Post by Rockies GM (Alex) on Jun 15, 2015 13:32:27 GMT -5
2015 Mid-Season Power Rankings
1. San Diego Padres (10-0) - The Padres have been far and away the best team in Base Knock Dynasty Baseball this season, leading the entire power rankings by over 500 points. A deep rotation coupled with a powerful lineup has San Diego in terrific shape for a championship run. They can't get comfortable though, the National League is incredibly deep this season, and Arizona is a mere game behind.
2. Los Angeles Angels (8-2) - Once again we have Los Angeles scoring extremely high and winning a lot of games in the American League. It's impressive, the longevity of their dominance, and it doesn't seem like even a historically incredibly division will be able to stop them from making the post-season. A test this week against Baltimore could have an impact on their seeding come late August.
3. Arizona Diamondbacks (9-1) - Pitching depth, and lots of it. In search of their first ever playoff berth, this is perhaps the deepest team in all of baseball, and depth is one of those unheralded parts of great teams. Arizona has been blowing away teams, but still find themselves unfortunately in the #4 slot with San Diego on pace to break records. A win here and a loss there could push Arizona to the top of the National League and a first round bye.
4. Cincinnati Reds (7-3) - A magnificent starting 5 and a loaded lineup has the Reds deep in the playoff race in the National League. The importance of securing a first round bye is undeniable in a league where any team can win on any given week. Unfortunately for Cincinnati, they couldn't come with a crucial victory over Pittsburgh last week and now sit in the #5 spot with a date scheduled with the Arizona D'backs in the first round.
5. Tampa Bay Rays (6-4) - When did this happen? At perhaps a record pace, the Rays have shot up the power rankings over the past few weeks and now find themselves at #5 with only a 6-4 record to show for it. Wins will need to start coming with this high amount of scoring in order for the Rays to overtake Baltimore. This, however, is a very winnable division.
6. Chicago Cubs (5-5) - Yes, the most luckiest team in... ahem, the most unluckiest team in the league is right here. The Cubs have been consistently great for most of the season, but have had an incredibly difficult schedule leading to their 500 record at the mid-point of the season. A four-game winning streak and a potentially easy win against the Giants this week should have Chicago in a good place as we hit that time of year! Interesting note: the Cubs have never made the playoffs.
7. Miami Marlins (6-4) - A year ago this Marlins team would've blown away the National League East Division, but it's 2015, and the NL East is one of the most competitive divisions in baseball with four teams at 500 or above. Miami has been terrific this season, but they'll need to do even more to secure their first ever division title. Injuries have played a role in the slight decline in Miami, so returning players could give Miami the boost it needs to regain divisional supremacy.
8. Oakland Athletics (8-2) - The Athletics followed up what was perhaps the biggest win in team history over the Angels in Week 9 with a sub-par performance against the Yankees in Week 10 when they had a chance to keep the division lead. This team is the best its ever been though, and it should be enough to finally get Oakland into the playoffs after four seasons of misery.
9. Washington Nationals (5-5) - Strange that we haven't mentioned the NL East division leader yet and we're at our second team in the division. Washington shot up the power rankings five spots last week after an impressive performance. There's a lot to like in Washington, who seems to be a little up and down this season, but it could be enough to put yet another team who has never seen the post-season into playoff baseball come August.
10. Pittsburgh Pirates (8-2) - Surprise, another team that has never made the playoffs. The rebuilding job by Max seems to be complete as Pittsburgh is 8-2 with a lead in the NL Central. The Pirates have dipped a bit in the rankings lately, but a key win over Cincinnati last week has Pittsburgh in good shape with a two seed in the National League.
11. Los Angeles Dodgers (6-4) - At this point in the season, I'm not sure what to make of the Dodgers this season. Some weeks they're really terrific, and some weeks they're not. In the American League this team is probably a playoff lock, but with Arizona and San Diego above, the division is out of question, and that leaves three hard fought wild card spots up for grabs and L.A. would love to grab one of them. A key matchup awaits this week against Washington in the wild card race.
12. Detroit Tigers (8-2) - Can you say comeback of the year? One year removed from a 4-15 season, the Tigers have rebuilt their team to an impressive 8-2 record to begin the year and a commanding four game lead in the division. The 8-2 record could be slightly misleading with teams with more points scored sporting worse records than Detroit. However, with the division cushion, the roaring Tigers should have no trouble keep their spot at #2 or #3 in the playoff picture.
13. Philadelphia Phillies (7-3) - The Phillies have looked really good at points, like in last week's win over the Dodgers that kept them a game ahead of Miami in the NL East division. But also not so great in wins over lesser teams. That being said, Philly looks poised for a playoff run of sorts this season with a talented lineup and great rotation that just received a little boost from Justin Verlander's return. Can they return to the glory days of old? The days of Jon Gaskins and the 2011 Championship team?
14. Texas Rangers (8-2) - An 8-2 record with a #14 spot in the power rankings is all Texas can ask for at the midpoint in the season. A three way tie for first place means that Texas could legitimately take the division, however, it may take a few summer trades or fortunate victories to overtake the powerhouses above. Don't count out the Rangers though. This is an experienced team coming off back to back division titles.
15. New York Yankees (5-5) - There's not a lot of big names in New York (strange huh?), but the team is solid, and is soaring high after a surprise win over the then 8-1 Oakland Athletics. While it isn't the AL Central, it certainly isn't the AL West, and the Yankees AL East division could be a place where New York will succeed. While it might not be this season, the team, still, is only a game out of the final wild card spot. The rebuild may be nearing a close.
16. Atlanta Braves (5-5) - Here we are again. The Atlanta Braves are a .500 baseball team as we hit the halfway mark. And while Atlanta should have legitimately gotten a win last week with their gaudy numbers, it seems that year after year this is where the team has been, fighting hard for a wild card spot or leading a bad NL East division. Perhaps last week was a sign of great things to come for the Braves, but a trade or two may be necessary to make the playoffs more of a sure thing in a loaded National League.
17. Baltimore Orioles (7-3) - Rotation depth is hurting Baltimore. A few weeks ago this seemed like their division to lose, and now Tampa and New York have caught fire and it's a three team race with Tampa Bay possibly having the edge. Bryce Harper has carried this team so far, but the rest of the team needs to step up or moves need to made in order for Baltimore to continue their winning ways this season.
18. Kansas City Royals (4-6) - It's going to be an uphill climb at this point for K.C. if they're going to make it two straight years in the post-season. Yes, there's injuries, but depth doesn't seem to be much of an issue for this team. Perhaps an upgrade is coming somewhere? The Royals are four games out of the division lead, so a division crown doesn't seem attainable, but perhaps they can catch the Rays and Mariners?.. just two games ahead in the wild card standings.
19. Seattle Mariners (6-4) - The Mariners are extremely fortunate to be 6-4 and their disappointing start to this season. There's been a couple of injuries, but either this team is underperforming, or they just aren't as good as they were last year. Looking at just the present, they're tied for the last wild card spot, so this isn't a sinking ship by any means, but the point totals just aren't coming in Seattle, and the schedule doesn't get easier.
20. Houston Astros (4-6) - Here's an opinionated analysis of the Houston Astros: deal some prospects or trade some stars. This is the definition of mediocrity, winning against bad teams and losing against good ones. There's always the thought that, "Oh, the young guys will improve and we'll be better later this season." But that doesn't happen often with reliability. The Astros need a boost or they need to rebuild, because this isn't a playoff team where they're at, but it's not one that's rebuilding. No man's land.
21. Milwaukee Brewers (4-6) - The offense is starting to take shape, but let's face it, there isn't enough arms to make a competitive rotation from this team. Joc Pederson and Mookie Betts have been rocking the ball for this team, but again, not enough pitching. The Brewers could be in a similar spot as the Astros, not really able to compete right now, but still trying to win games in their current state.
22. St. Louis Cardinals (2-8) - It appears the streak of three consecutive playoff appearances may be ending for St. Louis fans this season. Let's get this straight, this isn't a 2-8 ball club. But Ryu and Fernandez injuries have left a rotation that didn't have much depth to begin with in the dumps. Three guys can't get a team to the playoffs from a pitching standpoint. At this point, it might be time for St. Louis to build a little momentum towards the future and fix their rotation depth issues.
23. Cleveland Indians (3-7) - I thought perhaps... we were going to be getting closer to a league where the Indians were relevant come August, but it appears we'll have to wait yet one more season as Cleveland sits at 3-7 after 10 games. Although the division is favorable, it would take a miracle for the Indians to ascend the standings. Stanton and Kluber are terrific, but a team needs more than two big studs to make a name for itself. We'll have to wait another year probably for Cleveland's first playoff birth.
24. Toronto Blue Jays (3-7) - The league was surprised when Santiago stepped down after guiding Toronto to a 14-5 record and division title last season, and his departure has gone noticed as Toronto has dropped to 3-7. This isn't saying this team is a lost cause, with Frazier slugging on a solid offense. But they need more depth in the rotation... perhaps Arizona and Toronto can make a swap to benefit both teams? Regardless, it doesn't look like Toronto will be competing for much more than a wild card birth if all the pieces fall right.
25. Minnesota Twins (1-9) - This team is somewhat rebuilding, which is good because Minnesota isn't the annual American League Central Division Winner that is used to be during 2012-2013. There's some talent in place, but the farm isn't good enough for a team with this bad of a record. The Twins may look to trade some talent now in order to build for the future, because this division may be Detroit's to lose for awhile.
26. Chicago White Sox (2-8) - Improvement. This is what the White Sox are looking at this season. They aren't as pitiful as they were last season. Call ups are happening and Kris Bryant is smoking the ball on offense in his rookie season. There's obviously a great amount of depth issues and this and that, but Chicago is actually improving... slowly but surely. And while they've never made the playoffs, come a year or two from now we could actually see some real progress.
27. Colorado Rockies (0-10) - The Rockies have bottomed out this season, and while they aren't scoring under 100 points a game, it's still far from the days when this team blew out teams on a regular basis. This is rebuilding in Colorado and now it's just a wait and see with the farm system and young guys. The tough thing about rebuilding in the NL West is that the teams at the top aren't just good... they're really good and could be for a long time.
28. Boston Red Sox (1-9) - Colorado and Boston are following similar paths this seasons, both division winners in 2013, wild card participants in 2014, and now a complete rebuild. This team is solid in its farm system, however, and will have the cap and draft picks in the seasons to come to make trades or to slowly build a winner, which is extremely difficult and requires a lot of patience.
29. San Francisco Giants (1-9) - The Giants may regret beating Colorado late in the season if it costs them a shot at the #1 draft pick, but with far and away the best farm system in the league, this team is in the for the long haul with the rebuilding track. While this season won't matter, we could see a steady improvement from here on out as name after name gets called up to the big leagues to show what they've got.
30. New York Mets (1-9) - The Mets have been crafty in their rebuilding process, finding ways to maximize their resources to turn it into talent for the future, and that has led to draft picks, and a lot of them. They'll be more hype about this draft than any game the Mets play this season, guaranteed.
1. San Diego Padres (10-0) - The Padres have been far and away the best team in Base Knock Dynasty Baseball this season, leading the entire power rankings by over 500 points. A deep rotation coupled with a powerful lineup has San Diego in terrific shape for a championship run. They can't get comfortable though, the National League is incredibly deep this season, and Arizona is a mere game behind.
2. Los Angeles Angels (8-2) - Once again we have Los Angeles scoring extremely high and winning a lot of games in the American League. It's impressive, the longevity of their dominance, and it doesn't seem like even a historically incredibly division will be able to stop them from making the post-season. A test this week against Baltimore could have an impact on their seeding come late August.
3. Arizona Diamondbacks (9-1) - Pitching depth, and lots of it. In search of their first ever playoff berth, this is perhaps the deepest team in all of baseball, and depth is one of those unheralded parts of great teams. Arizona has been blowing away teams, but still find themselves unfortunately in the #4 slot with San Diego on pace to break records. A win here and a loss there could push Arizona to the top of the National League and a first round bye.
4. Cincinnati Reds (7-3) - A magnificent starting 5 and a loaded lineup has the Reds deep in the playoff race in the National League. The importance of securing a first round bye is undeniable in a league where any team can win on any given week. Unfortunately for Cincinnati, they couldn't come with a crucial victory over Pittsburgh last week and now sit in the #5 spot with a date scheduled with the Arizona D'backs in the first round.
5. Tampa Bay Rays (6-4) - When did this happen? At perhaps a record pace, the Rays have shot up the power rankings over the past few weeks and now find themselves at #5 with only a 6-4 record to show for it. Wins will need to start coming with this high amount of scoring in order for the Rays to overtake Baltimore. This, however, is a very winnable division.
6. Chicago Cubs (5-5) - Yes, the most luckiest team in... ahem, the most unluckiest team in the league is right here. The Cubs have been consistently great for most of the season, but have had an incredibly difficult schedule leading to their 500 record at the mid-point of the season. A four-game winning streak and a potentially easy win against the Giants this week should have Chicago in a good place as we hit that time of year! Interesting note: the Cubs have never made the playoffs.
7. Miami Marlins (6-4) - A year ago this Marlins team would've blown away the National League East Division, but it's 2015, and the NL East is one of the most competitive divisions in baseball with four teams at 500 or above. Miami has been terrific this season, but they'll need to do even more to secure their first ever division title. Injuries have played a role in the slight decline in Miami, so returning players could give Miami the boost it needs to regain divisional supremacy.
8. Oakland Athletics (8-2) - The Athletics followed up what was perhaps the biggest win in team history over the Angels in Week 9 with a sub-par performance against the Yankees in Week 10 when they had a chance to keep the division lead. This team is the best its ever been though, and it should be enough to finally get Oakland into the playoffs after four seasons of misery.
9. Washington Nationals (5-5) - Strange that we haven't mentioned the NL East division leader yet and we're at our second team in the division. Washington shot up the power rankings five spots last week after an impressive performance. There's a lot to like in Washington, who seems to be a little up and down this season, but it could be enough to put yet another team who has never seen the post-season into playoff baseball come August.
10. Pittsburgh Pirates (8-2) - Surprise, another team that has never made the playoffs. The rebuilding job by Max seems to be complete as Pittsburgh is 8-2 with a lead in the NL Central. The Pirates have dipped a bit in the rankings lately, but a key win over Cincinnati last week has Pittsburgh in good shape with a two seed in the National League.
11. Los Angeles Dodgers (6-4) - At this point in the season, I'm not sure what to make of the Dodgers this season. Some weeks they're really terrific, and some weeks they're not. In the American League this team is probably a playoff lock, but with Arizona and San Diego above, the division is out of question, and that leaves three hard fought wild card spots up for grabs and L.A. would love to grab one of them. A key matchup awaits this week against Washington in the wild card race.
12. Detroit Tigers (8-2) - Can you say comeback of the year? One year removed from a 4-15 season, the Tigers have rebuilt their team to an impressive 8-2 record to begin the year and a commanding four game lead in the division. The 8-2 record could be slightly misleading with teams with more points scored sporting worse records than Detroit. However, with the division cushion, the roaring Tigers should have no trouble keep their spot at #2 or #3 in the playoff picture.
13. Philadelphia Phillies (7-3) - The Phillies have looked really good at points, like in last week's win over the Dodgers that kept them a game ahead of Miami in the NL East division. But also not so great in wins over lesser teams. That being said, Philly looks poised for a playoff run of sorts this season with a talented lineup and great rotation that just received a little boost from Justin Verlander's return. Can they return to the glory days of old? The days of Jon Gaskins and the 2011 Championship team?
14. Texas Rangers (8-2) - An 8-2 record with a #14 spot in the power rankings is all Texas can ask for at the midpoint in the season. A three way tie for first place means that Texas could legitimately take the division, however, it may take a few summer trades or fortunate victories to overtake the powerhouses above. Don't count out the Rangers though. This is an experienced team coming off back to back division titles.
15. New York Yankees (5-5) - There's not a lot of big names in New York (strange huh?), but the team is solid, and is soaring high after a surprise win over the then 8-1 Oakland Athletics. While it isn't the AL Central, it certainly isn't the AL West, and the Yankees AL East division could be a place where New York will succeed. While it might not be this season, the team, still, is only a game out of the final wild card spot. The rebuild may be nearing a close.
16. Atlanta Braves (5-5) - Here we are again. The Atlanta Braves are a .500 baseball team as we hit the halfway mark. And while Atlanta should have legitimately gotten a win last week with their gaudy numbers, it seems that year after year this is where the team has been, fighting hard for a wild card spot or leading a bad NL East division. Perhaps last week was a sign of great things to come for the Braves, but a trade or two may be necessary to make the playoffs more of a sure thing in a loaded National League.
17. Baltimore Orioles (7-3) - Rotation depth is hurting Baltimore. A few weeks ago this seemed like their division to lose, and now Tampa and New York have caught fire and it's a three team race with Tampa Bay possibly having the edge. Bryce Harper has carried this team so far, but the rest of the team needs to step up or moves need to made in order for Baltimore to continue their winning ways this season.
18. Kansas City Royals (4-6) - It's going to be an uphill climb at this point for K.C. if they're going to make it two straight years in the post-season. Yes, there's injuries, but depth doesn't seem to be much of an issue for this team. Perhaps an upgrade is coming somewhere? The Royals are four games out of the division lead, so a division crown doesn't seem attainable, but perhaps they can catch the Rays and Mariners?.. just two games ahead in the wild card standings.
19. Seattle Mariners (6-4) - The Mariners are extremely fortunate to be 6-4 and their disappointing start to this season. There's been a couple of injuries, but either this team is underperforming, or they just aren't as good as they were last year. Looking at just the present, they're tied for the last wild card spot, so this isn't a sinking ship by any means, but the point totals just aren't coming in Seattle, and the schedule doesn't get easier.
20. Houston Astros (4-6) - Here's an opinionated analysis of the Houston Astros: deal some prospects or trade some stars. This is the definition of mediocrity, winning against bad teams and losing against good ones. There's always the thought that, "Oh, the young guys will improve and we'll be better later this season." But that doesn't happen often with reliability. The Astros need a boost or they need to rebuild, because this isn't a playoff team where they're at, but it's not one that's rebuilding. No man's land.
21. Milwaukee Brewers (4-6) - The offense is starting to take shape, but let's face it, there isn't enough arms to make a competitive rotation from this team. Joc Pederson and Mookie Betts have been rocking the ball for this team, but again, not enough pitching. The Brewers could be in a similar spot as the Astros, not really able to compete right now, but still trying to win games in their current state.
22. St. Louis Cardinals (2-8) - It appears the streak of three consecutive playoff appearances may be ending for St. Louis fans this season. Let's get this straight, this isn't a 2-8 ball club. But Ryu and Fernandez injuries have left a rotation that didn't have much depth to begin with in the dumps. Three guys can't get a team to the playoffs from a pitching standpoint. At this point, it might be time for St. Louis to build a little momentum towards the future and fix their rotation depth issues.
23. Cleveland Indians (3-7) - I thought perhaps... we were going to be getting closer to a league where the Indians were relevant come August, but it appears we'll have to wait yet one more season as Cleveland sits at 3-7 after 10 games. Although the division is favorable, it would take a miracle for the Indians to ascend the standings. Stanton and Kluber are terrific, but a team needs more than two big studs to make a name for itself. We'll have to wait another year probably for Cleveland's first playoff birth.
24. Toronto Blue Jays (3-7) - The league was surprised when Santiago stepped down after guiding Toronto to a 14-5 record and division title last season, and his departure has gone noticed as Toronto has dropped to 3-7. This isn't saying this team is a lost cause, with Frazier slugging on a solid offense. But they need more depth in the rotation... perhaps Arizona and Toronto can make a swap to benefit both teams? Regardless, it doesn't look like Toronto will be competing for much more than a wild card birth if all the pieces fall right.
25. Minnesota Twins (1-9) - This team is somewhat rebuilding, which is good because Minnesota isn't the annual American League Central Division Winner that is used to be during 2012-2013. There's some talent in place, but the farm isn't good enough for a team with this bad of a record. The Twins may look to trade some talent now in order to build for the future, because this division may be Detroit's to lose for awhile.
26. Chicago White Sox (2-8) - Improvement. This is what the White Sox are looking at this season. They aren't as pitiful as they were last season. Call ups are happening and Kris Bryant is smoking the ball on offense in his rookie season. There's obviously a great amount of depth issues and this and that, but Chicago is actually improving... slowly but surely. And while they've never made the playoffs, come a year or two from now we could actually see some real progress.
27. Colorado Rockies (0-10) - The Rockies have bottomed out this season, and while they aren't scoring under 100 points a game, it's still far from the days when this team blew out teams on a regular basis. This is rebuilding in Colorado and now it's just a wait and see with the farm system and young guys. The tough thing about rebuilding in the NL West is that the teams at the top aren't just good... they're really good and could be for a long time.
28. Boston Red Sox (1-9) - Colorado and Boston are following similar paths this seasons, both division winners in 2013, wild card participants in 2014, and now a complete rebuild. This team is solid in its farm system, however, and will have the cap and draft picks in the seasons to come to make trades or to slowly build a winner, which is extremely difficult and requires a lot of patience.
29. San Francisco Giants (1-9) - The Giants may regret beating Colorado late in the season if it costs them a shot at the #1 draft pick, but with far and away the best farm system in the league, this team is in the for the long haul with the rebuilding track. While this season won't matter, we could see a steady improvement from here on out as name after name gets called up to the big leagues to show what they've got.
30. New York Mets (1-9) - The Mets have been crafty in their rebuilding process, finding ways to maximize their resources to turn it into talent for the future, and that has led to draft picks, and a lot of them. They'll be more hype about this draft than any game the Mets play this season, guaranteed.
