MLB Power Rankings: Yankees, Dodgers the teams to beat through season's first month

May 16—Now that we're a little over a month into the season, we're starting to get a better idea of how each of Major League Baseball's 30 teams stack up against one another. Here is our first MLB power rankings:

1. New York Yankees (25-9): New York has allowed the fewest runs per game and rank fourth in runs scored per game, and not surprisingly that's been a winning combination. The Yankees have been steamrolling everyone and now have won their last eight series.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers (21-12): The Dodgers have the best run differential in baseball at plus-70 and have been every bit as dominant as everyone expected. Mookie Betts is playing like an MVP candidate and Freddie Freeman has more than lived up to expectations as well.

3. Houston Astros (23-12): The Astros are the hottest team in baseball, having won 12 of their last 13 games, and rookie Jeremy Peña has emerged as a superstar filling the shoes of former Houston shortstop Carlos Correa.

4. Los Angeles Angels (24-13): It's finally all coming together for the Angels. Mike Trout is healthy, Shohei Ohtani is a baseball unicorn and the pitching and complimentary pieces are finally in place to make a serious run at a title.

5. New York Mets (23-13): Owner Steve Cohen has spent at a rate that would make George Steinbrenner blush, but so far the investment has paid off. The Mets have one of baseball's best pitching staffs and future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer has been worth every penny.

6. Milwaukee Brewers (22-13): Reigning Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes has been excellent and closer Josh Hader has been all but unhittable, but the big key for Milwaukee has been its offense. The Brewers rank sixth in runs per game despite not boasting many heavy hitters after Christian Yellich.

7. San Diego Padres (22-13): For everything that went wrong last year, the Padres have gotten their act together and have reassumed their place as a top National League contender. Manny Machado in particular is having a career year, and so are top starters Joe Musgrove and Sean Manaea.

8. San Francisco Giants (20-14): The Giants keep finding ways to win. San Francisco boasts baseball's No. 2 offense and has one of the sport's deepest starting rotations thanks to Logan Webb, Carlos Rodon, Alex Wood and Alex Cobb.

9. St. Louis Cardinals (19-15): The Cardinals may not be a World Series favorite, but they're rock solid and should have a great shot at reaching the playoffs. Nolan Arenado has been one of the best players in baseball and Albert Pujols' return to St. Louis has been one of the sport's coolest stories.

10. Minnesota Twins (20-15): A last-place outfit in 2021, the Twins have completely transformed their pitching staff and if he stays healthy Byron Buxton may be on his way to one of the best seasons in franchise history.

11. Tampa Bay Rays (21-14): Tampa Bay actually has a minus-one run differential, but the Rays have found ways to win close games. The bullpen is once again excellent and the club is currently 8-4 in one-run games and 4-1 in extras.

12. Toronto Blue Jays (18-17): A preseason World Series favorite, Toronto has struggled since the start of May and has now lost nine of its last 12 games. Injuries have taken their toll but the Blue Jays have the talent to compete with anyone once they bust out of their recent slump.

13. Philadelphia Phillies (17-18): The Phillies are overflowing with talent, but it hasn't quite come together yet. The offense ranks fifth in runs scored per game and the club has a plus-18 run differential, but the 2-7 record in one-run games has been costly.

14. Cleveland Guardians (16-17): The Guardians have one of baseball's lowest payrolls but have remained competitive regardless. Jose Ramirez has been an MVP candidate and Cleveland has been solid in pretty much every other area.

15. Arizona Diamondbacks (18-17): The Diamondbacks have taken a big step forward from last year's MLB-worst outfit. Considering how competitive the NL West is their being above .500 is impressive, but Arizona faces long odds to reach the playoffs.

16. Seattle Mariners (16-19): The Mariners haven't gotten off to the start they hoped for, and losing nine of their last 13 has put them well behind the Astros and Angels in the AL West. Overall both the offense and the pitching have been pretty average relative to the rest of the league.

17. Miami Marlins (15-19): The Marlins don't have the record to show for it, but they've been sneaky competitive this season. Miami currently has a plus-10 run differential and its pitching ranks No. 10 in runs allowed per game.

18. Colorado Rockies (17-17): The Rockies sit at .500 despite playing in one of baseball's toughest divisions and despite boasting a minus-28 run differential. That doesn't seem sustainable, so expect the Rockies to slide down this list as the year goes on.

19. Chicago White Sox (16-17): The White Sox are too talented to be this far down the list, but the numbers don't lie. A minus-30 run differential and baseball's No. 25 offense don't inspire confidence in what should have been baseball's most winnable division.

20. Atlanta Braves (16-19): Even with Ronald Acuña Jr. back in the fold, the defending World Series champions have looked a lot more like the uninspiring group from the first half last year than the title-winning squad that surged to the top down the stretch.

21. Boston Red Sox (13-21): The Red Sox have actually been more competitive than their record suggests, but they've had an uncanny knack for losing close games. So far the Sox are 0-5 in extra innings and 3-7 in one-run games.

22. Texas Rangers (14-19): Corey Seager has produced, but Marcus Semien hasn't lived up to his big contract and the Rangers don't have nearly enough pitching.

23. Oakland Athletics (15-22): Oakland is averaging fewer than 9,000 fans per game, hardly a surprise given ownership's cynical teardown and open relocation threats.

24. Chicago Cubs (13-20): Seiya Suzuki has been worth the price of admission, but you can still tell this is a club that traded all of its best players last summer.

25. Baltimore Orioles (14-21): Baltimore has averaged the second fewest runs per game in baseball and recently lost ace John Means for the season. It's looking like another tough year for the perennially rebuilding Orioles.

26. Pittsburgh Pirates (15-19): The Pirates have the worst run differential in baseball, but the other day they did manage to win a game without recording a hit. So that's something.

27. Kansas City Royals (12-20): The young prospects Kansas City was counting on to lead it this season have so far struggled to break through. At least Zack Greinke has been a nice story.

28. Washington Nationals (12-24): The Nationals allow the third most runs per game in MLB and somehow have a minus-44 run differential at home. It's pretty much been Juan Soto and nothing else so far.

29. Detroit Tigers (12-23): The Tigers have the worst offense in baseball, and the club has collectively managed only 16 home runs, less than half the league average.

30. Cincinnati Reds (9-26): The Reds could have been a contender if they'd just invested in their roster. Instead they sold off their best players and now they're getting what they paid for.

Email: mcerullo@northofboston.com. Twitter: @MacCerullo.