MLB Power Rankings

In the first version of the 2010 Power Rankings, there is no surprise who is at the top considering their hot start.  You may be surprised though, by who rounds out the top 5.  Their start to the season has gone completely unnoticed by the national media. 

Maybe we can get them a little notariety. 

Here are this weeks MLB Power Rankings!

1. Tampa Bay Rays (25-11)

The Rays have been the talk of the league with their torrid start to the season.  This is mainly because the media is upset with the fact that both the Yankees and Red Sox have to take second fiddle.

The Rays do it with pitching.  The highest ERA in the Rays rotation belongs to Wade Davis at 3.38.  David Price, the #4 in the rotation, is better than most teams #2's.  And Matt Garza and James Shields thus far are battling each other for the early lead in the Cy Young race.  Rafael Soriano has stabilized the bullpen, which in past years has been a weak spot for this club. 

The scary thing is that the Rays can get better.  Only Evan Longoria (.324) and Carl Crawford (.309) are hitting over .300 and the teams third place hitter, utility-man Ben Zobrist, has yet to hit a homerun.

If the offense gets hot, they could rattle off 10-15 wins in a row with the way they pitch. 

2. New York Yankees (24-12)

The Yankees are only 1 game back of the Rays, but it feels like the defending champs have some catching up to do despite playing very well in the early going.  Second baseman Robinson Cano has led the offense (.324 avg, 9 HR's, 23 RBI's) in the early going.  And you figure that Alex Rodriguez (.288 avg., 4 HR's) and Mark Teixeira (.217 avg., 7 HR's) will catch fire as the temperature warms up.

The rotation, with the exception of Javier Vazquez, has been excellent.  C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Andy Pettite have performed up to expectations, but youngster Phil Hughes has been outstanding (5-0, 1.38 ERA, 39 K's in 39 IP).

The Yankees are right there behind the Rays in the AL East and it should be a great fight all summer. 

3. Philadelphia Phillies (22-13)
The Phillies, making it to the World Series the last two seasons, once again look like the class of National League. 

The powerful lineup is bolstered by the newly minted in gold Ryan Howard (.284 avg, 6 HR's, 23 RBI's).  But it has been Jayson Werth (.339 avg, 7 HR's, 27 RBI's) who has really shined thus far.  This offense will only get better when Jimmy Rollins returns to team up with Chase Utley as the best offensive double play combo in the last 25 years. 

The pitching has been good too, led by Roy Halladay (6-1, 1.59 ERA) and Cole Hamels (3-2, 4.53 ERA).  The problem with the Phillies is that they don't have anybody to close, as both Brad Lidge and Ryan Madsen have found themselves on the DL.

The bullpen situation in Philly will be something to watch all summer.

4. Minnesota Twins (22-14)

Joe Mauer only has 2 homeruns nearly 40 games into the season, yet the Twins have positioned themselves nicely for yet again another playoff run. 

Justin Morneau (.366 avg, 8 HR's, 24 RBI's) has been awesome and been the AL MVP during the first month plus of the season. 

Despite missing Joe Nathan for the season, Jon Rauch (0-1, 1.80 ERA has filled in admirably converting 10 out of 11 save opportunties.  The starting pitching has been led by the refurbished Francisco Liriano (4-2, 2.36 ERA), who once again has confidence to throw his devastating slider. 

The Twins are in the lead in the AL Central, but have the Detroit Tigers nipping at their heels just 1.5 games back.

5. San Diego Padres (22-14)

What?  If we would've predicted (and we wouldn't of, so we can't take credit) that the San Diego Dads were going to be out in front of the NL West on May 15th, you would've thought we were crazy. 

Its the story very few are talking about, but the Padres are easily the surprise team of the major leagues.

They don't particularly do anything well, as the offense is once again led by Adrian Gonzalez (.258 avg, 7 HR's, 18 RBI's), but this team finds a way to win. 

A big reason they find a way to win, is their starting pitching has over-achieved.  Jon Garland (4-2, 1.88 ERA) has been awesome and Heath Bell (10 saves in 12 opportunties) is as tough as it gets when closing games.

It will be interesting to see if this cinderella story can keep going, as the LA Dodgers have been charging hard over the last week.  How long can the Padres can hang on to first place will determine how long they hang on to the likes of Gonzalez and Bell. 

On Watch!

The Cincinatti Reds and Los Angeles Dodgers have been among the hottest teams in baseball, both going 8-2 over their last 10 games.  Keep an eye out for both teams in next week's rankings, especially if they keep up their torrid pace.