Rays Make Big Jump in Latest ESPN MLB Power Rankings

It seems like every year the Tampa Bay Rays head into the season underrated and forgotten about. Well, nothing has changed as the reigning American League champions continue to climb up the MLB power rankings posted every week by ESPN after their solid start.

The Rays (10-9) were projected to be fighting for a Wild Card spot in 2021, but currently sit just 2 games back of the Boston Red Sox (12-7) in the AL East division. They were ranked No. 8 by ESPN on Opening Day before falling to No. 10, but have now jumped all the way up to No. 5.

Rays Jump in Power Rankings

The Rays have been built on a consistent offense so far this season. They rank No. 5 in the MLB averaging 4.95 runs per game and have a team batting average of 0.237 (No. 13 in MLB). Outfielder Austin Meadows leads the way with 4 home runs and third baseman Joey Wendle has 15 RBI.

Starters Tyler Glasnow (2-0, 0.73 ERA) and Josh Fleming (1-1, 0.87 ERA) are at the forefront of what has been a steady rotation so far. However, Tampa Bay does need to address the team's bullpen issues and injury concerns if they want to return to the postseason and defend their AL pennant.

This team still hasn't seemed to quite hit their stride, yet they keep on winning baseball games. The Rays will be a team to keep an eye on for the rest of the season. They will look to keep things going in a 3-game home series against the Toronto Blue Jays this weekend.

The MLB odds on FanDuel Sportsbook still haven't caught up to how well the Rays are playing, ranking them third in the AL East with +500 odds to win the division.

Sign up for FanDuel Sportsbook today and get your first bet risk free for up to $1,000!

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.