Advertisement

MLB power rankings: San Diego Padres powering on without Fernando Tatis Jr.

Jesse Yomtov, USA TODAY
·4 min read
9

Fernando Tatis Jr.'s preseason injury could have been a death sentence for the San Diego Padres in the National League West race but at 19-10, the team has rolled through the first month of the season without its star shortstop.

Third baseman Manny Machado is among the early MVP favorites, leading the majors with a .385 batting average through Sunday, hitting seven home runs with 21 RBI and six steals in 29 games.

Across the diamond, first baseman Eric Hosmer is off a great start after being the subject of trade rumors this winter. The 32-year-old, in the fifth season of an eight-year, $144 million contract, is hitting .351 with a .953 OPS and is on pace for more than 100 RBI.

Those performances probably aren't sustainable and the Padres need more on offense from Jake Cronenworth, Trent Grisham and Wil Myers with Tatis expected out until at least mid-June.

MLB 2022: Rookie shortstop making Astros forget about Carlos Correa

BASEBALL ON TV: MLB returns to NBC for early Sunday games

The second-place Padres trailed the Los Angeles Dodgers by 1 ½ games entering Monday, 2 ½ games ahead of the San Francisco Giants.

Here's how USA TODAY Sports' eight-person panel voted this week:

Manny Machado and Eric Hosmer celebrate a win against Cleveland.
Manny Machado and Eric Hosmer celebrate a win against Cleveland.

Rank (movement from last week)

1. Los Angeles Dodgers (–)

  • After cold start, Mookie Betts had 5 HR, 10 RBI and a .967 OPS in 15 games from April 19-May 7.

2. New York Yankees (–)

  • Yankees starting pitchers had an AL-best 2.85 ERA through Saturday.

3. New York Mets (–)

4. Milwaukee Brewers (+3)

  • Rowdy Tellez sets Brewers' single-game record with 8 RBI last week vs. Reds.

5. San Diego Padres (+1)

  • Eric Hosmer, Manny Machado have carried the offense in the absence of Fernando Tatis Jr.

6. Tampa Bay Rays (+2)

  • No sophomore slump for Wander Franco: .311 average, four HR, 15 RBI in 26 games.

7. Toronto Blue Jays (-3)

  • Kevin Gausman didn't walk a batter until his sixth start of 2022 – and still hasn't given up a homer.

8. Minnesota Twins (+3)

  • SS Royce Lewis, the No. 1 overall pick in 2017, picked up a hit in his MLB debut.

9. Houston Astros (+5)

  • Cristian Javier (five games, two starts) has a 0.96 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 18.2 IP.

10. Los Angeles Angels (–)

  • Taylor Ward led the AL in average (.362), OBP (.488) and slugging (.710) through Friday.

11. St. Louis Cardinals (-2)

Steven Matz, signed for $44 million this winter, has a 7.01 ERA through six starts.

12. San Francisco Giants (-7)

  • Giants lost their first five games in May, including two vs. Dodgers.

13. Chicago White Sox (+4)

  • Liam Hendriks starts May with five saves and five hitless innings after 5.40 ERA in April.

14. Atlanta Braves (-1)

  • Max Fried had 35 strikeouts with just two walks in 37 innings across his first six starts.

15. Colorado Rockies (+4)

  • Don't be surprised if the Rockies hang around the wild-card race into the summer.

16. Cleveland Guardians (+4)

  • Cleveland's .321 average and .888 OPS against LHP was MLB's best through Sunday.

17 Miami Marlins (-2)

  • Joe Dunand, the nephew of Alex Rodriguez, homers in his first at-bat in the majors.

18. Arizona Diamondbacks (+6)

  • Rotation's 2.21 ERA through Sunday was second-best in baseball.

19. Philadelphia Phillies (-3)

  • SS Bryson Stott back in the majors as Didi Gregorius heads to the injured list.

20. Seattle Mariners (-8)

  • We'll learn a lot about this team in the next two weeks with series vs. Phillies, Mets, Blue Jays and Red Sox.

21. Pittsburgh Pirates (+5)

  • Veteran LHP Jose Quintana (3.38 ERA in five starts) has been a valuable addition.

22. Baltimore Orioles (+7)

  • LHP Keegan Akin (2.20 ERA in 16.1 IP) is thriving in long relief.

23. Texas Rangers (+4)

  • Dane Dunning turned in consecutive quality starts vs. the Braves and Yankees.

24. Kansas City Royals (+1)

  • Top catching prospect MJ Melendez makes his big-league debut.

25. Boston Red Sox (-7)

  • Boston's bullpen blew nine of its first 14 save opportunities.

26. Chicago Cubs (-4)

  • LHP Drew Smyly (3.04 ERA in five starts) is giving the Cubs some valuable innings.

27. Oakland Athletics (-6)

  • Busy week ahead for Oakland with nine games in seven days.

28. Washington Nationals (–)

  • Juan Soto's first six homers were all with the bases empty and had seven RBI through 28 games.

29. Detroit Tigers (-6)

  • Tarik Skubal had 29 strikeouts with three walks in his first five starts.

30. Cincinnati Reds (–)

  • Journeyman Brandon Drury has 15 RBI and an .899 OPS through 23 games.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MLB power rankings: Padres powered by Machado, Hosmer with Tatis out