MLB Power Rankings: Who Are the Favorites to Win the World Series?
In this power ranking we will be determining which teams have the best chance to win the World Series come October. However, if a team is below .500 by June 1 history says they won’t make the playoffs, much less have a chance to win the World Series.
That leaves out these following teams:
Baltimore Orioles, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, New York Mets, Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres.
That leaves 17 teams that still have a shot at making the postseason. As we saw last year with the San Francesco Giants, if a team can make it to the Fall Classic they have a chance at winning the whole thing.
Here are the teams in order of who has the best chance of winning the World Series.
17. Los Angeles Dodgers
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The Dodgers are seventh in the league in ERA with a 3.43 but are 21st in runs scored with only 236 this season. Even if the Dodgers can keep the other team from scoring, they have a hard time scoring themselves.
I know the adage is that defense wins championship, but you also have to have a good offense as well. If you look at past champions of any sport you will see that they not only play great defense, they also play great offense as well.
The Dodgers don’t play great offense and are only a good defense team. The chances of them winning a title are slim.
16. Toronto Blue Jays
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The Blue Jays are in a tough division with the Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. The only team they are better than is the Baltimore Orioles.
Does this mean they will make the postseason? Probably not.
But for this Power Ranking if you had a winning record after June 1 you get talked about.
It is not the hitting that is the issue for the Blue Jays this year—as of this writing they are ranked third in runs scored—the issue for the Jays this year is the pitching. With a 3.94 team ERA the Blue Jays rank 20th in the majors this season.
When you are playing most of your games against the Red Sox, Rays and the Yankees, your team ERA will be a little inflated, but 20th in the league will not get it done to make the playoffs.
15. Cincinnati Reds
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Last year the Reds had a remarkable run, beating out St. Louis for the divisional crown and making the playoffs for the first time in 15 years.
This year will be difficult for Reds to repeat as champions. The Cardinals and the Brewers are currently ahead of the Reds in the standings and Cincinnati is only two games above .500.
The Cincinnati Reds, however, are first in runs scored but have a 4.37 ERA, placing them 26th in the league. The reason they are ahead of the Blue Jays is for one reason: The Blue Jays play in the AL East and the Reds do not.
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14. Arizona Diamondbacks
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The Diamondbacks are the opposite of the Angels; they are good at hitting the ball, but not so well from the mound.
Seventh in the league with 282 runs scored but only 19th in the league with a team ERA of 3.94.
Currently the Diamondbacks are one game back from the Giants, who just lost their best hitter for the rest of the season in a highly publicized plate collision, so Arizona may be able to beat the defending champions for the divisional crown and play in October.
However, it is pitching that helps you win in October, which Arizona is not that great at doing.
13. Seattle Mariners
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Currently the Mariners are a game above .500 and are only two games back from the division leading Texas Rangers.
Offensively the Mariners have struggled mightily. Scoring only 222 runs this season is good for 26th place in the league, but when you have Felix Hernandez as your ace pitcher you can make up for the lack of runs down the stretch.
With Hernandez leading the way, the Mariners have an ERA at 3.35 and sixth overall in the majors. Those rankings do not exactly knock your socks off, but they're enough to make the Mariners at least a contender to make the postseason, but not enough to win the World Series.
12. Florida Marlins
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A surprising start by the Marlins this year and has given them a chance to compete for the wild card spot in the National League. The Marlins probably won’t win the division, as that will probably be the Phillies, but they are not very far off from the rest of the teams battling for the final spot.
The Marlins are ranked 19th and 13th in runs and team ERA respectively. Not bad rankings, but if they do win the wild card it will be extremely difficult for them to go on and win the whole thing.
11. Texas Rangers
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Losing Cliff Lee would cripple many franchises, but the Rangers have rebounded as well as they possibly could. They are currently leading the AL West ahead of the team we just talked about, the Seattle Mariners.
But let’s say the Rangers go on to win the division, will they be able to go back to the World Series and win the whole thing this time?
I would say that it is highly unlikely, but then again I would have said last year it was highly unlikely that the Rangers and the Giants would make it to the World Series last year.
In baseball it is almost random as to which team will win on a certain night, that’s why getting to October is so important. Even if you don’t have a better record than the team you are playing, you can still upset them.
Anybody can beat anybody on any day.
10. Detroit Tigers
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A familiar trend continues with the Tigers—being good on offense but not so good on defense.
The Tigers are excelling at the plate, currently ranked eighth in the league batting in 274 runs, and a .262 batting average, good for seventh.
Meanwhile, on the mound a 4.25 team ERA has the Tiger ranked 24th overall in the big leagues.
9. Tampa Bay Rays
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The Rays won the AL division title last year to earn a spot in the fall classic. But what the Rays didn’t see coming was losing to the Texas Rangers in five games.
This year they are trying to replicate that same success, but are currently behind the Red Sox and the Yankees by two and a half games.
The Rays are the first team to have been good in both batting and pitching, although not great in either. The Rays are ranked 13th in runs and 15th in team ERA.
However, they still have to compete with two clubs whose payroll is far greater than the Rays could ever dream of having. It is possible for the Rays to still make the postseason, but with their star hitter leaving for the division rival Boston Red Sox, it will make it extremely difficult.
8. San Francisco Giants
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Still early to tell how the Giants will play without their best hitter, Buster Posey, for the rest of the season.
The discussion of whether or not plate collisions should be banned from baseball in the regular season is for a different article. The Giants need to move on. The question is will they be able to?
I believe they will. Their offense has been one of the worst in the league, batting only .240 as a team and only scoring 218 runs all season. That is only six runs more than the last place team in runs scored, the San Diego Padres.
Pitching is what has made the Giants so good this year. Posey was a catcher that helped out in that department, but it is the pitching staff of the Giants that has given them such a high ranking in this Power Ranking.
7. Milwaukee Brewers
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The Brewers are being led by Prince Fielder who is auditioning for a big offseason contract this season. And with Fielder playing his best, the Brewers are playing their best.
Also, with the addition of Zack Greinke the pitching staff for the Brewers can win games in the postseason. 10th in ERA and 12th in runs scored, the Brewers have a very complete team that can compete and win the World Series title.
6. Atlanta Braves
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The first year without Bobby Cox as the manager of the Atlanta Braves has gone well. A record of 33-28 is about as good as you can except from a new manager.
The reason for the success of the Braves is that they have taken a blueprint from the Braves of old by having the best pitching staff in the Major League. First in ERA, first in WHIP and first in batting average against.
That being said, the Braves' hitting is non-existent. The teams batting average is ranked 23rd in the league at .241. But hitting isn’t what wins in October, pitching is.
If they can win the wild card in the National League, the Braves' dominating pitching could carry them all the way to the championship.
5. Boston Red Sox
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As of this writing the Boston Red Sox are tied with the Yankees, and after the series they are currently playing against the Yankees the Red Sox could take over first place in the American League East.
The Red Sox started the season off by losing six straight games, and historically teams that do this don’t end the season well, but the Red Sox may be the exception to the rule.
The first game they won was against their bitter rivals, the New York Yankees, and that seemed to jump start their season.
Now they are tied with the Yankees, and with two games left in the series the Red Sox have a chance to go up by two games on them.
However, winning the championship may still be a long shot, as a 4.17 ERA is not going to get it done in October.
4. Cleveland Indians
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The surprise of the Major League Baseball season has been the Cleveland Indians. Even more surprising is that neither their batting nor their pitching has been especially great, yet here they are with a great record.
It may be because they are in a particularly weak division, but that’s not the Indians' fault. The Indians, although only having a team ERA of 3.92—good for 18th in the league—find a way to win.
When it comes to winning no one can quantify that ability. The Indians are having what seems to be a special year this season, and if they can make the playoffs it may drive them to win it all.
3. New York Yankees
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The Yankees have given up the big lead to the Boston Red Sox but still have the best team in the American League.
Even with Derek Jeter struggling, the Yankees have the experience of winning in the postseason. Winning breeds winning as Tiger Woods used to say. The Yankees are only one year removed from winning the World Series, and that has greater value than anything else you feel is important to winning a championship.
The Yankees are currently fourth in batting average and eighth in ERA. If you look at the teams that win championships, defense does win championships, but you have to be great at offense as well if you expect to win the whole thing.
2. St. Louis Cardinals
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Second in runs scored, first in batting average and first in on base percentage, the St. Louis Cardinals are the best offensive team in baseball and have a good enough pitching staff to win the World Series.
Also, Albert Pujols is finally coming back to his usual form, hitting two walk-off home runs in back to back games. Pujols is also in a contract year, and although he is considered the best offensive weapon in baseball currently, he is trying to prove he is worthy of the massive contract he is trying to get from the St. Louis Cardinals.
If the Cardinals don’t pay him, he needs to prove to other teams that he will be worth the money.
1. Philadelphia Phillies
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Even though the Phillies are 17th in runs scored and 20th in batting average, the Phillies have the best postseason rotation arguably ever. Cliff Lee, Roy Holiday, Roy Oswalt, Cole Hamels and even Joe Blanton, who was a critical pitcher for the Phillies' 2008 World Series championship run.
Pitching is the most important thing in the playoffs. Even with the great hitting by the Cardinals, if the Phillies and the Cardinals meet in October the Philadelphia pitching staff will give the Phillies four wins in seven games every time.
Right now the Phillies are sitting pretty to win the title again. The only way I see the Phillies losing the World Series will be if one of their starters—excluding Blanton—gets injured and is unable to play during October.
You can’t say it enough. Defense wins championships.
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