Buster Olney has been providing his top ten rankings in various categories over the last week and the Pittsburgh Pirates have received some very favorable ratings, so their overall ranking shouldn’t surprise anyone. On Monday morning, he posted his top ten teams in baseball and had the Pirates fifth overall. The balance of power has swayed to the National League this year, as the Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals and St Louis Cardinals are all ranked ahead of the Pirates.
Olney thinks the Pirates will make their third straight postseason appearance as long as Gerrit Cole stays healthy. Cole is the only player that he mentioned on the Pirates, so Olney believes he is the key to their success this season.
As for other NL teams in the mix, there aren’t anymore listed in his top ten, so there seems to be a clear difference between the top four teams in the league and the rest of the NL in his mind. The Giants, Marlins and Padres all got an honorable mention.
The rest of the rankings for Olney can be found in this link of the best outfields in baseball. The Pirates were among the best lineups, best defensive teams, best rotations and best bullpens as well.
