It's a southpaw swap at top of SP Power Rankings

Here at the Starting Pitcher Power Rankings, our season began with a Braves pitcher on top. Five-plus months and 12 polls later, with the regular season winding down, a Braves pitcher is back at No. 1.

While would-be Atlanta ace Spencer Strider made only two starts before undergoing elbow surgery, Chris Sale stepped up to save the day. That was a somewhat unexpected turn of events given that Sale himself had made a total of only 31 starts while battling injuries over the previous four seasons. But not only has Sale been durable in his Atlanta debut -- he’s been sensational. Now, after finishing second in back-to-back polls, Sale has taken over the top spot for the first time.

Here’s a look at the latest edition of the Starting Pitcher Power Rankings, with our MLB.com panel once again considering career track record, season-long performance and recent success in casting their ballots. (Unless otherwise noted, all stats are through Tuesday’s games.)

1. Chris Sale, Braves (Last poll: 2)
In his one truly bad start of the season, Sale allowed eight runs against Oakland on June 1. Since then, he has posted a 1.91 ERA and 1.67 FIP, with hitters managing just two home runs across 99 innings. (That includes 13 scoreless innings over his past two outings.) At this point, Sale pretty much has his first Cy Young Award locked up, and a Triple Crown (leading in wins, ERA and K’s) is a strong possibility.

2. Tarik Skubal, Tigers (1)
Ditto for Skubal regarding the Cy Young Award and Triple Crown on the AL side. The 27-year-old has led the Starting Pitcher Power Rankings four times this season, including both of our previous two polls, but this slight drop has much more to do with Sale than him. Given Skubal’s relatively light track record, there were questions about how well he would hold up later in the season, but he has a 2.79 ERA in nine starts since the All-Star break despite blowing past his previous career high in innings.

3. Paul Skenes, Pirates (not ranked)
After a brief fall out of the top 10, Skenes is right back in our top four for the fifth time in our past six polls. It certainly didn’t hurt that his last time out, his nine strikeouts in a dominant performance against the Marlins allowed him to break Cy Blanton’s 89-year-old franchise record for K’s by a rookie. Skenes’ 200 ERA+ is the highest by a rookie (minimum 20 starts) since Ed Reulbach’s 209 for the 1905 Cubs.

4. Zack Wheeler, Phillies (3)
Along with Skubal, Wheeler is one of two pitchers to make our top 10 in every poll this season, a sign of his consistent excellence. If not for Sale, the 34-year-old would be the one likely headed for his first Cy Young Award, but most importantly for Philly, Wheeler looks to be on point heading into October. Heading into Wednesday’s start against the Rays, he had a 1.76 ERA and 60-to-9 K-to-BB ratio since Aug. 1.

5. Framber Valdez, Astros (5)
Speaking of rounding into form at the right time, there’s Valdez. The lefty’s second-half ERA (1.83) is exactly half of his first-half ERA (3.66), thanks in part to a strikeout rate that shot up from 20.3% to 32.3%. Opponents have managed a mere .141 average against Valdez during that span.

6. Seth Lugo, Royals (8)
Every time it seems as if the 34-year-old former reliever has run out of gas, he finds another gear. After an eight-start rough patch from July 13-Aug. 25 raised his ERA from 2.21 to 3.12, Lugo has responded with back-to-back-to-back seven-inning outings in which he has allowed a total of two runs on 15 hits, with 23 strikeouts. Entering Wednesday, he was tied for the MLB lead with 16 wins and was in sole possession of first with 193 innings pitched.

7. Cole Ragans, Royals (not ranked)
Lugo is hardly the only Royals pitcher making a big contribution to what could be the team’s first postseason run since its 2015 World Series title. Brady Singer and Michael Wacha also have been stellar, and then there’s Ragans, who has proven that his late-2023 performance, after arriving in the Aroldis Chapman trade, was anything but a fluke. After taking on the Yankees on Wednesday night, Ragans owns a 3.32 ERA and ranks second in MLB in strikeouts (211, just two behind Sale). He is only the fifth pitcher in the Royals’ 56-season history to reach 200 K’s -- the first since Zack Greinke in 2009.

8. Michael King, Padres (9)

King continues to quietly put up strong performances for the contending Padres. Including Wednesday night's start in Seattle, he has sported a 2.51 ERA since a rough March/April, including a 2.18 mark over 11 starts since the beginning of July. It’s not just about Petco Park, either. King has a 3.39 ERA there this season, but 2.80 on the road.

9. Logan Gilbert, Mariners (10)
Seattle somehow has lost each of Gilbert’s past five starts, and nine of his past 10. But in five of those Mariners losses, Gilbert allowed no more than two earned runs. That includes a pair of scoreless outings: July 14 against the Angels (seven innings) and Aug. 27 against the Rays (six innings). Gilbert ranks third in the Majors this season in innings (185 2/3), first in WHIP (0.88) and tied for fifth in strikeouts (191).

10. Jack Flaherty, Dodgers (not ranked)
Flaherty was excellent for the Tigers this season (2.95 ERA in 18 starts), and that has continued with the Dodgers since a Trade Deadline deal (2.61 in seven starts), yet this is his season debut in the top 10. The Los Angeles-area native enjoyed perhaps his best start in Dodger Blue his last time out, firing 7 1/3 scoreless innings against the Guardians at Chavez Ravine.

Others receiving votes: Blake Snell (Giants), Dylan Cease (Padres), Hunter Brown (Astros), Gerrit Cole (Yankees), Corbin Burnes (Orioles), Shota Imanaga (Cubs), Logan Webb (Giants), Cristopher Sánchez (Phillies)