MLB Power Rankings- Week 11 06/09/08

Let's get ready to rumble!

(hit the ridiculously repetitive/annoying techno music).
The Red Sox and Rays threw down this week. The Rays are sick and tired of being pushed around and not respected and Coco says "ditto". From punches to back handed slaps the MLB has had a pretty eventful week and we're going to take a look at some of the winners and losers and probably poke fun at them all.

The Cubs had a few bumps in the road this week but played well enough to remain at the top of our charts. The Diamondbacks, who were one of our top teams through April and May, are beginning to slip quickly. The Phillies (6-1) and White Sox (6-0) continue to surge up the rankings with a strong week. The Phillies' young pitching and mega offense are getting it done while the White Sox seem to be relying on some sort of crazy blowup doll voodoo... OK I guess their pitching is pretty good too.

1.
Chicago Cubs 40-24 (1)
-(4-3) The Cubs saw their 9-game winning streak come to an end because they ran into old friend Greg Maddux, who threw a gem to finally slow the Cubs down. While their high-powered offense cooled off a bit this past week, they were still able to have a productive week behind their pitching, save for one bad outing from Carlos Zambrano and the subsequent ass-kicking he gave to various Gatorade coolers and other dugout equipment. And Manny thinks Youk over-reacts to bad performances!

2.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 39-25 (4)
-(5-1) What a great week! They nearly swept 2 out of 3 division rivals, and the only blemish was Sunday's walk off Grand Salami by Mark Ellis. The stars have risen to the occassion as K-Rod saved five games for a league leading 26 saves so far. Vlad is also no longer impaled on the bench due to a knee injury...things are looking sunny in Anaheim.

3.
Boston Red Sox 40-26 (3)
-(5-2) Quite the eventful week for the BoSox. They came home from a rough road trip and subsequently turned it back on as they seem to always do at home. The 1st-place Rays came to town and left as the 2nd-place Rays, although they didn’t leave without fighting – literally. And even with Manny and Youk getting into it in the dugout, the Sox continued their home dominance, behind great weeks from the aforementioned Ramirez (.381, 3 HR, 9 RBI, 6 R) and the resurgent J. D. Drew (.500, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 9 R).

4.
Philadelphia Phillies 39-26 (7)
-(6-1) This Philly team is hotter than freshly melted cheese on a steak sandwich. The only thing that could slow them down was the 2008 Rookie of the Year Edinson Volquez. Give credit to Brad Lidge for putting to rest the ghosts of Pujols past, as the Phillies won three games this week by one run, and Lidge saved four.

5.
Chicago White Sox 36-26 (8)
-(6-0) Ozzie Guillen has more tirades this season than awful calls made by the NBA officials during the playoffs this season. Being the only team above .500 in the AL Central I guess the White Sox are going to win the division by default. I wonder when the rest of the division will show up to play baseball…

6.
St. Louis Cardinals 38-27 (6)
-(4-3) The Cardinals’ are dealing with some injuries to their pitching staff and may need to make a move before the trade deadline. The Cardinals need to move forward expecting that Jason Isringhausen will not play an important role this season. Oh and Albert Pujols is back to being the Albert Pujols of old (.347 AVG, 15 HRs, 40 Runs, 40 RBIs).

7.
Tampa Bay Rays 37-26 (2)
-(2-4) With fisticuffs with the Red Sox, and tantrums in the clubhouse the Rays should go out and sign Kimbo Slice to a multi year contract. Any road trip is a tough trip, but when you’re a young team finally seeing some results it doesn’t get much tougher than a series at Fenway. If they could have just taken one game from the Sox they could have used that as a confidence booster. Instead they find themselves fighting amongst each other, and ladled with suspensions. The Rays had a nice run, and they are by no means an obsolete team in the AL, but this past week proved they just aren’t a playoff caliber team.

8.
Arizona Diamondbacks 34-29 (5)
-(2-4) Well Brandon Webb has been sensational, but his 7 IP 3 H 1 ER isn’t the stat that jumps out at me from the box score….it’s the woeful batting average of the entire D-Backs team. The only player hitting over .270 in that lineup was Orlando Hudson! Remember this team finished first last year having allowed more runs than they scored, so maybe it was too quick to proclaim them Kings of the NL in April, but you have to attribute the recent struggles to have stemmed from Eric Byrnes trip to the DL. He’s the catalyst that will drive the offense and allow the pitching to shine.

9.
Oakland Athletics 34-29 (13)
-(4-2) The A’s swept Detroit (who hasn’t this season?) but then lost a series to the Angels. Where is the power on this team? Jack Cust has 10 HRs but he’s batting .247 with only 26 RBIs. The question is “If you’re not from Oakland can you name more than 6 players on this team?”

10.
Florida Marlins 34-28 (9)
-(3-4) I think Dan Uggla is secretly The Incredible Hulk with all of the balls he’s taking yard. They’ve lost their last 3 series against NL East teams. I think we’re starting to see what happens to young teams during a long season. “It’s a marathon boys not a sprint”. – That’s what she said.

11.
New York Yankees 32-31 (12)
-(4-3)The Giambino had 7 hits this week and 3 HR, one of which was a two run walk off winner in the bottom of the ninth to cap an unlikely come from behind win off of BJ Ryan and the Toronto Blue Jays. And it's all because he copied the style of a former Yankee first basemen!

12.
Toronto Blue Jays 33-32 (13)
-(2-4) Not a good week when you lose back to back series against division opponents, and you could only muster two wins with your Ace, Roy Halladay (2 W 13.2 IP 14 H 1 BB 6 ER 10 K) on the mound. What is good news is the return of Vernon Wells (5-7 1HR). His return comes none too soon as the team has allowed a division low 248 runs, and needs his offense to help put up some W’s.

13.
Atlanta Braves 32-32 (14)
-(3-4) What else can be said about Chipper Jones? After his average dipped awful close to going under .400, he responds with an 11-for-19 week to bring his average soaring back up to .420. Here’s hoping that his quad injury is minor and he can continue playing at this high level. I must say, it’s hard not to get excited about someone making a run at .400, as Ted Williams’ .406 in 1941 still stands as the last time .400 was eclipsed. And with less than 100 games left to play, it’s time to really start watching this.

14.
Milwaukee Brewers 33-30 (20)
-(4-2) Since getting swept in Boston, the Brew Crew has won 13 of their last 19; maybe that was the ass-kicking they needed to get back in gear. Everyone on the pitching staff not named Bush or Mota pitched great this past week, including Julian Tavarez, who seems back at home in the NL, striking out 5 batters in 2 innings of work. Prince Fielder continues to rack up the hits as the batting average continues to creep up, now at .280.

15.
New York Mets 30-32 (10)
-(2-5) The Mets have officially replaced the Brewers as the “Most Maddening Team to Root For.” The Mets’ very talented offense managed to hit just one homer in the past week. ONE FREAKING HOMER! By Jose Reyes, no less. Where are you, Wright, Beltran & Delgado? Where has your power gone? On a positive note, Santana, Maine & Pelfrey all made good, quality starts. Another positive note, Pedro Martinez made his return. On a negative note, Pedro of ’08 returned, not Pedro of ’97-’04.

16.
Houston Astros 32-32 (15)
-(2-4) You gotta feel bad for Wandy Rodriguez. He has an ERA of 1.99 after 40+ IP and only has two W’s to show for it, and worse yet the ‘stros are only 4-3 when he starts! Sunday’s performance was the coup de gras…6.2 IP 4 H 5 R 0 ER!!! This team needs to step it up when he’s on the mound, because with the quality outings he’s giving them the team is wasting more opportunities to score a W than a sun burnt incoherent college kid in Cancun on spring break.

17.
Texas Rangers 32-33 (16)
-(3-4) The Rangers gave up 59 runs in 7 games played this week…The Angels whom are currently first in the division gave up 21. Now I’m no mathematician, but I sense that to be a telling stat on the current chances of Texas being a contender. I guess having Kevin Millwood as your Ace makes things difficult on the pitching end, but how does this team justify trading a pitching stud like the 2008 Rookie of the Year Edinson Volquez for a bat? I know Hamilton is having a phenomenal year, but I just don’t get what management is trying to build for…they trade Teixeira for three minor league pitchers and Salty only to trade their best pitcher for an OF to replace Teixeira’s bat??!??

18.
Minnesota Twins 31-32 (17)
-(2-5) The Twins just got their asses handed to them by the White Sox, giving up 33 runs in the process, and have the finale of the series Monday afternoon, which doesn’t look good for them the way they played uninspired baseball over the weekend. The Twins are still in 2nd, but they are trailing the 1st place club in their division worse than any other 2nd place team in the majors.

19.
Los Angeles Dodgers 30-33 (18)
-(3-4) This team’s strength has been its weakness so far. By that I mean their pitching and offense are both above average in the NL, but neither is superior, so when one falters the other is unable to pick up the slack. Give kudos to Kuroda (9 IP 4 H 0 R 11 K) for righting the ship against the Cubs after three straight losses. Maybe on their next scheduled day off Torre can head over to the Staples Centre and give Phil Jackson some lessons on class, and Phil can return the favor with a few pointers on rotation effectiveness.

20.
Baltimore Orioles 31-31 (22)
-(5-2) Is Baltimore tied for 3rd in the AL East or tied for last? Both actually, but the latter will be the one that wins out. With a big series against the Red Sox coming up this week they’ll have to come ready to play, maybe brawl, to stop their division foes. They had a 5-2 week so I have to give the O’s some props… hmm… you’re back to .500!

21.
Pittsburgh Pirates 30-33 (23)
-(4-3) I don’t want to do it but I’m going to have to say I was wrong about Xavier Nady. Nady has been a lot more consistent this season than I expected. I still don’t think the numbers are going to be there at the end of the season but stranger things have happened. Also, Zach Duke has looked good in his last two starts, getting wins in both. The Pirates would be wise to sell the farm come the trade deadline.

22.
San Francisco Giants 28-35 (25)
-(4-2) If you take out the Zito start they only allowed 11 runs in 5 games. That’s some primo pitching that was lead by Jonathan Sanchez (2 W 14 IP 10H 2ER 12K). It’s too bad Zito counts though…at least he notched a W against the lowly Nats.
Future HoF (Hall of Fat) candidate Bengie Molina collected his 1,000th career hit, and was very emotional about the whole thing since it was a struggle to get where he is today. It must be great to be a Giants fan when you’re best power hitter is completely overwhelmed by the fact he was able to reach the 1,000 hit mark.

23.
Cincinnati Reds 30-34 (19)
-(2-5) Have you met the 2008 Rookie of the Year yet? Well let me introduce you to one Edinson Volquez. Amazing enough this was SportsHubris.com's pick in a fellow sites pre-season prediction contest! He’s an astonishing 8-2 with 91k’s to lead the NL! His success isn’t having any effect on Harang, who is the reverse of Volquez at 2-9. It may be that the 770+ innings Harang notched since 2005 have finally caught up to him.

24.
Cleveland Indians 28-35 (21)
-(3-4) They allowed Todd Jones…who? Todd Joooooones to put up consecutive saves against them. That level of emasculation surpasses your wife/love interest/hooker discovering she’s a better griller than you, because you can’t eat red meat due to a bladder infection. Oh yeah they also lost a game to Kevin Millwood (4.65 ERA, and a WHIP that Indiana Jones would cringe in fear from)!!! Level of emasculation now = full blown botched vasectomy…ouch.

25.
San Diego Padres 28-37 (27)
-(5-2) The offense showed signs of life, but I still do not consider it out of its season-long coma. Nope, this great week for the Padres was all thanks to the pitching staff, as they won four straight games by the score of 2-1. That’s a freakish occurrence, and according to the Elias Sports Bureau, they were the first team to ever win four consecutive 2-1 run games. So no matter how this season turns out for the Padres, they’ll always have that. Congrats … I guess.

26.
Detroit Tigers 26-36 (24)
-(2-4) Imagine being a 10 year old in Detroit. Not only did you just recently discover your parents were lying to you about Santa Claus, but you’ve finally reached the age where you can understand the importance of winning. You obviously don’t follow Hockey because during a peak year of your life when you declare sports allegiance they were on strike, so that leaves you with the Lions, Pistons, and Tigers. Forget the Lions, so your dad’s been feeding you this line about how awesome the Pistons are and that they are the team to beat, but you only remember them losing the big games, and sure enough they did it again, but that’s ok because the Tigers are revamped and ready to roll out some heavy duty offense, and then you watch them play and think “Oh well at least there’s Christmas…oh never mind it’s fake…all my hopes and dreams crushed in one year…I better learn how to work an assembly line, because Detroit sucks!!!!!”

27.
Colorado Rockies 24-39 (30)
(4-2) A winning week! With Brad Hawpe ( 4 hits, 2 HRs, 6 RBIs) back this week maybe this is the catalyst the team needs to get back to their 07 winnings ways, doubtful, but we can be hopeful, right? They’re going to need their pitching to continue on this week’s success if they hope to salvage this embarrassing season thus far.

28.
Washington Nationals 25-39 (26)
-(1-5)The Nationals are 13 games back in the division and are looking more like a fat kid who just ate a chili dog right before taking a ride on the teacups than a professional baseball team. With Ryan Zimmerman on the DL the Nationals aren't exactly sure how they're suppose to score runs. The funny thing is Ryan Zimmerman is the face of the franchise right now and he only has 8 HRs, 27 RBIs, and 24 runs while batting a dismal .257. Everyone in Montreal just screamed "SUCKERS!"

29.
Kansas City Royals 24-39 (29)
-(1-5) Even though the Royals lost 2 of 3 at Yankee Stadium, they actually mustered some decent offense and kept the games competitive. Food for thought: Did you know that the Royals are paying more for Gil Meche this season than the Red Sox are paying for Josh Beckett? At least Zach Grienke (3.77 ERA) has looked solid this season but he's given up 13 HRs already... damn Shaniqua!

30.
Seattle Mariners 22-41 (28)
-(1-5) So much for any quick climbs in the standings. The Angels swept them back down further in the division (all three were close games, which is the Angels specialty and the Mariners kryptonite). The schedule makers set up the Mariners with this tough stretch (@ DET, @ NYY, vs. BOS, vs. DET, vs. LAA, @ BOS) to which the Mariners responded with a stirring 4-14 showing. They should be renamed as the Seattle Zombies, because they are dead men walking.

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