MLB power rankings: Athletics are for real, Yankees stumble
The Oakland Athletics, riding a six-game win streak, are threatening to shake up the American League West standings and wild-card race as they rise up the power rankings.
The A's, with a major league-best 33-10 record since June 16, are four games back of the Houston Astros in their division and 2 1/2 behind the New York Yankees for the top wild-card spot.
How have the A's, now ranked a season-high fifth in Paste BN Sports' MLB power rankings, done it?
They have the fourth-best ERA (3.84) in the AL, an MLB-best 21-9 record in one-run games and are the only team with an unbeaten record when leading after the seventh (45-0) and eighth innings (53-0).
Meanwhile, the Astros are coping with several injuries, which could include All-Star outfielder George Springer, who exited Sunday's loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers after hurting his left thumb on a headfirst slide. Houston, which is 4-6 in its last 10 games, is already without second baseman Jose Altuve, shortstop Carlos Correa, catcher Brian McCann and pitchers Lance McCullers Jr. and Chris Devenski -- all of whom are on the disabled list.
A look at the voting from 1 to 30:
TEAM. MOVEMENT
1. Boston Red Sox (--)
►After four-game sweep, lead Yankees by 9 1/2 games in AL East, but play six more times in September.
2. Houston Astros (+1)
►Roberto Osuna gets second chance with defending champions.
3. New York Yankees (-1)
►Aaron Judge is still experiencing pain in his wrist and has yet to resume swinging a bat.
4. Chicago Cubs (--)
►El Mago: NL MVP candidate Javier Baez having breakout season.
MORE MLB
5. Oakland Athletics (+3)
►Khris Davis leads the majors with 22 RBI since the All-Star break and is tied for the lead with 10 home runs.
6. Cleveland Indians (+1)
►Newcomer Leonys Martin proving his worth as the No. 9 hitter.
7. Milwaukee Brewers (-1)
►Night and Day: 4-14 on Sundays and 17-28 in day games while 48-22 in night games.
8. Los Angeles Dodgers (-3)
►Matt Kemp, who led the league in batting in early June, is in a 1-for-40 slump.
9. Arizona Diamondbacks (--)
►Downhill baseball: 44-19 when offense scores first.
10. Philadelphia Phillies (-1)
►Aaron Nola's 2.37 ERA is third lowest in the NL among qualifiers.
11. Atlanta Braves (+1)
►34-17 against NL East opponents with a +85 run differential.
12. Seattle Mariners (-3)
►Felix Hernandez, with a 5.58 ERA and a career-low strikeout rate, fighting to keep rotation spot.
13. Colorado Rockies (--)
►Rocky road: Of the 16 series remaining, all but two are against teams at or above .500.
14. Washington Nationals (+3)
►Bryce Harper has driven in 14 runs in 15 games; he's hit .367 since the break.
15. Pittsburgh Pirates (--)
►Embark on a 10-day, nine-game road trip to play Rockies, Giants and Twins.
16. St. Louis Cardinals (-2)
►With a revamped bullpen, relievers have a 1.58 ERA over the past 10 games.
17. San Francisco Giants (+2)
►Dereck Rodriguez has become an NL Rookie of the Year contender.
18. Tampa Bay Rays (-2)
►The Rays have faced 12 former starting pitchers this season.
19. Los Angeles Angels (-2)
►Mike Scioscia, MLB's longest-tenured manager, to step down after season.
20. Minnesota Twins (+1)
►Jose Berrios doing his best Johan Santana impersonation.
21. Toronto Blue Jays (-1)
►Josh Donaldson making "rapid progress," but not fast enough.
22. Cincinnati Reds (--)
►Matt Harvey returns to Citi Field, but is not scheduled to pitch in the three-game series.
23. Detroit Tigers (+1)
►Offense has been shut out an MLB-high 15 times this season.
24. Texas Rangers (-1)
►Free agent signings Matt Moore and Doug Fister have combined to go 2-13 with a 6.17 ERA.
25. New York Mets (+1)
►The offense has scored eight runs in the last 51 innings Jacob deGrom has pitched.
26. Miami Marlins (-1)
►On a six-game losing streak.
27. Chicago White Sox (+1)
►Have lost a major league-high 26 games by five or more runs.
28. San Diego Padres (-1)
►Roster space beginning to open for influx of call-ups.
29. Kansas City Royals (--)
►-200 run differential is by far the worst in the majors -- by 42 runs.
30. Baltimore Orioles (--)
►The worst team in baseball doesn't need to worry about who closes games.