Posted by Brian Joseph on Monday, September 7, 2009 at 2:48 am

On the “Things to Do” list here at BDD has been some sort of weekly POWER Ranking-ish feature. Since every other “Power” Ranking out there either focuses on a mix of team success and some writer’s opinion of how good they are coupled with an emphasis on the last seven days OR some formula based on team statistics with little care to actual performance in the wins and loss column, we figured it might make sense to do something different.

Enter “Adjusted STrength of Remaining Opponents” or ASTRO!

On the left are the Major League teams ranked 1-30 after their current performance is tweaked with a bonus or penalty for recent success and adjusted for ASTRO. (Low ASTRO equals easier remaining schedule, higher ASTRO equals tougher remaining schedule.) On the right is a graphic ranking the teams 1-30 in ASTRO for your viewing pleasure.

1. NEW YORK YANKEES (87-50, .481 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #1) The Yankees won seven straight for the fifth time becoming the first Major League club since the ‘98 Yankees to run off at least five winning streaks of seven or more. The ‘98 team won seven or more in a row six times.

2. LOS ANGELES ANGELS (81-54, .522 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #6) No one said it would be easy. The Angels play 17 of their remaining 26 games against teams with winning records. Then there’s that possibility of playing the Red Sox in the playoffs again. How’s that been working out for them?

3. LOS ANGELES DODGERS (81-57, .479 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #2) Jim Thome still hasn’t made his way to the field. Unless the Dodgers make the World Series, Thome’s trip to Hollywood is likely to limit him to pinch hitting duties.

4. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS (81-57, .502 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #4) Since July 1st, the Cardinals are 31-5 when Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright and Joel Pineiro are the starting pitcher.

5. BOSTON RED SOX (79-57, .468 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #5) Their schedule is slightly easier than the Rangers and Boston holds a three game cushion over their closest competition.

6. PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES (77-57, .446 ASTRO)

(Last Week -#3) The Phillies are 11-22 against the Astros from ‘04-’09, the only team Philly has a losing record against during that span.

7. DETROIT TIGERS (75-61, .443 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #10) The Tigers won their sixth straight on Sunday and swept the Rays at Tropicana Field for the first time in franchise history.

8. TEXAS RANGERS (76-60, .506 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #7) Even though they are closer to the Red Sox, Texas has seven games remaining with the Angels and trails their division rivals by five and a half games which might make L.A. an easier target to hit.

9. COLORADO ROCKIES (77-60, .513 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #8) Riding a three-game winning streak, the current N.L. Wild Card representative has a four-game series with the Reds who have rattled off seven straight and then head on the road for nine games.

10. SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS (75-62, .481 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #9) With 16 of their 25 games remaining at home, the Giants are in good position to make a run at the Rockies. They are 44-21 (.677) at home and 31-41 (.431) on the road.

11. FLORIDA MARLINS (72-65, .489 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #13) Things got ugly in Florida after a Hanley Ramirez-Dan Uggla shouting match. Then the club rolled to four straight before blowing not one but two leads on Sunday in a 5-4 loss to the lowly Nats.

12. SEATTLE MARINERS (72-66, .525 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #14) Ichiro’s 2,000th hit may be the pinnacle of success in September… not an improbable playoff berth.

13. TAMPA BAY RAYS (72-64, .532 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #11) The Rays lost four straight and the road back to the postseason gets even more difficult with 11 straight on the road against the Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles.

14. ATLANTA BRAVES (70-67, .478 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #12) Despite 20 quality starts and a 2.93 ERA, Jair Jurrjens owns a 10-10 record and is on the verge of becoming the first Braves pitcher since ‘52 (Warren Spahn) to post a sub-3.00 ERA and fail to have a winning record.

15. CHICAGO CUBS (68-67, .492 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #16) Lou Piniella refuses to throw in the towel… but the Cardinals are hard to see through the dust they’ve left the Cubs in and they are behind five teams in the Wild Card race.

16. MINNESOTA TWINS (68-68, .479 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #15) As they run out of games on the schedule, one more postseason game at the Metrodome looks less and less likely for the Twins.

17. CHICAGO WHITE SOX (68-70, .496 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #18) Jim Thome and Jose Contreras were shipped off to playoff contenders and Jake Peavy remained on the shelf. Meanwhile, Ozzie Guillen admits he’s “stealing money” from White Sox ownership by getting paid to manage the struggling club.

18. HOUSTON ASTROS (66-70, .484 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #19) Aaron Boone’s return from heart surgery is a feel-good story. The Astros three straight wins over the Phillies this weekend was a nice highlight, too. Those should be some fond memories for manager Cecil Cooper if he’s the casualty from the Roy Oswalt fallout.

19. MILWAUKEE BREWERS (66-70, .540 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #17) Sunday’s walk-off extra inning homer by Prince Fielder was capped off by a unique team celebration at home plate and a triple play earlier in the game. Even in a losing season, there’s always something positive to look back on.

20. CINCINNATI REDS (63-73, .508 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #22) The Reds are the hottest team in baseball and are in position to play the role of big time spoiler with four games in Colorado.

21. NEW YORK METS (62-75, .466 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #21) Can this be the season the Mets finally get their act together in September? Sorry, couldn’t resist.

22. SAN DIEGO PADRES (61-77, .527 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #26) Turning on the Red Sox-Yankees network and seeing San Diego on Sunday was odd, I have to admit.

23. CLEVELAND INDIANS (60-76, .482 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #20) The Indians have the second best record in the AL Central in the second half. That’s not a testament to their great play, that’s an indictment of the rest of the division.

24. ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS (61-77, .519 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #23) Playing out the string, half of their remaining games are against the Dodgers, Rockies and Giants. Who said the Diamondbacks wouldn’t play a key role in this year’s playoff race?

25. OAKLAND ATHLETICS (61-76, .545 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #25) The A’s need just one more start by a rookie pitcher to reach the 100 mark for the season which is already a club record. It looks like the Major League record of 124 by the ‘98 Marlins is safe though.

26. TORONTO BLUE JAYS (61-75, .541 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #24) The Jays are just 20-41 since June 27th. Ouch!

27. BALTIMORE ORIOLES (56-81, .509 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #28) With Adam Jones out, the Orioles moved Brian Roberts to the third spot in the order and Felix Pie to lead off. Ah, the experimentation really awful teams get to do when they are out of it in September.

28. PITTSBURGH PIRATES (54-81, .505 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #27) The Pirates snapped a nine-game winning streak and avoided their record-setting 17th consecutive losing season for a sports franchise… until Monday, at least!

29. KANSAS CITY ROYALS (51-85, .537 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #29) The Royals have one more shot to avoid a season sweep by the Angels. The AL West leaders are 9-0 against Kansas City.

30. WASHINGTON NATIONALS (47-90, .524 ASTRO)

(Last Week – #30) The Nats need to win 16 out of 25 to avoid 100 losses in back-to-back seasons.