Pirates Power Rankings: Mixed Reactions to Buccos Slump

One week ago today, the Pittsburgh Pirates held the most wins in the National League, bumping into the top ten in most power rankings—and even cracking the top five. Since then, they’ve gone into a tailspin, losing six games in a row and sitting in the middle of the pack with a .500 record.

The Pirates have shown a penchant for hot starts that fall flat in the past, and some national media pundits pointed out that troubling trend in their assessment of the club this week. Others said that, despite the team’s woes, they’re still moving in the right direction following four years of rebuilding under general manager Ben Cherington.

Here’s a look at what this week’s power rankings have to say about the battling Buccos.

• The Pirates fell 11 spots in MLB.com’s power rankings, all the way down to No. 20: good for fourth-best in the NL Central behind Milwaukee, Chicago and Cincinnati.
• CBS Sports put them in the same position, noting little besides Pittsburgh’s six game losing streak.
• Bleacher Report cut the Buccos more slack, dropping them to No. 17 but saying that they’re headed in the right direction to become an eventual contender, even if they aren’t there quite yet.
• USA Today dropped the Pirates to No. 20, down four spots from last week’s ranking. They’ve graded the Pirates far tougher than the other outlets have, poking fun at the team for how they’ve managed Paul Skenes’ development.
• FOX Sports, which only ranks the top ten clubs, did not deem the Pirates fit for the upper third of Major League Baseball.