July Update: Top Five Teams of 2010
Posted by homerunheyer on July 26th, 2010
Three teams remain in the top five list from early in June. The two newcomers look like they are seriously making a run for the post-season. If these teams remain in the top five, the playoffs will look a lot different this year then the previous few years. Only one team on this list was in the playoffs last year. Things can change by the end of the season, but I think at least four out of the five on here are locks for the playoffs.
5. Atlanta Braves: In the beginning of June the Reds owned the number five spot, but now they are off the list. The Braves have moved in with a little help here and there from everyone on the team. There really isn’t one player on the Braves team that sticks out more than the other. Their hitting isn’t spectacular, but it also isn’t bad. Most of the players on the team are hitting in the .250 to .290 range with the exception of Omar Infante and Martin Prado who are both hitting over .300. The pitching is the same way, Derek Lowe and Tim Hudson are both leading the team in wins with 10. Then Tommy Hanson and Kris Medlen have eight and six wins respectively. The top four guys in their rotation are even in the fact that their win/loss disparity is no more than five. This means they are all pitching well, but not great. Out of the five teams on the list I think the Braves are the most likely to fall apart and not make the playoffs. I can see the Phillies having a big second half to take the division away from them. You never know though, the trade deadline is a few days away, if the Braves pick up a big power bat, it might be enough for them to win their division.
4. Texas Rangers: Back in June the Twins held the number four spot on the list. Now the Twins, who were thought to be one of the best teams going into this season have completely fell off the list and will even be lucky to make the post-season. The Rangers are finally making a serious run at the playoffs this season. For the last few seasons the Rangers always started off real well and then by the second half bottomed out. The reason for their failings has been their pitching the last few years. The Rangers were always known to have one of the best offenses in the league over the last 20 years, but their pitching has just been ok at best. This season the Rangers, with help from their President Nolan Ryan, are fixing their pitching problems. Ryan must feel embarrassed by the way the Rangers pitching staff performed over the years. Ryan was maybe the best pitcher of all time and now he can’t show the Rangers staff how it’s done? Ryan was tired of it, this year he added extra emphasis to make the pitching better and it has worked. C.J. Wilson is having the best season of his career with a 3.03 ERA. Colby Lewis hasn’t pitched since 2007 and was never known as a good pitcher, but now he has a 3.52 ERA. Tommy Hunter, who is in his second full season in the majors, is pitching lights out with a 2.31 ERA and an 8-0 record. Then of course, the addition of Cliff Lee, the much needed ace that the Rangers haven’t had since Kevin Milwood dominated in his prime.
Along with their always dominate offense led by, Josh Hamilton, Vladimir Guerrero, Ian Kinsler, and Nelson Cruz, the Rangers are a very dangerous team.
3. San Diego Padres: The Padres are the only team in the list to remain in the same exact spot since the beginning of June. The Surprising Padres have remained at the top of their division. Everyone expected them to fall apart by now, but they are still up there with the best winning percentage in the National League. The Dodgers were expected to run away with the NL West, but they have been up and down all year and are currently in third place behind another surprising team, the Giants and the Padres. The NL West is by far the toughest division in the National League. The top four teams all have a win percentage of over .500. The Padres continue to hold them off, but how? The answer is pitching. The Padres have the lowest team ERA in baseball with a 2.82 ERA. With pitching like that, the Padres just have to score around three runs a game to win. If it wasn’t for the Padres dominate pitching, the Padres would probably be one of the worst teams in baseball because not one of their everyday hitters is hitting over .300. The Padres need to make a move for one or more big bats to make them a more threatening team. As of now, if the team remains the same, I do not see them making it to the World Series and if they miraculously do somehow a team like the Yankees or Rays would probably sweep them.
2. Tampa Bay Rays: The Rays fell down one spot to number two since the beginning of June. Number two is nothing to be ashamed of because they still have the second best record in baseball. The Rays are doing it all this year, dominating pitching performances, great hitting and great speed on the bases all add up to where they are now. Back in June they were the best team in baseball and if it wasn’t for one team stepping up their game, the Rays would still be there. The main reason the Rays are doing so well this season is because of their pitching. Over the Years the Rays were known to have the worst pitching in the American League and that was a big reason for their failures. Now they have a solid big three in their rotation and they are all young, which means the Rays may be good for years to come. Their rotation is led by Cy Young candidate David Price who has a record of 13-5 and a 2.90 ERA. Jeff Neimann is a solid number two starter with a 2.95 ERA and a 8-3 record. Then Matt Garza rounds them off with a little bit of a high ERA of 4.36, but he does have a 10-5 record. The rookie Wade Davis is also having a good year, but he has more losses than wins. This could be a case of bad luck since Davis’s ERA is actually lower than Garza’s with a 4.32 ERA. Once Davis develops more, the Rays rotation will be considered the best because of their youth and their stuff. I expect the Rays to compete in the playoffs. The wild card is most likely coming out of the AL East. With the Red Sox losing ground the Rays should have no problem at the wild card and maybe even the division.
1. New York Yankees: The Yankees are right where everyone expected them to be. Back in June the Yankees haven’t proved that they could beat the Rays which made them the second best team in baseball. Now the Yankees are number one because they have the best record in baseball and have proved that they can beat anyone. You would think that having the best record in baseball means that the Yankees have no weaknesses, but they do. It isn’t their hitting and it isn’t their starting rotation, which leaves us with the bullpen. The Yankees bullpen is in disarray. The Yankees can go out and look for another reliever, but I think they are going to trade for a starter and move Phil Hughes back into his dominating role as setup man. Hughes is having a phenomenal year in the rotation with a 4.04 ERA and a 12-3 record, but I think the Yankees want to save his arm from falling off and limit his innings so he is fresh for the post-season. Expect the Yankees to make a big move either way in the next few days for a starter or reliever. Otherwise the Yankees are solid in all other aspects of the game. Robinson Cano and Nick Swisher led the team in hitting while Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira were finding their swing. Now everyone is hitting on all cylinders and the Yankees have been blowing out teams of late. Luckily they started hitting at just the right time because Andy Pettite will be out for a while with a groin pull and A.J. Burnett still hasn’t found his former self. Saying all of that the yankees still have the best record in baseball, I can’t imagine how they will be when everything is going right. The Yankees will be in the playoffs once again and they may have a tough time beating the Rays, it will come down to whoever is hotter at the time. If the Yankees make it to the World Series they should have no problem beating any National League team. (mlb.com)
by Eric Heyer at the Sports Fan Blog Network
