VSN Power Rankings - Version 9

[Rudi]

NOTE: The standings are based off the result of Sunday's games. Last week rankings in ( )
Rudi and Woy did the rankings, with Rudi and VSN OWNER GABRIEL LEFTWICH on the blurbs. Thanks to Lefty for filling in this week, much appreciated!

Last Week's: VSN Power Rankings - Version 8

Biggest Jump: Atlanta Barves +7
Biggest Fall:Miami Marlines -7

1. Los Angeles Dodgers - 39-22 (2)

Rudi: Not sure how the Dodgers are keeping it up with Mr. Kemp on the DL, but they keep winning. They return home this week to face the cross town rival Angels after going 7-3 on their last roadtrip.
Lefty: This is not the same team we saw last year. I don’t follow them all that much but from what I’ve seen they’re hitting well and their pitching has been lights out. I look forward to the interleague series against the other team in LA.

2. Texas Rangers – 35-26 (2)

Rudi: The Rangers are scuffling a bit, although that did not stop Woy from ranking them at the top spot. They have let the Angels creep back into the race as their huge division lead as dwindled down to a mere 3 games.
Lefty: Yu Darvish does not impress me but he doesn’t have to be Nolan Ryan-esque to get wins. The best offense in the bigs backs him up. Derek Holland sucks too.

3a. Tampa Bay Rays – 35-25 (3)

Rudi: Fernando Rodney continues to be one of the best closers in the league this season. Kyle Farnsworth is on the outside looking in when he returns from the DL due to Rodney’s dominance.
Lefty: Man I hate the Rays. I don’t know how they’re doing this winning thing without my pre-season MVP pick Evan Longoria. It’s whatever though, I’d rather them win the AL East than the Yankees.

3b. Washington Nationals – 35-23 (4)

Rudi: The Nationals went into Fenway Park over the weekend and swept the Red Sox. They still stand a top the NL East in what is shaping up to be a very exciting division race.
Lefty: Yo for real for real, I did not think they’d be this good this season. Bryce Harper has given the offense a nice hot beef injection since joining the club. The pitching is the best in the majors and I can see them making the playoffs.

5. New York Yankees – 34-25 (9)

Rudi: After a very slow start to the season the Yankees are finally getting the bats going. They are right in the thick of things only half a game behind the division lead Rays.
Lefty: The Yankees are pretty hot right now and entering today sit at 8 games above .500. I doubt they cool off anytime soon but when I look at their lineup they look like one of the best teams in the mid to late 2000’s.

6. Atlanta Braves – 34-26 (13)

Rudi: The Braves recent losing streak is a distant memory as they rattled off 6 in a row this past week. Fredi still confuses the hell out of me when he puts out a lineup where Chipper Jones and Jason Heyward bat 6th and 7th.
Lefty: For some reason I’ve hated the Braves all my life and the only reason I care about them now is Brandon Beachy and his impact on my fantasy team. Chipper is coming back too so excitement is brewing in the AARP community.

7. San Francisco Giants – 34-27 (11)

Rudi: The Giants have been on the steady rise in the rankings for weeks. They are nipping at the heels of the Dodgers in the NL West standings. Melky Cabrera needs to get healthy for the sake of my fantasy team.
Lefty: All I ever hear about this team is that Tim Lincecum is not the Cy Young winner we saw a few years ago. It’s not as detrimental as you would think, MadBum is having an impressive season on the bump and he’s on my fantasy team.

8a. Baltimore Orioles – 34-26 (10)

Rudi: Orioles Magic has subdued a bit but the Orioles are still sticking around in the AL East.
Lefty: MAGIC! I’m beginning to lose it with this team. They can beat up on the Red Sox but then look like a totally different team against other opponents. It’s irritating but I’m used to irritation because this team sucks. They’ve been playing over their heads and will likely go on a 15-20 game losing streak. I love baseball.

8b. Cincinnati Reds – 32-27 (4)

Rudi: Aroldis Chapman has proven himself to be human in his last two outings. Gave up a run in the 10th inning against the Pirates, then had a meltdown against the Tigers on Sunday Night Baseball. The Reds had a chance to distance themselves from the rest of the division but instead let the Pirates and Cardinals stick around. Ugh.
Lefty: I like this Todd Frazier guy. He throws bats at balls and gets dingers. He even hit a homerun on Sunday Night ESPN Baseball extravaganza. BUT! They let the Pirates in their backdoor….incomplete thought.

10a.Chicago White Sox – 33-27 (6)

Rudi: The White Sox are one of the biggest surprises in baseball thus far. Adam Dunn is proving that batting average doesn’t mean a thing when you are able to hit bombs at a consistent rate.
Lefty: Can you believe the season Adam Dunn is having? Last year he looked like he was over the hill but the first half of the season so far has been very good to him. They have Chris Sale too who I didn’t know too much about entering the season but everyone knows him now.

10b. Los Angeles Angels – 32-29 (12)

Rudi: Mark Trumbo needs to be in the HR derby. Trumbo and Trout are two very exciting young guys that are worth watching.
Lefty: Like I said before, I anticipate the battle for LA. I don’t care who wins although it would be more beneficial to me as an Orioles fan to see this team fall back into the slump they were in earlier this season. Oh well.

12. Cleveland Indians – 32-27 (15)

Rudi: The battle of Ohio kicks off this week as the Indians travel to GABP for the first series between the two Ohio teams. Last year the Indians took 5 of 6 from the Reds.
Lefty: God I keep forgetting this team exists. If it wasn’t for Major League I wouldn’t even know about them. I did do some research just this moment and saw they took series from Detroit and the Cards but lost to the Twins LOL.

13. Pittsburgh Pirates – 32-27 (17)

Rudi: Winners of 12 of their last 15, the Pirates find themselves currently tied for first place. This sounds very familiar to last year where they overachieved for awhile then fell back to reality. I expect the same this year.
Lefty: They do it again. Last year around this time they were in first in the NL Central. This team is very hot right now thanks to Andrew McCutcheon being red hot. AJ Burnett is also pitching very well after his injury to his vagina in spring training. So really, he’s been pitching well this season.

14a. Miami Marlins – 31-29 (7)

Rudi: After playing great baseball for awhile, the Marlins have lost 6 in a row to fall back near the .500 mark. They need to start playing more consistently if they want to hang with the big dogs in the East.
Lefty: I’m watching the Marlins and Red Sox as we speak and the lime green outfield walls are the ugliest things I’ve ever seen. They haven’t won since they beat the Phillies on June 3rd but they’re playing Boston in a 3 game series…. Connect the dots.

14b. New York Mets – 32-29 (8)

Rudi: How long can R.A. Dickey continue his incredible run? Who knows, but the Mets will not be in the playoff race come September 1st.
Lefty: I caught a little Mets action last week and it was somewhat impressive what they’re doing. What that is, I don’t know.

16. Boston Red Sox - 29-31 (14)

Rudi: Just when I thought the Red Sox were getting their shit together, they lose 7 out of 10 games and fall back under .500. They need to figure out what they are doing with the Middlebrooks/Youk situation.
Lefty: I didn’t rank the teams in this I was just told to write blurbs. I think they should be last for being an overpaid team with an offense that can’t carry the god awful pitching. Bobby Valentine won’t make it out of this season alive.

17. Toronto Bluejays – 31-29 (17)

Rudi: 5-5 in their last 10 which is why they are ranked in the same exact spot as last week.
Lefty: They are a very average team and it is apparent with them being 2 games over .500. Can Joey Bats get it back together? They have a very tough series against the Nats but at least get a series with the Phillies right after. That could be a good or bad thing.

18. Arizona Diamondbacks – 30-30 (19)

Rudi: Arizona is starting to hit which should help them get back in the race out West. Fantasy owners everywhere await the imminent call up of Trevor Bauer.
Lefty: I really like Wade Miley on this team. He’s 7-2 and a lot better than that jerk Ian Kennedy. The D-Backs are unfortunately at 30-30 and don’t seem to have that same spark as last year. It’s a long season though.

19. Detroit Tigers – 28-32 (19)

Rudi: It still amazes me that this team is 4 games under .500. They took 2 out of 3 from the Reds over the weekend in what was a great series for any fan of baseball to take in. Jose Valverde is a spitballin cheater.
Lefty: It’s unfortunate for the Tigers they are playing the way they are. You see some definite flashes of a great team but then you see some absolute crap on the field. Austin Jackson will likely give this team a pop when he jumps off the DL.

20. Philadelphia Phillies - 29-33 (16)

Rudi: It is June 11th and Cliff Lee still does not have a win. That pretty much sums up the Phillies struggles so far.
Lefty: LOL they lost a series to the Orioles. Personally I think this team’s age is showing. Not only that but Roy Halladay is injured and Clifford Lee has been very unlucky lately. I hate the Phillies and their fans so suck it.

21a. Milwaukee Brewers – 28-32 (22)

Rudi: I absolutely love the fact that the Brewers suck. They were hyped way too much before this season it was almost as if people forgot they lost Prince Fielder – one of the best hitters in the game.
Lefty: They’re fading into obscurity in my mind. Nothing about this team jumps out at me other than Ryan Braun being Ryan Braun and Randy Wolf’s five and a half ERA. I hope they suck all year just to piss off their fans.

21b. Seattle Mariners – 27-35 (22)

Rudi: These two teams were tied last week at 22 and are tied this week at 21. Neat. The Mariners threw a 6 pitcher no hitter against the Dodgers which is pretty cool I guess.
Lefty: COMPLETE GAME NO HITTER FOR KEVIN MILLWOOD. Oh he didn’t get one? It was 5 other pitchers too? That was dumb they should have just kept him in because who cares if they get a no hitter or not.

23a. St. Louis Cardinals – 31-30 (21)

Rudi: Woy is really being a needle dick by ranking them 29th and 30th the last two weeks. They are struggling, but they aren’t that bad.
Lefty: The strength and conditioning coach on this team should be taken out back and shot and buried and exhumed and shot again. The Cards are hovering over .500 due to the second best offense in the league. They’re pitching is so-so and Jake Westbrook should hang out with the strength and conditioning coach so he may never start again.

23b. Houston Astros - 26-34 (25)

Rudi: Jose Altuve will be representing the Astros at the All-Star game. Other than that, there isn’t much to write about this team.
Lefty: Well I was wrong predicting this team would be the cellar dwellers all season. The offense has been very middle of the pack all season but the Astros don’t have the pitching to help make their sub .500record any better. At least they’re not as bad as expected. They had the first pick in the draft too and too a short stop who will never be Manny Machado.

25. Oakland Athletics – 26-35 (27)

Rudi: Yoenis Cespedes recently returned from the DL only to injure himself again. Jemile Weeks, who I thought was going to have a breakout season, is still struggling to keep his batting average above .200. Missed that one.
Lefty: I actually caught he McCarthy vs Darvish game on Thursday. It made me realize the Athletics have a lot of good pieces but are missing the important ones to solve the puzzle. The offense is atrocious other than Josh Reddick leading the team in every stat conceivable.

26a. Kansas City Royals – 24-34 (22)

Rudi: I have no idea how the Royals managed to sneak up to 22 in last week’s rankings. They are not good.
Lefty: How the hell did the Orioles let them take a series? They’ve lost 4 in a row and look to battle things out in the Toilet Bowl Series against the Brewers. Tidbit of info: I forgot Kansas City had a team earlier this year until the Orioles had to play them.

26b. Colorado Rockies – 24-35 (25)

Rudi: CarGo is having a monster season so far. The pitching still sucks.
Lefty: If the Rockies were playing hide and seek for quality pitching, they’d be seeking forever. This team has the worst pitching I’ve seen in a long time. Jeremy Guthrie has brought bad luck to the staff and should be taken out back with Jake Westbrook and The Cardinals strength and conditioning coach and shot.

28. Minnesota Twins – 24-35 (27)

Rudi: Francisco Liriano is 1-7. Talk about falling off a cliff, remember when this guy was supposed to be really good a few years ago?
Lefty: Scott Diamond has shown for the time being he can be a dominant pitcher in this staff. He is 5-1 since getting his first start in early may. He has been a Diamond in the rough, yes pun intended. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Carl Pavano has a respectable 6.00 ERA.

29. San Diego Padres – 20-41 (30)

Rudi: The fact that they have a worse record than the Cubs is embarrassing.
Lefty: I don’t know if I’m reading this right but the Padres haven’t won more than 2 games in a row all season. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

30. Chicago Cubs – 20-40 (29)

Rudi: Jorge Soler.
Lefty: BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA the only team they’ve beat more than 2 games in a row are the Padres. Oh man, I didn’t know the worst teams in baseball could be so funny. I’m not the first to say this but the Cub’s future would definitely benefit from a Ryan Dempster trade.

[MVPete]

[stevsta]

That will do pig, that will do

 

go dodgers

[Guest]

Roberts comes back today, 3-4 with an RBI. I am not willing to concede Orioles Magic quite yet. There are still some guys on the DL that can come back and help keep things going. I'm still happy with the progress being made, however.

[Woy]

I'm gonna keep on ranking the Cardinals low until they stop sucking.

[JaysFan09]

I remember being much more upset with these rankings when I first saw them Monday.

Before Washington came to town and Bryce Harper hit a ball through my front window.

[Rudi]

I remember being much more upset with these rankings when I first saw them Monday.

Before Washington came to town and Bryce Harper hit a ball through my front window.

Just curious, how did you stumble upon our Power Rankings?

[JaysFan09]

Just googlin Toronto Blue Jays and Power Rankings. You guys had us as your biggest dropoff a couple weeks back and for some reason that stuck out like a sore thumb to me in the results.

[BigBucs]

3b. Washington Nationals – 35-23 (4)