Pro-GM Power Rankings - Episode 1
May 11, 2017 1:06:18 GMT -5
Post by Buster Olney on May 11, 2017 1:06:18 GMT -5
Pro-GM Power Rankings
Episode: 1
Week: 6
Episode: 1
Week: 6
Welcome to the first episode of my power rankings. This will be a weekly deal where I rank all 30 Pro-GM teams against each other. You may have questions about who I am, what team I am, etc. All you need to know is I'm an anonymous owner who is not a commissioner.
Enjoy and please give me your feedback in the comments!1.
Chicago Cubs (5-0) Tough call between the Jays and Cubs. I'll give the edge to the Cubs because of record for now.
The Good: Michael Pineda has made this pitching staff damn near unstoppable.
The Bad: It's been a tough season so far for Rizzo. He'll need to figure it out for this team to continue their reign at the top.
2.
Toronto Blue Jays (4-0-1) Acquiring Kluber and Villar from the divisional rival Rays makes this team the strongest in the AL.
The Good: Harper has rebounded from a "down" 2016 and has been a beast so far in 2017 when healthy. Keuchel is also having a resurgent year and looks like the ace from two years ago.
The Bad: Is Kluber's bad start a sign of things to come, or just a bump in the road?
3.
Cincinnati Reds (5-0) Aaron Judge. That's all.
The Good: Aaron Judge and Luis Severino have been X-factors for the Yankees in 2017 and the same is true for the Reds. Judge has been an absolute beast with 13 homers already.
The Bad: Britton has been plagued by forearm issues early on this year. Lester has also been disappointing, but that isn't as big of a worry.
4.
Los Angeles Angels (4-1) Even after making a series of big trades to get younger, the Angels have one of the best teams in the league.
The Good: Michael Fulmer is proving that last year's breakout rookie year wasn't a fluke and the Angels lineup of Goldschmidt, Bryant, Cruz, and Betts is one of the strongest in the league.
The Bad: Really tough to lose Syndergaard, can't downplay how big of an injury that is for this team.
5.
Tampa Bay Rays (5-0) Sure, this team is weaker after dealing away some key pieces this year. Sure, they may not repeat especially if they trade Freddie Freeman. Even with all that, they've roared out to an undefeated start atop the brutal AL East.
The Good: Any team with Freddie Freeman, Machado, the up and coming Bregman, and Trout is a team you don't ever expect to win against. Dylan Bundy has exceeded expectations thus far in a very young rotation that includes Eickoff and Snell.
The Bad: Losing Taillon was a big blow and there's talk that they may trade Freeman too.
6.
Colorado Rockies (5-0) Despite some key injuries and big disappointments in the early going, the Rockies are atop the NL West with a spotless record.
The Good: Ken Giles has had a really nice year thus far, a stark contrast to Sam Dyson. Verlander and Teheran have also had strong starts.
The Bad: Like the Angels, you hate to see a team lose their ace especially one that's usually reliable like MadBum.
7.
Philadelphia Phillies (5-0) Thanks to a weak schedule, the Phillies are still standing as one of the 5 undefeated teams in the league.
The Good: Cesar Hernandez has been a nice surprise and Darvish has been every bit the ace he's expected to be.
The Bad: Story has been flat out awful this year. Can he find the magic from his 2016 season? If not, it's tough to see the Phillies staying undefeated.
8.
New York Yankees (4-1) The Yankees are 4-1, but they haven't played the Blue Jays and have had one of the easier schedules in the league.
The Good: Paxton is hurt, again, but has been an absolute stud when healthy.
The Bad: Do the Yankees have staying power in the AL Wildcard race? Their lack of depth coupled with the Marte suspension will make it tough.
9.
Baltimore Orioles (2-3) Seems a bit high for a team tied for last in their division, but the Orioles have had an absolutely brutal schedule so far. Their roster is too talented to rank lower than this.
The Good: We all know about how good Eric Thames has been. However, Scott Feldman has also been a nice surprise.
The Bad: Rich Hill's blister issues seem to be threatening his career at this point as he can't seem to make it through a start without it popping up.
10.
Cleveland Indians (1-3-1) Hard to see why the Indians aren't winning more with the team they have, but struggles of key players coupled with unlucky losses in recent weeks haven't helped. The upcoming stretch against the Twins, Tigers, and White Sox is key to turning their season around.
The Good: Ellsbury has been the power-speed combo we've become accustomed to seeing and the recent acquisition of Arenado is huge.
The Bad: Jordan Zimmerman and Ubaldo Jimenez are really pulling this rotation down. This is especially disappointing when you consider how good Zimmerman had been prior to his nightmare 2016.
11.
Seattle Mariners (2-2-1) Another team that should be better than their record shows. The Mariners are currently on a tidy little two game winning streak.
The Good: Greinke and Jay Bruce, two major disappointments last year, have been very good to start the year.
The Bad: Behind Greinke, the starting pitching has been a mess. Will it be bad enough to keep them out of the playoffs or can guys like Fiers and Boyd step up their play?
12.
San Diego Padres (2-2-1) Injuries have devestated this team early on, but there are still a few bright spots hoping to keep the team afloat until key pieces come back
The Good: The trio of Scherzer, Hendricks, and Cueto gives this team an unstoppable trio. If Price comes back healthy, watch out.
The Bad: Josh Donaldson and David Price have been out of commission with injuries for much of the year. Buxton has been scuffling at the plate, but has shown some signs of life in recent weeks.
13.
Arizona Diamondbacks (1-3-1) Another one of those teams that are better on paper than their record suggests. Tough start to the year, but fully expect this team to win more games.
The Good: Trading for Miggy is a big acquisition and Strasburg has stayed healthy thus far.
The Bad: Health is the x-factor for this team as the season continues. Miggy has been bothered by injuries all year. Brantley just got hurt (again). Carpenter has also had his fair share, not to mention Strasburg and Melancon who just got put on the DL. Yes, health will determine if this team continues its losing ways or starts to win again.
14.
Los Angeles Dodgers (3-2) The Dodgers have a nice mix of youth and experience on the squad that has led them to 2nd place in the NL West. A close loss to the Rockies last week showed that they still have some work to do to compete for a division title.
The Good: Lance McCullers has stayed healthy so far this year and has pitched very well.
The Bad: The pitching depth at the major league level is just not there. If McCullers is shut down or gets hurt again, the Dodgers would be in real trouble.
15.
Detroit Tigers (2-3) Detroit is a veteran team that you could argue that it's just a matter of time until they take the division lead from the White Sox. Last week's impressive 10-2 win over the Orioles shows that this team is dangerous when hot.
The Good: Ervin Santana has performed like an ace through the first five weeks of the season.
The Bad: Napoli and Trumbo have really struggled compared to their 2016 seasons. The Tigers will need them to step it up to find success.
16.
New York Mets (3-2) Bad loss vs the Nationals last week, but with multiple players underperforming it's a good sign that the Mets are above .500.
The Good: Gio Gonzalez is pitching well again and the move to Boston has really helped Mitch Moreland become a solid regular.
The Bad: Todd Frazier and Brad Miller have looked completely lost at the plate this season and will need to be better for the Mets to continue to win games and stay competitive in a tough NL East.
17.
Atlanta Braves (3-2) The Braves have had some unfortunate injuries here in the early going, but still have a winning record to show for it. The loss against the Mets in week 4 is concerning.
The Good: Aaron Hicks looks to have figured it all out finally early on this season. He has 6 homers to go along with 5 SB.
The Bad: Can the lineup stay healthy? Tulowitzki is still hurt and there are a couple of other guys who have been injury prone in years past.
18.
Chicago White Sox (3-1-1) Even without a third baseman, the White Sox are atop the AL Central because of their above average bullpen and the return of Dee Gordon.
The Good: Neftali Feliz is back to being the main closer for a big league team. Pollock has stayed healthy this year and is showcasing his combination of power and speed.
The Bad: Encarnacion has struggled his first year in Cleveland. The hole at 3B will come back to bite this team sooner or late.
19.
St. Louis Cardinals (2-3) Even with King Felix on the shelf, up and coming stars Trea Turner and Carlos Carrasco have led this team to a respectable 2-3 record.
The Good: Carlos Carrasco is pitching lights out and Trea Turner has continued to rake when he's been healthy.
The Bad: The rotation depth is a huge question mark and Dansby Swanson has looked out of his element in his first full major league season. He could get send down to AAA if he keeps hitting the way he is.
20.
Pittsburgh Pirates (1-4) Not a great start for the Pirates thus far. Some injuries and slow starts have really hurt this team.
The Good: Justin Wilson just nabbed the starting job in Detroit and Headley has had a good start to the year.
The Bad: What the hell happened to Wainwright? Your guess is better than mine. If he doesn't turn it around its hard to see the Pirates doing the same.
21.
Kansas City Royals (2-3) KC is in sell mode so this ranking may not last, but acquiring Benintendi has already started to pay dividends and Jason Heyward looks better than last year.
The Good: AJ Griffin has been surprisingly above average this year. It helps that the Rangers are giving him plenty of run support when he starts.
The Bad: The rotation is poor and Benoit already lost his closer job in Philly.
22.
Washington Nationals (2-3) The depth is atrocious, but there is a lot of young talent on this roster that can only improve over the course of the season (ahem, Moncada once the White Sox finish playing their service time game with him)
The Good: Miguel Sano seems to be in the midst of a breakout season. He's been hitting the ball hard all year and is a fantasy stud at the moment.
The Bad: The pitching depth is no where to be seen and the team doesn't have a third major league outfielder at the moment.
23.
Boston Red Sox (2-3) After signing Hosmer to a big contract this offseason, the Red Sox seem to be in the middle of a rebuild and competing. Evan Longoria adds a nice veteran bat to the lineup.
The Good: Keon Broxton has a nice little hot streak going after a terrible start. Derek Holland has been a nice surprise.
The Bad: No 2B and Alex Gordon has been absolutely god awful. The bullpen is also a big weak spot for this team.
24.
Oakland Athletics (0-5) I hate to put a team that's winless in the top 25, but the Athletics really do not have that bad of a roster. Obviously they have some holes, but it's hard to fathom how they haven't figured out a way to win one game yet. Yes, they've had a tough schedule losing to Tampa and Toronto already, but the Boston loss last week was inexcusable. If they can't win this week, they're going to fall down a few slots.
The Good: Gary Sanchez is back, Daniel Murphy is raking, and Gallo is having himself a nice little season in the power department.
The Bad: Matt Harvey is having a nightmarish (and heartbreaking..?) season already. The rotation is weak.
25.
Texas Rangers (2-3) Speedsters Lorenzo Cain and Billy Hamilton hold the keys to the team's offense while reigning AL Cy Young winner Rick Porcello anchors the rotation. Unfortunately, they have the wrong Chapman in their bullpen.
The Good: Yonder Alonso is raking against right handers this season (.320/.393/.613) and Santiago Casilla is getting save opportunities in akland.
The Bad: Forsythe has been out for most of the year and looks to be out even longer after tweaking his hamstring recently.
26.
Milwaukee Brewers (2-3) A (2-3) team should probably be ranked higher, but with basically three empty lineup spots it is hard to see this team continuing to win games and stay close to .500.
The Good: Ryan Zimmerman, oh my goodness, has been having a ridiculous year at the plate.
The Bad: Even with a high strikeout rate, Danny Salazar has gotten crushed a few times. As I mentioned earlier, no depth in the lineup.
27.
Houston Astros (0-5) When getting down to the remaining winless teams it's all about if the team is even fielding a full roster at this point. The Astros are and have enough talent to get a win soon.
The Good: German Marquez stymied the Cubs yesterday, but it seems like everyone does that nowadays. Yuli Gurriel has hit well enough this year.
The Bad: Gurriel has really struggled against lefties this year (154/.154/.192 ) and RA Dickey has not been good enough to help this rotation out.
28.
Miami Marlins (0-5) This lineup is honestly not that bad, but the pitching is really weighing this team down.
The Good: Bud Norris has been performing well as a fill in closer for the Angels. Coghlan had probably the "slide" of the year earlier this season (google it if you don't know what I'm talking about)
The Bad: Profar getting sent down is a huge disappointment for the former top prospect. It seems like years ago when he was one of the most coveted assets, but that's because it's been years.
29.
Minnesota Twins (0-5) 9 empty lineup spots, but there are actually some decent players on this team.
The Good: Before going down, Haniger was having a career year. Adam Duvall is showing that the power is still there from last year.
The Bad: Haniger is hurt and Edwin Diaz hasn't exactly been sharp to start the year.
30.
San Francisco Giants (0-5) They would lose in a head to head matchup vs the Twins in my opinon.
The Good: Before he got hurt, Adam Frazier was doing decent. The farm is looking pretty nice with a lot of B+/B prospects and one Rafael Devers.
The Bad: The team doesn't have much going for them in terms of even young players at the major league level.
