Where every team stands in the last week of August
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The dominance of the Dodgers has continued as we enter the last week of August, with Los Angeles on pace for 112-plus wins on the season.
In the battle of New York, the Yankees showed signs of life by sweeping the Mets in a two-game series, though the Astros still have a healthy three-game lead over them for the top spot in the American League. The Mets, meanwhile, will turn to the division race and attempt to lock up the title over the surging Braves.
Things are also beginning to heat up in St. Louis, as Albert Pujols tries to reach 700 career home runs, Paul Goldschmidt vies for the elusive Triple Crown title and the Cardinals jockey for a division title for the second time since 2015.
Where do all these top teams stand before the fight for a postseason berth really ramps up in September?
Our expert panel has combined to rank every team in baseball based on a combination of what we’ve seen so far and what we already knew going into the 162-game marathon that is a full baseball season. We also asked ESPN MLB experts David Schoenfield, Bradford Doolittle, Jesse Rogers, Joon Lee and Alden Gonzalez to weigh in with an observation for all 30 teams.
Week 19 | Second-half preview | Preseason rankings
Record: 85-37
Previous ranking: 1
There’s hot, and then there’s the current Dodgers. Coming off a 10-1 victory over Corbin Burnes and the Brewers on Tuesday, they put their run-differential at plus-100 for the second half. They’re an astounding 39-9 since the start of July, have won 18 of 22 games this month, and their magic number to clinch a division title is already just 19. The Dodgers, with an eight-game lead* the No. 1 seed in the National League, have to go only 14-25 the rest of the way to secure 100 wins. To tie the regular-season record of 116 wins, set by the 2001 Mariners and the 1906 Cubs, they have to go 30-9. Unlikely, but not necessarily out of reach for this team. — Alden Gonzalez
Record: 79-45
Previous ranking: 2
Rookie shortstop Jeremy Pena has enjoyed an…
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Source : espn
