7/13 MLB Power Rankings; A’s keep rolling

The MLB Power Rankings were assembled by BoSox Injection writers Joe Meehan, Michele Pettis, and Drew Peabody.

(Last week’s ranking in parentheses.)

1.(1) Oakland Athletics (58-36) – The A’s has won seven of nine and still own the best record in baseball. In 2012, Scott Kazmir had a 5.34 ERA with the Sugar Land Skeeters. In 2014, he has a 2.38 ERA, an 11-3 record and is an All-Star. – Drew

2.(3) LA Angels (56-37) – The Angels have won nine of ten and have the second best record in baseball.  Kole Calhoun, the everyday right fielder, lengthens an already formidable lineup, hitting .304/.364/.900 with 10 homers. – Drew

3.(6) Detroit Tigers (53-37) – The Tigers are finally back to themselves, due in large part to their offense. The Ian Kinsler for Prince Fielder trade is proving to be the move of the offseason, as Kinsler’s average is above .300 for the first time since 2008 and Fielder’s done for the season. – Joe

4.(9) Baltimore Orioles (51-42) – Timing is everything. Just when Toronto falters, the O’s go 8-2 to take over first place in the division. With Ubaldo Jimenez out, Kevin Gausman has stepped up. – Michele

5.(10) St. Louis Cardinals (52-43) – The Cardinals are taking advantage of Milwaukee’s struggles, as they’ve moved into a tie for first place. Is Jake Peavy on his way to St. Louis? – Joe

6.(4) LA Dodgers (53-43) – Despite going 5-5 in their last ten games, LA has a healthy run differential of +49. If Josh Beckett can bounce back from his injury, they should hold on to sole possession of the division. – Michele

7.(8) Washington Nationals (50-42) – Washington has won eight of twelve. Rafael Soriano appears to have solved the Nationals’ closer issues, saving 21 out of 23 chances, while posting a 1.00 ERA and working exactly one inning in every appearance. – Drew

8.(5) Atlanta Braves (51-43) – Atlanta has lost five of seven after a nine game winning streak. Aaron Harang has been a bargain this season, posting nine wins (7th in the NL) and a 3.53 ERA, while earning $1M. – Drew

9.(7) Seattle Mariners (51-43) – Seattle has won three of six. Kyle Seager is surprisingly leading the team in homers (15) and RBI (63), while posting a Colorado-like home-road split of 1.027 OPS at home and .620 OPS on the road. – Drew

10.(2) Milwaukee Brewers (52-43) – Getting swept by the Phillies is never a good look. The Brew-crew could find themselves in second place at the All-Star break with a loss to St. Louis today (it would be their eighth in a row). – Joe

11.(15) Cincinnati Reds (50-44) – The Reds are surging, but losing Brandon Phillips for six weeks with a thumb injury is a big blow. – Joe

12.(11) San Francisco Giants (51-43) – The pitching is good but the offense is struggling. Now that they’ve taken Sergio Romo out of the closing spot they may see even more improvement on the mound. – Michele

13.(12) Pittsburgh Pirates (49-45) – The Pirates find themselves in second to last but only 2.5 games out of the division lead. Andrew McCutchen continues to put up MVP numbers. – Joe

14.(13) Toronto Blue Jays (49-46) – Knocked off the top of the division by a combination of a hot Baltimore team and a lack of offense. Will be tough to regain the lead without Edwin Encarnacion. – Michele

15.(14) Kansas City Royals (47-46) – For a team that’s barely treading water, losing Jason Vargas to the DL is going to sting, even if he only misses a few starts. – Joe

16.(18) Cleveland Indians (46-47) – The offense is excellent, but the Indians will have to decide if they’re going to buy some pitching at the deadline. – Joe

17.(16) New York Yankees (47-46) – Losing Masahiro Tanaka isn’t the Yanks’ only problem; their -35 run differential has them sinking. Being in a startlingly weak division is keeping their playoff hopes alive however. – Michele

18.(25) New York Mets (44-50) – The Mets have won six of seven to pull within a half game of Miami for third place in the NL East. Those of you who thought the Mets would have a better record than the Red Sox at the All-Star break please raise your hands. If you have your hand raised, please now pick some stocks for me to buy. – Drew

19.(17) Miami Marlins (44-49) – Miami has lost three in a row and four of five. Replacement All-Star 
Henderson Alvarez is like what Tim McCarver said about Bob Gibson: he’s lucky, the team always seems to win when he pitches. Before a loss Friday night, the Marlins had won the previous ten games Alvarez 
had started. – Drew

20.(19) Chicago White Sox (45-50) – In all likelihood, the White Sox don’t have enough to make it to the postseason. But as long as Jose Abreu is around and healthy, this will be a somewhat entertaining team to watch. – Joe

21.(24) Boston Red Sox (42-52) – Sharing last place in the division with the Rays isn’t great, but fans can focus on the fact that they’re only 5.5 games behind the Yanks. Also, there’s a handful of rookies on the team to keep things interesting. – Michele

22.(23) Tampa Bay Rays (43-53) – At least there’s always trade rumors to keep fans interested. – Michele

23.(21) Minnesota Twins (43-50) – There’s only one trophy that Minnesota might bring home this year, and even that’s unlikely: Brian Dozier will be a member of the AL Home Run Derby team. – Joe

24.(28) Philadelphia Phillies (42-52) – Philadelphia had won five in a row before Saturday night’s loss to the Nationals. Grady Sizemore was called up by the Phillies on Thursday (he was DFA’d by Boston on June 18), starting one game in center field and one in left field. – Drew

25.(27) Colorado Rockies (40-54) – A shockingly bad run differential of -43 sets the Rockies back 12 games in the division. At least fans can enjoy Troy Tulowitzki and his NL MVP potential. – Michele

26.(22) San Diego Padres (41-53) – Speaking of bad run differentials, the Padres have one of -49. Ouch. They’re in third place thanks only to how terrible their division is as a whole. – Michele

27.(20) Chicago Cubs (40-53) – The Cubs have the makings of a successful team in the future. Unfortunately, that future does not include this season, as they’ve already traded away some key pieces. – Joe

28.(29) Houston Astros (40-55) – Houston has won four of five. While All-Star Jose Altuve paces the 
team with a .339 BA (2nd in AL) and 41 steals (league leader) at the break, recent call up Enrique Hernandez has impressed in 35 plate appearances, boasting a .914 OPS and showing off a rocket arm in the outfield.

29.(30) Arizona Diamondbacks (40-55) – Trading Brandon McCarthy for Vidal Nuno is a sign of good things to come…next season. – Michele

30.(26) Texas Rangers (38-56) – Texas has the worst record in the majors, losers of seven in a row and 21 of 24. Shin-Soo Choo is struggling to live up to his $130 million contract, posting an ordinary .246/.365./382 batting line thus far this season. – Drew

Biggest Jump: Mets (+7)

Biggest Drop: Brewers (-8)