Dodgers Hold No. 1 Spot in Power Rankings—But the Offense is ‘Going Through It’

Despite a team-wide slump that caused the Los Angeles Dodgers to lose the series against the Miami Marlins, the Boys in Blue still remain atop the baseball world.

ESPN’s Week 4 Power Rankings kept the Dodgers in the top spot even though the team scored a combined three runs on Tuesday and Wednesday, squandering strong pitching performances by Shohei Ohtani and Tyler Glasnow.

The ESPN crew, though, gave the Boys in Blue a bit of a pass for the lack of runs, pointing out that they’re playing the long game in keeping two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani fresh for the long season and postseason.

“The Dodgers didn’t produce an extra-base hit in their 2-1 loss to the Marlins on Tuesday, and perhaps there was a reason for it: Shohei Ohtani, their best hitter, was out of the lineup — because Shohei Ohtani, arguably their best pitcher, was on the mound,” wrote Alden Gonzalez. “The Dodgers kept Ohtani out of their lineup on his start day for the second time this season and will continue to do so when it makes sense moving forward. It’s all part of their effort to keep him fresh as he approaches his 32nd birthday and embarks on his first two-way season in three years.”

Freddie Freeman, Dave Roberts address hitting woes

In the clubhouse after the game on Wednesday, Freddie Freeman told reporters that the whole team has “been going through it” at the plate.

“Luckily, we have really, really good pitching, and that’s kind of where we’re at right now,” he said, as shared by Fredo Cervantes of The Sporting Tribune. “We were good at the beginning of the season offensively, but we’re going through it right now. Our pitching has been amazing. I want to give them praise because they’re why we have a chance to win every single game, but as an offense we haven’t for the last few games been where we want to be.”

Manager Dave Roberts agreed with that assessment in his postgame press conference, saying he believes the downturn started during the Colorado Rockies series.

“I don’t think we’re collectively swinging the bats the way we were early… The last 10 days it hasn’t been synced up,” he said, as shown in video posted by SportsNet LA.

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The lone exception seems to be Dalton Rushing, who is far exceeding his teammates — and pretty much everyone else in baseball. No one else with at least 10 plate appearances in MLB is close to Rushing in weighted runs created plus.