There was a lot of action happening around the league within the past week, but the top three teams remain unchanged. The New York Yankees are still our top team in baseball, followed by the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros, the latter of whom is the first squad to 30 wins.
We have a few ties on our hands with regard to the biggest rises and drops, so we picked the following teams based on their current scenarios.
| Rank | Team | nERD | Record | Playoff Odds | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Cleveland Indians | 0.48 | 23-20 | 84.0% | 0 |
| 9 | Oakland Athletics | 0.52 | 20-24 | 8.7% | +2 |
| 8 | Cincinnati Reds | 0.56 | 21-23 | 6.7% | -2 |
| 7 | St. Louis Cardinals | 0.64 | 22-19 | 69.9% | +1 |
| 6 | Washington Nationals | 0.73 | 26-17 | 91.5% | -2 |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Rays | 0.96 | 23-24 | 26.4% | +2 |
| 4 | Arizona Diamondbacks | 1.29 | 27-19 | 59.8% | +1 |
| 3 | Houston Astros | 1.40 | 30-15 | 97.3% | 0 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 1.52 | 26-19 | 89.0% | 0 |
| 1 | New York Yankees | 1.64 | 26-16 | 77.8% | 0 |
Biggest Rise: Tampa Bay Rays
Three sub-.500 teams have a spot in our top 10, but none of them are as high as the Tampa Bay Rays. We have the aforementioned top three, followed by the surprising Arizona Diamondbacks, and then the Rays.
Even with a 4.79 cumulative ERA from the rotation this week, Tampa's 0.8 fWAR is the third-highest total of all, which was powered by a 3.43 Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) and 10.60 strikeouts per nine innings, a number only the Cleveland Indians have bested.
They've managed to pair that with the league's third-best offense over the past week, as evidenced by their team wRC+ of 134, and as already noted earlier this week, Corey Dickerson is leading the way. He only has a 3.6% walk rate over his past 28 plate appearances, but does it matter when it's accompanied by a 325 wRC+, .637 wOBA and .692 ISO?
The answer to that question is no, it doesn't.
Biggest Drop: Washington Nationals
Just about every team will go through peaks and valleys throughout a season, and the Washington Nationals are no different. They went 3-4 over the past week, but it's not like they're terrible now. Plus, it also helps that they're the only team over .500 in the National League East, with the Atlanta Braves' 6.5-game deficit being the closest of any divisional foe.
So, the Nats can manage a cold streak or two, as long as they minimize it.
Washington has just been cold all around after a hot start -- their starting rotation produced a -0.2 fWAR last week, while the offense mustered just a 64 wRC+ -- but we know they're generally going to be fine in those areas. However, that hot April of theirs and the current comfortable division lead will allow them to start hunting for some bullpen help -- which they desperately need -- earlier than teams normally would.