MLB Power Rankings: Week 5

MLB Power Rankings: 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.

What a zany week for a pair of pitchers with amazing stories: Zack Greinke is America's favorite story right now, somehow managing to be hotter than Twitter. (And if Oprah starts doing him too, I'm just quitting. And I mean everything.) Meanwhile, Rick Ankiel (you may hear word of this "podcast" we're doing about him, but that's because I'm shameless like that), a former star on the mound as well, nearly decapitates himself running into an outfield wall. And yet, life goes on. Just like our Power Rankings.

• 1. Dodgers | Previous Week: 2
  Remember that slump for Manny Ramirez? He hit .278 with no homers in his first 11 games. Over his next 14 games he hit .420 with six homers and a .524 on-base percentage. Manny, though, has been saying that Andre Ethier (.316-6-25 through Monday) is really the team's best player. - Jeff Fletcher
  
• 2. Blue Jays| Previous Week: 6
  Toronto has 16 games with 10-plus hits, most in the majors. But the Jays have yet to play the Yankees, Red Sox or Rays (that ends Tuesday when New York visits Toronto). - Ed Price
  
• 3. Cardinals| Previous Week: 3
  Rick Ankiel is bionic or something. (Ed. Note: Did I mention he's also the subject of this week's HausCast with Will Leitch!) He is a power pitcher turned power hitter who can play center field, and apparently he can hit a wall full speed and emerge without overly bad damage. What a physical specimen. The bullpen has settled in and Chris Carpenter's return is getting closer. This is a complete team. In the meantime, Adam Wainwright's control could become a concern (20 walks in 35 1/3 innings). - Matt Snyder
  
• 4. Red Sox | Previous Week: 1
  The last time they won their first five meetings with the Yankees was 1985, when Tim Wakefield was only 18. Jason Bay's hot streak helps offset Papi's cold one, which is so bad that he's being put in the PTI oddsmakers section for "hitting a home run." - EP
  
• 5. Mariners| Previous Week: 4
  Denny Stark lost his first big league game in five years on Tuesday. Actually, it was the first time he'd pitched in the majors in five years. Stark has had not one, but two Tommy John surgeries since then. Rumor has it that his next one's free. The fact that the Mariners had to turn to Stark indicates their pitching is getting banged up, but they're still holding their own. - JF
  
• 6. Royals | Previous Week: 15
  The Zack Greinke Mania Super Party Fiesta Bandwagon is in full effect right now; Greinke just pitched his second complete-game shutout of the season, he landed the Sports Illustrated cover and he even managed to make Fornelli not just optimistic, but enthused to the point of using "joy to watch" in a headline. Can you imagine how full this train would be if Alex Gordon could stay healthy or hit?
  
• 7. Marlins | Previous Week: 10
  Are the Fish for real? Josh Johnson and Chris Volstad certainly are. There's no question about Hanley Ramirez. But something ... something still kind of lurks out there; Lackey said it best when he pointed out (via email) that they just don't look "good on the field." Fortunately, no one in the NL East has been that great lately.
  
• 8. Phillies | Previous Week: 5
  All things considered -- the ridiculously bad starting pitching, Jimmy Rollins stinking up the joint -- this team is doing pretty well. They're a 1/2 game ahead of the Fish, and if Cole Hamels can regain anything other than Adam Eaton Form, they might actually do some damage; of course, he has to prove he's healthy first.
  
• 9. Yankees | Previous Week: 12
  New York is the first team ever to have three different players in the same season homer from both sides of the plate in a game: Melky Cabrera, Nick Swisher and Mark Teixeira. But they still need Alex Rodriguez back ASAP. - EP
  
• 10. Tigers | Previous Week: 6
  Hey-o! Rick Porcello pitched a gem on Tuesday, going an extremely strong (and efficient!) seven shutout innings against the Twins. Miguel Cabrera continues to straight mash, yet, he somehow has less home runs than both Curtis Granderson and Brandon Inge. Still, if this team stays in contention, Miggy has to at least be an early-season MVP candidate.
  
• 11. Cubs | Previous Week: 7
  The four-game winning streak helped to alleviate some of the concern about a 2-7 stretch prior to that. The upcoming schedule isn't especially tough (five against the Astros, six against the Padres, and three against the Pirates, all before May 27), so if the Cubs can get healthy while playing their best ball, they'll be grouped more with the Cardinals than the amoeba in the middle of the division. - MS
  
• 12. Rangers | Previous Week: 18
  Same old, same old. Kevin Millwood and Frank Francisco are pitching well, Ian Kinsler is mashing the ball and Josh Hamilton is dealing with injuries. His return will help, but not as much as Nolan Ryan stepping into the way-way-back machine and managing to throw 38 complete games this year. Don't bet on that happening.
  
• 13. Reds | Previous Week: 14
  Johnny Cueto is dealing, Aaron Harang is solid, and Edinson Volquez has put together back-to-back outstanding outings. The bullpen has been doing the job for the most part, too. The problem is the Reds rank near the bottom in most offensive categories. Maybe the seven runs against Florida Tuesday night will jump-start the bats. - MS
  
• 14. Twins | Previous Week: 19
  This is a team that's really underperforming on the mound right now: Scott Baker, Francisco Liriano and Kevin Slowey will all end up in a better spot than they're at right now. (At least that's what I keep telling myself anyway.) Justin Morneau remains quite awesome and Joe Mauer's return is certainly a boost.
  
• 15. Brewers | Previous Week: 25
  Though he's miscast as a leadoff hitter (low OBP, awful K/BB ratio), how about that power Rickie Weeks is flashing -- and in clutch situations, no less. Once J.J. Hardy totally settles in, and Tuesday night was a good start, this is one scary offense. They are pitching adequately enough to stick around in the race all summer. - MS
  
• 16. Giants | Previous Week: 21
  Ah, it's just like old times around around AT&T Park. The team is mediocre, but there's a Hall of Famer at the end of his career pushing for a milestone. Randy Johnson, who goes for win No. 298 Wednesday night in Colorado, actually sits at the same as locker Barry Bonds once occupied. "The hitting sure isn't rubbing off, is it?" Johnson quipped. - JF
  
• 17. Rays | Previous Week: 20
  Evan Longoria was franchise's first-ever Player of the Month award-winner for April, but the team as a whole is 5-2 vs. Red Sox and 7-14 against everyone else. Fortunately, they have an opportunity to make up ground on eight-game trip to New York, Boston and Baltimore. - EP
  
• 18. White Sox | Previous Week: 11
  I didn't think that Carlos Quentin could possibly live up to last year's expectations. Whoops. Of course, I was pretty sure Gavin Floyd couldn't either, and it looks like I was right about that, at least for the time being, considering, you know, Bartolo Colon has a lower ERA right now.
  
• 19. Angels | Previous Week: 23
  They sent Matt Palmer, a 30-year-old journeyman, to the mound against CC Sabathia in New York and walked away with a victory. If this team can hang around and win despite all that's gone wrong, there really is a higher power watching this team. Or Mike Scioscia's just a good manager. One of the two. - JF
  
• 20. Mets | Previous Week: 16
  Some semi-amusing irony: Carlos Beltran is playing like the best center fielder in the NL and yet, somehow this team continues to flounder. That's because their starting pitching is roughly equivalent to a stinkbomb outside of Johan Santana. Oliver Perez heading towards the bullpen is a pretty good example of that.
  
• 21. Pirates | Previous Week: 9
  When Matt Capps can't hold a lead, the honeymoon is most certainly over. As they have had to do for far too long, the Pirates will be looking toward the future by the end of May. There's not enough here to compete in a weak division, let alone one with the Cardinals, Cubs, Brewers and Reds all looking pretty solid. - MS
  
• 22. Diamondbacks | Previous Week: 24
  Perhaps the entire world needs to scrutinize Justin Upton some more: he's taken nothing but a browbeating from nearly every media member remotely near the Diamondbacks over the past few weeks, and then he finally decided to flash his talent. Of course, Brandon Webb and Stephen Drew are still on the DL, so yeah, there's still a ways to go.
  
• 23. Braves | Previous Week: 13
  The Braves probably aren't this bad, but, I mean, come on -- the bullpen's been coughing up wins like Sergio Garcia coughs up majors (what? you would have preferred a Lindsay Lohan joke?) and Jordan Schafer has, unsurprisingly, cooled off. Also, no one on the team has more than three home runs, which is reasonably comical.
  
• 24. Padres | Previous Week: 17
  Adrian Gonzalez is the best player that most of the country still doesn't know about. He's Teixeira three years ago: a power-hitting Gold-Glove-caliber first baseman playing in anonymity for a losing team. Admit it: You didn't know Gonzalez was second in the NL with nine homers, did you? Playing in Petco, too. Wait till the Red Sox get him in 2012. - JF
  
• 25. Indians | Previous Week: 27
  What's that old saying? "A team with Carl Pavano in it's starting rotation is probably going to suck?" Yes, that is it. Cliff Lee's appears to be turning the corner, but that might be because his ERA over his past three games is a lot less scary than the 26 hits he's allowed in 21 innings. At least Grady Sizemore and Victor Martinez are hitting the ball.
  
• 26. Orioles | Previous Week: 22
  Nick Markakis is 10-for-24 (.417) in the first inning of games, but he could use some starting pitchers who can make a lead stand up. Monday's win at Tampa Bay is Baltimore's only one in a road division game. - EP
  
• 27. Rockies | Previous Week: 29
  The hitting has been a bit abysmal, even if Dexter Fowler (five stolen bases!) is the truth; . The pitching, of course, has been typically awful, although Jason Marquis is an extreme outlier. Or, what we who play fantasy sports call "a tremendous sell high."
  
• 28. Athletics | Previous Week: 26
  Bob Geren had a meeting with the starters to explain to them that they needed to start getting deeper into games. Gee, how come he didn't have a meeting with Matt Holliday and Jason Giambi explaining that they needed to start hitting more home runs. The A's team ERA is in the upper part of the AL, but they seem on the verge of taking a dive if the starters continue to slump and the overworked bullpen hits a skid. - JF
  
• 29. Astros | Previous Week: 28
  They're in last place, Roy Oswalt left a start with an injury, Big Puma is hovering around the Mendoza line, Miguel Tejada has less power than Michael Bourn, their closer is hurt. On the bright side, Wandy Rodriguez has put together a solid early season (2.19 ERA in six starts). - MS
  
• 30. Nationals | Previous Week: 30
  In good news, the Nats scored a very impressive 10 runs on Tuesday. In bad news, that game was suspended. Of course it was. Other good news: the Ryan Zimmerman and Jordan Zimmermann (who need a collective nickname) both look quite good.