In 11 August games, the Indians have gone 8-3, a strong enough run to push their division-leading record to a solid 66-51 as of this writing.
And, while the Indians aren’t going to crack the 100-win mark like the Red Sox and Astros almost certainly will, Cleveland is poised to expand its lead in the AL Central by leaps and bounds over the next month.
Of the six teams the Indians will face over the rest of the month (Cincinnati, Baltimore, Boston, Kansas City, Minnesota, Tampa Bay), only two – the Red Sox and Rays – have a winning record.
Cleveland should clean up for the rest of the month and the club will have a good chance of replicating the 72 percent winning percentage they’ve enjoyed over the first 11 games of August.
Their recent play, as well as the potential dominance that is coming down the pike, was enough to push Cleveland into the top five in this week’s edition of RealClearLife‘s Ultimate Power Rankings, which combine ratings from ESPN, CBS and USA Today to get a single rank for all 30 teams in MLB and use segmented tiers to arrange them.
Who beat them out for the No. 4 spot? Read on.
The Best of the Best (1.00-5.00)
No. 1.00, last 1.00, two weeks ago 1.33: Boston Red Sox – (ESPN, 1), (CBS Sports, 1), (USA Today, 1)
No. 2.33, last 2.00, two weeks ago 2.33: Houston Astros – (ESPN, 2), (CBS Sports, 3), (USA Today, 2, tie)
No. 2.33, last 3.00, two weeks ago 2.66: New York Yankees – (ESPN, 3), (CBS Sports, 2), (USA Today, 2, tie)
No. 4.66, last 5.33, two weeks ago 6.33: Oakland Athletics – (ESPN, 6), (CBS Sports, 4), (USA Today, 4)
No. 5.00, last 7.00, two weeks ago 8.00: Cleveland Indians – (ESPN, 4), (CBS Sports, 6), (USA Today, 5)
The Best of the Rest (5.01-10.00)
No. 5.33, last 4.66, two weeks ago 4.33: Chicago Cubs – (ESPN, 5), (CBS Sports, 5), (USA Today, 6)
No. 8.33, last 10.66, two weeks ago 12.00: Atlanta Braves – (ESPN, 8), (CBS Sports, 8), (USA Today, 9, tie)
No. 9.00, last 13.00, two weeks ago 9.66: Seattle Mariners – (ESPN, 17), (CBS Sports, 13), (USA Today, 12)
No. 9.00, last 9.33, two weeks ago 10.33: Philadelphia Phillies – (ESPN, 9), (CBS Sports, 9), (USA Today, 9, tie)
No. 9.66, last 7.33, two weeks ago 8.00: Milwaukee Brewers – (ESPN, 11), (CBS Sports, 10), (USA Today, 8)
So You’re Saying There’s a Chance (10.01-15.00)
No. 10.66, last 9.00, two weeks ago 9.00: Arizona Diamondbacks – (ESPN, 10), (CBS Sports, 11), (USA Today, 11)
No. 11.00, last 6.66, two weeks ago 5.66: Los Angeles Dodgers – (ESPN, 7), (CBS Sports, 14), (USA Today, 12)
No. 13.33, last 15.00, two weeks ago 15.66: St. Louis Cardinals – (ESPN, 14), (CBS Sports, 12), (USA Today, 14)
No. 13.66, last 12.66, two weeks ago 11.00: Colorado Rockies – (ESPN, 15), (CBS Sports, 13), (USA Today, 13)
No. 14.33, last 13.66, two weeks ago 15.66: Washington Nationals – (ESPN, 12), (CBS Sports, 16), (USA Today, 15)
Stuck in the Middle with You (15.01-20.00)
No. 15.66, last 15.66, two weeks ago 15.00: Pittsburgh Pirates – (ESPN, 16), (CBS Sports, 15), (USA Today, 16)
No. 17.33, last 18.33, two weeks ago 17.66: Tampa Bay Rays – (ESPN, 18), (CBS Sports, 17), (USA Today, 17, tie)
No. 18.00, last 18.00, two weeks ago 15.66: Los Angeles Angels – (ESPN, 17), (CBS Sports, 18), (USA Today, 19)
No. 18.33, last 17.66, two weeks ago 19.00: San Francisco Giants – (ESPN, 19), (CBS Sports, 19), (USA Today, 17, tie)
It’s Probably Not Your Year (20.01-25.00)
No. 20.33, last 20.00, two weeks ago 20.33: Minnesota Twins – (ESPN, 20), (CBS Sports, 20), (USA Today, 21)
No. 22.00, last 21.66, two weeks ago 21.33: Toronto Blue Jays – (ESPN, 23), (CBS Sports, 21), (USA Today, 22)
No. 22.00, last 22.00, two weeks ago 21.00: Cincinnati Reds – (ESPN, 22), (CBS Sports, 24), (USA Today, 20)
No. 22.00, last 22.66, two weeks ago 24.00: Texas Rangers – (ESPN, 21), (CBS Sports, 22), (USA Today, 23)
No. 24.00, last 24.66, two weeks ago 25.00: New York Mets – (ESPN, 25), (CBS Sports, 23), (USA Today, 24)
No. 25.00, last 24.00, two weeks ago 24.00: Detroit Tigers – (ESPN, 24), (CBS Sports, 26), (USA Today, 25)
See You in 2019 (25.01-30.00)
No. 26.00, last 26.66, two weeks ago 26.66: San Diego Padres – (ESPN, 26), (CBS Sports, 25), (USA Today, 27)
No. 26.66, last 26.66, two weeks ago 25.00: Miami Marlins – (ESPN, 27), (CBS Sports, 27), (USA Today, 26)
No. 28.00, last 27.66, two weeks ago 28.00: Chicago White Sox – (ESPN, 28), (CBS Sports, 28), (USA Today, 28)
No. 29.33, last 29.33, two weeks ago 30.00: Baltimore Orioles – (ESPN, 29), (CBS Sports, 29), (USA Today, 30)
No. 29.66, last 29.66, two weeks ago 29.00: Kansas City Royals – (ESPN, 30), (CBS Sports, 30), (USA Today, 29)
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