MLB power rankings: 'Stros, Sox come out of the gate strong

No surprise here, as the champs picked up right where they left off. George Springer led the year off with a homer for the second consecutive year, and they haven’t looked back since. The 'Stros led the majors in run differential, fueled by a starting staff that has allowed the fewest runs in the majors through Sunday. Gerrit Cole, Justin Verlander, Charlie Morton and Lance McCullers Jr. have totaled 66 strikeouts over 48 innings thus far.

After dropping their opener, the Sox ripped off eight straight wins over the first week of the year. This came on the back of a starting staff that was simply dominant, allowing only four runs over the first four games of the year. And where the staff didn’t carry the weight, Xander Bogaerts did the rest, posting a 1.111 OPS with 14 hits, seven of which were doubles. However, the rest of the Sox lineup will have to pick up the pace, as a fractured ankle will sideline their star shortstop for at least the next two weeks.

The story of the National League thus far has been the undeniable start of the year in Flushing, where the Mets made quick work of the Cardinals before a shocking sweep of the Nationals over the weekend. Noah Syndergaard looks great again and Yoenis Cespedes has already sent three balls over the fence. Add in the earlier-than-anticipated return of Michael Conforto, and everything is turning up roses so far for new manager Mickey Callaway.

Considering that Paul Goldschmidt hit only .100 (3-for-30) over the first week of the year and both Jake Lamb and Steven Souza Jr are on the disabled list, the strong start from the D’Backs is especially impressive. Chris Owings, Nick Ahmed and A.J. Pollock are all hitting over .340, with Pollock totaling eight extra base hits in the process. Now, if only manager Torey Lovullo can keep his cool and his vocab together…

The most surprising start in all of baseball is that of the Bucs, who have roared out to a quick start, albeit against the Reds and Tigers. But no matter the terms of their big start, they have made the most of the opportunity, averaging over four runs a game and outscoring the rest of the NL by over 10 runs entering the week.

One week in and Giancarlo Stanton has already been subject to the full range of the Yankee fan experience. He watered down his first three home runs with a pair of five strikeout games (and 20 overall Ks) already. But all-in-all, the Yankee power has come as advertised, with their 13 homers checking in second in the AL, despite Stanton hitting just .167 and Gary Sanchez mired in a 2-for-32 (.063) start to the year. It is just a matter of time before everything else rounds into form for the Yanks.

While the hot start to the year for the Angels has been about more than just Shohei Ohtani, it is impossible to miss what has been arguably the most impressive first week on the job in MLB history. Ohtani flirted with a perfect game in his second career start, allowing a single hit over seven innings while striking out 12. And in his part-time job, he clubbed three home runs (including one off two-time Cy Young winner Corey Kluber) and hit .389. Maybe the hype may not have been high enough.

It has been an uneven start for the Cubs, who have had to deal with lackluster performances from anybody not named Kris Bryant in their lineup. And concerns for a turnaround in the lineup went to another level as the new week got under way, with Anthony Rizzo heading to the disabled list with a bad back. In the meantime, Cubs pitching will need to stay strong, after posting a 2.58 team ERA and allowing only four home runs over their first 87 innings.

Early on, the Jays have done an excellent job of making good on betting big on a turnaround season this year. Justin Smoak has again started off the year hot, tearing off seven extra base hits, while Kevin Pillar has remained one of the most exciting players in the AL. All in all, the Jays have been one of the best teams in baseball at getting late runs across the plate, and Robert Osuna has continued to be among the best slamming doors on the other side, racing out to four early saves.

Despite a slow start, there is only so far to drop this club before it can be considered overreacting. It has been a flat out weird start to the year for the Dodgers, who have already been involved in five shutouts – and coming out on the losing end three times. They have also lost two extra innings games that have gone into the 14^th and 15^th innings. Odds are that things will get a bit more normal for them in the upcoming weeks.

That Bryce Harper kid, he’s pretty good, eh? He put the NL on notice in the first week of the year, clubbing six home runs, while still getting walked 16 times. This was good for a Bonds-like .571 OBP and an incredible 1.519 OPS. His performance masked what turned into a first week that fell off the rails for the Nats, who dropped five straight contests after jumping out to a 4-0 start.

While much of the talk around the team has been about when Ronald Acuna will join the party, the Braves as currently constituted have fared well in their own right. They currently lead the NL in runs scored, total bases, extra base hits and OPS. This has been greatly aided by a surprising start from Ryan Flaherty (.375 average), encouraging early returns from Dansby Swanson (.351 average) and of course Freddie Freeman, who has already reached double digits in runs scored, hits and walks.

The biggest headline in the young year surrounding the Rockies was the surprisingly quick extension for Charlie Blackmon, which will make him an additional $94 million through 2023. The defending NL batting champ hit .331 a year ago, with 104 RBI and 86 extra base hits. And in the new year, he has multi-hit games in four of his first nine games, with four home runs.

Jake Odorizzi and Addison Reed have quickly made their mark in their new digs in Minnesota, while the existing core of the club has continued the same impressive play that led to the Twins turnaround of a year ago. Brian Dozier has slugged four (solo) homers, while Joe Mauer has put on a vintage showing early on, hitting .391 with four doubles.

The early offensive showing in Cleveland has been, well, offensive. As a team, they hit only .159 over their first 10 games. However, Francisco Lindor (.175), Edwin Encarnacion (.171), Jason Kipnis (.108) and Jose Ramirez (.086) are due for massive turnarounds in short order, while the Tribe’s pitching remains ready to reap the benefits of some run support.

Things were going great for the new look Brewers outfield early on, with Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich seemingly living on-base. But in the new week, injuries have hit the Crew in two tough areas, as an oblique injury sent Yelich to the DL, where he joins closer Corey Knebel, who is sidelined with a severe hamstring injury. Regardless, they have remained in the heart of the wide-open early NL Central picture.

It has often been a hot or cold start for the Cards thus far, who have nearly broken even in runs scored and allowed, as well as in the standings. This temperature has also raged as hot as Yadier Molina’s temper, when he leapt after D’Backs manager Torey Lovullo after being slighted on Sunday afternoon, but also as cold as their top of the order bats, as Dexter Fowler, Tommy Pham and Matt Carpenter have struggled to get in gear for the bigger bats that follow them early on.

Worries about the rash of injuries that swept across their ranks during the spring made it hard to forecast what type of start would take place in Seattle, but things have gone well for the most part. At 35, Robinson Cano continues to be one of the best hitters in the game, hitting an AL-best .423. New addition Dee Gordon has quickly made his mark as well, stealing three bases while hitting .323. Even Ichiro made a real impact in his homecoming season, as the timeless one leapt over the left field wall to bring back a home run at a ripe young 44 years old.

Andrew McCutchen’s slow start had been representative of what the Giants had gone through as a whole early in the year, as they had won two games by scoring two combined runs, before being shut out twice, all in the first four games of the year. But the Cutch broke out in a major way to end the week, going 6-for-7 and connecting for a three-run, walk off homer on Saturday night against the Dodgers. Early on, the Giants are knotted up 3-3 with chief rivals in L.A., with a series of classic matchups already.

Apart from an early three game losing streak that partially involved the Astros (thus making it somewhat forgivable), the early going for the Rangers has been forgettable. They have yet to win consecutive games, and the highlight performance on the mound has come from 44-year-old Bartolo Colon. Again, not much to see here yet (aside from a few standard fare, epic Joey Gallo homers).

Although they built their early success not exactly against a who’s who of powerhouses around the game, it is a nice reprieve for the moment considering the team finished with baseball’s worst record last year . Along with the venerable duo of Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez, Nicholas Castellanos has done a respectable job of stirring things up at the plate, hitting .324 with a pair of doubles and triples.

It was an odd week for the Phillies, whose most consistent obstacle proved to be their own manager. Gabe Kapler had one of the worst first weeks on the job in recent memory, making a series of odd bullpen moves and strategy decisions. However, they capped it with a 20-1 victory over the Marlins that featured a pair of grand slams, so at least there was something to get behind, eventually.

Although he is accustomed to operating in his own stratosphere within the Orioles lineup, Manny Machado likely would prefer a bit more help than he has received thus far. Baltimore has struggled to produce runs throughout much of its lineup early on, which is especially complicated, considering the daily task of making up for the regular deficits their pitching staff is again allowing. Orioles pitching has again been the most generous in the game, and it's an issue that could be somewhat resolved when the recently-activated Alex Cobb joins the rotation this week.

The pitching situation on the south side of the Chi has been a gruesome one thus far, with over half of the White Sox staff boasting ERAs over 5.00. With the new week under way, the club has lost five of its last six, while allowing over five runs three times and coming up on the losing side of a 1-0 score in another.

There was little sunshine to be seen over the young Oakland season in its opening week. The loss of promising young starters Jharel Cotton and A.J. Puk to Tommy John surgery was a sobering outcome for the immediate future, while being victimized and limited to a single hit courtesy of Shohei Ohtani’s splitter on Sunday afternoon was a frustrating reminder of the difficulties of today.

It is a little early to be running short on solutions, as that is usually what a bullpen/committee game indicates. But the intentionally short-staffed Rays should rightfully be looking for answers, as they already have an eight-game losing streak under their belt and had to send one of their few legitimate power threats, Brad Miller, to the disabled list with a groin injury.

Finding a few good bats isn’t the issue for Cincy, although a sluggish start for Joey Votto isn’t helping (he’ll be fine). And while losing Eugenio Suarez for what could be up to two months is extremely disheartening, what is of true concern is the continuation of the seemingly endless cycle of futility around the pitching staff. The club’s 6.13 ERA is the worst in the majors by half a run and, and the team ignominiously has the second fewest strikeouts.

Amid a frustrating start that has been further intensified by the loss of Wil Myers, the Padres had a moment of unexpected excitement in the season’s first week. Rookie third baseman Christian Villanueva broke out with a three-home run game against the Rockies, nearly matching his career total in the process. It was brief showing of offensive potency from a team that has struggled to maintain it.

It has been a rough go early on in the post-Hosmer/Cain era, that is also without Salvador Perez for at least another month. The KC offense has mustered a grand total of two home runs, three stolen bases and a .291 slugging percentage. As a team, they have as many doubles as Xander Bogaerts has on his own.

There is a chance that this is the peak position the Marlins will reach all year on this list, as after some brief flirtations with being the spoiler in the season opener series with the Cubs, they settled into being the team they are expected to be. This was highlighted by a 20-1 dismantling at the hands of the Phillies, which capped a five-game losing streak in which they were outscored 36-5.