MLB Power Rankings Week 24: Philadelphia Phillies Take Surprising Tumble

The Philadelphia Phillies dropped slightly in this week's MLB power rankings on Inside the Phillies.

The Philadelphia Phillies took a surprising dip in this week's edition of our weekly MLB power rankings. The Fightin' Phils dropped two spots, but remained in the top-10, after dropping a weekend series at home to the Miami Marlins. The Phillies move from the seven spot to the ninth spot.

The top-10 saw a great deal of movement over the past week, with a new team climbing up to no. 2 and setting off a chain reaction, with teams throughout the top-10 moving up and down.

Here's a look at our power rankings for Week 24 of the 2023 Major League Baseball season:

1) Atlanta Braves (93-49; +238 DIFF, 47-28 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 1 [no movement]) — For the fifth week in a row, the Braves are the best team in baseball.

2) Baltimore Orioles (90-52; +118 DIFF, 46-33 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 3 [up 1]) — The Orioles had won their last seven games — all road games — entering Sunday. Saturday, they became the second fastest team to 90 wins, this season, behind the Braves.

3) Tampa Bay Rays (88-56; +195 DIFF, 43-34 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 4 [up 1]) — Still playing without Wander Franco, the Rays made a statement this week, running through the Red Sox and an upstart Mariners team. Tampa Bay took three of four from Seattle, and has won five of its last six games.

4) Los Angeles Dodgers (87-55; +172 DIFF, 43-35 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 2 [down 2]) — A .500 week and a series loss to the Marlins drops the Dodgers two spots in our rankings, with the Rays and Orioles moving in front of them.

5) Houston Astros (82-62; +125 DIFF, 38-38 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 8 [up 3]) — At spring training in Arizona, I asked a group of national baseball reporters which team was the safest bet to win its division. The most popular answer was the Astros. You can pretty much keep betting on the Astros to win the AL West until they don't. Since 2017, the only year in which Houston didn't win a division title was the COVID-shortened 2020 season. This past week, the Astros took a comfortable 2.5-game lead over the Mariners, and are in the driver's seat in the AL West with only three weeks remaining in the regular season.

6) Milwaukee Brewers (79-63; +36 DIFF, 40-39 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 6 [no movement]) — Each year, we tend to find ourselves talking about the big market teams and the small market teams, that reach the postseason. But how about some love for the mid-market teams that find a way to compete year in and year out? The Brewers are on-track to reach the postseason for the fifth time in six seasons. Some believed this club was headed into a rebuild, as Willy Adames, Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff's names were appearing in trade rumors. With a three-game lead and three weeks left, the Brewers seem poised for another division title.

7) Toronto Blue Jays (80-63; +81 DIFF, 38-42 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 9 [up 2]) — The Jays were blessed with a schedule that gave them nine games against baseball's three worst teams (Colorado, Oakland and Kansas City). They went 7-2 during this stretch. Let's see how they fare this week in a critical, four-game series in Toronto against the Rangers.

8) Seattle Mariners (79-64; +98 DIFF, 34-38 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 5 [down 3]) — Baseball's hottest team has cooled off, and the M's have yet to win a series in the month of September. A three-game home series against the Angels might just be what the doctor ordered.

9) Philadelphia Phillies (78-64; +71 DIFF, 41-41 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 7 [down 2]) — The Fightin' Phils got jumped by the Fish at Citizens Bank over the weekend, in what could be a very consequential series. The Marlins now find themselves only a half-game back of the third NL Wild Card.

10) Arizona Diamondbacks (75-69; -15 DIFF, 35-47 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 13 [up 3]) — The Diamondbacks take three of four from the Cubs at Wrigley, moving them in front of the Cubbies in our power rankings. The two clubs will meet for a grudge match in the desert next weekend.

11) Minnesota Twins (75-68; +74 DIFF, 32-35 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 11 [no movement]) — We need to give the Twins huge credit for burying the Guardians in Cleveland last week, outscoring the Guardians 29-11 in a life-or-death series for their division rival. Minnesota now leads Cleveland by 7.5 games, with a magic number of 12.

12) Chicago Cubs (77-67; +98 DIFF, 37-42 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 10 [down 2]) — The Cubs looked unbeatable entering their weekend series against the Diamondbacks. The Snakes took three of four from the Cubbies in their own building, but Chicago still holds a two-game lead over Arizona for the second NL Wild Card. It will be interesting to see how David Ross' club responds this week.

13) Miami Marlins (74-69; -46 DIFF, 34-44 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 15 [up 2) — It might not always be pretty, but the Marlins are finding ways to win games, when it matters most. The Fish have won their last three series, emerging victorious in eight of their last ten games. This stretch includes a series win over the Dodgers. Miami is heating up at the right time.

14) Cincinnati Reds (74-71; -37 DIFF, 42-44 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 17 [up 3]) — The Reds are treading water and are still in the hunt, but if they don't get something going soon, someone will put them out of their misery.

15) Boston Red Sox (73-70; +18 DIFF, 38-43 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 14 [down 1]) — The Red Sox are 3-9 over their last 12 games, and now six games out of a playoff spot. Thanks for playing! We'll see you in February.

16) Texas Rangers (78-64; +142 DIFF, 33-39 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 12 [down 4]) — On June 6, the Rangers were 40-20. In the three months since, the club is 38-44. If the Rangers played at that pace all season long, they'd be a 75-win team, which is right around where most of us projected them to be. Texas has been a below-average club for over three months now.

17) San Francisco Giants (73-70; -7 DIFF, 40-39 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 16 [down 1]) — Over their last 44 games, the Giants are 13-21. That's not going to cut it, if you want to play baseball in October.

18) New York Yankees (71-72; -19 DIFF, 43-50 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 18 [no movement]) — The Yankees are doing all that they can to not post their first losing season since 1995. That wasn't their expectation at spring training.

19) Los Angeles Angels (67-77; -66 DIFF, 33-54 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 24 [up 5]) — The Angels finally picked up a series win this past weekend, taking three of four from the Guardians. It was their first series win in two weeks.

20) Cleveland Guardians (68-76; -32 DIFF, 35-39 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 19 [no movement]) — It's over for Cleveland, and it may be over for Tito too. The Guardians were a colossal disappointment in 2023 as their lineup and their bullpen took more than a couple steps backwards from last year. In any case, what a career for Terry Francona. One of the greatest managers ever, and one of the best characters the sport has ever seen.

21) San Diego Padres (67-77; +61 DIFF, 44-54 vs. >.500. LAST WEEK: no. 20 [down 1]) — Every few years, we get a team that has a really good run-differential, and doesn't come close to making the playoffs. San Diego is this year's team. Blake Snell has a strong NL Cy Young case, but is he or Justin Steele the frontrunner to win the award?

22) Pittsburgh Pirates (66-77; -90 DIFF, 33-57 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 21 [down 1]) — The Pirates could be a spoiler team in the final weeks of the season. The club took a series from the Brewers last week.

23) Detroit Tigers (66-77; -112 DIFF, 30-48 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 22 [down 1]) — The Guardians better watch out. The Tigers are only 1.5 games behind Cleveland, and could finish in second place in a depressing AL Central division.

24) New York Mets (65-77; -37 DIFF, 35-47 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 23 [down 1]) — There isn't much left to be say about the Mets. I imagine Mets fans are shifting their focus to the Jets, who play their season opener Monday night, with new quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

25) St. Louis Cardinals (63-80; -71 DIFF, 37-49 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 26 [up 1]) — The Cardinals may have played their best baseball all season, this past week, downing the Braves and Reds in back-to-back road series.

26) Washington Nationals (64-79; -129 DIFF, 37-53 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 25 [down 1]) — The Nats had a moment about two weeks ago when they had the same record as the team they traded Juan Soto to. That was certainly the high point of their season.

27) Chicago White Sox (55-88; -154 DIFF, 23-52 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 28 [up 1]) — This team is bad.

28) Colorado Rockies (51-91; -222 DIFF, 23-63 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 27 [down 1]) — This team is also bad.

29) Oakland Athletics (44-99; -303 DIFF, 22-68 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 29 [no movement]) — The A's remain in front of the Royals, with a slightly better record. Both teams are on pace to finish the season 50-112, which would be the worst record for in a single season for each franchise.

30) Kansas City Royals (44-100; -187 DIFF, 20-60 vs. >.500, LAST WEEK: no. 30 [no movement]) — On a positive note, Bobby Witt is emerging as a star. The former no. 2 overall Draft pick is slashing .300/.342/.879 since June 2.

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