2015 MLB Power Rankings Week 5

This past week saw a highly touted rookie blast his first home run, a dominating pitcher fan a remarkable 16 hitters and a National simply go off. Lots to talk about this week so let's get right down to it.

*Note ~ As always all stats and records are through Sunday's games.

1. St. Louis Cardinals (22-9) ~ This weekend's series loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates was the first series the Cards have dropped all season. That's an impressive streak and part of the reason why the Cards remain the king of the rankings. (Last Week's Ranking 1)

2. Kansas City Royals (20-11) ~ The best bullpen in baseball got a little better this week as Luke Hochevar and Greg Holland returned from injury. Sure, Kelvin Herrera is serving a suspension but this club won't miss a beat with these arms coming in late in games. (LWR 3)

3. Los Angeles Dodgers (20-10) ~ Yasmani Grandal had himself a game Thursday by going 4-for-4 with two walks and driving in eight runs. He was the first catcher with eight RBI in one game since 2007, the first to do so while homering twice since 1999 and the first with two home runs, eight RBI and reaching base six times since 1949. Not too shabby. (LWR 4)

4. New York Yankees (20-12) ~ Michael Pineda, who missed most of the last two seasons with injury, is healthy and thriving in the Bronx. With his 16-strikeout gem Pineda picked up his fifth win of the season and is the clear cut ace of the Yankees staff. (LWR 6)

5. New York Mets (20-11) ~ Top pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard has been called up and is slated to make his MLB debut Tuesday in Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs. In five starts in Triple-A the youngster is 3-0 with a 1.82 ERA in hitter-friendly Las Vegas. (LWR 7)

6. Detroit Tigers (19-13) ~ Joakim Soria has settled in nicely at the back of Detroit's bullpen and the stability is something that has been sorely missed in past seasons. Soria has already locked down 11 saves while posting a miniscule 1.20 ERA and 0.60 WHIP. (LWR 2)

7. Houston Astros (20-12) ~ Home sweet home? Seems like just the opposite in Houston where the first place Astros are a pedestrian 8-8 at home while boasting the best road record in the bigs at 12-4. (LWR 5)

8. Washington Nationals (17-15) ~ Watch out baseballs: Bryce Harper is on a warpath. Over his past four games the young superstar has gone 10-for-16 with six home runs and 13 RBI while scoring eight times. Oh, and the Nats are over .500 for the first time in 2015. (LWR 13)

9. San Diego Padres (17-16) ~ On Saturday night new closer Craig Kimbrel blew a save which is rare for him. How rare? He had converted his previous 35 save chances in a row before Saturday night which was the longest streak in all of baseball. (LWR 9)

10. Tampa Bay Rays (17-15) ~ All indications are that Drew Smyly will need season-ending surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder. Couple that with Alex Cobb needing Tommy John surgery and the Rays rotation has taken a huge hit that it may not be able to overcome this year. Ouch and double ouch. (LWR 11)

11. Pittsburgh Pirates (15-16) ~ Is Andrew McCutchen ready to snap out of his early-season funk? He notched his fourth extra base hit in his past four games after having only one in his previous 14 contests. Pittsburgh needs him to heat up if they have any hopes of making it deep into the playoffs. (LWR 10)

12. Chicago Cubs (15-15) ~ It took 20 games but rookie Kris Bryant finally slugged his first career home run. How did the Cubs treat him? With the empty dugout. Of course. (LWR 8)

13. Miami Marlins (15-17) ~ Batting average may not be as revered as it once was in this day of analytics but it isn't worthless. Neither is Dee Gordon's .439 average that comes with a current 13-game hitting streak which is the longest in baseball this year. (LWR 15)

14. Minnesota Twins (18-14) ~ Maybe I held them back a bit last week but I didn't believe. Maybe I still don't believe. Whether I do or not doesn't matter as the Twins have a winning record and are relevant in the American League Central for the first time in a few years. (LWR 23)

15. Toronto Blue Jays (16-16) ~ Where oh where have R.A. Dickey's strikeouts gone? He is currently averaging a mere four K's per nine innings which would be by far his lowest average since he became a regular starter in 2010. (LWR 18)

16. Los Angeles Angels (15-17) ~ After blowing two consecutive save opportunities Huston Street shut the door on an Angels' victory Sunday night. The elite, but often overlooked, Street was not in danger of losing his job but a third straight blown save might have forced manager Mike Scioscia to make a change even if just for the short-term. (LWR 17)

17. Baltimore Orioles (13-160 ~ The Birds have to be glad to be out of the Big Apple after a 1-5 week against the Mets and Yankees. (LWR 12)

18. Cincinnati Reds (15-16) ~ Once again veteran reliever Kevin Gregg is out of a job. Gregg was released by the Reds today after allowing 12 earned runs in just 10 2/3 innings. (LWR 21)

19. San Francisco Giants (16-16) ~ Help is on the way for the defending champs. Outfielder Hunter Pence is beginning a rehab assignment in Triple-A and could be back with the big club in a week. (LWR 22)

20. Seattle Mariners (14-17) ~ King Felix notched his 2,000th career strikeout in his last start making him the fourth-youngest player to reach that plateau. I have a feeling there's a lot more that will come from that powerful right arm. (LWR 24)

21. Oakland A's (12-21) ~ Jarrod Parker, who was rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, is out indefinitely after breaking a bone in his elbow during a start. That can't feel good. *shudders* (LWR 14)

22. Boston Red Sox (14-17) ~ We've already seen the first manager fired and now we can add the first pitching coach to the list. Juan Nieves was fired last week amid the Sox rotation's struggles. (LWR 16)

23. Atlanta Braves (14-17) ~ The Braves put together a little two-game win streak last week which doesn't seem like much but it was the first time since starting the season 5-0 that the Braves won back-to-back games. Yikes. (LWR 19)

24. Arizona Diamondbacks (14-16) ~ Sunday night saw Daniel Hudson make his first start in the bigs in nearly three years. After being injury-riddled for that time last night had to feel a little extra special for Hudson. (LWR 25)

25. Texas Rangers (13-18) ~ Josh Hamilton has begun his rehab in Triple-A and could rejoin the big league club shortly. If he can resemble the player he used to be in his days in a Texas uniform the club will have found themselves quite the bargain. (LWR 28)

26. Chicago White Sox (12-16) ~ The road woes are strong here my friends. The White Sox are an MLB-worst 2-11 away from home. While that should be unsustainable in the long run there is no doubting the Sox have been a huge disappointment thus far this season. (LWR 27)

27. Cleveland Indians (11-19) ~ Danny Salazar may have given up a leadoff home run. Danny Salazar may have then retired the next 21 batters he faced while tying a career-high with 11 strikeouts. (LWR 26)

28. Milwaukee Brewers (11-21) ~ Play-by-play man Bob Uecker was locked in his booth last week due to a faulty doorknob. I wonder what the great Harry Doyle would have done in such a situation. (LWR 30)

29. Philadelphia Phillies (11-21) ~ For the first time in three weeks I am making my rankings without watching the Phils beat up on my Braves. I'll take that as a win. (LWR 29)

30. Colorado Rockies (11-17) ~ Nine losses in a row for the Rockies. One has to wonder just how much leash manager Walt Weiss has left. (LWR 20)

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