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Pirates climb power rankings after impressive sweep of division rival originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The offensive offseason additions have really paid off for the Pittsburgh Pirates this season. While they struggled with the bats last year, it's a whole different story as we head into the All-Star break this season.
Not only do they have the best team batting average across MLB, but they also hold the top spot in runs batted in, runs scored, and hits. Nick Gonzalez leads the way with his .308 batting average, while Brandon Lowe leads the team in home runs and runs batted in.
That has really helped a pitching staff that has not pitched up to expectations, but is still doing enough to get over .500 headed into the All-Star Break.
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Pirates climb power rankings after impressive sweep of division rival
Last week, Pittsburgh did not have an easy stretch of games, to say the least. They took on the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves before taking on their division rivals, the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers.
They couldn't get much going against the Braves, losing the series 1-2, but they were able to rebound against the Brew Crew. They swept Milwaukee in the three-game series at home.
This has led Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller to bump them up a few spots in his latest power rankings, from No. 16 to No. 11.
"The Pirates were dealt a major blow this week with rookie Konnor Griffin suffering a torn tendon in his ring finger. They've already placed him on the 60-day IL, so the earliest he would be eligible to return is roughly Labor Day. But a different rookie, Esmerlyn Valdez, had one heck of a week with four home runs to ensure Pittsburgh entered the All-Star Break with a winning record for the first time since 2016. He now has a 1.084 OPS in 28 games played and could be a massive piece of their puzzle the rest of the way."
Now, the Pirates did lose Konnor Griffin for quite some time, but that doesn't sting as bad with newcomer Esmerlyn Valdez putting on a show. He's going to have to continue to be a presence if the team wants to fight hard during the second half.
More MLB news:
- Diamondbacks jump up the power rankings after sweeping a division rival
- Mariners tumble down the power rankings after a frustrating week
- Astros take a big hit in the power rankings going into the All-Star break
- Athletics fans won't like seeing where their team sits in latest power rankings
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