Flapjacks Power Rankings Week 10

It's been over a month, but let's check in on my Yahoo H2H keeper league and see where everyone stands.  For those who aren't interested in how each team in my league is doing, check back in a few days and hopefully I'll have something to interesting to talk about.

6/2 Flapjacks Power Rankings

(Season record in parentheses.)

1. Macafeys (55-32-3)

Tim's offense is on fire right now.  Lots of speed - led by Michael Bourn and B.J. Upton - and lots of power - led by Adam Dunn (11 HR in May) and Mike Lowell.  Very balanced offense. Only players not hitting in May were Alex Rios, Jeff Francouer, Derek Lee, and Bourn, and they've all contributed in other areas.  Geovany Soto could be a franchise catcher for the Macafeys.  Carlos Gomez is starting to show that he can hit as well as run.  

The pitching staff is strong, especially since Roy Halladay is striking out batters at a rate of 9.15 per nine innings in the past month.  Not too many saves to be found on the Macafeys; problem could worsen if Brian Wilson loses his job.  Carlos Zambrano is winning, but not striking out as many hitters as we're used too; could signify struggles for him down the road.  This is one of the few times that doesn't not have any injury issues.

2. The Balls (51-35-4)

This could be the best offense in the league.  There are very few weaknesses on this team, especially with Robinson Cano breaking out of his April slump, hitting .302 over the past month.  Albert Pujols is still healthy and raking like his normal self.  Shane Victorino looks like he's completely recovered from his injuries, stealing 10 bases in May and getting caught only once.  Adrian Gonzalez is providing pop at home and on the road.  If Milton Bradley stays healthy and Carlos Quentin stays hot, not many teams will be able to compete with the Balls firepower.  Still waiting for Hanley Ramirez to hit another HR (last HR was May 12th).

Edison Volquez was a great pickup, but the rest of the staff is struggling.  Jake Peavy is out for another week, Erik Bedard is getting strikeouts but has an ERA of 6.04 in the past month, and the bullpen is shaky.  Getting Peavy back will help, but this is not the strongest pitching staff.

3. Adrian's Revenge (53-33-4)

Offense provides steady power, but not much in the way of batting average.  Brian McCann looks like a top-3 catcher, and Carlos Lee and Mark Teixeira have been RBI-machines.  Both Hunter Pence and Kevin Kouzmanoff have overcome their poor starts.  I traded away Brian Roberts for Kelly Johnson in order to punt steals; now I admit, I may have been a bit hasty and might have been able to find better value for Roberts, but I'm comfortable with gaining a possible keeper who could hit 20 HR at a shallow power position.  Injuries have hurt my offense, especially with Ryan Zimmerman and Josh Willingham on the DL, but I was able to stash Brad Hawpe on my DL in hopes that he'll rebound after his poor start.  He could be an immediate upgrade at my Utility position.  

The pitching staff has been great (Javier Vasquez, Ervin Santana, Todd Wellemeyer) and awful (Ian Snell, Rich Hill).  A strong bullpen, led by Brad Lidge, have kept me in most of the pitching categories each week.  I really need Hill to come back and be a top-25 pitcher.

4. Screaming Lemurs (50-33-7)

The Lemurs have helped themselves on offense with some astute waiver wire pickups, picking up Jorge Cantu, Christian Guzman, and David Murphy to help replace some offense on the DL. Ryan Braun and Jermaine Dye have been crushing the ball over the past month, but the Lemurs also need help from Victor Martinez, who is still looking for his first home run.  Having Rafael Furcal on the DL hurts, especially with Curtis Granderson not running very often.  

The pitching staff is anchored with strong middle relievers, but the closers on this team do not have the best job security.  The Lemurs have some aces, but not much in the way of starting pitching depth.

5. The Dinos (43-43-4)

Dinos received a great month from both Jacoby Ellsbury (18 SB) and Chase Utley (8 HR/26 RBI).  Injuries have taken a few preseason top-50 players from his roster, but the Dinos have received good production from Cody Ross and Luis Castillo.  Besides the drains on batting average that Lastings Milledge and Jim Thome have been, the Dinos are still waiting for Miguel Cabrera to break out (only 2 HR in the last month).  

The pitching staff has been dominant, led by a still-healthy Ben Sheets, but besides Sheets, Tim Lincecum and Cliff Lee, there's not much else in the way of talent.  The Dinos lose Troy Percival to the DL, but they replace him with John Smoltz.  With only two healthy closers, the Dinos will struggle to win Saves each week.

6. Val Kilmer's Asshole (50-36-4)

Lance Berkman and Josh Hamilton; that's really all you need to say about the Kilmer's offense. Okay, Jose Reyes has been hitting and running too.  Having those three playing at such an elite level helps carry the load that Vernon Wells and David Ortiz left when they went on the DL. Losing Ortiz's power hurts, as this team has not received much power output from their outfielders (except Hamilton and Berkman of course), or their catcher.  

The pitching staff has been very strong; Scott Kazmir has been elite, A.J. Burnett is still healthy, and Justin Verlander looks to be returning to form.  These three help offset how truly bad Tom Gorzelanny and Jeff Francis have been lately.  The bullpen is very good, with three strong closers.  The Kilmer's will have a great staff as long as it can stay healthy.

7. Naterade (44-45-1)

Ryan Ludwick has been a very good offensive pickup, and Kevin Youkilis is starting to show off his power.  But Delmon Young has shown no power, and many hitters (Justin Upton, Edgar Renteria) have been struggling.  Getting Howie Kendrick back from the DL should help.

On the pitching side, the bullpen has been solid, and Chad Billingsley has been looking like a dominant pitcher lately.  Tim Hudson has also contributed a very low ERA, despite an average WHIP.  But the pitching lacks depth, and it's hard to see them racking up high Win totals.

8. Butt Admirals (45-36-9)

The Admirals' offense is struggling, but Nate McLouth continues to be a bright spot.  Prince Fielder showed some power last month, with 5 home runs, and Grady Sizemore has been contributing both with power and speed.  But he, and a few other Admirals, are struggling to hit for a high average.  The Admirals need offensive studs such as Vladimir Guerrero to step up their game.

Bronson Arroyo was a good pickup, as he should have some good starts the rest of the way. This pitching staff gets a lot of strikeouts, but their ERA has been less than average.  Their closers are good, but few, and won't beat many teams in saves each week.

9. The Tossers (29-55-6)

The Tossers have been running well lately, with four players with four or more stolen bases in the past month.  Bengie Molina has turned in a career year so far, and Alex Rodriguez is back from the DL being his usual self.  But Travis Hafner and Nick Swisher have yet to show up this year, and Torii Hunter has struggled as of late.  This team needs some offense, as there is a lack of power being shown.  

The bullpen will be strong if Joe Borowski can maintain his job, but Takashi Saito hasn't received many save opportunities.  Chris Young was supposed to be the ace of this staff, but he's on the DL, leaving Jason Bergmann and John Maine to carry the team.  The Tossers could use some help on the pitching side as well.

10. Dissect Yourself (31-52-7)

Dan Uggla and Alfonso Soriano have had monster power surges at the plate in the past month; they've each hit 10 HR.  This team's been hitting well, and they've added some speed with Brian Roberts.  Having Roberts and Pierre should help make them more competitive in the SB category each week.  Jay Bruce was finally called up, and he's playing like he should be in Cooperstown already.  

Though the offense has been solid so far, the pitching staff has struggled some.  The bullpen has been erratic and a lot of good pitchers have been awful.  Brad Penny and Roy Oswalt should pitch better, but they probably can't be counted on as aces any more.  C.C. Sabathia is left holding down the fort by himself.

11. Self Indulgence (28-57-5)

Chipper Jones has carried the offense, but other than Matt Kemp and Joe Mauer, there aren't too many young stars on this team that can improve.  This leaves most of the heavy lifting to older veterans like Jeff Kent, Garrett Anderson, and Johnny Damon.  At least Jack Cust is starting to hit for average, which is apparently something that Carlos Pena cannot.

The pitching staff has been average; they basically need Johan Santana to throw a gem every week if they want to compete in ERA and WHIP.  The bullpen seems to be hurting this team (poor ERA and WHIP) as much as it helps (Saves).

12. Summer Fox (33-55-2)

The Fox is finally getting some offensive production; Brandon Phillips is a 5-cat contributor and Jason Bay is looking like his old self.  But Paul Konerko is a shell of his former self, and though Adrian Beltre is hitting for power, he's hurting the team in Average.  This team has offensive talent, but they've not been able to turn that talent into success.

The problem is that their pitching staff has been one of the worst due to injuries.  First John Lackey and Randy Johnson were on the DL, now Fausto Carmona and Jason Isringhausen are. Billy Wagner has been dominant in the bullpen, but Todd Jones hasn't been helping.  The Fox needs to counterbalance his weak staff with smart spot-starts and good waiver-wire scouting.  

Agree or disagree with my thoughts, just let me hear about it.