Pre-Season Power Rankings (3/30)
Posted on March 30th, 2008 - 3:13 pm by BaseballTalkOnline
Normally, I’ll do the power rankings on Monday but I wanted to release them before the beginning of the season.
| Rank | Team | Change | Comments |
| 1 | Boston Red Sox (1-1) | – | The great thing about the beginning of the season is the new wears off and it’s back to how the teams will perform on the field. The Red Sox didn’t make any major moves this off-season, but it was simply because they didn’t need to. The return one of the most lethal lineups in the majors, along with one of the best pitching staffs. Until someone knocks them off the top, they’ll remain there. “To be the man, you have to beat the man” kind of thing going on here. |
| 2 | Cleveland Indians (0-0) | – | The Indians were overshadowed this off-season by an AL Central foe, the Detroit Tigers, but that doesn’t stop me from picking them ahead of the Tigers. The Indians have the most pitching depth in their rotation than possibly anyone else in the majors, at this point, and have a solid bullpen to go along with their starting staff. When taking it all into perspective, their offense isn’t far behind the Tigers offense. They’ll be lead by a couple MVP candidates in Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner, but their pitching will separate them from the rest of the AL Central. |
| 3 | Detroit Tigers (0-0) | – | The Tigers went out this off-season and improved their offense with the acquisitions of Miguel Cabrera and Edgar Renteria, but their pitching staff is still suspect. Behind Verlander, the Tigers don’t really have a guy they can count on to win every time out, and their bullpen has been depleted with injuries. A lot of people have jumped on the Tigers bandwagon, and if the season were a short five to seven game series, I would like them, too, but over 162 games, I don’t think they have enough to match up with the pitching from Cleveland. It’s hard to outscore your opponents every night out. |
| 4 | New York Yankees (0-0) | – | Surprisingly, the Yankees held ground this winter, too. They return the best player in the game at third base and a few players out to prove themselves in walk years, so their offense will be as dangerous as anyone’s in baseball. The success of the Yankees hinges on the young pitching. If Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes prove to be consistent, major league pitchers, the Yankees could jump to number one on the list in a hurry. Joba Chamberlain will open the year in the bullpen, but may move to the starting rotation later in the year. If the Yankees can overcome the rest of the AL and get into the playoffs as either the AL East champs or the Wild Card team, their young pitching could lead them to a World Series title. |
| 5 | Atlanta Braves (0-0) | – | The overlooked Braves went out and corrected their Achilles’ heel from a year ago by adding more starting pitching. They brought Tom Glavine back home to provide stability and more innings out of the rotation, along with adding the likes of Jair Jurrjens and Mike Hampton, who is returning from a barrage of injuries. With an offense led by Chipper Jones and Mark Teixeira, the Braves have all the tools to jump back to the top of the NL East. With improvements in the closer’s role this year, don’t rule out Tim Hudson making a run for the Cy Young, along with one of the switch hitters trying to capture an MVP award. |
| 6 | Seattle Mariners (0-0) | – | The Mariners outstanding bullpen finally has a rotation to match. The additions of Erik Bedard and Carlos Silva, to an already good core of Felix Hernandez, Miguel Batista and Jarrod Washburn create an awful good rotation for the Mariners. The pitching award in the AL West was supposed to go to the Los Angeles Angels, but with the injuries to Kelvim Escobar and John Lackey, the Mariners move to the top. |
| 7 | Los Angeles Dodgers (0-0) | – | The Dodgers improved their outfield defense with the acquisition of Andruw Jones in center, which will in turn improve their pitching staff. The Dodgers may young players we heard about for years have finally arrived and are ready to take over. James Loney, Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier and Russell Martin will lead the way offensively, with Chad Billingsley and Jonathan Broxton playing a major role on the pitching staff. Behind the pitching of Derek Lowe and Brad Penny, along with a new manager who knows how to win, the Dodgers are in prime position to return to the top of the NL West. |
| 8 | Philadelphia Phillies (0-0) | – | Is there any better of an offense in the National League than the Phillies? Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and on down the line, the offense never quits in this lineup. With Brett Myers moving back to the rotation, the Phillies have a legit 1-2 punch with he and Cole Hamels. Their bullpen is their one area of weakness. With Brad Lidge out for a little longer recovering from knee surgery, it becomes even weaker. |
| 9 | Chicago Cubs (0-0) | – | Last year’s NL Central winners appear to be in position to take the division again. Returning much of the same team, plus the import of Fukudome, the Cubs are just hoping they remain healthy enough to not have the Central taken from them. 100 years since winning their last World Championship, you can bet the Cubs have one thing in their sights and anything less than a World Series title will be seen as failure. |
| 10 | Arizona Diamondbacks (0-0) | – | The Diamondbacks squeaked into the playoffs last year after lucking their way to the NL West title. This year, the run differential will catch up with them just as it did in the NLCS in last year’s playoffs. The Diamondbacks have pitching in the rotation, but their bullpen and weak lineup leave question marks on their ability to repeat as division champs. |
| 11 | Los Angeles Angels (0-0) | – | At winter meetings, the Angels looked to be the team to beat. With the acquisitions of Jon Garland and Torri Hunter, the Angels were expected to be a much improved team. However, now with Kelvim Escobar likely done for the year and John Lackey missing the first month and a half of the season, the Angels are pushing their pitching depth to the limits. Scot Shields will join Escobar and Lackey on the disabled list to open the season, leaving the Angels without three of the top five pitchers. With the time they’ll miss from their top two starters, the Mariners will probably pull too far ahead of the pack during the time they Angles are trying to stay afloat. |
| 12 | New York Mets (0-0) | – | When the Mets acquired Johan Santana earlier in the off-season, the national media had them penciled in as the best team known to man. However, as the season got closer, the few people who said the move was not enough have gotten their due as the national media has realized it takes more than one. With an older team, the Mets don’t appear to have the attrition it takes to make it through a 162 game season without taking much of a drop off from their roster. Moises Alou is already scheduled to miss some time due to a hernia and Carlos Delgado and Luis Castillo are injuries waiting to happen. Orlando Hernandez has shown nothing this spring for anyone to think he can be successful, leaving the Mets nowhere to go behind Pelfrey in their starting rotation. |
| 13 | Milwaukee Brewers (0-0) | – | How many starts will Ben Sheets make this year? If it’s more than 30 the Brewers have a chance to overtake the Cubs and win the NL Central. The Brewers will be lead by a strong lineup, but with an injury plagued rotation and a shaky bullpen, all the stars have to align correctly for them to have a chance. Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun may compete for an MVP award, but it won’t matter if Eric Gagne can’t regain his form and shut the door on opposing teams in the ninth inning. |
| 14 | Chicago White Sox (0-0) | – | The White Sox should be an improved bunch this year with the additions of Nick Swisher and Orlando Cabrera, however, the one missing piece that jumps out at you is Josh Fields. Fields is a superstar in the making, but the White Sox are content with keeping him in the minors so that Joe Crede can have third base and Carlos Quentin and Jerry Owens can share left field duties. The White Sox really don’t have an area that jumps out as a weakness, but they’re not particularly strong in anything either. |
| 15 | Colorado Rockies (0-0) | – | Everyone remembers the Rockies last year for the amazing win streak they put together to claim the NL Wild Card last season, but most don’t realize that according to the Pythagorean formula, they were the best team in the National League a year ago. Their problem this year is that they didn’t do anything to improve upon that team and will probably fall back a bit, despite picking up an increase in production out of some of their stars. While they didn’t improve, they didn’t really weaken themselves by what they let go, either. For now, we’ll consider them an average team until they prove otherwise. |
| 16 | Tampa Bay Rays (0-0) | – | Does having the Rays this high surprise anyone? To me, I look at their team and see a Braves team of the early 90s ready to take off. The Rays are young, talented and have won at the minor league level. When you have all of those factors coming into one team, the question is just how good they’re going to be on the field. For now, I have them ranked slightly ahead of the Blue Jays in the AL East but not having enough to catch the Red Sox and Yankees just yet. They’ll need another good season from Carlos Pena and have the pitching take shape with Kazmir, Shields and Garza leading the way. Having Troy Percival and Dan Wheeler in their bullpen this year will be a great improvement over last season. Their closer from a year ago is now their seventh inning man, which proves just how much they deepened their pen. |
| 17 | Toronto Blue Jays (0-0) | – | The Blue Jays and Rays will probably flip flop quite a bit over the course of the season, but in the end it will depend on the health of the Jays overcoming the youth of the Rays. If the Jays pitching staff can remain healthy and they don’t lose too many starts from Halladay and Burnett, they have jump up in the standings and give the Yankees a run for second in the East. Just like the others in this grouping, they have to prove it it on the field before we can move them up. |
| 18 | San Diego Padres (0-0) | – | The Padres are the anti-Blue Jays in that they have the pitching, but you have to worry about the health of their position players. Jim Edmonds has already hit the disabled list and Brian Giles probably isn’t far behind. The Padres have had an anemic offense for years and losing the few offensive threats they have will not help them any. The Padres will live and die on Peavy again this season, but one man is not enough. |
| 19 | Houston Astros (0-0) | – | All offense, no pitching. The Astros can run the likes of Berkman, Lee, Tejada, Pence, Wigginton and Matsui at you offensively, but after Oswalt their pitching staff is horrid. No starting pitcher other than Oswalt managed to post an ERA below 5.00 this spring for the Astros. Their offense may be able to pound their way past the Cardinals and Pirates in the Central, but their pitching won’t allow them to catch the Cubs and Brewers in the division. The Astros will dance with the Reds for the middle of the NL Central throughout the season. |
| 20 | Minnesota Twins (0-0) | – | The Twins will try to hold water without the services of Santana and Hunter this year. If Francisco Liriano can come all the way back from surgery, they may not spend too much time dwelling over the loss of Santana as Liriano may be just as good. The Twins have a talented team, but time will tell how they’ll react to playing without two of their leaders. With an offense lead by Mauer, Morneau, Cuddyer and Young, the Twins fall in the same category as the four or five teams ahead of them in that they need to prove it on the field. |
| 21 | Cincinnati Reds (0-0) | – | With Dusty Baker in charge of the Reds, you know that some things are just waiting to happen. Jay Bruce and Joey Votto won’t ever get their chance to become stars because Baker will opt to go with the veterans over the two young studs. Homer Bailey and Johnny Cueto are better off staying in Louisville as long as possible to keep Baker from ruining their careers. The Reds have talent to win, but not compete. They’ll stay in the middle of the NL Central throughout the year. |
| 22 | Washington Nationals (0-0) | – | The Nationals will be a fun club to track this season. Their offense isn’t a one man show this year, as it was last. Austin Kearns has some help this year in the form of Nick Johnson and Paul Lo Duca. Young, but troubled, rising stars Elijah Dukes and Lastings Milledge will give the team a lift and energize the club and city. The Nationals aren’t destined to win any time soon, but they’re taking the steps in the right direction right now. They have a host of good pitching in the minor leagues just waiting for their chance. As their young pitching matures and start to break in later in the season, the Nationals could give the rest of the National League headaches in September. |
| 23 | Texas Rangers (0-0) | – | The Rangers are built like the Rangers of old. All offense, no pitching. Their offense has never been a problem, and the additions of Josh Hamilton and Milton Bradley certainly won’t hurt them in that area, however, behind Kevin Millwood this team has no starting pitching. The Rangers would have been picked last in the AL West if anyone knew what direction the A’s were heading. |
| 24 | St. Louis Cardinals (0-0) | – | For the second straight off-season, the Cardinals did nothing to improve their ball club. Instead, they’ll hope Albert Pujols’s elbow holds together and they’re still in contention when Chris Carpenter and Mark Mulder can make it back from injury. Chances are they won’t be. When you finish six games below .500 and your major off-season move was pulling Juan Gonzalez back from the baseball graveyard, good things are not in store. |
| 25 | Oakland A’s (1-1) | – | The A’s rebuilding effort is hard to follow. They trade players that are locked up but keep arbitration eligible players. You never know what Billy Beane will do with this team over the course of the season, which leads to this lower ranking. The talent is there for the A’s to be ranked 15-20, but the questions surrounding the health of some of their star players, along with the uncertainties of how long the players in uniform will be with the A’s bumped them down to the mid-20s to start the year. |
| 26 | Pittsburgh Pirates (0-0) | – | How much longer will Jason Bay and Xavier Nady stay in a Pirates uniform? That’s the main question for the Pirates this year, and likely the only thing they’re concerned with too. It’s been a long fall for the Pirates, who are still seeking their first winning season since Sid slid and broke their hearts in 1992. |
| 27 | Kansas City Royals (0-0) | – | The Royals may prove to be a little better than expected if their young talent gels together, but the Indians and Tigers appear to be too strong. The realistic goal for the Royals this season is to improve on their 69 wins from a year ago. |
| 28 | Baltimore Orioles (0-0) | – | The Orioles are in a tough position after having to unload Tejada and Bedard. Brian Roberts will probably be moved by the deadline as the Orioles will find themselves looking up to everyone in the standings. They’re just hoping that by the trade deadline, they still have someone in the division within their grasp. |
| 29 | San Francisco Giants (0-0) | – | The Giants may have made one of the best free agent signings this off-season when they signed Aaron Rowand to a relatively cheap deal. However, they forgot about everything else. They’ll ride the young pitching and hope their over the hill position players drink from the fountain of youth. Against some of the pitching the rest of the NL West has to offer, their may be quite a bit of 15+ strikeout games from this lineup. |
| 30 | Florida Marlins (0-0) | – | The Marlins are on their quad-annual firesale and rebuild project again. Don’t look for much out of them this year, but if history repeats itslef, they could prove to be a major spoiler for teams later in the season. |
Filed under: Power Rankings