MLB Power Rankings 2012: Teams That Are Sliding

As this wild and wacky baseball season continues, teams continue to rise and fall.

There have been some developments since the trade deadline on July 31, as buyers and sellers have changed baseball's landscape.

The Los Angeles Angels picked up another piece in ace Zack Greinke, while the Texas Rangers tried to patch up their starting rotation with Ryan Dempster after Colby Lewis was lost for the season due to injury.

Of course, there are the usual divisional rivalries taking place. The San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks are all battling for the National League West crown.

Here's a look at teams that are sliding, complete with power rankings at the end of the slideshow.

Note: Power rankings and stats compiled before games on Aug. 6.

5. Oakland Athletics (58-50)

Given the Oakland Athletics' overall play this year, it's hard for me to put them here, but Billy Beane's motley crew has gone 5-5 in its last 10 games and has lost its last two contests.

Oakland's pitching is still very good (3.43 ERA), but the offense is troubling. The A's have scored 430 runs this season, 25th in the majors.

You have to love Yoenis Cespedes, though. We all knew he could hit home runs coming over from Cuba, but he's currently hitting over .300, which is a big surprise.

4. Texas Rangers (63-44)

The Rangers have gone 5-5 in their past 10 games, and although they picked up Ryan Dempster at the the deadline, I don't think he will make up for the loss of ace Colby Lewis.

This offense is obviously explosive, but the pitching currently ranks 14th in Major League Baseball, and I expect that number to slide a bit with the loss of Lewis.

Losing C.J. Wilson and then Lewis will hurt this team in the end.

3. Toronto Blue Jays (53-55)

Toronto did win its last two games against Oakland, but the Blue Jays are 2-3 in August after an 11-14 July.

The fact remains that Toronto can hit, but can't pitch. The Blue Jays rank fourth in runs this season, but rank 26th in team ERA (4.50).

2. Milwaukee Brewers (48-59)

Milwaukee's season has been disappointing, to say the least.

The Brewers just got swept by the St. Louis Cardinals and have lost 12 of their last 16 games.

The pitching has taken a nosedive (4.32 team ERA, 23rd in baseball), and the offense has to score in bunches these days to win a ballgame.

Oh yeah, and the Brewers just traded away Zack Greinke.

1. Cleveland Indians (50-58)

The Cleveland Indians have lost nine straight and 14 of their last 17 contests. They recently were swept by the Minnesota Twins and the Kansas City Royals.

Yeah, things have gotten bad for the club.

Cleveland's pitching has been horrendous (4.78 team ERA, 27th in baseball), and the offense isn't good enough to play catchup every game (458 runs, 17th in baseball).

Ubaldo Jimenez has been a disaster in Cleveland. He's posted a 5.29 ERA and 1.61 WHIP this season, and he has the highest walk rate and lowest strikeout rate since the first two games of his MLB career.

Power Rankings

Team	Record
1. Cincinnati Reds	66-42
2. Washington Nationals	65-43
3. New York Yankees	63-44
4. Atlanta Braves	62-46
5. Texas Rangers	63-44
6. St. Louis Cardinals	59-49
7. Pittsburgh Pirates	61-46
8. Los Angeles Angels	58-51
9. Chicago White Sox	59-48
10. Los Angeles Dodgers	59-50
11. San Francisco Giants	59-49
12. Oakland Athletics	58-50
13. Detroit Tigers	58-50
14. Baltimore Orioles	57-51
15. Tampa Bay Rays	56-52
16. Arizona Diamondbacks	55-53
17. Boston Red Sox	54-55
18. Toronto Blue Jays	53-55
19. Seattle Mariners	51-59
20. New York Mets	53-56
21. Philadelphia Phillies	49-59
22. Milwaukee Brewers	48-59
23. Cleveland Indians	50-58
24. Miami Marlins	49-60
25. Kansas City Royals	45-62
26. Minnesota Twins	47-61
27. San Diego Padres	46-64
28. Chicago Cubs	43-63
29. Colorado Rockies	38-68
30. Houston Astros	36-73

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