Time For Lucas Duda to Step Up and Produce

Written by Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

On Friday afternoon, the New York Mets made a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates, shipping first baseman Ike Davis out of town in exchange for relief pitcher Zack Thornton and a player to be named later. Davis will have an opportunity to get his career back on track, as he has not been the same player since suffering an injury in 2011. For the Mets, he is no longer their problem, in turn placing a ton of trust in Lucas Duda.

Where the Mets will miss Davis the most is in the field with his glove. Davis is one of the better defensive first baseman in the MLB; Duda on the other hand leaves much to be desired. The decrease in defense at first base will be made up with an outstanding defensive outfield, as the albatross that is Duda's defense is more easily hidden at first base. But Duda will be able to make people forget about his lackluster fielding if he can hit like he is capable of doing.

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Duda will now be given every opportunity to succeed for the Mets, as he is the clear-cut starter at first base for the Amazin’s. They chose him over Davis with the expectations that he will give them more production with consistent playing time.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 17

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By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

MLB Power Rankings: Week 17

1.) St Louis Cardinals (62-40) – A tough weekend series for the Cardinals getting swept in Atlanta, but they still hold the best record in baseball, and they did also get Outfielder Matt Holliday back in the lineup which will help them as they continue a tough part in their schedule.

2.) Boston Red Sox (63-43) – Boston saw their AL East lead slip away for a day, but they were able to get it back on Sunday with a win against the Orioles, which was an impressive series win on the road against a division rival. David Ortiz was a big part of Sunday's win going four for four with a home run.

3.) Tampa Bay Rays (62-43) – The Rays are looking like one of the best teams in baseball, as they had a good week on the road against the Red Sox and Yankees. A makeup game on Monday in Boston could allow the Rays to be in first place in the AL East with a win.

4.) Pittsburgh Pirates (61-42) – A huge home-stand starts on Monday for the Pirates, as they will host the Cardinals who they are trying to catch in the NL Central for five games, and then have two three-game series against the Rockies and Marlins.

5.) Oakland Athletics (62-43) – The A's are in first place in the AL West behind some great pitching in the last few months, and an offense that is in the top-10 in runs scored. Bartolo Colon amidst possibly being suspended is having a great season going 14-3 with a 2.54 ERA.

MLB First Half Power Rankings

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By Kenneth Teape (@teapester725)

With the MLB Season reaching its midpoint and the All-Star Break, let's take a look at where each team stands. Here are GothamCitySportsNews' First Half MLB Power Rankings:

1) St. Louis Cardinals (57-36) – Looking like the class of MLB again. The rotation is strong again with Adam Wainwright leading the way. The lineup is balanced with Carlos Beltran returning to form, and the team is loaded with All-Stars and seemingly with no weak spots. The Cardinals look poised for a strong second half and postseason run.

2) Pittsburgh Pirates (56-37) – The surprise team of the first half for the third year running. A dominant bullpen and some help for Andrew McCutchen in the lineup should end their streak of losing seasons. Would really benefit from adding a bat and another arm in the bullpen as Mark Melancon and Jason Grilli each appeared in over 40 games so far.

3) Boston Red Sox (58-39) – The best record in the AL at the halfway point is not something many people expected out of the Red Sox. Adding Matt Thornton to the bullpen before the break will help but expect more moves from Boston before the deadline passes.

4) Tampa Bay Rays (55-41) – The Rays are currently the hottest team in baseball. On June 23rd they were in last place in the AL East only two games above .500; since they have gone 16-4 and sit atop the wildcard standings. A tough start to the second half looms though with a 10-game road trip through most of the AL East with stops in Boston, Toronto and New York.

5) Oakland Athletics (56-39) – Oakland is getting it done this season uncharacteristically; it is the hitting not the pitching that has carried them thus far. Even more surprisingly it is not Yoenis Cespedes, fresh off his Home Run Derby victory. Cespedes has struggled in the first half but will look to use the momentum from his derby victory for a better second half.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 13

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By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

MLB Power Rankings: Week 13

1.) Pittsburgh Pirates (51-30) – The Pirates after 81 games have the best record in baseball, and have a two-game lead in the NL Central. They are on a nine-game winning streak, as after a great West Coast trip they returned home to sweep the Brewers this past weekend.

2.) St Louis Cardinals (49-32) – St Louis had a bit of a tough week against the AL West, losing three out of five games to the Athletics and Astros. The Cardinals are still in the top 10 in most batting and pitching categories, and still have the second best record in baseball.

3.) Boston Red Sox (50-34) – A good week for the AL East leading Red Sox keeps them on top of their division, and they cooled off the Toronto Blue Jays, taking three out of four games against them this weekend. They are the number one in runs scored with a lineup led by Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz.

4.) Texas Rangers (48-34) – The Rangers are rolling, and are in first place in the AL West going (8-2) in there last 10 games. Elvis Andrus is having a disappointing first half of the season however batting just .243

5.) Atlanta Braves (48-34) – Atlanta has built a very good pitching staff once again, as they are second in team ERA and quality starts. The main concern for the Braves has to be their team batting average, which is just .245.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 12

stltoday.com

By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

MLB Power Rankings Week 12

1.) St Louis Cardinals (47-29) – The Cardinals had a tough end to the week being swept at home by the Rangers, but they still have the best record in baseball. Their lead in the NL Central however has been trimmed to just one game.

2.) Pittsburgh Pirates (46-30) – The Pirates are coming on strong, as they split a four- game series on the road against the Reds, and then went out to the West Coast and swept the Angels. Pedro Alvarez is is having a great month of June with nine homeruns, and has 19 now on the season.

3.) Texas Rangers (44-32) – Texas after hitting a rough patch the last few weeks seem to be back on track, as they are now on a five-game winning streak, and are back on top of the AL West. Getting Ian Kinsler back in the lineup was much needed, as he hit .407 in the last seven days.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 11

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By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

MLB Power Rankings Week 11

1.) St Louis Cardinals (44-25) – The Cardinals are once again in the top spot for the Power Rankings, as they have established themselves as the best team in baseball with a run differential of a plus 102. Their hitting has been great and their pitching has been great, and they look like the most complete team in baseball.

2.) Cincinnati Reds (42-28) – The Reds would be in first place in any other division in baseball, but unfortunately for them they have the Cardinals in theirs. Jay Bruce is getting hot, which may help the Reds get closer to first place in the NL Central.

3.) Pittsburgh Pirates (41-28) – Gerrit Cole made his much anticipated debut this week, and is (2-0) now this season, but A.J. Burnett torn his calf muscle, so the Pirates will need Cole to continue pitching well if they want to be in the mix in the NL Central.

4.) Oakland Athletics (42-29) – Josh Donaldson continues his awesome start to the season, as he is leading the Athletics in batting average and RBIs. Bartolo Colon is looking like a Cy Young pitcher this season, with nine wins, and a 2.89 ERA.

5.) Boston Red Sox (42-29) – The Red Sox are still in first place in what is probably the toughest division in baseball, but the hot start from Jon Lester has ended it seems, as his ERA is now over four, and he hasn’t won a game in six starts.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 10

stltoday.com

By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

MLB Power Rankings: Week 10

1.) St Louis Cardinals (41-22) – The Cardinals are once again in the top spot in the Power Rankings, as they just keep on winning, and are now 19 games over .500. A series win on the road against the Reds this weekend was huge for St Louis solidify their top spot in the Power Rankings.

2.) Atlanta Braves (39-24) – The Braves have opened up a nice lead already in the NL East despite having three everyday starters batting .200 or less, which makes the fact that the Braves are 15 games over .500 in more impressive.

3.) Boston Red Sox (39-25) – The Red Sox weren’t picked by many people to have as good a season as they are having, but the have the best record in the AL, and have the lead in one of the toughest divisions in baseball, as this Red Sox team is showing that they are legit.

4.) New York Yankees (37-26) – A sweep at home of the Indians and then taking three out of four against the Mariners to start their West Coast trip has to have the injured Yankees feeling good. Long time Yankee Andy Pettitte also reached the 250 win milestone this week.

5.) Texas Rangers (37-25) – A bit of a tough week on the East Coast has slimmed the Rangers lead the in AL West down a bit, as they lost four out of six to the Blue Jays and Red Sox this past week. Yu Darvish is still dealing, and heading back to Texas should get the Rangers on track.

6.) Oakland Athletics (38-27) – Bartolo Colon has been great of late leading the Athletics rotation, which is starting to get hot. Colon now has seven wins this season, and his only given up six runs in his last five starts, which is remarkable.

7.) Cincinnati Reds (37-26) – The Reds bullpen has cost them a lot of games already this season, and their last home-stand was when they may have been at their worst this season allowing 23 runs in those games.

8.) Pittsburgh Pirates (37-26) – Starling Marte has really struggled of late, and sweep to the Braves didn’t help the Pirates gain ground in the NL Central this week. Gerrit Cole is going to making his debut soon, which should help a rotation that has been banged up lately.

9.) Detroit Tigers (35-26) – Justin Verlander has eight wins, but is fourth on the Tigers rotation in ERA at 3.71, which isn’t what people are use to seeing from Verlander. Austin Jackson is making a rehab start on Monday, so expect him to be back in the powerful Tigers lineup very soon.

10.) Baltimore Orioles (35-28) – Starting Pitching has been an issue for the Orioles so far this season, but their good offense led by Chris Davis is still winning games for the Orioles. Wei-Yin Chen is getting healthier and will be a welcomed sight back in the rotation.

11.) Arizona Diamondbacks (35-28) – Patrick Corban is still dealing for the Diamondbacks with nine wins and an ERA under two, but Wade Miley has really struggled lately, as he is now (4-5) with an ERA closing in on five.

12.) Tampa Bay Rays (34-28) – Matt Moore has struggled in his last two starts allowing 15 runs in those two appearances, which has to be a little concerning for the Rays. David Price is due back towards the end of the month, as the Rays look to keeping playing well without their ace.

13.) San Francisco Giants (33-29) – The Giants only had five games this week, but did go (3-2), as they continue to hope that their pitchers will figure things out and get back on track. The offense has still been very good with five starters hitting .285 or higher.

14.) Colorado Rockies (34-30) – A powerful offense for the Rockies has kept the over .500 still this season, and they used their bats to get a nice series win to start the week on the road in Cincinnati. Troy Tulowitzki is having an MVP type season hitting .354 with 16 homeruns and 51 RBIs.

15.) Washington Nationals (31-31) – Washington is trying to tread water with their two young phenoms on the DL in Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg. A trip to Colorado to start the week may spark an offense that has been showing signs of coming alive finally.

16.) Philadelphia Phillies (31-33) – For whatever reason the Phillies seem to have a problem beating the Brewers, and after making it over .500 in the middle of the week, three straight losses to Milwaukee put them right back under .500.

17.) Kansas City Royals (28-32) – The Royals pitching is finally getting some help from their lineup, which has resulted in the Royals going on a five-game winning streak. A big series to start the week against the Tigers can really help or hurt the surging Royals.

18.) San Diego Padres (29-34) – The Padres may have had a losing week, but they are getting great play from rookie Jedd Gyorko at Second base, as he is hitting .284 with a team-leading eight homeruns to go along with 25 RBIs.

19.) Cleveland Indians (30-32) – The Indians are free falling right now losing seven straight games, and injuries to Chris Perez and Asdrubal Cabrera wont help them win games. Next week the Indians start with a series against the Rangers, which may make the losing streak even worse.

20.) Minnesota Twins (27-33) – Minnesota doesn’t seem to have a whole lot going for them right now a (2-4) week was capped off with losing both games to the Nationals in their double-header on Sunday.

21.) Los Angeles Dodgers (27-35) – Yasiel Puig's first week in the majors was a memorable one, as the young Outfielder has sparked the Dodgers. Puig is hitting .464 with four homeruns and 10 RBIs in his first seven games.

22.) Toronto Blue Jays (27-35) – Things might be on the up for the Blue Jays, as their pitching was very good this week, as they got good starts from R.A. Dickey and Mark Buehrle. A nice series win a home against the Rangers is a start in the right direction for Toronto.

23.) Chicago White Sox (27-34) – The White Sox are the second worst team in baseball in scoring runs, and that in large part is due to the struggles on Paul Konerko, who is having a bad year in the middle of the lineup. Konerko is hitting just .235 with six homeruns and 23 RBIs.

24.) Los Angeles Angels (27-36) – Huge week is coming up for the Angels with series against the Orioles and Yankees. If the Angels want to make the playoffs they need to start winning games against teams ahead of them in the standings, and really just games against anyone.

25.) Seattle Mariners (27-37) – Seattle's offense continues to struggle and spoil good starts from Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma. Poor pitching from the other three Starters and poor hitting has led to the Mariners being 10 games under .500

26.) Milwaukee Brewers (25-37) – Brewers pitching showed up on the weekend against the Phillies, which resulted in them taking three out of four in their weekend series. Kyle Lohse had one of his best starts of the year on Sunday in earning his second win, something the Brewers need him to keep up.

27.) Chicago Cubs (25-35) – Cubs star Shortstop Starlin Castro is still having a bad season, which is really hurting the Cubs offense right now. Castro is only hitting .243 with three homeruns and 21 RBIs, numbers which are way down for him.

28.) Houston Astros (22-42) – After an impressive week last week by the Astros the Royals gave them a reality check on the weekend holding them to just four runs in three games, which resulted in the Astros being swept.

29.) Miami Marlins (18-44) – Marcell Ozuna is an exciting young player to watch, as he had a huge throw getting Daniel Murphy out at the plate in the 20-inning game against the Mets on Saturday, and he is also hitting very well batting .331 this season.

30.) New York Mets (23-35) – The Mets have lost five straight games to the Marlins now who certainly have their number. Ike Davis struggles have finally gotten him sent down to the minors, but there is now viable option to replace him at First Base.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 9

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By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

Week 9 MLB Power Rankings

1.) St Louis Cardinals (37-19) – The Cardinals are certainly looking like the best team in baseball with a run differential of +84. It doesn’t seem to matter who the Cards use in the starting rotation, but they all have success, with a majors best team ERA of 2.99.

2.) Texas Rangers (35-21) – Texas looks good once again this year, as Yu Darvish is having a great sophomore season. Darvish is (7-2), with a ERA of 2.77, and a ridiculous 111 strikeouts already. Having an ace like Darvish should keep the Rangers high in the rankings from here on out.

3.) Cincinnati Reds (35-22) – Considering they play in one of the more hitter friendly ballparks in all of baseball it is amazing that the Reds have the third best team ERA in baseball. Good pitching and a talented lineup is the Reds recipe for playing so well thus far.

4.) Pittsburgh Pirates (35-22) – The Pirates started the week with an impressive series win over the Tigers taking three out of four games, and they finished the week with a thrilling extra-innings win over the Reds, as their bullpen went 10 scoreless innings in relief. The Pirates are 13 games over .500, and seem like a real threat to the Cardinals and Reds in the NL Central.

5.) Oakland Athletics (34-24) – The young arms for the Athletics seem to be looking like they did last year, which is why they have one nine out of their 10 ball games. The great stretch of baseball the Athletics have been on has put them right back behind Texas for the division lead.

MLB Power Rankings: Week 8

insidesportsillustrated.com

By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

Week 8 MLB Power Rankings

1.) St Louis Cardinals (32-17) - The Cardinals seem to have the best pitching in baseball no matter who is on the mound with a team ERA of 3.11. Their lineup isn’t to shabby either, as they are 10th in runs scored. Good hitting and even better pitching is why the Cardinals are back in the top spot.

2.) Texas Rangers (32-18) - Even with Ian Kinsler on the DL the Rangers are still winning, with a little help from and easy schedule. Top Prospect Jurickson Profar has been called up, so when Kinsler is back Manager Ron Washington will have some decisions to make.

3.) Pittsburgh Pirates (31-19) - The young exciting Outfield combination of Starling Marte and Andrew McCutchen are both playing very well right now, as they are looking to lead the Pirates to an above .500 record, and the playoffs.

Week 7 MLB Power Rankings

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By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

MLB Power Rankings Week 7

1.) Texas Rangers (29-15) - The Rangers are back in the number one spot in the rankings after a great week of baseball. They won five games this week, which included taking three out of four against the Tigers to finish the week.

2.) St Louis Cardinals (28-15) - The Cardinals are still playing good baseball and have the best record in the National League. The pitching has been magnificent for the Cardinals all season, but Jaime Garcia is heading to the DL.

3.) New York Yankees (27-16) - The Yankees continue to find ways to win in large part due to their pitching staff. They got Curtis Granderson back in the lineup this week, but lost Andy Pettitte to a back injury, which is sending him to the DL.