We know computers hate the Orioles, and national broadcasters hate the Orioles, but do the folks who make power polls/rankings hate the Orioles? Thankfully, most of these polls took place before the debacle in Oakland.
SI.com: The 30 (4th; Last Week: 6th)
Jonah Keri lifted the Orioles up two slots, with only the Blue Jays moving ahead of our Birds among American League teams.
USA Today Power Rankings (4th; LW: 7th)
The Nation’s Newspaper makes the O’s the biggest gainer of the week, cracking the Top Five with ease. “Should Zach Britton be part of Cy Young conversation?” Great question!
Bleacher Report Power Rankings (8th; LW: 14th)
Slideshow Central returns to traditional ranking of teams this week after last week’s draft pick version. And they still screw it up, placing the O’s behind the Tigers. The Tigers. Really? “Series wins against the Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox move the Baltimore Orioles back inside the top 10 after their quiet trade deadline cost them a handful of spots a week ago. Credit the Orioles' ability to beat fellow AL East foes as a big reason why they currently sit atop the division standings, as their 26-19 in-division record is among the best in the AL.”
MLB.com (4th; LW: 7th)
MLB.com uses analysts for 75% of their polls’ composition, and fan votes for the other 25%. The experts have the O’s at #4, the fans at #6, so the O’s end up at #4, I’ll take it.
CBS Sports (5th; LW: 4th)
Matt Synder drops the O’s just one slot. “Manny Machado homered in each of the first three innings on Sunday, making him the second man ever to do that. I don't know if I've mentioned before that he's fun to watch. I haven't, right? I'm pretty sure it's a no. Hmm …”
Power Rankings Guru (6th; LW 7th)
PRG is an aggregate of several national power rankings/polls, and they have the O’s up one slot to 6th.
reddit’s Power Poll (6th; LW: 6th)
The community editors over at reddit have the Orioles just out of the top five, but at least they’re ahead of the Red Sox, finally. “It's August and the O's are in 1st place in the AL East and have the 4th best winning percentage in the majors. Pedro Alvarez and J.J. Hardy have been the team's best players on offense for the past month by far. Dylan Bundy looks like the best starter on the team and might be a legitimate ace. Just as everyone predicted. But seriously, Bundy has looked good.”
OddsShark.com (16th; LW: 24th)
Ranks are based on rolling past 20 games overall. And they still have the Orioles in the bottom half of the league. This is why I don’t place bets with actual American currency.
The Baltimore Sun's MLB Power Rankings (5th; LW: 2nd)
The Sun’s Jon Meoli has the O’s in the top five. “Speaking of inconsistent offenses being bailed out by pitching, the Orioles remain in first place and are treading water on their last terrible road trip of the year. Part of that reason is a rotation that has a 3.92 ERA since the All-Star break. Everyone involved will take that, right?”
ESPN.com Power Poll (6th; LW: 9th)
The World-Wide Leader may be finally starting to believe in the Birds. “After taking two of three from the White Sox in Chicago, the Orioles are clinging to a one-game division lead. They now head west for seven games against the A's and Giants, hoping to return home still in first.” -- Matt Kremnitzer (@mattkremnitzer), Camden Depot
Any egregious slights or wild overestimation of this team? Any polls you’d like to see included? Add your thought down below and hit me up on Twitter @Bill_Duck21804 where you will find way, way too much discussion of politics and MMA for any baseball fan’s liking.