1. Pirates: Mike Trout
It should be illegal to have a team this good. The best team in the league for the last 6 years, JP is set up to be the new JB. At the rate he’s going, the division may be clinched by the ASB. Just, fuck you JP, that’s what we’re all thinking, right? Mike Trout, through his first 2 seasons, is the closest thing to Mickey Mantle I’d imagine any of us have seen (remember when they said that about JD Drew?). He’s fell off a little this year so far, but a down year for Trout is a career year for a lot of guys. Don’t worry, he’s still going to be the best player in the game.
2. Marlins: Miguel Cabrera’s Triple Crown
Remember Miguel Cabrera used to be on the Marlins? As a 21-year-old rookie, he hit .294 with 33 HR and 112 RBI. Amazing talent. It all came together in 2012 when he won the first AL Triple Crown since Carl Yastrzemski did it in 1967. A comparison of numbers:
Cabrera 2012: .330 44 HR 139 RBI
Yastrzemski 1967: .326 44 HR 121 RBI
Pretty close comparison. Yaz was an 11 win player that year due to outstanding defense. Cabrera is still an offensive force and will be in Detroit for a long time. The Marlins, too, boast a force of their own. Puig, Price, Kinsler, Myers, Tulowitzki, Verlander. They are stout and have maintained a solid farm system as well. Despite early injuries, the Marlins are battling day to day with the Phillies for first in the NL East and the best record in the league. Playing Washington and Atlanta helps, but this is still a top contender. Like Cabrera, this team always scares you and should be scaring teams yearlong.
3. Phillies: PED suspensions and the fallout for baseball
Nick’s long rebuild has resulted in a team with the 2nd best record in the NL, even better currently than JP. Well that might not hold up, but look for the Phillies to be in the thick of things the rest of the way. Good pitching, a great middle of the order, this is a dark horse candidate for the WS. Nick’s record isn’t artificially inflated, like so many records were in the 1990s and 2000s. I’m pretty sure Jim Thome hit over 70 homers one year in the IBC. The steroid era is something we don’t really know how to deal with. If guys were assholes, like Clemens and Bonds, we vilify them and ignore their legacy. If they were a nice guy, like Andy Pettitte, we let them off the hook. Nick won’t be letting anyone off the hook with this team.
4. Red Sox: Sox End the 86 Year Curse
Arguably the biggest news of the century in baseball so far is the Red Sox winning the 2004 World Series after the greatest comeback in sports playoff history in the 2004 ALCS vs. New York. We’re not saying Tullar’s IBC Red Sox are as epic, but the Yankees have definitely moved out of the way with the recent blockbuster dumping most of its All-Star talent to in-division rival Baltimore. While the Sox will still have to fend off Baltimore and sim wizard Toronto, it feels like the path is a little clearer with New York in the rear view mirror for the Sox. But, Boston is walking a bit of a fine line, riding veterans Ortiz, Napoli and Victorino, Hamilton and Hudson. Wonderkid George Springer and Jesse Chavez look good for the future and a few gems in the farm system will give the Sox ample ammo at the trade deadline, if needed. There are plenty of barriers in the way for the IBC Sox to pull a 2004 Sox, but they should definitely be in the conversation this fall.
5. Rangers: Creation of the MLB Network
Six years behind the NFL on this one, MLB created the MLB Network in 2009. It was another overdue, but positive move for the league as it tries to capture the attention of fans. If you are a fan, this is a must-have, as you can watch tons of games, watch analysis, get live cut-ins to games, baseball movies, baseball everything. Baseball has tons of money and really hasn’t been hurt by the PED issues as much as they could have. The sport is popular; it’s just not as popular as football, but TV deals, including MLB Network, helps. What’s good for the IBC is a little variety in winners. BP took the IBC World Series and is in a position to be in the discussion again. With Cabrera, Fielder, Shields, Darvish, Gordon, Wieters, Profar, Ventura, Cecchini and a guy named Polanco, this team is set for a while. The bullpen is a bit weak, but that never seems to be an issue and the farm is strong. If the Rangers can avoid injuries, they should be able to do a better job competing with the rest of the IBC as the MLB Network has done with the NFL Network.
6. Athletics: 2001 World Series
Three years in a row the A’s have made the playoffs and it looks like it may be four before all is said and done. This team isn’t as much of a smoke and mirrors job as teams in the past have been. The A’s are legit and it looks like this is a team that’ll be at or near the top of the standings the rest of the way. The 2001 World Series was maybe the greatest of them all. Three games decided on walkoffs, including Game 7. A thrill ride for a country still recovering from 9/11. The A’s run may not be that exciting, but the twists and turns Hamlin usually takes come out of nowhere.
7. Royals: Mark Buehrle’s perfect game, saved by the amazing Dewayne Wise catch
This is one of my favorite baseball highlights and I could not care less about the teams involved. Anytime there’s a perfect game intact you have to watch and this one was special. Buehrle was perfect through 8 innings and ole’ crazy Ozzie Guillen puts Dewayne Wise in CF to start the 9th. The first batter, Gabe Kapler crushed a ball to left-center field that you knew was going to be a hit or even a home run. Wise makes an amazing over-the-wall catch to preserve everything and Buerhle gets the next two outs. It was outstanding baseball. The 9th inning substitute of Wise symbolizes the Royals’ season. It has been a flurry of moves that sees the landscape of the team constantly changing. He’s added names such as Sonny Gray, Anthony Rizzo, Clay Buchholz, Arismendy Alcantara, Addison Reed, Kolton Wong and Mark Trumbo and lost guys like Clay Buchholz, Chris Davis, CC Sabathia, Carlos Beltran, Joe Kelly and others. The Royals aren’t perfect and either was Wise, but he did one thing well. What remains to be seen is whether the Royals make the right substitutions at the right time to clinch a second straight AL Central title.
8. Tigers: The Japanese ace
When Pat returned from his self-imposed sabbatical we were all glad to have a solid GM back that could stabilize a franchise. What we didn’t expect was a guy that made the playoffs out of the gate and would build a contender almost overnight. With ample power, solid pitching and some good prospects, plus a penchant for making good trades, Pat is set up to contend for a while. The emergence of the Japanese ace is another development that, like Pat, has found more success than expected. Japanese pitchers never experienced a ton of sustained success, for every Nomo there was an Irabu or Matsuzaka. In the last couple of years though, we’ve seen people like Darvish and Tanaka come over and dominate from the get go. While Pat may not dominate per se, we should expect him to be more Darvish than Fat Toad.
9. Dodgers: MLB’s problem with Tommy John Surgery
If Shawn had a nickel for every elbow needing reconstructive surgery, he’d be rich. Not quite, but it seems he’s definitely good at picking pitchers who are doomed to be hurt. Jarrod Parker twice, Martin Perez, Brandon Beachy – all TJ victims, plus Wandy Rodriguez’s knee and Ryu’s shoulder. According to a recent article, 18 players, 17 of whom are pitchers, have undergone TJ surgery this year. It’s a staggering number that is obviously concerning to MLB. Yet, somehow, The Dodgers are still the class of the NL West with the league’s fourth best record. It’s a fine accomplishment to date. The team is anchored by Braun/Bautista with Seager, Owings, Peralta. Despite all the injuries, the team picked up Kyle Lohse, but is going to be relying on Ryu and a bunch of guys you’ve never heard of unless Shawn makes some moves. There’s currently a seven-game cushion, so the Dodgers should be ok for a while, but it may catch up to them. MLB better do some serious investigating the habits of its pitchers, or blown arms are going to catch up to the league, too.
10. Reds: MLB replay expansion
For the first time in a long time, Ken is not one of the first teams you mention when talking about the class of the NL. Don’t overlook him though, this is a dangerous and powerful team, especially in that band box he calls home. MLB finally got around to doing instant replay. After things like Don Denkinger, Joe Mauer’s “foul ball” that was 3 feet fair, and countless others, there is finally accountability in MLB for umpires. Except Angel Hernandez somehow still has a job.
11. Blue Jays: mlb.tv
The following sentence has been written in every power rankings since 2009. We all thought this would be the year Pat finally fell off from contention. Nope, he’s right in the thick of things again. I’ve given up on figuring out how, maybe he and not Ken is the one that worked for DMB all this time. Until his team is dead, he’ll be in contention. MLB.tv is one of the greatest inventions of the 21st century. Any out of market game, radio or tv feed with the picture, this is amazing stuff. And it is cheap for what you get! Less than a dollar a game, unlike shitty NBA League Pass or whatever the NHL does. For a sport some say is behind the times, this shows that sometimes MLB knows what it is doing.
12. Cubs: Steve Bartman
The Cubs are in 2nd place! Gabe has had outstanding pitching for a long time, but now he’s got a little offense to back it up. We all know he never has bothered with prospects, and so now we’ll see how he can hang out without having guys to deal for win now players. Since winning the title in Florida and moving back to Chicago, Gabe’s had a rough go of it. Nothing as rough as Steve Bartman, who had to disappear from society after his infamous incident in Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS. Bartman also caused Alex Gonzalez to boot a routine double play ball, caused the Cubs to give up a ton of runs to lose that game AND lose a lead in Game 7. What a jerk.
13. Rockies: The Saga of Alex Rodriguez
Has there been a more polarizing figure in baseball this century? He came in as a rocket-armed and power-hitting shortstop, molded into a crap teammate in Texas, moved to New York and made everyone hate him there, took steroids, lied about taking steroids, got caught up in the Biogenesis scandal, got suspended for a season, is signed through 2017 and now is an average player. Jake, also a New Yorker, can be a bit polarizing at times, possibly has taken steroids and did win the Home Run Pool that one time he played, so he was semi-rich. That’s where the Arod-Levine similarities end. I’m not sure if Jake ever reached Mariners/Rangers A-rod level or if he’s always been late 30s/Yankees A-rod, but this year he’s looking like the latter. He’s currently at .500 and is about a .500 team. He’s got Jones, newly acquired Carpenter and Cruz, guys like Colon, Dickey and Lincecum and Baez/Meyer on the farm. He’ll score some runs, give up some runs and be sort of bland until he gets a lot for his couple big prospects or deals off the vets and does a rebuild. Or, does roids.
14. Twins: The tie All Star Game in Milwaukee
Hey, the Twins are in contention for the AL Central title, is it 2008? After taking some beatings following his 3 year run at the top of the division, Andrew has quietly built a really solid team. A rotation with the likes of Wacha, Teheran, and Bumgarner, and prospects like Joc Pederson and Singleton almost to the majors, Andrew is positioning himself to be a force to be reckoned with. One of the things Bud Selig will be remembered for most is the tie ASG in his hometown. After 12 innings, Selig stopped the game and had another dark mark on his legacy. Now Andrew doesn’t have something this bad to reflect on him but he’s had a lot of down years where people have forgot about it. He’s set up to do something memorable enough to where we won’t be thinking about those anymore.
15. Orioles: Cardinals crush the Rangers' spirits -- twice in one game (2011)
The O’s started off the season as a dark horse, with a talented young staff on the verge of being a player after a great rebuilding effort. The O’s still have a chance to be in contention this year with a couple moves, but the loss of Jose Fernandez is something that’ll be nearly impossible to recover from. Never say never though, the 2011 Cardinals didn’t. After beating Roy Halladay in Philly and rolling past the Brewers, they were down to their last strike. Allen Craig had just taken a cement mixer slider over the middle of the plate for strike 3. Then David Freese had 1 strike left and smashed a triple over the head of Nelson Cruz to tie the game. Then Josh Hamilton homered and things looked bleak. Then Lance Berkman singled home the tying run down to his last strike. Then David Freese homered to end the greatest baseball game of all time and become a god in the Midwest for the rest of his life. Excuse my erection after remembering all of this.
16. Astros: The Cuban Slugger
As baseball has evolved, the international import has become an important transformation to the sport. Because of the regime in place, Cuban players are forced to flee through foreign countries, often smuggled by drug cartels, in order to eventually make it to this country to play baseball at the highest level. The process, while dangerous, has introduced baseball to Cuban sluggers Yoenis Cespedes, Yasiel Puig and Jose Abreu in recent years. Their success has changed how teams view – and pay – these players as free agents. Nate has transformed his team from one that initially dealt Nick Franklin to get Franklin Gutierrez and believed in Ryan Ludwick as an actual usable player to one built around youth – Arenado, Biddle, Alvarez, Marte, Blackmon, Mesoraco, Hanson and Grichuk. Like many Cuban players, Nate has holes in his game. He’s relying on Bronson Arroyo, Andre Ethier, Daric Barton and the Marco Scutaros of the world, which keeps him around .500. If the Astros can reduce reliance on these iffy veterans and keep the strong core of young guys, he could improve his standing and be a competitive force, like Yoenis Cespedes’ showcase video, and this homer.
17. Mets: Mike Piazza’s post-9/11 home run
After the horrible events of Sept. 11, 2001, it was obviously a difficult time for America and the world, as it took months for the wreckage to be sifted through and people didn’t know what to do. No one wanted to fly, the stock markets crashed. It was chaos. Baseball went on hold. It stayed that way for 10 days until Sept. 21. With the Braves leading in the bottom of the eighth inning, Piazza stepped up with a man on first and trailing by 1. Steve Karsay threw him an 0-1 fastball and Piazza took a lumberjack of a swing and crushed it to dead center. Shea Stadium went absolutely crazy. American flags were flying – it was a return to normalcy and an unusual feeling of happiness for New Yorkers so close to the attacks. The IBC Mets could use such a boost. Building around personal favorite David Wright, the team has guys like Cingrani, Gattis, Ian Kennedy and Jose Quintana, but that’s probably not good enough in the NL East. Right now, this is a .500 team, despite the injury to Cingrani, but without a few more bats, this team should look to move some vets to get a little younger and build around the core that’s in place. (the video is worth a watch: http://m.mlb.com/video/v3218879/92101-m ... 1-home-run)
18. Dbacks: Randy Johnson kills a bird with a fastball
Was this ground-breaking news from the 2000s? No, but it’s fun to watch (for everyone but birders). Randy Johnson had an amazing fastball and that bird did live. These are things in the past tense. That’s how it feels for Jagger’s Diamondbacks. Coming into the season, the Dbacks looked to have the makings of a strong playoff contender like last year: Latos, Moore, Chapman, Chacin, Holland, Liriano, Santana, Lawrie, Upton, Cargo. But, one by one, the team has crumpled. Latos, Moore, Chapman, Holland have all been hammered with injuries. They’re under .500 and 10 games out of first. While the Dodgers have plenty of injury concerns and the Rockies are going nowhere fast, it’s going to be tough for the Diamondbacks to make a big push to the playoffs, especially with an “on the block” (translated: untouchable) list of “vets” (translated: Hall of Fame caliber players) he’s been trying to move for months still sitting around. Remember, Randy Johnson was a Diamondback? That’s really the only connection here, but we tried.
19. Angels: MLB Fan Cave
The Angels are almost .500! That’s the nicest thing I can say the moment. The pitching is nice but I don’t see where the offense is ever going to come from to make this team a winner. The Fan Cave is a nice gimmick for MLB, put fans in Time Square, make them watch every game and get attention for it. Players drop in from time to time and at the end of the year, the fans have spent a year of their life and have…..what exactly do they get out of this again? Same thing we’ve been asking as we wait for Stephen to actually do something.
20. Brewers: Home Field in the World Series is Decided by an Exhibition Game
In honor of the only All-Star game tie being played in Milwaukee, the Brewers are power ranked with this odd and pretty dumb decision during the Bud Selig Era. When everyone ran out of pitchers, they just kinda called that All-Star game and everyone flipped. Joe Torre and Bob Brenly: outstanding managing work. Had they known how to use players properly, we might never have gotten to this point. Alas, now the World Series is decided by an exhibition game that many players elect not to participate in. Jared jumped into a weird situation when prior GM Ben just disappeared. It was odd, but we’re happy to have Jared. He actually inherited a very good team of pitchers and pitching prospects, but when your best hitter is Wilin Rosario, something’s gotta give. In this case, it’s Jared’s record. The Brewers need some bats and while they have the arms to get them if some willing participants are discovered. Otherwise, the Brewers will sit in mediocrity.
21. Yankees: When Barry Bonds hit home runs everywhere
As we all know by now, Barry Bonds juiced up in the 2000s because he wanted to be more beloved than Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, who juiced their way into America’s hearts in 1998. Boy, did that backfire. Bonds is now considered one of the league’s great cheats and despite amazing natural talent, may have to wait a long time – or ever – to make the Hall of Fame. But those years, he was amazing. 73 home runs in 2001 with a .328 average, 515 OBP and a 1.370 OPS+? Holy moly. Like Bonds, the IBC Yankees are a team of former glory that remains in the past. A Matt Kemp/Chris Davis-centered trade that saw Davis become injured within hours of its approval sent JB into a spiral, leading him to dealing three All-Star-caliber players to division rival Baltimore. The rebuild that had been talked about for a few years finally happened. No doubt, the Yankees will not finish well this year, but have a brighter future than Bonds. With Harper, Lindor, Felix Hernandez, Wheeler, Hedges, Archie Bradley, Maikel Franco and others, this is a team built for 2016. There’s no rebuild in Bonds’ future, but those seasons were magical for Bay Area fans. When he’s down, JB loads his team page and looks at those computer-generated banners on his screen to make him feel good again. Likewise, Bonds calls up Greg Anderson and takes some BP in his backyard.
22. Cardinals: Power evaporates with steroid testing
Baseball fans in 1901 saw 455 home runs that year. The leagues didn’t combine for more than 1,000 home runs in a season until 1922. In the early 1980s, that number stood around 3,000, as the NFL muscled its way past MLB as America’s sport to love and invest in, and MLB needed something. Well, lookee here…a needle in the ass fixes everything! There were 600 more home runs hit in 1987 than 1986 (think about that) and the numbers spiked to the mid-5,000s in the early 2000s. The numbers are still high – 4,600 in 2013 – but they’re not as high. It seems like power has been sapped some and that’s probably because the leaders aren’t hitting 50-70 per year. If not for broken elbows, it would seem pitchers have gotten the advantage. The recent years are similar to the IBC Cardinals in that Aaron made a flurry of moves seemingly to make a push for this year. He was on a high like no other, picking up Scott Van Slyke, Lance Lynn, Matt Holliday, Carlos Quentin, A.J. Burnett, Chris Johnson and others. But, the balloon soon deflated when Quentin remained hurt and ZIPs didn’t do the likes of Yelich, Tavares, Walker and Matt Adams any favors. So, Aaron sits in the cellar, poised to have another top 5 draft pick, swinging for the fences, but falling short.
23. Indians: Mississippi Braves Manager Philip Wellman Great Meltdown
Cleveland has been the home to long tenured GMs that do nothing to distinguish themselves. Half the time I still think Craig is the GM and he’s been gone for years. This isn’t a knock on Danny, if him blowing up the message board the other day is any indication we’ll be hearing from him a lot, but it won’t be because of the play of his team. Philip Wellman had a meltdown for the ages a few years ago, throwing bases, covering home plate with dirt, I think there was even a couple of fake hand grenades that he tossed. The entire Indians franchise has been in meltdown mode since Pat G. left it after losing the World Series back in 2005, so it is up to Danny to make it be remembered for something other than an embarrassment.
24. Rays: The rise of fantasy baseball
Poor Martin, there was a time when it looked like he would be the dominant force in the NL West for years to come, then he lost a one game playoff for the division title and hasn’t sniffed relevancy since. This team should be better than their record, but the results just ain’t there. Fantasy baseball was the first fantasy sport. Tons of people play roto leagues, though it isn’t close to the numbers that play fantasy football. The day to day grind of fantasy baseball, changing lineups, the dedication required is so much more than football. Plus any jackass can get lucky in football, it takes knowledge to win fantasy baseball. Martin’s got knowledge, but for some reason it hasn’t translated to wins.
25. Giants: HOF managers retiring
At the beginning of the IBC, Nils was maybe the best manager in the league. Every year you could expect him in October, as he only missed the playoffs 3 times between 2002 and 2011. Since then however, Nils has bottomed out and is competing for the #2 pick in the draft this year (nobody’s as bad as Z). For most of us in the IBC, every October we could count on seeing Bobby Cox, Joe Torre and Tony LaRussa in the dugout. They were some of the greatest managers of all time, with Torre managing a dynasty, Cox winning every division title from 1991-2005 and LaRussa winning titles in both leagues and revolutionizing the game, but now they’re gone and there isn’t a consensus best manager in the game. Is it Joe Maddon? Terry Francona? Mike Matheny? (ha, no). The door is open for someone to become the next great one.
26. Braves: The Armando Galarraga/Jim Joyce Perfect Game Debacle
Admit it, you weren’t going to be thrilled having Armando Galarraga be in the record books with a perfect game, but how bad did you feel for the guy after that horrible call by Jim Joyce? It was a really bad call (admittedly so by Joyce, good man) and probably was a factor in leading baseball to going to replay. Bad times for baseball. And then there’s the IBC Braves: kind of a debacle. Brandon’s last acquisition? Jan. 20. Roster is illegal and kind of a mess. There’s Sale/Garza, Tazawa/Nathan in the pen, Mauer and Jesus Montero -- the remnants of the Bryce Harper trade – still around, along with guys like Kubel and Lo¬¬Mo. The team needs work, but it’s not happening. Joyce robbed Galarraga of a perfect game. Brandon’s robbing the Atlanta faithful of having a shot at IBC glory.
27. Mariners: Ichiro
Ropers first few years in the league were spent hoisting the flag for his division almost every year. He made the playoffs all but one year between 2002 and 2006. Since then there has been a slow decline to now being at the bottom of the barrel of the IBC. There is help on the way, with studs like Buxton and Giolito biding their time on the farm. Like Ropers, Ichiro started off in the majors as a house of fire, becoming the first person since Fred Lynn to win the ROY and MVP in the same year. He’d go on to set the single season hit record among various other things, but now at the tail end of his career, Ichiro is a bottom of the order guy and in an ideal situation, probably a 4th outfielder. The M’s are nowhere near the top of anything right now either and that won’t change in the near future.
28. White Sox: The Prospect Journalism/Blog Explosion
How many of you truly knew what a prospect was when you were first following baseball? For most of us, the minor leagues were simply the place where the stars didn't play. And, truthfully, many major league teams treated them the same way. They didn't have much of a system for promotion and stored hasbeens at AAA in case of injury. But in the last decade, led by Baseball America, but joined by scores of other sources, prospect news has become big business. On top of the more legitimate websites, bloggers from across the country have their opinions. It's an interesting niche that nerds like us enjoy. And speaking of prospects, Jim has turned his team into a squad of prospects, after having competed the last couple of years. He should end up with a very good draft pick and can continue the rebuild process. Expect him to be busy at the trade deadline.
29. Padres: When Pedro fought 72-year-old Don Zimmer in the 2003 ALCS
There was a bit of shock in the voices of Joe Buck and Tim McCarver when butterball Don Zimmer ran over to Pedro Martinez after benches cleared, he took him by the head and tossed him to the ground. Zimmer was being an ass for coming at Pedro, but Pedro was being an ass for doing it. And remember what started it all? Karim Garcia getting hit by Pedro earlier in the game! Asses, spares, Bren, Padres. These Power Rankings write themselves, boys. Bren is an ass, has a team full of spares and has done and said things that piss people off. He’s got a lot of young talent, but just kind of sits on it without trying to improve. Unless you call “improving” dealing Rizzo for a one-trick pony and an 18-year-old pitcher. Bren started the IBC and we are grateful, but at this point, his Padres are just getting slammed into the turf like Don Zimmer’s bald head.
30. Nationals: Contraction
Bud Selig, in his infinite wisdom, decided the best course of action for baseball would be to contract a couple of teams and have a dispersal draft. Small market baseball couldn’t work, so the Twins and Expos could just be done away with (wonder why the Brewers weren’t considered, hmmm?). Needless to say, this didn’t happen thank God, and the Twins went on to have a nice run at the top of the AL Central and the Expos were moved to D.C. and became relevant and Jeff Loria was allowed to destroy baseball in another city. The Nationals, like the Expos before them, had a lot of success in the past. It seemed like every year we expected Z’s Royals to make the playoffs and they never did. Now Z has been the worst team in the league for a couple of years. While help is on the way, this team is a big ole pile of dogshit at the moment. Not bad enough to be contracted, but don’t stare at it too long because it is unhealthy to.
