Pirates Power Rankings: Buccos Climb After Series Win Against Reds

The Pittsburgh Pirates went 3-3 last week, claiming a series against their division rival Cincinnati Reds and staying in the thick of the National League Wild Card race, where they currently sit 1.5 games out of the last playoff spot.

They also continued their miserable showing against the American League, dropping two of three games to Tampa Bay at home and falling to 9-16 against the AL in the process.

The middling performance came with surprisingly positive results: none of the new week of power rankings dropped the Buccos in the standings. Indeed, most promoted them. Here’s a look at what they had to say.

• The Pirates climbed three spots to No. 20 in MLB.com’s rankings, which praised O’Neil Cruz for holding the sixth-highest barrel rate in the majors this season: perhaps the home run he hit into the river on Saturday afternoon caught their eyes.
• CBS Sports moved them from No. 22 to No. 20, pointing out the team’s inability to separate themselves from the rest of the pack… for better or worse. Pittsburgh doesn’t have a winning or losing streak longer than two games in more than a month, treading water instead of gaining ground.
• Bleacher Report kept the Buccos at No. 21, demanding an All-Star Game appearance for Paul Skenes and saying he has a case as a top 10 pitcher in baseball already.
• USA Today also praised Skenes, promoting the Pirates three spots to No. 20.
• theScore also rated the Pirates at No. 20. Notably, that’s two spots behind Cincinnati, the worst team in the division with a losing record against Pittsburgh.