Friday, January 16, 2009

Real Look at Power Rankings

Is it a crap shoot at who wins or is it preordained? To me it looks like it is preordained in a manner of speaking, but actions during the season can change things. Someone said it best that you are guaranteed a 50-50 season and the other 62 games depends on how you play it. In essence they are correct in that belief for the most part, but I think it is more like 54-50.

Some things that can alter a teams ranking and how they play during the season is the ballparks, trades, manager actions/non-actions and maybe the most important is injuries. Another thing that could change things is late season call ups.

This is the current snapshot of the AL teams.
1. Kansas City Royals
2. Monterrey Corn Dogs
2. Arizona Splashlogs
3. Tampa Bay Rays
3. New York Yankees
4. Dover Dung Beetles
4. San Diego Dirt Bags
4. Las Vegas Slobs
5. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Detroit Detroit
5. Philadelphia Athletics
5. St. Louis Barracudas
6. Huntington Good Will
6. Austin Fightin' Armadillos
7. Salt Lake City Multiple Spouses
8. Washington D.C. Senators


AL North:
1. Toronto Blue Jays - 5
2. Salt Lake City Multiple Spouses - 7
3. St. Louis Barracudas - 5
4. Detroit Detroit - 5

With a weak division it is anybodies for the taking, with the chances of a wild card spot probably out of the question. The Barracudas could make a strong run in this theory with the Spouses fading at the end. Detroit made several good acquisitions during the season and could be a surprise next season.

AL East:
1. New York Yankees - 3
2. Dover Dung Beetles - 4
3. Philadelphia Athletics - 5
4. Washington D.C. Senators - 8

New York only has a 6 game lead but if something happens, Dover is right there to pick up the slack. It is hard to win in NY and Philly as a home team, it takes the right 12 to 15 players and they never seem to arrive at the same time. Washington on the other hand needs to be treated as a neutral park when it comes to players.

AL South:
1. Monterrey Corn Dogs - 2
2. Huntington Good Will - 6
3. Austin Fightin' Armadillos - 6
4. Tampa Bay Rays - 3

The Dogs are comfortably in first. Huntington has a good record at the moment, but, could the schedule do them in. Austin should be fighting for third with Huntington but have problems with winning at home. Tampa Bay has a good team with a bad history and a rookie owner learning the ropes, success will come from experience.

AL West:
1. Kansas City Royals - 1
2. Las Vegas Slobs - 4
3. Arizona Splashlogs - 2
4. San Diego Dirt Bags - 4

KC has a 5 game lead and have the best power ranking. Arizona would have changed things if the owner hadn't gone missing and probably had some trickle down effect on the entire league. Will the Slobs make a run? Getting the right players for Petco is not an easy task, then when you do they don't do so hot on the road.

This is the current snapshot of the NL teams.
1. Cincinnati Reds
1. Atlanta Pork-N-Beans
1. Louisville Swingers
2. Houston Astros
2. Chicago Cubs
3. Pittsburgh Pirates
4. Jacksonville Beach Boys
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Oklahoma City Kevin Durants
5. Cleveland Indians
6. Vancouver Canadians
6. Salem Mayhem
6. Scottsdale Pepperjackets
6. Trenton Ball Hogs
7. Santa Fe Heat
7. New York Mets

NL North:
1. Cincinnati Reds - 1
2. Milwaukee Brewers - 4
3. Chicago Cubs - 2
4. Pittsburgh Pirates - 3

The Reds are in first of course. The Brewers are hot at the moment but for how long? Can the Cubbies regain their momentum? The Pirates have figured out how to win at home, but the road games are more complex and a tough division doesn't help.

NL East:
1. Atlanta Pork-N-Beans - 1
2. Trenton Ball Hogs - 6
3. Cleveland Indians - 5
4. New York Mets - 7

The P&B's have walked away with the division again. Why? The Indians didn't win games they should have and I don't know why, could it have been vets for youth trades? Will the Indians retake second or will Trenton claim the spot? The Mets have some good young players and the minors are getting deep they will get better and better.

NL South:
1. Houston Astros - 2
2. Louisville Swingers - 1
3. Jacksonville Beach Boys - 4
4. Santa Fe Heat - 7

The Astros are setting comfortable but are still worried with just cause. The Swingers are within striking distance of a playoff spot but the question is, will it happen? With 33 games to go, you can look at it this way: Houston wins 11 to 15 games (way less than 50%) they are in, why, because the Swingers would need to win 20+ games to get there. It could happen, don't get me wrong. In my theory though, the Cubs and Swingers overtake the Brewers, but with Brewers needing just 10+ wins also I don't see that happening. So it boils down to the Cubs and Swingers as to who gets the last WC spot. Jacksonville is actually having a good season playing behind a 1 and 2. The Heat needs pitching as the position players are there and the minors are strong in that aspect.

NL West:
1. Scottsdale Pepperjackets - 6
2. Vancouver Canadians - 6
3. Salem Mayhem - 6
4. Oklahoma City Kevin Durants - 5

The Pepperjackets have surged into the lead, but will it hold up? Can Vancouver or Salem catch up? Watch out for the Durants next season as they are building up for a storm.

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