Chicago Cubs Make a Jump in Latest MLB Power Rankings

The Chicago Cubs continue to rise in Sports Illustrated's weekly power rankings on Inside the Phillies, after winning five of seven games last week.

Jack Vita | Aug 29, 2023

Chicago Cubs Make a Jump in Latest MLB Power Rankings /

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Chicago Cubs

This week, the Chicago Cubs made a small leap in Sports Illustrated's weekly MLB power rankings on Inside the Phillies.

In Monday's edition of the power rankings, Chicago rose two spots from last week, climbing up to No. 11. The Cubs went 5-2 over the past week, picking up series victories against the Detroit Tigers and Pittsburgh Pirates. Chicago capped off the week with a pair of offensive outbursts Saturday and Sunday, outscoring the Pirates 20-7 over both games.

Prior to the offensive explosion over the weekend, the Cubs found difficulty playing what might have been the softest part of their schedule all season. Through ten games against the Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, the Tigers and Pirates, the North Siders went 6-4, with a run-differential of +2, not winning a single game by more than two runs. Thankfully for David Ross' club, Chicago rediscovered their offensive groove over the weekend as the schedule begins to tighten up. Their next 14 games will come against playoff hopefuls, as the Cubs prepare for battle with the Milwaukee Brewers, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants and Arizona Diamondbacks. Chicago will not have an off-day until Sept. 14.

If the Cubs are able to take care of the Brewers, Reds, Giants and Diamondbacks, they will position themselves nicely to clinch their first playoff berth since 2020 and continue to moving up in the power rankings.

Here's a look at where Chicago stands, as well as the ten teams that sit in front of them:

11) Chicago Cubs (69-61; +79 DIFF, 29-36 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 13 [up 2])

10) Toronto Blue Jays (71-60; +55 DIFF, 38-42 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 9 [down 1])

9) Arizona Diamondbacks (69-62; -3 DIFF, 31-41 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 12 [up 3])

8) Philadelphia Phillies (72-58; +68 DIFF, 39-37 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 10 [up 2])

7) Houston Astros (74-58; +88 DIFF, 32-38 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 6 [down 1])

6) Milwaukee Brewers (73-57; +19 DIFF, 37-36 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 7 [up 1])

5) Seattle Mariners (74-56; +102 DIFF, 32-33 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 5 [no movement])

4) Tampa Bay Rays (80-52; +174 DIFF, 36-32 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 4 [no movement])

3) Baltimore Orioles (81-49; +86 DIFF, 42-31 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 3 [no movement])

2) Los Angeles Dodgers (80-49; +152 DIFF, 38-30 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 2 [no movement])

1) Atlanta Braves (84-45; +219 DIFF, 44-27 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK : no. 1 [no movement])

For more from Jack Vita, follow him on Twitter @JackVitaShow, and subscribe to his podcast, the Jack Vita Show, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, Facebook, Amazon, iHeartRadio, and wherever podcasts are found.

More From SI's Inside The Cubs

Published Aug 29, 2023

JACK VITA

Jack Vita is a writer and contributor to Sports Illustrated's Inside the Cubs, and host of the Jack Vita Show, a popular sports podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and wherever podcasts are found. Jack is a 2017 graduate of Valparaiso University, in northwest Indiana. Since completing his degree, Jack has created his own independent sports media outlet (JackVita.com) and podcast (the Jack Vita Show). He has featured prominent guests from the worlds of sports and entertainment including Brian Urlacher, Scot Pollard, Bob Nightengale, Dan O'Dowd, and Survivor icons Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Cirie Fields, Danni Boatwright and "the Dragon Slayer", Coach Benjamin Wade. While studying at Valparaiso, Jack was the school newspaper's beat writer for the Valpo Crusaders men's basketball team, which won three straight Horizon League championships from 2015-2017. Traveling to cover the team, Jack had a front row seat to one of the nation's best mid-major teams, headlined by future NBA Draft pick Alec Peters and coached by NCAA Tournament hero Bryce Drew. Jack hosted a weekly sports radio show and provided play-by-play and color commentary services for ESPN 3 and the university's student radio station, WVUR-FM, 95.1 The Source, covering Valparaiso men's soccer, women's basketball, softball and volleyball. Jack also covered these sports, in addition to men's and women's tennis, baseball and women's soccer for the school newspaper, The Torch. While he was in college, Jack interned for and co-hosted Jewell On Sports, a sports radio program on AM 1050 WLIP in Kenosha, Wisconsin. There, he interviewed various pro athletes such as Ahman Green, Javon Walker and Javier Arenas, in addition to talking sports with the late, great Brad Jewell. Jack also interned for 22nd Century Media, a now defunct newspaper corporation that provided news to the North Shore of Chicago. With 22nd Century Media, Jack wrote post-game recaps, feature stories about local athletes, reviews of local restaurants and compiled the newspaper's "Pet of the Week" and "Athlete of the Week" sections, while providing copy-editing services. Before attending Valparaiso, Jack enrolled at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he studied for two years before transferring. He is a high school graduate of New Trier Township High School in Winnetka, Illinois. You can follow Jack on Twitter @JackVitaShow, subscribe to his podcast, the Jack Vita Show, wherever podcasts are found, and reach him via email at jack@jackvita.com.