Beyond the Box Score Power Rankings: Week 11

by Daniel Moroz on Jun 13, 2011 2:30 PM EDT in Power Rankings

The Cardinals are finally knocked out of the #1 spot after a lengthy run there, while the Indians continue to fall.

Just as a reminder: some of the things that go into these rankings include runs scored and allowed, run distributions, wOBA, wRC, FIP, xFIP, DRS, UZR, etc., Base Runs, BABIP and HR/FB% adjustments, and our guts.

Rank	Team	Wins	Losses	Comments
1	Red Sox	38	26	Boston's offense was the best in the majors over the last week, with a team line of .330/.414/.583, led by Dustin Pedroia's .588 wOBA.
2	Yankees	35	27	Jeff wrote last week that Curtis Granderson was this season's Jose Buatista; and the Yankee is just behind with the Blue Jay for the major league lead in homers with 20.
3	Cardinals	38	28	Kyle Lohse is quietly having the best season of his career; working around a low K rate by not walking anybody (1.8 BB/9) and getting groundballs.
4	Rangers	36	30	By virtue of his record (7-0) and ERA (2.10), there's a distinct chance that Alexi Ogando ends up being the AL's All-Star game starter this year.
5	Phillies	39	26	Chase Utley has more stolen bases (3) than home runs (2) this season, after having his power diminish a little in 2010. You'd think the speed would go first.
6	Brewers	37	28	Prince Fielder now has 19 home runs on the season, after already knocking 8 out in June - half of the Brewers total for the month.
7	Reds	34	32	Ever since his rookie season, Johnny Cueto's strike-out rate has been trending downwards, but he's improved his control and dropped his home run rate as well.
8	Braves	37	28	Tommy Hanson has stepped up his game this year, now striking out over a batter an inning (9.6 K/9), even with a fastball that's dipped in velocity a bit.
9	Blue Jays	32	33	How long will Kyle Drabek be able to hand on to a major league rotation spot while walking more batters than he strikes out (0.9 K/BB)?
10	Diamondbacks	35	30	Kelly Johnson is continuing to display the power he showed in '10, but a drop in walk rate and one of the NL's highest strike-out rates has made him only an average hitter.
11	Tigers	35	29	The Tigers have caught up with the Indians in the Central, in part with the help of a Brennan Boesch hot streak and Miguel Cabrera being Miguel Cabrera.
12	Rockies	31	33	Ubaldo Jimenez looks to be getting back in the swing of things, with a 2.06 FIP and 2.96 xFIP in the last month (though he is only 1-3 to show for it).
13	Indians	34	28	The Indians have been outscored 80-41 in the last couple weeks, as the starting rotation - which seemed like it might be the team's undoing - has been beat up on.
14	Rays	34	30	Johnny Damon's walk rate this year has been almost cut in half, but he has reached base in 36 straight games - tending to draw a free pass in games with no hits.
15	Marlins	32	31	For a third straight season, Ricky Nolasco's strike-out rate has fallen over a full K per nine. And yet his ERA is trending downwards, as his xFIP stays steady.

16	White Sox	32	35	Carlos Quentin is hitting a lot like he did in his break-out 2008 campaign and, though it's certainly early yet, his UZR numbers look much better than 2010's -24 (!) runs.
17	Angels	31	35	Rookie Mark Trumbo leads the team with 11 home runs, but he hasn't done a whole lot with the bat other than hit the longball (.252/.299/.463).
18	Mets	31	33	Dillon Gee is a perfect 7-0 this year, and has New York's lowest FIP amongst starters at 3.59. He's getting it done with a nice change-up and good control.
19	Athletics	28	38	The only Oakland position player at even 1 fWAR is Kurt Suzuki, and he's hitting just .236/.309/.341. Offensive bar is mighty low for a quality defensive catcher.
20	Giants	36	29	The best FIP in the starting rotation belongs not to Tim Lincecum, or Matt Cain, or Jonathan Sanchez, but Madinson Bumgarner (2.70). He's got the losing record though (2-8).
21	Pirates	31	32	In his sophomore season, Jose Tabata has really upped his walk rate (6% to 12%) which has made him a fine option towards the top of the line-up.
22	Orioles	30	32	Brian Matusz has made three starts since coming off the DL. His ERA is 5.11, he has as many walks as strike-outs, and his fastball is coming in at only ~86 mph. Kinda concerning.
23	Mariners	33	32	The M's have recently been one of baseballs best defensive teams, but this year they have the worst fielding mark (UZR + stolen base runs saved) in the AL.
24	Royals	28	37	Of the nine pitchers to get a start for the Royals this season, only five have been above replacement level (fWAR - six if you go by brWAR). AL's worst starter ERA/FIP/xFIP.
25	Dodgers	30	36	Since coming into the league in 2008, Hiroki Kuroda has quietly been one of the major's best starters; around 20th in ERA, FIP, and xFIP (min. 500 IP total in that span).
26	Nationals	29	36	Washington made Mike Morse a starter towards the end of last season, and he's rewarded them by continuing to hit - .300/.345/.517 this year.
27	Cubs	25	38	Of the nine Cubs with at least 100 PA, four of them have walk rates under 4% (Byrd, Barney, Soriano, Castro). No wonder they're last in the majors in that area.
28	Padres	29	37	Though still pitching relatively well, Mat Latos isn't showing the dominance he did in 2010. His K/BB ratio has fallen from 3.8 to 2.5 as his ERA and FIP have come up almost a full run.
29	Astros	24	41	Michael Bourn's leading the majors with 26 stolen bases, which combined with his .350 BABIP aided batting line gives him the top fWAR amongst position players with 0-1 HRs.
30	Twins	25	39	Delmon Young doesn't have a negative fielding numbers, and yet is still barely above replacement level with just 2 home runs and a bounce-back of his strike-out rate.

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Comments

the jays didnt fall much after a bad week,

hopeing they turn things around this week vs Baltimore.

by Jt Malley on Jun 13, 2011 4:45 PM EDT reply actions

Still a good team

Though for obvious reasons I don’t agree with the second part;

Orioles blogging at Camden Crazies | Follow on Twitter at @CamdenCrazies

by Daniel Moroz on Jun 13, 2011 7:24 PM EDT up reply actions

hahaha,

i think we can multiply agree to disagree good luck in this series my friend.

by Jt Malley on Jun 13, 2011 11:08 PM EDT up reply actions

As a chronic complainer about the Giants positioning in these rankings, I honestly have less to bitch about this time. They’re decimated this year. Still, it looks kind of goofy to see their stellar W/L record among the rabble at the 20 spot. Also, regardless of the Giants’ issues, the refrain still holds: pitching needs to be valued more by these rankings.

"Bruce Wayne is the Brian Wilson of Gotham." -DrDC

by hairball on Jun 14, 2011 12:57 PM EDT reply actions