The MLB Rizz Rankings 4.07.08: Week Two

Posted by Randy Isbelle on 04.07.2008

Baltimore has the best record in the AL, Detroit was swept by the Royals and then the White Sox and Marlins have the same record as my Yankees. What crazy out of this world thing will happen next? Somebody might actually listen to the Coast 2 Coast Sports Report podcast this week? Nah, that's just crazy talk.

I had more comments on my first edition of the Rizz Rankings then I have ever had in my one and half year career here at 411. So I figured I would get right at it and answer all of your comments before I got to the newly created rankings.

Stiffy writes: If you don't think the mets are even going to make the playoffs, then why did
you make them number 2 in your rankings?

Well I stated in the opening last week, that a team's position in my rankings had nothing to do with where I thought they would finish the season, but how talented I thought the team was. The Mets were ranked second because they are filled with talent, however I am concerned about the age of many of their starters, and the lack of solid bench players and feel that their injury list could be a filled with more All-Star players then the San Francisco Giants have on their entire roster.

Guest#1821 Writes: Yep, all 3 Yankees pitching prospects will be studs THIS season.

Because in baseball, young pitchers always exceed expectations in the 1st
season.

The stink lines of Yankee-bias from this article are coming through my computer
screen.

IMHO the Al East will be 1. Boston 2. Toronto 3. Yankees 4. Rays 5. Toledo 6.
Ottawa 7. Baltimore

First off, I give you credit for putting the Orioles seventh in a five team division, I loved that. Secondly, I didn't say they were going to be studs this season, well other then Joba, but I said that they had to perform well. Hughes and Kennedy are third and fourth in the pitching rotation, thus not necessarily needing to be studs, but hold their own. If both pitchers can give the team 12-15 wins this season then the Yankees have a good chance of winning their division.

MMILITO writes: I really think your over-valuing the Nationals, Braves and Phillies and I don't
see why. Yes the mets have a lot of injuries in their line-up, but they do have
4/5 of a great rotation and if el-duque stays healthy always pitches well.
Pitching wins championships and thats why I pick the Mets to win the NL East.

Well El'duque has already shown that he won't be healthy this season, and Pedro has already gone down. Pitching does win championships, but they can't win if they are all on the DL.

Andy Spirals writes: Why do you think Bedard is overrated and not a real ace?

Bedard was the number one man in Baltimore, not really a team where I would be impressed that you earned the number one spot. Is Bedard a good pitcher…yes…is he better then Felix?...I just don't think he is. The problem that I have with Bedard is the fact that people believe he is the savior for the Mariners…that him coming to Seattle with take them all the way to the playoffs, and I just don't see Bedard as that type of pitcher.

Bryz writes: Spiffy looking rankings chart you've made. I like it.

Anyway, good to see somebody doesn't think the Cardinals will be horrible this
season. The Chicago Tribune (I think) had them at dead last in the NL Central
(behind the Pirates, no less!). I'm not saying they'll be a playoff team, but I
think they'll surprise some of the naysayers this season.

First off, thanks for the compliment, I have never really been the type to just throw out a straight out article, if you go back and look at my NFL preview articles you will understand, and I'm glad you like it. Secondly, I had not seen the Chicago Tribune's predictions, and am not surprised they had St. Louis in dead last…I mean Chicago hates St. Louis so why wouldn't they say that the Cardinals are horrible. But at least you get the first laugh this season right?

Alex Ewing writes: A Yankees fan predicting the Sox and Mets to miss the playoffs despite having
better teams? Yeah, I never saw that one coming.

The sad thing is, I put all feelings aside when doing these rankings, in fact I really don't have a huge beef with the Mets at all. The Red Sox on the other hand…I only have them out of the playoffs because I believe that the Wild Card is coming out of the central, and also believe that the Yankees young pitching will outplay the Red Sox young pitching and give them the division. However, I know that the race will be close, just like it is every season, and would not be surprised in the least if the Red Sox pull it out and win the East while the Yankees sit at home for the first time since the strike.

Max writes: Good to see you're a Yanks fan. I am as well, and I am personally psyched to see
them play this year with the addition of Girardi (which you forgot to mention)
and their new pitchers, my favorite being Joba.

You know what, I totally did forget to mention him on the Power Rankings, and could not believe I did so. To be honest I had been pulling for Mattingly to get the job, but have no problem with Girardi in that position. I think he will bring a new attitude to the team, and has already proven that as the Yankees seem to be in much better shape coming into the year then they have since the late 90s


Fellow 411 writer JD Koziarski writes: Things here that will not happen in real life: The White Sox and Mariners will
not finish with a better record than the A's.

Actually, the only two AL teams the Sox are definitely better than are
Baltimore and Texas. The White Sox are really, really quite terrible. They went
72-90 last year, should've been 67-95, and didn't really get any better when you
factor in age, losing starting pitching, and Joe Crede still sucks at baseball.

I really don't think that the White Sox are as bad as you make them out to be, yes they had a rough season last year, but I believe that they let the World Series get to their heads a little bit and lost focus. As for there being no chance that the White Sox and Mariners will have better records then you're A's…we will just have to wait and see, but you can't sit here and tell me that the White Sox losing starting pitching will hurt them, but you losing starting pitching will not affect you at all. But that is why sports are so great, we can have these fun disagreements and still enjoy the games, and make fun of each other when we prove the other wrong.

Speaking of being proven wrong….

A man that is a part of the Coast 2 Coast Sports Report along side me, Ken Schmidt writes: If the As are better than the Mariners this season I'll run up the Rocky steps
naked. Not gonna happen.

Rizz I think I am gonna just write on your comments section on a daily basis,
its much more fun. Plus I have to make sure you yankees fans stay in line and
don't overhype Joba the Hutt

Well I for one would not want to see that in person, but I think a friendly wager between two 411 writesr could be fun, and I am here to try and get that started.

Speaking of wagers….for those of you that do not listen to our podcast…which I don't think any of you do, but should. Ken and I had a little wager of our own for March Madness this year, unfortunately for me, Ken was absolutely right in my underestimating Kansas, and it bit me in the ass in the end. There for I am here to do my part of the bet:

Ken Schmidt knows more about sports then me. I bow to his knowledge, and only hope to learn from him in the future.

God that is tough to type. Oh well, I'll just have to get him back when football pick'em season rolls around.

With that out of the way, let's get to the real reason why you clicked on my article in the first place…my rankings:




Moving on up: Baltimore Orioles – Up 11

Moving down: Detroit Tigers – Down 20

2008 Power Rankings: Week 2
Rank (LW)		Team	Record	L10	Comment
	1 (11)	Milwaukee Brewers	5-1	5-1	The Brewers take the huge leap to the top this week as they seemed to be the only team going into the season with good expectations that actually answered them. With most of the other teams in the top ten struggling, and the Brewers winning their series against the Cubs before embarrassing a terrible Giants team, Milwaukee gets the top spot this week. Next weekend they head to New York in an opportunity to prove that they belong up here. Ben Sheets has yet to allow a run in 15 1/3 innings while the offense has looked strong early, things are looking up in Milwaukee. Games This Week: April 8-10: vs. Cincinnati; April 11-13: at New York Mets
	2 (3)	Boston Red Sox	3-4	3-4	The trip to Japan has hurt the Red Sox early, but I am not going to put it against the team in the rankings. The Red Sox are still undefeated in the United States, unfortunately they have played five games out of the United States where they are 1-4. Boston has a rough week coming up with three games against the Tigers who will be looking to finally get their first win of they year before hosting the much hated Yankees this weekend. Games This Week: April 8-10: vs. Detroit; April 11-13: vs. New York Yankees
	3 (6)	Chicago Cubs	3-3	3-3	The record just doesn't show just how much things are looking up in Chicago. Zambrano already has two quality starts, getting the win in his second attempt, Fukudome has become a fan favorite with his clutch hitting and Kerry Wood may have faltered in his first appearance of the year, but already has three saves. Every time a pitcher is able to make it seven innings for the Cubbies, you have to expect them to win the game as Marmol and Wood have proven early on to be one of the best 1-2 punch to end the game in the National League. Games This Week: April 7, 9-10: at Pittsburgh; April 11-13: at Philadelphia
	4 (2)	New York Mets	2-3	2-3	The 2-3 start is not what bothers me about the Mets, it is the fact that my prediction of several injuries creating havoc to this team has already begun. Pedro Martinez not only got roughed up by the Marlins in his first start, but he strained his left hamstring and will miss six weeks. Add this first week injury to a short series sweep against the division rival Atlanta Braves and you have to worry about the Mets early on this season. Games This Week: April 8-10: vs. Philadelphia; April 11-13: vs. Milwaukee
	5 (5)	Los Angeles Angeles	4-3	4-3	The Angels have started the season with their two top starters on the DL, but they are fighting through it. It will be interesting to see how the team performs when finally at full strength, but the fact that their main competition in the division, the Seattle Mariners, have struggled as well. Games This Week: April 7-9 vs. Cleveland; April 11-13: at Seattle
	6 (9)	Arizona Diamondbacks	4-2	4-2	After struggling against the Reds, Arizona bounced back to sweep the Colorado Rockies and currently find themselves tied for first in the NL West with their next opponents, the Los Angeles Dodgers. In most cases I would not make a big deal about leading a division after the first week, but in the NL West, where four of the five teams are so closely matched, getting a good start is crucial. Games This Week: April 7-9: vs. Los Angeles Dodgers; April 11-13: vs. Colorado
	7 (12)	Los Angeles Dodgers	4-2	4-2	Joe Torre has got this team playing well again, and he is doing it with solid pitching. Other then one game this season, the Dodgers have not allowed more then two runs, and when you are only giving up two runs a game there is a pretty good chance that you are going to win the game. Opponents are only batting .219 against them so far this season, and that along with a few young players stepping it up is the perfect formula for a playoff run. Games This Week: April 7-9: at Arizona; April 11-13: vs. San Diego
	8 (7)	New York Yankees	3-3	3-3	The slow start should be to little surprise to most Yankee fans, in fact New York has only finished above .500 in the month of April once in the past three seasons. Add that to the fact that they always seem to have their hands full with the young Rays squad and their 3-3 start could actually be looked at as an improvement instead of just .500. The only thing that concerns me still is the fact that Mike Mussina looked shaky in his first start and Ian Kennedy did not open his season off well. They need both of these pitchers to perform this season if they are going to keep up with some of the top teams in the American League. Games This Week: April 7: vs Tampa Bay; April 8-10: at Kansas City; April 11-13: at Boston
	9 (4)	Philadelphia Phillies	2-4	2-4	Pitching is killing this ballclub early on this season, giving up seven or more runs three times already, including 11 in their season opener with the Washington Nationals. The lineup is stacked, and is performing just as well as they should be, and in Chase Utley's case above the call of duty at times. However, they can not be looked upon to give you seven or eight runs a game; you are just not going to win very many games when you put your offense on the spot like that. Utley seems to be poised for a career year, and it may get wasted if the pitching cannot step it up. Games This Week: April 7: at Cincinnati; April 8-10: at New York Mets; April 11-13: vs Chicago Cubs
	10 (15)	Toronto Blue Jays	4-2	4-2	Off to a surprising start, the Blue Jays are performing like many baseball followers believed they would have last season. The sweep of the Red Sox was a shock, but not as much as the 23 runs they scored in the three games to do so. With a starting rotation centered on solid pitchers like Roy Halladay and AJ Burnett, 23 runs in three games, even against the defending champions, is enough to feel comfortable about. Games This Week: April 8-10: vs. Oakland; April 11-13: at Texas
	11 (8)	Cleveland Indians	3-3	3-3	Cleveland went through an early stretch where they lost three games in a row, their win Sunday may have turned them in the right direction but a series with the Los Angeles looms ahead and will be the first real test for a Cleveland team who might not be ready to actually be thought of as a favorite. Games This Week: April 7-9: at Los Angeles Angels; April 11-13: vs Oakland
	12 (13)	Atlanta Braves	3-3	3-3	After a rough 1-3 start, the Braves were able to get a mini series sweep against the Mets. With a 10-game road trip coming up, Atlanta will need to stay focused because they should be able to come out with at least a 7-3 record as long as they play the type of game they are accustomed. However, any sort of slip could have the Braves looking up at the Phillies and Mets in their division and that is not a place you want to be, even if it is still the first month of the year. Games This Week: April 7-10 at Colorado; April 11-13: at Washington
	13 (18)	San Diego Padres	4-3	4-3	Led by Jake Peavy, the Padres' pitching staff has the best batting average against in the National league, but they are giving up too many runs. It is tough to imagine, but a team that is only allowing their opponents to bat .188 against them actually has more runs scored against them then they have produced this season. Peavy seems to be a front runner for the Cy Young award however and needs to continue his winning ways if San Diego wants to be a threat in the West. Games This Week: April 7-9: at San Francisco; April 11-13: at LA Dodgers
	14 (19)	Chicago White Sox	4-2	4-2	Chicago has actually won their last four games, including a sweep of the Detroit Tigers. I'm still unsure of their future in 2008, but if they want to make a run at the playoffs, they could not have asked for a better start against the talent they have faced already. Games This Week: April 7, 9-10: vs. Minnesota; April 11-13: vs. Detroit
	15 (23)	St. Louis Cardinals	5-1	5-1	The Cardinals are the hottest team around, winning their last five games, and they have to look no farther then their pitching to understand why. Other then the Dodgers, St. Louis has allowed the fewest runs thus far (13) and already have two shutouts. Add that in with Rick Ankiel already jacking three home runs and knocking in six runs and you have a team off to a very hot start. Games This Week: April 7-9: at Houston; April 10-13: at San Francisco
	16 (20)	Tampa Bay Rays	3-2	3-2	The young Rays have always given the Yankees fits, and they have started the 2008 season doing just that. There is a lot to be excited about if you are a Rays fan, unfortunately there just doesn't seem to be very many of you out there to enjoy it. Games This Week: April 7: at New York Yankees; April 8-10: vs. Seattle; April 11-13: vs. Baltimore
	17 (28)	Baltimore Orioles	4-1	4-1	Who has the best record in the American League? That is right, the Baltimore Orioles, and they have completed this feat by winning their last four games, including a come from behind victory against the Seattle Mariners on Sunday. This might be as high as this team ever gets in my power rankings, so enjoy it while you can. Games This Week: April 7: vs. Seattle; April 8-10: at Texas; April 11-13: at Tampa Bay
	18 (14)	Seattle Mariners	2-4	2-4	Felix Hernandez has returned to King Felix in his first two starts, allowing only 10 hits and one unearned run in two starts while striking out nine, so what is the problem? He still has a 0-0 record this season. Hernandez can not do it all, and the fact that he gave his team eight solid innings and left the game with a 2-0 lead only to sit on the bench and watch as Mark Lowe, the replacement closer while JJ Putz heals, gave up the game winning run in the bottom of the ninth to lose the game. Games This Week: April 7: at Baltimore; April 8-10: at Tampa Bay; April 11-13: vs. Los Angeles Angels
	19 (17)	Washington Nationals	3-4	3-4	Washington started off strong, winning three in a row against two tough opponents, only to watch it all go down the tube. The Nationals have lost four in a row, three of which were only by one run, and find themselves searching for that little extra that they seemed to have in the first three games, but lost in the last four. Games This Week: April 7, 9-10: vs. Florida; April 11-13: vs. Atlanta
	20 (21)	Cincinnati Reds	4-2	4-2	The Cincinnati Reds pitching staff might actually be good for the first time in many many seasons, if that is actually the case, then the Reds will be contenders in the Central division. Games This Week: April 7: vs. Philadelphia; April 8-10: at Milwaukee; April 11-13: at Pittsburgh
	21 (1)	Detroit Tigers	0-6	0-6	There are a few rules that you need to learn about my power rankings. First, if you get swept by the Kansas City Royals…you get dropped out of the top 10. Secondly, if you get swept by the Kansas City Royals and the Chicago White Sox in the same week, you drop out of the top 20. Games This Week: April 8-10: at Boston; April 11-13: at Chicago White Sox
	22 (10)	Colorado Rockies	1-5	1-5	The defending National League champions are off to a very rocky start (pardon the pun), and the 20-5 drubbing that the D'Backs gave them in their latest series has proven just that. I said in week one that if the Rockies wanted to make the postseason again, they could not rely on winning 20 of 21 like they did last season to make it. Well at this rate, that is exactly what they would need to do. Add in the fact that they have two tough series this week, and the Rockies could actually find themselves five or six games out of first place in just two short weeks. Games This Week: April 7-10: vs. Atlanta; April 11-13: at Arizona
	23 (16)	Houston Astros	2-5	2-5	The only thing that really interests me about this ballclub is the fact that they have already been involved in four one-run games this season. Unfortunately, they are 1-3 in those games, but at least they keep it close for their fans. Games This Week: April 7-9: vs. St. Louis; April 11-13: vs. Florida
	24 (24)	Oakland Athletics	3-4	3-4	Oakland A's fans rejoice, you took two of three from the Indians….now that this week when you go to Cleveland and you will move up. Games This Week: April 8-10: at Toronto; April 11-13: at Cleveland
	25 (29)	Kansas City Royals	4-2	4-2	Oh how I wanted to put this team as my number one. All they had to do was sweep the Twins like they swept the Tigers and I would have done it in a heartbeat. Instead they actually lost the series, and in turn were kept in the 20s. Games This Week: April 8-10: vs. New York Yankees; April 11-13: at Minnesota
	26 (25)	Texas Rangers	3-3	3-3	The Texas Rangers are going to go 81-81 this season…how do I know that you ask? Easy, go look at their results so far…..see a pattern? L,W,L,W,L,W…yup…that will keep up through the rest of the 156 games they have to play. The Rangers will be the easiest team to bet on, just look at what they did the previous game and bet the opposite, you can donate part of your winnings to me if you want. April 8-10: vs. Baltimore; April 11-13: vs. Toronto
	27 (30)	Florida Marlins	3-3	3-3	I gave the Marlins a realistic chance of winning 55 games this season, so a 3-3 start impresses me so I will move them up this week. April 7, 9-10: at Washington; April 11-13: at Houston
	28 (22)	Minnesota Twins	3-4	3-4	The Twins ended the undefeated record of the mighty Kansas City Royals, but that wasn't enough to keep Minnesota ahead of a few teams that I had ranked below them that had pretty solid starts. The Twins really didn't do poorly this past week, but they still drop, maybe I'll make it up to them later this season. Games This Week: April 7, April 9-10: at Chicago White Sox; April 11-13: at Kansas City
	29 (27)	Pittsburgh Pirates	3-3	3-3	Like Minnesota, the Pirates didn't do horrible, but the fact that they lost two of three to the Marlins will make them the 2nd worst team in the league this week. Games This Week: April 7, 9-10: vs. Chicago Cubs; April 11-13: vs. Cincinnati
	30 (26)	San Francisco Giants	1-5	1-5	San Francisco gave up 25 runs in only three games against the Brewers in their latest series. Unless Barry Bonds had a secret pitching talent that nobody knew about, nobody in San Francisco can blame Bonds leaving as to why this team is so horrible. Games This Week: April 7-10: vs. San Diego; April 10-13: vs. St. Louis