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The top teams in MLB are already starting to separate themselves from the pack. That gave MLB on FOX analyst Dontrelle Willis the chance to stack the National League’s elite teams, which rank among the top five teams in the NL.
Willis didn’t put the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers at the top of the 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 in. Only one game behind the Dodgers in the division. If they continue to get healthy and get going; keep (Randy) Vasquez and (Michael) King healthy at the top of the rotation as well, they’ll definitely keep up.”
Cincinnati Reds
“Terry Francona has been absolutely outstanding in one-run games. Sal Stewart, the rookie of the month. He’s going to provide lineup protection. Also Elly De La Cruz, who leads them in pretty much every category. They’re going to be able to start scoring runs. You’ve got Burns as a starter, the young starter at the front of that rotation. They’re going to think they can win some close games.”
Chicago Cubs
“I love this team. Defensively, they’re 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 fourth in home runs. So when that ball starts flying out of Wrigley, everyone up and down the lineup is going to be confident in the swing of the bat.”
Los Angeles Dodgers
“They’ve struggled the last few days, but they’ve got the bad guy, Shohei Ohtani, and he hasn’t gotten the starts he wants offensively. But you still have Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts will be back in the lineup, Max Muncy looks good. But that rotation is going to get deeper, it’s going to get stronger, and they’re going to get stronger.”
Atlanta Braves
“Offensively, they’re finally healthy. They’re very deep. Drake Bladwin, they better pay him his money fast 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, so is (Matt) Olson. This is a very experienced lineup, and I think they’ve taken that personal last year and what happened to them that they’ve tried to overcome last year. Spencer Strider back in the fold Watch out man it could be the Dodgers or the Braves in the World Series.
