Updated MLB POWER RANKINGS

UPDATED: 2012 Power Rankings

APPROACHING 30 GAMES.
THE AL EAST SHOWING ITS LEGIT.

courtesy of mail.com

TOP 10 TEAMS 

10. New York Yankees.  (15-13) ranked 8th last poll. 5-5 in last 10 games. Currently 3.5 out of 1st place in the east. As usual the rotation is a mess. Jeter is hovering around .400 and Granderson is back to hitting bombs. On the verge of getting the speedy Brett Gardner back to stabilize LF. Mariano Rivera looks to be lost for the year but lucky for the Yankees they have a replacement in David Robertson who has had the best relief numbers in baseball the past couple seasons. Look for Robinson Cano to get hot and you should the Yankees make their usual playoff push. 



9. Detroit Tigers.  (14-13) ranked 7th last poll. 4-6 in last 10 games. Currently a 1.5 games out of first in the Central may predicted they would already be leading the division by 5 games at this point. The problems with the Tigers are pretty simple someone other then Verlander and rookie Drew Smyly (1.61 era) need to contribute from the rotation. The offense has been middle of the pack and should heat up as we move on into the summer. I haven't lost faith in Tigers yet. 


8. Toronto Blue Jays. (16-13) not ranked last poll. 6-4 in last 10 games.  6th in overall runs produced and that is without Jose Bautista doing much of anything early on. Edwin Encarnacion has been the teams MVP so far blasting 9 bombs and 25 rbi's already. The rotation is young and very good, interesting to see if they will continue to push the big boys of the East when it starts heating up. 


 7. Baltimore Orioles. ( 18-9) not ranked last poll. 8-2 in last 10 games. almost 30 games in Baltimore has the best winning percentage in the AL East and currently tied at the top of the Division with Tampa Bay.  Riding a hot week streak Matt Wieters has started the year off hot leading the team in homeruns with 7 and rbi's with 18. Plenty of questions with this team however, a lot of players have started the season extremely hot and don't figure to continue throughout the summer. You figure at some point the Yankees and or Red Sox will get it together as well. 


6. Los Angeles Dodgers. (18-9) ranked 3rd last poll. 5-5 in last 10 games. Dodgers are 10-2 at home and currently 5 games up on the Giants and Diamondbacks in the West. The Dodgers lefthanders have been outstanding to this point infact you could say Kershaw has been the worst out of the bunch. Ted Lilly is 3-0 with a 1.38 era. Chris Capuano is 4-0 with a 2.21 era and Kershaw is 2-0 with a 2.63 era. 

5. St. Louis Cardinals. (17-11)  ranked 2nd in last poll. 6-4 in last 10 games. The Cardinals are 2.5 up on the Reds in the Central and boast a front line rotation as well. Adam Wainright found his ace form Sunday. Bitten by the early season injuries the Cards keep rolling, defending Champs looking good to this point. 


4. Washington Nationals. (18-9) ranked 6th last poll. 5-5 in last 10 games. They are good. How good no one is exactly sure. They have a 19 year hitting in the 3 hole and been winning games without their most established player Ryan Zimmerman in the lineup. The rotation is first class but very young. Strasburg supposedly has an innings limit so we will see how that plays out. 


 3. Atlanta Braves. (17-11)  ranked 4th last poll. 6-4 in last 10 games. I slot the Braves in at 3 because I believe in them more than the Nationals at this point. A tough lineup with an under the radar young elite 1B in Freddie Freeman leading the offense and a rotation that is playoff ready. They have the best bullpen in baseball. 


2. Tampa Bay Rays. (19-10) ranked 5th last poll. 7-3 in last 10 games.  For now they have more wins than the Rangers after a strong 10 game stretch. Pitching is going to carry them the entire year. Longoria out of the lineup and they still roll. Joe Maddon might be the best manager in baseball. 


1. Texas Rangers.  (18-10) ranked 1st in last poll. 4-6 in last 10 games.  After a horrible week they still remain 6.5 games up on the Angels in the West, I keep track of the Angels because the A's and Seattle figure to fall off the map fairly soon. Yu Darvish appears to be the real deal 4-1 with 2.54 ERA has him in the early Cy Young conversation. 

KOBE GOING AFTER MJ

THE QUEST FOR NUMBER 6. 

THE MAMBA CHASING HIS AIRNESS.

GAME 3 FRIDAY NIGHT 7:30 pm in Denver. 

LAKERS are up 2-0. 

The greatness that is Kobe Bryant. Current Playoff run stats to date 34.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 3.0 APG  If he continues this trend the Lakers could be on a collision course with the Miami Heat in the finals. Isn't that what everyone wants  KOBE Vs. LEBRON anyway?  The two best players since Jordan. Can Kobe get one more to tie Jordan with 6? Can Lebron get his first one? The matchup would be a ratings dream come true for Commisioner David Stern. 


Kobe looks to be fully recovered from both the knee and shin injuries and seems to have benefited from missing the final stretch of the regular season. We all know Kobe is going to get his 30 points but recently he is back defending the ball like he is 25 again, blocking shots and D'ing up other teams wing scorers. He already came out and guaranteed the Lakers would win the title this year something he normally shies away from. The Lakers Big 3 match up well against the Heat, the problem will be can the Lakers get past Oklahoma City and San Antonio. When it comes to basketball my money is always on the team with the best player therefore my money is on THE LAKERS to make it out of the Western Conference.

Down Goes Rivera

YANKEES IN TROUBLE

MARIANO RIVERA GOES DOWN

Mariano Rivera carted off after batting practice blunder. It looked like he twisted his knee before going face first into the wall while tracking down a fly ball. Injury is still unknown. Fantasy owners are sad, Yankees are sad. Don't just stare at this quick go grab David Robertson if he is available.


This just in Yankees are saying it is a "twisted knee" they are going to get an MRI tonight. 

LEBRON NEEDS HELP

LEBRON PREFERS COMPANY OF MEN:

REGGIE MILLER BLASTS JAMES

http://thesportshernia.typepad.com/blog/images/2008/08/18/chris_paul_looks_like_a_toddler_phi.png

Future Hall of Famer and current TNT commentator Reggie Miller blasts Lebron James during Tuesdays game against the Knicks. Reggie questioned Lebron as to why he reached out to Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas and Hakeem Olajuwon during last summers break. "This is one of the most physically gifted guys in our league," Miller said on TNT. "He left Cleveland, and he had every right to join one of the top five players in the league in Dwyane Wade along with Chris Bosh. 

Now he's reaching out to Hall of Famers to see what it takes to win? Enough is enough. Go out and actually do it on your own. What do you need more help for?"

courtesy of pocketfives.com

Asked if he's "good" with Miller -- who will be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in September -- James said, "I'm good with my family and teammates. That's all that matters to me."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/sns-mct-miami-heats-lebron-james-declines-to-address-20120503,0,2958059.story

WEAVER NO NO. HALLADAY OH NO

BAD NIGHT FOR ACES EXCEPT IN ANAHEIM.
In a day that saw big name, big time pitchers get smashed, Jered Weaver dealt at the Big A tonight. Weaver tossed the 2nd no hitter of the young season.

JERED WEAVER.
Giving up just 1 walk while striking out 9. Weaver and the Angels were in control all night as they cruised to a 9-0 victory. Allowing only 2 baserunners all night he was a fantasy owners dream. Weaver is off to another great start.


These guys didn't have as good of night.


AJ BURNETT.
Burnett (1-2) entered with a 1.38 ERA but trailed 4-0 after six pitches. The ex Yankee, right-hander surrendered 12 runs on 12 hits in 2 2/3 innings.


ROY HALLADAY.
Halladay had his worst start in half a decade. The Braves lit him up for 12 hits and eight runs in 5 1-3 innings. Halladay saw his ERA shoot up to 3.40.


CLAYTON KERSHAW.
Kershaw went 7 1/3 innings giving up 7 hits, 3 of them being bombs. Clayton gave up 5 earned runs in a no decision giving up the lead in the 8th inning.

UPDATING FORMER MLB #1 PICKS

CHECKING IN ON FORMER

MLB #1 PICKS

The last 10 former no. 1 overall picks

and whats going on with them.

alright baseball fans who is this former no. 1 pick?

Scouting is certainly not a science. For every Adrian Gonzalez taken number 1 in the draft we get the Matt Bush to equal it out. Its been a week of ups and downs for this exclusive club.

2011 GERRIT COLE. Pirates. Currently playing Class A ball in the Florida State League. so far he is 1-1 with a 3.52 era in 22 innings with 29 strikeouts.

2010 BRYCE HARPER. Nationals. 19 years old. Thanks to some injuries Harper made his debut early. 2-8 with a walk for the Nationals. Likely will be sent down again unless he performs off the charts. already shown off his 5 tools, could be elite rather quickly.

2009 STEPHEN STRASBURG. Nationals. Already two years of experience and he is only 23 years of age. This season he has looked like he may take over as the best the pitcher in the game. 2-0 with a 1.13 era. 34 k's and .88 WHIP

2008 TIM BECKHAM. Rays. has just been suspended for 50 games for his second violation under the Minor League drug program. .was Currently in AAA hitting .204 with 0 HR in 64 at bats.

2007 DAVID PRICE. Rays. no question ace level talent at the big league level. Currently first in the AL with wins. He already has 4. 4-1 with a 2.67 era. 45 career wins and he is just 26. Playoff tested veteran at a young age.

2006 LUKE HOCHEVAR. Royals. not panning out. pitched today going 4 innings giving up 12 hits on 9 earned runs, had a 7.20 era going into game. only reason he is in big leagues is because he was a no. 1 pick. he is 32-44 overall in his career with over 5 era. Last season was his best at 11-11 with a 4.68 era.

2005 JUSTIN UPTON. Diamondbacks. finished 4th in the MVP voting last season. Already 2 All Star appearances and 1 Silver Slugger Award he is one of the games top young outfielders. A slow start to this season but Upton has established himself as a National League star.

2004 MATT BUSH. Rays. The sad thing is Matt Bush had shown enough promise through early spring training that it looked like he might be given a chance to pitch for the big club this season. All thats gone. Today, Matt Bush is in jail. He is going to be there for a long time. "Bush allegedly stole his spring roommate’s SUV Thursday night, got drunk, climbed on stage at a strip club before bouncers booted him, headed back on the road and hit a 72-year-old motorcyclist named Tony Tufano. Bush reportedly ran over Tufano’s head while peeling away. He drove from the carnage with a .18 blood alcohol level and a septuagenarian lying in the street in critical condition." http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=jp-passan_matt_bush_arrest_alcohol_dui_crash_032612

2003 DELMON YOUNG. Tigers. Major League Baseball suspended Detroit Tigers outfielder Delmon Young for seven days without pay Monday. In a drunk rage Young used an anti-Semitic slur against four men and tackled one of them. A life time average of .287 and averaging 35 doubles a season.

2002 BRYAN BULLINGTON. Japan Hiroshima Carp. a career record of 1-9 with a 5.62 ERA in 81.2 innings as a major leaguer. He stunk it up so bad we exiled him to Japan.

These guys turned out okay.
2001 JOE MAUER.

2000 ADRIAN GONZALEZ.

1999 JOSH HAMILTON.

MLB UPDATED POWER RANKINGS

UPDATED: 2012 Power Rankings

AFTER 22 GAMES.

3 NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAMS GET INTO THE TOP 5, SO MUCH FOR THE AL DOMINANCE.

TOP 10 TEAMS 

SECOND:rankings are out since the start of the season. 

10.  Boston Red Sox. ( 10-11) Fighting back to .500. While most won't agree with the Red Sox being placed anywhere near the top 10 since they are still in last place in East. I see things differently mainly because their are so many teams bunched up with records close to .500 I can justify going with a playoff tested, offensive powerhouse to emerge out of the pack . They are scoring just as many runs as the Yankees and the bullpen can only perform better. Lester had his first Ace like start of the season and that isn't a bad thing. Dice-K is on his way at worst he eats up innings which will  help the staff out. In a offense that is without Ellsbury and Youkilis struggling the Red Sox will only get stronger as the season continues. Crawford is a bust. 


9.  San Francisco Giants. (12-10) 6-4 in last 10 games, no closer and Aubrey Huff filling in at 2B. Still worthy of a top 10 spot because they have held their own to this point with some major injuries. Lincecum looks to have found his form the NL West is going to be a dog fight and with the Giants staff they are going to stay in the race all season. 

8.  New York Yankees.  (12-9) 6-4 in the last 10 games. garcia is out on the rotation surprising that he lasted that long. The offense has been set by Jeter all season and the Grandy Man has been back at it with 8 bombs already. The pitching staff is a mess right now but the lineup put up 15 unanswered runs in a game. Yanks bats are scary and thats why they remain in the top 10. 



7. Detroit Tigers.  (11-11) suffering through a 5-5 stretch. No need to worry as they play in the weakest of all divisions. Haters would point out unless your name is Verlander and Smyly then you have been awful on the mound but it's still early. The biggest problem is what is going to happen with Delmon the anti-semite



6.   Washington Nationals. (14-8) only 5-5 in last 10 games but 3 of those could of easily been wins against the streaking Dodgers. Losing Zimmerman hurts but they get a huge shot in the arm from 19 year old Bryce Harper finally inserted into the lineup. Currently without Morse and Zimm they will struggle to score runs but lucky for them they have one of the best staff's in all of baseball. 


5.  Tampa Bay Rays. (14-8) 8-2 in last 10 games. If Matt Joyce could ever hit a lefthander the Rays would jump up much higher in my eyes. Led by Longoria and Joyce the pitching is the real strength of the club. When your worst pitcher is a firethrowing young lefthander that is capable of no hitting teams on any given outing, you are doing okay on the mound. 

4.  Atlanta Braves. (14-8)  The Braves have all of sudden caught fire and are 7-3 in last 10 games. They just got staff ace Tim Hudson back to an already deep staff. Freddie Freeman and Michael Bourne are carrying the offense to this point. Nothing  flashy going on in Atlanta, just wins. Wouldn't surprise me if the Braves make a deep playoff run. 


 3.  Los Angeles Dodgers. (16-6) 10-2 at home this season, and going 7-3 in last 10. Fresh off a home sweep of the Nationals the Dodgers look great early. Kemp has been amazing (.425 with 11 homeruns) Great pitching will help the weak the offense. Will probably need to make a trade for another bat before people will take them serious as playoff contenders.

2.  St. Louis Cardinals. (14-8) only 5-5 in last 10 games but we have a feeling Adam Wainright will get back on track. With key injuries the Cards are holding strong and look like the most likely NL team to get the World Series to this point. Great pitching staff will fuel the St. Louis towards the top of these power rankings. 

1. Texas Rangers.  (16-6) Already 9 games in front of the Angels. Having not lost a series all season they are the current clear cut best team in baseball. Seems like the whole team is on fire while Josh Hamilton is going nuts. The only thing slowing the Rangers will be the inevitable injury to the very prone roster of powerbats. Pitching staff has held up so far and the bullpen is nasty.