NL Central injuries were the story last week as the Cardinals put Albert Pujols on the DL and the Cubs did the same with Alfonso Soriano. Neither team really missed a beat, however, winning their series over the weekend. The Red Sox have also had little trouble getting wins without Big Papi or Manny Ramirez in the lineup. When you throw in how the Phillies and Angels fared earlier this season despite injuries to key players, it's looking like depth, more than anything else, is what's setting apart the haves and have nots this season.
MLB Power Rankings Week Of 06/ 15/ 2008  
Rk Team Last Wk Rise/Fall High/Low Comment  
1  Cubs 1 - 1/13 The Cubs survived Alfonso Soriano's first injury of the season, so why would his latest be any different? Yes, it's a blow. But the Cubs have the depth needed to deal with this kind of situation as evidenced last weekend in Toronto.
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2  Red Sox 3 (+1) 1/3 Record since Papi last played: 10-4. Not bad. Now it's Manny who's starting to feel the pain of a hamstring injury that doesn't seem serious but is costing him time during road interleague games. Yet somehow avoiding the injury bug is J.D. Drew, who’s in the midst of a career revival.
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3  Angels 2 (-1) 2/12 Chone Figgins is back, not that his down time cost the Angels in the won-loss column. The Angels hadn’t lost a series since early May before dropping their weekend set against the Braves. What's amazing is that the recent schedule has featured nothing but playoff-caliber competition, which really hasn't slowed down the Halos.
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4  Rays 4 - 2/24 There are numerous ways the Rays could get better via a trade, if they so desire. Do they go get a big name in the outfield? Do they add a legitimate No. 2 starter behind Scott Kazmir? This week's series against the Cubs has meaning that nobody expected back in April.
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5  Cardinals 6 (+1) 4/20 Six of the Cards' last 13 games this month come against the Royals, so that should help ease the pain of not having Albert Pujols. With both Pujols and Adam Wainwright down, the goal will be to stay afloat and hope they're back soon. Jason Isringhausen is back, but fans probably hope he doesn't come near a close game for a while.
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6  Phillies 5 (-1) 5/16 The Phils' 20-run outburst against the Cards on Friday served as another reminder of just how scary this lineup can be when it's hot at the same time. Unfortunately, it was followed by a two-run performance the next day. The Phils get their shot at arguably the AL's top two teams this week with sets against the Red Sox and Angels.
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7  White Sox 7 - 7/19 The ChiSox were coming off a pair of sweeps before getting swept by the Tigers last week. There's a nice chance to get some momentum back this week against the Pirates before a huge weekend series against the Cubs. Who says interleague isn't cool?
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8  Athletics 9 (+1) 7/25 There are still no A's with double digit homers beside Jack Cust. With Frank Thomas out the rest of the month, the A's really need help in the power department. Oakland ranks in the league's bottom 10 in homers and batting average. It's no secret what they'll need at the trade deadline, but will they get it?
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9  Marlins 10 (+1) 6/29 Taking a series against the Phillies was encouraging. The continued decline of Mark Hendrickson is not. The Marlins, along with the Phils, continue to tower above the league in home runs. But while the Phils have a team ERA in the league's Top 10, the Marlins are in the Bottom 10. That could be the difference in the East.
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10  Diamondbacks 8 (-2) 2/10 Perhaps the D-backs are just going through the growing pains associated with being a young team. Or perhaps Eric Byrnes at 50 percent meant more to this team than anyone imagined. The D-backs have gone from being neck-and-neck with the Cubs at the top of every offensive category entering May to being near the bottom in areas like hits and team batting average.
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11  Brewers 11 - 6/23 The Brewers seems to be doing much better now that an actual hitter is occupying the leadoff spot. In most other divisions, the Brewers' barely-above .500 record would have them right in the thick of the division race. But thanks to the Cubs and Cards, nobody's getting excited in Milwaukee.
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12  Yankees 15 (+3) 3/23 Slowly but surely, the Yanks are starting to pick up games in the East. The Yanks have won their last three series and only figure to get better now that the lineup is finally back together.
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13  Orioles 16 (+3) 12/30 Outside of their struggles against the Red Sox, the O's have had quite a productive June, win