The Tigers and Red Sox are headed in opposite directions while MLB's two surprise teams--the Dodgers and Orioles--make big jumps up the rankings. All records and statistics are through Thursday, May 24th. Last edition's rankings are in parentheses.
1 (1). Texas Rangers (27-18): Still the best in the land, though they're 12-14 in their last 26 games and haven't won three in a row in a month.
2 (2). St. Louis Cardinals (25-20): As many feared, injuries are taking their toll on this fragile roster, with regulars Lance Berkman, Allen Craig, and Jon Jay all hitting the DL.
3 (3). Tampa Bay Rays (27-18): A streaky team trying to weather the losses of its offensive catalysts, Evan Longoria and Desmond Jennings.
4 (9). Los Angeles Dodgers (30-14): They keep winning, and Matt Kemp will be back soon. Ironically, the impending return of the Juans (Uribe and Rivera) might actually hurt.
5 (5). Atlanta Braves (26-20): They were flying high until a sobering four-game sweep at the hands of the Reds. Brandon Beachy, Tim Hudson, and Tommy Hanson compose the most underrated pitching trio in baseball.
6 (4). New York Yankees (23-21): Bumbling through a brutal May, their dismal numbers with runners in scoring position should normalize. Andy Pettitte (17 K's and 2 runs allowed in his last 15 innings) has been remarkable.
7 (6). Washington Nationals (26-18): Stephen Strasburg can do it all: his ERA is 2.21 and his OPS is 1.162.
8 (7). Toronto Blue Jays (24-21): They would be one of the NL's best teams, but instead they're stuck in the meatgrinder that is the AL East and might not make the playoffs.
9 (10). Cleveland Indians (26-18): A three-game sweep of the Tigers solidified the Tribe as the AL Central's new team to beat.
10 (15). Baltimore Orioles (28-17): They've hit the most home runs in the majors and Adam Jones is emerging as a legitimate MVP candidate.
11 (11). Cincinnati Reds (25-19): Now in first place in the NL Central, though the lack of patience at the plate from everyone not named Votto is concerning.
12 (14). Miami Marlins (24-21): Their May turnaround (16-7 record) has been fueled by Giancarlo Stanton's dramatic emergence at the plate (nine homers in the month).
13 (16). Boston Red Sox (22-22): A nice job clawing their way back to .500, even with injuries that have reduced the starting outfield to Scott Podsednik, Marlon Byrd, and...Adrian Gonzalez.
14 (8). Detroit Tigers (20-24): Swept by the Indians and they haven't won consecutive games in over a month. Maybe some of that excessive preseason hype was misplaced?
15 (13). Los Angeles Angels (21-25): There are signs of improvement, like the ridiculous dominance of trade pickup Ernesto Frieri out of the bullpen, but they've been treading water for too long.
16 (12). Arizona Diamondbacks (20-25): Already 10.5 games behind the Dodgers and no series wins in May. Almost nothing has gone right.
17 (17). Philadelphia Phillies (23-23): Catcher Carlos Ruiz is putting up MVP-caliber numbers, with a .366/.417/.590 line, 7 HRs, and 29 RBIs.
18 (18). San Francisco Giants (24-21): Swapping Jonathan Sanchez for Melky Cabrera looks like the steal of the winter so far, considering Cabrera's .362/.409/.519 start for an otherwise-anemic offense.
19 (20). New York Mets (24-21): How can the Mets be over .500 with a negative-35 run differential? Because of David Wright, who's hitting .405 on the season.
20 (19). Chicago White Sox (23-22): One season after hitting only 11 homers, Adam Dunn has already swatted 14 and raised his slugging percentage by 300 points.
21 (21). Milwaukee Brewers (18-26): Great things are being done by Ryan Braun, Zack Greinke, and Jonathan Lucroy, and the Brewers still stink.
22 (22). Oakland Athletics (22-23): As a team, the A's are hitting just .210.
23 (27). Kansas City Royals (17-26): Actually 14-12 since that ugly 12-game losing streak. But Eric Hosmer has been one of the season's biggest disappointments, hitting just .191. Which is worse than the A's.
24 (23). Seattle Mariners (21-26): In his last 22 innings, 37-year-old Kevin Millwood has allowed one total run against the Yankees, Rockies, and Rangers. You can't make this stuff up.
25 (24). Houston Astros (21-23): Bud Norris has the lowest May ERA in all of baseball, and the Astros are becoming one of those bad teams that are fun to watch.
26 (25). Colorado Rockies (16-27): Weren't the Rockies good at some point?
27 (26). Pittsburgh Pirates (20-24): Despite Andrew McCutchen's .934 OPS, the Pirates have scored the fewest runs in baseball.
28 (28). Chicago Cubs (15-29): At one point, the Cubs went 59 consecutive innings without holding a single lead.
29 (29). San Diego Padres (17-29): They've already had nine different pitchers make a start, and it's not like the offense is picking up any of the slack.
30 (30). Minnesota Twins (15-29): The best ERA on the staff belongs to Carl Pavano, and his sits at 4.91. Things are ugly in Minnesota.
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