MLB power rankings: Untouchable Mason Miller powers Padres toward the top

[ASFN Admin]

Mason Miller has been untouchable all season. And so have the San Diego Padres lately.

Miller's scoreless streak is now at 32 ⅔ innings, just one shy of the Padres' franchise record. And perhaps most impressively, the best closer in the game has struck out 27 of 38 batters faced this season, his 71.1% strikeout rate the highest by a pitcher in his first 11 appearances since 1900.

But it takes a good team to give a closer a chance to shine and the Padres are just about baseball's best right now. They've won 13 of 15 to close within a half-game of the Los Angeles Dodgers - and zoom seven spots to No. 2 in USA TODAY Sports' power rankings.

At 15-7, the Padres have baseball's second-best record, thanks in large part to their closer with the wipeout fastball-slider combo that's proven untouchable. Or, as Fernando Tatis Jr. put it, "Game over."

Miller's next task? Preserving his scoreless streak through mile-high Coors Field and Phoenix this week.

A look at our updated rankings:

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1. Los Angeles Dodgers (-)​

• Nothing like Coors Field to humble a club on a 126-win pace.

2. San Diego Padres (+7)​

• Jackson Merrill has robbed three home runs - still impressive even if Jo Adell did that in one game.

3. New York Yankees (-1)​

• Cam Schlittler still taking guff from Red Sox fans, still ready to break their hearts once again.

4. Atlanta Braves (+3)​

• Martín Pérez DFA'd, re-signed, still dominates Phillies.

5. Milwaukee Brewers (-2)​

• Jacob Misiorowski with a dominant 40% whiff rate through five starts.

6. Cincinnati Reds (+5)​

• Won eight of first 10 road games for first time since ... 1990 World Series championship season.

7. Pittsburgh Pirates (-1)​

• Mitch Keller sporting a 2.79 ERA after five starts.

8. Cleveland Guardians (-)​

• Parker Messick threatened, but Len Barker's perfect game is Cleveland's last no-no. Len Barker is now 70 years old.

9. Detroit Tigers (+4)​

• Dillon Dingler leads all major league catchers with .983 OPS, second with five home runs.

10. Arizona Diamondbacks (-)​

• Corbin Carroll hits grand slam one day, exits with back tightness the next.

11. Chicago Cubs (+3)​

• They win five in a row but let's not get too excited: Three were against the Mets.

12. Philadelphia Phillies (-8)​

• Zack Wheeler set to make season debut next weekend in Atlanta.

13. Seattle Mariners (-8)​

• Lefty Kade Anderson's first three pro starts at Class AA: 22 strikeouts, one earned run in 14 innings.

14. Miami Marlins (+4)​

• Kyle Stowers returns from hamstring strain, gets drilled in first plate appearance of the year.

15. Tampa Bay Rays (+4)​

• Owner Patrick Zalupski visits his pal Tom Ricketts in Chicago, gets some live-work-play development tips.

16. Texas Rangers (-)​

• Now 10-40 at T-Mobile Park since 2020. Talk about taxing.

17. Toronto Blue Jays (-2)​

• Kazuma Okamoto goes 59 at-bats between home runs.

18. New York Mets (-6)​

• If a homestand with Twins, Rockies and Nationals can't fix them...

19. Baltimore Orioles (-2)​

• Jeremiah Jackson and Rico Garcia are their best players right now, which is both good and bad news.

20. Athletics (-)​

• They depart Yolo County for a telling six-game stretch at Seattle and Texas.

21. Los Angeles Angels (+3)​

• An appropriate bevy of tributes for Garret Anderson.

22. Boston Red Sox (-1)​

• In danger of getting buried in the AL East.

23. St. Louis Cardinals (+4)​

• Won five of their first seven series.

24. Minnesota Twins (-1)​

• Still the ABS kings of the moment with 38 successful challenges.

25. San Francisco Giants (+1)​

• Lineup so punchless that Daniel Susac will take at-bats from .151-hitting Gold Glove catcher Patrick Bailey.

26. Houston Astros (-4)​

• Are they really this bad?

27. Washington Nationals (+1)​

• James Wood's seven homers tied for second in NL.

28. Kansas City Royals (-)​

• Salvador Perez, manager Matt Quatraro fall out briefly over "little mental breather."

29. Colorado Rockies (+1)​

• Consecutive wins over the Dodgers for the first time since October 2022.

30. Chicago White Sox (-1)​

• Munetaka Murakami doubters feeling sheepish: His eight home runs just one behind Aaron Judge.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MLB power rankings: Padres' Mason Miller powers SD vs. LA in NL West

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