With the All-Star break behind us and the trade deadline rapidly approaching, it figures to be a busy couple of weeks around the MLB landscape.
This week’s power rankings reflect just one series’ worth of games, so there wasn’t as much shuffling as usual. It was still a terrific few days for individual pitching performances, though.
Matt Shoemaker, Adam Wainwright and Jacob deGrom each threw complete-game shutouts, and 11 other pitchers turned in at least six shutout innings in their first starts of the second half.
Even in a short week, one thing remains true: These rankings are a fluid process, with teams moving up or down based on where they ranked the previous week. If a club keeps winning, it will keep climbing—it’s as simple as that.