Power Rankings: March 2, 2008

Parentheses denote last week's rankings, current record.

1. (1, 28-14) Minnesota Fatboys: They might not have the best record in the league. However, they've managed to be this good despite staff workhorse Ruben Crespo posting an ERA close to 7, thanks in no small part to an offense that has averaged an unheard-of 8 runs per game this season.

2. (2, 33-9) New York Yankees: Bernard Rhodes is hitting .404. Haywood Towers' .48 ERA leads a staff that has allowed 103 runs in 40 games. Will the team continue to play this well? Probably not. Are they for real? Even with a regression to the norm, the pitching staff looks excellent, and should keep the Yankees among the league's elite.

3. (3, 28-14) New York Metropolitans: The league's best pitching staff swaps starter Kelvin Sullivan for Trent Gordon and prospect Bip Reagan. Of course, that still leaves Gerard Tomlinson, Gary Long, and 2-time Cy Young Award winner Red Wainhouse. A staff that good combined with a talented, improved lineup will always be a major threat in the playoffs.

4. (5, 31-11) St. Louis Greys: Like the Yankees, there's no way that team ERA (2.76) is sustainable. Even so, the team should still be excellent at preventing runs; the Greys have a very solid defense that should keep the team in almost any game. The offense, however, is a bit suspect.

5. (4, 25-17) Milwaukee Twindyans: Pete Skinner and Vic Alfonzo headline a very good team that should run away with the division. One thing of note: the AAA team is 34-7. They're probably better than the last six or seven teams in this list. Just saying.

6. (6, 26-16) Anaheim Anteaters: Adding Kelvin Sullivan should make the pitching staff that much better, and swapping uber-rookie Haywood Gipson in for the departed Trent Gordon should jumpstart the sputtering offense. Considering the competition, they're about as sure of a lock to win their division as any team.

7. (8, 23-19) Chicago Jayhawks: Rookie Stu Butler is finding the big leagues to be quite a challenge; he's hitting a meager .199/.310/.329. Mo Greer has been a revelation, and the pitching staff has held up nicely, but the Jayhawks need to find a way to match last year's offensive production if they want to have any chance of catching the Yankees.

8. (10, 25-17) Albuquerque Isotopes: All-World DH Edwin Hogan is hitting .294/.407/.537. Almost any player would be proud of that kind of production; Hogan, however, is a career .360/.451/.648 hitter. Bet on him to heat up. On a different note, the Isotopes have managed to keep their staff ERA under 5 (4.88); at Isotopes Ballpark, that's quite an accomplishment.

9. (11, 25-17) Cheyenne Tackleberries: Eugene Ramirez (2.86 ERA) and Stump Jordan (2.25) have carried the team on their backs; Jay Brower (4.35) has been decent, but Juan Cortes (6.18) has stunk, and the bullpen has been atrocious. Patrick Taubensee has somehow allowed 10 homers in 27 1/3 innings. If Ramirez and Jordan falter or get hurt, this could go downhill in a hurry.

10. (7, 23-19) Florida Cottonmouths: Cy Kelly's pitching this season has been amazing; in a different way, so has Joe Harper's. The team still looks like heavy favorites to win what looks like the weakest division in the American League.

11. (16, 21-21) Buffalo Europeans: The pitching is already strong as it is (team ERA of 3.92), and with the best collection of young arms in the minors, it's only going to get better. A bat or two might make them a legitimate wild-card threat; even without a move, they should still be one of many 2nd-tier AL teams vying for a wildcard spot.

12. (12, 25-17) Oklahoma City Twins: At the time of his signing, very few of Gleeman World's GMs thought Max Leary would live up to his contract. With one year to go, it looks safe to say that the majority was wrong. Leary has posted back-to-back 240 inning seasons of sub 3 ERA ball. The offense is punchless as usual, but should they sneak into the playoffs, Leary's dominance could make the Twins a dangerous first round foe.

13. (14, 21-21) Syracuse Fightin' Boeheims: They're going backwards, currently losers of 3 in a row, and 8 of their last 10. Youngsters Jeremy Walker and Sting Berger have held their own, and Adam Haynes is building on last year's success. But the rest of the team needs to step up for Syracuse to have a chance.

14. (9, 23-19) Iowa City Comics: This should be a 90 win team; the Comics return the same core players from the last couple of seasons, and none have experienced any significant decline. Still, there are some warning signs, the most significant one being that they've been outscored by the opposition this season up to this point.

15. (13, 23-19) Tampa Bay Devil Rays: Tampa's ambivalence towards Oswaldo Dotel's talent is puzzling, to say the least; dealt to the Jayhawks for an expensive reliever and a center fielder with a AAA ceiling, he'll be given a chance to prove his worth elsewhere. As for the actual team, Jose Morales is a pest in the best way (.398 OBP, 28 steals), Clay Gibbons leads the league in homers, and Richard Maxwell and Charlie Stevens continue to mash. They'll definitely be in the hunt.

16. (21, 22-20) Philadelphia Phenomenauts: The offseason acquisition of Lee Roundtree looks like a success right now, unlike the disappointing Houston Linden. Brent O'Donnell looks like a legitimate MVP candidate. But outside of the injured Rigo Pineda, the Phenomenauts don't have a single starting pitcher with an ERA under five and a half.

17. (20, 22-20) Sioux Falls Gunslingers: Scot Rhodes is doing his best Adam Dunn impersonation (.228/.347/.557), which is useful. Derek Boone is doing what no pitcher wants to do, however; he's channeling the spirit of Mark Redman. Anyways, the team itself is a long shot to compete with the Twindyans; it's more likely that they'll finish last in the division than first (not that either's all that likely).

18. (19, 23-19) Nashville Twang: The lineup is just not that good; a declining Wiki Perez is their only impact bat. The rotation is mediocre, and certainly not much of a threat to any playoff team. With apologies to Nashville fans, I can't really get that excited about this team.

19. (15, 20-22) Boston Red Sox: One of last year's best offenses, the Sox just don't look the same this year. Yes, they've scored more than 5 runs per game, but that's not really all that impressive given the park; even worse, they're allowing almost 6 runs per game. The lineup has drawn a league-low 97 walks in 42 games. That's not going to cut it when your game plan revolves around destroying everyone else's pitching.

20. (27, 18-24) Kansas City Monarchs: Big ticket free agent Dale Rooney has been disappointing (4.88 ERA); that's pretty much been the theme of the team this year. From youthful sluggers Brandon Stewart and Tony Cela to veteran hurlers like Rooney and Ben Cox, the team is littered with disappointments. On the bright side, they've won their last 5 games; is that a sign of better things to come?

21. (18, 21-21) Boise Mashers: They've been the poster boy for consistent mediocrity. The team has never finished a season with a .500 record, but they've never won fewer than 71 games in a season. Other than Season 2's division title, they've finished 2nd every season. This season looks to be more of the same.

22. (17, 21-21) Montreal Grand Orange: Cesar Piedra and Jesus Arias are on the wrong side of the Mendoza line, and Josh Wagner is one bad game away from joining them. All three of these guys are starters, and there's nary a single impact bat to neutralize their damage to the offense. The pitching staff has a collective ERA above 5. And they're somehow .500. Something's got to give; if the line is .500, my money's definitely on the under.

23. (22, 20-22) San Antonio Sting: Apologies to Sting fans everywhere; as the worst team from Season 5, they were the default worst team in the preseason rankings. Good start not withstanding, the team's really not this talented (an expected winning % of .385). Still, this looks like the best Sting team since Season 2.

24. (30, 16-26) Vancouver Vigilantes: This team is better than their record would indicate. They have a .459 expecting winning percentage, which isn't far off from contenders such as the Devil Rays (.479) or Comics (.493). I'm not saying that they're a contender just yet, but they do have an exciting collection of offensive talent. If they can build a pitching staff around Billy Ray Perry, they might have something here.

25. (24, 16-26) Santa Cruz Amigos: They've fallen a long ways from last year. The Amigos still have star-level talent; Ronald Garcia and Dale Stewart have been great, and Francisco Pulido, Woody Perry, and John Parker have performed admirably as the team's top 3 starters. However, the lesser talents on the roster are dragging the team down, and are inexplicably still getting plenty of playing time. Without change, this team is doomed.

26. (25, 18-24) Richmond Roustabouts: Letting Pat Badilla (.333/.397/.511) go for next to nothing was a mistake. So was trading Lee Roundtree (.344/.386/.534) on the cheap. As a result, what should be a strong farm system is currently ranked as the 3rd worst in the American League.

27. (29, 13-29) Tacoma Downpour: On a 6 game losing streak right now; they'll need to win at least one against the Conquistadores in their upcoming series, because their next 10 games will be against the Twins, Yankees, and Twindyans. The defense is still bad (25 errors, tied for worst in ML), and you can't allow more than 5 runs per game with the aid of the best pitcher's park in the league and expect to win.

28. (23, 13-29) Pittsburgh Pug Dogs: News flash: you can't win if you don't hit and don't pitch. The Pug Dogs are the 6th worst team at scoring runs, and the 7th worst at preventing them. It's going to be a long season. On the bright side, 3 of their 4 minor league affiliates are above .500.

29. (31, 12-30) Monterrey Conquistadores: Clayton Mack is rapidly declining, and Louis Cannon has disappointed badly. The lineup is among the worst in the league, but the pitching has been surprisingly competent, so that's something.

30. (26, 15-27) Washington D.C. Bureaucrats: Garrett Kline is up for good; he's struggled a bit, but he'll be fine. The team is hitting .231/.293/.370. The team. That's Mike Matheny territory. But that's what happens when you budget less than 20 million dollars into team salary. With their farm system, though, you can be sure they'll be better next year.

31. (28, 12-30) Los Angeles Hangars: The Hangars have had by far the worst pitching staff in the league up to this point, with a team ERA of 6.20. That might fly at Coors, but it's downright inexcusable in a pitcher's park such as Dodger Stadium. The team is in need of a complete rebuild.

32. (32, 10-32) Colorado Springs Silver Stars: This pretty much sums up the whole season.