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Our top-five teams all lost yesterday, but that won't temper my excitement for a few big weekend series coming up. The Baltimore Orioles will host the Philadelphia Phillies while the Kansas City Royals will try to prove they belong with the upper echelon of teams when they travel to Los Angeles to take on the Dodgers.
Remember, when I do my rankings, I factor in past performance, the current level of performance, overall talent, injuries, and schedules -- as many factors as possible.
Keep reading to find out where your favorite team ranks and which teams moved up and down the rankings the most this week. Let's get into it already, here are my Week 12 MLB Power Rankings!
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The Bottom Dwellers
30. Chicago White Sox (18-52)
Last Week's Ranking (30)
Chicago continues to sink deeper into the basement as it is 5.5 games behind Miami with a massive -149 run differential. Garrett Crochet is freaking awesome, however, and gives it a chance to win at least once a week (and has been a profitable bet for strikeout props all season).
Garrett Crochet's 13 Strikeouts. pic.twitter.com/pl14U72C1D
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 14, 2024
29. Miami Marlins (23-45)
Last Week's Ranking (29)
How soon until we Max Meyer? After recovering from Tommy John surgery, the former top draft pick is pitching well in the minors.
Players have anonymously voted Miami OF Jazz Chisholm as the most overrated player in the league.
2nd place was Anthony Rendon. pic.twitter.com/JR4JY1FKsc
— SleeperMLB (@SleeperMLB) June 10, 2024
Also interesting that CF Jazz Chisholm Jr. was voted the most overrated player by fellow major leaguers this week. Not Jazz, c'mon, really?
28. Colorado Rockies (24-44)
Last Week's Ranking (28)
The Rockies face off against my battlin' Buccos this weekend at Coors Field. They won't have to face Paul Skenes or Mitch Keller, but they may have to face Jared Jones, who dominated them in Pittsburgh (I was at that game!).
27. Oakland Athletics (26-45)
Last Week's Ranking (27)
Oakland is just 2-8 over its last 10 games and has dropped six straight. If you're looking for a bright spot, there hasn't been one lately. Its closer, Mason Miller, is a stud but isn't being utilized very often as the team can't hold a lead long enough to get to him in the ninth inning.
26. Los Angeles Angels (26-42)
Last Week's Ranking (26)
What is there to say about the Angels? Not much has changed this week. This time last year, this team had Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout and now it has neither -- yet, Anthony Rendon keeps cashing those checks!
25. New York Mets (30-37)
Last Week's Ranking (24)
Man, do I hate the Mets. Maybe almost as much as Mets fans do. They managed to pull out a win last night but were shut down for the majority of the game by Roddery Munoz and his 5+ ERA. I refuse to trust them in DFS anymore and shame on me for doing so in the first place.
24. Washington Nationals (32-36)
Last Week's Ranking (25)
The Nats move ahead of the Mets this week as they are two games up on them in the win column. The once mighty NL East now has three teams in the basement tier of the rankings.
At Least We're Not Those Guys
24. Toronto Blue Jays (33-35)
Last Week's Ranking (23)
Toronto is still hanging around the .500 mark and got a spark in the lineup this week as Spencer Horwitz came up from Triple-A and immediately made an impact as its new leadoff hitter.
One thing about Spencer Horwitz pic.twitter.com/9nuYM9c7cA
— Paul Ross (@RealPaulRoss) June 8, 2024
Horwitz is off to a great start, hitting .389 in his first five games as a starter. This is a guy who had a .450 OBP at Triple-A last year and this season before being called up.
22. Pittsburgh Pirates (32-36)
Last Week's Ranking (22)
Any time I am feeling blue about the Bucs, I just watch 5-10 minutes of Paul Skenes' highlights and I instantly feel better.
I don’t remember the last time I’ve seen anything like this.
We have our guy, Pittsburgh. #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/Hjljv4Juno
— SkenesMuse (@PaulSkenesMuse) June 12, 2024
21. Houston Astros (31-38)
Last Week's Ranking (19)
The good news is that Houston has cracked positive run differential territory at +5, but the bad news is that all the runs it is scoring aren't adding up to more wins in the short-term. There is still some optimism here as the Astros are just seven games under .500, but it's an uphill battle to playoff contention.
20. Arizona Diamondbacks (33-36)
Last Week's Ranking (20)
The Snakes are slowly starting to trend up and could be getting help in the rotation as Merrill Kelly and Zac Gallen are supposed to return soon. Remember, this is a team that looked like a top-five club earlier in the season and made it to the World Series last year. It is not dead yet by any means.
19. Tampa Bay Rays (33-36)
Last Week's Ranking (16)
I finally had to bump the Rays down quite a bit. The -62 run differential is hard to ignore and means they are probably a lot closer to Oakland in terms of their expected outcomes than Minnesota or Seattle. Perhaps some pitching help comes and propels this team forward (Shane Baz debut, Jeffrey Springs return), but the offense is gross, so don't hold your breath.
18. St. Louis Cardinals (33-34)
Last Week's Ranking (21)
I have the Cardinals ahead of the rest of these 33-win teams at the moment based on some improved offense and the right arms of Sonny Gray and Kyle Gibson. I have zero confidence that they can keep it up, but they are playing some decent baseball right now.
17. San Francisco Giants (34-35)
Last Week's Ranking (18)
The Giants are closing in on .500 but still own a -27 run differential and are 8-18 against teams with winning records. Robbie Ray is nearing a return, which could really help the rotation. Somehow, this team feels like it will be scrappy and around .500 all season despite its flaws.
So...Are They Good?
16. Cincinnati Reds (33-35)
Last Week's Ranking (17)
Here come the Reds...well, kind of. They're up to +15 in run differential as we've seen signs of life from this offense and the good news is that they get Noelvi Marte back here in a few weeks from his 80-game suspension.
The "Candy Man" - Jeimer Candelario has been awesome of late.
Two-homer day for Jeimer Candelario and the Reds take the lead! pic.twitter.com/NADSpbjfjO
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 13, 2024
15. Chicago Cubs (33-36)
Last Week's Ranking (11)
Meanwhile, the Cubs are trending in the opposite direction and continue their free fall through the rankings. The offense has sputtered in a big way as they struggle to make contact against good pitching. Eventually, either the Cubs or Reds should give the Brewers a run for their money in the NL Central, but right now neither of them is all that close.
14. Texas Rangers (33-35)
Last Week's Ranking (15)
The Rangers have won two in a row and salvaged a .500 week in the process. Two games under .500 is still disappointing for the defending champs, who are dealing with a litany of injuries. Mad Max Scherzer is ramping up for his return, which could be a big boost for Texas.
13. Detroit Tigers (33-35)
Last Week's Ranking (14)
Detroit without Jack Flaherty in the rotation is not a good team, and we continue to see it slowly slide down the standings. Tarik Skubal, unfortunately, can only pitch once every five days. Reese Olson has his good days (and his bad) but Casey Mize is a disaster and Kenta Maeda might be done.
12. San Diego Padres (37-35)
Last Week's Ranking (13)
The Padres got to beat up on Oakland this week and bolstered their record above .500. Manny Machado is back in the lineup and Fernando Tatis Jr. is finally hitting like a top-five hitter in baseball and leading this offense.
11. Boston Red Sox (35-34)
Last Week's Ranking (12)
This team was one that I was higher on than most coming into the season and we are starting to see why lately. It can go toe-to-toe with most pitching staffs in the league and has a sneaky good offense when healthy. Jarren Duran is a hitting (and stealing) machine and David Hamilton is like having a second leadoff man hitting second. Masataka Yoshida is back from injury and now the Sox just need Triston Casas back, too. This team is..dare I say, dangerous!
Contenders, Maybe?
10. Minnesota Twins (37-32)
Last Week's Ranking (10)
The Twinkies are 4-6 over their last 10 games, but have started to get the bats going again -- which is the key to their success this season as their pitching is already quite solid. Royce Lewis is back in the lineup and making a HUGE difference with his power bat.
Royce Lewis, the new "Two true outcomes" player...
Home Run or Injured List#MNTwinspic.twitter.com/kV8Plbdw9W
— Eric Cross (@EricCross04) June 13, 2024
9. Atlanta Braves (36-30)
Last Week's Ranking (8)
Another week and another spot lower in the rankings for the Bravos. The numbers back it, they have dropped to just a +28 run differential and are 10-13 against teams over .500. That does not sound like an elite team. It's quite likely they will shake things up before the trade deadline, but right now this is a good (but not great) team both offensively and with its pitching staff.
8. Seattle Mariners (40-31)
Last Week's Ranking (9)
The Mariners had a nice run this week that was finally ended by Garrett Crochet's masterpiece last night. Ty France is out for a while, but that just means we get an extended look at rookie Tyler Locklear in his absence.
Tyler Locklear swats his first big league homer!
Power is the calling card for the @Mariners' No. 8 prospect, who gets a friendly roll off the LF wall. pic.twitter.com/xK0HrcdpOn
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 14, 2024
7. Milwaukee Brewers (40-28)
Last Week's Ranking (7)
The Brew Crew and Royals are pretty interchangeable here. I think I might be biased toward KC and against Milwaukee, but I acknowledge that Milwaukee has a damn solid team this year despite the lack of big names on its roster. I think the starting pitching, if anything, is where it needs to improve if it wants to be true contenders.
6. Kansas City Royals (40-30)
Last Week's Ranking (6)
K.C. has a chance to prove something this weekend in L.A. It has its ace, Cole Ragans, on the bump tonight. Let's see if it can make a statement and take two out of three from the mighty Dodgers.
Contenders, For Sure
5. Cleveland Guardians (43-23)
Last Week's Ranking (4)
Nothing new here, the Guardians are plugging right along and playing great baseball. They do have the worst run differential (+90) of the top-five teams despite having five fewer losses than the Dodgers. I have them as a clear fifth here as I am not sure if they are a true World Series contender or not, while the top four most certainly are.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers (42-28)
Last Week's Ranking (5)
The Dodgers have dropped two in a row, which is very unlike them. But there's no doubt that this team is among the best in the league and easily has one of the deepest rosters. Gavin Stone has been a solid addition to the back end of the rotation, while Walker Buehler is still trying to get sorted out.
3. Baltimore Orioles (45-23)
Last Week's Ranking (3)
Here come the O's! Baltimore hosts the Phillies this weekend in a battle between my third- and second-rated teams. Could this be a World Series preview? Absolutely -- both teams have incredible depth on both sides of the ball. As someone who lives about halfway between both cities, I would be excited to see that matchup in the postseason!
2. Philadelphia Phillies (46-22)
Last Week's Ranking (1)
The Phillies finally are dethroned this week. Nothing against Philly, as it is still 6-4 over its last 10 games, it's just that the Yankees have been unbelievable and unstoppable. I mentioned a Baltimore-Philly World Series, but what about a rematch of the 2009 World Series with the Phillies and Yankees?
1. New York Yankees (49-22)
Last Week's Ranking (2)
What the Yankees are doing this year is truly special. Their +127 run differential is 20 runs better than the next closest team and their 27-12 road record is actually better than their 22-10 home record. They are second only to Baltimore with 19 wins against teams over .500 as well. Everything points to this team being totally legit and we know it has Gerrit Cole waiting in the wings as well as an incredible young hitter down at Triple-A in Jasson Dominguez, too.
I'll see you next week for my newest batch of rankings -- feel free to let me know what I got right and wrong!
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