Nationals race into top spot

The red-hot Nationals jumped up four spots to take over as the No. 1 team in ESPN.com's Power Rankings.

Originally Published: June 17, 2005

ESPN.com

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POWER RANKINGS
1. Washington Nationals: In staying healthy, Nick Johnson has proven to be a real offensive force (.325 BA, .442 OBP). Here's hoping the injury bug doesn't bite him.
2. Chicago White Sox: The White Sox have a major-league best 43 wins and their next nine games are at home against the Dodgers, Royals and Cubs.
3. St. Louis Cardinals: Reggie Sanders has a team-best 11 steals in 12 chances. He's 37 years old! Quietly, Sanders is posting some solid offensive numbers, yet again.
4. Minnesota Twins: Twins second basemen are hitting a combined .265 with two homers and 12 RBI (Nick Punto, 7 RBI; Luis Rivas, 3; and Brent Abernathy, 2).
5. Baltimore Orioles: If you thought Brian Roberts would cool down, you thought wrong. He's batting a whopping .361 with an equally impressive .439 on-base percentage.
6. Boston Red Sox: Bet you didn't know that Manny Ramirez is leading the AL with eight outfield assists. Shocked? Yeah, but it's true.
7. Los Angeles Angels: Vlad to be back: After missing 18 games, Guerrero is tearing it up again -- .519 (10-for-23). How about an AL MVP repeat?
$Rangers$ 8. Texas Rangers: Orel Hershiser must be a genius of a pitching coach. Need evidence? Chan Ho Park and Kenny Rogers are a combined 15-3.
9. Philadelphia Phillies: Prospect Watch: Gavin Floyd, who started the season in Philadelphia, is getting rocked pitching for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre as he's 2-5 with a 7.09 ERA in nine starts.
10. San Diego Padres: Interleague play couldn't end soon enough. The Padres are 3-9 against the AL. Next up – a weekend series in Minnesota.
11. Chicago Cubs: Do the Cubs miss Moises Alou's production? Cubs left fielders: .252, 6 HR, 35 RBI (not bad), .309 OBP (not good). Alou's batting .322 with 11 homers and has a .425 OBP.
12. Arizona Diamondbacks: Tony Clark is loving Arizona; his slugging (.712) is comparable to Derrek Lee's (.711), although with 114 fewer ABs.
13. Toronto Blue Jays: Vernon Wells, who is batting just .251 with an awful .303 OBP, continues to be a major disappointment.
14. New York Yankees: It was nauseating to listen to team president Randy Levine gush at the news conference announcing the Yankees' plans to build a new stadium.
15. Atlanta Braves: A quick look at the Braves lineup (Kelly Johnson, Andy Marte, etc.) makes us think this will finally be the year when they fall short of the postseason.
16. Florida Marlins: Josh Beckett's numbers from his last two starts are a sight for sore eyes – 0-2 with an 8.25 ERA.
17. Cleveland Indians: The top four bullpens in the majors hail from the AL Central, with the Indians (2.51 ERA) sitting on top, followed by the Twins (2.54), Tigers (3.11) and White Sox (3.30).
18. New York Mets: A new stadium for the Mets to coincide with New York's bid for the 2012 Olympics? We'll believe it, when we see it.
19. Pittsburgh Pirates: GM Dave Littlefield suggests the Pirates may not be "sellers" in this summer's trade market. So, where's Jose Mesa going, anyway?
20. Detroit Tigers: Hey, Terry Francona, Jeremy Bonderman (8-4, 3.84) might be a nice addition to your All-Star staff! Of Bonderman's 73 K's this season, 42 have come against left-handers.
21. Kansas City Royals: Finally, both Jose Lima and Zack Greinke have wins. Combined, they're 2-12 with a 6.66 ERA and 28 home runs allowed.
22. Los Angeles Dodgers: Why is there hope without Eric Gagne? Yhency Brazoban has been perfect in June – six outings, 0.00 ERA, five K's, zero BBs.
23. Milwaukee Brewers: Prince Fielder will spend Father's Day in Toronto, where his father, Cecil, began his career at the same age (21) in 1985.
24. Seattle Mariners: Rookie shortstop Mike Morse got his first major-league hit on June 3 – and hasn't stopped hitting. He's batting .429 in June.
25. Oakland Athletics: Don't be quick to knock Barry Zito; entering Friday's start, the A's southpaw has a 3.34 ERA in his last nine outings.
26. San Francisco Giants: Gearing up for Father's Day? Under dad Felipe, Moises Alou is hitting .516 (16-for-31) during his eight-game hitting streak.
27. Houston Astros: Morgan Ensberg is slugging like he did in 2003. He leads the team in home runs (15), RBI (38) and slugging (.538).
28. Tampa Bay Devil Rays: Let's put an end to the nonsense. Lou and the D-Rays need to part ways by the end of the season, if not sooner.
29. Cincinnati Reds: The Reds are on pace to set the franchise record for most road losses (57, in 1931), losing 24 of 30 so far.
30. Colorado Rockies: Three things you don't want from your pitchers: walks, hit batters and wild pitches. Guess what? The Rockies lead the NL in all three.