MLB power rankings: Slipping off track

Guess it was fun while it lasted.

The Padres walked into Chavez Ravine in first place in the NL West in August for the first time in 2010 and immediately gave the division lead back to the Dodgers.

They lost a one-run game on Friday. They saw Dylan Cease take a step back on Saturday and they fought back from a disappointing start to Sunday’s game from Yu Darvish only to have Mookie Betts wake from his slumber to beat baseball’s best bullpen in another one-run game.

In between, Jackson Merrill rolled his ankle and is dealing with a new concern. The Padres were reckless on the bases one day and careless in the next. They had already handed the season series to LA before the Dodgers secured the weekend sweep.

It was not a good finish to a road trip that began with a sweep in San Francisco.

Of course, the weekend doesn’t define their season. The Padres are merely two games behind the Dodgers in the division and have a firm, three-game lead on the Mets as the No. 2 wild-card team in the NL, but the weekend does need to be the low point of the second half.

“We have to play better baseball,” Darvish said through interpreter Shingo Horie. “That’s I think the bottom line. But they’re a great team and I think they came into this series with great energy, but we do have to play a clean, good baseball.”

1   |   Milwaukee Brewers (78-45, Last week: 1)

Out of magic: The Brewers, drunk on late-inning games going their way, saw their franchise-record 14-game winning streak snapped by the Reds on Sunday … on a walk off.

2  |   Chicago Cubs (70-53, LW: 2)

The Brewers’ 14-game winning streak has Cubs manager Craig Counsell’s old team sitting on an eight-game lead in the NL Central.

3   |   Detroit Tigers (73-53, LW: 5)

New closer Kyle Finnegan, rescued from Washington ahead of the deadline, has four saves and 10 strikeouts through 7⅔ scoreless innings of two-hit ball.

4   |   Toronto Blue Jays (73-52, LW: 6)

Look who showed up: Vladimir Guerrero had 12 homers and an .818 OPS before the All-Star break and is up to nine homers and a 1.144 OPS over his last 29 games.

5   |   Los Angeles Dodgers (71-53, LW: 4)

Some subtle shade from Dodgers manager Dave Roberts after catcher Will Smith threw out three base-stealers in two innings to start Saturday’s win over the Padres: “Essentially, they played 24 outs.”

6   |   Philadelphia Phillies (71-53, LW: 3)

Rusty much? Aaron Nola allowed six runs in 2⅓ innings in his first start off the injured list and was finally pulled after seven straight hitters reached in the third on Sunday.

7   |   San Diego Padres (69-55, LW: 7)

An underlying issue that needs solving if the Padres are going to be a threat in October: Fernando Tatis Jr. is now homerless in his last 96 plate appearances, the longest drought of his career.

8   |   Houston Astros (69-65, LW: 8)       

Help on the way: Yordan Alvarez, on the injured list for three months with a hand fracture, is set to begin a rehab assignment this week.

9   |   Boston Red Sox (68-57, LW: 9)

Eastlake High grad Marcelo Mayer’s rookie season is over as he’ll undergo season-ending wrist surgery. The No. 4 overall pick from 2021 hit .228/.272/.402 with four homers in 44 games with Boston.

10   |   New York Yankees (67-57, LW: 11)

Fitting for three hits from Paul Goldschmidt in St. Louis to key a three-game sweep to allow the Yankees to recapture some momentum.

The rest

• 11  |   Seattle Mariners (68-57, LW: 10)
• 12   |   Cincinnati Reds (65-60, LW: 13)
• 13   |   New York Mets (66-58, LW: 12)
• 14   |   Texas Rangers (62-63, LW: 14)
• 15   |   Tampa Bay Rays (61-64, LW: 20)
• 16   |   Kansas City Royals (63-61, LW: 18)
• 17   |   Cleveland Guardians (63-60, LW: 15)
• 18   |   Arizona Diamondbacks (60-65, LW: 19)
• 19   |   St. Louis Cardinals (61-64, LW: 17)
• 20   |   San Francisco Giants (60-64, LW: 16)
• 21   |   Minnesota Twins (58-66, LW: 21)
• 22   |   Los Angeles Angels (60-64, LW: 23)
• 23   |   Miami Marlins (57-61, LW: 22)
• 24   |   Atlanta Braves (56-68, LW: 24)
• 25   |   Baltimore Orioles (57-67, LW: 25)
• 26   |   Sacramento Athletics (56-70, LW: 27)
• 27   |   Pittsburgh Pirates (52-73, LW: 26)
• 28   |   Washington Nationals (50-74, LW: 28)
• 29   |   Chicago White Sox (44-80, LW: 29)
• 30   |   Colorado Rockies (35-89, LW: 30)