Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2010 14:40:47 GMT -5
After a disappointing 2-4 start, the Colorado Rockies found themselves down 5-0 with two outs in the eighth inning in Saturday’s game against the San Diego Padres. Chris Young had pitched seven sparkling innings and hit a home run as the Padres were ready to take the series in Colorado and send the Rockies spiraling down the competitive NL West.
Then Todd Helton singled off Adam Russell, and Troy Tulowitzki singled, and the bases were loaded. Sean Gallagher was called upon and promptly walked Ian Stewart. Chris Ianetta hit next and smashed a Gallagher pitch deep into the left field bleachers and the Rockies had finally shown signs of life.
Their bullpen pitched five shutout innings, Brad Hawpe hit a bases loaded trickler into no-man’s land in the tenth, and the Rockies’ offensive mojo came alive to the tune of 43 runs over their 5-1 week.
With the D-Backs and Giants also winning seven games over the initial two weeks of the season, the NL West will have company atop the PBL Power rankings.
1) New York Yankees:
After smacking around the best the AL East had to offer, the Yankees spent the second week of the season slapping around the best of the AL West, taking two of three from the Angels, and the first two of a series with Texas. They have the best record in baseball at 9-2, a feat made more impressive by their strength of schedule.
The Yanks are near the top of the leader board of nearly every statistical category. C.C Sabbathia’s 3-0, 2.16 start, combined with Javy Vazquez’ miniscule 0.55 ERA have the Yankees second in starters’ ERA. But their bullpen has been even better, with a miniscule 1.17 ERA.
There’s domination, and then the Yankees’ start.
2) San Francisco Giants:
They say pitching wins championships, so the rest of the NL should give up now. Four Giants starters have ERA’s at 2.70 or less, while Jonathan Sanchez is bringing up the rear with a very solid 3.38 ERA, and an exceptional 1.13 WHIP. With a balanced staff of righties, lefties, youngsters, veterans, power pitchers and finesse, it’ll be near impossible for opponents to string together multiple games of productive offense against the Giants.
3) Colorado Rockies:
Just how deep are the Rockies? Ryan Spilborghs and Troy Glaus each cracked two home runs on Thursday against the Mets. Those two guys don’t even start.
Their hitters hit for power, they have a roster flooded with exceptional defensive players (Brad Hawpe and Ian Stewart not withstanding), and they feature an electric bullpen with Rafael Betancourt, Matt Lindstrom, and Franklin Morales setting up Huston Street.
4) Philadelphia Phillies:
The Phillies can slug the baseball. Chase Utley has smashed five home runs, Jayson Werth four, and Ryan Howard three to start the season, with Carlos Ruiz contributing a .450 average and 13 RBI from the eight spot in the order.
The Phillies have needed to slug the ball around. Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt have pitched better since their dual opening series meltdowns, but they haven’t registered a win, while Cole Hamels will be out for a couple of months with a bad rotator cuff.
5) Arizona Diamondbacks:
The D-Backs are on the up-and Upton, thanks to B.J.’s .490 on base percentage, and 13 runs, with Justin Upton only leading the majors in home runs and RBI’s. Edwin Jackson’s done a nice job with an ERA of 1.69, while Wade Davis followed up his three hit shutout over the Padres with a four-hit, one-run performance in a win over the Dodgers. If the D-Backs can hold things together, the return of Brandon Webb in two weeks will have Arizona challenging in the deep NL West.
6) Oakland Athletics:
The A’s have done nice things with their singles-hitting offense, churning out 62 runs with only nine homers. Rajai Davis has nine steals atop the A’s lineup, and every regular has at least five RBI except cleanup man Jack Cust. Meanwhile, Brett Anderson, Justin Duchscherer, and a resurgent Ben Sheets have formed a nice trio at the front end of Oakland’s rotation. We’ll see if the A’s are for real when they host the Yankees and Indians next week.
7) Boston Red Sox:
After allowing 30 runs in three games against the Royals, the Red Sox pitching finally settled in, allowing only 15 runs in five games against the Twins and Rays. Josh Becket bounced back from two disastrous starts to two-hit Tampa Bay, while Jon Lester’s 8.1 scoreless innings against the Twins has made it 15 innings without a run to start the season.
8) Cleveland Indians:
Travis Hafner and the Shin-Soo Choo-Choo train have each knocked out four home runs to start the season, fueling a surprisingly strong 7-4 start to the season. With the acquisition of Yovani Gallardo the Indians will have two big ticket pitchers anchoring their rotation. Will they get enough pitching and lineup depth to augment their stars?
9) New York Mets:
The Mets have come back to Earth after their hot start, getting pummeled out in Denver and splitting the first two of a series with the Cardinals. Jonathan Niese and Mike Pelfrey have been solid, but the rest of the starters have been lit up, especially Oliver Perez who hasn’t pitched more than three innings in two starts. Their offense is firing on all cylinders though, keeping the team tied atop the NL East.
10) Cincinnati Reds:
Add one part smoke, two parts mirrors, and sprinkle in a touch of Brandon Phillips, and you too can own the Cincinnati Reds’ 8-4 start. There’s a strong possibility that Micah Owings will not finish the year with an ERA of 1.15, and Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang are as flaky as they come.
On the plus side though, the Reds will play the Dodgers, Padres, and Astros next—struggling teams that could give the Reds’ pitching staff some confidence going into the meat of the season.
Interesting numbers: Scott Rolen has reached base over half his plate appearances (.521 OBP), yet has only four runs scoreed, despite Ramon Hernandez hitting behind him with 14 RBI.
11) Milwaukee Brewers:
Yes, trading Yovani Gallardo may have been the right move. But after a dominant start to the season (2-0, 1.96), the Brewers could have held on to him until the all-star break and found out whether or not they could’ve made a run in the NL Central. They’ve lost their ace, after dealing away one of the game’s premier sluggers in Prince Fielder. The Pirates and Cubs comprise most of the month’s schedule so the Brewers should stay above .500, but expect the team’s hot start to be a mirage.
12) Tampa Bay Rays:
The Rays have drawn a ton of walks this season, they just haven’t been able to cash in on all the base runners. The other problem has been the pitching. Jair Jurrjens and Dan Haren have acquainted themselves nicely to Tampa, but David Price, Matt Garza, and James Shields haven’t found their sea legs.
They’ve lost all five games to the Red Sox and Yankees. Fortunately after Monday, they won’t see the two teams for another month.
13) Kansas City Royals:
It’s not a surprise to see that Kansas City’s pitching staff is keeping them in every start. Who would have thought that the Royals would be the league leaders in runs scored?
The Royals have taken two of three from Boston and four of six from Detroit on the road to a 7-4 opening to the season. Of course the team doesn’t score runs for Zach Grienke, who’s 1-2 despite a sparkling ERA, but Bryan Bulington and Brian Bannister picked up the slack on the road trip with Bullington allowing three runs in seven innings to help defeat the Twins, and Bannister allowing an unearned run in eight innings in a win over Detroit.
14) Chicago Cubs:
The Cubs are at the bottom of nearly every major pitching category, and their hitting has been good but not great.
Why are they 7-4?
A 3-0 record in one-run games certainly helps. Despite allowing two runs in the ninth last Tuesday to blow a two-run lead to the Brewers, and allowing two runs in the 11th to fall behind by two, the Cubs pulled out a win on a three-run walk off shot by Tyler Colvin.
They used small ball to beat the Brewers during their next game, with Kosuke Fukudome singling to start the ninth, being sacrificed over by Ryan Theriot, and scoring on a single by Chad Tracy.
Saturday, again they blew a lead in the ninth, only to win in the 12th when Pedro Feliz’ two-base error put runners on second and third, before Tracy came up again with a game-winning hit.
If the Cubbies haven’t shown anything from their bullpen, they have shown plenty of heart.
15) Florida Marlins:
The Marlins have been a great team from innings one-eight. It’s the pesky ninth that has caused them problems. Leo Nunez blew two saves the opening week of the year, and with a lead in the ninth on Saturday, surrendered a walk off three run home run to Chase Utley. Florida’s team ERA is sixth in the National League, making Nunez’ struggles that much more damning.
16) Seattle Mariners:
After a rough start, the Mariners took the final game of their opening week series with Oakland, took two of three in Texas, two of three at home against Oakland, and have split the first two contests against the Tigers.
Brandon League has done a nice job at closer with four saves and 7.2 scoreless innings to begin the year.
17) Detroit Tigers:
The Tigers have spent their April being Kansas City’s whipping boy, as their hitters have been stymied by all the good pitching they’ve seen. They’ve scored one, four, and one run the last three games against Brian Bannister, Felix Hernandez, and Ian Snell respectively.
Fortunately for the Tigers, their own pitching has been sharp with Justin Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman each possessing ERA’s under two. That should allow the team to weather its offensive drought.
18) Texas Rangers:
Well, that didn’t last long. The Rangers fell back to the pack losing four of their first five road games of the season in Cleveland and New York. Rich Harden and Scott Feldman have thrown the ball well, but their efforts haven’t been matched by the rest of the staff.
Vladimir Guerrero also found the going tougher with Elvis Andrus on the DL. Three of the top five hitters in their lineup are hitting under .200.
19) Chicago White Sox:
After stumbling out of the gates, Chicago has steadied its course by winning five of their last eight games. Now the real tests begin. They finish up in Cleveland before hosting Tampa Bay and Seattle, leading to a road trip to Arlington and The Bronx.
20) Los Angeles Angels:
The Angels’ staff has been rocked to start the season, with Joe Saunders, and the front-line relief pitching being the only exceptions. Their offense has produced, particularly Kendry Morales, whose five homers and 17 RBI’s are tops in the AL. There’s too much talent for the Angels to play .333 baseball for too much longer.
21) Minnesota Twins:
The Twins would be over .500 if not for a slowey start for Kevin Slowey, whose 8.82 ERA is worst among AL pitchers who have made three starts. Their offense hasn’t clicked either, with the Twins tied for the fewest home runs in the AL, and tied for the second fewest doubles.
22) San Diego Padres:
The team’s vaunted bullpen was roughed up against the Rockies, and aside from Adrian Gonzalez, nobody’s hitting. They have a big rubber game against Arizona and the unhittable Wade Davis, before hosting the Giants’ nuclear arms, followed by a trip to Cincinnati. If they aren’t careful, they could be buried in the NL West by May.
23) Houston Astros:
The Astros are dead last in nearly every offensive category. Aside from Bud Norris, their pitching staff has been ordinary. Yet the team is a respectable 5-6 based on a solid bullpen anchored by Brandon Lyon who has converted four of his five save opportunities this year. That bullpen has Houston going 5-1 in one-run games, like Thursday’s 5-4 win over St. Louis where the bullpen allowed only a hit in 3.1 innings, preserving a win for Felipe Paulino.
24) St. Louis Cardinals:
They don’t just lose games in the ninth inning anymore. Now they lose in the eighth, or the fifth, or even the first, like when Jaime Garcia surrendered a three-run first inning blast to Jason Bay on Friday and the Cardinals couldn’t come back.
If they’re having trouble with the Astros’ starters, what will happen when they face the D-Backs and Giants next week?
25) Los Angeles Dodgers:
After winning two of three against the Pirates, the Dodgers have gone 1-8 against Florida, Arizona, and San Francisco. Their starters have an ERA over eight, and the bottom of their lineup has given them limited production. The Dodgers are already five games behind San Francisco. Fortunately for them their schedule lightens up with Cincinnati, Washington, New York, Pittsburgh, and Milwaukee their next opponents.
26) Washington Nationals
Have the Nationals really been better than Baltimore and Toronto? Maybe not. But do Baltimore and Toronto have a player that has hit for the cycle like Nick Johnson has? The Nats are actually the leaders in runs scored in the National League, too bad John Lannan is their ace, and Jason Bergmann has allowed 10 runs in 2.2 innings.
27) Baltimore Orioles:
The Orioles get this spot by virtue of their taking two of three over Toronto. They’ve scored some runs to start the season, but their already thin rotation will get stretched even farther after the news that Kevin Millwood will miss a month and a half with shoulder problems. The good news is that the Orioles will be able to call up prospect Jake Arietta and continue their youth movement with Brian Matusz and Chris Tillman already in the bigs.
28) Toronto Blue Jays:
If only all of their players were Aaramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano. They’ve smashed the ball around, and Carlos Zambrano has been effective, but there have been so many holes in their pitching staff that it hasn’t mattered. They’re 4-8 and they haven’t faced any of the AL East’s big three.
29) Atlanta Braves:
They haven’t topped the four-run mark their past eight games, all against NL West pitching staffs. Kris Medlan, Derrick Lowe, and Tim Hudson have combined to go 0-6 in seven starts, with an ERA of nine. Billy Wagner will be out for four months with ulnar nerve irritation. Just to make matters worse, Stephen Strasburg has an ERA over seven in AAA. Their power hitters are producing, but their table setters aren’t getting on. A tough start for a team that isn’t sure if it’s rebuilding or simply retooling.
30) Pittsburgh Pirates:
What do the Pirates do well? Their pitchers don’t walk many players, and don’t allow many home runs. Oh, and Garret Jones is a competent power bat. At least their minor league system is ranked sixth in Baseball America. Help is on the way—just not this season.
Then Todd Helton singled off Adam Russell, and Troy Tulowitzki singled, and the bases were loaded. Sean Gallagher was called upon and promptly walked Ian Stewart. Chris Ianetta hit next and smashed a Gallagher pitch deep into the left field bleachers and the Rockies had finally shown signs of life.
Their bullpen pitched five shutout innings, Brad Hawpe hit a bases loaded trickler into no-man’s land in the tenth, and the Rockies’ offensive mojo came alive to the tune of 43 runs over their 5-1 week.
With the D-Backs and Giants also winning seven games over the initial two weeks of the season, the NL West will have company atop the PBL Power rankings.
1) New York Yankees:
After smacking around the best the AL East had to offer, the Yankees spent the second week of the season slapping around the best of the AL West, taking two of three from the Angels, and the first two of a series with Texas. They have the best record in baseball at 9-2, a feat made more impressive by their strength of schedule.
The Yanks are near the top of the leader board of nearly every statistical category. C.C Sabbathia’s 3-0, 2.16 start, combined with Javy Vazquez’ miniscule 0.55 ERA have the Yankees second in starters’ ERA. But their bullpen has been even better, with a miniscule 1.17 ERA.
There’s domination, and then the Yankees’ start.
2) San Francisco Giants:
They say pitching wins championships, so the rest of the NL should give up now. Four Giants starters have ERA’s at 2.70 or less, while Jonathan Sanchez is bringing up the rear with a very solid 3.38 ERA, and an exceptional 1.13 WHIP. With a balanced staff of righties, lefties, youngsters, veterans, power pitchers and finesse, it’ll be near impossible for opponents to string together multiple games of productive offense against the Giants.
3) Colorado Rockies:
Just how deep are the Rockies? Ryan Spilborghs and Troy Glaus each cracked two home runs on Thursday against the Mets. Those two guys don’t even start.
Their hitters hit for power, they have a roster flooded with exceptional defensive players (Brad Hawpe and Ian Stewart not withstanding), and they feature an electric bullpen with Rafael Betancourt, Matt Lindstrom, and Franklin Morales setting up Huston Street.
4) Philadelphia Phillies:
The Phillies can slug the baseball. Chase Utley has smashed five home runs, Jayson Werth four, and Ryan Howard three to start the season, with Carlos Ruiz contributing a .450 average and 13 RBI from the eight spot in the order.
The Phillies have needed to slug the ball around. Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt have pitched better since their dual opening series meltdowns, but they haven’t registered a win, while Cole Hamels will be out for a couple of months with a bad rotator cuff.
5) Arizona Diamondbacks:
The D-Backs are on the up-and Upton, thanks to B.J.’s .490 on base percentage, and 13 runs, with Justin Upton only leading the majors in home runs and RBI’s. Edwin Jackson’s done a nice job with an ERA of 1.69, while Wade Davis followed up his three hit shutout over the Padres with a four-hit, one-run performance in a win over the Dodgers. If the D-Backs can hold things together, the return of Brandon Webb in two weeks will have Arizona challenging in the deep NL West.
6) Oakland Athletics:
The A’s have done nice things with their singles-hitting offense, churning out 62 runs with only nine homers. Rajai Davis has nine steals atop the A’s lineup, and every regular has at least five RBI except cleanup man Jack Cust. Meanwhile, Brett Anderson, Justin Duchscherer, and a resurgent Ben Sheets have formed a nice trio at the front end of Oakland’s rotation. We’ll see if the A’s are for real when they host the Yankees and Indians next week.
7) Boston Red Sox:
After allowing 30 runs in three games against the Royals, the Red Sox pitching finally settled in, allowing only 15 runs in five games against the Twins and Rays. Josh Becket bounced back from two disastrous starts to two-hit Tampa Bay, while Jon Lester’s 8.1 scoreless innings against the Twins has made it 15 innings without a run to start the season.
8) Cleveland Indians:
Travis Hafner and the Shin-Soo Choo-Choo train have each knocked out four home runs to start the season, fueling a surprisingly strong 7-4 start to the season. With the acquisition of Yovani Gallardo the Indians will have two big ticket pitchers anchoring their rotation. Will they get enough pitching and lineup depth to augment their stars?
9) New York Mets:
The Mets have come back to Earth after their hot start, getting pummeled out in Denver and splitting the first two of a series with the Cardinals. Jonathan Niese and Mike Pelfrey have been solid, but the rest of the starters have been lit up, especially Oliver Perez who hasn’t pitched more than three innings in two starts. Their offense is firing on all cylinders though, keeping the team tied atop the NL East.
10) Cincinnati Reds:
Add one part smoke, two parts mirrors, and sprinkle in a touch of Brandon Phillips, and you too can own the Cincinnati Reds’ 8-4 start. There’s a strong possibility that Micah Owings will not finish the year with an ERA of 1.15, and Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang are as flaky as they come.
On the plus side though, the Reds will play the Dodgers, Padres, and Astros next—struggling teams that could give the Reds’ pitching staff some confidence going into the meat of the season.
Interesting numbers: Scott Rolen has reached base over half his plate appearances (.521 OBP), yet has only four runs scoreed, despite Ramon Hernandez hitting behind him with 14 RBI.
11) Milwaukee Brewers:
Yes, trading Yovani Gallardo may have been the right move. But after a dominant start to the season (2-0, 1.96), the Brewers could have held on to him until the all-star break and found out whether or not they could’ve made a run in the NL Central. They’ve lost their ace, after dealing away one of the game’s premier sluggers in Prince Fielder. The Pirates and Cubs comprise most of the month’s schedule so the Brewers should stay above .500, but expect the team’s hot start to be a mirage.
12) Tampa Bay Rays:
The Rays have drawn a ton of walks this season, they just haven’t been able to cash in on all the base runners. The other problem has been the pitching. Jair Jurrjens and Dan Haren have acquainted themselves nicely to Tampa, but David Price, Matt Garza, and James Shields haven’t found their sea legs.
They’ve lost all five games to the Red Sox and Yankees. Fortunately after Monday, they won’t see the two teams for another month.
13) Kansas City Royals:
It’s not a surprise to see that Kansas City’s pitching staff is keeping them in every start. Who would have thought that the Royals would be the league leaders in runs scored?
The Royals have taken two of three from Boston and four of six from Detroit on the road to a 7-4 opening to the season. Of course the team doesn’t score runs for Zach Grienke, who’s 1-2 despite a sparkling ERA, but Bryan Bulington and Brian Bannister picked up the slack on the road trip with Bullington allowing three runs in seven innings to help defeat the Twins, and Bannister allowing an unearned run in eight innings in a win over Detroit.
14) Chicago Cubs:
The Cubs are at the bottom of nearly every major pitching category, and their hitting has been good but not great.
Why are they 7-4?
A 3-0 record in one-run games certainly helps. Despite allowing two runs in the ninth last Tuesday to blow a two-run lead to the Brewers, and allowing two runs in the 11th to fall behind by two, the Cubs pulled out a win on a three-run walk off shot by Tyler Colvin.
They used small ball to beat the Brewers during their next game, with Kosuke Fukudome singling to start the ninth, being sacrificed over by Ryan Theriot, and scoring on a single by Chad Tracy.
Saturday, again they blew a lead in the ninth, only to win in the 12th when Pedro Feliz’ two-base error put runners on second and third, before Tracy came up again with a game-winning hit.
If the Cubbies haven’t shown anything from their bullpen, they have shown plenty of heart.
15) Florida Marlins:
The Marlins have been a great team from innings one-eight. It’s the pesky ninth that has caused them problems. Leo Nunez blew two saves the opening week of the year, and with a lead in the ninth on Saturday, surrendered a walk off three run home run to Chase Utley. Florida’s team ERA is sixth in the National League, making Nunez’ struggles that much more damning.
16) Seattle Mariners:
After a rough start, the Mariners took the final game of their opening week series with Oakland, took two of three in Texas, two of three at home against Oakland, and have split the first two contests against the Tigers.
Brandon League has done a nice job at closer with four saves and 7.2 scoreless innings to begin the year.
17) Detroit Tigers:
The Tigers have spent their April being Kansas City’s whipping boy, as their hitters have been stymied by all the good pitching they’ve seen. They’ve scored one, four, and one run the last three games against Brian Bannister, Felix Hernandez, and Ian Snell respectively.
Fortunately for the Tigers, their own pitching has been sharp with Justin Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman each possessing ERA’s under two. That should allow the team to weather its offensive drought.
18) Texas Rangers:
Well, that didn’t last long. The Rangers fell back to the pack losing four of their first five road games of the season in Cleveland and New York. Rich Harden and Scott Feldman have thrown the ball well, but their efforts haven’t been matched by the rest of the staff.
Vladimir Guerrero also found the going tougher with Elvis Andrus on the DL. Three of the top five hitters in their lineup are hitting under .200.
19) Chicago White Sox:
After stumbling out of the gates, Chicago has steadied its course by winning five of their last eight games. Now the real tests begin. They finish up in Cleveland before hosting Tampa Bay and Seattle, leading to a road trip to Arlington and The Bronx.
20) Los Angeles Angels:
The Angels’ staff has been rocked to start the season, with Joe Saunders, and the front-line relief pitching being the only exceptions. Their offense has produced, particularly Kendry Morales, whose five homers and 17 RBI’s are tops in the AL. There’s too much talent for the Angels to play .333 baseball for too much longer.
21) Minnesota Twins:
The Twins would be over .500 if not for a slowey start for Kevin Slowey, whose 8.82 ERA is worst among AL pitchers who have made three starts. Their offense hasn’t clicked either, with the Twins tied for the fewest home runs in the AL, and tied for the second fewest doubles.
22) San Diego Padres:
The team’s vaunted bullpen was roughed up against the Rockies, and aside from Adrian Gonzalez, nobody’s hitting. They have a big rubber game against Arizona and the unhittable Wade Davis, before hosting the Giants’ nuclear arms, followed by a trip to Cincinnati. If they aren’t careful, they could be buried in the NL West by May.
23) Houston Astros:
The Astros are dead last in nearly every offensive category. Aside from Bud Norris, their pitching staff has been ordinary. Yet the team is a respectable 5-6 based on a solid bullpen anchored by Brandon Lyon who has converted four of his five save opportunities this year. That bullpen has Houston going 5-1 in one-run games, like Thursday’s 5-4 win over St. Louis where the bullpen allowed only a hit in 3.1 innings, preserving a win for Felipe Paulino.
24) St. Louis Cardinals:
They don’t just lose games in the ninth inning anymore. Now they lose in the eighth, or the fifth, or even the first, like when Jaime Garcia surrendered a three-run first inning blast to Jason Bay on Friday and the Cardinals couldn’t come back.
If they’re having trouble with the Astros’ starters, what will happen when they face the D-Backs and Giants next week?
25) Los Angeles Dodgers:
After winning two of three against the Pirates, the Dodgers have gone 1-8 against Florida, Arizona, and San Francisco. Their starters have an ERA over eight, and the bottom of their lineup has given them limited production. The Dodgers are already five games behind San Francisco. Fortunately for them their schedule lightens up with Cincinnati, Washington, New York, Pittsburgh, and Milwaukee their next opponents.
26) Washington Nationals
Have the Nationals really been better than Baltimore and Toronto? Maybe not. But do Baltimore and Toronto have a player that has hit for the cycle like Nick Johnson has? The Nats are actually the leaders in runs scored in the National League, too bad John Lannan is their ace, and Jason Bergmann has allowed 10 runs in 2.2 innings.
27) Baltimore Orioles:
The Orioles get this spot by virtue of their taking two of three over Toronto. They’ve scored some runs to start the season, but their already thin rotation will get stretched even farther after the news that Kevin Millwood will miss a month and a half with shoulder problems. The good news is that the Orioles will be able to call up prospect Jake Arietta and continue their youth movement with Brian Matusz and Chris Tillman already in the bigs.
28) Toronto Blue Jays:
If only all of their players were Aaramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano. They’ve smashed the ball around, and Carlos Zambrano has been effective, but there have been so many holes in their pitching staff that it hasn’t mattered. They’re 4-8 and they haven’t faced any of the AL East’s big three.
29) Atlanta Braves:
They haven’t topped the four-run mark their past eight games, all against NL West pitching staffs. Kris Medlan, Derrick Lowe, and Tim Hudson have combined to go 0-6 in seven starts, with an ERA of nine. Billy Wagner will be out for four months with ulnar nerve irritation. Just to make matters worse, Stephen Strasburg has an ERA over seven in AAA. Their power hitters are producing, but their table setters aren’t getting on. A tough start for a team that isn’t sure if it’s rebuilding or simply retooling.
30) Pittsburgh Pirates:
What do the Pirates do well? Their pitchers don’t walk many players, and don’t allow many home runs. Oh, and Garret Jones is a competent power bat. At least their minor league system is ranked sixth in Baseball America. Help is on the way—just not this season.