Is the curse of the top spot in the rankings back? I fear it might be and I have no idea how to properly harness my karmic powers.
For those unaware, back in 2016 the juggernaut Cubs held down the top spot with relative ease through the middle of June. They then lost six of seven before three wins and then lost nine of their next 10. They obviously relinquished their top spot during the first part of the bad stretch. What happened for the following six weeks was amazing. I'd promote a different team to the coveted top spot and said team would then go through a dreadful week and lose the spot. No team spent more than a week atop those rankings in 2016 except the Cubs, who took it back for good in August.
It might be happening again.
I started the Red Sox at the top of our offseason rankings. They are now 6-10 and stinking of a heavy hangover.
I had the Yankees in the top spot coming into the regular season. They have a startling lineup on the injured list and sit a not-so-nice 6-9.
After the first week, I had the Phillies at the top. They've gone 5-5 since their 4-0 start.
Last week, I had the 8-2 Dodgers at the top and felt pretty good about it. A six-game losing streak ensued.
Oh no!
Putting aside my tongue-in-cheek curse powers, it is interesting that nearly every expected contender has had a bad stretch. I just mentioned four of them. How about:
The Indians were just swept by the Royals. The Astros started the season 2-5.The A's have already had a four-game losing streak. The Mets have gone 4-5 since their 5-1 start. The Nationals started 1-3.The Braves started 0-3.The Brewers were swept in Anaheim.The Cardinals started 1-3 and then 3-5.The Cubs started 1-6. The Rockies are 4-12.Did we leave some out? Sure. The Twins probably expected to contend and they haven't really hit a rough patch. And how about the Rays?
The Rays started the season with a seven-game homestand against two 2018 playoff teams and went 5-2. They went to the West Coast and took two of three from the Giants before a cold-weather sweep on the South Side of Chicago and then winning two of three north of the border.
At 12-4, the Rays have the best record in baseball. Perhaps best of all? They haven't lost two games in a row all season. Only once did they even lose two games within a three-game span. They have the best ERA in baseball, an offense performing above average and they've seen what figures to be their two chief competitors in the division get off to terrible starts. They also seem to even be developing a swagger.
At some point, the Rays will face adversity this season. It's inevitable. Every team does. The biggest test on the young season is coming sooner than they might have imagined. They get to stare down the dreaded Snyder Power Rankings curse here heading to April 15.
Yes, Rays, you are No. 1. We'll see how long you can avoid the backslide.
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