MLB Power Rankings: Where All 30 Teams Stand, 2018 Mid-Spring Training Edition
The idea behind that version was to set the stage for the upcoming offseason, with the approach to placing teams spelled out as follows:
"For the first edition of our offseason rankings, teams will be ranked based on their outlook for the 2018 season. That took into account things like how complete the roster is heading into free agency, how active the team is expected to be and the overall direction the franchise is headed."
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Here at the midway point of spring training and with Opening Day rapidly approaching, it's time for an updated look at where all 30 teams stand.
In an effort to demonstrate which teams improved and declined the most relative to that early offseason perception from back in November, the up or down arrow beside each team reflects its placement relative to that article.
So without further ado, here's a look at the updated rankings:
| 1 |  Houston Astros |  |
| 2 |  Chicago Cubs |  3 |
| 3 |  Los Angeles Dodgers |  1 |
| 4 |  Washington Nationals | |
| 5 |  New York Yankees | 3 |
| 6 |  Cleveland Indians | 3 |
| 7 |  Boston Red Sox | 1 |
| 8 |  Arizona Diamondbacks | 1 |
| 9 |  St. Louis Cardinals | 1 |
| 10 |  Los Angeles Angels | 4 |
| 11 |  Colorado Rockies | 2 |
| 12 |  Minnesota Twins | 1 |
| 13 |  Milwaukee Brewers | 2 |
| 14 |  Texas Rangers | 2 |
| 15 |  Toronto Blue Jays | 3 |
| 16 |  New York Mets | 4 |
| 17 |  Seattle Mariners | 5 |
| 18 |  San Francisco Giants | 1 |
| 19 |  Philadelphia Phillies | 4 |
| 20 |  Baltimore Orioles | 1 |
| 21 |  Tampa Bay Rays | 6 |
| 22 |  Oakland Athletics | 5 |
| 23 |  Atlanta Braves | 1 |
| 24 |  San Diego Padres | 5 |
| 25 |  Cincinnati Reds | |
| 26 |  Pittsburgh Pirates | 9 |
| 27 |  Kansas City Royals | 1 |
| 28 |  Chicago White Sox | |
| 29 |  Detroit Tigers | 1 |
| 30 |  Miami Marlins | 6 |
Biggest Risers
It will always be easier to climb from the bottom of the rankings to the middle of the pack than it is to go from a .500 team to a legitimate top-tier team.
That's why you see the San Diego Padres (+5), Oakland Athletics (+5) and Philadelphia Phillies (+4) among the highest risers on this list, even if they're not quite ready to make that leap to legitimate contention just yet.
The Padres made the surprise splash of the offseason by signing Eric Hosmer to an eight-year, $144 million deal, and while that lone addition doesn't move the needle enough to call them contenders, it is a sign the Friars might be ready to make a push sooner than expected.
With another step forward from young MLB players like Dinelson Lamet, Manuel Margot and Austin Hedges, they could at least make life a little tougher on the rest of the NL West in 2018.
The Athletics, on the other hand, made a handful of solid, under-the-radar moves as opposed to one major signing.
Jonathan Lucroy and Stephen Piscotty were nice buy-low additions to the lineup, while a trio of newcomers in the bullpen—Yusmeiro Petit, Ryan Buchter and Emilio Pagan—along with a full season of Blake Treinen could make the relief corps a strength.
Also, keep an eye on Matt Chapman. He could be one of the breakout stars of 2018.
And then there's the Phillies, who finally spent some of the money they've been stockpiling while rebuilding.
Adding Carlos Santana (three years, $60 million) and Jake Arrieta (three years, $75 million) won't preclude them from making a splash next winter, but it also clearly makes them a better team in 2018. The NL East is a crapshoot behind the Washington Nationals, and a .500 record and second-place finish from the Phillies is not out of the question.
As for the perceived contenders, the Los Angeles Angels (+4), New York Yankees (+3) and Chicago Cubs (+3) have been the biggest risers.
The story of the offseason for the Angels was the surprise win in the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes, but they also added Ian Kinsler and Zack Cozart to shore up the infield and re-signed slugger Justin Upton to a long-term deal.
What should be a more potent lineup will also be backed by a healthy rotation after Garrett Richards, Matt Shoemaker, Tyler Skaggs and Andrew Heaney all missed significant time last season.
The biggest question is the bullpen, with Cam Bedrosian and Blake Parker both short on closing experience. Still, this team looks like a serious wild-card threat at the very least.
Meanwhile, the Yankees took the reins in the AL East with a blockbuster deal to acquire Giancarlo Stanton, and that wasn't their only move.
They also filled in the gaps on the infield by signing Neil Walker and Brandon Drury, which will give prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar more time to develop. Bringing back veteran CC Sabathia on a one-year deal also brings welcome stability to the back of the rotation.
The Red Sox countered with the J.D. Martinez signing, but the Yankees are still the team to beat in the division.
And finally, there's the Cubs.
The additions of Yu Darvish and Tyler Chatwood, and a full season of Jose Quintana, should again make the starting rotation one of the best in baseball.
It will be backed by a revamped bullpen, as Brandon Morrow and Steve Cishek replace Wade Davis and Hector Rondon after the relief corps buckled last postseason.
The St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers both improved in their own right, but the NL Central is the Cubs' to lose.
Biggest Fallers
The biggest slide relative to those early offseason rankings came from the Pittsburgh Pirates (-9) as a result of their decision to trade off Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole.
There's still talent on the roster and down on the farm, but after back-to-back losing seasons on the heels of three straight playoff appearances, it was time for the small-market club to make a change.
It will be interesting to see what Joe Musgrove, Colin Moran and Michael Feliz can do in an expanded role—an opportunity they likely would not have received in Houston.
In the end, the development of young pitchers like Musgrove, Jameson Taillon, Tyler Glasnow, Trevor Williams, Chad Kuhl and prospect Mitch Keller will ultimately determine how quickly the Pirates can return to contention.
The other major drop came from the Miami Marlins (-6) following the fire sale that saw Stanton, Marcell Ozuna, Christian Yelich and Dee Gordon all moved in separate trades.
What's left is a shell of what the team once was offensively, and that weakened attack will be backed by the same subpar starting rotation that proved to be its undoing a year ago.
Don't be surprised if guys like J.T. Realmuto, Dan Straily and Brad Ziegler are next out the door.
The Tampa Bay Rays (-6) also drop significantly after trading away the likes of Evan Longoria, Jake Odorizzi, Steven Souza and Corey Dickerson in an effort to trim payroll, add more young talent and open up opportunities for some prospects who are knocking on the door.
Retooling like this is a necessary evil for one of baseball's smallest budgeted teams, and while it's hard to see them contending in the AL East, the starting rotation is still good enough that they could surprise some people.
And finally, we have the Seattle Mariners (-5), who failed to make a significant addition to the starting rotation, despite another winter of wheeling and dealing from Jerry Dipoto.
The rotation of James Paxton, Felix Hernandez, Erasmo Ramirez, Mike Leake and Marco Gonzales doesn't look good enough to lead them to contention in a tough AL West, and there's virtually nothing in the way of quality depth behind that group.
The offense is going to score a ton of runs, and the bullpen will benefit from the addition of Juan Nicasio, but it's hard to envision this being the year they finally return to the playoffs for the first time since 2001.
So there you have it: an abridged rundown of who's improved the most and who's fallen the farthest, based on early perceptions back at the start of the offseason.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs, unless otherwise noted.
