Week 8 Power Rankings

[Rangers GM (Mike)]

	Team	Rank (LW)	Record	Trending	Comments
[tr]	Rangers	1	6-1-1		In the matchup of the week the Rangers easily took care of the previously #1 ranked Cubs and retook the top spot on the power rankings. They had an okay week offensively, but strong pitching led by Jerome Williams ensured an easy victory.
	Cubs	2	6-2		In what was supposed to be a close matchup, the Cubs fell flat and lost the top spot. It just wasn't their week as they struggled offensively with a weak .2136 average as three key players all hit under .200. The pitching was just as bad as they registered an ERA over 5. Look for them to bounce back against the winless Mariners.
	Rays

[/b][/td][td]3[/td][td]5-2-1[/td][td]

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[/td][td]The Rays have made one hell of a turnaround going from the worst team last year to now one of the powers of the league. They weren't able to come away with a win this week but still played pretty well and was able to pull of a tie. This weeks matchup will be interesting to watch as they face off against the struggling, but very talented Braves.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Giants[/td][td]4[/td][td]5-2-1[/td][td]

[/td][td]In a surprisingly close matchup, San Francisco was able to hold on and avoid losing two in a row. Last year's MVP Buster Posey put up his usual dominating numbers and led the offense. The Giants will try to make it two in a row against the improved Astros.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][tr][/td][/td][td]Red Sox[/td][td]5[/td][td]5-2-1[/td][td]

[/td][td]Boston continued its strong season, easily dispatching the struggling Braves. Unlike last year, their division is much improved and now one of the toughest in the league. They'll have to keep it up if they want to repeat as division champs.[/td][/tr]
[/td][td]Andrew McCutchen 15 TB .375 average 1.025 OPS[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Braves[/td][td]6[/td][td]4-4[/td][td]

[/td][td]One of the biggest surprises of the year is the Braves. Yes it's early, but losing three straight is never good no matter how early in the season. This team is obviously extremely talented, but they need to get out their funk and start playing up to their ability.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Royals[/td][td]7 [/td][td]3-3-2[/td][td]

[/td][td]After getting off to a hot start and beating two talented teams, the Royals have been struggling of late only going 1-3-2. The hitting was pretty good this week as Tulo is once again killing the ball, but the pitching let them down as they could only muster 2 QS. This week is a good chance to get back on track as they face the struggling Nationals.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Indians[/td][td]8[/td][td]4-4[/td][td]

[/td][td]After starting off as one of the biggest disappointments of the year, the defending champs have been playing much better lately, winning 4 of their last 5 matchups. This week they did it with strong hitting and pitching putting up solid numbers across the board.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Rockies[/td][td]9[/td][td]4-3-1[/td][td]

[/td][td]They started off slow out of the gate, but Colorado has now won 3 of 4 and look like they are going to challenge[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Phillies[/td][td]10[/td][td]4-4[/td][td]

[/td][td]After trying out many different GMs and not being successful, it seems like Philadelphia has finally found the guy their looking for. The Phillies have been on fire lately winning three in a row and now are tied for first in their division. The team has had some injury problems, but they've still looked strong and will be a force to be reckoned with once healthy.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][tr][/td][td]Astros[/td][td]11[/td][td]3-4-1[/td][td]

[/td][td]It's been a pretty successful season so far for Houston as they are already almost half way to their win total from all of last year. They almost blew it against the fading Reds, but were able to pull it out in a nailbiter 7-6-1 win. The division might be tough to make a run for this year, but the wild card is well in reach if they can make a few moves and Dickey regains form.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Marlins[/td][td]12[/td][td]3-4-1[/td][td]

[/td][td]The old saying is "a tie is like kissing your sister," but in this case a tie against one of the top teams in the league in nothing to be ashamed of. Melky continuted to show signs of life as he along with Wieters and and Seth Smith led the offense. They'll have to keep it up if Marlins wants a shot at upsetting Boston.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][tr][/td][td]Tigers[/td][td]13[/td][td]2-5-1[/td][td]

[/td][td]A team expected to make some noise this year, Detroit has so far been a disappointment. The tough times continued this week as they not only lost again but came very close to upsetting San Francisco but couldn't finish it off. Their pitching was great as Cobb and Scherzer both pitching well and Miggy continued to hit the shit out of the ball, but the rest of the offense was nothing special and it led to the Tigers dropping their fifth game.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Reds[/td][td]14[/td][td]1-5-2[/td][td]

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[/td][td]Different year same story for the Reds thus far as they've once again been struggling to win matchups. The team has a very solid core to build around with guys like Goldschmidt, Kemp, Upton, Strasburg, Kershaw, and Chapman but they struggle to win games. The supporting cast needs to be upgraded if they want a shot at the always contested wild card.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Nationals[/td][td]15[/td][td]2-6[/td][td]

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[/td][td]Considering this team made the playoffs last year and only finished a game out of their division, this year has been a disappointment. The team has some solid players but not too many stars and not enough talent at the moment to make a serious run at a playoff spot. However, the future looks like it could be bright as they have some very good prospects down on the farm and have a lot of draft picks this year including 4 1st round picks.[/td][/tr]
[tr][td][/td][td]Mariners[/td][td]16[/td][td]0-6-2[/td][td]

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[/td][td]The remaining winless team lost again this week as they dropped their sixth of the year. Their record sucks, but they've also been pretty unlucky as they have two ties this year, both being matchups that they were winning on the last day but couldn't bring it home. Unfortunately for them, things get tougher as it looks like their quest for win number one will be pushed back another week unless they can upset the #2 Cubs.[/td][/tr]
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