9) Dean Kremer, RHP, Orioles (No. 10)
The first Israeli citizen to sign with a Major League organization also became the first to pick up a Major League win when he made his big league debut on Sunday. The right-hander, who came to the Orioles in the Manny Machado trade, was called up to face the Yankees and threw six innings of one-hit ball, allowing one run while walking three and striking out seven, providing another lift in the O's youth movement.
10) Tony Gonsolin, RHP, Dodgers
A bit under-appreciated at times among the Dodgers' deep stable of young pitchers, Gonsolin has been incredibly good this season, though he's yet to collect a win for his efforts. It was more of the same on Saturday, when the right-hander went six strong innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits while walking none and striking out eight. For the season, Gonsolin has a 0.76 ERA over five starts with a .150 BAA and 0.72 WHIP.
With the top two teams in each division getting an automatic berth to the postseason, some of those races might appear to be already decided – at first glance.
But take a closer look at some of the teams we may not be giving a lot of attention, due to their sub-.500 records. The Mariners, for example, are 18-22, but, after winning five in a row, they're only three games behind the Astros for second place in the American League West.
The Marlins, who have been pretty steady all season despite not playing as much as most other clubs, are also hanging in there in the National League East, lagging behind the second-place Phillies by only a 1 1/2 games. And the Mets are just behind Miami, 2 1/2 games out of second place.
In the NL Central, the Brewers, who are three games under .500, aren't that far behind the second-place Cardinals. They're 2 1/2 back entering their off-day Monday.
Biggest jump: The Cardinals jumped four spots, from No. 18 to No. 14. While most teams are two-thirds through the schedule, the Cardinals actually just reached the halfway mark on Saturday. Starting Monday, they have 26 games over 21 days, and that doesn't even include two games in Detroit that need to be rescheduled. So here's a hat tip to the Cardinals for winning enough to stay in contention, despite the upheaval this season.
Biggest drop: The Rockies dropped four, from No. 14 to No. 18. Several Rockies regulars are struggling, and the team is still searching for some consistency after laboring to string together wins. They have lost 17 of 26.
1. Dodgers (30-12; 1 last week)
The first team in baseball to reach 30 wins, the Dodgers recently matched their best 40-game start in franchise history. They also started this way through their first 40 in 1888, 1955 and 1977. Additionally, they became the fifth team in the expansion era (since 1961) to win at least 30 of its first 40 games. The other four: the 1984 Tigers (won the World Series); 1998 Yankees (won the World Series), 2001 Mariners (lost the ALCS); and the '77 Dodgers (lost the World Series).
2. Rays (28-13; 2)
The Rays are in a favorable position as the baseball schedule whittles down to its final three weeks. Tampa Bay has no more games with the Blue Jays or Yankees, but those two teams play each other 10 times over the next 2 1/2 weeks. All the Rays have to do is keep winning at a decent clip and hope the Jays and Yanks come close to splitting their games, and Tampa Bay should be able to coast to the AL East title. The Rays also play only one team the rest of the season currently playing at a .500 clip or better – the Phillies, whom they host the final weekend.
3. A's (23-14; 3)
By midweek, we'll probably know much more about how the AL West will shake out. The Astros and A's will play five games in the next four days, and if the A's win three or more, it's realistic to assume they'll be on their way to winning the division. Oakland has played only five games in the past week and a half, and of those five games, it won only one. That's only slightly better than the Astros, who just got swept in four games in Anaheim. So this week should be interesting.
4. Padres (25-17; 5)
Since there's no such thing as too much information about Fernando Tatis Jr., let's use this space once again to gush about the Padres' wunderkind. Tatis is tied with Mike Trout for the Major League lead with 15 home runs, the most by any player 21 years or younger in his team's first 42 games of the season in the modern era.
5. White Sox (26-15; 6)
Who could have guessed when this season started the most competitive division in baseball would be the AL Central? The race is still tight, even with the White Sox rolling. Over the past three weeks, dating back to Aug. 16, the Sox are tied with the Dodgers for the best record in baseball at 16-4. José Abreu is batting .386 (32-for-83) with 10 homers and 28 RBIs during a 20-game hitting streak, the longest active streak in baseball. And still, with all the winning, the White Sox still hold only a half-game lead on the Indians and a 1 1/2-game lead over the Twins. This will be a fun one down the stretch.
If their last starts are an indication, it's going to be a real battle among Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May and Julio Urías for the Dodgers' final starter spot going into the postseason's best-of-three first round.
Gonsolin, cemented into the current rotation with the Deadline trade of Ross Stripling to Toronto on Monday, rewarded management's confidence Saturday night with six solid innings in the Dodgers' 5-2 loss to the Rockies at Dodger Stadium that snapped a six-game win streak.
Colorado defeated reliever Blake Treinen and the Dodgers' defensive shift in the top of the ninth inning with three consecutive hits the other way, then a two-run opposite-field double by pinch-hitter Josh Fuentes off Alex Wood.
But Gonsolin struck out eight without a walk and was charged with two runs (one earned) on three hits in a 75-pitch no-decision, Charlie Blackmon homering for one run and doubling before scoring the other. On a strict pitch count, Gonsolin has no decisions in all five starts and hasn't thrown more than 84 pitches.
“Overall, really good,” manager Dave Roberts said in the postgame critique. “The slider was good, the fastball velocity was good. The command wasn't good with the fastball, there was a lot of middle-middle. But he and [catcher Austin Barnes] worked really well with the split-change. He didn't have it early, but I thought he got into a rhythm there the last couple of innings. He continues to grow and get better each outing.”
Notes: Justin Turner, Will Smith, Joe Kelly
Gonsolin was coming off a three-inning no-decision in Texas, where he had to work out of a lengthy bases-loaded jam to keep the game close.
“I had a rough outing in [Arlington], so to come out and have a performance like today is awesome for me, confidence-wise,” he said.
This was Gonsolin's fifth start this season and first allowing more than one run. He hasn't allowed more than three hits in any of those starts.
“Goes to show my stuff is working,” said Gonsolin. “I feel like I'm competent when I throw the ball across the plate -- they won't hit it or will get soft contact, and if they hit it well, our positioning has been great. Early on with the splitty not really working, the slider was there, so I went to it a little bit more. It was sharp and breaking later, so I kind of rolled with it. It was great to have it and hope it stays there.”
Walker Buehler owns share in Kentucky Derby winner
May threw 5 2/3 effective innings on Friday night with a breaking ball breakthrough and Urías gets the ball Sunday coming off his best start of the year as the tryout plays out throughout the month of September.
In Gonsolin's start, the slider provided a third pitch when he couldn't rely on fastball command.
“He had really good sliders to [Nolan] Arenado and [Trevor] Story,” Roberts said. “Just having weapons to get left and right out, if something isn't on point one night you can still have a secondary to get to. This is a fastball-hitting league, so you've got to have something else to keep guys off balance.”
Gonsolin had trouble with only one Rockies batter. Their first run scored in the second inning on an error by Mookie Betts, of all people. After Blackmon's leadoff double, Kevin Pillar sent Betts to the wall to haul in his high fly. With Blackmon tagging to third, Betts dropped the ball on the transfer and Blackmon scored from second.
Blackmon took care of Colorado's second run by himself in the fourth inning, curling a 3-2 splitter inside the right-field foul pole for his fifth home run.
“I missed a few balls over the plate to him and he made me pay,” Gonsolin said of Blackmon. “Took a really good swing on the splitter for the home run. Just need to make better pitches.” Rockies right fielder Sam Hilliard, who's already hit five home runs at Dodger Stadium, stole one in the bottom of the fourth, reaching over the top of the fence to rob Cody Bellinger. The Dodgers have become so adept at winning baseball games, they are now conquering other sports.
During their game against the Rockies Saturday night, Hall of Fame thoroughbred trainer Bob Baffert revealed that Dodgers starting pitcher and Lexington, Ky., native Walker Buehler has a microshare ownership in Authentic, who is trained by Baffert and who won the Kentucky Derby on Saturday at Churchill Downs in Louisville.
Baffert said Buehler and former skiing great Bode Miller are among more than 4,000 micro-owners in Authentic through the MyRaceHorse.com syndication.
Authentic, who originally sold as a yearling for $350,000, has $2,871,200 in earnings with five wins in six starts. He is majority owned by billionaire B. Wayne Hughes and his Spendthrift Farm. Hughes made his fortune as the CEO of Public Storage.
Madaket Stables and Starlight Racing are also part owners.
"Bode Miller, he was checking in before: How's our horse?" Baffert told Mark Story of the Louisville Courier Journal. "Walker Buehler from the Dodgers: How we looking? I said, if they give us the lead, it's adios. That's what happened.

Friends, of course, asked repeatedly if Piazza went out with her, which he says never happened.
The Dodgers catcher did get some major gratitude from the King of Baywatch Beach: David Hasselhoff. The Hoff wasn't there on set that day, but he called Piazza and thanked him for doing the show -- saying he was a big fan of the All-Star. They'd also meet up and chat about the appearance at award shows in L.A. What did teammates think of the appearance?
"Eric Karros definitely hammered me on it," Piazza recalls. "If you don't get criticized on a team, then they probably don't like you. [The Dodgers] definitely had their fun with me."
Piazza would star on the big and small screens in future years -- you may recall his Pert Plus commercials or his cameo (along with Tsuyoshi Shinjo!) in Sandra Bullock's movie "Two Weeks Notice." But the "Baywatch" role has to be the most memorable. It's very close to his heart: Piazza's wife, Alicia, is a former actress on the show -- she made appearances in the early 2000s. And his performance is one friends continue to remind him about nearly every day.
"I mean, look at the way people still respond to it, it's pretty funny," Piazza says. "I've really enjoyed interacting with people on social media about it. It's cool." Gavin Lux and Walker Buehler are two rare talents whose 2020 seasons are lessons in high expectations.
The Dodgers are the best team in baseball, even though neither Lux nor Buehler will be winning those awards after slow starts. On Tuesday night at Chase Field, though, Lux reminded us just what he's capable of, blasting a pair of home runs to help the Dodgers overcome a short start by Buehler in a wild 10-9 comeback win over the D-backs, in which the Dodgers had 12 walks and stranded 15.
Lux drove in five runs, and every bit of his three-run homer in a four-run 10th inning was needed, as the D-backs scored three times against closer Kenley Jansen in the bottom of the inning to fall just short.
With the win, the Dodgers avoided their first three-game losing streak in more than a year. And while there is ongoing concern over Buehler and the stubborn right index finger blister, at least Lux is finally showing some signs of why MLB Pipeline has him rated as the game's No. 2 prospect.
The Dodgers seem to be striking a tricky balance with Lux, who arrived late to Summer Camp with a swing that wasn't ready and wild throws that brought back memories of his spring 2019 yips. He has been given a runway to win the starting second-base job for the postseason, as he was last September. Despite the slow start since his callup late last month, Lux continues to get opportunities. A 10-pitch walk in the ninth inning Sunday earned praise from manager Dave Roberts. Lux's next at-bat was an opposite-field home run in the second inning on Tuesday.
“I was looking to grind it out, get it to the next guy and pass the torch,” Lux said of Sunday's walk, when he battled back from an 0-2 count to bring up hot-hitting Corey Seager. “Any time you can work a 10-pitch walk in that situation, it always helps your confidence a little bit.”
Roberts said Lux is playing “much more like himself, much more free and easy.” Three hits and a walk helped blunt Lux's throwing error that led to Arizona's five-run third inning and Buehler's exit after 2 2/3 innings. The error made three of Buehler's five runs unearned, although Buehler downplayed the effects of the blister that put him on the injured list last month, instead blaming the pitches.
Buehler retired the first seven batters he faced, firing triple-digit fastballs repeatedly, then lost location while rarely throwing breaking pitches and served up home runs to Daulton Varsho and Kole Calhoun. Buehler wasn't late to Summer Camp, but he also wasn't built up as much as other starters and he still hasn't caught up. He has failed to finish the fifth inning in three of his seven starts.
“We made a decision for me to go out and pitch,” said Buehler. “It just didn't go our way in the third. Obviously, a couple home runs. Other than those two swings, I made some decent pitches and just didn't get out of it and that's on me.
“I feel good physically and that's about it. I'm trying to learn how to deal with it and execute, and I assume my goal is to be better next year. I've said it a million times, I've had a few tough ones this year and I haven't sunk the ship. We have a really good team. Happy to get out of here with a win. I'm not overly concerned, I just want to pitch better. I don't think today was a result of that [blister]. It's something -- no offense -- that you [media] guys will talk about and whatnot. To me, I just didn't make pitches. The ball is coming out of my hand about as well as it ever has.” Justin Turner was named the Dodgers' 2020 nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, which didn't come as a tremendous shock to his manager.
“He and [his wife] Kourtney do just amazing things in the community and are always serving,” said Dave Roberts. “It's just remarkable how he can balance a Major League Baseball season and still serve the community. He just does a fantastic job.”
The Roberto Clemente Award is baseball's most prestigious individual honor for Major Leaguers, as it recognizes a player who best represents the game of Baseball through extraordinary character, community involvement, philanthropy and positive contributions, both on and off the field.
That would be Turner, the epitome of a Dodger -- a Southern California native who still lives there, an All-Star on the field, leader in the clubhouse and the community. In his seventh season as a Dodger, Justin and Kourtney run the Justin Turner Foundation, whose mission is to support homeless veterans, children (and their families) battling life-altering illnesses and diseases, as well as running various youth baseball organizations.
“When you start out you want to hold events and you don't always have the courage to do it,” said Turner. “But once you do it and see the impact it has on the lives of the kids or families or the homeless veterans -- whoever it may be that day you see how special it is for those individuals and it drives you to want to do more. It's been awesome to see it grow. It's become addictive to us.
“To [be nominated for] the Clemente Award, it's something that means a lot to Kourt and I. We take a lot of pride in giving back to the community and finding ways to serve and help people and lift people up in times of need. To be nominated on a team full of guys who are really excellent in helping out this community is pretty special to us.” When the pandemic hit, the Turners spent the quarantine at home working to support small businesses, while at the same time providing hot meals to the Los Angeles Dream Center, which fed over 12,000 individuals per day. Teammates joined the effort, helping to keep restaurants in business and feed those experiencing food insecurity as Los Angeles' unemployment rate rose. The Turners served at the drive-through food distribution, which operated 11 hours a day, seven days a week, donating an estimated 900,000 meals during the 82-day effort, culminating with the Dream Center naming its food bank The Justin & Kourtney Turner Food Bank.
“There's always a need,” said Turner. “If you're willing to do it and to reach out to them, the Dream Center will find a way for you to serve the community. Kourtney takes the reins on everything; she's unbelievable. She always comes up in the clutch and gets it done. There would be no Justin Turner Foundation if it wasn't for her.”
In addition to his efforts at the Dream Center, Justin donated meals to doctors, nurses and staff at Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), where Justin, Kourtney and the Justin Turner Foundation have been added to the “Spotlight Wall” in recognition of their philanthropy. They served as Honorary Hosts for their Walk and Play LA event the past two years, helping raise critical funds for the hospital. They hosted CHLA's Winter Wonderland during the holidays for hundreds of patients. The Turners also visit patients at Cedars Sinai Hospital and UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital and serve on the board of UCLA Health's Operation Mend, which provides healthcare and social support for wounded warriors and their families.