MLB Power Rankings
The baseball season is a marathon so I do not want to make too much of the first few weeks of the season. The Dodgers are off to a sluggish start, as are the Nationals, while the Red Sox, Diamondbacks, and Angels are among a handful of teams that have begun to separate themselves from the pack. This list is fluid, but through April here are the ten most dangerous teams in baseball.
1. Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox are rolling under first year manager Alex Cora. David Price, Chris Sale, and Rick Porcello have been utterly unhittable thus far. Boston’s pitching prowess in conjunction with a potent line-up, led by Mookie Betts and his six home runs, has the Red Sox with two more wins than any other team in baseball.
2. New York Mets. They Metropolitans came out of the gates scorching hot as they won eleven of their first twelve ball games. Since then, they have cooled off a bit, but are still in first place in the NL East. Like the Red Sox, the Mets have a first-year manager in Mickey Callaway. The 42-year old appears to be the just what the doctor ordered in terms of squeezing every last ounce from his talented pitching staff.
3. Houston Astros. I said before the season that I wouldn’t be shocked if Houston reeled off 110 wins in 2018. The defending champs are that talented. While 110 wins seems super ambitious, I still wouldn’t rule it out the picture especially given what Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa are capable of doing out on the diamond. Gerrit Cole has been absolutely dominant on the mound as well for the ‘Stros.
4. Los Angeles Angels. Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout are the most entertaining teammate pairing in all of baseball. It’s not really even that close. (Well, maybe Judge and Stanton would have something to say about that, but Giancarlo hasn’t held up his end of the bargain since arriving in the Bronx). Trout has been honored with his share of personal accolades, but has never really even flirted with team success. That seems to be until this year. The Angels are a legitimate challenger to Houston in the AL West.
5. Arizona Diamondbacks. The D-Backs have, in Paul Goldschmidt, the most underrated player in all of baseball. The third baseman has finished in the top three of the NL MVP voting in three out of the last five season, while taking home a trio of Gold Gloves in that same time frame. The majority of pundits picked the Dodgers to win the NL West, but given Arizona’s hot start, it might be time to re-evaluate.
6. Cleveland Indians. Terry Francona has the ability to take this team to the World Series. The Indians are that good. Ultimately it will come down to their starting rotation and thus far Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, and Carlos Carrasco have been pretty damn good.
7. Toronto Blue Jays. The Blue Jays always seem to linger in the AL East late into the season before inevitably getting trampled by the Red Sox and Yankees. I am not so sure that this year will be any different, but their deep lineup and stout defense certainly improves their chances.
8. Philadelphia Phillies. The season started about as poorly as it could have for the Phillies. Gabe Kapler, their first-year manager, made some bold decisions in their opening series that cost them a pair of games. Since then, Philadelphia has been on a tear. At 13-7, despite their tremendous inexperience, the Phillies appear to be on a similar trajectory to that of the circa 2010 Tampa Bay Rays. Do not be surprised if this team is playing well into October.
9. New York Yankees. The Bronx Bombers should climb this list as the season progresses, but right now they are hoovering right around .500. Both Gary Sanchez and Giancarlo Stanton are struggling immensely and Dellin Betances appears to have the yips. On a positive note, Didi Gregorius and Aaron Judge have been two of the toughest outs in all of baseball and Brian Cashman just recently called up Gleyber Torres, the Yankees most heralded prospect. Give Aaron Boone’s ball club some time to figure it out because when they do, their lineup will be as overpowering as any the game has ever seen.
10. Minnesota Twins. The Twins are a tough team to get a grasp on mostly due to the fact that they have had about a half dozen games cancelled due to weather causing them to have less games played than every other team in baseball. With that said, Joe Mauer, at age 35, is still hitting the cover off of the ball and the Twins are also getting solid contributions from Brian Dozier and Miguel Sano.
