Major League Baseball

MLB Power Rankings: Orioles, Pirates, Rangers ride pitching to fast starts

Updated Apr. 24, 2023 8:29 a.m. ET

Here’s a novel concept: When you pitch well, you play well.

Nine of the top 10 teams in ERA this year sport winning records. The Mariners, who still have a positive run differential on the season despite their struggles, are the lone exception.

That list of 10 teams includes the upstart Pirates, who have won seven straight games despite missing one of the most exciting young hitters in the game in Oneil Cruz. A major component of that success is a pitching staff that hasn’t allowed more than three runs in a game throughout the streak. (It doesn’t hurt playing the Rockies and Reds, either).

Highlighting a pitching standout on each club, here are this week’s power rankings.

1) Tampa Bay Rays (19-3; last week 1)
No Jeffrey Springs? No Zach Eflin? No Tyler Glasnow? No worries, just plug in Taj Bradley, the top prospect who has struck out 17 batters over his first 10.1 innings. Also, Eflin was activated, which should provide at least a little relief for a rotation that keeps winning despite being decimated by injuries.

2) Atlanta Braves (14-8; LW 2)
Bryce Elder began the year at Triple-A and was called up when Max Fried went to the injured list with a hamstring strain. Since then, Elder (2-0, 1.14 ERA) has been the most consistent pitcher in the Braves’ rotation, while Fried has returned in spectacular form, shutting out the Padres and Astros over a combined 11.2 scoreless innings last week. Atlanta’s bullpen, however, couldn’t hold Fried’s lead Sunday.

3) Milwaukee Brewers (15-7; LW 7)
After sweeping in Seattle, the Brewers’ momentum was stifled this weekend by the Red Sox. Still, the fact that Corbin Burnes was on the mound at all Sunday had to be a sigh of relief after he left his previous outing with a pectoral issue. With Burnes (4.55 ERA) still looking to find his form and the Brewers dealing with a litany of pitching injuries, veteran Wade Miley (1.96 ERA) has been a vital addition to the group.

4) New York Mets (14-9; LW 4)
Relievers Adam Ottavino and David Robertson have helped make a sticky situation — no pun intended — more palatable, going a combined 7-for-7 in save opportunities while the Mets piece together their late innings without star closer Edwin Díaz.

5) New York Yankees (13-9; LW 3)
In his magnificent 11-year career, five-time All-Star Gerrit Cole has yet to win a Cy Young Award. He has finished top-five five times, though. Maybe this is the year it happens. Cole has saved a Yankees rotation beset by injuries, starting 4-0 with an exceptionally identical ERA (0.79) and WHIP (0.79).

6) Toronto Blue Jays (13-9; LW 5)
The Blue Jays went 5-4 during an arduous stretch against the Rays, Astros, Yankees, but it’ll be tough to stay competitive in the East with Alek Manoah, Chris Bassitt and Jose Berríos all holding ERAs above 5.00. This weekend was encouraging, as Manoah and Kevin Gausman fired seven scoreless innings apiece against the Yankees.

7) Texas Rangers (14-7; LW 14)
On paper, the Astros are the best team in this division. Currently, though? The Rangers have scored more runs and allowed fewer runs than any team in the AL West. On the mound, the revamped rotation has received most of the attention — Jacob deGrom has 43 strikeouts and three walks in 26.2 innings — but the Rangers’ bullpen (2.61 ERA, 1.01 WHIP) has been superb and is worthy of mention.

8) Houston Astros (12-10; LW 8)
That looked more like it. After scuffling along the first couple weeks of the season, the Astros turned a corner this week. They took a series from the Blue Jays before going to Atlanta and sweeping the Braves, averaging fewer than three runs allowed per game over the two series. In the bullpen, Phil Maton and Bryan Abreu have combined to allow one run over their first 23 innings.

9) Los Angeles Dodgers (12-11; LW 10)
While the Dodgers’ bullpen has been a bit of a disaster, Clayton Kershaw has at least provided stability in the rotation. He has gone at least six innings in all five starts and earned his 200th career win in style last week, spinning seven scoreless innings against the Mets to end the Dodgers’ two-game skid.

10) Chicago Cubs (12-9; LW 15)
Drew Smyly came a dribbler in front of the plate away from being perfect against the Dodgers this weekend. Justin Steele has gone at least six innings while allowing two runs or fewer in every start this year, while Marcus Stroman boasts a 2.17 ERA even after stumbling Sunday.

11) San Diego Padres (12-12; LW 9)
Two days after Fernando Tatís Jr.’s highly anticipated return, the Padres got Joe Musgrove back, too. While Musgrove’s 2023 debut was more serviceable than stellar (five innings, three runs), San Diego’s rotation looks a lot more formidable with him included. With those two back, the Padres have no excuse to fall back below .500.

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12) Arizona Diamondbacks (12-11; LW 13)
Remember when Zac Gallen went on that ridiculous scoreless innings streak last year? He’s at it again. The D-backs’ ace has 29 strikeouts and one walk without allowing a run in 20.2 innings over his last three starts.

13) Minnesota Twins (12-10; LW 6)
The Twins needed to win a Sunday series finale to avoid a Nationals sweep. Minnesota is 4-6 over its past 10 games yet still leads its division, in large part because no team in the AL Central had a winning week. Despite the team’s recent skid, Sonny Gray has been sensational (2-0, 0.82 ERA), pacing a Twins rotation that leads the majors in strikeouts.

14) Pittsburgh Pirates (16-7; LW 22)
What a start in Pittsburgh. A deep farm system gives the Pirates hope for the future, but the young talent on the current roster is providing help now, too. The early-season breakout of 25-year-old Johan Oviedo, who has a 0.92 ERA over his past three starts, is among the reasons for Pittsburgh’s early surge.

15) Baltimore Orioles (14-7; LW 19)
Like the team above, the Orioles are piling up wins against baseball’s bottom-dwellers. Still, wins are wins, and their only loss in their past nine games is an extra-inning defeat to the White Sox. They’ve allowed a total of three runs over their previous five games, locked down by a bullpen that’s been one of the best in baseball. Plus, top prospect Grayson Rodriguez’s five scoreless innings Sunday could be a sign of things to come.

16) Boston Red Sox (12-11; LW 18)
Hello again, Kenley Jansen. The 35-year-old Red Sox closer is averaging more than 2-mph faster on his cutter than he did last year and hasn’t allowed a run or a barreled ball while striking out 11 batters over seven innings.

17) Cleveland Guardians (11-11; LW 11)
Losing back-to-back series to the Tigers and Marlins isn’t going to get it done. The Guardians’ pitching staff hasn’t been good enough to make up for the lackluster offense, but prospect Logan Allen did provide a boost Sunday in his major-league debut, allowing one run in six innings to prevent a Miami sweep.

18) Los Angeles Angels (11-11; LW 17)
You should really check out this fella named Shohei Ohtani. Beyond being the best overall player in baseball, he’s arguably been the best pitcher, too. The poor Royals whiffed 11 times against Ohtani in seven scoreless innings this weekend, lowering his ERA to a league-leading 0.64 mark. He has allowed just eight hits in five starts, and he’s thriving in new ways.

19) Seattle Mariners (10-12; LW 12)
Where would this team be without Luis Castillo? Four of the Mariners’ 10 wins on the season have come in games started by Castillo, who has a 1.52 ERA on the year.

20) Philadelphia Phillies (11-12; LW 20)
Even after a home and away against the Reds and matchups against the Marlins, White Sox and Rockies, the Phillies still have a losing record. On a positive note, they’ve won four of their past five games, and José Alvarado has been a steadying force (20 strikeouts, no walks in 10.1 innings) in an otherwise deficient bullpen.

21) Miami Marlins (12-10; LW 23)
Miami’s starters have allowed more than three earned runs just once in their past 11 games. Edward Cabrera has rebounded from some early-season command issues, and neither Cabrera nor Braxton Garrett has allowed more than two runs in a start this year.

22) St. Louis Cardinals (9-13; LW 16)
As bad as the starting pitching has been (5.57 ERA, .299 opponents’ batting average), it’s worth pointing out that reliever Giovanny Gallegos has allowed no runs, no walks and just two hits while striking out 11 over 7.1 innings.

23) San Francisco Giants (8-13; LW 24)
The ERA of twin relievers Tyler Rogers (0.79) and Taylor Rogers (9.95) look far from identical, though the latter might be finding his form with no hits or runs allowed over his past four appearances.

24) Chicago White Sox (7-15; LW 21)
Dylan Cease provides hope, but the pitching staff (5.43 ERA, 1.54 WHIP) is a rough scene on the South Side.

25) Detroit Tigers (7-13, LW 27)
Eduardo Rodríguez retired the first 20 batters he faced on Sunday, yet that still wasn’t enough to prevent a Baltimore sweep. Rodriguez has looked terrific of late, allowing just one run in 21 innings over his last three starts.

26) Cincinnati Reds (7-15; LW 25)
As much promise as Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo have shown, Graham Ashcraft (2-0, 1.88 ERA) has been the best of the young trio to start the season.

27) Washington Nationals (7-14; LW 28)
Before looking at Josiah Gray’s 0-4 record, consider that the Nationals have given him one run of support all season. The 25-year-old has a 2.16 ERA over his past four starts.

28) Colorado Rockies (6-17; LW 26)
Noah Davis has allowed just one earned run in his first two career starts yet is still looking for his first win. Victories have been hard to come by for a Rockies team that has dropped 13 of its past 16 games.

29) Kansas City Royals (5-17; LW 29)
Another 35-year-old recapturing his form, Aroldis Chapman appears to have attended Jansen’s turn-back-the-clock seminar this offseason. Chapman is averaging over 99 mph on his fastball and has struck out 15 batters in eight scoreless innings.

30) Oakland Athletics (4-18; LW 30)
Mason Miller throws very hard.

Rowan Kavner covers the Dodgers and NL West for FOX Sports. He previously was the Dodgers’ editor of digital and print publications. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.

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