This week's rankings feature little change at the top. The list:

WEEKLY RANKINGS

1. Detroit (1) – Sorry Felix; Justin Verlander is the best hard-throwing young right-handed starter in AL right now.
2. Chicago White Sox (2) – With all the brawlin’ and jawin’, these White Sox remind of the old Bronx Zoo Yankees.
3. Boston (3) – The Red Sox, dominant at home, play 44 of final 76 games at Fenway Park.
4. New York Yankees (5) ¬– They’re doing it with smoke and mirrors… just ones that cost about $200 million.
5. New York Mets (4) – They might be the best in the NL but they would finish third – and maybe fourth – in AL East.
6. Toronto (8) – Look for Blue Jays to be involved in all of the big trade rumors this month.
7. St. Louis (5) – Eight-game losing streak longest of manager Tony La Russa’s 11-year career with Cardinals.
8. Minnesota (13) – They’re hotter than a ticket to the Frozen Four.
9. Oakland (7) – Inconsistent offense is keeping them from running away in the West.
10. Cincinnati (9) – Simple equation: W’s = $ for GM Wayne Krivisky, manager Jerry Narron.
11. San Diego (10) – See A’s comments.
12. Colorado (16) – They’ve taken their lumps with the kids but it’s beginning to pay off.
13. Mariners (17) – It could be time to break out those “Refuse to Lose” T-shirts from the back of your closet.
14. Texas (11) – It’s a climate thing; the weather heated up and the team went cold.
15. Los Angeles Dodgers (14) – No offense to the Cougs out there but Mark Hendrickson is not the answer to Dodgers’ pitching woes.
16. San Francisco (18) – Learning it’s no coincidence that DL is two-thirds of the word old.
17. Milwaukee (15) –
18. Houston (12) – They got their pitching help but now they need some hitting help.
19. Baltimore (22) – Since GM Pat Gillick left after 1997, the Orioles have not had a winning season. Sound familiar?
20. Florida (21) – These flying Fish (17-7 in June) could soar all the way to second place in NL East.
21. Philadelphia (20) – 1B Ryan Howard is a masher; the team is just a disaster.
22. Arizona (19) – Bob Melvin’s theme song: “Free Falling” by Tom Petty.
23. Cleveland (25) – Series win against St. Louis was first in eight attempts.
24. Los Angeles Angels (23) – Begin crucial stretch on Monday with seven games vs. Mariners and A’s.
25. Tampa Bay (26) – Getting catcher Dioner Navarro looks like a good move.
26. Atlanta (27) – In danger of being passed by the Thrashers (that’s hockey, FYI) as city’s best pro sports team.
27. Washington (24) – Just as it looked like they had turned a corner the Nats ran smack into a dead end.
28. Kansas City (29) – Beginning to distance themselves from talk about the 1962 Mets.
29. Chicago Cubs (28) – Have ordered Dusty Baker to undergo sensitivity training in order to be more like the White Sox.
30. Pittsburgh (30) – As far as baseball goes, this city truly is the pits.

The Mariners finished June at 18-8, their best month since going 19-8 in May of 2003. They did it by leading the majors in homers with 39 and finishing fourth in ERA at 3.60. The stretch allowed the Mariners to pull within two games of the first-place A's. Here's what manager Mike Hargrove had to say about it: click here