Power Rankings 11/29/2021

 

Commentary

The Anaheim Anteaters are in a class of their own. Could end up being the best team in the history of Upper Deck and should be hands-on favorites to win the World Series.

Biggest Risers

The Atlanta Mental Patients climbed 8 spots over the last week, beginning at 20 and settling at 12 after having won 6 of 10. Atlanta is now firmly in the mix, but if the season ended today, however, they would be on the outside looking in - 1 game back of both the division leader and the second wild card.

Riding the strength of a five-game winning streak, the Minnesota Millers are among the league's hottest teams and jumped from 12 all the way up to 5. The Millers have established a nice cushion in the division.

Despite winning only 5 of 10, Salem Witch Hunts have done enough to climb from 13 to 6 in this week's rankings. Like Minnesota, they have also built a nice division lead.

Biggest Fallers

After ranking 5th in the previous rankings, the Baltimore Dry Docks are in a free fall, losing 6 of 10 and dropping from 1st place n the AL East into a three-way tie for the two wild card spots. They fell 9 spots to 14 overall, the biggest drop in these rankings.

The AL East took another significant hit with the Iowa City Small Bears, who are on a league-worst 5 game skid. They find themselves dropping from 10 to 17. They remain in the middle of the pack and in wild card position.

The Rochester Whippets are playing .500 ball over their last 10, though with other teams in the league climbing around them, the team fell from 11 to 18. They are two games out of a playoff position, but face a more significant hurdle in-division at 6 games back of Minnesota.

Power Rankings 11/23/2021

 

Commentary

There is a lot of volatility in this week's power rankings, which you would not expect this late in the season. Partially, that is due to a copy error where the L10 column contained team losses, rather than wins in the last 10 games.

Due to the volatility, however, I'll dive into the power ranking methodology briefly.

The power rankings are derived from a simple formula combining overall wins (W), wins in the last 10 (L10), and current streak (Streak). In order to keep the point scale relatively tight, one point is awarded for each overall win above the average number of wins league-wide. This allows better teams to be ranked higher than worse teams, in terms of win/loss record. 

To create some volatility, and to reward teams that are playing hot, an additional half point is earned for each win in the last 10, and a quarter of a point is added for the current streak. An active losing streak results in a quarter point deduction for each loss.

As an example, let's say that the average team has won 40 games.

• Team X has won 42 and has won 7 of their last 10, including 4 in a row.
• Team Y has won 43 but has won just 4 of their last 10, and has lost 3 in a row.

While Team Y has the better win/loss, Team X has been hotter in the last week, and that will show up in the rankings.

Team X Points: (42-40) + (7/2) + (4/4) = 6.5

Team Y Points: (43-40) + (4/2) + (-3/4) = 4.25

So even though Team Y is technically better, Team X gets a lift from its recent play. They would probably pass Team Y soon in overall W/L if the trend continued, so it also serves as a kind of bellwether.

A great example of this in the current standings is Mexico City and Chicago ranked ahead of Iowa City and Jackson. MC and Chicago both have 40 wins but have both won 6 of their last 10, while IC and Jackson are both skidding, despite having 41 wins.

Power Rankings 11/15/2021

 

Commentary

Syracuse Syndicate: Syracuse took advantage of their weaker schedule and ripped off 10 wins in a row, dethroning Anaheim. We will see if Syracuse can keep the momentum going as their next three series are against +.500 teams. 

Trenton jakes jokers: Trenton's free fall down the power rankings is akin to Phil Murphy's reelection bid. Trenton went 2-8 in their last 10 as they seen their team ERA skyrocket. with a series win against Detroit, Trenton hopes to gain some momentum and retake 1st in the division. 

Pawtucket Terriers: The Terriers have had a strong showing so far in season 42, riding their Ace Player Profile: Hong-Chih Jung - Hardball Dynasty Baseball | WhatIfSports with 16 innings pitched, 2-0 and an .125 ERA. They will look to continue their success as they play 7 games against the Baltimore Dry Docks. 

 

Power Ranks 11/10/2021

 

Commentary

Anaheim Anteaters - New season, same result. The Anteaters retain their dominance on the power rankings board to start the season, Boasting the top offense and pitching staff in the National League. 

Trenton jakes jokers - Last seasons surprise is this years known quantity. The jokers sit on top of the NL East and second on the board.  Thus far, The Jokers are a well balanced team with an offense fueled by Player Profile: Rodrigo Dotel - Hardball Dynasty Baseball | WhatIfSports and Player Profile: Rodrigo Dotel - Hardball Dynasty Baseball | WhatIfSports and a pitching staff anchored by Player Profile: Ender Aquino - Hardball Dynasty Baseball | WhatIfSports

Cincinnati Boom Sticks - The Boom Sticks are off to a sluggish start as they round out the AL North in last place. As we approach mid season and the weather starts to get warmer, Look for the Boom Sticks to start hitting their stride as Season 41 AL MVP/Silver Slugger Player Profile: Keith Gray - Hardball Dynasty Baseball | WhatIfSports propels the team back into World Series contention.

Rochester Whippets -  The offseason saw the departure of long time owner jwperry and the introduction of npb7768. Perry finished his career in Upper Deck with a record of 2062- 2474 and three division titles. Npb takes over a well stocked farm system and a competitive roster that should be contending within the next few season. Look for the Whippets to populate the top half of the rankings this year. 

 Franchise Rankings

Season 41

Power Rankings 9/14/2021

 

Green = Division Leaders

Yellow = Wild Card Holders

Playoff's on the Horizon

Two competitive races are under way in the NL. We first start with the NL East as the two Pennsylvania teams battle it out for first place. Philadelphia sits 5 games behind the newly #1 ranked Scranton with both teams slated to meet on the 19th. With Philadelphia's bullpen issues resolved, look for them to close that 5 game gap and give Scranton a run for their money for the division crown. 

In the NL South, The Jackson Generals still hold a 4 game advantage over New Orleans. Jackson has hit quite the slump recently, Losing series against Montreal, Syracuse and Scottsdale. As Jackson heads to the West Coast to battle Anaheim, New Orleans has a chance to close the gap more with a 4 game series against Chicago. 

The AL has two Competitive Divisions as well. In the South, Mexico, Tampa and Atlanta are all vying for first place. It is a good bet that whichever two teams do not win the division, will hold both wild card spots. 

In the AL East, Pittsburgh has significantly closed the gap and are within 1 game of the division leading Small Bears. Baltimore (2 games back) are right on the heals of both teams. If Pittsburgh can win the next three series, they will be sitting in a good spot as they enter Division play to round out their season. 

The Hunt for October

What looked to be a sinking ship, Trenton surged at the right time and now sit 7 games over .500 and tied for the second Wild Card spot with New Orleans. With series slated against Detroit and Chicago, look for them to try and solidify their playoff birth. 

Atlanta holds a comfortable 5 games on Pittsburgh and 6 on Baltimore. At this point, both AL East teams have a better shot at the division then Wild Card. New Britain has an outside chance for the Second wild card spot, but will need to string together a couple of win streaks. Something they have not been able to do much of the season. 

Power Rankings 9/7/2021

 

Commentary

Anaheim Anteaters - The Anteaters Continue their reign as #1 on the power rankings board for the second consecutive week. With just 3 series remaining against above .500 teams, Anaheim should be a lock for the best record in baseball and that coveted first round bye.

Scranton Schrutes - Scranton continues its second half push as they sit 5 games up on second place Philadelphia. Montreal is on their heals fighting for the second first round bye. Scranton's road to the playoffs will have to go through New Orleans, Philadelphia, Jackson, Anaheim and Montreal. A much tougher remaining schedule then Anaheim. 

Mexico City Diablos - Mexico sits with the second best record in the AL, But have the worse Division Record for a division leader in the league. With a comfortable 8 game lead on Atlanta, The Diablos may want to look to pad that lead a little more before the end of the season. 

The AL East - The Small Bears, Dry Docks and Pilots are competing for first place in the worse division in the league. Whoever comes out in first may be an underdog in the wildcard game. With 47 games remaining, Pittsburgh will need to rack up a few more wins before facing off against the Small Bears and Dry Docks. To Date, The Pilots are 4-10 against those two. 

Salem Which Hunts - Salem quietly continues to chug along as they sit atop the rankings board with the best record in the AL. Holding 7 games on Cincinnati, Salem looks good for that first round bye.