Biggest drop: The Blue Jays dropped a whopping eight spots, from 11th to 19th, although that might be a little harsh. Yes, the Blue Jays have dropped six of their last 10 and are struggling mightily offensively. But, these rankings are as much about where we envision teams being positioned at the end of the season as they are about what's happening in present times, and it may be somewhat short-sighted to write off Toronto merely as the 19th-best team in baseball. Stay tuned.
Blue Jays rip two early homers
TOR@MIN: Bautista, Donaldson homer to start the game
Jose Bautista and Josh Donaldson both crush solo home runs to start the game and give the Blue Jays an early 2-0 lead
The Top 5:
1. Cubs: The Cubs won their 29th game on May 20. A year ago, en route to a 97-win season, their 29th win arrived on June 6. The year before, on June 17. The year before that, June 18. You get the picture. The Cubs, despite coming down to earth a bit in the last couple of weeks by losing a double header at Wrigley Field to the Padres and dropping a recent series to the Brewers, are still without question the best team in baseball. They're going to have to pick up the pace a little if they're going to break the all-time record for single-season wins. But when a team is on pace for *only* 111 wins, it's apparent something special is cooking.
Zobrist's nice play
CHC@SF: Zobrist fields a grounder, throws for the out
Ben Zobrist reaches out to snare an Angel Pagan grounder, then spins and throws to first to record a 5th-inning out
2. Nationals: Like the Cubs, the Nats showed they are actually human in the last couple of weeks, especially during a four-game sweep in Chicago early in May. But more recently, the Nats won a series over their most threatening division rivals, the Mets, wining the final two games by scores of 7-1 and 9-1. The offense, save for Daniel Murphy's whopping .387 average, has actually been underperforming by Nats standards, but that doesn't matter much when a team pitches better than almost anyone else. The Nats' 2.79 ERA is second-lowest in baseball and they are tops with 412 strikeouts.
Scherzer's impressive outing
WSH@MIA: Scherzer fans eight in eight strong innings
Max Scherzer strikes out eight batters while allowing two runs on six hits in eight solid innings of work against the Marlins
3. Red Sox: The Sox earned top five status based on an offense that, at this pace, could be record-setting by season's end. They lead the Majors in hits, doubles, batting average, OPS and extra-base hits. They have homered at least once in 22 straight games. Jackie Bradley Jr. has a 27-game hitting streak. Heck, even the retiring David Ortiz can't be stopped, falling at triple short of the cycle on Sunday. Long-term, it'll be up to the pitching to keep the Sox chugging toward the playoffs, but for now, the lineup has already provided a season's-worth of entertainment.
Bradley Jr. extends hit streak
CLE@BOS: Bradley Jr. extends hit streak to 27 games
Jackie Bradley Jr. lines a base hit into right field for a single, extending his league-leading hit steak to 27 games in the 5th inning
4. Giants: Including their 1-0 win over the Cubs on Sunday night, the Giants have reeled off 10 wins in 11 games, a stretch that included an eight-game winning streak. Through the streak, starters were 5-0 with a 1.34 ERA and the bullpen was 3-0 with a 2.93 ERA. Overall, the Giants have the sixth-lowest ERA in the National League at 3.83. Their team WHIP is 1.29. Their offense has still yet to click, but with the pitching they're produced, slow bats are hardly a concern. The first five weeks of the season left us wondering when and if any team would pull away in the NL West. The Giants, so far, appear to have given us the short-term answer.
Bumgarner's RBI double
CHC@SF: Bumgarner gives Giants a lead with RBI double
Madison Bumgarner helps his own cause with a double to left field that scores Gregor Blanco from first, breaking a scoreless tie in the 5th
5. Orioles: The knock on the Orioles as Spring Training came to a close was that they had a lineup full of mashers and a rotation void of aces. The only O's pitcher from 2015 who pitched to a sub-4.00 ERA was Wei-Yin Chen, and he's now a Marlin. Predictions largely rested on the Orioles scoring eight runs every night and allowing nine. Looks like the joke's on us. Yes, the Orioles are indeed mashing, but -- eureka! --- they're pitching, too. Through Sunday, they had the sixth-lowest ERA in the AL 3.80. And they're in first place in a surprisingly pedestrian AL East.
Machado's 12th home run of 2016
BAL@LAA: Machado follows Rickard with a solo home run
Manny Machado follows Joey Rickard with a home run of his own to go back-to-back in the top of the 1st inning
The Rest: 6. Mariners (7); 7. White Sox (3); 8. Mets (4); 9. Indians (15); 10. Rangers (8); 11. Pirates (9); 12. Phillies (16); 13. Cardinals (13); 14. Rays (20); 15. Royals (18); 16. Dodgers (12); 17. Marlins (14); 18. Yankees (NR); 19. Blue Jays (11); 20.Tigers (19).
Alyson Footer is a national correspondent for MLB.com. Follow her on Twitter @alysonfooter. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Giants, Orioles climb in Power Rankings
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