Updated: August 6, 2012, 1:50 PM ET

Reds rise into the top spot

Week:

ESPN.com

The Cincinnati Reds, who have the best record in baseball, move into the top spot for the first time this season in our MLB Power Rankings.

For the second straight week, the Washington Nationals hold tight to the No. 2 position, while the New York Yankees drop two spots and fall to No. 3.

The Texas Rangers fall one spot to the No. 4 position, and the Atlanta Braves rise two spots to No. 5.

This week's voters were Jim Bowden of ESPN Insider, Tim Kurkjian of ESPN The Magazine and Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Many of the team comments come courtesy of the fan bloggers on the SweetSpot Blog Network. Meanwhile, you can rank the teams yourself.

Tell us what you think about the Power Rankings: Use the hashtag #ESPNMLBPOWER.

2012 Power Rankings: August 6
RANKTEAM / RECORD TRENDINGCOMMENTS
1
Reds
66-42
3
Last Week: 4		Before losing Sunday, the Reds had won 22 of 25, a feat the franchise hadn't managed since the 1890s. Is it possible that the Reds could get even better when Joey Votto returns to the lineup? -- Chad Dotson: Redleg Nation
2
--

Last Week: 2		The Nationals' three-games-to-one series win over the Marlins last weekend gives them a winning record over every National League East team so far this season and a 29-17 record against divisional competition. -- Harper Gordek: Nationals Baseball
3
Yankees
63-44
2
Last Week: 1		The Yankees dropped a series to the Orioles and won a series against the Mariners to continue their recent trend of .500 baseball. The additions of Ichiro Suzuki and Casey McGehee and the return of Joba Chamberlain should help get them back on track. -- Rob Abruzzese: Bronx Baseball Daily
4
Rangers
63-44
1
Last Week: 3		Josh Hamilton produced a monster .368 AVG/.420 OBP/.764 SLG, 21-homer streak the first two months of the season, but has gone just .202/.278/.384 with eight homers since the beginning of June. -- Joey Matschulat: Baseball Time in Arlington
5
Braves
62-46
2
Last Week: 7		Tim Hudson is unbeaten in his past six starts, and during that stretch he has compiled a 2.58 ERA and given up only two home runs. -- ESPN.com
6
Pirates
61-46
--

Last Week: 6		A.J. Burnett is 3-0 with a 2.18 ERA in three starts against the NL Central-leading Reds this season. -- ESPN.com
7
2
Last Week: 9		A.J. Pierzynski has gone yard in five straight games and has 21 home runs this season, a personal best. It's a two-team race in the AL Central, with seven games still left against Tigers, but they won't play Detroit again until Labor Day weekend. -- Diane Firstman: Value Over Replacement Grit
8
--

Last Week: 8		The A's and Angels do battle early this week in a key wild-card clash. Once they play a series against the White Sox this weekend, the schedule softens up considerably for the A's. Thirteen of their 17 remaining games in August are against the dregs of the AL Central. -- Jason Wojciechowski: Beaneball
9
Angels
58-51
4
Last Week: 5		Jered Weaver was an impressive 6-0 with a 2.23 ERA in six starts in July. -- ESPN.com
10
2
Last Week: 12		The Cardinals swept the Zack Greinke-less Brewers and have won five of their past six as the bench filled in nicely for the beat-up Lance Berkman and Rafael Furcal. -- Matt Philip: Fungoes
11
Giants
59-49
1
Last Week: 10		After being bullied by the Dodgers and Mets, the Giants' offense acted out by picking on the Colorado pitching staff for 35 runs in three games -- normally about eight games' worth of runs for the Giants. Hunter Pence collected his first hit as a Giant in the mayhem. -- Otis Anderson: Bay City Ball
12
Dodgers
59-50
1
Last Week: 11		Despite allowing six runs in the sixth inning at St. Louis on July 24, Clayton Kershaw still has a 2.78 ERA in his past five starts. In the other four, he allowed one or zero runs. -- Jon Weisman: Dodger Thoughts
13
Tigers
58-50
--

Last Week: 13		After Miguel Cabrera capped off the Tigers' five-run 10th inning Sunday with a two-run walk-off homer, only three teams in the American League have a better record than the Tigers do. -- Josh Worn: Walkoff Woodward
14
Rays
56-52
--

Last Week: 14		The Rays showed they are right in the thick of the AL wild-card race with series wins at Baltimore, Anaheim and Oakland. -- Mark Heilig: The Ray Area
15
2
Last Week: 17		The Diamondbacks lost their last two games in Philly to fall four back of the Giants, but a 5-2 week bodes well for an upcoming tough stretch: four at the Pirates, host the Nationals for three and three at the Cardinals. Chris Johnson is 8-for-21 with three homers and 10 RBIs in six games as a member of the D-backs. -- Diane Firstman: Value Over Replacement Grit
16
Orioles
57-51
--

Last Week: 16		After passing last week's test with flying colors (4-2 on the road against Tampa and New York), the O's sit one game back in the wild-card race. A 10-game homestand against Seattle, Kansas City and Boston provides a perfect opportunity to string together some wins and make a move in the standings. -- Nick Faleris: Camden Depot
17
Red Sox
54-55
1
Last Week: 18		After dropping three of four to the lowly Twins, it's about time to put a nail in the Red Sox's coffin. In better news, Carl Crawford is 8-for-23 in August with four extra-base hits. He is starting to look like the man Boston thought it signed two years ago. -- Evan Brunell: Fire Brand of the AL
18
3
Last Week: 15		Losing six of their past eight games has left Jays fans decidedly blue. One bright spot: Carlos Villanueva is 4-1 in his past five starts with a 2.76 ERA. He has held opponents to a .208 batting average in that span. -- Callum Hughson: Mop-Up Duty
19
Mets
53-56
1
Last Week: 20		It's about time for the Mets to pull the plug on Jason Bay. He is hitting .109 in 55 at-bats since the All-Star break and has only one extra-base hit during that stretch. -- ESPN.com
20
3
Last Week: 23		Did you know that Seattle is fourth in runs scored away from home and 11th in road OPS? The Mariners are no juggernaut, but poor sequencing and a brutal home park have masked significant improvement from last season's offense. -- Brendan Gawlowski: Pro Ball NW
21
Indians
50-58
2
Last Week: 19		If you're going to be bad, you might as well be historically bad. The Indians went 0-9 on their road trip, the first time in franchise history in which they were swept on a road trip of nine or more games. They were outscored 74-28 during that stretch and released two veteran players -- Derek Lowe and Johnny Damon. -- Stephanie Liscio: It's Pronounced "Lajaway"
22
Brewers
48-59
2
Last Week: 24		The return of Rickie Weeks has been refreshing for Brewers fans -- as well as any dreams of short-term contention. In his last 45 starts, Weeks is hitting .268/.356/.470. In 2011, his first All-Star appearance, he hit .269/.350/.468. -- Jack Moore: Disciples of Uecker
23
Marlins
49-60
1
Last Week: 22		Getting over the .500 mark is now the Marlins' biggest task for the remainder of the season. -- Dave Gershman: Marlins Daily
24
3
Last Week: 21		The Phillies seemed to officially turn the calendar to 2013 last week, ditching some key veterans and promoting embattled former superprospect Domonic Brown. Even though they have gone 4-2 since the trade deadline, the Phillies have rightly made results a secondary concern. -- Michael Baumann: Crashburn Alley
25
Twins
47-61
1
Last Week: 26		Scott Diamond has compiled a 3.32 ERA in his past six starts. During that span, he has allowed only one home run. -- ESPN.com
26
Royals
45-62
1
Last Week: 27		Jeremy Guthrie has been knocked around to the tune of a 7.71 ERA in three starts with the Royals. -- ESPN.com
27
Padres
46-64
2
Last Week: 25		San Diego's 3-4 week ended with taking two of three from the Mets. Chase Headley somewhat surprisingly was not dealt at the deadline. The 2002 squad holds the major league record of 37 pitchers used. This team has already used 27. -- Diane Firstman: Value Over Replacement Grit
28
Cubs
43-63
--

Last Week: 28		Brett Jackson and Josh Vitters, two top prospects in the Cubs' system, made their major league debuts Sunday. -- Joe Aiello: View from the Bleachers
29
Rockies
38-68
--

Last Week: 29		The Rockies were swept last weekend by the Giants by a total score of 35-13. The Giants scored 32 runs in their previous 11 games. The Giants have 10 games remaining against Colorado, and with a half-game lead in the division, my money is on the Giants to win the NL West thanks to the Rockies. -- Travis Lay: Blake Street Bulletin
30
Astros
36-73
--

Last Week: 30		Jordan Lyles has allowed a combined 11 home runs in his past seven starts. -- ESPN.com
  • Biggest Jump:
  • 3
  • Biggest Drop:
  • 4

ESPN Conversations

comments
+ Add your comment

COMMENT? USE #ESPNMLBPOWER

ESPN's MLB coverage on Twitter »