The Yankees, who have been struggling as of late, have come back strong winning two games in a row including this afternoon's 15-6 slaughter over the Kansas City Royals.

After pitcher Mike Mussina surrendered three runs in the top of the first, the Yankees came back strong scoring six runs in the bottom of the first.

This inning was nothing less than a hitting clinic.  Alex Rodriguez started off the scoring with a three-run home run.  Then Xavier Nady and Jose Molina followed with solo shots of their own and recently recalled outfielder Brett Gardner drove in a run with a triple.

The game was then put out of perspective when Jason Giambi hit a Grand Slam in the bottom of the second, making the score 10-3.

The Yankees never looked back and went on to score five more runs on RBI singles by Rodriguez, an RBI double by Bobby Abreu, and a two-run home run by Cody Ransom.

Top to bottom, the entire Yankees lineup came through and had strong games.  Derek Jeter finished the game going 4-4 with three runs scored.  Jeter has been scorching hot as of late.  In his last four games, Jeter is 12-19 and is now batting .295 on the season.

Although all the players had great games, the player of the game goes to Rodriguez.  A-Rod went 3-3 with three runs scored, two walks, and five RBI.

Mussina, who went six innings, surrendered no walks, six hits, three earned runs, and struck out five, has improved his record to 16-7 and is getting closer to potentially having the first 20-win season of his great career.

Mark Hamilton: 1B, St. Louis Cardinals Farm System
MLB Comparison: Connor Jackson
MLB Ready: 70/100
Needs to Improve: Speed, increase SB


Upon request, the player that will be profiled is St. Louis Cardinals minor league first baseman Mark Hamilton.

Mark Hamilton, who is in this third season in the St. Louis Cardinals' farm system, is thriving quickly and becoming a top prospect.

One thing that stands out in particular is Hamilton's strong fielding.  He has a career .991 fielding percentage and has yet to commit more than 11 errors in an entire season.

In 2006, Hamilton's first season, he began with the State College Spikes of A- Class.  With State College, Hamilton drove in 24 runs, hit 8 homers, and had a batting average of .264 in 30 games.

Hamilton then moved up to A ball and finished the 2006 season the Swing of the Quad Cities, now the Quad Cities River Bandits.  With the Swing, he produced very similar numbers as he did in the first half of the season.  In 38 games, Hamilton had 8 home runs, 11 RBI, and a .254 batting average

His 2006 numbers totaled up to 11 home runs, 49 runs driven in, and had a respectable .258 batting average.

Hamilton then started the 2007 season with the Palm Beach Cardinals where his offensive numbers improved greatly.  In just 60 games, Hamilton had a .290 batting average, had 64 hits, 13 long balls, and 49 RBI.

After great production with Palm Beach, Hamilton was quickly moved up to the AA Springfield Cardinals.  Since joining Springfield in the middle of last season, Hamilton's numbers have dropped off a bit.  In 138 games with the team, Hamilton's batting average has dropped to .246.  This season alone he has only 59 hits, 8 home runs, and 29 RBI in 70 games.

Even though Hamilton is struggling, he is in fact a very talented ball player and there is no doubt that he will do well in the Majors.  The only problem is that he plays first base, the same position as Cardinals' slugger Albert Pujols.  Because the Cards won't be parting ways with Pujols anytime soon, Hamilton will either need to change positions or be traded if he expects to see much playing time once he is called up.

30. Washington Nationals (Last week #30, +0): The Nationals continue to stink up the joint.  They have lost four in a row and still hold the worst record in baseball.

29. Seattle Mariners (Last week #29, +0): With a .381 winning percentage, a three game losing streak, and trailing the Angels by 29.5 games, the Mariners are still stuck as one of the worst teams in the Majors.

28. San Diego Padres (Last week #28, +0): What I could write about the Padres would pretty much be on the same lines of what I wrote for the Nationals and the Mariners. The Padres are simply a bad team that isn't improving.

27. San Francisco Giants (Last week #27, +0): The Giants have a modest two game winning streak going and have won 6 of their last 10 games.  However, they are still 16 games under .500 and trail the Diamondbacks by 9 games.

26. Cincinnati Reds (Last week #24, -2): The Reds have lost six in a row, the longest losing streak in baseball and are 1-9 in the last 10 games.  They traded away Ken Griffey Jr. two weeks ago and dealt slugger Adam Dunn today, thus losing essentially all of their offensive production.

25. Cleveland Indians (Last week #26, +1): The Indians are playing well lately.  They have a three game winning streak and are now "only" 13 games back in the division.

24. Colorado Rockies (Last week #25, -1): After showing signs of possibly making another late playoff run, the Rockies have tapered off a bit and have dropped two in a row and six of their last 10.

23. Pittsburgh Pirates (Last week #23, +0): The Pirates are 10 games under .500 and aren't getting better.  They are 4-6 in their last 10 and have no chance of making the playoffs.

22. Oakland Athletics (Last week #19, -3): The A's are sinking in the Power Rankings and the standings very fast.  They have a two game losing streak and are 1-9 in their last 10 games.   

21. Kansas City Royals (Last week #21, +0): Over the last couple of weeks the Royals have played .500 baseball.  They are having one of their strongest seasons in the last few years, but that still isn't good enough as they play in one of the toughest divisions in the MLB.
 
20. Atlanta Braves (Last week #22, +2): The Braves are simply just a bad team.  They cannot hold onto winning streaks nor have they shown any improvement after the Mark Teixeira trade.

19. Baltimore Orioles (Last week #20, +1): The Orioles are playing better baseball as of late and are now 56-60 and trail the Blue Jays by just 2 games.

18. Toronto Blue Jays (Last week #16, -2): The Blue Jays have lost three in a row and are barely avoiding dropping to last place in the American League East. 

17. Detroit Tigers (Last week #17, +0): For about the fifth straight week, the Tigers cannot get away from the .500 mark.  At the end of each week they are either one game over or one game under .500.  Right now they are one game under.

16. Houston Astros (Last week #18, +2): The Astros are very hot right now.  They have won four in a row and eight of the last 10.    

15. Los Angeles Dodgers (Last week #15, +0):  The Dodgers have lost two in a row and still remain in second place in the NL West.

14. Arizona Diamondbacks (Last week #14, +0): The Diamondbacks are in first place by 1.5 games and with the acquisition of Adam Dunn, Arizona received a player they desperately needed, a left-handed power hitter.

13. New York Mets (Last week #12, -1): The Mets, who just a few weeks ago were really showing that they can be a playoff team, have fallen off track and are now 2.5 games back.

12. Texas Rangers (Last week #13, +1): Assuming the Angels don't suffer a collapse that would go into the record books, the Rangers will not be winning the AL West this season  

11. Florida Marlins (Last week #11, +0): The Marlins are still playing pretty well and are tied for second place in the NL East. 

10. New York Yankees (Last week #7, -3): The Yankees have lost three in a row, six of their last 10, and 10 of their last 15 and are yet again falling back in their playoff hunt.

9. St. Louis Cardinals (Last week  #10, +1): The Cardinals are sinking fast and are now seven games behind the Cubs and 3.5 behind the Brewers.

8. Philadelphia Phillies (Last week #9, +1): The Phillies have won two in a row, remain in first place in the division, and continue to play well on both the road and home.  When you add that all up, you have a playoff team.  

7. Minnesota Twins (Last week #5, -2): Although the Twins have lost their short run as division leaders, they remain hot and are just 1.5 games behind the Red Sox for the Wild Card.

6. Chicago White Sox (Last week #6, +0): The White Sox have retaken the lead in the Central and are looking strong as the season winds down.

5. Boston Red Sox (Last week #4, -1): The Red Sox have hit some minor bumps in the road lately but are just 4.5 games behind the Rays and have the lead in the Wild Card race.

4. Milwaukee Brewers (Last week #8, +4): The Brewers are the hottest team in baseball right now.  They have won six in a row and eight of their last 10.  They are running smoothly and have a 3.5 game lead ahead of the Cardinals in the Wild Card hunt. 

3. Chicago Cubs (Last week #3, +0): The Cubs have the third best record in baseball and are 7-3 in their last 10.  If they can keep up their great play they will be the NL Central champs and will be a scary presence in October.  

2. Tampa Bay Rays (Last week #2, +0): The Rays have won three straight games, eight of their last 10, and have a strong 4.5 game lead in their division.

1. Los Angeles Angels (Last week #1, +0): The Angels continue to plow over their opponents with ease.  They are 7-3 in their last 10, have won four in a row, and for the fourth straight week remain in the number one spot in the Power Rankings

A close friend of Manny Ramirez told the New York Post that the right-handed slugger really wants to play for the New York Yankees.

"He wants to play for the Yankees so he can get at the Red Sox," the friend to the Post.

Although Yankees General Manager has yet to speak about this situation, there is no doubt that at least some of the team's interest is sparked.

Ramirez, who up until he was dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers a couple of weeks ago, had been with the Boston Red Sox for the previous 8 season and had been a Yankee killer in each of those years.

It is, however, interestng to think whether or not the Yankees would be interested in signing Ramirez.  His lack of hustle is most definitely a turn-off but there is no getting around the fact that he is one of the best hitters in baseball.

The Yankees are also no stranger to acquiring former players of the Red Sox.  Babe Ruth, Wade Boggs, Roger Clemens, and most recently Johnny Damon just to name a few, all hopped onto the Boston to New York train.

Ramirez is a free agent after this season and he will definitely be wanting a hefty contract.  The Yankees are just one of few teams that can afford to pay what Ramirez is looking for and are one of even fewer teams who can afford to throw away that kind of cash if for some reason things don't work out.

Adam Dunn is parting ways with the Cincinnati Reds as the long-ball slugger was dealt to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Minor League pitcher Dallas Buck and two more players to be named later.

Dunn has spent his entire career with the Reds so he is definitely upset to be leaving after Cincinnati is where he's called home for the last 10 years.  However, Dunn should keep his chin up as he goes from one of the worst teams in baseball to the Diamondbacks who are the NL West division leader with a 1.5 game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers and are making a serious playoff run.

The Reds have not been good in about a decade.  The last time they had a winning record was 2000.  Dunn, who is earning $13 million this year, will be a free agent after this season.  Because the Reds have been so bad, it is likely that Dunn would have signed elsewhere after the conclusion of this season and the Reds would have been left out to dry.  Thus, trading Dunn was essentially their only option.

Dunn is tied for the National League lead with 32 home runs and is easily on pace to reach 40 home runs.  If Dunn stays healthy and avoids falling into a horrific slump, he will have his 5th straight 40 home run season.

Although Dunn has received a lot of criticism over the years because of his very low batting average and high number of strikeouts, he is still a very valuable hitter.  He does have the most strikeouts since his Major League debut on July 20, 2001 with 1,212, but he is also 3rd in the Majors with 270 home runs and 2nd with 755 walks in that time.

The Dodgers, who are battling the D-Backs for the division lead, recently acquired Manny Ramirez.  The Diamondbacks were desperately in need of a left-handed hitter with pop.  With the acquisition of Dunn they have filled that hole and have countered the Dodgers move. 

The Reds are 19.5 games back and in last place in the very tough NL Central.  By trading Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr. only 11 days ago, the Reds have dealt away two key components in their line-up and appear to be giving up on this season and preparing for the future.

King of the Hill is a point system to determine the best hitters in the game today.  Points will be awarded for each statistic the player puts up.  The point distribution will look like this:

Hit = 1 pt
Run = 1 pt
Home Run = 3 pts
Run Batted In = 2 pts
Stolen Base = .5 pts

The standings will be updated every Monday.  The results of the standings will be determined based on how each player performs in the previous week.


1. Carlos Lee* - 80 points (+5): (11/20, 7 R, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 0 SB = 49 points)
2. Ryan Ludwick - 79 points (-1): (8/25, 4 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 0 SB = 30 points)
3. Matt Holliday - 72.5 points (-1): (9/25, 10 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 SB = 29 points)
4. Albert Pujols - 70 points (+4): (10/22, 6 R, 3 HR, 8 RBI, 1 SB = 41.5 points)
5. Carlos Quentin - 64 points (+4): (9/23, 5 R, 4 HR, 6 RBI, 0 SB = 38 points)
6. Josh Hamilton - 57 points (+1): (6/27, 5 R, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 0 SB = 27 points)
7. Alex Rodriguez - 55.5 points (-3): (4/23, 4 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 1 SB = 20.5 points)
8. Chase Utley - 50 points (-5): (4/22, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 SB = 14 points)
9. Grady Sizemore - 43 points (-4): (3/21, 1 R, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0 SB = 8 points)
10. David Wright - 40.5 points (+5): (10/26, 3 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 1 SB = 31.5 points)
11. Ian Kinsler - 33.5 points (+2): (9/27, 4 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 SB = 22.5 points)
12. Nate McLouth - 31 points (-2): (7/21, 3 R, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0 SB = 14 points)
13. Lance Berkman - 30 points (+1): (7/24, 5 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 0 SB = 21 points)
14. Hanley Ramirez - 27.5 points (-2): (6/23, 3 R, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 2 SB = 14 points)
15. Jose Reyes - 24.5 points (-4): (5/25, 2 R, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1 SB = 9.5 points)

* = on DL

Studs
Marlon Byrd: Byrd was the hottest hitter in baseball this week.  He had 16 hits in 28 at bats for a .571 average.  2 of those hits were home runs and also had 8 RBI and 2 stolen bases.



Carlos Lee: Lee improved his already impressive season by getting 11 hits in 30 at bats with 3 long balls and 11 RBI.  Unfortunately, Lee was recently placed on the DL with a fractured finger and will miss the next 6-8 weeks.



Brandon Webb: Webb continued his dominance by going 2-0; one of the wins was a complete game.  He had 9 strike outs with a 1.20 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP.




Brian Moehler: Moehler came out of nowhere this week and really turned some heads.  He went 2-0 with 7 k's and a ridiculous 0.75 ERA and .a 0.75 WHIP.  Moehler has now won his last 3 starts and his last 4 decisions.



Duds
Jose Guillen: Guillen, who had previously been playing well, has really cooled off this week.  He had a low .208 (5/24) batting average with only 1 run scored and only 1 run batted in.



Chase Utley: Utley has been scorching hot all season.  However, his numbers did sink a bit this week as he batted .182, with 1 run, 1 homer, and 3 RBI.  His home run didn't come until Sunday.



Clay Buchholz: Buchholz has really struggled in the past week.  He lost both of his starts, had a miserable 9.00 ERA and gave up, on average, 2.11 walks and hits per inning.



Aaron Cook: Cook has also struggled very badly this week.  He went 0-2 in both games he pitched, had an 8.74 ERA and a 1.94 WHIP.

Jhonny Nunez: RHP New York Yankees
MLB Comparison: Fernando Rodney
MLB Ready: 35/100
Needs to Improve: On the field dominance, lower BB an H

Upon request, the player that will be profiled here is New York Yankees minor league pitcher Jhonny Nunez, the man the Yankees received in return for Alberto Gonzalez.

Before Nunez was dealt to the Yankees and was still with Washington, he pitched very poorly with the team's High Class A affiliate Potomac Nationals.  With Potomac, Nunez started 17 games going 2-8 with a 5.22 ERA, surrendered 11 HR, and 88 hits in 81 innings.

The team then decided to try Nunez out in the bullpen and found himself with the Double-A Harrisburg Senators.  With Harrisburg, Nunez pitched very well in the bullpen.  He pitched 8 innings, had a low 1.13 ERA, and 8 strike outs.

It appears that these numbers were good enough for the the Yankees as they then traded for him.  With the Double-A Trenton Thunder, Nunez has appeared in 6 games for 10.2 innings, lowering his already low bullpen ERA to 0.84, and 10 strike outs.

As a starter, Nunez walked only 2.33 batters per 9, but since becoming a reliever, his total walks have increased to 5.9 BB per 9.

One thing that has stayed consistent throughout Nunez's entire career is that he's been a strike out machine.  With the three teams he's played for this season, he averages 9.03 strikeouts per 9 innings.

Alberto Gonzalez: SS/2B Washington Nationals
MLB Comparison: David Eckstein
MLB Ready: 65/100
Needs to Improve: Power, base running, hitting with runners on base

Today's player to watch is 25-year-old shortstop Alberto Gonzalez of the Washington Nationals. After struggling severely as a back up in the first four months of the season, Gonzalez stepped up while starting shortstop Christian Guzman was sidelined with a thumb injury.

In the four games Gonzalez played from August 1-4, he had 6 hits in 13 at bats, 3 doubles, 2 walks, and 3 runs.  Also, the Nationals won all four of those games, tying their longest winning streak of the season.

Guzman is now back in the Nationals' starting lineup and Gonzalez is back on the bench.  Unfortunately for Gonzalez, Guzman signed a 2-year extension with the Nats on July 23, so it seems the team will stick with him.

However, Gonzalez is listed as the backup second baseman behind Pete Orr on the team's depth chart.  With Orr playing really poorly this season, there is a good chance that Gonzalez will see more playing time there and, hopefully for him, eventually become an everyday player in this lineup.

Phil Hughes, who was placed on the disabled list in late April with a stress fracture in his right rib cage, is set to start tonight for Scranton, the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate.

According to Pro Sports Daily, Hughes is scheduled to throw approximately 60 pitches tonight, 80 pitches in his next game, and finally about 95 pitches in the next.

With Yankee star Joba Chamberlain recently placed on the 15-day DL and ace Chien-Ming Wang's return a big question mark, it is very likely that Hughes will be called up to the bigs yet again to fill the gaping hole in the Bombers' rotation.

Hughes is 0-4 this season with a 9.00 ERA, numbers that he, Yankees fans, and the front office didn't expect to see.

Right now the Yankees are more upset than ever that they weren't able to acquire Jarrod Washburn from the Seattle Mariners this trade deadline.  The Yankees desperately need help in their starting rotation and Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and Dan Giese, at least based on their previous performances, aren't exactly the names fans wanted to hear as possible replacements.

It's even being said that the Yankees are tossing around the name Carl Pavano.  Yeah, remember him?  The guy who has a grand total of 5 wins in only 19 appearances since joining the Yankees in 2005.  What a great choice.  The Yankees are in the hunt to play in October and these are their best options? That's just not going to cut it.

One can only hope that Pavano will not wear pinstripes again and the return of Hughes will prove to be a success.  Let's just see if Hughes can make Brian Cashman look somewhat smart for refusing to trade him for Johan Santana.

In a series that has seen plenty of runs, the New York Yankees edged out the Texas Rangers in a nail bitter by a score of 5-3.  Every game from here on out is huge for the Yankees as they have seen their playoff hopes slightly dwindle in the last week or so.

After Yankee pitcher Sidney Ponson gave up a 2-run single to Chris Davis in the second inning, things started to look dismal as they had in the previous two games in this series.

However, the Yankees rallied in the top of the third by scoring 3 runs on an RBI double by Wilson Betemit, an RBI ground out by Johnny Damon, and an RBI single by Derek Jeter.

The next inning, they Yankees would go on to add another run with a towering home run by Jason Giambi, his 22nd of the season.

Jeter doubled in the fifth inning that would plate the final Yankee run.

Although Ponson had that shaky second inning, he never looked back and went on to pitch 6.1 solid innings, surrendered 6 hits, 3 ER, and struck out 4 in what would result in his 7th win of the season.  Ponson, who has now improved his overall record to 7-2 and 3-1 with the Yankees, is proving to be a very reliable pitcher.

After the sixth inning, there was no more scoring and it was all up to the Yankee bullpen to hold the game, a bullpen that has struggled as of late.  Relievers Edwar Ramirez, Damaso Marte, and Jose Veras got the job done and turned it over to Mariano Rivera to close things out.  Rivera pitched a scoreless inning in the ninth while striking out 2 to earn his 27th save of the season and improve the Yankees record to 62-52.

Because both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Boston Red Sox were also winners tonight, the Yankees did not pick up any games in the division.  However this game was very big because they had lost last night (August 5) while both Tampa Bay and Boston were victorious, losing a game in the standings, and failed to win two nights ago (August 4) when the Rays and Red Sox both lost, not being able to capitalize on the formers' misfortunes.

The Yankees finish their four-game series against the Rangers tomorrow and hope to split the series after losing the first two games, an outcome that would be nothing short of ideal.

Newly acquired catcher Ivan Rodriguez was forced to leave the game in the third inning after bruising his right knee after colliding with David Murphy.  Murphy eventually left the game in the fourth inning as well, also injuring his right knee in the collision.

The Yankees then start a three-game series at home against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Orange County, California, USA (that doesn't sound right).  These upcoming games against the Angels are more than important and the whole outcome of the season can be determined just by looking back on how the Yankees come out of this series.


NY Yankees Box Score
                           AB    R    H    RBI    BB    K    LOB

The last thing Yankees needed was for another starting pitcher to go down.  Already missing ace Chien-Ming Wang and young gun Phil Hughes, the Yankees received a real scare last night when Joba Chamberlain was taken out in the 5th inning of the August 4 game against the Texas Rangers with a stiff right shoulder.

Chamberlain is being sent back to New York to have tests run on his arm to determine the cause of the pain and how long he will be out for.  Manager Joe Girardi has already said that he expects Chamberlain to miss his next start.

Losing Chamberlain for any more time would be a devastating blow to the Yankees.  With Wang out likely for the rest of the season, Chamberlain has stepped up and has become the team's ace and really one of the best pitchers in the American League in the last two months.

Chamberlain pitched the worst game of his career last night surrendering 8 hits, 2 home runs, and 5 earned runs in only 4.2 innings.  Other than that, he has been nothing but solid.  In his 11 starts since he became a starting pitcher on June 8, Chamberlain is 3-1 with a 2.71 ERA and averages 6.45 strikeouts per game.

Ian Kennedy, who had been sent down to the minors, was rumored to be replacing struggling starter Darrell Rasner.  Now that it appears Chamberlain will be missing his next start, Kennedy would be the likely option to pitch in place of Chamberlain and Rasner would have to be kept in the rotation.

The Yankees are only 5.5 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays for first place in the AL East and only 2.5 games behind the Boston Red Sox for the AL wild card lead.  It is no doubt that the amount of time Chamberlain will miss and how well the other pitchers could step up in place of his absence will play a significant role in the formation of the playoff picture.

The title of this article isn't a reference to the lovable Will Smith character, but instead a reference to the constant vulgar antics put on by Milwaukee Brewers' first baseman Prince Fielder.

Fielder's latest temper tantrum occurred during the 7th inning in the Brewers game on August 4 against the Cincinnati Reds.  After Brewers' pitcher Manny Parra was replaced by a pinch hitter, Fielder approached him in the dugout, exchanged some words, then proceeded to shove Parra a few times before being restrained by teammates.

It is unclear what exactly Fielder and Parra were discussing but it is clear, however, that Fielder, yet again, overreacted.  Right before Fielder shoved Parra, Parra had swung his jacket at the bench probably in response to whatever Fielder had said to him.  Fielder then thought the reasonable reaction would be to attack his fellow teammate.

Fielder is not shy to showing his emotions on the field and is constantly displaying his anger.  Last week versus the Chicago Cubs, Fielder threw another fit.  After two pitches Fielder thought were outside were called strikes, he popped out to left-center field and decided to show the umpire how he really felt.  He smashed his bat into pieces on the ground immediately after hitting the ball and took his sweet time to leave the field.  As Fielder walked slowly to the dugout he yelled out a certain synonym for horse manure numerous times at the umpire and was thrown out of the game right after.

There's nothing wrong with showing your emotions and it's always good to have a lot of fire, but enough is enough.  Fielder is acting like a baby.  Nobody likes it when an umpire blows a call, but keep it to yourself.  If you have a dispute with a teammate, take him into the clubhouse and talk it over.  Don't display your childish behaviors on television.

Fielder is a great player and any team in baseball would love to add him to their roster.  But it's ridiculous that this guy walks around like he can do whatever he wants.  He needs to be taught a lesson so he learns that this type of behavior is not tolerated in the majors.  If Fielder wants to act the way he does he should just go back to Little League.

30. Washington Nationals (38-67) (Last week #30, +0): Although the Nationals have won 3 in a row, they had previously lost 9 straight.  They remain stuck with the worst record in baseball and stuck at the number 30 spot in the Power Rankings.

29. Seattle Mariners (39-65) (Last week #29, +0): The Mariners are 4-6 in their last 10 and just can't seem to improve at all.

28. San Diego Padres (41-65) (Last week #28, +0): The Padres are playing .500 baseball in the last 10 games but still are struggling severely.

27. San Francisco Giants (43-61) (Last week #27, +0): Although the Giants have a game behind the Padres in the last 10 games, they still have a better record and therefore deserve to be one place ahead in the Power Rankings.

26. Cleveland Indians (45-58) (Last week #26, +0): Nothing is going right for the Indians.  They haven't won consecutive games since their back to back wins over the Mariners and the Angels on July 20th and 21st. 

25. Colorado Rockies (48-58) (Last week #22, -3): Don't get fooled by the large drop the Rockies have suffered in the Power Rankings.  They have been playing decent baseball as of late, it just simply came down to standings and the Rockies have dropped to the number 25 spot. 

24. Cincinnati Reds (50-56) (Last week #19, -5): The Reds have lost 3 games in a row and 8 of their last 10.  They recently lost Ken Griffey Junior and aren't improving.

23. Pittsburgh Pirates (48-57) (Last week #24, +1): The Pirates have lost 2 straight, but are 4-6 in the last 10 and have moved in up to .5 games ahead of the Reds.

22. Atlanta Braves (49-55) (Last week #20, -2): Although the Braves won this past Sunday against the Brewers, they came off of a bad run where they lost 6 of their last 7 which included a 5 game losing streak.

21. Kansas City Royals (47-59) (Last week #25, +4): The Royals, surprisingly, are very hot as of late.  They have won 2 in a row and are 7-3 in their last 10 games.

20. Baltimore Orioles (49-55) (Last week #21, +1): The Orioles are not improving at all and had didn't address any of their issues during the trade deadline.  They remain in last in the AL East.

19. Oakland Athletics (53-41) (Last week #14, -5): The Athletics are the coldest team in baseball right now.  They have lost 6 in a row, 9 out of their last 10, and 15 out of their last 17.  Since the All-Star break, the A's have lost all 5 of their series including 3 sweeps at the hands of the Yankees, Royals, and Red Sox.  

18. Houston Astros (48-56) (Last week #23, +5): The Astros are playing very well lately.  They have won 3 straight and 6 of their last 7. 

17. Detroit Tigers (53-51) (Last week #18, +1): The Tigers simply cannot get away from the .500 mark.  They have been hovering around this mark for a few weeks now and are neither improving nor getting worse.

16. Toronto Blue Jays (53-52) (Last week #17, +1):  Just like the Tigers, the Blue Jays are neither getting better nor worse.  They are playing average baseball all season and remain at the same spot in the Power Rankings.

15. Los Angeles Dodgers (52-52) (Last week #16, +1): The Dodgers are playing really well lately.  They are 7-3 in their last 10 and have won 2 in a row.  However, they remain 1 game behind the Diamondbacks.

14. Arizona Diamondbacks (53-51) (Last week #15, +1): The Diamondbacks aren't as hot as the Dodgers as they have lost 2 in a row, but they are have the same 7-3 record in the last 10 and are a game ahead in the division.

13. Texas Rangers (54-51) (Last week #13, +0): With the Rangers playing pretty well lately and the A's playing so poorly, the Rangers have moved into second place in the AL West. 

12. New York Mets (57-48) (Last week #10, -2): The Mets have lost 4 straight and have gone from first place in the NL East to third.

11. Florida Marlins (55-50) (Last week #12, +1): The Marlins are 6-4 in their last 10 and are now .5 games ahead of the Mets and only 2.5 games back of the Phillies. 

10. St. Louis Cardinals (58-49) (Last week  #9, -1): The Cardinals' struggles as of late have been very costly.  They are now 6 games back in the division and face a tough road ahead.

9. Philadelphia Phillies (56-49) (Last week #11, +2): The Phillies have a modest 2 game winning streak and have won 7 of their last 10 and are now 2.5 games ahead of the Marlins for first place in the division.  

8. Milwaukee Brewers (60-45) (Last week #5, -3): By suffering a crucial 4 game sweep to the Cubs, the Brewers have dropped to 5 games back in the NL Central. 

7. New York Yankees (58-46) (Last week #7, +0): After the Yankees had their 8 game winning streak snapped, they had lost 5 out of their next 6. But they have won 2 in a row and are 5-5 in their last 10 games.

6. Chicago White Sox (59-44) (Last week #6, +0): The White Sox have lost 2 in a row, 6 of their last 10, and have lost their lead in the division.  

5. Minnesota Twins (57-47) (Last week #8, +3): The Twins are 7-3 in the last 10 games and are now the top dogs in the AL Central.

4. Boston Red Sox (61-45) (Last week #4, +0): The Red Sox have gotten over their recent struggles and have won 3 straight.  They are now 3 games behind the Rays.

3. Chicago Cubs (61-44) (Last week #3, +0): The Cubs are hot right now including and important sweep over the Brewers and a very strong hold on the division.  

2. Tampa Bay Rays (61-43) (Last week #2, +0): With the longest winning streak in baseball, the Rays have won 5 straight and remain in first place in the AL East.

1. Los Angeles Angels (64-40) (Last week #1, +0): The Angels have the best record in baseball and remain the number 1 team in the Power Rankings for the third straight week.

King of the Hill is a point system to determine the best hitters in the game today.  Points will be awarded for each statistic the player puts up.  The point distribution will look like this:

Hit = 1 pt
Run = 1 pt
Home Run = 3 pts
Run Batted In = 2 pts
Stolen Base = .5 pts

The standings will be updated every Monday.  The results of the standings will be determined based on how each player performs in the previous week.


1. Ryan Ludwick - 49 points: (14/26, 7 R, 4 HR, 8 RBI, 0 SB = 49 points)
2. Matt Holliday - 43.5 points: (10/26, 9 R, 4 HR, 6 RBI, 1 SB = 43.5 points)
3. Chase Utley - 36 points: (8/22, 7 R, 3 HR, 6 RBI, 0 SB = 36 points)
4. Alex Rodriguez - 35 points: (8/26, 8 R, 3 HR, 5 RBI, 0 SB = 35 points)
5. Grady Sizemore - 35 points: (7/27, 5 R, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 2 SB = 35 points)
6. Carlos Lee - 31 points: (7/22, 4 R, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 0 SB = 31 points)
7. Josh Hamilton - 30 points: (10/24, 8 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 0 SB = 30 points)
8. Albert Pujols - 28.5 points: (5/23, 6 R, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 1 SB = 28.5 points)
9. Carlos Quentin - 26 points: (8/28, 3 R, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 0 SB = 26 points)
10. Nate McLouth - 17 points: (4/21, 6 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0 SB = 17 points)
11. Jose Reyes - 15 points: (11/27, 3 R, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 2 SB = 15 points)
12. Hanley Ramirez - 13.5 points: (4/23, 2 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 SB = 13.5 points)
13. Ian Kinsler - 11 points: (5/30, 5 R, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 0 SB = 11 points)
14. Lance Berkman - 9 points: (4/20, 5 R, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 0 SB = 9 points)
15. David Wright - 9 points: (3/22, 2 R, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 0 SB = 9 points)

Studs
Bobby Abreu: Abreu has been simply on fire this week.  With a .444 average (12/27), 4 home runs, 9 RBI, 11 runs, and 1 stolen base, Abreu has been surging and has helped the Yankees recover from their recent struggles.



Ryan Ludwick: Ludwick is continuing to be one of the biggest surprises this season.  This week he had 14 hits in 26 at bats including 4 homers, 8 RBI, and 7 runs scored



Zack Greinke: Greinke, who had lost his last 3 decisions, came back strong this week winning both his starts.  His 2 victories this week included 17 strike outs, a 2.63 ERA, and a 1.02 WHIP.



Jeremy Guthrie: Guthrie has been pitching very well lately.  This week, Guthrie went 2-0, including a complete game, a 1.17 ERA, and a very low 0.65 WHIP.




Duds

When you look at the really bad teams that have ever played baseball, you notice two things that a lot of these ball clubs have in common.  The first, obviously, is that they are flat out terrible.  But the second thing they have in common is, as bad as the teams are, there is usually at least one very good player in the lineup.  The 1988 Baltimore Orioles who finished 54-107 had future Hall of Famers Cal Ripken Jr. and Eddie Murray, the 42-112 1952 Pittsburgh Pirates had Hall of Fame slugger Ralph Kiner, and the 1962 Chicago Cubs who finished 59-103 had the great Ernie Banks.

However, when you look at the Nationals, they have no actually "star" on their team.  They do have the talented and young third baseman Ryan Zimmerman who has played very well the last two seasons, but he is nowhere nearly as good as the names listed above.

It is almost impossible to assemble a group of 25 athletes and actually be worse than what the Nationals have to offer. Not one player on the team has double-digit home runs this season and their current RBI leader with only 47 is Jesus Flores. Who?

Their pitcher with the most wins is Tim Redding with only 7 and is their only pitcher who has a winning record.

The Nationals are last in the National League by having scored only 403 runs (3.7 RPG) and are 11th in the NL by allowing 526 runs.  In case you can't do the math, they have given up 123 more runs than they have scored! That is ridiculous.

The Nationals just beat the Cincinnati Reds on Friday in a game where they actually had good hitting and pitching.  However, the Nationals just had their 9 game losing streak snapped with this win, their second 9 game losing streak this season, they have won only 3 series since the end of May, and have had won a grand total of 5 out of 24 games in the month of July.  Not only that, but the Nationals have had a winning streak of 2 or more games only nine times this whole season and their streak never exceeded 4 games, which happened only once.  The other 8 streaks include three 3 game winning streaks and five 2 game winning streaks.

With the worst record in baseball, the Nationals stand at 20 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East and a laughable 11 games behind the Atlanta Braves, the second worst team in the division.

It is also said that teams have an advantage when playing at home.  Well, not so much in the Nationals' case.  They are 12 games under .500 at home and have won only 4 series when playing in Washington.

When you watch the Nationals play, it isn't baseball.  It its impossible to watch a full 9 inning Nationals game without thinking, "isn't there anything better on?"  I would rather watch an episode of The View than have to sit through what the Nationals call professional baseball.

Because I am from the DC Metropolitan Area, I figured I would check out a game at the new Nationals Park.  You would think that going to a live game would make it more exciting, but it didn't.

Let me tell you, the stadium is unbelievable, the seating is cheap, the scoreboard in center field is as big and HD as you can get, and the food is awesome, but the baseball is still atrocious.  Sure it didn't help that the game I attended was against the San Francisco Giants, but it was still, nonetheless, a terrible game.  For the first time in my life I understood why some people think baseball is a boring sport.  It was also the first time ever I had left a baseball game early for a different reason than because I wanted to beat the traffic home.

The Washington Nationals are simply nothing more than a horrendous example of what the Majors has to offer.  They cannot win, have no depth, no hitting, no pitching, and resemble a little league team where the players just run around without knowing what exactly they are doing.  All in all, the 2008 Nationals quite possibly could be the worst team in the history of baseball.

It's amazing that people don't realize how good the Los Angeles Angels truly are.  With a 12.5 game lead in the AL West and an MLB best 69-40 record, the Angels have quietly been baseball's toughest team.

All is going right for the Angels right now.  They have won 5 straight games, 9 out of their last 10, and 12 of the 14 games they've played since the All-Star Break.

To go along with those gaudy numbers, the Angels acquired first baseman Mark Teixeira earlier this week, which makes their already great offense a lot better.  Teixeira is perhaps the best switch hitter around today and fits perfectly in the middle of the Angels' lineup.

There's not much doubt that the Angels will make the playoffs this season, but the ultimate decider of the team's true talents will be concluded in just two weeks.  Starting August 15th, the Angels will play 17 straight games without a day of rest, then play 13 more games on consecutive days starting on September 2nd, then another 13 straight games to close out the season starting on September 16th.  That means the Angels will play their final 43 games of the season with only 2 days of rest.

Luckily for them, from August 21st to August 31st they have an 11 game home stand against the Twins, Athletics, and Rangers so they will have a good week and a half without having to travel.  However, the physical toll the body takes from playing 43 games in 45 days is very intense, especially on the starters.

The Angels are really in a lose-lose situation right now.  If they give their starters a lot of time off to rest and get healthy for the playoffs, then they will be viewed as quitters.  But if manager Mike Scioscia uses his starters as much as normal, he runs the dangerous risk of a key player getting injured.

It's impossible to predict how this upcoming chunk of games will affect the team and their player's ability to perform in the playoffs.  However, there is one thing certain and that is the Angels are happier than ever that they have one of baseball's deepest teams.