MLB Power Rankings 2012: Teams That Will Slide After Peaking Too Soon

Tim DanielsJun 2, 2018

The Major League Baseball season has reached a point where the arguments about small sample size are starting to lose their luster as teams approach the quarter pole. With that said, there are still a handful of outliers that will come back to the pack.

Let's take a look at three teams that have exceeded expectations so far this season, but won't be able to carry that success throughout the summer. A complete power rankings list for this week is also below.

Cleveland Indians

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The Indians already hold a four-game advantage in the AL Central, and are the only team in the division with a record above .500. Asdrubal Cabrera has continued to develop into an offensive star, leading the team to the league's third-best on-base percentage.

Cleveland's biggest problem, however, is its pitching staff. Derek Lowe has been the rotation's only standout, but his low strikeout rate will eventually cause his ERA to rise. Beyond him, there's a lot of question marks, including Ubaldo Jimenez, who hasn't lived up to the hype.

With the Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox and even the Kansas City Royals likely to improve moving forward, the Indians' lead will fade away. They have a good nucleus of young players, but are still a season or two away from being a playoff team.

Baltimore Orioles

A barrage of home runs have propelled the Orioles to the top of the AL East after being widely regarded as the likely cellar dweller coming into the year. Adam Jones is well on his way to a breakout season with 13 taters already.

The power numbers will eventually level out, though, and Baltimore's starting rotation isn't good enough to pick up the slack. Wei-Yin Chen and Jason Hammel are not sub-3.00 ERA pitchers, which means regression is coming, and nobody else on the staff has an ERA below 4.75.

In a weaker division, the Orioles may be viewed as a contender. But not in the AL East. The New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays are all capable of making charges toward the top, while the Toronto Blue Jays are no longer a pushover.

Washington Nationals

A combination of injuries and ineffectiveness has caused the Nationals offense to struggle, but they've been able to stay in the NL East mix thanks to great pitching. Four of their five starters have ERAs of 2.75 or better.

The Stephen Strasburg situation will be one of the summer's biggest stories. If the Nationals are still hanging around in the playoff race, can they really shut him down? The fact they have held firm in that belief so far is a sign they don't think they are contenders quite yet.

After a quick start, Bryce Harper has cooled off. The offense doesn't have enough depth to start carrying the load when the rotation begins regressing. In a few years, the package should be complete, but right now there are still too many holes.

MLB Power Rankings – Week 7 (May 14)

1. Texas Rangers

2. Los Angeles Dodgers

3. Atlanta Braves

4. Baltimore Orioles

5. Washington Nationals

6. St. Louis Cardinals

7. New York Yankees

8. Tampa Bay Rays

9. Toronto Blue Jays

10. Miami Marlins

11. Cincinnati Reds