NEWYou can now listen to PK Press Club articles!
The best teams in MLB are already starting to stand out from the pack. This gave MLB on FOX analyst Dontrelle Willis the chance to stack up the National League’s elite teams, ranking the top five teams in the NL.
Willis didn’t put the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers at the top of his list. So who did he have in first place?
San Diego Padres
“They have a healthy Xander Bogaerts, that’s always exciting, and really Fernando Tatis hasn’t checked out yet. Only one game behind the Dodgers in the division. If they continue to be healthy and moving forward, keep (Randy) Vasquez and (Michael) King healthy as well at the top of the rotation, they’ll definitely keep up.”
Cincinnati Reds
“Terry Francona has been absolutely outstanding in one-point games. Sal Stewart, Rookie of the Month. He’s going to provide lineup protection. And Elly De La Cruz, who leads them in pretty much every category. They’re going to be able to start scoring points. You’ve got Burns as a starter, this young starter at the front of this rotation. They’re going to be able to win some close games. But I think they’re going to hit their stride.”
Chicago Cubs
“I love this team. Defensively, they are extremely athletic. They have Gold Gloves all over the infield as well as the outfield, and they can get on base. They lead baseball in on-base percentage and are fourth in home runs. So when that ball starts coming out of Wrigley, everyone up and down the lineup will be confident swinging the bat.”
Los Angeles Dodgers
“They’ve been struggling the last few days, but they have this bad guy, Shohei Ohtani, and he hasn’t gotten off to the start he wanted, offensively. But you still have Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts will be back in the lineup, Max Muncy looks good. But this rotation is going to get deeper, it’s going to get stronger; and they have Blake Snell on the horizon.”
Atlanta Braves
“Offensively, they’re finally healthy. They’re very deep. Drake Bladwin, they better pay him his money quickly because he’s one of the best two-way catchers in all of baseball. You know what (Ozzie) Albies is going to do – finally healthy, (Matt) Olson as well. They’re a very experienced roster, and I think they took personally what happened to them last year, trying to overcome those injuries. And they bring Spencer Strider back into the fold, watch out man, it could be the Dodgers or the Braves in the World Series.”
