Updated: September 26, 2011, 1:03 PM ET
Power Rankings: A clean dozen for Phils at No. 1
ESPN.com
For the 12th straight week, the Philadelphia Phillies are the No. 1 team in the Power Rankings.
The New York Yankees hold tight to the No. 2 spot in the Week 26 rankings, and the Milwaukee Brewers climb one spot to take over the No. 3 position. The Texas Rangers rise two spots to No. 4, while the Detroit Tigers fall two spots to No. 5.
The Rangers, winners of seven of their past eight games, are this week's U.S. Army Team of the Week.
This week's voters were Jason Grey of ESPN Fantasy, Tim Kurkjian of ESPN The Magazine, David Schoenfield of the SweetSpot Blog Network and Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Meanwhile, you can rank the teams yourself.
Tune in to "Baseball Tonight" every Monday on ESPN to see the week's U.S. Army Power Rankings.
| 2011 Power Rankings: September 26 | |||||
| RANK | TEAM / RECORD | TRENDING | COMMENTS | ||
| 1 | -- Last Week: 1 | The Phillies ended an eight-game losing streak, in which they averaged just two runs a game, with a nine-run outburst against the Mets on Sunday. Two weeks ago, they looked invincible, but they now have some question marks going into the NLDS. -- Bill Baer: Crashburn Alley | |||
| 2 | -- Last Week: 2 | Despite the extra-innings loss Sunday night, the Yanks are barreling toward the playoffs, having won six of eight games last week. In doing so, they have made the Rays and Red Sox sweat for the last postseason berth in the American League. -- Jason Rosenberg: It's About The Money | |||
| 3 | 1 Last Week: 4 | Although it's extremely difficult to deny the MVP to Matt Kemp, let's not pretend Ryan Braun doesn't have a case: .333 AVG, .995 OPS, 107 runs, 110 RBIs, 7.3 WAR. It's probably the best hitting season in Brewers history and the best overall year since Robin Yount in 1982. -- Jack Moore: Disciples of Uecker | |||
| 4 | 2 Last Week: 6 | Barring an absolute pitching meltdown in Anaheim this week, the playoff-bound Rangers will finish the 2011 season having allowed their fewest runs in any season since 1983. -- Joey Matschulat: Baseball Time in Arlington | |||
| 5 | 2 Last Week: 3 | The Tigers' last bit of remaining business is to catch or pass the Rangers to secure home-field advantage in the ALDS. If Detroit and Texas finish with the same record, the Tigers will hold the tiebreaker. -- Mike McClary: The Daily Fungo | |||
| 6 | 2 Last Week: 8 | Ian Kennedy finished off an outstanding regular season by winning his 21st game in his last start on Saturday. He was especially dominant in the second half, going 12-1 with a 2.11 ERA in 14 starts. -- ESPN.com | |||
| 7 | -- Last Week: 7 | The Rays nearly caught the Red Sox in the AL wild-card race despite a week of inconsistent play and missed opportunities. Here's hoping they finish strong against an exhausted Yankees team. -- Mark Heilig: The Ray Area | |||
| 8 | 3 Last Week: 5 | The starting pitching has been awful with an ERA of 7.34 in September, and it's the main reason the team has tossed away a big lead in the AL wild-card race. If the Red Sox miss the playoffs, blame falls squarely on management for the signings of John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka along with a lack of depth behind the starting five to fill in when injuries occur. -- Troy Patterson: Fire Brand of the American League | |||
| 9 | -- Last Week: 9 | The Red Sox's September performance has overshadowed the Braves' worst September since 1989, and they hold just a one-game lead in the NL wild-card race. -- Ben Duronio: Capitol Avenue Club | |||
| 10 | 1 Last Week: 11 | The cardiac Cardinals keep their fans' hearts beating and their NL wild-card chances alive by taking the lead in the seventh inning or later in their past four wins. -- Matt Philip: Fungoes | |||
| 11 | 1 Last Week: 10 | Jordan Walden's ninth-inning meltdown on Sunday likely ended the Angels' hope of winning the AL wild card. -- ESPN.com | |||
| 12 | -- Last Week: 12 | The Giants were eliminated by the Diamondbacks from the NL West race one day, then from the wild card the next. Then the Diamondbacks beat them once more just for kicks. With all the injuries and underperformance, the astonishing thing is that it took until the last week of the season. -- Otis Anderson: Bay City Ball | |||
| 13 | -- Last Week: 13 | Brandon Morrow recently added a pitch to his impressive arsenal, a cutter. The pitch is designed to lower his pitch counts and improve his ground-ball rate. Morrow induced his first GIDP on Friday night, which goes a long way toward explaining his 64 percent strand rate, second-worst in the American League. -- Drew Fairservice: Ghostrunner On First | |||
| 14 | -- Last Week: 14 | In the last full week and final homestand of the season, the Indians showed they won't go gently into the night. Playing nine games in seven days, the Tribe went 6-3, including a 2-2 split with the White Sox, who've given them problems all season. Fan favorite Jim Thome even stepped in at third base, albeit for one pitch, in what was likely his last appearance in an Indians uniform. -- Susan Petrone: It's Pronounced Lajaway | |||
| 15 | -- Last Week: 15 | Rookies Jerry Sands (.961 OPS) and Dee Gordon (.809 OPS, 11 steals) have been hot in September, offering the Dodgers more hope for 2012. -- Jon Weisman: Dodger Thoughts | |||
| 16 | 2 Last Week: 18 | If the Nationals can pull off a sweep of the Marlins this week, they'll finish above .500 for the first time since 2003, when they were the Montreal Expos. -- Harper Gordek: Nationals Baseball | |||
| 17 | 1 Last Week: 16 | There are plenty of questions about whether Dontrelle Willis still can pitch effectively, but one thing is certain: Willis can hit. -- Chad Dotson: Redleg Nation | |||
| 18 | 1 Last Week: 17 | John Danks finished off a disappointing season by having a terrible September. In the month, he compiled a 7.76 ERA, and opponents batted .331 against him in five starts. -- ESPN.com | |||
| 19 | -- Last Week: 19 | One thing Flushing fans can root for: Jose Reyes has three games to push his .331 batting average over Ryan Braun's .333 to become the first New York Met to win a National League batting title. -- Joe Janish: Mets Today | |||
| 20 | 1 Last Week: 21 | Jemile Weeks hit the first two home runs of his career this past weekend, a nice end to a solid rookie season. The A's will need him to get on base more if they are to be a threat in 2012. -- Dan Hennessey: Baseballin' on a Budget | |||
| 21 | 2 Last Week: 23 | After taking two of three from the Braves, the Marlins dropped each of their next three games in Milwaukee. The Fish are concluding a year of dismay and lousy performances and, in the eyes of most, are looking forward to its end. The Marlins close out their northern Miami era this week against the Nationals looking to finish the season on a good note. -- David Gershman: Marlins Daily | |||
| 22 | -- Last Week: 22 | With the potential for another 90-loss season still in play, it will be hard for many to see the silver lining in the 2011 season. But there has been significant growth for this organization from the major league level on down, including an amazing draft back in June. The front office must bolster the offense in the offseason so the growth can show on the field in 2012. -- Paul Sporer: Pitt Plank | |||
| 23 | 3 Last Week: 20 | On Sunday, the Rockies set a franchise record with 25 hits against the Astros. It was one of the few bright spots in what was an otherwise extremely disappointing season. In fact, this year was almost certainly the most disappointing season in franchise history. Very few people had thought the Rockies would finish fourth in the NL West. -- Logan Burdine: Blake Street Bulletin | |||
| 24 | 2 Last Week: 26 | The Cubs have a lot of decisions this offseason: New GM? What to do with Aramis Ramirez? Is Carlos Marmol a closer? It's going to be interesting. -- Joe Aiello: View from the Bleachers | |||
| 25 | 1 Last Week: 24 | The Royals have a plus-15 run differential in the second half of the season. That's the second-highest in the American League Central, and they trail only the Tigers. -- Craig Brown: Royals Authority | |||
| 26 | 1 Last Week: 25 | Season in a nutshell: Alberto Gonzalez, a career .242/.280/.315 hitter, started at first base on Friday, and the Padres were shut out. -- Geoff Young: Ducksnorts | |||
| 27 | 1 Last Week: 28 | The Orioles may be a king maker this week with three games against Boston, which is struggling to keep the AL wild card from Tampa Bay. -- Jon Shepherd: Camden Depot | |||
| 28 | 1 Last Week: 27 | The Mariners will finish the season in last place in the American League West for the second straight season. Don't expect much better results in 2012. -- ESPN.com | |||
| 29 | -- Last Week: 29 | As the Twins' season draws to a merciful close, fans are looking ahead to a winter filled with difficult decisions. The pertinent question: Rebuild or reload? -- Nick Nelson: Nick's Twins Blog | |||
| 30 | -- Last Week: 30 | Only one more series before the Astros can go to work trying to forget this whole season happened. The question is how much of the current front office will be around to try to rebuild a franchise that took only six years to go from being in the World Series to 100-plus losses. -- Austin Swafford: Austin's Astros 290 Blog | |||
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