The Philadelphia Phillies find themselves once again at 14th overall in the 2019 MLB Power Rankings as we push past the Labor Day weekend and move into the final month of September.
In this early September version of the Power Rankings, the Phillies remain right where they were on both August 1 and August 15 among all teams in Major League Baseball. They also remain as the 7th ranked team in the National League.
On August 1, the Phillies were the sixth-highest ranked team and were involved in a three-way tie for the two NL Wildcard spots. They slipped a notch by mid-August, to seventh in the NL, and the standings continue to reflect that slippage.
The club remains two games in back of the second National League Wildcard playoff berth. That is exactly where they stood on August 15, showing just how difficult it is to make up ground without going on an extended winning streak. The Phillies still have not won five games in a row all year long.
The Phillies are now in the midst of a September stretch that has them playing 18 of 23 games on the road. That will lead up to a season-ending series at Citizens Bank Park against the Miami Marlins, who have played the Phillies tough all year.
The Cubs are the team in the second Wildcard spot. That is where the attention of Phillies fans who are still holding out hope of a 2019 postseason berth now needs to focus. The Phillies trail Chicago by two games in the loss column as of this moment.
My own personal feelings never have anything to do with the MLB Power Rankings. Instead, the rank is all about actual team performance: results in the standings and statistical breakdowns.
I take what I have found to be key statistical categories and rank each of the 30 teams in Major League baseball on their ability to win ball games and perform on offense, the pitching mound, and in the field.
There is never any subjectivity or opinion involved. The MLB Power Rankings will again be updated here at my website on the 15th of September, with a final ranking to come at the end of the regular season using the following methodology.
RANKINGS METHODOLOGY
Introduced and then upgraded during the course of last season, my formula for compiling the rankings is always being researched to see if it can be improved upon.
That formula carried two categories over from the 2018 season: winning percentage and OPS against. However, as the current season has unfolded, some teams have improved dramatically while others have slipped.
So, for this month of September that “winning percentage” is being replaced. Instead, to get the ‘Win-Loss’ component, each team’s record over their most recent 30 games is being used.
The ‘Win-Loss’ component is simple, reflecting each team’s ability to actually win ball games. The second reflects a pitching staff’s ability to control the game and limit damage.
Also for the 2019 season, runs-per-game replaced last year’s “runs scored” in order to get the offensive component. This was an acknowledgement of the fact that teams play various numbers of games as of the time of each ranking. For example, it wouldn’t be fair to consider a club that had scored 100 runs over 50 games as effective as a club who scored 100 runs over just 45 games.
Earlier this summer, the defensive component was changed as well. The defensive metric beginning with the July 15 rankings was switched to “Defensive runs saved” as measured at Fangraphs, replacing the previous “fielding percentage” to gauge a team’s defensive effectiveness.
I then assign each of those four component category team rankings a 1-30 numerical value, and simply add those values up to determine an overall final ratings score. Where there were any ties, I broke those using each team’s current overall winning percentage since, in the end, winning is what it’s all about.
2019 SEPTEMBER 4 – MLB RANKINGS
The Houston Astros, who were ranked first back on both June 15 and July 1, return to the top of the Power Rankings. The Los Angeles Dodgers, who were at the top in my last rankings back on August 15 and have been the National League’s top team all year, have slipped.
The Atlanta Braves are now the new top team in the National League. The Braves and Washington Nationals, who have moved into the overall top ten for the first time this season, are tied for baseball’s best record over the last 30 games.
In parentheses are each team’s total ranking points this period, as well as their place in the last Power Rankings back on August 15.
- Houston Astros (24 – 2)
- Oakland Athletics (25 – 4)
- Atlanta Braves (27 – 9)
- Los Angeles Dodgers (31 – 1)
- Minnesota Twins (31 – 3)
- Saint Louis Cardinals (32 – 12)
- Washington Nationals (33 – 13)
- Arizona Diamondbacks (35 – 8)
- New York Yankees (37 – 7)
- Cleveland Indians (38 – 5)
- Tampa Bay Rays (39 – 6)
- Chicago Cubs (40 – 10)
- Boston Red Sox (43 – 11)
- Philadelphia Phillies (53 – 14)
- New York Mets (65 – 19)
- San Diego Padres (65 – 18)
- Los Angeles Angels (68 – 15)
- Cincinnati Reds (71 – 17)
- Milwaukee Brewers (72 – 16)
- Texas Rangers (78 – 21)
- San Francisco Giants (79 – 20)
- Pittsburgh Pirates (83 – 28)
- Kansas City Royals (84 – 22)
- Colorado Rockies (88 – 23)
- Toronto Blue Jays (89 – 25)
- Miami Marlins (92 – 24)
- Chicago White Sox (93 – 26)
- Seattle Mariners (93 – 27)
- Baltimore Orioles (109 – 29)
- Detroit Tigers (112 – 30)
MATT VEASEY 