MLB Power Rankings (Updated June 30)

1. St. Louis Cardinals (51-24, previous No. 1) – Not only have the Cardinals maintained their best record in baseball, they’ve actually extended their lead. St. Louis has now won six straight and eight of its last 10 games. The Cardslead the NL Central by nine games and the team with the second-best record in the NL has 43 wins.

2. Kansas City Royals (44-29, previous No. 3) – After a sub-par stretch, the Royals have rebounded, winning six of their last 10 games and theynow have the best record in the American League. Mike Moustakas continues to perform at the plate, as his .317 average is fifth in the AL.

3. Los Angeles Dodgers (43-35, previous No. 6) – The Dodgers have a plus-62 run differential, which is the second-best mark in the NL, but they only lead the Giants by half a game in the NL West. One quick way to pull away is improve their play on the road as they are just 16-22 on the year.

4. Pittsburgh Pirates (42-33, previous No. 5) – If the Pirates were in any other division in the National League, they would be in first place. Unfortunately, for them they are in the NL Central and nine games behind the Cardinals.Gerrit Cole’s 11 wins are the most in baseball.

5. Washington Nationals (42-34, previous No. 13) – Washington has won eight of its last 10 games to open a 2.5-game lead in the division. Max Scherzer continues to be one of the best pitchers in the game as he has nine wins and a 1.79 ERA, the second-best mark in the NL.

6. San Francisco Giants (42-35, previous No. 10) – The Giants have won seven of their last 10 games to now only trail the Dodgers by half a game in the NL West. Brandon Crawford is having a good season, as his 3.9 WAR is the fifth-best mark in the National League.

7. Houston Astros (41-31, previous No. 2) – The Astros are no longer the best team in the AL, but they still lead the AL West by four games. Their plus-54 run differential is the second-best mark in the AL. Starter Dallas Keuchel has nine wins and ERA of 2.17, the second-best mark in the AL.

8. Baltimore Orioles (41-35, previous No. 14) – The Orioles have won seven of their last 10 games to move atop the AL East standings, in one of the biggest turnarounds in baseball. Third baseman Manny Machado has provento be dynamite at the plate, as his 4.0 WAR is fourth in the American League.

9. Tampa Bay Rays (42-36, previous No. 4) – Tampa Bay is percentage points behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East. Chris Archer has emerged as one of the best starters in the American League as he is currently 9-5 with a 2.31 ERA. His ERA is third in the AL. Oddly enough, the Rays are just 21-24 at home.

10. New York Yankees (41-36, previous No. 8) – The Yankees have dropped two straight and now sit a half a game out of first place in the AL East. Mark Teixeira continues to have a monster year at the plate, as his 53 RBIs are tied for the most in the American League.

11. Toronto Blue Jays (41-37, previous No. 11) – Toronto has scored, by far, the most runs in baseball and has a plus-86 run differential, the best mark in the American League.But they still sit in fourth place in the AL East. There is no question the offense is there, it’s just a matter of whether or not the pitching can get any better.

12. Minnesota Twins (40-36, previous No. 9) – Minnesota has lost two straight and six of its last 10 games to fall 5.5 games out of first in the AL Central. The only team with a positive run differential in the division is the Royals. The Twins are 25-15 at home, but just 15-21 on the road.

13. New York Mets (40-37, previous No. 16) – After a rough week last week, the Mets have won four straight games and have moved to just 2.5 games behind the Nats for the top spot in the NL East. Jacob deGrom’s 2.15 ERA is the fifth-best in the National League.

14. Los Angeles Angels (40-37, previous No. 17) – Despite being only three games over .500, the Angels are three games back in the AL West. Albert Pujols and Mike Trout are No. 1 and No. 2 in home runs in the AL with 23 and 20, respectively.

15. Detroit Tigers (39-36, previous No. 15) – Detroit has won two straight games, but overallit has been a disappointing season as its expectations were much bigger than sitting in third place in the AL Central while owninga minus-three run differential. Miguel Cabrera leads the AL with a .350 average and is tied for first with 53 RBIs.

16. Chicago Cubs (39-35, previous No. 7) – Things aren’t going well for the Cubs as they have dropped five straight games and now trail the Cardinals by 11.5 games in the NL Central. Even though it’s the start of July, Chicago’s focus is already on the Wild Card as there’s zero chance of them winning the division.

17. Texas Rangers (39-38, previous No. 12) – Texas has dropped seven of its last 10 games and now finds itselffive games out of first in the AL West. The biggest issue for the Rangers has been their play at home as they are just 15-19 on the year. Prince Fielder’s .348 batting average is tied for the second-best mark in the American League.

18. Atlanta Braves (36-40, previous No. 18) – Although it’s only the start of July, the Braves need to start getting things going as they have fallen six games back of the Nationals in the NL East. Despite the below average year, Shelby Miller has an ERA of 1.94, third in the NL, and Jason Grilli’s 21 saves are fourth in the NL.

19. Arizona Diamondbacks (37-39, previous No. 19) – Despite being two games below .500, the Diamondbacks are five games out of first in a horrid division. They are still being led by first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and his .352 average and 64 RBIs.

20. San Diego Padres (37-41, previous No. 20) – Even with the firing of manager Bud Black, the Padres continue to struggle, as they are six games out of first in the NL West. Justin Upton leads the team with a .272 average and 14 home runs on the year in his first season on the West Coast.

21. Cincinnati Reds (35-40, previous No. 21) – Todd Frazier has 25 homers, which is second in the NL, and has 54 RBIs, fifth in the NL, but as a team the Reds aren’t getting it done. At five games below .500, they are 16 games out of first place in the NL Central.

22. Cleveland Indians (34-41, previous No. 22) – Terry Francona’s frustrations after being ejected last weekend summed up the season sofar for the Indians. They have dropped seven of their last 10 games and are now 11 games behind the Royals in the AL Central.

23. Seattle Mariners (34-42, previous No. 23) – Seattle has dropped six of its last 10 games and now has fallen 9.5 games behind the Astros for first place in the AL West. Nelson Cruz’s 19 home runs are third in the AL, but Felix Hernandez hasn’t been at his best of late.

24. Boston Red Sox (35-43, previous No. 24) – The Red Sox are still managing to tread water, being seven games out in the AL East.They have been playing better baseball of late, winning eight of their last 13 games.

25. Oakland Athletics (35-44, previous No. 28) – Oakland has played much better of late, but its miserable start has it a full 10 games out of first place in the AL West. A bright spot has been Sonny Gray, whois having another exceptional year, as his 2.09 ERA is the best in the American League.

26. Colorado Rockies (33-43, previous No. 25) – Colorado is a full nine games out of first in the NL West after dropping three straight games. Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki has climbed into the NL’s top five in batting average at .322.

27. Chicago White Sox (32-42, previous No. 26) – The White Sox have a miserable minus-81 run differential, which is the worst in the American League. While they are 18-15 at home, they are 14-27 on the road.

28. Miami Marlins (31-46, previous No. 27) – Miami has dropped eight of its last 10, but that isn’t the worst news for the Marlins. They will be without slugger Giancarlo Stanton for 4-6 weeks with a hand injury.

29. Milwaukee Brewers (30-48, previous No. 29) – The Brewers have won two straight, but no winning streak can turn their season around as they are 22.5 games back of the Cardinals in the NL Central.

30. Philadelphia Phillies (27-51, previous No. 30) – With an MLB-worst minus-126 run differential, the Phillies are the worst team in baseball, which forced manager Ryne Sandberg to resign this past week.