Pirates Power Rankings: Buccos Continue to Gain Steam

The Pittsburgh Pirates slowed their roll last week after starting the year on an 8-2 tear, splitting series with the Tigers and Phillies. Despite the slowdown, they still have the most wins in the National League, although they’ve played two more games than the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers. Pittsburgh started to pick up steam in this week’s power rankings, as with every passing week that they maintain a strong level of play, the possibility that they’re finally on the other side of their rebuild increases. Here’s a look at what media members have to say about the Buccos.

• Pittsburgh moved up two spots to No. 9 in MLB.com’s power rankings, which mentioned the current buzz around the team. The list ranked them second in the division, trailing the Brewers.
• CBS Sports boosted the Pirates to No. 5, one spot better than last week, citing the coming rotation of Jared Jones, Mitch Keller and Paul Skenes as a trio to watch. The Brewers landed one spot ahead of them, but Matt Snyder of CBS Sports gave a far dimmer outlook on Milwaukee’s future.
• The Pirates fell to the No. 7 spot in Bleacher Report’s list, down from No. 5 last week. The publication raised questions about Pittsburgh’s offensive consistency while praising the rotation for keeping them in games.
• USA Today remains unsold on the Pirates’ start, moving them up one spot to No. 16 and mentioning the up-and-down week of .500 ball. Milwaukee, Chicago and Cincinnati all rank ahead of the Buccos.
• FOX Sports promoted the Pirates to the No. 6 spot, with Ben Verlander praising the team for their hot start and fun viewing product.

To hear how the Pirates improved from last week, take a look at April 8’s power rankings.