NL Central Power Rankings Week 12

*please note: all stats outside of team records only include games played through 6/21/14.

1. Milwaukee Brewers (last week 2):

47-30, 1st Place, 351 RS, 314 RA (+37)

Every time it looks like the Brewers are coming back down to Earth, they go another one of their patented winning streaks.  The Brewers had an impressive sweep over the Rockies at Coors Field over the weekend, where they scored 28 runs in 3 games.  The Brewers have won four straight overall, and 6 of their last 7 games.

The Brewers offense is having a tremendous month of June.  They entered Sunday with an MLB best 114 runs scored in June.  For the season now, the Brewers are tied for 4th in the MLB in runs scored (345), and 6th in OPS (.736).

Scooter Gennett has really taken off in the month of June, and has solidified himself as the Brewers starting 2B.  Gennett leads the MLB with a .419 AVG in June, and is 3rd in OBP (.463), 4th in SLG (.694), 3rd in wRC+ (220), and 6th in WAR (1.3).  For the season, he is hitting .311/.349/.471 with 4 HR, 20 RBI, 122 wRC+, and 1.8 WAR.

Starting Pitchers this week

Who’s Hot (last 7 days)

• Aramis Ramirez: .462/.483/.786, 2 HR, 8 RBI, 256 wRC+, 0.7 WAR
• Scooter Gennett: .458/.480/.792, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 255 wRC+, 0.6 WAR
• Jonathan Lucroy: .333/.448/.750, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 227 wRC+, 0.6 WAR
• Khris Davis: .296/.345/.630, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1 SB, 167 wRC+, 0.3 WAR
• Carlos Gomez: .409/.435/.455, 2 RBI, 152 wRC+, 0.2 WAR

Who’s Cold (last 7 days)

• Rickie Weeks: .071/.071/.214, 1 for 14, 6 K, -40 wRC+, -0.2 WAR

Injuries (click to expand)

Upcoming Schedule

• Mon (8:00), Tues (8:10), Wed (2:10) vs Washington
• Thurs (8:10), Fri (8:10), Sat (4:10), Sun (2:10) vs Colorado

2. St. Louis Cardinals (last week: 1):

41-35, 2nd Place, 5.5 GB, 281 RS, 256 RA (+25)

The Cardinals only went 4-3 this week, but they have won 7 of 10.  The Cardinals pitching has been great this season, but the offense has really struggled.  The table below illustrates this.

Pat Neshek is having a tremendous season for the Cardinals in their bullpen.  His 0.89 ERA is 5th among all qualified MLB relievers, and his 0.59 WHIP is the 2nd best.

The Cardinals had a big blow on Sunday as Michael Wacha and Jamie Garcia are both going on the DL.  Carlos Martinez and Tyler Lyons will be replacing them.

Starting Pitchers this week

Who’s Hot (last 7 days)

• Yadier Molina: .333/.455/.556, 1 HR, 189 wRC+, 0.4 WAR
• Jon Jay: .333/.440/.524, 1 RBI, 175 wRC+, 0.3 WAR
• Matt Holliday: .333/.393/.583, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 170 wRC+, 0.2 WAR
• Jhonny Peralta: .318/.375/.409, 2 RBI, 125 wRC+, 0.2 WAR

Who’s Cold (last 7 days)

• Kolten Wong: .105/.105/.211, 2 for 19, -24 wRC+, -0.2 WAR

Injuries (click to expand)

Upcoming Schedule

• Mon (8:40), Tues (8:40), Wed (3:10) at Colorado
• Thurs (10:10), Fri (10:10), Sat (7:15), Sun (4:10) at LA Dodgers

3. Cincinnati Reds (last week: 4):

37-37, 3rd Place, 8.5 GB, 290 RS, 286 RA (+4)

The Reds biggest problem all season has been their offense, but they absolutely took off this week.  They have scored 57 runs in their last 7 games (8.1 runs per game).  The Reds have won 8 of 11, and are back to .500 at 37-37.  The Reds have won three consecutive series, and are 4-0-1 in their last five series.  The Reds offense entered Sunday 2nd in the MLB in runs scored in June (98), only trailing the Brewers (114).

The Billy Hamilton show has taken off in Cincinnati.  He is having a special June, as he is hitting .324/.354/.527 with 3 HR, 13 RBI, 11 SB, and 142 wRC+.  Hamilton’s 1.2 WAR is tied for the 8th best in the MLB in June, and his 2.4 WAR for the season is tied for the 24th best in the MLB.  The most impressive aspect of Billy Hamilton’s game has been his defense.  Hamilton is 3rd among MLB CF in Defensive Runs Saved with 7, and leads all MLB CF in UZR/150 at 27.8 (next best is Jackie Bradley Jr. at 15.6).

Starting Pitchers this week

Who’s Hot (last 7 days)

• Devin Mesoraco: .421/.522/1.000, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 309 wRC+, 0.7 WAR
• Billy Hamilton: .387/.406/.613, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 6 SB, 184 wRC+, 0.7 WAR
• Ryan Ludwick: .583/.643/.833, 3 RBI, 311 wRC+, 0.3 WAR
• Todd Frazier: .323/.313/.548, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 1 SB, 132 wRC+, 0.3 WAR
• Joey Votto: .320/.419/.440, 6 RBI, 141 wRC+, 0.2 WAR
• Jay Bruce: .250/.321/.542, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 1 SB, 132 wRC+, 0.2 WAR
• Zack Cozart: .333/.391/.381, 2 RBI, 119 wRC+, 0.2 WAR

Who’s Cold (last 7 days)

• Chris Heisey: .000/.000/.000, 0 for 7, -100 wRC+, -0.1 WAR
• Brayan Pena; .000/.000/.000, 0 for 6, -100 wRC+, -0.1 WAR

Injuries (click to expand)

Upcoming Schedule

• Mon (8:05), Tues (8:05), Wed (7:05) at Chicago Cubs
• Thurs (10:15), Fri (10:15), Sat (10:05), Sun (4:05) at San Francisco

4. Pittsburgh Pirates (last week: 3):

37-38, 4th Place, 9.0 GB, 304 RS, 322 RA (-18)

Last Sunday, ESPN’s Buster Olney put the Pirates in his top 10 power rankings after their recent hot streak.  That ranking seemed kind of puzzling, as the Pirates were only 34-35 at the time.  The Pirates are now just 3-4 in their last 7 games, and their starting pitching continues to be a serious concern.  Pirates SP are 24th in the MLB in ERA (4.32), 23rd in FIP (4.09), 19th in WHIP (1.32), and 24th in Quality Starts (33).

Vance Worley has been a surprising boost to the struggling Pirates rotation through two starts.  Despite having just a 4.30 ERA in 7 starts at AAA, Worley has posted a 1.98 ERA and 0.80 WHIP through his first two starts with the Pirates.

The Pirates had to move Jason Grilli out of the closer role, and insert Mark Melancon.  Grilli has a 4.82 ERA, 5.62 FIP, and 1.47 WHIP.

Gregory Polanco has been outstanding since being called up by the Pirates on June 10th.  Polanco had a ridiculous 11-game hitting streak to start his MLB career snapped on Sunday, but is hitting .345/.410/.418.

Starting Pitchers this week

Who’s Hot (last 7 days)

• Josh Harrison: .360/.407/.520, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 2 SB, 157 wRC+, 0.3 WAR
• Gregory Polanco: .346/.433/.385, 1 RBI, 140 wRC+, 0.2 WAR
• Russell Martin: .214/.522/.214, 3 RBI, 152 wRC+, 0.3 WAR
• Jordy Mercer: .273/.333/.545, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 1 SB, 139 wRC+, 0.2 WAR

Who’s Cold (last 7 days)

• Andrew McCutchen: .208/.296/.250, 5 for 24, 8 K, 60 wRC+, -0.1 WAR

Injuries (click to expand)

Upcoming Schedule

• Mon (7:10), Tues (7:10), Wed (12:10) at Tampa Bay
• Thurs (7:05), Fri (7:05), Sat (4:05), Sun (1:35) vs NY Mets

5. Chicago Cubs (last week: 5):

31-42, 5th Place, 14.0 GB, 280 RS, 289 RA (-9)

The Cubs continue to be one on the unluckiest teams in the MLB.  Their run differential of -9 is 16th in the MLB, but their record of 31-42 (.425) is 27th in the MLB.  The Pirates, who have been outscored by twice as many runs as the Cubs (-18) are five games closer to first place in the NL Central.

The Cubs pitching has pretty good this season.  Their team 3.56 ERA is 10th in the MLB, their 3.38 FIP is 4th, 1.26 WHIP is 11th, and their 8.41 K/9 is 6th.

Starling Castro has been hot of late.  Over the last 14 days, Castro is hitting ..365/.411/.712 with 4 HR, 209 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR.

Starting Pitchers this week

Who’s Hot (last 7 days)

• Starlin Castro: .423/.444/.808, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1 SB, 247 wRC+, 0.6 WAR
• Chris Coghlan: .417/.462/.917, 1 HR, 274 wRC+, 0.2 WAR
• Anthony Rizzo: .240/.321/.560, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 131 wRC+, 0.2 WAR

Who’s Cold (last 7 days)

• Justin Ruggiano: .105/.143/.105, 2 for 19, 7 K, -0.4 WAR
• Luis Valbuena: .185/.241/.259, 5 for 27, 6 K, 35 wRC+, -0.2 WAR
• Darwin Barney: .188/.188/.250, 3 for 16, 9 wRC+, -0.1 WAR

Injuries (click to expand)

Upcoming Schedule

• Mon (8:05), Tues (8:05), Wed (7:05) vs Cincinnati
• Thurs (8;05), Fri (4:05), Sat (1:05; 7:15), vs Washington  (Cubs-Nats play rare schedule doubleheader on Saturday, no game on Sunday)

 NL Central Players of the Week

• Devin Mesoraco, Reds: .421/.522/1.000, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 309 wRC+, 0.7 WAR

• Vance Worley, Pirates: 13.2 IP, 10 H, 9 K, 1 BB, 3 ER, 1.98 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, 0.3 WAR

See previous players of the week here