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2016 Week 5 MLB Power Rankings
— -- The top four in the Power Rankings are pretty well entrenched at the top of baseball right now, with the red-hot Chicago Cubs at No. 1 for the sixth straight week. But after No. 4 ( New York Mets this week), things start to spread way out, with very little consensus among our five voters.
Take the Seattle Mariners, who were one of the biggest movers this week, jumping from No. 14 to No. 7. The Mariners were as high as No. 5 on one voter's ballot and as low as No. 15 on another's. The Miami Marlins (No. 15) were as high as No. 7 on one voter's list. There is very little consensus from No. 5 all the way down to No. 20, with teams jumping up and down the rankings from week to week.
This week's voters are Jim Bowden of ESPN Insider, Eric Karabell of ESPN Fantasy, Tim Kurkjian of ESPN, David Schoenfield of the SweetSpot Blog Network/ESPN.com and Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Most of the team comments come courtesy of the bloggers on the SweetSpot Blog Network.
Past rankings: Week 4 | Week 3 | Week 2 | Week 1 | Preseason
1. Chicago Cubs
Record: 24-6
Week 4 ranking: No. 1
The Cubs passed a huge test this past week, sweeping both the Pirates and the Nationals. Chicago has won 11 of its past 12 games. Joe Aiello ( @VFTB), View from the Bleachers
2. Washington Nationals
Record: 19-12
Week 4 ranking: No. 3
They ran into the buzzsaw that is the Cubs, losing all four games while getting outhit 42-29 and outhomered 7-3. Two notes that stand out: Max Scherzer gave up four home runs on Friday and has allowed 23 in his past 19 starts going back to last August. In Sunday's 13-inning loss, the Nats went 1-for-19 with runners in scoring position. Don't blame Bryce Harper, though: He walked six times, becoming the fourth batter to walk six times in a game, joining Jeff Bagwell, Andre Thornton and Jimmie Foxx. -- David Schoenfield ( @dschoenfield), SweetSpot
3. Chicago White Sox
Record: 22-10
Week 4 ranking: No. 4
The division-leading White Sox have been led by strong pitching, but don't forget the contributions at the plate. Adam Eaton is an on-base machine, Jose Abreu slugged two homers this week and Brett Lawrie has been productive despite big strikeout totals. -- Jeff Wiser ( @OutfieldGrass24), Inside the 'Zona
4. New York Mets
Record: 19-11
Week 4 ranking: No. 2
The Mets have outscored the opposition 23-5 in the first inning this year; the five first-inning runs allowed are fewest in MLB. The Mets have scored first in 18 of their last 24 games, and are 16-3 when they score first this year, including 10-2 on the road. Yoenis Cespedes has six homers and 16 RBI in his last 11 games. -- Joe Janish ( @metstoday), Mets Today
5. Boston Red Sox
Record: 18-13
Week 4 ranking: No. 8
Seven starts into the season, David Price's 11.54 strikeouts per nine innings is the highest rate of his career. The combination of an increased walk rate and a soaring hard-hit percentage has nonetheless left Price with a 6.75 ERA, despite a very good 2.93 FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching). -- Ryan P. Morrison ( @ryanpmorrison), Inside the 'Zona
6. Baltimore Orioles
Record: 18-12
Week 4 ranking: No. 7
What's up with Adam Jones? His average is hovering around the Mendoza line, and he has hit just one home run so far. An early-season ribcage injury may be lingering, but the Orioles could really use him heating up in the next few weeks. -- Matt Kremnitzer ( @mattkremnitzer), Camden Depot
7. Seattle Mariners
Record: 18-13
Week 4 ranking: No. 14
Robinson Cano has wasted no time making up for his struggles last season. To date, the second baseman is hitting .306/.358/.621 with 11 homers through 30 games, including three this week as the M's swept the A's in Oakland. -- Jeff Wiser ( @OutfieldGrass24), Inside the 'Zona
8. Pittsburgh Pirates
Record: 17-14
Week 4 ranking: No. 5
In getting swept by the Cubs last week, the Pirates were outscored 20 to 5 -- scoring fewer runs in the series than the Cubs did in each of the three games. Pittsburgh is 8-8 against other teams in the National League Central, but 9-6 in all other contests. -- Ryan P. Morrison ( @ryanpmorrison), Inside the 'Zona
9. Texas Rangers
Record: 18-14
Week 4 ranking: No. 9
At 18-14, the Rangers completed a weekend sweep of the Tigers, but lost starting pitcher A.J. Griffin to a shoulder injury. The good news? Yu Darvish could return within the next two weeks. -- Brandon Land ( @onestrikeaway), One Strike Away
10. San Francisco Giants
Record: 17-16
Week 4 ranking: No. 12
A pair of Brandons -- Belt and Crawford -- got hot at the plate this week. The two combined to hit nearly .340, including three homers, two doubles and two triples. Add in a couple of strong starts by Madison Bumgarner, and San Francisco still leads the NL West. -- Jeff Wiser ( @OutfieldGrass24), Inside the 'Zona
11. St. Louis Cardinals
Record: 16-16
Week 4 ranking: No. 10
The Cardinals are sort of scuffling along at 16-16, but their plus-40 run differential suggests that they're more than a .500 team. -- ESPN
12. Cleveland Indians
Record: 15-13
Week 3 ranking: No. 21
The Indians have struggled against their AL Central foes over the past couple of years, particularly the Tigers. However, this past week they took five of six from the Royals and Tigers to keep pace with the red hot White Sox. So far, their only losing record in the Central is, oddly, against the Twins. -- Stephanie Liscio (@stephanieliscio), It's Pronounced Lajaway
13. Toronto Blue Jays
Record: 16-17
Week 4 ranking: No. 15
Kevin Pillar has been on a tear. Through Friday, he was batting .373 (25-for-67) since April 17, a span of 18 games. Nine of those hits were for extra bases, which included seven doubles and two homers. Through Saturday, the Jays are 26-16 in interleague play since the start of 2014. -- Diane Firstman ( @dianagram), Value Over Replacement Grit
14. Kansas City Royals
Record: 15-15
Week 4 ranking: No. 6
They've gone 3-9 over the past two weeks; the rotation has posted a 6.41 ERA while averaging barely five innings per start. The offense also takes a hit as Mike Moustakas landed on the DL with a fractured thumb and is expected to miss 15-20 days. -- David Schoenfield ( @dschoenfield), SweetSpot
15. Miami Marlins
Record: 16-14
Week 4 ranking: No. 19
Statcast projected Giancarlo Stanton's Friday night blast at 475 feet off Phillies right-hander Hector Neris. Earlier that night, Christian Yelich launched a personal-best 451-footer. Yelich has been working with hitting coaches Barry Bonds and Frank Menechino, and Yelich is getting more lift on the ball. Through Saturday, the club had won 11 of 13. -- Diane Firstman ( @dianagram), Value Over Replacement Grit
16. Los Angeles Dodgers
Record: 16-15
Week 4 ranking: No. 13
Wunderkind Julio Urias is part of discussions on how to fix a leaky bullpen. Entering Saturday, the Dodgers' pen had suffered six of the club's 15 losses. Urias is 3-1 with a 1.88 ERA, amassing 29 strikeouts and only three walks in 24 innings at Triple-A. On the season, Clayton Kershaw has 64 strikeouts and three walks. He has struck out at least 10 without a walk in each of his past three starts. -- Diane Firstman ( @dianagram), Value Over Replacement Grit
17. Philadelphia Phillies
Record: 18-14
Week 4 ranking: No. 16
The lineup may look like deep sleepers on my fantasy league team, but they're producing just enough when it counts. The Phillies are 11-3 in one-run games, which can be a tough act to keep up, but all those strikeouts from the pitching staff will be fun to watch when it doesn't. - - Richard Bergstrom ( @rbergstromjr), Rockies Zingers
18. Tampa Bay Rays
Record: 15-14
Week 4 ranking: No. 20
Tampa Bay's rotation continues to carry the club, though a threadbare bullpen is looking more top-heavy than expected. Still, it means very little if the offense can't get going. An aggressive approach has led to as many fizzles as fireworks. -- Jason Hanselman, The Process Report
19. Detroit Tigers
Record: 14-16
Week 4 ranking: No. 11
The Tigers had a rough week, losing six straight games. The starting pitching was kind of ok, but the bullpen couldn't stop the bleeding. They now have a losing record at home and are third in the American League in runs allowed while just middling in the pack in for runs scored. -- Richard Bergstrom ( @rbergstromjr), Rockies Zingers
20. Colorado Rockies
Record: 15-16
Week 4 ranking: No. 23
The Rockies finished the franchise's 38th road trip of 10 or more games with a 6-4 record. It was just the fifth time they've finished over .500 on a road trip that long and the first time when facing only NL West opponents. Quality starting pitching led the way and fans hope it makes the trip back home. -- Richard Bergstrom ( @rbergstromjr), Rockies Zingers
21. Oakland Athletics
Record: 14-18
Week 4 ranking: No. 17
The starters have allowed four or more runs in eight of their past 11 games and pitched more than six innings just once. In a related note, the A's are 3-8 over their past 11 games. -- David Schoenfield ( @dschoenfield), SweetSpot
22. Los Angeles Angels
Record: 13-18
Week 4 ranking: No. 22
First came the devastating news that Garrett Richards will miss the rest of the season. Then came a sweep at home to the Rays, as the Angels scored just five runs in three games. Albert Pujols is on pace for 31 home runs. And 10 doubles. Even in his first year with the Angels, he hit 50 doubles with 80 total extra-base hits. Now he's home run and not much else, hitting .190 -- David Schoenfield ( @dschoenfield), SweetSpot
23. New York Yankees
Record: 11-18
Week 4 ranking: No. 24
The Yankees finished up their 2-7 road trip on Thursday night, dropping a 1-0 game in 10 innings with their best reliever sitting in the bullpen. They took the first two games of this weekend's series against the Red Sox, but their crawl back to .500 is going to be an even tougher task with A-Rod, CC and Jacoby Ellsbury all out with injuries. The return of Aroldis Chapman on Monday should provide some help. -- Brad Vietro (@BradVietro) , It's About the Money
24. Arizona Diamondbacks
Record: 15-18
Week 4 ranking: No. 18
Reeling from a seven-game losing skid, the D-backs got strong starts from Zack Greinke and Shelby Miller in Atlanta over the weekend, in which they each yielded just two earned runs in six innings. Brandon Drury has settled into a near full-time role while playing four positions. -- Ryan P. Morrison ( @ryanpmorrison), Inside the 'Zona
25. Houston Astros
Record: 12-20
Week 4 ranking: No. 25
Baby steps. They had their first winning week of the season and even two in a row against the Twins -- their first winning streak of the season. Jose Altuve continues to rake, hitting .325/.415/.659 and ranks second to Manny Machado in the American League in slugging percentage and OPS. -- David Schoenfield ( @dschoenfield), SweetSpot
26. San Diego Padres
Record: 13-19
Week 4 ranking: No. 29
Drew Pomeranz has faced off against Vince Velasquez, Madison Bumgarner, Clayton Kershaw and Noah Syndergaard in four of his five starts. In those four starts, Pomeranz is 1-3, but has yielded only six earned runs in 22 1/3 innings. From April 8 through May 5, Wil Myers hit .314 (33-for-105) with six doubles, six home runs, 16 RBIs and an .894 OPS. -- Diane Firstman ( @dianagram), Value Over Replacement Grit
27. Cincinnati Reds
Record: 13-19
Week 4 ranking: No. 26
While the Reds continue to struggle, shortstop Zack Cozart has started the season on fire again. He's hitting .344 with 10 doubles, and Cozart continues to play brilliant defense even after last year's brutal knee injury. -- Chad Dotson ( @dotsonc), Redleg Nation
28. Milwaukee Brewers
Record: 13-18
Week 3 ranking: No. 27
The Brewers offense has finally begun to wake up, as the week started with a series win over the Angels. Through May 7, Chris Carter has slugged 10 homers and has 22 RBIs, perhaps giving general manager David Stearns some poker chips to play with at the trade deadline. Aaron Hill also tied the franchise record for RBIs in a game (7) in a three-homer performance against Cincinnati on Saturday night. -- Gabe Stoltz ( @Stoltzy3), Disciples of Uecker
29. Minnesota Twins
Record: 8-23
Week 4 ranking: No. 28
We're only a week into May, but the Twins are somehow already 13.5 games out in the AL Central. Even during their run of four straight 90-loss seasons from 2011 through 2014, they were never this far behind this early. Owner Jim Pohlad accurately described the team's start as a "total system failure." -- Nick Nelson ( @NickNelsonMN), Twins Daily
30. Atlanta Braves
Record: 7-23
Week 3 ranking: No. 30
Nine members of the Braves' Opening Day roster are no longer in Atlanta; the team continues to shuttle players between the majors and minors, trying to find a formula that works. (Hint: they have not found it yet.) The lame duck season of Turner Field seems as if it will be remembered for the pitched battle fought with the Twins ... to see which team gets the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 draft. -- Martin Gandy ( @gondeee), Chop County
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