MLB Power Rankings: Tribe surge to No. 1, while Orioles, Marlins fizzle

In the waning weeks of summer - sorry, but it's true - the postseason picture is coming more and more distinctly into view, and the Cleveland Indians are carrying an impressive amount of momentum behind them.

Along with the Indians clinching the AL Central, both the Houston Astros and Washington Nationals have officially claimed the top spot in their respective divisions.

That leaves half of the divisions undecided, with most teams having around a dozen games left.

Any combination of four wins or Arizona Diamondbacks losses would leave the Los Angeles Dodgers - who still have the best record in baseball - in control of the NL West, but the races in the NL Central and AL East could come down to the wire.

Can the Milwaukee Brewers or New York Yankees overtake the incumbents in the final days?

1. Cleveland Indians

Don't cry because the streak is over; smile, because the Indians - boasting a positively ludicrous team ERA of 2.78 (3.10 FIP) since the All-Star break - are now poised to have home-field advantage through the American League Championship Series.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers

It's like the old saying goes: You're never as good as your 91-35 start, and you're never as bad as your 1-17 slide. In other words, the Dodgers are still unbelievably good.

3. Houston Astros

Houston, we have a damn fine rotation. In three starts with the Astros, Justin Verlander has allowed two earned runs in 21 innings (0.86 ERA), while Dallas Keuchel, Charlie Morton, and Brad Peacock have combined for a 2.75 ERA in September.

4. Washington Nationals

The absence of Bryce Harper was especially noticeable over the weekend, with the Dodgers holding the Nationals to just two runs over the first pair of games of their series in D.C. Now hitting just .232/.298/.383 this month, Washington really needs its pompadoured star back.

5. Boston Red Sox

There isn't a more enigmatic division leader than the Red Sox, who've won eight of their last 11 games despite being the worst offensive team in the American League (84 wRC+) over the last 30 days.

6. Arizona Diamondbacks

No matter who gets the ball for the National League wild-card game, the Diamondbacks should get a quality start. Four of their five starters have accrued at least 3.1 WAR this year, and none of the five own a second-half ERA worse than 3.39.

7. Chicago Cubs

Remember when the Cubs couldn't hit? Lol. Throughout their current six-game winning streak, they've put up a whopping 55 runs, while hitting .345 with 10 homers, 14 doubles, and 35 walks.

8. New York Yankees

Recess is over. Over his last 13 games, Aaron Judge - bolstering his case for AL MVP - boasts a 1.196 OPS with six homers and 16 walks. Not coincidentally, the Yankees went 9-4.

9. Colorado Rockies

No Rockies player has won the NL MVP award since 1997, but Charlie Blackmon is trying real hard to snap that drought. Sitting fifth in the majors in WAR, Blackmon leads his league in average, hits, and triples, while also managing a 1.005 OPS (143 OPS+) with 35 homers, 33 doubles, and 13 steals.

10. Milwaukee Brewers

With a massive four-game set against the Cubs looming, the Brewers are definitely in fine form, going 6-2 over their last eight games while limiting their opponents to three runs or fewer in each of those wins.

11. Los Angeles Angels

With his club just two games behind the Twins for the final postseason spot, Mike Trout has accrued 6.2 WAR in just 102 games played - a nearly 10-WAR pace - and is therefore destined to finish second in MVP voting for the fourth time in his career.

12. Minnesota Twins

Among the destitute teams in the AL, the Twins seemingly reign supreme. Amazingly though, they actually hold the final wild-card spot on merit, scoring the most runs in their league - yes, even more than the immortal Indians - since the All-Star break.

13. St. Louis Cardinals

If the Cardinals perform up to expectations against the Reds and Pirates over the next week, they could open a glimmer of hope for their shrinking playoff odds. But the light at the end of the tunnel flickers at the sight of the club's final two series - against the Cubs and Brewers.

14. Seattle Mariners

While the Astros celebrated their first-ever AL West division title on Sunday, the Mariners had to sit and watch after being handily vanquished. In an alternate universe where Seattle didn't need 17 different starting pitchers, perhaps that was its playoff spot.

15. Kansas City Royals

While the Royals were making some noise in the standings at the trade deadline, their band of impending free agents stayed together. But while the team hasn't been officially excluded from the playoffs, eyes are now turning toward the offseason decisions of Lorenzo Cain, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, et al.

16. Tampa Bay Rays

By Baseball Prospectus' third-order win percentage, the sabermetric-darling Rays should be much closer to an 81-69 record, and therefore a playoff spot. In fact, BP pegs the Rays as the fifth-best team in the AL. Alas, not even a 2013-like run could salvage this season.

17. Baltimore Orioles

The fact that the Orioles stayed in the hunt as long as they did while giving regular starts to Ubaldo Jimenez and Wade Miley is remarkable. The team's starters have combined for the worst ERA in the entire major leagues - even behind the Reds, who set a record for historical incompetence last year.

18. Texas Rangers

Last year, the Rangers' story revolved heavily around how lucky the team was compared to its run differential. This year, their luck ran out. While Texas has a better run differential than the Twins and Angels, its postseason odds are much lower.

19. Toronto Blue Jays

The 2017 season will be Josh Donaldson's first campaign without making the postseason since becoming a full-time player in 2012. The Blue Jays' resident "red ass" has been a fan favorite, and hitting 19 home runs since the beginning of August has been as entertaining a corpse-dragging as Toronto has seen.

20. Atlanta Braves

By no means has 2017 been a banner year, but the rebuilding Braves have a lot to build on. Tyler Flowers might be an elite framer, Ozzie Albies has been impressive on both sides of the ball, and Sean Newcomb looks like a legitimate middle-of-the-rotation starter.

21. Oakland Athletics

As the A's play spoiler, they've been treated to the smooth, powerful stylings of Matt Olson. The rookie slugger has blasted 10 long balls over the last 16 games while the rest of his team has combined for just 20.

22. Miami Marlins

With the postseason out of reach, the only solace for Marlins fans had been Giancarlo Stanton's home-run parade, and even that's dried up. He's only hit three in September, and none over the last five games.

23. Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pirates were in the hunt for the NL wild card only a couple weeks ago, but proceeded to lose nine of 10 thanks to an anemic offense. Other than a 7-0 victory, the Pirates failed to score more than three runs in any game over that stretch.

24. Cincinnati Reds

Looking toward the future, rookie starter Sal Romano has been a bright spot in a rotation that's struggled to find stability for years. Over his last six starts, Romano is 3-1 with a 2.09 ERA.

25. San Diego Padres

No one expected the Padres to be good - and they're not - but avoiding 100 losses is about as much as they could have hoped for. Wil Myers has played better in September, too, batting .321/.390/.642 across his last 15 games.

26. New York Mets

Amid all the devastation of the Mets' injury- and drama-filled season, Jacob deGrom has further established himself as a frontline starter (15-9, 3.55 ERA, 10.51 K/9). If Noah Syndergaard comes back at full strength, 2018 won't be nearly as bleak.

27. Chicago White Sox

Jose Abreu said he wants to stick around through the team's rebuild, and the White Sox should listen. After a down season in 2016, he's batting .306/.358/.553 with 31 bombs, and is set to record 100 RBIs for the fourth straight year.

28. Detroit Tigers

Not surprisingly, the Tigers have a team ERA of 6.75 since trading Verlander at the end of August. And with a 3-13 record in September, things are going to get worse before they get better.

29. Philadelphia Phillies

Getting hit by a pitch on Sept. 2 didn't slow Rhys Hoskins down for more than a single missed game. The rookie has since smacked six more bombs, bringing his total to 18 through only 37 contests.

30. San Francisco Giants

The Giants are somehow the most likely team to hit the century mark in the loss column. Basically, everything that could go wrong did, and the team never recovered. San Francisco's prize just might be the top draft pick in 2018.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)