April Power Rankings

We are a month into the season and as we wrap up April there has been enough baseball to start really gauging where teams stand, so with that we will go into our monthly power rankings:

30 - Oakland Athletics (5-23)

The Athletics have been dreadful. They are competing for the worst winning percentage in baseball history and they are officially leaving the city of Oakland. They have very little going right and their lone bright spot has been the surprising power by OF Brent Rooker

29 - Kansas City Royals (7-22)

I didn't come into this season expecting the Royals to be good, but I did not think that they would be this bad. To no surprise, they are giving up a ton of runs, but their offense is completely underperforming. They can still turn it around a bit, but don't expect them to have a bounce back month anytime soon. Their Best player has been SS Bobby Whitt Jr.

28 - Colorado Rockies (9-20)

The Rockies on the other hand, I did expect to be this bad. You don't go into a season with high expectations when your owner says "I think we can play .500 ball". That doesn't exactly inspire confidence and there on-field play has shown they are from a .500 team. Their best player thus far has been C Elias Diaz.

27 - Washington Nationals (9-17)

Yet another team that was always expected to be at the bottom of this list, the Nationals have not been good. Their offense has been bleak, their pitching has however been better than expected. But they are still struggling to win games. Their best player has been SP Josiah Gray.

26 - Chicago White Sox (8-21)

Man what a fall from grace. in 2019 the White Sox were thought to be one of the up and coming franchises with loads of youth. They have been incredibly disappointing year in and year out and they are off to another rough start this season with no signs pointing to them becoming good. Their best player has been 3B Jake Burger.

25 - Detroit Tigers (10-17)

Another team that I didn't have very high expectations for. The Tigers simply can't hit and their pitching isn't much better. Maybe next season when their pitching is back to full health and they can add some more bats, but for this year, it's not looking good. Their best player has been SP Eduardo Rodriguez.

24 - Miami Marlins (16-13)

If I was doing this solely based off records, the Marlins would make no sense here. Their record would fool most people. I would argue they have just been incredibly lucky. They have a -35 run differential. That screams "regression is coming soon." While their pitching is solid, their offense leaves a lot to be desired. Their best player has been 2B Luis Arraez.

23 - St. Louis Cardinals (10-18)

I'm just as shocked as you. I would have bet my bank account the Cardinals wouldn't be at the bottom half of the power rankings at this point in the year, let alone 23rd. But I cant bring myself to place them any higher. Their offense has been solid but their starting pitching continues to be a major issue. Their best player has been 2B Nolan Gorman.

22 - Cincinnati Reds (12-15)

While the Reds haven't been amazing, they have been a fun team to watch this year. They have 0 pitching depth, but if their three-headed monster in Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft can stay healthy, they could be fun to watch in Cincinnati for years to come. Their best player has been SP Graham Ashcraft.

21 - San Francisco Giants (11-15)

The Giants have had an up and down year. Inconsistency has been their biggest issue in the early going. Their offense and pitching can't seem to click at the same time which has put them a few games back in the NL West. Their best player has been 2B Thairo Estrada.

20 - Seattle Mariners (12-16)

My preseason WS runner up is off to a rocky start to the year. Their pitching has been solid, but they need their big bats come alive. Hopefully they wake up during the summer months because at the rate they are going, they won't sniff the playoffs. They have had a few good players but I'd say their best to this point has been the resurgent OF Jarred Kelenic.

19 - Cleveland Guardians (13-15)

The Guardians have a similar problem to the Mariners. Their pitching has been good, but they need their bats to wake up a bit. They aren't producing much power or getting timely hits. This team can absolutely turn it around. Their best player has been 3B Jose Ramirez.

18 - Los Angeles Angels (15-14)

The Angels have had an interesting first month. They started the season off hot but have been struggling of late losing series to the Yankees and Brewers. They have already played the Athletics in 2 series the Royals in 1 and the Nationals in 1. So while it's great they have a winning in record, keep in mind 13 of their 29 games so far have been against 3 of the worst teams in all of baseball. Their best player has been P/DH Shohei Ohtani (Shocker I know).

17 - Boston Red Sox (15-14)

Man the Red Sox can hit, but man can they not pitch. If you ever want to watch a minimum of 10 runs a game tune into whoever the Red Sox are playing cause you are probably going to see fireworks by one or both teams. At the moment they are hitting more than they are getting hit, but who knows what will happen for the rest of the year. Their best player has been OF Alex Verdugo.

16 - San Diego Padres (15-14)

The friars have been one of the most inconsistent teams in all of baseball. They have days where they show up having a great time and they hit the ball all over the yard. Then they will have other days where they cant hit anything. Juan Soto and Manny Machado have to step it up for this team to be the WS winners I believe they can. Their best players has been SS Xander Boagarts.

15 - Philadelphia Phillies (15-13)

Boy oh boy was I worried about this team after the first 2 weeks. While they aren't out of the woods yet, their last week and a half or so has been miles better. There pitching has turned around and they are starting to hit a lot more. I'll feel even better when Ranger Suarez can get back in action. Their best player has been RP Jose Alvarado.

14 - Chicago Cubs (14-13)

The Cubs have been a pleasant surprise. I did not give them a whole lot of love going into this season, but man are they a fun team to watch play baseball. They do everything correct, they hit well, they pitch well, and they have one of the best defensive cores in the game. They still don't have a ton of star power which is the only reason they are not ranked higher, but this is a team I can see making the playoffs. Their best player has been OF Cody Bellinger.

13 - New York Yankees (15-14)

The Yanks got off to a pretty good start this season but have slowed down of late. Their pitching has been the strong part which was unexpected. Offense has been the bigger issue for this club to this point. They have a few injuries that are absolutely the root of its mediocrity, but I cant rank them any higher at the moment. Their best player has been SP Gerrit Cole.

12 - Los Angeles Dodgers (16-13)

This isn't the Dodgers we have been used to for the past 10 years, but they are still making it work. All sides of the ball have been working for the club. They are getting solid pitching, solid offense, and solid defense. They have been piecing everything together as they go and it has been fun to watch. Their best player has been SP Clayton Kershaw.

11 - Houston Astros (14-13)

It's hard to imagine the Astros not even in the top 10, but for now they are just outside. They have had one of the tougher schedules to start the season. At this point though, I would have expected them to have a better winning percentage. Look for them to be higher up next month. Their best player has been OF Yordan Alvarez.

10 - Minnesota Twins (17-12)

The Twins are the first team to crack the top 10.They have been good on all fronts. They currently have 2 pitchers that have to be in the very early conversation for CY Young award in Sonny Gray and Joe Ryan. Their offense hasn't had one player stand out but they all seem to trade off who gets a timely hit which is a recipe for success. Their best player has been SP Sonny Gray.

9 - Texas Rangers (17-11)

The Rangers have gotten out to a blistering start. Even with a key injury to their super star SS Corey Seager, this offense is clicking on all cylinders. They have scored the second most runs in all of baseball with 178. Their pitching has been way better than expected allowing just 106 runs which is good for 6th in the league. They did just lose Jacob DeGrom to injury so we will see how they weather the storm. Their best player has been OF Adolis Garcia.

8 - New York Mets (15-12)

Their record might not look like they should be 8th, however they have a winning record against some pretty tough competition while dealing with quite a few key injuries and a suspension. They have stayed afloat in a good spot while missing their best 2 pitchers both of whom are coming back to action this week. Max Scherzer from suspension and Justin Verlander is expected to make his Mets debut later this week. Their best player has been 1B Pete Alonso.

7 - Arizona Diamondbacks (16-13)

Another team with a good record but you might be curious why they are this high on the rankings. Well, that's because the Dbacks, who are an expected .500 team are playing above .500 ball after they just had the toughest schedule in baseball through the first month. They have more than held their own, They can hit, they can run, they can defend as good as anyone and they have a couple good pitchers that have been holding down the fort. This team has the fastest outfield players I have ever seen in one group before and they are a ton of fun to watch play. Their best player has been SP Zac Gallen.

6 - Baltimore Orioles (19-9)

Another team I was expecting to be good but not this good. The Orioles have been an awesome surprise. Even with the top rookie in baseball, Gunner Henderson, struggling in his first month, the Orioles have picked him up and then some. The offense is lethal, they can hurt you at any point in the lineup 1-9. They run hard, and their pitching has been better than expected. Their best player has been SS Jorge Mateo.

5 - Milwaukee Brewers (18-10)

The Brewers are very similar to the Diamondbacks but with better pitching. Their offense has been surprisingly fun to watch, they are versatile and fast and play great defense. What separates them is their starting pitching and bullpen are arguably the best in baseball. They have given up just 100 runs which is good for 3rd best in baseball. Their best player has been 1B Rowdy Tellez.

4 - Pittsburg Pirates (20-9)

By far the biggest surprise of the opening month, the Pirates have been electric. Many, myself included, thought this group would be one of the bottom dwellers of baseball this year. They are doing everything in their power to shut the doubters up. This team has been clicking on all cylinders despite missing their franchise player in SS Oneil Cruz to injury. They admittedly have had one of the easier schedules to begin the season, but they are taking full advantage of it and I hope it continues. Their best player has been OF Bryan Reynolds who they FINALLY locked up to a 8 year $124.75M deal.

3 - Toronto Blue Jays (18-10)

Another team that can just flat out do everything. The Blue Jays have all the star power on offense you could want. Their pitching has been much better than expected as well. Things are certainly looking bright in Toronto and as long as they stay healthy, there isn't much that can stand in their way. Their best player has been 3B Matt Chapman.

2 - Atlanta Braves (18-9)

This should come as no shock. The Braves are easily one of the best teams in baseball on all fronts. their offense is elite, arguably the best in baseball. They have incredible starting pitching and bullpen help. They are a complete team and showing it in the early going. Their best player has been OF Ronald Acuna Jr.

1 - Tampa Bay Rays (23-6)

Who else? The Rays have been practically unbeatable all season. They have scored the most runs (195) and they have given up the least amount of runs (92). There is no such thing as perfect, but they are playing really close to perfect baseball right now. Their best player has been OF Randy Arozarena.

--Cyrus Beermann