Photo courtesy Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Alas, my friends, we have come to the conclusion of 2013’s regular season. It was a fun ride, with all the usual ups and downs, twists and turns. Hell, we even got an extra day of regular season baseball!
Was last night’s game between the Rays and Rangers the end of the regular season or the first round of the playoffs? Both sides have arguments, but I found it particularly fitting that the last game was played on the last day of September. After all, it’s October that you “can’t script” and is synonymous with MLB’s postseason, so we’re going to say it was the finale to the regular season.
Which is why I’ve waited an extra 24 hours to post these final end-of-season power rankings.
This batch of rankings works a little differently. For instance, whoever’s in the Top 10 is already figured out: it’s the teams moving on into the playoffs obviously. The teams playing in the wild card have a significant disadvantage and the teams playing the wild card game on the road have an even larger disadvantage. Therefore, for those reasons, the bottom of the Top 10 is already predetermined.
Also, it’s not hard to guess who the #11 team is. It’s last night’s loser, obviously, as the team to come the closest to the postseason and not make it.
But from there, everything else is up for grabs. The playoff teams ranked in the upper half of the top 10 are who is in the best position to win it all. Does that mean talent? Teams I surmise are better built for playoff baseball? Teams with the easier schedule of opponents? Teams with home field advantage?
In a word, yes.
Those NOT in the playoffs are ranked naturally both by their performance this season and, if they were close to making the playoffs, how close they came was also a factor.
Have you gotten all my explanations down? Good, because enough of this jibber jabber, let’s just begin.
MLB POWER RANKINGS – OCTOBER 1ST
1. St. Louis Cardinals | 97-65 (54-27 Home, 43-38 Road) [Change From Last Ranking: + 3]
They get the slight edge over Boston because the Red Sox might play Cleveland, and they scare me.
2. Boston Red Sox | 97-65 (53-28 Home, 44-37 Road) [- 1]
Again, best team in the AL. A slightly tougher road makes them more of a “1B” than a 2-seed.
3. Detroit Tigers | 93-69 (51-30 Home, 42-39 Road) [+ 4]
Surprise numero uno. This team that made the World Series a year ago is largely intact.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers | 92-70 (47-34 Home, 45-36 Road) [+ 2]
Both they and Atlanta can pitch, but L.A. hits better and strikes out far less.
5. Atlanta Braves | 96-66 (56-25 Home, 40-41 Road) [- 3]
Like I said, they strikeout. Plus, that poorer road record might be foreshadowing come the NLCS.
6. Oakland Athletics | 96-66 (52-29 Home, 44-37 Road) [- 1]
Maybe I’m overlooking the A’s again, but I just think they’re outmuscled by baseball’s elite.
7. Pittsburgh Pirates | 94-68 (50-31 Home, 44-37 Road) [- 4]
How do you win 94 games and not win a division? They should have a huge chip on their shoulder.
8. Cleveland Indians | 92-70 (51-30 Home, 41-40 Road) [+ 1]
Nothing reminds me more of the 2004 Red Sox “idiots” than this gang, and they’re led by Tito!
9. Cincinnati Reds | 90-72 (49-31 Home, 41-41 Road) [+ 1]
Even if there was no tiebreaker in the AL, this team is better than everyone below them.
10. Tampa Bay Rays | 92-71 (51-30 Home, 41-41 Road) [- 2]
If we’re being truly honest, they should’ve been in the postseason without a tiebreaker need.
11. Texas Rangers | 91-72 (46-36 Home, 45-36 Road) [+ 1]
Last ranking I alluded to the possibility they’d miss out. Well, how ya like me now?
12. Washington Nationals | 86-76 (47-34 Home, 39-42 Road) [+ 2]
Had this team made the playoffs, nobody would be exactly lining up to play them in a series.
13. New York Yankees | 85-77 (46-35 Home, 39-42 Road) [± 0]
You can’t help but to wonder what could’ve been if this team had been able to stay healthy.
14. Baltimore Orioles | 85-77 (46-35 Home, 39-42 Road) [- 3]
You can’t help but to wonder what could’ve been if this team had any kind of pitching.
15. Kansas City Royals | 86-76 (44-37 Home, 42-39 Road) [± 0]
Were they technically closer to October than the Yanks and O’s? Sure. Closer, and yet so far away.
16. Arizona Diamondbacks | 81-81 (45-36 Home, 36-45 Road) [± 0]
I’m not even a Diamondbacks fan, but I kind of want a Goldschmidt jersey.
17. Los Angeles Angels | 78-84 (39-42 Home, 39-42 Road) [± 0]
This Angels team finished the season on a tear, a tear back to mediocrity.
18. San Francisco Giants | 76-86 (42-40 Home, 34-46 Road) [+ 1]
One of the more lackluster title defenses in recent memory. If history is a lesson, they’ll be back.
19. Toronto Blue Jays | 74-88 (40-41 Home, 34-47 Road) [- 1]
You’ve got to give them credit, they never stopped fighting. Even in their final game.
20. Milwaukee Brewers | 74-88 (37-44 Home, 37-44 Road) [+ 4]
As long as they need to rebuild, they should throw Ryan Fraud to the curb. But you know they won’t.
21. New York Mets | 74-88 (33-48 Home, 41-40 Road) [+ 2]
Showed a little fight even without their golden boy. Still, they’ll need him back to have any kind of shot.
22. San DIego Padres | 76-86 (45-36 Home, 31-50 Road) [± 0]
This is as high as I can stomach putting the Padres. We all know they outplayed themselves.
23. Colorado Rockies | 74-88 (45-36 Home, 29-52 Road) [- 2]
For as relevant as they were early on, ending up fifth in the West sure feels like a letdown.
24. Seattle Mariners | 71-91 (36-45 Home, 35-46 Road) [+ 1]
Uber-fan Macklemore’s hit song ‘Can’t Touch Us’ obviously wasn’t inspired by this year’s team.
25. Philadelphia Phillies | 73-89 (43-38 Home, 30-51 Road) [- 5]
Boy, they sort of just gave up on the season, didn’t they? Is Dwight Howard still alive?
26. Chicago Cubs | 66-96 (31-50 Home, 35-46 Road) [± 0]
Their perennial mantra “There’s always next year” has laid waste to another season.
27. Minnesota Twins | 66-96 (32-49 Home, 34-47 Road) [± 0]
I’d like to put them lower, but I just can’t. They played about to where we should’ve expected.
28. Chicago White Sox | 63-99 (37-44 Home, 26-55 Road) [± 0]
When you finish below the “lovable losers” across town, your season goes into the ‘shame file’.
29. Miami Marlins | 62-100 (36-45 Home, 26-55 Road) [± 0]
Even in a bad year for him, Giancarlo Stanton is probably solely responsible for about 20 wins.
30. Houston Astros | 51-111 (24-57 Home, 27-54 Road) [± 0]
Well, at least they get the #1 draft pick that their farm system could really use.
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When Bryan isn’t writing, he is on Twitter! Make sure to give him a follow @bclienesch!
