There's been some movement at the top of our rankings this week - without further delay, let's get straight to the action:
30. Tampa Bay Rays (Last Week: 30)
The Rays continue to fade in the AL East race, and they'll have to consider trading ace David Price to try to patch up what has become a disastrous 2014. The real question is this: which problem are they going to try to fix first?
29. Arizona Diamondbacks (Last Week: 28)
The Diamondbacks are in last place in the NL West, and that doesn't look like it's going to change any time soon. Arizona has the third-worst ERA in Major League Baseball at 4.45. The D-backs will have to figure out a way to either upgrade their pitchers or fix the problems their current pitchers are facing on the mound.
28. Chicago Cubs (Last Week: 27)
The Cubs have found some success with their pitching this season, but a lack of offense has suffocated any momentum that solid pitching created. It isn't very surprising that the Cubs have the second-worst batting average in the league at .232.
27. Houston Astros (Last Week: 23)
The Astros are in last place in the AL West, but Houston has made some serious strides so far this year. Houston's young talent has made an immediate impact at the plate, and second baseman Jose Altuve leads the American League in hits with 105 and counting. Houston will need to address their problematic bullpen, which has hindered the team all season.
26. San Diego Padres (Last Week: 29)
The Padres have been plagued with the worst offense in Major League Baseball. San Diego has only been able to hit for a .214 average this season, which is by far the worst in the entire league. It's a miracle that the Padres aren't in last place in the NL West, but the Diamondbacks are creeping up on San Diego.
25. Chicago White Sox (Last Week: 22)
The White Sox have cooled down recently, dropping into last place in a tight race in the AL Central. Speaking of tight races, Jose Abreu and New York Yankees' pitcher Masahiro Tanaka are in a close battle for Rookie of the Year honors in the American League. Abreu recently hit home run number 20 on the season.
24. Philadelphia Phillies (Last Week: 25)
The Phillies are in last place in the NL East, but Philadelphia is far from being out of reach in the division. The Phillies are just 5.5 games out of first, and there's no clear favorite in this division almost halfway through the season. Can Philadelphia string together a winning streak and make a run for the division lead?
23. Colorado Rockies (Last Week: 15)
The Rockies continue to plummet in the NL West, going just 6-15 so far in the month of June. Shortstop Troy Tulowtizki has been selected as the captain of the National League in this year's home run derby.
22. New York Mets (Last Week: 26)
The Mets have struggled at the plate so far this season, but New York has managed to piece together a starting rotation that's kept them competitive in the lowly NL East. Jonathan Neise has answered the call for his team, pitching his way to a respectable 2.78 ERA. Veteran Bartolo Colon has also proved to be a valuable addition, leading the Mets in wins with eight.
21. Minnesota Twins (Last Week: 24)
The Twins continue to hang around in the AL Central, and Phil Hughes has been an amazing addition to Minnesota's starting rotation. Hughes leads the Twins in wins with eight, and has only lost three decisions. Hughes also leads the team in strikeouts with 82.
20. Boston Red Sox (Last Week: 21)
With Baltimore and Toronto creating space at the top of the AL East, the Red Sox are trying to keep themselves within striking distance. Right now, Boston is eight games behind the first-place Blue Jays. The Red Sox will continue to try to fix the offensive issues that have been a problem for the club this season.
19. Texas Rangers (Last Week: 18)
The Rangers' rotation has been almost nonexistent besides ace Yu Darvish. Darvish has struck out 118 batters this season, good for seventh-best in Major League Baseball. The Rangers expect to be able to give him some help after the All-Star break with the activation of left-hander Derek Holland off of the disabled list.
18. Pittsburgh Pirates (Last Week: 20)
The Pirates have had to make a few adjustments with their pitching staff this season. The most recent adjustment has been the removal of Jason Grilli from the closer role. Mark Melancon has assumed the closer duties for the Pirates, and has racked up 13 saves this season.
17. Cincinnati Reds (Last Week: 19)
The Reds are still recovering the dip in form they suffered after losing Joey Votto to the disabled list, but things are starting to turn around. The Reds are back on the winning track with Votto back in the lineup, and have discovered another power hitter in Todd Frazier. Frazier has been terrific so far this season, hitting .284 and crushing 17 home runs.
16. Cleveland Indians (Last Week: 17)
The mixed success of Corey Kluber has been a good indicator of the Indians' season so far. Kluber has a record of 6-5, but he's struck out 114 batters (eighth best in the Major Leagues). If Kluber and the Indians can find some consistency, expect both the player and the team to make some noise in the second half of 2014.
15. Miami Marlins (Last Week: 16)
The Marlins have gotten some massive production from Giancarlo Stanton, but Miami has also found some great pitchers within their organization this year. Henderson Alvarez has been one of those pitchers, and he's posted an incredible 2.39 ERA so far this season. This has been pivotal for a Miami team that took a huge blow to its pitching staff with the loss of ace Jose Fernandez.
14. Kansas City Royals (Last Week: 12)
The Royals were the hottest team in Major League Baseball last week, but have lost their division lead back to the Detroit Tigers. Kansas City is currently 2.5 games back in the division, and this won't be the only time we see these two teams trade the lead back and forth.
13. Washington Nationals (Last Week: 14)
The Nationals currently lead the NL East by a small margin of 1.5 games, with the Atlanta Braves hot on their tail. The Nationals are continuing to produce wins without the help of Bryce Harper, who is expected to return some time after the All-Star break. Tanner Roark has been one of the keys to Washington's success, and is considered a top-10 pitcher by an increasing number of experts.
12. Seattle Mariners (Last Week: 13)
The Mariners continue to try to stay on pace with the two giants in their division: the Oakland A's and the Los Angeles Angels. Seattle has enjoyed an amazing season from Felix Hernandez so far - "King Felix" has posted a 2.24 ERA with 128 strikeouts during his monstrous 2014. On another note, closer Fernando Rodney (picked up in free agency) has quietly been excellent, saving 21 games for the Mariners so far this season.
11. New York Yankees (Last Week: 9)
The Yankees have pulled themselves into top echelon of the AL East with the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles, and are now 3.5 games out of the division lead. Carlos Beltran's walk-off home run earlier this week placed him with Daryl Strawberry as the only player to hit walk-off homers for both the New York Mets and the New York Yankees.
10. Atlanta Braves (Last Week: 6)
The Braves are behind the Nationals in the NL East, but this won't be true for long. Atlanta needs to jump-start an offense that has been lackluster at best, only scoring 268 runs so far this season, which is the second-worst total in Major League Baseball.
9. St. Louis Cardinals (Last Week: 10)
The Cardinals are hanging around in second place of the NL Central at 4.5 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers. St. Louis has received a boost from first baseman Matt Adams since he was activated from the disabled list. Adams has hit four home runs in his last 10 games.
8. Los Angeles Angels (Last Week: 5)
The Angels continue to pace themselves with the division-leading Oakland A's at 4.5 games out of the division lead. Los Angeles recently had to waive 19-year veteran Raul Ibanez after his struggles this season. It's unclear whether Ibanez will attempt to continue his career with another team.
7. Baltimore Orioles (Last Week: 11)
The Orioles have been busy at the plate this season, hitting 87 homers already in 2014. Nelson Cruz has hit 23 of those 87 bombs, good for the second-best total in Major League Baseball. Baltimore will continue to try and chip away at the division-leading Blue Jays.
6. Toronto Blue Jays (Last Week: 4)
The Jays are the only team in Major League Baseball to have hit over 100 home runs this season. Toronto has hit 102 total, which is ten more homers than the next-best Colorado Rockies. First baseman Edwin Encarnacion leads Major League Baseball with 24 home runs.
5. Detroit Tigers (Last Week: 8)
The Tigers regained their usual spot atop the standings in the AL Central this past week, and they now lead the Royals by three games. Miguel Cabrera has driven in 61 runs already, which is the second-best total in Major League Baseball behind Edwin Encarnacion. Cabrera has found a great complementary bat in Victor Martinez, who has hit 19 home runs during this 2014 season.
4. Los Angeles Dodgers (Last Week: 7)
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard about Clayton Kershaw's no-hitter against the Colorado Rockies. Many experts are considering Kershaw's performance to be the single-best pitching performance of all time. Not surprisingly, Kershaw was named this week's National League Player of the Week.
3. San Francisco Giants (Last Week: 1)
The Giants can hear the Dodgers' footsteps as both teams battle for the division lead. San Francisco has let their lead in the NL West slide to just 3.5 games, a symptom of the Giants cooling down over the past month. As of Wednesday, they've lost six of their last nine games.
2. Milwaukee Brewers (Last Week: 3)
The Brewers have led the NL Central for most of the 2014 season. Time and time again, Milwaukee has proven that they have one of the best starting rotations in Major League Baseball. The Brewers trail only the Atlanta Braves in quality starts, with 52.
1. Oakland Athletics (Last Week: 2)
The Oakland A's find their way back to the top spot in our rankings this week. Bob Melvin's A's have found a great formula that combines terrific pitching with an even better offense.
Oakland has scored the most runs in Major League Baseball with 389, and they continue to make noise in the American League.
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