Beyond Golf — 22 April 2012 by Jim Street
MLB West Power Ratings (Week 2)

GW’s MLB Power Ratings (Week 2):

1. Rangers (1): On most teams, a pitcher with 13 walks in 18 innings would raise some red flags, but the powerful Rangers are quite happy with Yu-know-who in the rotation – yes, Yu Darvish.

2. Dodgers (3):  As powerfully hot as he’s been, it’s unlikely that Matt Kemp will break either the AL or NL record for most home runs in April. The record is 14, shared by A-Rod (AL) and Albert Pujols (NL).

3. Angels (2): Write this down: Pujols will not hit 14 home runs in April 2012, but the Angels are remaining patient. Same can’t be said of the media.

4. Rockies (4): Kudos and a tip of the GW baseball cap to savvy lefty Jamie Moyer for becoming the oldest pitcher in MLB history to win a game.

5. Diamondbacks (5): Anyone that can pronounce reliever Jonathan Albaladejo’s last name correctly in less than five seconds should get a free ticket to a future D-Backs game.

6. Giants (6): There’s a massive manhunt around the City by the Bay for the real Tim Lincecum – and not the imposter using the right-hander’s name and uniform in three atypical starts (10.54 ERA).

7. Athletics (8): Is it too early in the season to name Bartolo Colon the AL Comeback Player of the Year. He’s pitching like a 20-something year-old.

8. Mariners (7): The other “perfect” thing about Saturday’s rare early-season afternoon game against the White Sox and Philip Humber at Safeco Field was the weather in Seattle.

9. Padres (9): Watching Cameron Maybin leg out another triple at PETCO Park ranks as one of the most anticipated events on any given day. Wins? Well, that’s another thing.

(Last Week’s rating in parenthesis)

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Jim Street

Jim’s 40-year sportswriting career started with the San Jose Mercury-News in 1970 and ended on a full-time basis on October 31, 2010 following a 10-year stint with MLB.com. He grew up in Dorris, Calif., several long drives from the nearest golf course. His first tee shot was a week before being inducted into the Army in 1968. Upon his return from Vietnam, where he was a war correspondent for the 9th Infantry Division, Jim took up golf semi-seriously while working for the Mercury-News and covered numerous tournaments, including the U.S. Open in 1982, when Tom Watson made the shot of his life on the 17th hole at Pebble Beach. Jim also covered several Bing Crosby Pro-Am tournaments, the women’s U.S. Open, and other golfing events in the San Francisco area. He has a 17-handicap, made his first and only hole-in-one on March 12, 2018 at Sand Point Country Club in Seattle and witnessed the first round Ken Griffey Jr. ever played – at Arizona State during Spring Training in 1990. Pebble Beach Golf Links, the Kapalua Plantation Course, Pinehurst No. 2, Spyglass Hill, Winged Foot, Torrey Pines, Medinah, Chambers Bay, North Berwick, Gleneagles and Castle Stuart in Scotland, and numerous gems in Hawaii are among the courses he has had the pleasure of playing. Hitting the ball down the middle of the fairway is not a strong part of Jim’s game, but he is known (in his own mind) as the best putter not on tour. Most of Jim’s writing career was spent covering Major League Baseball, a tenure that started with the Oakland Athletics, who won 101 games in 1971, and ended with the Seattle Mariners, who lost 101 games in 2010. Symmetry is a wonderful thing. He currently lives in Seattle and has an 8-year-old grandson, Andrew, who is the club's current junior champion at his home course (Oakmont CC) in Glendale, Calif.

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