MLB power rankings: Phillies can't stop the bleeding as NL East hole grows

Chuckle at theNew York Mets, if that's your thing. Gawk at the five-car pileup that is theBoston Red Soxorganization, which decided to kneecap its paragon of stability.

Yet if you're looking for the messiest big-market failure as April draws to a close, thePhiladelphia Philliesmight fill the bill.

They didn't lose a dozen games in a row, like the Mets, just 10. Yet a one-night reprieve gave way to perhaps their most discouraging setback yet - a 6-2 loss to the front-running Atlanta Braves in which starter Aaron Nola was very bad and the lineup utterly powerless to counteract lefty Chris Sale.

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Nola has a $172 million guaranteed deal and they can't simply make his 6.03 ERA go awaylike they did Taijuan Walker. And in a season of league-wide parity, they now own the biggest deficit in the major leagues - 10 ½ games behind the Braves - and dropped another 10 spots in USA TODAY Sports' power rankings.

A look at our updated rankings:

1.Los Angeles Dodgers(-)

• Took two of three from the Cubs. Must have been all that Hollywood flash, right, PCA?.

2.New York Yankees(+1)

• Luis Gil was sent to the minors, but Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón are on the comeback trail.

3. Atlanta Braves (+1)

• Only the 1997 team can top their 20-9 record at this stage.

4.San Diego Padres(-2)

• Lucas Giolito finally finds a home in diminished Padres rotation.

5.Chicago Cubs(+6)

• Ten-game win streak halted by Dodgers, who did not need any special rules to do so.

6.Cincinnati Reds(-)

• Losing Eugenio Suárez to the IL hurts less when Sal Stewart remains unstoppable.

7.Pittsburgh Pirates(-)

• Konnor Griffin hits first homer on night Paul Skenes threatens to throw perfect game. Exciting times!

8. Detroit Tigers (+1)

• Spencer Torkelson homers in five straight games, first Tiger to do so since legendary Marcus Thames in 2008.

9. Tampa Bay Rays (+6)

• Junior Caminero's two-homer night included drives of 435, 450 feet.

10.Arizona Diamondbacks(-)

• Very quietly, Mike Soroka off to 4-0, 2.60 ERA start.

11.Milwaukee Brewers(-6)

• In a three-way tie for last with 19 homers.

12. Cleveland Guardians (-4)

• Angel Martínez's first career multi-homer game comes with a pair of blasts off Max Scherzer.

13.Seattle Mariners(-)

• Kade Anderson watch: One earned run, 30 strikeouts in 18 ⅔ innings at Class AA.

14.Miami Marlins(-)

• Win every other day and it's real easy to build big leads over the Phillies and Mets.

15. Texas Rangers (+1)

• Don't look now, but Josh Jung has a .920 OPS.

16. Toronto Blue Jays (+1)

• Pitching the eighth inning means Jeff Hoffman loses his light show intro.

17. New York Mets (+1)

• Move up a spot only because the Phillies are more embarrassing.

18. Baltimore Orioles (+1)

• Kyle Bradish averaging nearly three walks per start.

19. Athletics (+1)

• Have won four consecutive series away from Yolo County.

20.St. Louis Cardinals

• Outfield prospect Joshua Baez has six homers at Class AAA.

21. Los Angeles Angels (-)

• Catcher Logan O'Hoppe suffers wrist fracture.

22. Philadelphia Phillies (-10)

• What if they're simply this bad?

23. Boston Red Sox (-1)

• Alex Cora their first manager to get fired during the season since Jimy Williams in 2001.

24. Minnesota Twins (-)

• Have lost nine of 10, perhaps an inevitable bit of regression.

25. San Francisco Giants (-)

• Daniel Susac's injury puts onus on Patrick Bailey to hit, once again.

26. Washington Nationals (+1)

• Foster Griffin tosses seven shutout innings and looks more and more like a real find.

27. Houston Astros (-1)

• Christian Walker's revival (seven homers) one of the few bright spots.

28. Kansas City Royals (-)

• It took more than 100 at-bats, but Bobby Witt has himself a home run.

29. Colorado Rockies (-)

• Overworked bullpen prompts Chase Dollander's first start of season - and he pitches seven shutout innings.

30.Chicago White Sox (-)

• Noah Schultz strikes out eight in third major league start..

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:MLB power rankings: Phillies a huge disappointment in NL East standings

byAdministrator

in

April 28, 2026

MLB power rankings: Phillies can't stop the bleeding as NL East hole grows

Chuckle at theNew York Mets, if that's your thing. Gawk at the five-car pileup that is theBoston Red Soxorganization, which decided...

Read More

Cards get consecutive HRs, 2-run double in 9th and top Pirates 4-2 after being no-hit into 7th

PITTSBURGH (AP) —Jose Fermin hit a tiebreaking two-run doubleafter Pedro Pages and JJ Wetherholt hit consecutive homers — all in the ninth inning — as the St. Louis Cardinals rallied to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 Monday night afterbreaking up a perfect game bidin the seventh inning.

Cardinals Pirates Baseball

With the Pirates leading 2-0, four Pittsburgh pitchers combined to shut down the Cardinals through 6 2/3 innings before Alec Burleson legged out a two-out, infield single off Evan Sisk in the seventh.

Pages' and Wetherholt’s home runs off Dennis Santana (2-2) lifted the Cardinals into a 2-all tie before Fermin’s double into the left-field corner scored Victor Scott II and Burleson, giving St. Louis a 4-2 lead.

Ryan Fernandez (1-0) earned the win and George Soriano got a ground out, strikeout and, after a single by Nick Gonzales, a fly out for his first save as the Cardinals snapped a four-game skid.

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Pittsburgh opener Mason Montgomery and Justin Lawrence each pitched an inning and Wilber Dotel worked the next four, striking out three. Sisk pitched two-thirds of an inning before he replaced by Isaac Mattson after allowing the Cardinals' first hit. The Pirates carried their two-run lead into the ninth before Santana blew the save.

The Pirates scored one run in each of the first two innings on RBI singles by Ryan O’Hearn and Jake Mangum off Dustin May In six innings, May allowed two runs on seven hits with two strikeouts and two walks.

Burleson and Fermin had two hits apiece for St. Louis. The Pirates got two hits each from Gonzales and Mangum.

Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz was a late scratch because of illness

Up next

Cardinals RHP Kyle Leahy (2-3, 5.63 ERA) is expected to face Pirates RHP Braxton Ashcraft (1-1, 2.43) on Tuesday night.

byAdministrator

in

April 28, 2026

Cards get consecutive HRs, 2-run double in 9th and top Pirates 4-2 after being no-hit into 7th

PITTSBURGH (AP) —Jose Fermin hit a tiebreaking two-run doubleafter Pedro Pages and JJ Wetherholt hit consecutive homers — all in the ni...

Read More

Murakami homers again as the White Sox top the Angels for a rain-delayed 8-7 win

CHICAGO (AP) — Munetaka Murakami hit a three-run homer in a big seventh-inning rally, and the Chicago White Sox held off the slumping Los Angeles Angels for an 8-7 win Monday night.

Angels White Sox Baseball

Andrew Benintendi had three RBIs as Chicago improved to 6-4 in its last 10 games. Miguel Vargas hit a solo drive, and Tristan Peters had two hits and scored two runs.

Jorge Soler hit a solo homer for Los Angeles in the rain-delayed opener of a three-game series. Mike Trout had two hits and scored twice.

The Angels blew a 5-1 lead in their fourth consecutive loss and eighth in nine games overall. They had a 6-0 lead Sunday at Kansas City and lost11-9when Lane Thomas hit a three-run homer for the Royals in the 10th inning.

The White Sox sent 10 batters to the plate while scoring seven times in the seventh. It was their biggest inning of the season.

Benintendi's two-run double off Nick Sandlin (0-1) trimmed the Angels' lead to one. Murakami then greeted Drew Pomeranz with a drive to right-center for his major league-best 12th homer. Vargas followed Murakami with another homer for an 8-5 lead.

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The 26-year-old Murakami, a rookie slugger from Japan, is batting .349 (15 for 43) with seven homers and 14 RBIs in his last 10 games.

Osvaldo Bido (2-0) pitched three innings of one-run ball for the win.

Soler and Nolan Schanuel each drove in a run in the ninth against Grant Taylor before Bryan Hudson retired Adam Frazier on a bouncer to second, stranding runners at second and third. It was Hudson's first career save.

The start was delayed three hours as rain and thunderstorms rolled over Rate Field.

Up next

José Soriano (5-0, 0.24 ERA) starts for the Angels on Tuesday night, and fellow right-hander Davis Martin (3-1, 2.01 ERA) pitches for the White Sox.

AP MLB:https://apnews.com/MLB

byAdministrator

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April 27, 2026

Murakami homers again as the White Sox top the Angels for a rain-delayed 8-7 win

CHICAGO (AP) — Munetaka Murakami hit a three-run homer in a big seventh-inning rally, and the Chicago White Sox held off the slumping L...

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King Charles jets to US for trip overshadowed by Iran quarrel and shooting

By Michael Holden and Suzanne Plunkett

FILE PHOTO: Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla visit the British Museum on the 100th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's birth

LONDON/WASHINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) - Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla arrive in the United States later on Monday for a four-day trip, a tour which has taken on even greater prominence after the White House Correspondents' dinner shooting ‌and amid acrimony between the close allies.

The state visit, by far the most high-profile and consequential of Charles's reign, marks the 250th anniversary ‌of the U.S. declaration of independence from British rule, and is the first to the country by a British monarch for two decades.

It begins with a private meeting with self-proclaimed royal ​fan President Donald Trump, and includes an address to Congress and a lavish dinner at the White House.

PRESS DINNER SHOOTING JUST DAYS BEFORE VISIT

But the long-planned trip has become enmeshed in the political spat between the two countries over the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, which led Trump to voice deep displeasure with the British government for failing to support the offensive.

The shooting on Saturday at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, with the president and officials in his ‌administration the likely targets according to the U.S. acting ⁠attorney general, has cast a further pall over the visit.

Buckingham Palace said the trip would still go ahead as planned following discussions between British and U.S. authorities to determine if the incident would impact on the royals' plans.

"The king and ⁠queen are most grateful to all those who have worked at pace to ensure this remains the case and are looking forward to the visit getting underway tomorrow," a palace spokesperson said on Sunday.

TRUMP HAS CRITICISED UK OVER IRAN STANCE

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On arriving in Washington, the king and queen have a private tea with the president, an unabashed ​lover ​of the British royal family who regularly describes Charles as a "great man", and his ​wife, first lady Melania Trump.

The 77-year-old king, who is still ‌undergoing treatment for cancer, will address Congress the next day - just the second time a British monarch has done so.

The royals will then head on to New York where they will commemorate those killed in the September 11, 2001 attacks ahead of the 25th anniversary, while the queen will also mark the centenary of children's stories featuring Winnie the Pooh.

The U.S. trip concludes in Virginia with the king meeting those involved in conservation work, a nod to his half century of environmental campaigning.

The government of British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is hoping the visit will shore up the future of the two allies' "special ‌relationship" which is at its lowest point since the Suez Crisis in 1956.

Britain's ambassador ​to the U.S., Christian Turner, said the visit would underscore the shared history, sacrifice and ​common values between the two countries, adding that the approach would ​be a very British one of: "Keep calm, carry on."

While Trump has eased his criticism of Britain in recent days over ‌its response to the Iran war, an internal Pentagon email ​has set out how the U.S. could ​review its position on Britain's claim to the Falkland Islands as punishment for its lack of support, once again straining ties.

One issue off the table during the visit is the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. Royal sources have said it was not possible for the royal couple to meet ​any victims of Epstein during the tour, as ‌some have requested, to avoid impacting on any potential criminal cases.

Charles' brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, whose reputation and royal standing has been destroyed ​over his links to the late U.S. sex offender, is currently facing police inquiries over his connections. The former Prince Andrew ​has denied any wrongdoing.

(Reporting by Michael Holden in London; Editing by Toby Chopra)

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April 27, 2026

King Charles jets to US for trip overshadowed by Iran quarrel and shooting

By Michael Holden and Suzanne Plunkett FILE PHOTO: Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla visit the British Museum on the ...

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Rockets start strong, don't let up to beat Lakers, stay alive in series

Amen Thompson scored a game-high 23 points, Tari Eason added 20 and the Houston Rockets averted elimination with a 115-96 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night in Game 4 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series.

All five starters scored in double figures for the Rockets, who played without Kevin Durant (ankle) for the third time in the series. Reed Sheppard chipped in 17 points on 4-for-7 3-point shooting while Alperen Sengun (19 points) and Jabari Smith Jr. (16 points) rounded out the balanced offensive attack. Eason and Smith grabbed eight rebounds apiece.

"We said we didn't want to let that last 30 seconds defeat us in another game, and we kind of put that behind us," Houston coach Ime Udoka said, referring to the team's Game 3 loss. "The focus was good today, and I think just in general, guys have pride, so you don't want to obviously get swept.

"We understood how well we played last game, and that was the big-picture perspective we had. We played a really good three quarters, and don't let that last 30 seconds take away from what you did. I think it was good carryover tonight."

The Rockets made headway by forcing 24 turnovers that they converted into 30 points. Houston scored 23 fastbreak points and limited the Lakers to 5-for-22 3-point shooting (22.7%).

"We understand that if we want to win this series, we have to protect the ball," LeBron James said. "The turnovers obviously killed us from the start to the finish."

After dominating Game 3 and co-authoring the Lakers' overtime victory, James (10 points, nine assists) and Marcus Smart (nine, five) shot a combined 5 of 17 from the floor. Deandre Ayton finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds but was ejected with 5:41 remaining in the third quarter after elbowing Sengun in the neck and incurring a flagrant-2 foul.

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The Lakers will carry a 3-1 series lead back to Los Angeles for Game 5 on Wednesday.

Houston seized an 18-17 lead on a Sengun dunk at the 3:19 mark of the first quarter and didn't look back. The Lakers shot 41.2% (7 of 17) in the first period, missed both of their 3-pointers and conceded eight points off eight turnovers. Sengun played the entire first period for the Rockets.

"This is a top-10 defense the entire season," Lakers coach JJ Redick said about the Rockets. "It's obviously very challenging without your two leading scorers (Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves) to generate offense. We'll take a look at the process again on that end as well.

"Our points per shot and our expected points per shot were slightly below our season average, so to me, it goes back to the two keys: Take care of the ball. We'll look at that and how we can be better there."

The Rockets used a 16-4 run bridging the opening two periods to help extend to a 37-28 lead via a Sengun three-point play at the 6:35 mark of the second. When the Lakers sliced that deficit to three points, Josh Okogie keyed a 10-2 rally with a 3-pointer. Thompson added a pull-up jumper and a three-point play before Sheppard capped the run with a layup.

The Lakers shot 58.8% in the second quarter (10 of 17) but committed six turnovers in the frame and trailed 56-47 at the break. Houston pulled away in the third, opening the second half with a 12-4 burst before Eason drilled a corner 3 and Sengun completed another three-point play that pushed the lead to 76-55.

The Rockets led by as many as 28 points.

--Field Level Media

byAdministrator

in

April 27, 2026

Rockets start strong, don't let up to beat Lakers, stay alive in series

Amen Thompson scored a game-high 23 points, Tari Eason added 20 and the Houston Rockets averted elimination with a 115-96 victory over ...

Read More