2015 MLB Power Rankings Week 8

This week I'd like to start off on a somber note. This isn't breaking news but it is the first I've heard of it. Jerry Dior passed away last month at the age of 82. Who is Jerry Dior you may be asking? Well, he is the man behind the logo that has been a staple of Major League Baseball since 1969. Dior created the silhouette that you see accompanying my Power Rankings every week. It still looks just as perfect today as it did back then. At least I assume it looked that good back then. I wasn't quite around yet. So please, take a moment and remember Mr. Dior.

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

1. St. Louis Cardinals (33-17) ~ Young pitcher Carlos Martinez has helped the Cards reclaim the top spot. Over his last two starts Martinez has given up six hits and five walks while amassing 16 strikeouts in 14 scoreless innings. (Last Week's Ranking 3)

2. Houston Astros (31-20) ~ Minute Maid Park dealt with some flooding over the weekend due to the torrential storms that have hit the Houston area. Even Mother Nature can't sink the Astros who are off to the best 50-game start in franchise history. (LWR 4)

3. Los Angeles Dodgers (29-20) ~ For the second time in three games at least one Dodger was ejected for arguing balls and strikes with the home plate umpire. Justin Turner joined A.J. Ellis and manager Don Mattingly as Dodgers to be tossed during their latest series. (LWR 5)

4. Kansas City Royals (29-19) ~ Alex Rios is back from the disabled list. Paulo Orlando has been filling in since mid-April but that hasn't stopped Rios from getting a lot of love in the fan voting for the All-Star game. (LWR 1)

5. Washington Nationals (28-22) ~ Stephen Strasburg has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with neck discomfort. That might be a blessing in disguise for the Nats as Strasburg has not looked like himself so far this season. His 6.55 ERA through 10 starts is the second highest in baseball with a minimum of 40 innings pitched. (LWR 2)

6. San Francisco Giants (30-22) ~ For the first time all season the Giants lost a game when taking a lead into the 9th inning. They were 25-0 in that situation prior to blowing a lead to the Atlanta Braves last night. (LWR 9)

7. Minnesota Twins (30-19) ~ The Minnesota Twins have the best record in the American League. Let me repeat that because it bears repeating. The Minnesota Twins have the best record in the American League. (LWR 10)

8. Chicago Cubs (26-22) ~ Rumor on the street says the Cubs are interested in acquiring Ben Zobrist from Oakland. I believe he might be familiar with Chicago's skipper. (LWR 8)

9. Detroit Tigers (28-24) ~ Justin Verlander has begun his Triple-A rehab stint and has deemed himself ready to rejoin the big league rotation. Expect him to toe the rubber in Detroit again in the next week. (LWR 6)

10. Pittsburgh Pirates (26-24) ~ The Pirates 3.04 team ERA is good for second in all of baseball and with Andrew McCutchen starting to look like his old MVP-self the Pirates could be poised to take off. (LWR 12)

11. Tampa Bay Rays (26-25) ~ For the second time this season the Rays have released relief pitcher Grant Balfour. For the second time this year Balfour will try to continue his Major League career though it appears it will have to be somewhere other than Tampa. (LWR 7)

12. New York Mets (28-23) ~ A Mets pitcher leads the National League in wins. A Mets pitcher not named Harvey. A Mets pitcher not named deGrom. A Mets pitcher named Bartolo Colon. This is why baseball is great. (LWR 11)

13. Los Angeles Angels (27-24) ~ A four game sweep over the Tigers just adds more to their dominance in the series of late. The Angels have won 17 of their last 20 against Detroit. Too bad they don't play them more often. (LWR 13)

14. New York Yankees (26-25) ~ Alex Rodriguez is the new career leader in RBI for the American League. Last week he broke Lou Gehrig's record of 1,993. He still has an outside shot of becoming baseball's all-time leader if he can stay healthy and productive for a few more years. (LWR 14)

15. San Diego Padres (25-27) ~ Derek Norris became the first player since 1900 to strike out four times in one game and also hit a walk-off grand slam. Talk about the highs and the lows all bottled into one game. (LWR 16)

16. Baltimore Orioles (23-26) ~ Matt Wieters is expected to be activated off the disabled list on Friday. He has been out for 13 months while recovering from Tommy John surgery. (LWR 15)

17. Seattle Mariners (24-26) ~ King Felix has accounted for 1/3 of Seattle's wins so far this season. He is on the mound tonight and may even up that percentage. The M's need someone else to step up after a disappointing first two months. (LWR 17)

18. Texas Rangers (26-25) ~ Prince Fielder hit a foul ball into the stands. Cheese went everywhere. Yes. I said cheese. (LWR 21)

19. Atlanta Braves (25-25) ~ A trade with the Dodgers brought Juan Uribe back to Atlanta which could give the Braves the best infield defense in the bigs. (LWR 18)

20. Toronto Blue Jays (23-29) ~ Toronto has given Phil Coke a minor-league deal which just goes to prove that if you are lefthanded and can pitch there will always be a job for you in baseball. (LWR 20)

21. Cleveland Indians (24-26) ~ Once again it's Corey Kluber's world and we're all just living in it. Over his last four starts Kluber is 3-0 with a whopping 50 strikeouts against just two walks in 32 innings. That is sick nasty. (LWR 23)

22. Cincinnati Reds (22-27) ~ The Reds were on an eight-game losing streak and then swept the Nationals. I'm not a math major but I'm not sure how that adds up. (LWR 24)

23. Chicago White Sox (23-26) ~ Jose Abreu has been dealing with a finger injury for two weeks but nothing is broken. Just swollen. Sox fans can exhale. (LWR 25)

24. Boston Red Sox (22-29) ~ David Ortiz was given two days off to try to find his swing. The slugger has been struggling all season to the tune of .224/.309/.382 which are far and away what Sox fans have come to expect from their DH. (LWR 19)

25. Arizona Diamondbacks (23-26) ~ Tuffy Gosewich has a torn ACL which prompted the D'Backs to call up Jarrod Saltalamacchia from Triple-A. If he can return to form he will provide a significant offense boost from the catcher position. (LWR 22)

26. Oakland A's (20-33) ~ Scott Kazmir's MRI showed no structural damage in his shoulder which is a good sign for the A's who could try and trade the lefty if their poor season continues. (LWR 27)

27. Colorado Rockies (22-26) ~ Rockies outfield prospect David Dahl will have surgery to remove his spleen after it was lacerated during an outfield collision. Best wishes to a speedy recovery for the kid. (LWR 28)

28. Miami Marlins (20-31) ~ An agent for one of the Marlins said that every player on the club is upset about the hire of Dan Jennings as manager. They are also upset about their new jet. Just like Wonder Woman's it is invisible. (LWR 26)

29. Philadelphia Phillies (19-33) ~ The more the Phillies lose the easier it should be for me to get tickets later this summer. Keep it up. (LWR 29)

30. Milwaukee Brewers (17-34) ~ Catcher Jonathan Lucroy is back from the disabled list after missing the last five weeks with a broken toe. Milwaukee will need much more than him to save this lost season. (LWR 30)

Questions? Comments? Feel free to leave feedback. I will try and respond as quickly as possible. Want to be like Jose Bautista and follow me on Twitter? @therichwhiteguy