atlanta Braves (23-20) – Do they have enough offence?  Probably not, Aaside from Brian McCann and Chipper Jones, who have been hampered by injuries, there is not much offence to speak of.  Garrett Anderson and Jeff Francoeur have forgotten how to hit. The rotation has been a bright spot however, with Jair Jurrjens (4-2, 2.07 ERA), Derek Lowe (6-2, 3.45 ERA) and Javier Vazquez (4-3, 3.39 ERA) leading the way. The bullpen is hit or miss, but if Atlanta starters can keep the score low, the Braves may be able to win a few games.

12. Cincinnati Reds (23-20) – This is a team full of potential. Their young players, such as Johnny Cueto, Edinson Volquez, Joey Votto and Jay Bruce, are blossoming and could be perennial all-stars. They have struggled to score runs at times, but have the 4^th lowest ERA in the NL. Their bullpen has been very good, a couple of relievers aside, and Francisco Cordero is 11 for 11 in save opportunities. Their defensive efficiency rating, basically the amount of balls hit into play that are converted into outs, is second best in the Majors.

13. New York Mets (23-20) After Johan Santana, the rotation is thin. Mike Pelfrey has potential, and John Maine is mediocre. Livan Hernandez is not good anymore and Oliver Perez is too inconsistent. Now that Delgado is out for at least two months and Jose Reyes appears to be playing through an injury, the offence comes into question. Carlos Beltran and David Wright have both been hitting for average, but they need to find their power stroke again. A positive for the Mets has been their upgraded bullpen, which in recent years has caused them a lot of problems.

14. Chicago Cubs (21-21) – The Cubs simply have not been playing well. Their rotation, with big names such as Carlos Zombrano, Rich Harden and Ryan Dempster, has been a disappointment. They all have ERAs above 4. On offence there is nothing much to speak of besides Alfonso Soriano, and it doesn’t help that Aramis Ramirez is on the DL. It’s likely that their starters will improve, but right now the Cubs aren’t living up to their pre-season expectations.

15. Tampa Bay Rays (23-23) – Here is another team not living up to expectations. The defending AL champions have not been able to replicate the amazing pitching they had last season. Aside from Matt Garza and James Shields, it has been abysmal. Scott Kazmir has taken his 7.69 ERA to the DL, and its probably not because he’s injured. Now their manager is saying he wouldn’t be surprised if their closer retires. On the bright side, they lead the league in runs scored, by a lot. Evan Longoria’s MVP like numbers might have something to do with it (.333 AVG, 11 HR, 49 RBI).

16. Minnesota Twins (22-23) - Joe Mauer has 10 HR in his first 22 games, Justin Morneau is putting up his usual big numbers and Michael Cuddyer is showing some pop. Their promising rotation outside of Nick Blackburn has been terrible and their bullpen is ranked 10^th in the AL. If they can solidify their staff, they’ll see that the division is still up for grabs.

17. Kansas City Royals (22-22) – The Royals lead the AL in ERA. I wonder why? Zack Greinke has been absolutely phenomenal and Brian Bannister (4-1, 2.79 ERA) is having a great year. Their bullpen ERA is second only to the Red Sox. However, since Joakim Soria has hit the DL, they have failed in seven of nine save opportunities.  If they are going to go anywhere this year, the offence is going to have to pick it up. No one on their team has more than 25 RBIs.

18. San Diego Padres (22-22) - They’ve won nine in a row, but failed to deal ace Jake Peavy.  They just can’t hit, simple as that. Adrian Gonzalez (.282 AVG, 16 HR, 30 RBI), their best hitter, has also had his name floating around in trade rumors. They have an MLB worst team average of .232 and have only scored more runs than the San Francisco Giants.

19. Florida Marlins (20-25) – What happened? After opening the season 11-1, they have gone 9-24. Ouch. Josh Johnson (3-1, 2.67 ERA) and Chris Volstad (3-3, 3.64 ERA) have been pitching well, but the rest of the rotation has gotten lit up, especially Ricky Nolasco (2-5, 9.07 ERA). The offence has been respectable, led by Hanley Ramirez putting up his usual numbers. The bullpen has been too inconsistent and their defence has been awful.

20. Chicago White Sox (19-24)  – So the White Sox tried to deal a couple prospects for Jake Peavy because they want to win this year? Probably not a good idea. Their lineup is getting old and has scored the least amount of runs in the AL. Mark Buehrle has been the only consistent starter in the rotation. Maybe the White Sox should be the ones trying to deal their ace.

21. Seattle Mariners (21-24)  – Arguably the Mariners top three starters are out-performing any other rotation in the league. Erik Bedard, Felix Hernandez and Jarrod Washburn have all been very good so far this year. Their bullpen has also been pitching extremely well (3^rd lowest ERA in the AL). The problem is they don’t score very many runs, at all. Jose Lopez leads their team in RBI with 21. This years Mariners squad oddly resemble the Blue Jays of 2008.

22. Pittsburgh Pirates (20-24)  – The Pirates pitching has been decent this year led by Zach Duke and Paul Maholm. Their offence is a different story. They are second last in the Majors in home runs, and things aren’t looking up. The Pirates should be happy to avoid the division basement.

23. San Francisco Giants (20-23) – The problem is simple: no offense. They have scored the fewest runs in the Majors, and nobody is surprised. Another problem is they are giving away too many at-bats to players past their prime, Pablo Sandoval being one exception.  Randy Johnson looks like he’s done, but Barry Zito is showing signs of life. Thankfully for Giants fans, Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum are just getting warmed up.

24. Houston Astros (18-24) – The Astros offence is actually not that bad. Carlos Lee, Lance Berkman, Hunter Pence and a rejuvenated Miguel Tejada make up a solid core. They have struggled at times to score runs, but should turn it around. Don’t expect Houston to go much farther than second last in the division, however. Aside from a spectacular showing from Wandy Rodriguez thus far (5-2, 1.83 ERA), the pitching has been ugly.

25. Arizona Diamondbacks (19-25) – Dan Haren and Matt Scherzer have led what has turned out to be a solid starting rotation. When Brandon Webb comes back it could be lethal. They are loaded with prospects on offence, but haven’t been able to put the pieces together. Justin Upton is heating up after a slow start, but the likes of Stephen Drew, Conor Jackson and Eric Byrnes need to start hitting the ball.

Holliday - missing the purple uniform.

26. Oakland Athletics (16-25) – Matt Holliday hasn’t lived up to Oakland’s expectations, but may be living up to his critics expectations. Yes, Coors field does make a big difference. Jason Giambi has been quiet, which also should have been expected. Their pitching hasn’t been bad, the bullpen’s ERA is ranked 4^th in the AL.  Dallas Braden and Josh Outman have worked out nicely, but the rest of the rotation hasn’t been able to make up for the lack of run support.

27. Colorado Rockies (18-25) – None of their starters have an ERA below 4, although none are above 5 either. This is consistent mediocrity. The bullpen has been consistently bad, with a 5.14 ERA. Todd Helton (.342 AVG, 6 HR, 31 RBI) seems to be back on track, and could be a nice fit for the Mets.

28. Cleveland Indians (17-28) – They are 8^th in the Majors in runs scored but also 28^th in runs allowed. Cliff Lee is having another good year, and if things persist in Cleveland, could be somewhere else by the end of the season.

29. Baltimore Orioles (18-26) – The Orioles have been scoring this year, due in large part to the breakout season of Adam Jones (.359 AVG, 10 HR, 32 RBI). Maybe they deserve some more credit because they play in the toughest division in baseball, but tough luck. If they want to go anywhere soon, they’re going to need to get some pitching help. Only one of their starters has an ERA below 5. 

30. Washington Nationals (13-30) – For a team in last place, by far, their offence has been very good. They are 3^rd in the NL in runs scored. Off-season acquisition Adam Dunn (.284 AVG, 14 HR, 39 RBI) may have something to do with it. Ryan Zimmerman also looks like he’s becoming a superstar. Besides John Lannan, who has been solid thus far, the pitching is not even worth discussing.