MLB Power Rankings for September 12

Welcome to the final Power Rankings of the season. Unfortunately, this only has two people collaborating on the list, with Gus Livaditis joining me. The numbers in parenthesis are where we each ranked the team individually. On to the list!

1. Philadelphia Phillies (B2, G2) – After a stretch where they didn’t play well, the Phillies are peaking at the right time, having gone 14-4 in their last 18 games. They should also get J.T. Realmuto and Kyle Schwarber back for their upcoming series against the Mets. Philadelphia has a magic number of nine to clinch their first NL East title since 2011.

2. New York Yankees (B3, G3) – They’re tied for the best run differential with a +124, they have a 45-30 road record and are 33-19 in blowouts. Only a 16-17 record in one-run games holds them back.

3. Los Angeles Dodgers (B1, G7) – They Dodgers are sleepwalking through the season riding Shohei Ohtani’s amazing 2024. The problem is that if the Yankees had finished the Flaherty trade at the deadline, the Dodgers may be in danger of falling into third place. As they attempt to not get swept at home by the Cubs, other than hosting the Padres for three games, they have a a cushy remaining schedule full of Marlins, Rockies, and the shell of a team in Atlanta. (Gus)

T 4. Baltimore Orioles (B5, G5) – Dancing with the Yankees for the top spot, it looks like the O’s missed their chance going 8-9 since our last rankings. The Yankees just brought up Dominguez and are finally healthy, while the Orioles offense is taking a nap at the wrong time of the year. (Gus)

T 4. New York Mets (B9, G1) – The hottest team in MLB right now and while all teams have warts, the Mets have been great since they came back from Europe. Since June 10th, the Mets’ record trails only the D’Backs by one game, but the D’Backs did it playing mostly pansies and are 40-43 against teams over .500 (Mets are 41-39). The Mets say they have lined up their best starters to face Atlanta, but I think deep down it’s the next series they are playing that they are looking to. It’s hard to make up eight games in three weeks, but why not go for it? Tied with the Phillies for the second-best record best record since August 15th (percentage points behind the Cubs), the Mets have only hit .230 since then and are due to get their hitting shoes going again. (Gus)

6. Houston Astros (B7, G6) – They’ve been streaky here in the second half and currently they’re riding a three-game losing streak. A dangerous team due to both their talent and experience, the one thing that stands out is they’re not a great road team, owning a 36-36 record away from home.

7. San Diego Padres (B 10, G 4) – The Padres have the talent to beat anyone, but like the Mets, they need their superstars to play like superstars, and they aren’t. They are going to San Francisco, Los Angeles and Arizona for nine games against tough division foes. They host the rolling Astros and the AAA White Sox for six games. (Gus)

T 8. Cleveland Guardians (B6, G9) – After a rough go of things thru most of August, the Guardians have righted the ship and have gone 9-4 in their last 13 games. They hope to meet the Twins in the playoffs. With four games still to play in the regular season against their division foe, the Guardians are 7-2 against the Twins. The other potential matchups are not so favorable.

T 8. Milwaukee Brewers (B4, G11) – Since our last update Willy Adames has a 148 wRC+ with 8 HR in 81 PA.

10. Kansas City Royals (B8, G10) – After a brutal stretch where they played 20 straight games against teams with a winning record and went 9-11, the schedule gets easier here for the Royals. They play 12 straight games against teams with a losing record, before finishing up with three games in Atlanta.

11. Arizona Diamondbacks (B11, G8) – Since their incredible hot streak in early August, they are only 13-11, 11th best in MLB. We spoke of their brutal schedule in September, but they are only 7-8 since our last power rankings and things aren’t getting easier. The D’Backs are going to Colorado to play a tough at home Rockies team and Milwaukee, and host the Brewers, Giants and Padres. (Gus)

T 12. Chicago Cubs (B15, G12) – They went 18-8 in August to get them into the fringes of the Wild Card discussion. But a 5-5 start to September has all but eliminated their tiny shot of reaching the postseason.

T 12. Minnesota Twins (B13, G14) – Since our last update, the Twins were swept by the Royals and were leapfrogged by Kansas City for the second Wild Card spot. They’ve got a couple of series left versus sub-.500 NL teams but also have to play Cleveland and Boston before finishing the season with the Orioles.

14. Atlanta Braves (B12, G16) – Injuries continue to hit the Braves, as Reynaldo Lopez hit the IL with right shoulder inflammation. The Braves were 15-9 in games started by Lopez this season, as he formed a strong 1-2 punch with Chris Sale.

15. Detroit Tigers (B16, G13) – They’ve finished under .500 seven years in a row but could end that streak this year, as they sit at 75-71 with 16 to play. It’s not an easy schedule the rest of the way for the most part. At least not until the final three games at home against the White Sox.

16. Boston Red Sox (B17, G15) – The Sox just took two of three against the Orioles and there are a bunch of AL East teams left on their schedule, as they finish with 13 of their remaining 16 games against division foes. The only team they face outside of the AL East are the Twins.

17. Seattle Mariners (B14, G19) – After sweeping the Mets, the Mariners have gone 11-16. But at least they split two games against the Padres, so they weren’t completely useless.

18. San Francisco Giants (B20, G17) – The Giants have not gotten it going all year and are now just a dangerous spoiler team. (Gus)

T 19. Cincinnati Reds (B22, G18) – They had Dominic Smith and Amed Rosario batting back-to-back for a couple of games. In other words, tell me you’re a sub-.500 team without telling me you’re a sub-.500 team.

T 19. St. Louis Cardinals (B18, G22) – The Cardinals continue to orbit the .500 mark and continue to look for a spark from their leaders, Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt. (Gus)

21. Texas Rangers (B21, G21) – It’s safe to say that this season hasn’t gone as hoped for the Rangers, especially after winning the World Series last year. But it could end on a good note, as Kumar Rocker, Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer are all scheduled to pitch next week.

22. Tampa Bay Rays (B19, G24) – The Rays did the Mets no favors, as they rolled over and were swept by the Phillies, scoring just seven runs in the three-game set. Compare that to when they swept the Mets and scored 20 runs in the series. Screw you, Tampa Bay – may you lose the rest of the games you play this year.

23. Pittsburgh Pirates (B24, G20) – 14-12 since August 15th, their bullpen has let them down and David Bednar is out as the closer. Still, they are put Oneil Cruz in CF and continue to build for the future. (Gus)

24. Oakland A’s (B25, G23) – The A’s are 27-21 since the All-Star break, despite trotting out a lineup with several sinkholes. If the owner would spend some money in the offseason – Ha! – you could see this being a good team in 2025.

25. Toronto Blue Jays (B23, G26) – Poor Bowden Francis. He threw a no-hitter thru eight innings in two of his last four starts, only to give up a homer to the leadoff batter in the ninth. At least he won the first game.

26. Washington Nationals (B26, G25) – Giving the kids valuable experience but the pitching is severely lacking. (Gus)

T 27. Los Angeles Angels (B27, G28) – Fourth-worst record in MLB. They have fallen below the A’s and have to be six games worse than the Marlins and the Rockies to move up. Doubtful. (Gus)

T 27. Miami Marlins (B28, G27) – Since our last update, Otto Lopez and Connor Norby have been two of the best hitters for the Marlins. In a related note, Miami is 8-11 in that span. But I’m sure they played a lot of teams tough.

29. Colorado Rockies (B29, G29) – Last year, the Rockies lost 100 games for the first time in franchise history. They’ll need to go 9-7 the remainder of the season to avoid losing 100 again. Unfortunately, the schedule seems stacked against them doing it, as it’s all teams over .500 the rest of the way. Will Bud Black keep his job? Should he want to keep it?

30. Chicago White Sox (B30, G30) – They’re 33-114 with 15 games to play. They need to go 8-7 the rest of the way to end up with more wins than the 1962 Mets. They went 9-6 from 4/26-5/11 so maybe they have one last run left in them. But they’re 6-43 since the All-Star break.