Culture
MLB Power Rankings: Royals, Padres shake up top 10; Our picks for each team’s MVP
![MLB Power Rankings: Royals, Padres shake up top 10; Our picks for each team’s MVP MLB Power Rankings: Royals, Padres shake up top 10; Our picks for each team’s MVP](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,height=630,fit=cover/app/uploads/2024/09/09214221/0910_MLB-Power-Rankings-1-scaled.jpg)
By Tim Britton, Chad Jennings and Kaitlyn McGrath
Every week, we ask a selected group of our baseball writers — local and national — to rank the teams from first to worst. Here are the collective results.
All right, enough fooling around. There are less than three weeks left in the regular season, and these games are starting to carry real weight and significance. These wins and losses really mean something.
The Mets got red-hot last week to stay very much in the hunt. The Royals swept the Twins over the weekend to take control of a wild-card spot. The Red Sox failed to sweep the White Sox — after being swept by the Mets — and the Diamondbacks narrowly avoided being swept by the Astros, affecting the bottom of each league’s playoff race.
It’s mid-September, and it’s time for Power Rankings to carry that same sense of urgency and importance.
We did this back in April, when it was way too early and a just-for-fun kind of thing. This time, we mean it.
Each team’s MVP. Go!
Record: 86-58
Last Power Ranking: 1
One-month MVP: Mookie Betts
Five-month MVP: Shohei Ohtani
Is Ohtani the frontrunner for National League MVP right now? We’d put the chances at, oh, something like 50/50? As in, once he gets to 50 homers and 50 steals, the race might as well be over. A year after Ronald Acuña Jr. made history as the sport’s first 40/70 player, Ohtani is doing something even more remarkable. And he’s doing it for a Dodgers team confronted with an unexpected amount of adversity. Los Angeles lost Betts and Max Muncy for significant stretches and Freddie Freeman for a shorter one. Its rotation still requires sorting out. (Ohtani can’t help there until next year.) But as usual, LA is still at the top of the NL — because Ohtani is the NL’s best hitter. — Tim Britton
Record: 86-58
Last Power Ranking: 2
One-month MVP: Ranger Suárez
Five-month MVP: Zack Wheeler
At what point does — or did — Wheeler become the most reliable starting arm in baseball? The guy you trust most to give you 30 starts and 200 quality innings or take the ball in a big game? Wheeler’s in year five of sparkling results for the Phillies, and hasn’t hit the injured list since 2022. That’s despite big innings counts in consecutive Octobers.
Wheeler has been the leader of the National League’s best rotation. Aaron Nola has rebounded from a down 2023 while lefties Suárez and Cristopher Sánchez have bloomed into front-end starters. Philadelphia has built its playoff runs the last two autumns on its stars; it has more depth now. — Britton
Record: 83-61
Last Power Ranking: 3
One-month MVP: Juan Soto
Five-month MVP: Aaron Judge
Judge already has one of the 30-highest WAR seasons of all time, and he may soon have another. As measured by FanGraphs WAR, this season may surpass Judge’s 2022 when he finished with 11.1 WAR (21st all-time among position players). It seems inevitable he will at least reach double-digit WAR this season. He leads the majors in home runs, walks, RBIs and OPS. In almost any other season, Soto’s tremendous year would be a shoo-in for team MVP, but the distinction belongs to Judge without question. — Chad Jennings
Record: 82-61
Last Power Ranking: 4
One-month MVP: Brice Turang
Five-month MVP: Willy Adames
As the Brewers cruise to an NL Central title and position themselves as the team to watch out for in October, they can credit a few noteworthy performances in helping them get there. Turang had a strong first half but faded in the second half. Meanwhile, rookie Jackson Chourio has done the reverse and has used an impressive second half to vault himself into the NL Rookie of the Year conversation. William Contreras has been a constant behind the plate and leads the team in OPS, but ever-so-slightly edging him out for team MVP is Adames, who has a team-leading 30 home runs – including 13 three-run home runs, tying Ken Griffey Jr. for the most in a single season. Adames had played all 143 games this season at shortstop and, as Cody Stavenhagen wrote, he is the team’s “emotional catalyst.” — Kaitlyn McGrath
Record: 82-63
Last Power Ranking: 5
One-month MVP: Gunnar Henderson
Five-month MVP: Gunnar Henderson
Corbin Burnes has been the experienced ace the Orioles needed. Colton Cowser is having a fantastic rookie season and is a favorite to win AL Rookie of the Year. Anthony Santander is on pace to hit a career-best 40 home runs. But, four months later, it’s still Henderson who remains the Orioles MVP. He leads the club in 7.3 fWAR and has hit a career-high 36 home runs. His odds of winning the AL MVP may have slipped since April, as Aaron Judge and Bobby Witt Jr. have emerged as heavy favorites, but Henderson has been the Orioles’ most consistent hitter this season. — McGrath
Most home runs by an @Orioles shortstop in a single season:
Gunnar Henderson: 35 (2024)
Miguel Tejada: 34 (2004)
Cal Ripken Jr.: 34 (1991) pic.twitter.com/CmHqo4pQM3— MLB (@MLB) September 4, 2024
Record: 81-64
Last Power Ranking: 8
One-month MVP: Dylan Cease
Five-month MVP: Jurickson Profar
It’s like we all expected at the start of the season: On a roster with Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts and Fernando Tatis Jr., the five-month MVP really comes down to Jackson Merrill or Profar. A team that looked like it had zero outfielders at the start of spring training has instead boasted two of the very best in the NL this season, and Profar gets the edge here thanks to the consistency of his late-game heroics.
Remember last season for San Diego? When the Padres posted one of the strangest offensive seasons in memory, thanks to their utter inability to come through in the clutch? Well, Profar has been the most clutch hitter in baseball this season, with the sport’s best OPS in high-leverage moments. He ranks behind only Aaron Judge in win probability added. He was released by the Rockies last season! This sport is incredible. — Britton
Record: 82-62
Last Power Ranking: 7
One-month MVP: Steven Kwan
Five-month MVP: José Ramírez
Kwan and Josh Naylor have been great, and Emmanuel Clase is the best reliever in the game, and Tanner Bibee has lifted a rotation that badly needed the help. But let’s not overthink this. Ramírez is one of the game’s great players, and he’s proving it again this season with a frankly typical year that will end with his fifth straight top-10 MVP finish. In fact, it will probably be his sixth-ever top-six MVP finish. Ramírez turns 32 later this month and is signed through 2028, meaning he has time to make a real case for Cooperstown when all’s said and done. — Jennings
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Record: 80-64
Last Power Ranking: 6
One-month MVP: Ketel Marte
Five-month MVP: Ketel Marte
As the Diamondbacks clawed their way back into contention, Marte helped by having a legitimate MVP-esque season before he injured his left ankle on Aug. 18 and landed on the IL. At the time of his injury, Marte ranked fourth in the NL with a 5.4 fWAR, per MLB.com, and was hitting .298 with 30 home runs. After being sidelined for about three weeks, he returned to the lineup last Friday, but even with the time missed, he still leads the Diamondbacks in fWAR, home runs and OPS. Ohtani is pulling away as the NL MVP favorite, but Marte could still finish as a finalist. More importantly, his return helps a D-Backs team eager to play spoiler in October once again. — McGrath
Record: 79-66
Last Power Ranking: 11
One-month MVP: Bobby Witt Jr.
Five-month MVP: Bobby Witt Jr.
If it were possible to merge Seth Lugo, Cole Ragans, Brady Singer and Michael Wacha into one player, the Royals’ team MVP … might still be Witt. The top of the team’s rotation has been excellent, with Ragans and Lugo providing especially valuable (and unexpected) impact, but Witt is doing something historic. He might not win the AL MVP because of Aaron Judge but he’s making it a close race by delivering perhaps the greatest season by a shortstop since Honus Wagner (or, at the very least, the greatest season by a shortstop since Lou Boudreau or Cal Ripken Jr.). — Jennings
Record: 78-66
Last Power Ranking: 10
One-month MVP: Marcell Ozuna
Five-month MVP: Chris Sale
Ozuna hasn’t really slowed down, and he’s been the linchpin to a stunningly makeshift lineup for Atlanta. But the choice here is still Sale, who might just be having the best year of his career. In case you forgot, Sale earned Cy Young votes in each of his first seven seasons as a starter, but never won the award. He hasn’t received any votes over the last five years, when he made 56 total starts. But Alex Anthopoulos’ gamble to acquire Sale — and to double-down by extending him shortly after — has blossomed into one of the offseason’s best moves. With Spencer Strider out and Max Fried uncharacteristically inconsistent, and on an Atlanta team in an absolute fight for the postseason, Sale has been an anchor and the best pitcher in the National League. — Britton
Record: 77-66
Last Power Ranking: 9
One-month MVP: Jose Altuve
Five-month MVP: Yordan Alvarez
Step 1: Go ahead and type Altuve’s name into the five-month slot. Step 2: Look up the stats that surely will show Altuve has remained the Astros’ team MVP. Step 3: Realize just how good Alvarez has been. Step 4: Type Alvarez’s name instead. Seriously, this guy has been one of the five best hitters in baseball while playing about a third of his games in left field. And he’s been at his best in the second half, when the Astros have pulled themselves into a firm lead in the AL West. Altuve is awesome, Framber Valdez and Ronel Blanco have been great, but Alvarez is the Astros’ MVP. — Jennings
Record: 79-65
Last Power Ranking: 13
One-month MVP: Reed Garrett
Five-month MVP: Francisco Lindor
Not only was Lindor not the Mets’ MVP in April, but you could make a case that Lindor was one of the sport’s worst hitters then, ending the month with a .197 batting average. Since then, thanks to his two-way brilliance, he’s been unquestionably the best player in the National League. His OPS is right around .900 since the start of May and he’s played elite defense at shortstop, catalyzing New York’s own about-face in the standings. Lindor’s move to the leadoff spot sparked an offensive revival, and he has found himself in a number of crucial late-game moments. He’s also started all but one game this season.
Once 11 games under .500, the Mets have been the majors’ best team since June 3 and a legitimate contender not only to get to October, but to do something when there. —Britton
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Record: 76-68
Last Power Ranking: 12
One-month MVP: Edouard Julien
Five-month MVP: Griffin Jax
It was hard to pin down a Twins MVP. After his strong start, Julien spent the season shuffling between the major and minor leagues. Carlos Correa had an MVP first half but hasn’t played since the All-Star break. Bryon Buxton and Royce Lewis have also been on and off the IL all season. Joe Ryan had been having a nice season until an injury ended his year. That leaves Jax, who has been a constant for Minnesota. Jax has a career-best 2.01 ERA with 81 strikeouts in 62 2/3 innings. He’s tied his career-best mark in holds with 23 and has eight saves this season. It’s been an uneven season for the Twins, filled with injuries, but at least Jax has been a reliable arm out of the pen. — McGrath
Record: 73-71
Last Power Ranking: 17
One-month MVP: Logan Gilbert
Five-month MVP: Logan Gilbert
What was true in April remains true five months later: The Mariners have a very good rotation, led by Gilbert. The 27-year-old right-hander was a first-time All-Star and leads the Mariners with 185 2/3 innings pitched, a 3.15 ERA and 4.1 fWAR. Unfortunately, this also remains true: The Mariners have a flawed lineup, resulting in a free fall that saw them squander a 10-game lead in the AL West and eventually led to the firing of their manager. If the Mariners miss the postseason, we’ll look back on their season and bemoan how they let their subpar offense waste a rotation seemingly built for playoff success. — McGrath
Record: 74-70
Last Power Ranking: 14
One-month MVP: Shota Imanaga
Five-month MVP: Shota Imanaga
Imanaga placed the cherry on top of his sterling rookie campaign with seven innings in Chicago’s combined no-hitter against the Pirates. A team’s record behind an individual starter can occasionally be misleading — check out Jacob deGrom, 2018-2019 for a trip — but the Cubs’ 20-6 mark with Imanaga on the mound is the best for any starter in baseball. The left-hander should receive down-ballot Cy Young consideration for a season that, right now, includes more than 150 innings, a sub-3.00 ERA and a league-leading strikeout-to-walk ratio. With better play lately, the Cubs may match or exceed their 83 wins from last season. But that doesn’t look to be nearly as close to the postseason in a tougher National League. — Britton
Record: 73-71
Last Power Ranking: 16
One-month MVP: Tarik Skubal
Five-month MVP: Tarik Skubal
It’s always hard to compare pitchers and hitters, and there’s no universal agreement about what to do with pitchers on an MVP ballot. But even in an MVP race loaded with elite seasons, Skubal is sure to get some down-ballot votes in the American League. He’s the favorite for Cy Young and ranks eighth in the league in fWAR. Left fielder Riley Greene has had an excellent season and would be a fine team MVP, but it’s Skubal who’s really been the best player on the Tigers. — Jennings
![go-deeper](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=128,height=128,fit=cover,format=auto/app/uploads/2024/09/04170056/0905_MLB_Top50_Prospects-1024x512.png)
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Record: 73-71
Last Power Ranking: 15
One-month MVP: Tanner Houck
Five-month MVP: Jarren Duran
Duran was a seventh-round pick who quickly became a top-100 prospect but then struggled for two years to establish himself in the big leagues. He began to find his footing last season, but he’s reached unforeseen heights this year. He’s the first player ever to record 40 doubles, 30 stolen bases, 20 home runs and 10 triples in a season. He’s already been named All-Star Game MVP, and at season’s end, Duran may very well finish top five in a crowded and elite race for American League MVP. — Jennings
Record: 72-71
Last Power Ranking: 18
One-month MVP: Sonny Gray
Five-month MVP: Masyn Winn
While Gray has remained St. Louis’ best starting pitcher, Winn has emerged as the Cardinals’ most reliable position player — partly the result of his excellent first full season in the majors and partly the result of injuries to Willson Contreras and underperformance from Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt. Winn has avoided the deep slumps that often hinder rookies and produced at above a league-average clip with the bat while bringing Gold Glove-caliber defense at shortstop. In a season that has again posed questions about the long-term direction in St. Louis, there are zero queries about who’s playing short for the next decade. — Britton
Record: 71-73
Last Power Ranking: 20
One-month MVP: Isaac Paredes
Five-month MVP: Brandon Lowe
Paredes still leads the team in WAR, but he’s been playing for the Chicago Cubs since the trade deadline, so there’s not really a slam dunk team MVP for the disappointing Rays. None of their pitchers performed up to their usual standards, and top prospect Junior Caminero’s been with them less than a month (though he’s been quite good). Jose Siri and Jose Caballero have been excellent defenders but neither has hit a ton. Lowe, though, is a good fit for this label. He missed time with an injury (again), but he’s been the Rays’ best hitter for much of the season and he’s a link to the team’s past success. — Jennings
Record: 71-73
Last Power Ranking: 19
One-month MVP: Logan Webb
Five-month MVP: Matt Chapman
When in doubt, go with the guy who just signed the $150 million contract extension. That probably reveals how the team feels about him, no? Not that there really was doubt here: Chapman is delivering his best all-around season since maybe 2019 in Oakland, when he finished sixth in the MVP balloting. He’s as terrific as ever at the hot corner, and his offense has rebounded after flat-lining in the final five months of the 2023 season with the Blue Jays. That’s star-level performance for a franchise that had struck out hunting it on the open market in recent years. So it’s no surprise they went wherever necessary to keep Chapman in the Bay through 2030. — Britton
Record: 70-74
Last Power Ranking: 22
One-month MVP: Marcus Semien
Five-month MVP: Corey Seager
He hasn’t been quite as good as he was last year (when he finished second in AL MVP voting), but Seager’s had another really nice season reminiscent of his early seasons with the Dodgers. There should be space on a Rangers MVP ballot, though, for Josh Smith, Kirby Yates and David Robertson, all of whom provided tremendous impact beyond what was probably expected heading into the year. If more Rangers had followed their lead, the team might actually have a chance to defend its title. — Jennings
Record: 70-75
Last Power Ranking: 23
One-month MVP: Elly De La Cruz
Five-month MVP: Elly De La Cruz
As a team, the Reds didn’t take the step forward into contention as was expected this season. Still, individually, De La Cruz has established himself as one of the game’s most exciting young players to watch. At 6.2 fWAR, he’s been worth more than double any other position player on the Reds. As of Monday, he led his team in home runs (23), OPS (.820) and he leads his team — and the majors — in stolen bases with 62. That’s 16 more than Ohtani, who is second in stolen bases with 46. As the Reds look to improve ahead of next season and try to return to the postseason, the goal will be finding a way to build around De La Cruz further. — McGrath
Elly De La Cruz shows off the range to take away a hit. 😎 pic.twitter.com/NA7w74N2Cc
— MLB (@MLB) September 8, 2024
Record: 68-77
Last Power Ranking: 21
One-month MVP: Jose Berrios
Five-month MVP: Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
At the end of April, Guerrero was hitting .229/.331/.347 with a 100 wRC+ and there were serious questions about whether he could ever replicate the near-MVP season in 2021. But since May 1, Guerrero has slashed .350/.414/.611 with 186 wRC+ and 25 home runs. (Stats don’t include Monday’s game). Only Aaron Judge — likely to be a finalist for AL MVP — has a higher wRC+ in that same span. Even after a slow first month, there is no question Guerrero has been the Blue Jays’ MVP this season, and he has also re-established himself in the upper echelon of the game’s best hitters. The Blue Jays have been relegated to postseason spoiler — they’ve had a direct hand in the NL wild-card race with back-to-back series against the Braves and Mets — but at least Guerrero has given fans something to cheer for. — McGrath
Record: 68-76
Last Power Ranking: 24
One-month MVP: Jared Jones
Five-month MVP: Paul Skenes
Skenes couldn’t have been the Pirates’ MVP after the first month because he wasn’t yet in the majors. The rookie didn’t get called up until early May. But he made up for lost time. His 3.3 fWAR co-leads the Pirates alongside Oneil Cruz and his 2.13 ERA leads Pirates pitchers. In fact, among pitchers with at least 110 innings pitched, his ERA ranks second and his 32 percent strikeout rate ranks fourth. Skenes has been fantastic, but Jones is having a solid season in his own right, despite missing a month with a lat strain with a 3.91 ERA in 18 starts. Skenes is in the mix for NL Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Awards – and while he may not be the favorite for those honors, he is the runaway Pirates’ MVP. — McGrath
Record: 64-79
Last Power Ranking: 26
One-month MVP: CJ Abrams
Five-month MVP: Luis García Jr.
While sympathetic to the argument that MacKenzie Gore has had a better season than García, we’re going with the second baseman because of what it means moving forward. Gore had already shown he could be a major-league-capable starting pitcher. García’s long-term role on a rebuilding roster was very much up for debate entering 2024, and he’s now solidified another important position for a team gradually checking the boxes for a return to relevance. Still just 24, García’s hit for more power this season and turned in a borderline top-five offensive season for second basemen in the league. That’s helped mitigate the disappointment of Abrams’ step back since April, with the shortstop tripping a little bit in his leap to star status. — Britton
Record: 62-82
Last Power Ranking: 25
One-month MVP: Mason Miller
Five-month MVP: Brent Rooker
If a DH can win the MVP in the National League — which Ohtani might do — then surely a DH can be the MVP of the Oakland A’s. Miller, J.J. Bleday, and Lawrence Butler have been really good, and Shea Langeliers has shown serious pop, but Rooker has been one of the best hitters in the majors. By wRC+, he meaningfully trails only Judge and Soto, he’s basically tied with Witt, and he’s been better than Ohtani, Guerrero or Ozuna. — Jennings
Record: 60-84
Last Power Ranking: 27
One-month MVP: Mike Trout
Five-month MVP: Zach Neto
If you stopped paying attention to this team in April, you’d probably expect Trout to remain the team MVP, but we’ve got some bad news for you. If you stopped paying attention to this team at the deadline, you’d probably expect it to be Tyler Anderson, Taylor Ward or Luis Rengifo — all of whom generated a ton of trade speculation. But 23-year-old Neto has been excellent in the second half, giving him the team lead in WAR. The team’s first-round pick in 2022 has been one of the few Angels’ bright spots in an otherwise bleak season. — Jennings
Record: 54-90
Last Power Ranking: 28
One-month MVP: Trevor Rogers
Five-month MVP: Jake Burger
Even though Rogers is a member of the Norfolk Tides now, it’s possible he’s got an even stronger case as the Marlins’ 2024 MVP; trading Rogers away is how Miami landed Connor Norby and Kyle Stowers from Baltimore. On the other hand, Burger has rebounded from a rough start at the plate; at one point, he socked 16 homers in 33 games. The Marlins will need the better Burger next year for all 162. — Britton
Record: 54-90
Last Power Ranking: 29
One-month MVP: Brenton Doyle
Five-month MVP: Brenton Doyle
It may be another familiar last-place finish for the Rockies this year, but there has been a lot to like about Doyle’s sophomore season. The center fielder cut down his 35 percent strikeout rate from last year to a more manageable 26.6 percent while also improving his walk rate to eight percent. He’s more than doubled his home run total from last year, hitting 22 compared to just 10 last year. Meanwhile, defensively, he’s remained one of the game’s best defensive outfielders and ranks third among all center fielders in Outs Above Average with 13. He leads the Rockies with 3.8 fWAR and easily qualifies as the team’s MVP. — McGrath
Record: 33-112
Last Power Ranking: 30
One-month MVP: Campfire Milkshake
Five-month MVP: N/A
After one month, as the White Sox stumbled to a 6-23 start, it was cute to name a decadent chocolate milkshake as their MVP. At the time, it was the main attraction drawing crowds to the field, while the woeful South Siders played in the background. But beyond the gag, it was a clear signal that there might not be much to cheer about. That has indeed been the case as the club has already set a franchise record for losses in a season and is on pace for a 124-loss season which would break the MLB record for losses, eclipsing the 1962 Mets, who went 40-120. Yes, it’s all very, very bad, which is why we’ve chosen to abstain from naming a White Sox MVP. Not even a delicious milkshake can salvage this season. — McGrath
(Top photo of Bobby Witt Jr.: Ed Zurga / Getty Images)
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Culture
Giants’ Daniel Jones looked like a broken QB, but benching him now would be an overreaction
![Giants’ Daniel Jones looked like a broken QB, but benching him now would be an overreaction Giants’ Daniel Jones looked like a broken QB, but benching him now would be an overreaction](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,height=630,fit=cover/app/uploads/2024/09/10071947/GettyImages-2170995886-scaled.jpg)
Is the New York Giants’ season already on the brink after one game? That’s how it feels after a disheartening 28-6 loss to the Vikings in Sunday’s season opener.
Here’s a final look at yet another discouraging season opener:
Jones’ last stand?
Giants quarterback Daniel Jones made the first start of the second season since signing a four-year, $160 million contract on Sunday. He has only made seven starts since signing that deal and has only finished five games.
Yet, coach Brian Daboll fielded questions postgame Sunday and again during his Monday postmortem about whether he will bench Jones. Daboll affirmed that he is sticking with Jones.
It may seem wild that Daboll is fielding those questions so early in the season. But it’s wilder that the questions are completely legitimate.
It’s not just that Jones didn’t perform well in Sunday’s loss. It’s that he looked like a rattled, broken quarterback. He looked even worse than he did last season when serious concerns about his future were raised by poor performance and injuries.
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Benching Jones after one ugly showing in his return from a torn ACL would be an overreaction. But it’s fair to wonder about the length of his leash.
Daboll had a quick hook for underperforming veterans in his first two seasons. Wide receiver Kenny Golladay was benched after one game in 2022, and guard Mark Glowinski got the same treatment last season.
But changing quarterbacks is a far more consequential decision, especially with no assurances that backup Drew Lock will be a significant upgrade. It would be much different if Giants general manager Joe Schoen had successfully traded up for a quarterback in this year’s draft. The calls to play the rookie would be deafening already. Think back to Jones’ rookie season in 2019 when he took over as the starter after franchise icon Eli Manning was benched in Week 3.
Even without a quarterback of the future waiting in the wings, Daboll’s patience will grow thin if Jones doesn’t turn things around quickly. A favorable matchup against a bad Commanders defense that allowed 37 points in a Week 1 loss to the Buccaneers could signal Jones’ last stand.
If Jones flops against the Commanders, a quarterback change should become a serious consideration next week.
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Not a concern
It’s obvious that Jones’ injury guarantee — the Giants will owe him $23 million if he suffers an injury and can’t pass a physical if the team cuts him next offseason — isn’t weighing on Daboll’s mind.
Daboll called three power runs for Jones, exposing the quarterback to additional hits in his first game back from a major injury. Jones needs to use his legs to be an effective quarterback, so Daboll can’t call plays with a fear of injury.
Trailing 28-6, Daboll called timeouts to get the ball back during Minnesota’s final possession. The Vikings punted to the Giants with 1:36 remaining, and Daboll kept Jones in the game.
The only explanation for keeping the quarterback and the rest of the starters in for a garbage-time drive is that Daboll was trying to give the offense a chance to end the game with some positive feelings. Instead, Jones took two more hits on a pathetic drive that resulted in a punt back to the Vikings with 29 seconds remaining.
![go-deeper](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=128,height=128,fit=cover,format=auto/app/uploads/2024/09/08185151/GettyImages-2170861938.jpg)
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The two decisions that look even worse for the Giants today
Outmatched
Brian Flores was a finalist for the Giants’ head coaching job that went to Daboll in 2022. Flores infamously didn’t get that job — and he still has a pending discrimination lawsuit against the Giants, Broncos, Texans and the NFL — so the Vikings defensive coordinator had extra motivation to make a statement on Sunday.
Flores certainly got the better of Daboll in the battle of former Bill Belichick assistants.
Daboll’s game plan was based on an expectation of a pressure-heavy attack from the ultra-aggressive Flores. But Flores threw a curveball, blitzing on just 22.4 percent of the snaps on Sunday, according to Next Gen Stats. Flores led the league with a 48.8 percent blitz rate last season.
The Giants leaned on heavy personnel with two and three tight ends in an attempt to minimize the exotic looks Flores could deploy on early downs. That was understandable in theory, but it didn’t play to the Giants’ strengths, which are at wide receiver. They don’t have dynamic receiving weapons at tight end, so getting the Vikings to put bigger defensive personnel on the field didn’t yield mismatches in the passing game.
ICYMI: Catch up with @DDuggan21 and I’s live room from yesterday. AKA a very nice therapy session for #giants fans. https://t.co/S4Ku1u0ucM
— Charlotte Carroll (@charlottecrrll) September 10, 2024
The Vikings electing not to send extra rushers against the Giants’ big personnel led to multiple max protect pass plays with seven or eight defenders in coverage. That helps explain the lack of a deep passing attack because the Vikings had plenty of defensive backs to cover two receivers running routes.
Conceivably, the bigger personnel would be a boost for the run game, but the Giants couldn’t get anything going on the ground. Devin Singletary, Eric Gray and Tyrone Tracy combined for 45 yards on 14 carries (3.2 yards per carry).
The inability to run the ball or pass effectively on early downs forced the Giants into a whopping 18 third downs. The Giants went 6-for-11 on third-and-7 and shorter and 1-for-7 on third-and-8 and longer. Obviously, getting into so many third-and-longs is not a recipe for success, especially because that allowed Flores to deploy the type of looks Daboll was aiming to avoid.
Getting conservative
Daboll appears to have lost his nerve as an aggressive coach. After conservatively calling a pair of Jones keepers, Daboll was faced with fourth-and-3 from the Vikings’ 49-yard line with four minutes left in the second quarter. Trailing 14-3, Daboll elected to punt. The lack of confidence in the offense was palpable on the two Jones runs and the decision to punt.
Trailing 28-6 late in the third quarter, the Giants had fourth-and-3 on their own 37-yard line. Daboll kept the offense on the field, but it was just so Jones could try to draw the Vikings offside with a hard count. That didn’t work, so the Giants took a delay of game penalty and punted. It probably wouldn’t have mattered if the Giants converted in that spot, but Daboll waved the white flag with the punt.
Strange choices
There were some head-scratching personnel decisions in the opener. Cor’Dale Flott, who worked exclusively at outside corner during the offseason, was the starting slot corner in the Giants’ nickel package. Rookie Dru Phillips, who had won the starting slot corner job in camp, was relegated to a reduced role in the dime package.
“Just getting ready to go here for the first game, we thought that that was the best thing for us,” Daboll said.
Phillips made an impact in limited action, forcing a fumble on his first career snap. Phillips took over as the slot cornerback in the second half after corner Nick McCloud left with a knee injury, and Flott shifted outside.
Daboll indicated Flott will probably play outside more going forward, especially with McCloud “day-to-day, maybe week-to-week.”
Linebacker Micah McFadden didn’t play despite not being listed as questionable on the injury report. McFadden had been dealing with a groin injury that limited him in practice last week. Daboll said McFadden was on a pitch count, but wasn’t used because rookie Darius Muasau played well. Muasau tallied six tackles and an interception while playing 82 percent of the snaps in his debut.
Returner Gunner Olszewski aggravated his groin injury in pregame warmups and will be out “weeks,” according to Daboll. While a pregame re-injury was impossible to predict, the Giants paid for not having a true backup punt returner active considering Olszewski clearly wasn’t 100 percent.
The Giants only had 51 players on the active roster for the opener in a cost-cutting move. That made it indefensible to not have a backup punt returner on the roster. Wide receiver Darius Slayton, who had no punt returns in his first five seasons, was forced to replace Olszewski. That was an adventure, as Slayton failed to field his first punt cleanly and then fumbled the return.
The Giants signed Ihmir Smith-Marsette to replace Olszewski after working out returners on Monday. A fifth-round pick by the Vikings in 2021, Smith-Marsette has been on four teams in three seasons. He averaged 8.7 yards on 37 punt returns for the Panthers last season. He was released by Carolina on Aug. 28.
Second-year wide receiver Jalin Hyatt played just 23 percent of the snaps, and even that total is misleading. Hyatt played just three snaps in the first half before getting most of his playing time when the game was decided in the fourth quarter.
The Giants gave Hyatt every opportunity to win the No. 2 receiver job in camp, but Slayton proved to be a better, more reliable option. Hyatt had a bad drop on his lone target on Sunday.
Daboll called Hyatt the team’s “third/fourth” receiver, so it seems like he has ground to make up. But he could get an opportunity this week because Slayton is in the concussion protocol.
Out for the year?
Carter Coughlin is likely out for the season after Daboll said the linebacker will be out for “months” with a pec injury. Coughlin was on the active roster before getting cut last Thursday and re-signed to the practice squad Friday. He was then elevated Sunday, playing 10 snaps on special teams before the injury.
The Giants juggled the roster for financial reasons, as Coughlin’s $1.1 million salary would have been guaranteed for the season if he was on the active roster for Week 1 because he’s a vested veteran. Making him a practice squad elevation provided the team more flexibility with Coughlin, although his injury will cut into the savings from the roster gymnastics. Coughlin will make $570,000 for the season, which is the minimum salary for a player with his experience on IR.
Formation notations
The Giants mostly played a base 3-4 defense and a nickel package with two defensive linemen, four linebackers and five defensive backs on Sunday. Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen used a dime package eight times on passing downs.
Deonte Banks and Adoree’ Jackson were the perimeter cornerbacks with Phillips or Flott in the slot in the dime package. Dane Belton was the third safety in the package, playing in the box at the “money” position. With Belton filling that role, Isaiah Simmons didn’t play a defensive snap.
The Giants added outside linebacker Azeez Ojulari to Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux on three third downs in the dime package in the second half. Burns lined up off the ball across from a guard on those three snaps. Like the rest of the game, the package with the three outside linebackers didn’t produce much of a pass rush.
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Culture
Ranking PWHL team names and logos: Which of the six new combos is our No. 1?
![Ranking PWHL team names and logos: Which of the six new combos is our No. 1? Ranking PWHL team names and logos: Which of the six new combos is our No. 1?](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,height=630,fit=cover/app/uploads/2024/09/06193158/League-Inaugural-Six-Wordmarks.png)
By Hailey Salvian, Shayna Goldman and Sean Gentille
We waited more than a year for proper PWHL nicknames and logos. Now that we have them, courtesy of Monday’s official unveiling, we’re not going to waste any more time.
Which of the six new combos — the Boston Fleet, Minnesota Frost, Montréal Victoire, New York Sirens, Ottawa Charge and Toronto Sceptres — is our No. 1? How do the rest measure up?
GO DEEPER
PWHL unveils team names and logos: ‘We just couldn’t be more thrilled’
The Athletic’s Hailey Salvian, Shayna Goldman and Sean Gentille teamed up for the definitive ranking.
1. Montréal Victoire
Hailey rank: 1
Sean rank: 3
Shayna rank: 1
Shayna: Everything about Montreal’s look and branding just clicks. Victoire just feels fresh relative to other names associated with Montreal hockey in the past (and present, really). It’s something that works for both French and English speakers, too. The maroon of the color scheme feels grand enough to match the energy that the name brings, and using cream over white adds a classic touch. The navy completes the look and accents the logo. I have nitpicks here or there with the rest of the teams, so the combination of the name and logo makes this an easy No. 1 for me.
Hailey: I was surprised at how much I liked Montreal, considering I wanted the league to go back to Les Canadiennes from the CWHL days. Regardless, Montreal has the best combination of name and logo, which is why it gets the edge over New York and Toronto for me. There’s more detail to appreciate in the Montreal logo specifically, with the fleur-de-lis and the hidden M toward the bottom. “Victoire” is also just a cool name to have for a team with the most clutch player in the history of the women’s game.
Sean: I almost feel bad having them at No. 3. Shayna and Hailey are correct about everything. I really appreciate the freshness of the package — if this one isn’t groundbreaking, it’s pretty close. Also, the logo looks like a diamond! Nobody else said that!
2. Toronto Sceptres
Hailey rank: 3
Sean rank: 2
Shayna rank: 2
Hailey: If you asked me immediately after the PWHL announcement, I’d probably have “Sceptres” lower than No. 3 and maybe I was just being a picky local because I can see Coca-Cola Coliseum from my apartment. But Toronto’s logo might be my favorite of the six and the name is really growing on me – if nothing else it’s certainly unique. The colors look great, and I do think a team like Toronto – with fans who dressed up as spoons and nurses last season – could have a lot of fun with this. Sarah Nurse literally has a brand with the motto “Queen Energy Only.”
Shayna: Absolutely yes to the logo and to the color scheme. The name just … I need some time with this one. The Toronto teaser tweeted out the other day made me think “Royals” or “Monarchs” was the direction here, and I think either of those would have slapped. Sceptres isn’t a bad name and it’s unique to a sports team, it just doesn’t roll off the tongue yet.
Sean: I didn’t like the nickname initially — like, at all — but it grew on me pretty quickly … if we’re grading on a curve. I don’t love a monarchy; Canadian money bothers me for this reason. Still, points for creativity, the originality of a navy-light blue-gold combo and the best logo of the bunch. It’ll sell well with Taylor Swift fans.
Hailey: I didn’t even consider that. Sean might be the biggest Swiftie of the group!
3. New York Sirens
Hailey rank: 2
Sean rank: 1
Shayna rank: 6
Sean: I’m hard to please when it comes to team names. I don’t like collective nouns (i.e., “Kraken”), but I’m also not looking for more Panthers or Vikings. That’s a small sweet spot, and nobody hit it more directly than the Sirens. The logo isn’t my favorite — something about the way the wordmark halves the Y — but I think it’ll pop as a center crest.
The main reason I have them in my top spot: I don’t think any name-logo combo is more cohesive. “Sirens” works as a reference to hockey, yes, but also Long Island Sound, and I continue to love that shade of teal, especially in concert with the New York Liberty and Gotham FC. It’s the total package.
Hailey: I was Team New York Sirens until my last-minute swerve to the Montreal bandwagon. I think the name Sirens is my favorite, but the Montreal logo was the tie-breaker in my ranking. The colors are great, and the synergy with women’s sports in the tri-state area is a nice touch. This team has a lot of potential with in-arena activations, too. Can we get a giant siren?
Shayna: I absolutely love New York leaning into teal to stay consistent with the Liberty and Gotham FC. But the name is a no from me. I know it’s probably a reference to the water, but my immediate thought was: “We get it, New York’s loud with a lot of sirens.” I actually would prefer the Sound, which was one of those original trademarks leaked last year. That made sense for a team that bounced among New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. As for the logo – remember the Superman S you probably sketched on your notebook in middle school? This feels like a dressed-up version of that.
4. Boston Fleet
Hailey rank: 4
Sean rank: 4
Shayna rank: 3
Sean: I had a pretty defined top three and bottom three — half the brands seem to be going for one thing, and half another — and Boston was the best of the second batch based largely on the logo. It helps that the letter ‘B’ looks so much like a fishhook, but credit where it’s due. I also spy a bit of a Hartford Whalers reference, if you look from the side. Is that me projecting? Perhaps. In any case, it’s fine. A little uninspired, but fine. As for the name, I don’t like “Fleet,” but I also dislike it less than the other (Anglo) collective nouns.
Hailey: While Boston is a tier below Montreal, New York and Toronto, it’s also the best of the rest for me. The logo is far superior to Ottawa and Minnesota – the details inside the B and the anchor shape – though I like the “Charge” name more than “Fleet.” I can’t imagine it’s easy developing a sports brand in a city with the Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics, but this is a nice entry.
Shayna: Boston may have one of the coolest logos here, which really boosts its ranking. The anchor-like B is just so sharp. If that W is an intentional reference to the Whalers, I like it even more as a way to celebrate New England hockey in the post-Connecticut Whale era. The name I was initially sour on, but it’s not that bad. It’s a nice nod to Boston’s history and overall being a major seaport.
5. Minnesota Frost
Hailey rank: 5
Sean rank: 5
Shayna rank: 5
Shayna: I was really rooting for the “Reign” here with the purple scheme as a nod to Prince, but this isn’t a bad direction. The Minnesota Frost is honestly a pretty sick name that makes a lot of sense for a hockey team without being too cheesy and literal. The reason they don’t rank higher isn’t because the other teams are all so incredible that it was a process of elimination. The logo just falls short and drags the entire branding down. The ‘F’ is a promising start, but feels so incomplete.
Sean: This feels more like a create-a-team template than any of the others. I guess the negative space creates a mountain, which … it’s something. Points for purple.
Hailey: More than the other teams, Minnesota feels like a victim to the legal process when it comes to naming sports teams in 2024. The Ontario Reign already exist in the AHL, and the league clearly wanted new names it could fully own. I honestly don’t dislike the Frost – or any of the names for that matter – and I love the colors, but I can’t stop thinking about the F being on a cartoon superhero. I thought it was Frozone, but he doesn’t wear purple.
6. Ottawa Charge
Hailey rank: 6
Sean rank: 6
Shayna rank: 4
Shayna: Ottawa is very middle-of-the-road for me. I think the more I look at it, the more I find flaws with it. The color scheme doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but red-yellow-white is bright and eye-catching on the ice which I can appreciate. But I second what Sean said earlier on collective nouns for team names. And the logo (plus the color scheme) is giving knock-off Calgary Flames. I do love the Flames look and logo, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing. It just isn’t my favorite!
Hailey: I honestly don’t have strong feelings about Ottawa: The name works well enough for me, and the logo is fine. The whole electric charge vibe would have been cool if Daryl Watts was still on the team. Too soon! I’m sorry!
Sean: “Go Charge Go” is going to be a great arena chant, but the rest of it looks way too close to a software company logo from, like, 1997 for my taste. Sorry.
(Images courtesy of PWHL)
Culture
James Earl Jones’ voice marked the time, in baseball and beyond
![James Earl Jones’ voice marked the time, in baseball and beyond James Earl Jones’ voice marked the time, in baseball and beyond](https://cdn.theathletic.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,height=630,fit=cover/app/uploads/2024/09/10010454/GettyImages-71160143-scaled-e1725946146961.jpg)
James Earl Jones, who was 93 when he died Monday, will be remembered by baseball purists for the stirring, soul-reaching words he delivered in the 1989 film “Field of Dreams.”
Cast as a fictitious writer named Terence Mann, Jones is nominally speaking to Kevin Costner’s Ray Kinsella. But what he’s really doing is speaking to anyone in the audience who has long wondered whatever became of the baseball cards they collected growing up. He’s speaking to anyone who ponders what Babe Ruth would hit today, or what Shohei Ohtani would have hit yesterday. He’s speaking to anyone who’s ever held a baseball glove up to their nose just to smell the leather.
We know this to be true partly because of the staging. Mann is facing the camera while standing on the edge of a baseball field that’s been carved out of an Iowa cornfield. But the real magic comes from Jones, who uses his rich baritone voice in such a way that we want to go outside and build a ball field:
The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It’s been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, it’s a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and it could be again.
These words have become a baseball anthem without music, in much the same way Jones, accompanied by the Morgan State University choir, recited “The Star Spangled Banner” before the start of the 1993 All-Star Game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
And yet Jones was not a baseball fan growing up. And he did not fall hopelessly in love with the game as a result of appearing in such baseball-themed movies as “The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings” (1976) and “The Sandlot”(1993), as well as the Phil Alden Robinson-directed “Field of Dreams.”
But neither was Marlon Brando a mafia boss before “The Godfather,” or Margaret Hamilton a witch, wicked or otherwise, before “The Wizard of Oz.” What we see from Jones in “Field of Dreams” is an actor who pulled all the necessary dramatic levers and pulleys inside him to become a baseball fan, or, in my case, the kind of baseball fan I remember as a kid growing up just two miles from Fenway Park.
In the scene in which Kinsella has somehow convinced Mann to attend a Boston Red Sox game at Fenway, we see Jones watching the action in a manner that jumped out at me when I first watched “Field of Dreams.” While Costner’s Kinsella is busily jotting down the name “Moonlight Graham” on his scorecard, Jones’ Terence Mann shows us a look of earnestness mixed with a dash of serenity as he watches the game action. In an era before mobile phones, before the wave, before beer decks, before walk-up music, that’s how people watched baseball. It’s such a small thing, but Jones figured it out.
Yes, it’s the “people will come” exhortation on the ballfield in Dyersville, Iowa, that transformed Jones into a baseball icon. But it’s what happens just before the speech that had me wanting to stand up and applaud when I first watched “Field of Dreams.” As Kinsella’s brother-in-law (played by Timothy Busfield, who happens to be a for-real baseball fan) charges into the scene to announce that Ray is bankrupt and must sell the farm, we see Mann with a copy of “The Baseball Encyclopedia.” In the pre-internet days, it was the baseball bible. And Mann treats it as one. It’s on his lap, open, perhaps to the page revealing the lifetime stats of Shoeless Joe Jackson, Eddie Cicotte, Buck Weaver or any one of those baseball-playing ghosts on the field.
That struck a note with Larry Cancro, a senior vice president with the Red Sox who has worked on the marketing side of things for nearly four decades. He told of a time when he was around 10 years old and his family was visiting relatives in Melrose, Mass. “I was sitting there with my three sisters,” he said, “and my father’s cousin had a copy of ‘The Baseball Encyclopedia.’ It was the first time I’d ever seen one. And I started poring through it. In the years to come, I ended up getting several copies. When you see that scene in ‘Field of Dreams,’ there’s James Earl Jones, proudly holding a copy. Only a real baseball fan sits there looking through ‘The Baseball Encyclopedia.’”
Cancro helped facilitate the Fenway Park scene in “Field of Dreams,” shot while the Red Sox were on the road. Costner and Jones are seated in Loge Box 157, Row PP, Seats 1 and 2.
Cancro is happy to report that the two actors were “gracious and friendly” to all Red Sox employees who were involved in the shoot. Even better, Cancro remembers the bond that formed between Jones and the late Joe Mooney, the longtime Fenway Park groundskeeper who was one of those old-timey curmudgeons with a way of being standoffish to strangers. He could also display exaggerated disinterest when dealing with celebrities whom he perceived as not being real fans, or not knowing the history of Fenway Park, or both.
“The way Joe operated, if you were there to show off or trying to be a big deal, he wanted nothing to do with you,” Cancro said. “Joe was a sweet guy, of course, if he knew you. But he and James Earl Jones really hit it off. Kevin Costner, too. But the thing with James Earl Jones, they were laughing and having a good time. Joe liked him, which is really all you need to know about James Earl Jones being at Fenway Park.”
Now, there are baseball purists who have their issues with “Field of Dreams.” There’s the late Ray Liotta’s Shoeless Joe Jackson batting right-handed. (Shoeless Joe was a left-handed hitter.) There’s Kinsella navigating his Volkswagen bus the wrong way on Lansdowne Street behind Fenway Park. But there can be no denying what Jones brought to the production, from his spoken baseball anthem to his very believable portrayal of Terence Mann, who, we learn, grew up loving the game and dreaming of playing alongside Jackie Robinson at Ebbets Field.
GO DEEPER
‘One constant through all the years’? The ‘Field of Dreams’ speech meets 2020
As Jones often said, he considered himself more of a stage actor than a film actor. He won three Tony Awards. Nor was “Field of Dreams” his most famous film role. Providing the voice of Darth Vader in the “Star Wars” films pretty much ends that discussion. In terms of honors, he earned an honorary Academy Award in 2011 and was nominated for best actor in “The Great White Hope” (1970).
He won Primetime Emmy Awards for “Heat Wave”(1990) and “Gabriel’s Fire” (1991), a Daytime Emmy for “Summer’s End” (2000) and a Grammy Award for “Best Spoken Word” in “Great American Documents” (2000). When joined with his three Tonys — “The Great White Hope” (1969), “Fences” (1987) and a Lifetime Achievement Award (2017) — and his honorary Oscar, he is in the rare company of actors who achieved EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) status. In “Fences,” he plays the role of Troy, a former baseball player in the Negro Leagues. Other notable film roles include “Coming to America” (1988), “Claudine” (1974), “Cry, the Beloved Country” (1995) and the voice of Mufasa in “The Lion King” (1994).
And yet in an interview for “Field of Dreams at 25,” he called the film “one of the very few movies I’ve done that I really cherish.”
Looking back on the film, Jones said, “Magic can happen if you just let it happen and don’t force it. And that was (director) Phil Robinson’s choice with ‘Field of Dreams.’”
The same could be said of his portrayal of Terence Mann. He just let it happen. He didn’t force it. In doing so, his voice marks the time.
(Photo: Kevin Winter / Getty Images for the American Film Institute)
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