Pittsburgh Pirates Continue To Surge In MLB Power Rankings
By Larry Snyder
Coming into this weekend’s series with the Braves in Atlanta, the Pittsburgh Pirates are 29-24 and have climbed into second place in the National League Central Division, a half-a-game ahead of the third place Chicago Cubs, who are at 28-24.
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During their 10-game, 11-day road trip, the Bucs are 5-2 and have won 11 of their last 13 contests. Starting with their victory over the St. Louis Cardinals Saturday, May 9, the Pirates have put up the best record among all Major League teams at 16-8.
Meanwhile, Clint Hurdle‘s squad, over that same time span, has posted the second best team batting average at .277 and the second best team ERA at 2.93 in the NL. The crew of the Jolly Roger have gone 4-2-2 in their last eight series overall.
The Pirates have 13 comeback wins this season, but are still 0-6 in extra-innings contests. Here is the “Tale of the Tape” after 53 contests:
Pirates At Home: 15-9 / On The Road: 14-15
NL Central Record: 12-16 / NL East Record: 8-2
NL West Record: 8-2 / Inter-League Play: 1-4
Runs Scored: 214 / Runs Allowed: 183 – Earned Runs Allowed: 161
Team ERA: 3.00 / Team WHIP: 1.23
Many of the internet’s experts have the Pirates surging this week into their Top 10. Let’s check in on another round-up of the MLB Power Rankings.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Bleacher Report – This Week #8 / Last Week #10 – Joel Reuter likes the contributions of late from both Gregory Polanco and Francisco Liriano.
CBS Sports – This Week #4 / Last Week #10 – Matt Snyder mocks everyone who may have traded Andrew McCutchen on their fantasy baseball team due to his slow start.
ESPN – This week #9 / Last Week #15 – David Schoenfield from SweetSpot points out that the Bucs are hitting .271/.345/.430 with runners in scoring position so far this season.
FanSided – This Week #11 / Last Week #12 – Kyle Franzoni admires Andrew McCutchen’s hot bat and how it has contributed to their recent run.
FOX Sports – This Week #14 / Last Week #15 – Craig Goldstein is impressed with Starling Marte’s numbers over the first two months of the season.
SI.com – This Week #7 / Last Week #11 – The staff at Sports Illustrated has the Pirates, Angels, Mariners, and Rangers all jumping four spots in their survey.
USA Today – This Week #9 / Last Week #12 – The writers at USA Today appreciate Jung Ho Kang’s .883 OPS in May.
Venom Strikes – This Week #11 / Last Week #15 – On this FanSided page, Guillermo Salcido has the crew of the Jolly Roger on the verge of the Top 10.
Do you agree that the Pirates belong in the Top Ten this week? Can they sustain the surge? Let your fellow fans know in the comments section below.
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