Dodgers run the rankings
USA Today’s early-season power rankings have the back‑to‑back World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers at the top after a dominant start to 2026 (usatoday.com). Local coverage notes Shohei Ohtani has been reliably reaching base, Max Muncy hit three homers in one recent game, and the rotation has looked strong—factors cited as reasons for their early surge (truebluela.com).
The Los Angeles Dodgers opened 2026 at 11-4 and moved to No. 1 in USA Today’s power rankings on April 13. (usatoday.com) USA Today called the Dodgers “every bit the super team” after 15 games and pointed to an offseason that added outfielder Kyle Tucker to a club already chasing a third straight title. (usatoday.com) Local coverage tied the fast start to three early trends: Shohei Ohtani kept reaching base, Max Muncy erupted for a three-homer game, and the starting rotation kept giving Los Angeles length. (truebluela.com) Muncy’s biggest night came April 11, when he hit three home runs, including a walk-off shot, in an 8-7 win over the Texas Rangers. Major League Baseball said the Dodgers became the first team in the majors to reach 10 wins that night. (mlb.com) Ohtani’s start has not been limited to the batter’s box. In his 2026 pitching debut on April 7, he threw six scoreless innings with six strikeouts and one hit allowed in a 4-1 win over the Cleveland Guardians. (mlb.com) That matters because the Dodgers are not trying to climb from the middle of the pack. They entered the season as the defending World Series champions for a second straight year, so an early No. 1 ranking says they have looked stronger than the rest of the league even with the target already on them. (usatoday.com) The context is familiar in Los Angeles: stars at the top of the lineup, expensive roster additions, and pressure to turn regular-season dominance into another October run. USA Today’s ranking reflects all of that, but it also reflects the first two weeks of results, not preseason projection alone. (usatoday.com) There are still signs this is an unfinished version of the roster. True Blue LA noted Tucker had not hit much yet, and the Dodgers were also sorting through early questions around closer Edwin Díaz, even as the club kept winning. (truebluela.com) For now, the simplest explanation fits the ranking: the Dodgers have won early, their biggest names are producing, and their rotation has looked sturdy enough to keep them at the top until somebody knocks them off. (usatoday.com)
