Now, the question is, will they ever look back?
The Los Angeles Dodgers have moved to the top of USA TODAY Sports’ Power Rankings, marking their first appearance at the top all season. It paid off. The Dodgers crushed the defending No. 1 Atlanta Braves in a raucous three-game series at Dodger Stadium on the heels of a 7-2 road trip.
The Dodgers added Shohei Ohtani in the offseason, but it had little effect on the pitching shortage at the start of this season. Now, some questions are being answered. Former ace Walker Buehler will make his first start since Tommy John surgery in 2022 on Monday against the Marlins. Veteran No. 5 starter James Paxton shutout the Braves on Sunday.
And MVPs are doing MVP things. Please catch it if you can.
Looking at this week’s rankings,
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1. Los Angeles Dodgers (+1)
- Shohei Ohtani gave Dave Roberts a fast car. Then he broke the record.
2. Baltimore Orioles (+2)
- John Means and Kyle Bradish pitched 11 2/3 innings and allowed one earned run in their season debuts.
3. Atlanta Braves (-2)
- During the 1-5 road trip, only three home runs lost power.
4. Cleveland Guardians (+1)
5. New York Yankees (-1)
- Gerrit Cole took the mound and was on his way to returning (June/July).
6. Philadelphia Phillies (-)
- Trea Turner lost six weeks. They’re hoping Alec Bohm’s hip hiccups are just a precaution.
7. Chicago Cubs (+2)
- Javier Assad’s ERA of 1.66 is tops in the National League.
8. Milwaukee Brewers
- Craig Counsell, who is looking for revenge, will have to wait as he has lost two games against Wrigley.
9. Seattle Mariners (+2)
- They have won four out of six games against the Astros and Rangers.
Ten. Texas Rangers (-)
- Kirby Yates pitched 14 scoreless innings with 16 strikeouts.
11. Cincinnati Reds (-3)
- Center fielder Will Benson is down to a .195 batting average and .670 OPS.
12. Kansas City Royals (+2)
- The Red Sox moved dominant John Shriver (1.10 ERA, 0.98 WHIP) out of the bullpen.
13. Minnesota Twins (+11)
- A 12-game winning streak would give a similar boost to the power rankings.
14. Boston Red Sox (-1)
- No home runs in 220 at-bats. Oddly enough, Sedan Rafaela started the winning streak and ended it.
15. Toronto Blue Jays (-3)
- It was a dismal debut for Alec Manoah (11 runners on base in four innings), and the offense remains a mess.
16. San Diego Padres (+4)
17. Detroit Tigers (-)
- Another sign of a strong start was Jack Flaherty’s career-best 14 strikeouts against the Cardinals.
18. Tampa Bay Rays (-)
- Kevin Cash became the winningest manager in franchise history.
19. New York Mets (-3)
20. Washington Nationals (+3)
- He led the major leagues with 12 come-from-behind wins.
21. San Francisco Giants (-)
- He has scored three points or less in 19 of the past 27 games.
22. Pittsburgh Pirates (-1)
23. Arizona Diamondbacks (-8)
- They looked like they were having a really bad game, losing seven of their nine games.
24. St. Louis Cardinals (+1)
- We can’t afford to lose the series to the White Sox.
25. Houston Astros (-3)
- The vaunted bullpen was in complete disarray, with Josh Hader allowing 10 earned runs in his first 15 games.
26. Oakland Athletics (+1)
27. Los Angeles Angels (-1)
- Currently at the bottom. They haven’t finished in last place since 1999.
28. Miami Marlins (-)
- It’s amazing how quickly they went from a playoff team to the same old disappointing Marlins.
29. Colorado Rockies (-)
30. Chicago White Sox (-1)
- Mike Clevinger is set to make his season debut.
