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Where MLB FanHouse's editors, writers and bloggers team up to break down the who's who and the what's what in the baseball world.
Do you think anyone wants a piece of the Los Angeles Angels right now? They went through a more tumultuous offseason and early season than we've seen in recent memory, between the tragic passing of Nick Adenhart, the decimated-by-injuries starting rotation, the free agency losses of K-Rod and Mark Teixeira and the drastic decline of Vladimir Guerrero. Then they had Torii Hunter fall injured in the middle of a possible MVP campaign. But now, the Angels are rolling.
On June 11, they found themselves right back where they started: .500. Since then? They are 34-12 -- a stretch in which they've dismantled opponents by a total tally of 324-226.
- 1. Angels | Record: 63-41 | Previous Week: 4
Second baseman Howie Kendrick clearly got the message when he got a surprise demotion to Triple-A in June. Since returning, Kendrick has hit .388. The Angels, by the way, won 16 of the 19 games he played after his return. - Jeff Fletcher - 2. Dodgers| Record: 66-41 | Previous Week: 3
After they beat the Braves on Sunday, Atlanta catcher Brian McCann was impressed: "They're better than a really good team. Their lineup 1-8 is probably the best you're going to find." - Fletcher - 3. Yankees| Record: 64-42 | Previous Week: 1
They got to watch from first place as the national media fawned all over the Red Sox deadline deals. Why didn't the Yankees make any significant ones? Well, probably because they have pretty much everything they need in-house. They have now already won two straight since uncharacteristically dropping three in a row to the White Sox. - Snyder - 4. Phillies | Record: 59-45 | Previous Week: 2
Ruben Amaro Jr. was mocked this offseason for the deal he gave Raul Ibanez. Not only has Ibanez raked, but he pulled off the Cliff Lee heist, acquiring a pitcher nearly as good as Halladay at a fraction of the price. The dividends have been instant. Lee pitched a complete game in his Phillies debut -- his third in his last four starts. - Andrew Johnson - 5. Red Sox | Record: 62-43 | Previous Week: 7
Wait, what? How do I have them ranked fifth and not first? I thought we were all supposed to hand them the hardware after the trade deadline? Obviously they are a legitimate threat to win it all, but let's settle down a bit. Victor Martinez isn't Babe Ruth and the Sox still trail the Yanks in the AL East -- and the Rays aren't going away, either. Please don't misconstrue my comments into something they aren't. They are still a top-five team. - Snyder - 6. Cardinals | Record: 59-50 | Previous Week: 8
Where to start with this team right now? Matt Holliday's .488 batting average since joining the team? Albert Pujols hitting his NL-record fifth grand slam of the season on Tuesday night? Ryan Ludwick's Player of the Month Award for July? Chris Carpenter leading the NL in ERA? This is a very good squad that is hitting their stride. - Pat Lackey - 7. Cubs | Record: 57-48 | Previous Week: 5
Lots of things are going right for the Cubs, but I won't be confident enough to rank my admitted favorite team above the Cardinals until the bullpen quits blowing close games and making huge leads shrink. If the starting pitching can stay healthy and the offense can continue to hit like they have for the past month or so, the 'pen will make or breaks a third straight playoff berth. - Snyder - 8. Rays | Record: 59-48 | Previous Week: 10
A bit similar to the Cubs, it seems like every time the Rays start getting hot, something comes up. They lost three of four, and have since won four of five. Getting Wednesday night against the Red Sox would be big, but they really need to be consistent. Getting Scott Kazmir and Pat Burrell going would be a start. - Snyder - 9. Rockies | Record: 59-47 | Previous Week: 11
Who would have known the same personnel would play so much better under Jim Tracy than Clint Hurdle? Since firing Hurdle, the Rox have gone 41-19 (which would prorate to pace of 111 wins in a 162-game regular season) and would make the playoffs if the season ended today. - Snyder - 10. Rangers | Record: 59-46 | Previous Week: 6
It's been a great season for the young Rangers to build upon. Unless they get scorching hot sometime in the next month, it looks like that's all it's going to be. They aren't playing poorly, but have still fallen 4 1/2 games behind the superior Angels and trail the Red Sox by three in the wild-card race. - Snyder - 11. Giants | Record: 59-48 | Previous Week: 13
They haven't won a road series against a team with a winning record since taking two of three in Los Angeles May 8-10. The only other road series they've won since then have been against Oakland, Washington and Arizona -- three of the worst teams in baseball. - Fletcher - 12. White Sox | Record: 55-52 | Previous Week: 12
Chicago shocked the world when they got Jake Peavy minutes before the deadline, and it seems to have lit a fuse in the team. They've won four of their last five games against the Yankees and Angels, and Gordon Beckham has been better than advertised. - Tom Fornelli - 13. Tigers | Record: 55-50 | Previous Week: 9
The Jarrod Washburn trade was just the type of move this team needed -- despite his rough debut outing -- though they could have used another bat as well. Still, pitching is what's going to win the AL Central and they have the best rotation in the division. Well, until Peavy is healthy. - Fornelli - 14. Marlins | Record: 55-51 | Previous Week: 16
Is everyone sleeping on the Nick Johnson acquisition? The injury-prone first baseman cost virtually nothing in terms of prospects, is an above-average hitter at his position and has the added benefit of nudging the woeful Emilio Bonifacio out of the lineup. Florida isn't going away in the wild-card race. - Johnson - 15. Twins | Record: 53-53 | Previous Week: 19
They went out and filled a black hole in their middle infield and appeased their stars by landing Orlando Cabrera, but is he enough? We'll find out when they play the Tigers this weekend sandwiched between a schedule chock full of Indians and Royals. - Fornelli - 16. Blue Jays | Record: 51-55 | Previous Week: 18
Either the Blue Jays think they can contend with Roy Halladay anchoring a stellar rotation (with Shaun Marcum and Dustin McGowan back healthy) in 2010 or the Jays think they'll get more in a trade at a later time. Regardless, it's awfully tough to sit here and blame a team for holding on to one of the best pitchers in baseball with over a year left on his deal. - Snyder - 17. Mariners | Record: 55-51 | Previous Week: 15
David Aardsma seems to have finally found a home with his fifth team in five big-league seasons. Aardsma had zero saves in 128 games with a 5.29 ERA before this season. This year he has 25 saves and a 1.64 ERA. - Fletcher - 18. Braves | Record: 54-53 | Previous Week: 14
With a flurry of top prospects arriving in the big leagues in recent weeks, is it time to wonder whether Atlanta should give Jason Heyward a look? Certainly you don't want to rush him, but the Braves' outfield is lousy and Heyward is hitting an other-worldly .422 in 27 games at Double-A Mississippi. - Johnson - 19. Brewers | Record: 53-54 | Previous Week: 20
Their best hope to contend this year was to pick up Cliff Lee or Roy Halladay. They were unwilling to part with Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel, so that was out of the question. They didn't even get Jarrod Washburn, and so they settled for Claudio Vargas and probably a third-place finish in the NL Central. Really, that's probably fine. There's enough talent in Milwaukee for the team to contend again in 2010. - Lackey - 20. Astros | Record: 53-54 | Previous Week: 17
With five losses in seven games against the Cubs and Cardinals last week, the Astros went from surprise contenders in the NL Central to a .500 club that's watching two better teams pull away from them. That's not unexpected, but what was unexpected was the trade deadline passing without Ed Wade acquiring a veteran reliever or starter to try and make a run at a division title his team has no realistic shot at. - Lackey - 21. Orioles | Record: 45-61 | Previous Week: 22
Massive strides are being made with the young talent on a seemingly daily basis. The latest was a solid major league debut from 22-year-old phenom Brian Matusz. The future is bright, but will they suffer the same fate as the Blue Jays -- merely being in the wrong dividision? - Snyder - 22. Mets | Record: 50-56 | Previous Week: 23
Should they have been sellers at the deadline given the absurd injury ordeal the team is dealing with? The easy answer is yes, but at second glance it doesn't appear that the Mets would have had a lot of parts to give. That lack of depth is what has them in this mess in the first place. - Johnson - 23. Diamondbacks | Record: 48-59 | Previous Week: 24
What looked to be a franchise with one of the brightest futures in baseball just a year and two months ago had fallen apart earlier this season. They've gone 16-10 since July 4, but it's a day late, a buck short for the Snakes. Maybe they can still salvage the strong, young foundation and look to contending in 2010. - Snyder - 24. A's | Record: 46-60 | Previous Week: 27
Bobby Crosby was genuinely shocked that the A's didn't give him his old shortstop job after they traded Orlando Cabrera. Sometimes the players are the last ones to see the writing on the wall. - Fletcher - 25. Indians | Record: 44-62 | Previous Week: 25
The only person the Indians didn't trade in the last few weeks is the guy who bangs the drum at Progressive Field all the time. Unfortunately he's no longer pounding the drum, but his own face instead, as are a lot of Indians fans right now. There's always 2011. - Fornelli
- 26. Pirates | Record: 45-61 | Previous Week: 26
As hard as it is for Pirate fans to accept it, gutting the current roster to restock the farm system was the right move for an organization going nowhere for the 17th straight season. The rest of this season will be tough to watch if it goes anything like Yusmiero Petit's near no-hitter against them on Tuesday, but for the first time in a while, there's light at the end of the tunnel for the Pirates, even if its still two or three years away. - Lackey - 27. Royals | Record: 41-65 | Previous Week: 28
They designated Sidney Ponson for assignment this week, so there should be a lot more food to go around for everybody in the clubhouse spread. Will a better-fed team lead to more wins? Probably not. They just can't seem to get anything positive going. - Fornelli - 28. Nationals | Record: 35-72 | Previous Week: 30
A furious six-run eighth inning Tuesday night got lowly Washington its first win over the Marlins this season. It only took 10 tries. More than any other team, the Nationals have been victimized by Florida lately. The Fish are 23-4 since the start of last season against the Nats. - Johnson - 29. Padres | Record: 44-64 | Previous Week: 29
When the Padres listened to trade offers for Adrian Gonzalez at the deadline, they apparently got some pretty interesting offers. The guess here is that they'll hold a full-scale auction for him in the offseason, looking for a Teixeira-like haul. - Fletcher - 30. Reds | Record: 45-61| Previous Week: 21
The only reason that Walt Jocketty could've wanted to acquire Scott Rolen was to attempt to contend in 2010. That was a pipe dream before the news that Edinson Volquez would be lost for most of next season. What will Jocketty and the Reds do now?- Lackey [Snyder's note: I don't care about the record for the entire season when doing this particular ranking. The Reds have lost 14 of their last 15. They are 6-23 since our Independence Day and 19-41 since May 27. No one is presently worse.]
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