MLB Power Rankings: Red Sox heating up, Angels tumble

Welcome to the fifth edition of theScore's MLB Power Rankings for the 2022 season.

1. Los Angeles Dodgers

Mookie Betts is very, very back. He's been virtually unbeatable over the past two weeks, accruing an unbelievable 1.7 WAR over his last 14 games, according to FanGraphs. Prorated over a full season - certainly an impossible pace - that would make Betts approximately a 19.7-WAR player. He's hitting .389/.476/.889 with seven homers and mixing in a stolen base, pushing his season wRC+ to 173.

2. New York Mets

The Mets have won seven of 10 games since Max Scherzer went down with an oblique injury. Taijuan Walker and David Peterson stepped up with the three-time Cy Young winner sidelined, allowing just seven earned runs over 23 innings. Offensively, Francisco Lindor collected five multi-hit games during the stretch, including a six-RBI performance against the Giants.

3. New York Yankees

The Yankees haven't particularly slumped but have started playing better competition, while the Dodgers and Mets have continued elevating their play. After making hay playing against what can be charitably described as inferior teams, winning 18 games against either the Orioles, Royals, Rangers, Guardians, or Tigers, the White Sox and Rays have taken four of seven over the past week. New York's pitching continues to be elite and, this time, instead of breakout star Nestor Cortes Jr., Gerrit Cole is finding his stride. The right-hander has racked up at least 10 strikeouts in three of his last four starts.

4. Houston Astros

Not much change with the Astros after they went 7-6 since the last edition of our rankings. Jose Altuve has really found his game after a slow start. The seven-time All-Star only failed to collect at least one hit in two matches over this period. His nine homers are tied for tops in the majors among second basemen.

5. Milwaukee Brewers

Milwaukee's hitting might be finally outperforming its pitching. The Brewers lead the majors in homers and own the third-best OPS in May. Rowdy Tellez and Tyrone Taylor have carried the load, combining for 10 homers and 37 RBIs this month. Together they've driven in more runs than Willy Adames, Hunter Renfroe, Christian Yelich, and Andrew McCutchen combined over that time.

6. San Diego Padres

The Padres have to be satisfied with MacKenzie Gore's first taste of the majors. The 23-year-old former top prospect owns a 1.71 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 47 strikeouts through 42 innings. He's allowed one run or none in five of eight outings and has surrendered just one homer. San Diego's rotation ranks first in the majors in innings pitched, second in strikeouts, and fifth in ERA.

7. Tampa Bay Rays

The Rays are plodding right along, splitting a four-game set against the Yankees this past weekend. Worryingly, though, they've been having to succeed without almost any help from budding superstar Wander Franco. A sophomore hitting the skids isn't unprecedented, but he's batting a paltry .107 (6-for-56) with three extra-base hits since May 10 while continually nursing a quad injury.

8. Minnesota Twins

Twins pitching continues to amaze, and this time a new face is in the mix. Jhoan Duran is turning heads since breaking into the majors and has now assumed the closer role. He's at least 94th percentile in whiff rate, strikeout rate, expected slugging, average, ERA, and wOBA, according to Baseball Savant. He hasn't allowed a run over his last 9 2/3 innings and has struck out 37.2% of opposing batters, all while throwing a fastball that averages nearly 101 mph.

9. Toronto Blue Jays

There's something going on with Jose Berrios. The right-hander's velocity is down, he owns a career-worst 6.5 K/9, and he's allowed 20 runs over five starts (25 2/3 innings) this month. Despite Berrios' struggles, Vlad Guerrero Jr. driving in just five runs over his last 20 games, and the club ranking 28th hitting with RISP (.208 average), the Blue Jays keep banking important wins. Toronto is seven games above .500 despite a negative run differential.

10. Los Angeles Angels

The wheels haven't exactly fallen off, but cracks are beginning to show. Despite the brilliance of Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, and breakout star Taylor Ward, who've combined for 34 homers, the team has lost five straight and blew late leads in the last three. The high-paid trio of relievers Raisel Iglesias, Aaron Loup, and Ryan Tepera have been awful this month, combining to allow 23 runs over 25 2/3 innings while converting just six of their 12 save opportunities.

11. St. Louis Cardinals

Paul Goldschmidt is on a monster tear thanks to a 20-game hit streak. The six-time All-Star has 11 multi-hit contests, including five three-hit games and eight homers during the blazing run. The 34-year-old now leads the NL in slugging (.614) and OPS (1.030). Goldschmidt looks like a potential MVP candidate again, and that's good news for the Cardinals.

12. San Francisco Giants

Pitching is suddenly failing the Giants, who've collectively authored a league-worst 6.95 ERA over the past two weeks. Carlos Rodon's regression has been most stark, allowing 13 runs on 22 hits and eight walks over his last three starts after looking like the early NL Cy Young favorite. Alex Wood and Alex Cobb are also turning into pumpkins, combining to allow 31 earned runs over 46 innings in May.

13. Boston Red Sox

Boston's resurgence comes courtesy of an offense that is scorching-hot after an ice-cold April. Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez are a combined 83-for-202 (.411) in May with 11 home runs, 21 doubles, and 30 RBIs. Trevor Story followed a homerless April by blasting nine this month while also driving in a ridiculous 32 RBIs. Franchy Cordero, who was DFA'd last year and went unclaimed on waivers, is slashing .299/.364/.507 with eight extra-base hits in his last 24 games.

14. Chicago White Sox

Injuries continue to hamper a White Sox team with lofty expectations. Tim Anderson, who's third in the AL with a .356 batting average, is going to land on the injured list with a groin injury. He's been the club's best offensive player and seeing him miss significant time would be a big blow. Slugger Eloy Jimenez also appeared to hit a setback in his recovery after leaving his first rehab game.

15. Atlanta Braves

The reigning champs are looking rather flat, particularly on offense, and have called up top prospect Michael Harris II to try to alleviate those struggles. He's mostly profiled by scouts as a defensive specialist in center field, though; if the Braves really want to turn their recent stretch around, they're going to need more out of Travis d'Arnaud and Marcell Ozuna as well as Matt Olson and Austin Riley, who have really hit the skids lately.

16. Philadelphia Phillies

The Phillies are sliding down the rankings after winning just four of their last 14 games. Nobody is hitting well outside Bryce Harper. The next-best qualified OPS after Harper's .962 mark is Jean Segura at .750. Much more is expected from J.T. Realmuto (.694), Rhys Hoskins (.686), Kyle Schwarber (.699), and Nick Castellanos (.740).

17. Texas Rangers

The Rangers are one of the biggest movers following eight wins in 13 games. Marcus Semien may finally be breaking out of a season-long slump with five hits over his last three contests, including a five-RBI performance against the Athletics thanks to his first home run. Martin Perez has also been shockingly good, accruing a 1.60 ERA over nine starts (56 1/3 innings) without surrendering a homer. He allowed 19 home runs across 114 innings in 2021.

18. Arizona Diamondbacks

The Diamondbacks took a step backward after getting swept twice in two four-game series against the Dodgers. Six of the eight contests were decided by two runs or fewer. The trio of Merrill Kelly, Madison Bumgarner, and Zac Gallen has come back to Earth following a great start. The three starters gave up a combined 34 earned runs over their last nine starts.

19. Cleveland Guardians

Where would the Guardians be without Jose Ramirez? Arguably baseball's most underappreciated star, Ramirez might be having his greatest season. The 29-year-old leads the majors with 48 RBIs and is sixth in WAR and fifth in OPS. His 12 homers are twice as many as the next-highest total on the team. He's driven in more runs than the second- and third-highest contributors on his club combined.

20. Seattle Mariners

Julio Rodriguez has fought through some early struggles. The 21-year-old is hitting .327/.358/.554 with six homers, five stolen bases, and a team-leading 16 RBIs across 26 games this month. His 29% K-rate remains a bit concerning, but the Mariners can live with that when he is contributing in other ways. Big-ticket signing Robbie Ray continues to struggle despite punching out 68 over 60 2/3 innings. He leads AL pitchers in earned runs allowed and owns a 5.35 ERA over his last six starts.

21. Miami Marlins

Sandy Alcantara has simply been nails over his last four starts, allowing three runs in 32 innings. However, the pitching has not been good enough otherwise. Trevor Rogers has given up five homers over his last three outings, while Elieser Hernandez and Pablo Lopez haven't been much better.

22. Baltimore Orioles

Sure, the Orioles are in the basement of the AL East and have allowed the second-most runs in the Junior Circuit, but we're starting to see reasons to trust the process. Baltimore owns a winning record at home, is 13-19 against teams .500 or better, and has top prospect Adley Rutschman in the majors. The 24-year-old is just 5-for-30, but it must be a relief for long-suffering fans to see the future arriving today.

23. Colorado Rockies

Nothing is going particularly well for the Rockies of late. Over the last two weeks, they've only hit 10 homers and four of them belong to C.J. Cron. Kris Bryant is sidelined once again. On the pitching side, there are really no positives. Kyle Freeland seemed to be straightening out his rocky start and then went belly-up against the lowly Nationals on Sunday. At least the City Connect jerseys look great.

24. Chicago Cubs

Marcus Stroman is starting to find his footing. The right-hander allowed four earned runs in May over 24 innings, though he was limited to four starts due to a stint on the COVID-19 IL. Chicago will need Stroman to be at his best with Wade Miley sidelined again with a shoulder strain.

25. Oakland Athletics

The early returns from the Matt Chapman and Matt Olson deals have been underwhelming. Kevin Smith has two home runs and a .551 OPS in 39 games; Cristian Pache brings value defensively but owns the worst OPS (.459) of the 174 players in the majors with at least 150 plate appearances. Meanwhile, Kirby Snead and Zach Logue have allowed 26 earned runs over 36 innings (6.50 ERA).

26. Detroit Tigers

Detroit committed $140 million to Javier Baez in hopes he could help take the young group to the next level. So far, he hasn't come close to delivering. The shortstop is hitting .150/.198/.220 with one home run and 27 strikeouts in May. He's got 10 more strikeouts than hits on the season and has been worth as much WAR as 40-year-old Miguel Cabrera, who hasn't taken the field defensively this season.

27. Cincinnati Reds

The Reds have gone from doormat to turnstile - providing their opponents at least some resistance. Luis Castillo showing flashes of his ace form has helped, as he's allowed four runs while striking out 11 over his past two starts. Alexis Diaz, Joel Kuhnel, and Tony Santillan have provided much-needed high-leverage help in the bullpen.

28. Washington Nationals

The only good thing you can say about the Nationals lately is they got to beat up on the Rockies, outscoring them 28-18 over the four-game set. Even Juan Soto has been an easy out of late, getting held to a .149 average with three extra-base hits over his last 14 contests.

29. Pittsburgh Pirates

Bryan Reynolds has yet to recapture the form that made him one of the best outfielders in baseball last season. The 27-year-old is slashing .213/.308/.375 with six homers through 43 games after posting a .912 OPS last year. The Pirates aren't going anywhere this season, but more progression from Reynolds could be viewed as a small victory.

30. Kansas City Royals

The Royals own the majors' second-worst record following a recent six-game skid. Kansas City entered the season with a chance to make some noise in a weak AL Central but hasn't gotten much from Salvador Perez and Whit Merrifield. The former has gone deep six times after leading the majors in homers last year, while the latter is slashing .217/.257/.312.