The Oakland A’s and Milwaukee Brewers owned the month of April, thanks to some somewhat surprisingly potent pitching staffs.  One week into May, it’s the Detroit Tigers – headlined by big name pitching such as Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer – that have roared into first place in KP’s MLB Power Rankings at The Wife Hates Sports.

The first place Tigers own a seven point ratings edge over the aforementioned A’s, followed by the surging San Francisco Giants, steady Milwaukee Brewers and Washington Nationals.

The full list is as follows, featuring some key statistics and headlines for every team in baseball:

max-scherzer-detroit-tigers

MLB Power Rankings: Max Scherzer and the Detroit Tigers are off to a great start

KP’s MLB Power Rankings: May 6, 2014

Note: Statistics and point totals as of May 6, 2014 at 5pm, and do not include night games

1. Detroit Tigers (101 points)

Miguel Cabrera’s .270 average is fifty points below his career mark, yet Detroit’s offense has managed to post the best batting average (.281) in the American League.

2. Oakland Athletics (94 points)

Former reliever Jesse Chavez (1.89 ERA) and new frontline starter Sonny Gray (1.91 ERA) are anchoring one of the stronger pitching staffs in baseball.

3. San Francisco Giants (90 points)

In his first season with the Giants, Tim Hudson has been stellar, posting a 4-1 record, with a 2.17 ERA and 0.74 WHIP through six starts.

4. Milwaukee Brewers (84 points)

The Brewers are winning with pitching.  Milwaukee leads the Majors in quality starts, with 26, and four of its starters have an ERA of 3.13 or lower.

5. Washington Nationals (79 points)

Surprisingly, Adam LaRoche (.324 AVG, 5 HR, 19 RBI) is still available in 7% of ESPN Fantasy leagues.

6. Colorado Rockies (77 points)

Troy Tulowitzki’s issue has always been health.  To start 2014, the superstar shortstop is putting up MVP-like numbers in Colorado: .408 average (1st in NL), 9 HR (2nd-tie) and 29 RBI (2nd).

7. Los Angeles Angels (62 points)

Starting the season off healthier than in recent seasons, Albert Pujols is making a major impact with the Angels, hitting 10 HR (2nd in AL) and driving in 25 runs (4th in AL).

8. Miami Marlins (61 points)

The young Marlins have been impressive in the early going, cracking the game’s top ten in both team ERA (10th – 3.51) and batting average (3rd – .271).

9. Los Angeles Dodgers (54 points)

Despite a sluggish 18-15 start to the season, the Dodgers have been spectacular on the road, posting a 12-6 record, which is second to only the Brewers in the NL.

10. St. Louis Cardinals (46 points)

The Cardinals’ pitching staff is holding opponents to a .221 batting average, the best mark in baseball.

11. Baltimore Orioles (44 points)

buck-showalter-manager-baltimore-orioles

Buck Showalter can’t be pleased with the performance of his pitching staff

Despite leading the American League East, the Orioles’ pitching staff is dead last in both quality starts (9) and opponent batting average (.280).

12. Cincinnati Reds (44 points)

A healthy Johnny Cueto leads the Major Leagues in ERA, posting a 1.31 mark after seven starts.

13. Atlanta Braves (43 points)

Despite its seven game losing streak, the Braves still have the best team ERA (2.69) in baseball.

14. Seattle Mariners (34 points)

Fresh from signing a $250 million contract with the Mariners, Robinson Cano is batting .292, with just 1 HR and 18 RBI over his first 30 games.

15. New York Yankees (28 points)

New York’s -19 run differential is currently tied for the second worst mark in the American League.

16. Texas Rangers (28 points)

Despite a 4.34 team ERA, the Rangers are tied for the Major League lead with 6 shutouts.

17. Philadelphia Phillies (27 points)

Trade rumors of and a drop in velocity haunted Jonathan Papelbon during the offseason, but his nine saves and 2.19 ERA (in 13 games) prove that he can still be effective.

18. Boston Red Sox (23 points)

David Ortiz may lead the team in HR (6) and RBI (17), but his .239 average is nearly 50 points below his career mark, and his .341 OBP is well below, too.

19. Chicago White Sox (21 points)

Cuban rookie Jose Abreu currently leads the American League in both HR (12) and RBI (35).

20. Tampa Bay Rays (19 points)

Battling through numerous injuries, Tampa Bay’s starting rotation has collectively underachieved, posting a 9-11 record, with a 4.45 ERA and 1.38 WHIP through 32 games.

21. Minnesota Twins (19 points)

Despite spending millions of dollars on pitching in the offseason, the Twins’ pitching staff is allowing a .274 opponent batting average and has the fewest strikeouts in baseball, with 173.

22. Toronto Blue Jays (18 points)

Mark Buehrle (5-1, 2.25 ERA) is quietly off to a red hot start, leading the AL in wins.

23. New York Mets (17 points)

Jonathon Niese (2-2, 1.82 ERA in six starts) has been a pleasant surprise for New York’s rotation.

24. Kansas City Royals (16 points)

Kansas City’s 13 home runs are by far the fewest in baseball, and just one more than league leader Jose Abreu has all by himself.

25. San Diego Padres (0 points)

San Diego’s 18 home runs are currently the fewest in the National League.  Worse, the Padres’ team OBP of .267 is twenty percentage points lower than any other team.

26. Chicago Cubs (-2 points)

Perhaps the unluckiest pitcher to this point in the season, Jeff Samardzija has posted a 1.62 ERA in seven starts, yet has zero victories.

27. Pittsburgh Pirates (-15 points)

After a stellar bounceback season in 2013, Francisco Liriano is off to a slow start, posting a 0-3 record, with a 4.54 ERA and 1.41 WHIP through seven starts.

28. Cleveland Indians (-17 points)

Despite a 13-19 record and last place position in the AL Central, the Indians’ pitching staff actually leads the American League in strikeouts, with 287.

29. Arizona Diamondbacks (-41 points)

Arizona’s abysmal 3-15 record at home is by far the worst in all of baseball.

30. Houston Astros (-56 points)

The youthful Astros are off to a rough start yet again, currently landing in the bottom two in overall team batting average (.216) and ERA (4.84).

 

* All stats per MLB.com

The Wife Hates Sports MLB Power Rankings system has a method to its madness, attempting to be different and not just rank by popularity and record.  It mixes a secret formula of six completely different categories, meshed into a points system.  The categories don’t just include team results regarding record, but how each team has performed recently, as well as incorporating some statistics on both a team’s offense and pitching staff, too.