The Los Angeles Dodgers are now Box-Toppers' top team.
The Dodgers, the hottest team since June and the hottest team of the past week, have catapulted from early-season obscurity to steadily climbing Box-Toppers team rankings, rising this week to the No. 1 spot.
Dodgers players have accumulated 112.2 Box-Toppers points this season, including 13.2 this past week, more than any other team. They picked up 7.0 of those Box-Toppers points by acquiring two players this past week:
- Michael Young, 3B, acquired in a trade from the Phillies. He has 4.0 Box-Toppers points.
- Edinson Volquez, PI, signed after being released by the Padres. He has 3.0 Box-Toppers points.
The Dodgers were the preseason favorite to win the World Series, a pick that seemed doomed in May when the team got off to a slow start. They started winning in June and were so far back, they did not debut in the Box-Toppers top 10 team rankings until July 25. Last week, they took over top spot among National League teams. And this week, they rose from third place overall to the top spot.
The Dodgers pass last week's top team, the Detroit Tigers, which topped Box-Toppers power rankings for four weeks. The Tigers, with 108.5 points, second place overall, still have more Box-Toppers points than any other American League team.
The second-hottest team of the past week, the Pittsburgh Pirates, picked up 10.2 Box-Toppers points, giving them 101.2 points the season, rising from ninth to sixth place in power rankings. The Pirates picked up 4.5 of those points by acquiring first baseman Justin Morneau in a trade with the Twins. The Pirates were also the hottest team last week.
The hottest AL team of the week is the Boston Red Sox, picking up 8.7 Box-Toppers points and rising from sixth place to third place in power rankings.
The team with the best actual winning percentage, the Atlanta Braves (.612) , is in ninth place in Box-Toppers power rankings. The Red Sox (.599) have the best record in the AL. The Box-Toppers-power-rankings-leader Dodgers have the third best record in baseball (.597).
Top 10 teams
Through Thursday, Sept. 5
| 905 | Top 10 Teams | BTP | BTP/wk | Last week rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dodgers | 112.2 | 13.2 | 3 |
| 2 | Tigers | 108.5 | 3.5 | 1 |
| 3 | Red Sox | 107.2 | 8.7 | 6 |
| 4 | Rays | 102.1 | 2.7 | 2 |
| 5 | Cardinals | 101.9 | 3.0 | 5 |
| 6 | Pirates | 101.2 | 10.2 | 9 |
| 7 | Rangers | 101.0 | 2.0 | 4 |
| 8 | Reds | 100.2 | 6.0 | 7 |
| 9 | Braves | 96.5 | 4.0 | 8 |
| 10 | Athletics | 94.7 | 5.0 | 10 |
BTP: Box-Toppers points total. Accumulated points of all players on team in 2013 season.
BTP/wk: Box-Toppers points for the team for the past week, through games on Thursday.