Power Rankings: Torre pushes right buttons in L.A. breakout

Updated May 6

Joe Torre is perfect for Southern California, where a 7-11 start is like the first inning in Dodger Stadium. It just doesn't seem to matter.

Crowds there notoriously arrive late, but Torre's red-hot club will have them staying longer -- longer in the pennant race, too.

Fresh off NL player of the week honors, Matt Kemp is as hot as ever. (AP)

"(New York) tests your ability to try to control the ups and downs. It's a nice change that baseball is just in the sports section here," manager Joe Torre told the New York Post on Monday at the start of a homestand against the Mets.

"There's a desire to win out here, but there's no panic."

Southern California has always been laid back, but it is Joe Cool who has had a calming effect on a fractured Dodgers clubhouse. Jeff Kent tends to demand a lot of his teammates -- especially the young ones -- but Torre managed to hold things together after a slow start and now has his team on a hot streak that puts it back among baseball's elite.

We move the Dodgers up 12 spots to No. 8 in our Power Rankings, and they might not stop there. This is a very good team, and one with some emerging talent in all areas.

The Dodgers have begun a 25-game stretch against teams outside the NL West after completing a 5-1 road trip, where they hit .330 and averaged 8.3 runs. They have won 10 of 12 and 11 of 14, and are a league-best 11-3 since April 20.

Veteran shortstop Rafael Furcal has played like an MVP candidate this season, but it is the emergence of young players like Matt Kemp and Russell Martin who have made them look like world-beaters.

Kemp is coming off NL player of the week honors and has a 10-game hitting streak (.419, 18-for-43) to raise his average from .273 to .330. And backstop Martin -- arguably the best in the league at his position -- has hit safely in 11 of his past 12 games (.395, 17-for-43).

Even rookie stopgap third baseman Blake DeWitt and once-benched Juan Pierre are getting in on the act. DeWitt is hitting .421 (8-for-19) with seven RBI in his past seven games, while Pierre started for the fifth consecutive game and has hit safely in all five. Pierre has gone 10-for-19 to raise his average from .250 to .324.

Torre has pushed the right buttons with the much-maligned Pierre, who will remain in the starting lineup as long as he stays hot. The continuing decline of Andruw Jones (.158) certainly won't get in the way of that.

But as hot as the offense has been, it is the pitching we really focus on when we do our weekly rankings. The Dodgers have a potentially strong corps behind Brad Penny (5-2, 3.19), Derek Lowe (2-2, 3.66), Hiroki Kuroda (1-2, 3.82) and Chad Billingsley (2-4, 4.54), who has looked more like a potential ace in his past two starts.

The No. 5 starter's spot has been a problem with Esteban Loaiza (1-2, 5.63) or Hong-Chih Kuo (0-1, 5.06 in three starts), but the Dodgers have been skipping that spot when possible, like this week. Also, Jason Schmidt (shoulder surgery) could return by June or they could turn to their annually strong farm system to call-up red-hot pitching phenom Clayton Kershaw or converted reliever Jon Meloan.

Kershaw, 20, was the star of spring training and has a 1.11 ERA, .197 batting-average against, just 11 walks and 36 strikeouts in 32 1/3 Double-A innings. Torre said this spring the lefty looks star-ready, but he really didn't need to say it. Kershaw looks the part.

Meloan, 2-2 with a 3.60, .279 BAA and 33 strikeouts in 30 Triple-A innings, gives them further depth where it matters most, starting pitching.

The bullpen is not too shabby either. Takashi Saito might be old and an injury risk, but young beef-cake Jonathan Broxton sets him up spectacularly. Broxton has retired the past eight batters he has faced over three appearances, striking out three of them. Opposing batters are hitting just .074 (2-for-27) against Broxton at Dodger Stadium this year, and he has 19 strikeouts in 14 innings pitched for the season, an average of 12.2 per nine innings.

Yeah, there are a lot of reasons to like the Dodgers' chances this season. Torre's calming influence is just one of them.

The complete Power Rankings:

Power Rankings
Current		Team	Previous
	1	Red Sox · Trends	2
	Well, that didn't take long for them to return to the top of the East and these rankings. Deep starting pitching makes them a candidate to be here awhile.
	2	Diamondbacks · Trends	1
	They have built the best record in baseball beating on the NL West, so we are only a little bit surprised they have lost three of four. Max Scherzer will be much better than he showed in his first start, but how long will he be in the rotation?
	3	Angels · Trends	4
	We are still not sure about their offense among the elite, but you cannot argue with their pitching. "Back-end" starters Joe Saunders and Ervin Santana are just the eighth pair of teammates to start a season 6-0 since 1920.
	4	Cardinals · Trends	6
	They have a league-low six losses among their starting pitchers. This is what a team's start looks like if your perceived weakness winds up being a strength. The Cards' patchwork rotation is fifth-best in ERA at 3.60.
	5	Phillies · Trends	8
	Their surprising bullpen is a league-best 10-5 and boasts the third-best ERA at 2.79. They are going to be one tough contender if they can sustain that in the summer months when Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins start to heat up.
	6	Cubs · Trends	3
	They've hit the skids a bit, but Alfonso Soriano's return from the DL will eventually lead to another hot streak.
	7	Mets · Trends	7
	A road series victory in Arizona was a good sign, but they still don't look like a team much better than an also-ran at this point. Oliver Perez continues to prove he's just another erratic lefty.
	8	Dodgers · Trends	20
	This is more like what we thought they were capable of. Their offense got hot all at once -- well, save for the awful decline of Andruw Jones.
	9	Braves · Trends	9
	A suspect bullpen will be improved as Rafael Soriano (elbow) and John Smoltz (shoulder) return, but how will the rotation be able to hold together? But they might have their most productive offense in years. Only the D-Backs (.459) have a higher slugging percentage than the Braves (.452).
	10	Yankees · Trends	10
	They lose Alex Rodriguez, Jorge Posada and Phil Hughes to the DL and send Ian Kennedy to the minors. It has been a tough stretch, but they still manage to sweep the Mariners.
	11	Athletics · Trends	11
	Rich Harden (shoulder) is returning, which will make an already solid rotation even better. But the problem is that punchless offense will expose itself before long. They have scored the sixth-most runs (161) to date despite being in the bottom third in OPS (.701). They are maximizing their OPS, but that just won't last.
	12	Brewers · Trends	5
	The loss of Yovani Gallardo (knee) for the season and their recent cold stretch gets them downgraded significantly from the top five. One of the worst bullpens in baseball to date (4.70 ERA) shouldn't slot Eric Gagne as the closer much longer.
	13	Blue Jays · Trends	19
	If not for an AL-worst 1-7 record in the bullpen, they would be a lot better positioned in the mish-mash AL East. The Jays need to gain ground now while the Yankees are banged up.
	14	Rays · Trends	13
	Payback in Fenway was rough, but you still have to be excited about the direction they are headed in, particularly the potential of their starting pitching.
	15	Twins · Trends	22
	If Johan Santana was still around, we would give them a lot better shot to take advantage of the struggling AL Central. A great bullpen gives them a chance, if and only if the young rotation doesn't overstress it.
	16	Marlins · Trends	14
	Andrew Miller looked much better his last time out and Mark Hendrickson is off to a career-best start, but the starting rotation still has the second-worst ERA in baseball (5.56). Only a hot offense has been able to cover that big wart, but that offense is bound to slow down, especially with Josh Willingham (back) and Mike Jacobs (finger) banged up.
	17	Astros · Trends	25
	We love their offensive potential but just hate the depth of their starting pitching after Roy Oswalt. A strong offense and suspect rotation will make them a streaky team capable of beating on anyone and then losing to anyone in stretches.
	18	Indians · Trends	16
	Only the Royals have a worse slugging percentage in the AL to date. That just can't last. If it does, the Indians will be toast in the division, because the Tigers or even the White Sox are sure to get hot with the bats.
	19	White Sox · Trends	12
	Is Ozzie Guillen really trying to get himself fired at this point? We actually find him entertaining, but certainly he is bad publicity. But he takes the pressure off the team, we suppose.
	20	Tigers · Trends	17
	Just when you think they have turned the corner, they drop back into a funk. Big offensive teams are streaky, but we figured they would pitch a lot better than they have. Their 5.36 rotation ERA is the AL's worst, another stat we don't think will last.
	21	Mariners · Trends	15
	They have struggled mightily away from the Great Northwest (6-12). This homestand should help them turn things around. Despite the A's start, we still think the M's can prove to be the AL West runners-up.
	22	Orioles · Trends	18
	This is more like what we expected from them. We wouldn't be surprised if they didn't make it back into the top 20 the rest of the season. In fact, we give them a legit shot at battling the Rangers for the worst in the AL.
	23	Reds · Trends	21
	Johnny Cueto was able to kick out of his funk, but how long of a leash will Bronson Arroyo need? Arroyo's struggles could make him trade bait, but who wants him at this point?
	24	Royals · Trends	23
	The offense just looks pitiful right now. You have to stay patient with Alex Gordon and Billy Butler, though. They were rushed to the majors and deserve a few years before they are labeled busts.
	25	Giants · Trends	24
	You have to like their feistiness, but the least impressive offense in baseball coming into the season has scored a league-low 106 runs. The young pitching of Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez deserves better.
	26	Nationals · Trends	29
	Only the Royals and Padres have a worse OPS to date. You figured the new home park would help them score more runs. At least it is helping them win games right now.
	27	Rangers · Trends	30
	We look at their rotation and just can't seem to figure out why they are not lower than 22nd overall in starting ERA. We suppose we can give them a reprieve from the cellar for now.
	28	Rockies · Trends	26
	The loss of Troy Tulowitzki is arguably the most costly injury in baseball this season. Heck, there is no argument about it. The talented shortstop was the No. 1 reason the Rockies surprised all the way to the NL pennant.
	29	Padres · Trends	27
	Their bullpen has been atrocious at 2-10, 4.74. This is a team that has prided itself on its bullpen. We know they sure can't take pride in the likes of Jim Edmonds and Brian Giles. Those guys are stiffs and there is no reason to think they will turn it around.
	30	Pirates · Trends	28
	We don't think we will keep them down here for long. They have the worst rotation in baseball right now at 6-14, 5.93, but we like the potential to turn it around in Ian Snell, Tom Gorzelanny, Paul Maholm and Zach Duke. Stay patient. Those guys can pitch.