The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to be the ultimate whipping boy for ESPN, who has once again ranked the team dead last in its annual "Ultimate Standings" list. Yes, that would be 122nd out of 122 teams.

The rankings are based on eight different categories, some of which include coaching, affordability, championship potential, and overall value. One might have though that the addition of Babcock behind the bench would have help bump the team out of the basement, but those voting on the list clearly weren't moved by Toronto's off season moves.

In other news, the Raptors were ranked 94th (from 74th last year), and the Jays came in at 99th, though the rankings were put together long before the spectacular close to the team's season and playoff berth. One suspects that they'd fare much better on an updated list.

I probably don't need to state the obvious, but Toronto teams struggle on these types of lists in general based on ticket prices. Big city teams across North America tend to receive lower rankings because of the weight accorded to affordability and overall value. Naturally, it doesn't help when the fan experience is expensive and the team under performs.

Photo via the Toronto Maple Leafs Facebook page.