MLB Power Rankings: Who’s the new No. 1 atop our list?
We have a new top team in our rankings!
The Dodgers have usurped the Braves to take hold of the No. 1 spot, thanks to strong performances from Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and Teoscar Hernandez.
After two weeks of baseball, the Yankees rode a five-game win streak to the majors’ best record at 10-3, followed by … the Pirates and Guardians?!
Meanwhile, our top 10 features three new teams in the Cubs, Red Sox and Guardians — the last of whom made the largest leap of all 30 teams from last week to now, going from No. 21 to No. 10. Will they be able to keep up this dominance?
Our expert panel has combined to rank every team in baseball based on a combination of what we’ve seen so far and what we already knew going into the 162-game marathon that is a full baseball season. We also asked ESPN MLB experts David Schoenfield, Bradford Doolittle, Jesse Rogers, Alden Gonzalez and Jorge Castillo to weigh in with an observation for all 30 teams.
Record: 10-5
Previous ranking: 2
Yoshinobu Yamamoto obtained the largest contract ever by a pitcher this offseason, but there’s a reason Tyler Glasnow drew the Dodgers’ first start of 2024. The team’s evaluators believe Glasnow, 30 years old with a checkered injury history, is just starting to tap into what he can become in the big leagues. His Tuesday start against the Twins was another example of that. Glasnow matched a career high with 14 strikeouts through seven scoreless innings, during which he threw just 88 pitches. He was simply dominant — as he has been through the early part of this season. Four starts in, Glasnow holds a 2.25 ERA. — Gonzalez
Record: 7-3
Previous ranking: 1
As we await the official news on Spencer Strider‘s pitching elbow and whether he’ll need a second Tommy John surgery after first undergoing the procedure in college, the Braves turn to replacing their ace starter. Allan Winans replaced Strider on the roster and started on Wednesday. He made six starts last season for the Braves and posted a 5.29 ERA, although with an excellent 34-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Winans got the call over 2023 All-Star Bryce Elder, who scuffled in the second half last season and then struggled in spring training. His first two starts at Triple-A Gwinnett were better (2.61 ERA), but the Braves want to see more. AJ Smith-Shawver is also there, but he lasted just two-thirds of an inning in his first start, walking three batters. Huascar Ynoa, who had his moments for the Braves in 2021, is at Gwinnett, trying to return from Tommy John surgery after not pitching in 2023, but didn’t pitch well his first two starts. For now, it’s Winans. — Schoenfield
Record: 10-3
Previous ranking: 3
Every year, dozens of major leaguers vow to implement changes upon reporting to spring training. Hitters work on mechanical changes. Pitchers experiment with pitches. The list goes on. But rarely are adjustments as immediately effective as the ones Anthony Volpe has incorporated at the plate. Volpe, 22, looks like a different hitter from his 2023 rookie season. His swing path is flatter, and he’s practicing more patience and making hard contact consistently. His production, as a result, has skyrocketed. The shortstop is 16-for-43 (.372) with an 1.041 OPS and three steals — all while still playing elite defense after winning a Gold Glove last season. The hometown kid is on a path to stardom. — Castillo
Record: 7-4
Previous ranking: 4
Pitcher injuries have been the theme to start the season. It seems as if a pitcher is sidelined with an elbow or shoulder ailment every day, and it’s almost always bad — or even terrible — news. But here’s a positive development: Orioles right-hander Kyle Bradish, diagnosed with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow in January, will begin a rehab assignment soon. Bradish, 27, emerged as one of the American League’s top pitchers last season, posting an 2.83 ERA in 30 starts. If he can return anywhere close to that form, he and Corbin Burnes would give the Orioles’ rotation a top-tier one-two punch.
Oh, and the Orioles have called up Jackson Holliday, the consensus No. 1 prospect in the sport. The vibes are looking good in Baltimore. — Castillo
Record: 7-5
Previous ranking: 5
It looks like the Rangers are going to be piecing things together at the hot corner for at least the first half of the season. The reigning champs got brutal early news when hard-luck standout Josh Jung took a pitch off his right wrist. Jung was off to a blazing start, but after undergoing surgery to repair a fracture, he’s now on the 60-day injured list. Texas summoned prospect Justin Foscue to help out in the infield, and he turned up with an oblique injury after logging his first two major league plate appearances. Now another prospect — Davis Wendzel — has been summoned for his first MLB time. Wendzel will help Josh Smith and Ezequiel Duran and, hopefully, Foscue hold down the fort until Jung can get back on the field. — Doolittle
Record: 6-6
Previous ranking: 7
Through the team’s first 12 games, Trea Turner, Alec Bohm, Nick Castellanos, Bryson Stott and Johan Rojas were all without a home run. Bryce Harper has hit three home runs — but all in one game. The slow start from the offense is a reminder that last year’s offense also started off slowly through the first two months — and, really, only put it together in August, when the Phillies went wild and hit 59 home runs with a .907 OPS. The team OPS was under .800 every other month. Last year, Harper was coming back from his Tommy John surgery and didn’t play until May 2, plus several players were at the World Baseball Classic. No similar excuses apply this season. — Schoenfield
Record: 4-9
Previous ranking: 8
Add the Astros to the list of teams who have a complete starting rotation currently on the IL. This week, Framber Valdez‘s sore elbow landed him on the shelf next to Justin Verlander, Luis Garcia, Lance McCullers Jr. and Jose Urquidy. We don’t yet know how long Valdez will be down, but clearly Houston is already scrambling for starting pitchers. Ronel Blanco has been a godsend and Houston summoned 40 FV (future value, per ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel) righty Spencer Arrighetti to make his MLB debut. Unranked prospect Blair Henley was selected to start on short notice against the champion Rangers, got one out and was subsequently optioned back to the minors. Expect plenty of this kind of improvisation for a while. — Doolittle
Record: 7-5
Previous ranking: 15
Everything was going swimmingly for the Cubs until Monday night when they blew an eight-run lead for the first time since 2002. The Padres were the beneficiary of several questionable moves by Chicago manager Craig Counsell, who is known as a good manager of bullpens. It underscores the point that all managers are capable of second guessing — especially when you don’t have the pieces. Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer didn’t add a reliever at last year’s deadline, nor did he add much more than Hector Neris this past offseason. It could come back to bite his team — like it did against San Diego. — Rogers
Record: 7-5
Previous ranking: 13
The Red Sox didn’t spend much money on free agents during the winter — further peeving fans following consecutive last-place finishes the past two seasons — but they have spent some on their young talent. Last month, they gave starter Brayan Bello a six-year extension. This week was Ceddanne Rafaela‘s turn, as he agreed to an eight-year, $50 million contract after playing in just 38 major league games. Rafaela, 23, is a speedster and dynamic defender, both in center field and at shortstop. That versatility is already crucial for the Red Sox. Rafaela, the club’s opening day center fielder, could see more time at shortstop after Trevor Story’s season-ending shoulder injury. — Castillo
Record: 9-3
Previous ranking: 21
Shane Bieber had dominated in his first two starts, throwing 12 scoreless innings, but then came the devastating news that he’ll undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the season. “My performance was getting back to the place I knew I was capable of,” Bieber told reporters, fighting back tears. “I was falling back in love with pitching.” During pregame introductions at the team’s home opener on Monday, the fans gave the 2020 Cy Young winner a huge ovation. For the Guardians, a rotation that was already without Gavin Williams takes a huge blow (Xzavion Curry and Ben Lively are possible replacements, although both are on rehab assignments in Triple-A right now). For Bieber, who’s heading into free agency after this season, there will be no monster contract that he would have received with a healthy season. — Schoenfield
Record: 8-3
Previous ranking: 11
Christian Yelich is off to a hot start, driving the ball like he did during his MVP year back in 2018. The following season was basically the last that he looked this dangerous. In between then and now there were some injuries and little protection in the lineup, but he looks healthy now — and, in a very small sample size, he’s destroying left-handed pitching. He’s 4-for-7 with two home runs against lefties while compiling a near one-to-one overall strikeout-to-walk ratio. This version of Yelich is essential to the Brewers’ chances. — Rogers
Record: 9-3
Previous ranking: 16
Lefty Martin Perez is proving to be a savvy pickup as he has made three starts for the Pirates and given up just four runs over 19 innings. The longtime Ranger didn’t have his best season last year, flipping between starting and relieving, but he’s only a season removed from compiling a 2.89 ERA in 2022 while making 32 starts over 196⅓ innings. Perez is the kind of veteran the Pirates need to help their young rotation. The only question is if he and the team can keep up their hot start to the season. — Rogers
Record: 7-6
Previous ranking: 10
The Rays’ desire to trade Glasnow was one of the offseason’s worst-kept secrets. The question wasn’t if it would happen, but what the Rays would collect in return for the talented, oft-injured pitcher. If Ryan Pepiot‘s start in Colorado on Sunday is any indication, Tampa Bay might have acquired a more-than-adequate replacement for Glasnow.
Pepiot held the Rockies to three hits over six scoreless innings, striking out 11 without a walk in the hitters’ haven that is Coors Field. An oblique injury limited the right-hander to eight outings with the Dodgers last season, but he was plenty good when healthy, posting a 2.14 ERA over 42 innings. The Rays clearly saw something they liked in Pepiot. Their history with pitchers suggests they’ll find a way to maximize his abilities. — Castillo
Record: 6-7
Previous ranking: 6
Asked during spring training about a potential breakout candidate on his team, D-backs general manager Mike Hazen pointed to Ketel Marte. It was a rather odd choice, given that Marte is in his age-30 season and has been in the big leagues for 10 years. We know what he is, basically — which is pretty darn good. But Hazen felt there might be yet another level for Marte, pointing to how he surged through last year’s postseason and how that might springboard him in 2024.
That proved to be the case in the early stages of this season, with Marte carrying a .342/.386/.658 slash line through his first nine games. If Marte can get back to his MVP-level production from 2019, it will go a long way toward the D-backs separating themselves from the Padres and Giants in the National League West. — Gonzalez
Record: 6-7
Previous ranking: 12
The Blue Jays launched the season with a harsh three-city road trip through Tampa, Houston and New York to give workers more time to finish Rogers Centre’s latest round of renovations. The ballpark makeover has received mixed reviews, but the club enjoyed its return home, winning two straight over the Mariners after its 4-6 start against three playoff teams. The Rockies and Yankees travel north next before the Blue Jays leave Canada again. Maybe some home cooking will get Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette going after slow starts at the plate. — Castillo
Record: 7-8
Previous ranking: 18
In case you had forgotten, Fernando Tatis Jr. is still capable of magic. We saw it once again, rather emphatically, on Monday night. Eighth inning. One on, two outs. Down a run. Brushed back on a pitch by Cubs reliever Adbert Alzolay. On the very next one, Tatis launched the game-winning home run, capping an eight-run comeback, electrifying Petco Park and celebrating as emphatically as you might think. The Padres still have superstars. Their fans are still behind them. But they’re still waiting for key guys to get going around Tatis, namely Xander Bogaerts and Manny Machado, the latter of whom is still relegated to designated hitter while recovering from offseason right elbow surgery. — Gonzalez
Record: 7-4
Previous ranking: 14
For the eternally optimistic, every new season has carried with it the renewed hope that Javier Baez can recapture some of what he once had offensively and live up to the expectation of his $140 million contract. And we once again regret to inform those people that there are no signs of that happening. Not yet, at least. Through his first nine games, Baez has mustered only five hits in 33 at-bats, striking out 11 times without drawing any walks or producing any extra-base hits. Baez struck out a NL-leading 184 times in 2021 but still produced an .813 OPS. It dropped to .671 in 2022, then .593 last season, and now, at this very early juncture, it sits at .323. — Gonzalez
Record: 6-6
Previous ranking: 20
Spencer Steer might not have garnered the headlines that Elly De La Cruz earned last year, but he’s certainly getting them now. Steer won player of the week in the NL and is putting up monster numbers one season after posting a 119 OPS+. That number is hovering around 220 right now. Meanwhile, his hard hit percentage is over 50% — up from 37% last year. He’ll surely come back down to earth, but with injuries plaguing the Reds, they need a leader at the plate after Joey Votto moved on. Steer is turning into that guy. — Rogers
Record: 5-8
Previous ranking: 9
As a rookie in 2023, right-hander Bryce Miller was half of a first-division starter. Against righty hitters, Miller was lights out, holding them to a .210/.242/.332 slash line. The news wasn’t so good against lefty swingers, though, with whom opposing managers stacked the lineup whenever Miller took the hill. Those guys hit .282/.340/.521 against him, which was a problem. The solution: a new pitch. Miller has thrown a splitter 20 times in each of his first two starts, with 28 of those 40 offerings attacking his lefty-hitting nemeses. So far: Lefties are hitting .107/.194/.214 against Miller. It’s early, yes, but that’s awfully exciting for a team that needs all the good news it can get. — Doolittle
Record: 4-6
Previous ranking: 17
Byron Buxton, an elite defensive center fielder, didn’t log one inning in the outfield in 2023. To limit his risk of injury, the injury-plagued veteran was the designated hitter in every one of his 80 games. The Twins chose to reverse course this season, and Buxton showed why Monday, robbing Teoscar Hernandez of extra bases with an all-out diving catch in right-center field. Constant major setbacks haven’t allowed Buxton, 30, to reach the potential that once made him the consensus top prospect in the sport. He has played more than 92 games in a season just once in his seven full, non-COVID-shortened campaigns. If he can stay healthy, his glovework alone will make a difference in the Twins’ pursuit of a second straight division title. — Castillo
Record: 8-4
Previous ranking: 23
While many rotations have been affected by injury-related instability so far in 2024, the starting group in Kansas City has fueled the team’s early surge. Kansas City features a top-five rotation ERA but that’s only part of the story. It’s not just one or two breakouts fueling that number — it’s the whole group. The Royals have set the pace in terms of quality starts and average game score so far. With that consistency comes volume: Their starters lead the majors in innings per start despite being middle of the pack in pitches per outing. Can it last? We’ll see, but as long as it does, Kansas City will be a threat in the AL Central. — Doolittle
Record: 5-8
Previous ranking: 19
Blake Snell‘s first start in a Giants uniform was a bit of a dud, which was probably to be expected. He gave up three runs, allowed five baserunners and threw 72 pitches in just three innings on Monday. His stuff looked electric at times, but he was clearly off after a strange offseason in which he signed on March 18, didn’t have the benefit of spring training and was forced to prepare by throwing a five-inning simulated game from Dodger Stadium before the Giants’ seventh game of the regular season. Speaking to reporters after his debut, Snell said: “I’m only going to get better. It’s going to get more crisp. First game, I’m happy it’s out of the way.” — Gonzalez
Record: 6-7
Previous ranking: 22
Is anyone shocked that the Cardinals’ starting staff ranks in the bottom third of the league in ERA? Two of their new pickups, Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson, combined to pitch 11 innings in their last outings, giving up nine runs on eight hits. They’ll both need to be better considering Sonny Gray is just coming back from injury. On the bright side, he looked great on Tuesday against the Phillies. Still, St. Louis is putting all its eggs in this basket, counting on aging starters to turn the team around. It’s a risky proposition with a low level of confidence in its success. — Rogers
Record: 6-6
Previous ranking: 25
Given Mike Trout‘s injury luck, it’ll be hard for Angels fans to avoid cringing every time he runs into a wall, gets hit by a pitch or runs hard from first to third. So far — fingers crossed — Trout has looked as good as he has in years, fueling hopes for a vintage, and complete, season for the future first-ballot Hall of Famer. He has even stolen two bases, a total he hasn’t exceeded since 2019. Trout’s six early homers have him on an epic pace, but the other part of that story is his RBI total — eight on those first six dingers. That might be a season-long disconnect. With Trout hitting third, the Angels lead the majors in OPS from the three-hole. But the combined on-base percentage for the three spots ahead of him — 9-1-2 — ranks near the bottom of the majors. — Doolittle
Record: 4-7
Previous ranking: 24
Francisco Lindor is off to such a slow start — 4-for-45 (.089) — that Mets fans are trying to organize a standing ovation for him when they return home on Friday, hoping to boost him up similar to what Phillies fans did with Trea Turner last August. It does look in part like a run of bad luck, as Lindor has just six strikeouts in 53 plate appearances. He has had just one other 11-game stretch (non-overlapping) when he hit under .100, back in September of 2016. He had an 11-game stretch last year in May and June when he hit .114, but he still managed three home runs and seven RBIs, as opposed to one home run and two RBIs in this stretch. — Schoenfield
Record: 5-7
Previous ranking: 27
An early bright spot for the Nationals is CJ Abrams, who hit .306/.359/.611 through his first nine games (he missed three games with a finger injury) with three home runs — including blasts of 423 feet and 429 feet. Those are longer than any of the 18 home runs he hit last season, a sign that his power is continuing to develop. Indeed, keep the sample size in mind here, but his average launch angle has gone from 6.8 degrees as an overmatched rookie in 2022 to 13.5 degrees in 2023 to 22.3 so far in 2024. It’s an interesting twist for a prospect once projected as more of a high-average hitter with minimal power, but who now may be turning into a 25- to 30-homer guy. — Schoenfield
Record: 2-11
Previous ranking: 26
The Marlins started 0-9 before finally breaking through on Sunday with a 10-3 win over the Cardinals. Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit two home runs while Max Meyer picked up his first MLB victory in allowing just one run and three hits over six innings. The Marlins thus avoided becoming just the seventh team since 1900 to begin the season with at least 10 consecutive losses. Meyer was impressive with his fastball/slider combo, inducing 11 groundouts. He wasn’t supposed to be in the rotation — Miami had actually optioned Meyer to the minors in March, hoping to bring him back slowly after not pitching last season — but injuries in the rotation forced the Marlins to call him back up. — Schoenfield
Record: 4-8
Previous ranking: 30
Mason Miller‘s electric arsenal plays in a number of key staff roles, but so far this season he’s a closer. He has had myriad arm issues, so the short relief gig could help protect him to a degree. Still, while his average four-seamer has ascended into triple-digits in the short stints, he has largely abandoned his changeup and cutter to this point. As a closer, Miller has shined with his four-seamer/slider combo, but it’ll be interesting to see going forward if he becomes pigeonholed as a reliever as his in-progress secondary offerings trend toward atrophy. — Doolittle
Record: 3-10
Previous ranking: 29
Kyle Freeland had a really good spring, posting a 2.37 ERA in 19 Cactus League innings, but he struggled mightily when the games began to start. The Rockies’ 30-year-old left-hander gave up a whopping 17 runs and allowed 24 of 40 batters to reach during his first two starts against the D-backs and Cubs. But Freeland was better in his third start against the division-rival D-backs (4 runs, 2 earned, in five innings) and should eventually get back to doing what he normally does — taking down innings and putting up above-average park-adjusted numbers. One good sign early on: His four-seam fastball has been averaging 92 mph, where it stood in 2020 before declining for three straight years. — Gonzalez
Record: 2-10
Previous ranking: 28
Chicago’s futility on offense is shocking but what can you expect when Eloy Jimenez, Luis Robert Jr. and now Yoan Moncada are once again out of the lineup with injuries? It has led to a historically bad start at the plate — the White Sox were shut out four times in their first 10 games and scored a total of 16 runs. That’s the fewest for an MLB team through its first 10 games since 2004 and fewest for the White Sox through 10 since 1968. They had a one day reprieve on Tuesday, scoring seven against the Guardians, but that’s the same day Moncada was lost with an adductor strain. It’s going to be a long year for Chicago. — Rogers
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David Hale
CHRISTIAN FAURIA HAD heard all the rumors about his new head coach long before he arrived in New England.
It was 2002, and the former second-round pick had just turned 30. He was a free agent for the first time in his career, on the verge of a decent payday, but he had endured countless ankle injuries, and his primary goal was to protect his body for the long term. Bill Belichick did not seem like the guy to do it.
“The reputation [Belichick had], whether he knew it or not, was he wasn’t good when it came to protecting his players,” Fauria said. “It was rumored to be really tough, and he was supposedly really snarky and unapproachable.”
Still, the New England Patriots were fresh off a Super Bowl, so Fauria rolled the dice. During his initial visit, he had told Belichick about his injury history and his hope to be handled with care to maximize his impact on Sundays, but he hadn’t held out much hope the coach would follow through.
Then came the first week of padded practices in preseason camp. Fauria was jogging out to the field when a trainer stopped him.
“You’re down today,” the trainer said.
Half the team stared at Fauria. He remembers Ty Law chirping, “Why’s he getting a day off already?” He felt a bit guilty, he said, but what was clear is Belichick had kept his word.
As the 2002 season wore on, Fauria realized, more and more, that all the rumors he had heard about his head coach were garbage. Belichick was nothing like he had assumed.
“Everybody has a different experience with Bill,” Fauria said, “but for me, I instantly trusted him, and as a coach, that’s the No. 1 thing you’re trying to achieve.”
What’s it like to play for the greatest coach in NFL history? That’s lesson No. 1. The public image looks nothing like the guy behind the curtain.
As Belichick settles into the coaching job at North Carolina — his first season in college — there are plenty of big questions about what this experiment will look like. Belichick, himself, admits he still has no idea just how good this team can be. But if the setting is new, the Belichick image — and its more grounded counterpoint — look about the same as they did during Fauria’s time in New England. Belichick is a football-obsessed, details-oriented coaching machine, who’s also a teacher at heart and, believe it or not, a pretty funny guy.
“It definitely wasn’t what I expected it to be,” Fauria said of his time with Belichick. “I thought I’d be miserable there, but it was the best four years of my playing career. [Belichick] could not have been more open and honest and approachable. More than any coach I’d ever had, really.”
WHEN QUARTERBACK Gio Lopez jumped from South Alabama to North Carolina this past spring, he knew his new home would come with its share of surreal moments, and he had been waiting for this one.
Here he was, a once-unheralded recruit, now sitting in a film room with a six-time Super Bowl champion head coach, breaking down film of Belichick’s most prized protégé, Tom Brady.
The way Lopez had always studied film was pretty straightforward: Here’s the concept. Here’s your first read, second read and so on. Belichick saw things at another level.
“He’s talking about how a fumble in the second quarter changed the way a play unfolded in the fourth quarter,” Lopez said.
Belichick is the Roger Ebert of game film. He’s obsessed, he’s critical and he sees details in what transpires on film that no one else does.
More importantly, former Patriots great Tedy Bruschi said, Belichick can translate all that information into something easily consumed by the average player in a way few others can.
“As much information as he’ll try to give you, he’ll give it to you in the simplest form he possibly can,” Bruschi said. “He teaches it where you can understand it, digest it and, OK, for my particular job, what I have to do on this play, I’m clear on that. And that’s all he wants you to think about.”
See job, do job. Leave the hard stuff to Belichick.
And so Lopez settled in to watch film of the most successful QB in NFL history with the most successful coach in NFL history expecting Belichick to gush over just how beautifully the system works.
Click.
Brady drops back. Brady unleashes a pass. Julian Edelman hauls it in for a first down.
Thoughts?
“I just thought it was a good play,” Lopez said.
That’s the mistake, Belichick explained. No play is pass-fail. There are degrees of success, and on this one, Brady had fallen well short of the mark.
“If he’d put the ball another 2 feet to the outside,” Belichick explained, “Edelman gains 15 more yards on the play. That changes the entire course of this drive.”
And the outcome of that drive changes what happens on the next one, impacts decisions made late in the game, shifts what the defense is asked to do — dominoes, each one knocking over another before reaching a final score.
Lopez shook his head. This is why he chose North Carolina. This was the secret sauce that made Belichick great, and here he was, a month removed from playing in the Sun Belt, being taught by the master.
“This guy knows it all,” Lopez said. “It’s one of those situations where you sit back, zip your lips and open your ears.”
ALGE CRUMPLER WAS at the tail end of his career when he landed with the Patriots in 2010. He was a star with the Atlanta Falcons, but his body was battered and, if he was being honest, his contributions to an NFL offense were limited now. He could block, which in New England was still a prized asset. He could teach, and the Patriots wanted a mentor for a talented young tight end by the name of Rob Gronkowski, whom they had drafted that year.
That’s what Belichick needed from Crumpler. No more, no less.
“He only puts you on the field to do the things that you’re good at,” Crumpler said.
So Crumpler was a bit surprised when he was tabbed as part of the Patriots’ leadership council that season — a backup tight end winding down his career, sharing the job with Brady, Jerod Mayo and Vince Wilfork. The way Crumpler saw it, he had no business being in the same room with those guys, so he mostly kept his mouth shut.
“I’m sitting there in that room with Tom and Jerod and Vince, and [Belichick’s] getting in-depth with them, and they’re being very candid,” Crumpler recalled. “I didn’t want to say a thing. Why do I need to say anything with this group that’s been here so many years?”
After a few minutes of conversation with the stars, Belichick finally turned and glared at Crumpler, who was silently watching the proceedings.
“You’re here for a f—ing reason,” Belichick said. “Open your mouth.”
Suddenly, a light switched on. The man at the top had given Crumpler his blessing to offer real insight on a team he’d just joined.
“It created a dialogue,” Crumpler said, “and it was a great season.”
Bruschi was already a fixture in the Patriots’ locker room when Belichick arrived in 2000, and at the time, he was best known, as Bruschi said, as “the coach who failed in Cleveland.”
That turned out to be a luxury, Bruschi said. The pair “grew up” together, a relationship of mutual respect in which the player felt empowered to push back.
After three Super Bowls, however, Bruschi saw things begin to change as new players arrived. Belichick certainly wasn’t a failure, but neither was he a normal coach anymore.
“They’d see Belichick as a legend,” Bruschi said. “It’s going to be difficult for these kids to get over the fact that he’s highly accomplished, and he’s just a coach that’s trying to get you better.”
The image is tougher to dismiss when a horde of cameras follows Belichick at every public appearance, and his girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, is a social media star.
For Belichick, however, it’s all “noise.”
“It is what it is,” Belichick said, in his typically subdued tone during an interview with ESPN.
And yet, inside the football facility, it’s an image Belichick has tried to discourage. His first team meeting he wore a suit and tie, receiver Jordan Shipp said, and after that, it was all cut-off sweatshirts.
He has made a point of being accessible to players, getting involved in all segments during practice, insisting on an air of approachability.
“Some of it is me coming to them,” Belichick said.
It’s the side of Belichick few outside the locker room see, but, if anything, it’s the real Belichick.
“You’ll see Coach laugh,” Crumpler said of his time in New England. “You never see it in the media. He can tell a story every day that will make you laugh, but still be serious at the same time. That was great.”
It was mid-May, however, and Shipp had to go to his head coach with a request for some time away.
There were meetings scheduled Shipp knew were important, but his younger brother was going to graduate that week, and …
Belichick stopped him in his tracks.
“That’s something you don’t miss,” Belichick told him.
Skip the meetings. Go home. Be with family. That mattered more.
If there’s anything the UNC sophomore has learned about his new head coach in the past eight months, it’s that the image Belichick has curated with the media has never matched reality for his players.
“Sometimes you forget it’s the greatest coach of all time,” Shipp said. “His office is always open. I can go in and watch film whenever. It’s a safe space with him at all times.”
JAMIE COLLINS HAD crushed the combine in 2013, and a slew of requests followed from teams hoping for private workouts ahead of the draft. He had participated in his share, but by early April, he was done. He had called his agent and given an ultimatum: no more.
It was a little strange then that his phone kept buzzing one morning soon after his edict. He had calls from his agent, a few coaches, some teammates. He ignored them all.
Then came the beating on his bedroom door, his roommate yelling, “Bill Belichick wants to see you.”
Belichick was interested in drafting Collins, and no mandate against additional private workouts was going to stop him from seeing the guy play, so he simply showed up in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, unannounced, and expected Collins to comply.
Collins did.
“He put me through it, man,” Collins said. “He tried to break me.”
Collins’ determination was the last thing Belichick needed to see before the Patriots drafted him in the second round. He would spend seven years playing for Belichick before following him into coaching this year at North Carolina.
That’s the other part of Belichick’s magic formula, Collins said. He wants players willing to maximize all Belichick has to teach them. It’s a two-way street. He demands much, but the buy-in from his players — they have to provide that willingly. That’s the test they must pass before they can gain access to the vault of football knowledge Belichick has to share.
Upon arrival in Chapel Hill, Belichick branded the Tar Heels as “the 33rd NFL team,” conjuring an image of militaristic fervor — all football, all the time. And yet, UNC’s players insist it’s not that way at all. If anything, they’re enjoying more freedom than ever.
“I was expecting him to be a lot of what you see in interviews — very mundane, always cussing you out,” safety Will Hardy said. “He’s an encourager.”
Yes, Belichick has brought a lot of the NFL to UNC — GM Michael Lombardi, a former Patriots strength coach, a chef.
But, Lopez said, there are fewer meetings than he was used to at South Alabama, and while the players are expected to work with a sense of professionalism, Belichick and his staff have largely allowed them the freedom to do so without micromanagement.
“They expect you to want to be great,” Lopez said. “It’s more like they expect you to want to learn it. It’s a lot different than South Alabama. They give you more room to function.”
He did that in pros, and he’s giving the Tar Heels the same freedom to choose their path.
“He treats you like a grown man,” Collins said. “And he’s going to provide everything you need to be successful. That’s where that expectation comes from. He’s not going to ask anything from you that he hasn’t already given you [what] you need to accomplish it.”
There are ample questions about how Belichick’s NFL pedigree will translate to the college game, and his interactions with 18- to 22-year-old players is at the top of the list.
But Collins admits that might be the one way his old coach has changed. Belichick has softened around the edges a bit.
“I’ve seen the Bill that was coaching us,” said Collins, UNC’s inside linebackers coach. “And I’ve seen a different side of Bill coaching these guys. That’s the eliteness of him, understanding situations. It’s what makes him great. It’s still Bill though.”
Fauria thinks the new age of college football actually lends to Belichick’s strengths. Players view themselves as professionals more than ever before, and in a game increasingly determined by dollars and cents, the old rules of placating personalities rather than simply paying for talent are out the window.
“If this was 10 years ago, I don’t know if he’d have the stomach for it,” Fauria said. “I’m not sure if he’s willing to go to someone’s house and do ‘The Electric Slide’ in someone’s living room. But Bill is prepared for this. He’s tailor-made for this job based on how it has evolved.”
Will it look a little different at North Carolina? Probably, but the core of the process, Bruschi said, won’t change. From those first days in the Patriots’ locker room in 2000 to the first days in Chapel Hill now, Belichick is the same guy with the same laser focus on football and the same approach to building a team. The success or failure of that methodology will, according to the players who’ve won rings with him in New England, depend on how much these Tar Heels are willing to maximize the experience, not on how well Belichick adapts to his new surroundings.
“If you’re looking for structure, you’re going to get it,” Fauria said. “If you’re looking for knowledge, you’re going to get it. If you’re looking for a road map and directions and information and the why — why are we doing this? — he literally tells you. He’d give you examples. Tons of information. When people say he’s going to have you more prepared than anybody, I don’t think that’s hyperbole. It’s demanding and it’s hard, but if you crave the challenge and appreciate the grind and you love football, there’s nobody better.”
ARLINGTON, Texas — Nathan Eovaldi‘s impressive streak for Texas ended with a dud, but without a decision in a victory that the wild card-chasing Rangers really needed.
After going 6-0 with a 0.47 ERA in six starts since the start of July, Eovaldi was tagged for three home runs while allowing season highs of five runs and eight hits in five innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday night. The Rangers were down 5-1 when he exited, but won 7-6 in 10 innings to end their four-game losing streak.
“That’s all that matters at the end of the day,” Eovaldi said. “Regardless how well I do out there or anything, it’s about the team winning the games. Especially with where we are at this point of the season and everything.”
The 35-year-old right-hander struck out three, walked one and hit two batters. He got a no-decision because Rowdy Tellez homered in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game, and Jake Burger delivered a pinch-hit RBI single in the 10th.
“Nate’s been so, so good. And he just showed that, hey, you’re gonna have occasional games where you don’t quite command it as well. And they took advantage of it,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “But he’s picked us up so many times. So man, what a great job by the boys. And find a way to win that ball game with just a gutty effort by everybody, bullpen, hitters. We needed this one.”
Eovaldi had given up only six runs total over his previous seven starts, and half of those runs came in the same game. There had only been two long balls against him his past 14 games.
When he pitched one-hit ball over eight innings in a 2-0 win over the New York Yankees last Tuesday, it was the 13th time in a 14-game span allowing one or zero runs. Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson is the only pitcher since 1900 to record that kind of streak, according to STATS, and he did it in 1968, the season he won both the NL Cy Young and MVP awards.
“I’ve got to make better pitches, stick to my strengths and what’s worked for me all year,” Eovaldi said. “And I kind of got away from that a little bit tonight.”
Even though Evoladi’s overall ERA rose from 1.38 to 1.71, that is still better than the 1.94 of qualified MLB leader Paul Skenes. The AL leader is reigning Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal at 2.35.
Eovaldi, who missed most of June with elbow inflammation, has thrown 116 innings in the Rangers’ 120 games. Pitchers need one inning per team game to qualify as a league leader.
Arizona’s first five batters were retired before rookie first baseman Tyler Locklear homered in the second. Jake McCarthy opened the third with a double and Corbin Carrol followed with his 26th homer, a shot that ricocheted off the right-field pole. Ketel Marte was then hit by a pitch on his left elbow before Geraldo Perdomo’s 12th homer for a 5-0 lead.
“I didn’t feel like my splitter was as good as it has been. I thought I threw a lot of pitches up at the top of the strike zone, and I feel like that’s where a lot the damage was,” Eovaldi said. “I fell behind in some of the counts. The Perdomo at-bat, I yanked a fastball right down the middle. … The two-run shots, they hurt.”
Eovaldi benefitted from double plays in both the fourth and fifth innings to avoid giving up any more run. The Dbacks were coming off a 17-hit game in their 13-6 win at home over Colorado on Sunday, when they set a franchise record with nine consecutive hits in the fifth inning – all with two outs.
Only four MLB pitchers since 1920 had a lower ERA than the 1.38 for Eovaldi in the first 19 starts of a season, with Gibson’s 1.06 for St. Louis in 1968 the lowest.
This is Eovaldi’s third season with the Rangers, who gave him the $100,000 All-Star bonus that is in his contract even though he was left off the American League All-Star team last month.
HOUSTON — Astros‘ All-Star closer Josh Hader was unavailable Monday night after experiencing shoulder discomfort.
Manager Joe Espada said after Houston’s 7-6 win over the Red Sox that the left-hander said “he just did not feel right” after a workout Monday, and the Astros sent him for testing.
“We’re waiting on those results, and we should have something more tomorrow,” Espada said.
Espada didn’t specify which shoulder was bothering Hader.
Hader, who is in his second season in Houston, is 6-2 with a 2.05 ERA and is tied for third in the majors with 28 saves in 48 appearances this season.
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