Early-season surprises in MLB
Red Sox, rookies, Rays lead April headliners
As the calendar turns to May and “small sample size” gets larger, earlyseason MLB trends start to become accepted realities.
The 2019 season has given us some unexpected performances, for better or worse. The world champions aren’t far from last place. A shortstop who came into the season with a .697 OPS is the top hitter in the American League. The Rays might be the best team in baseball.
Here’s a full look at some of the biggest surprises of the (relatively) young season:
❚ Boston’s awful start: After running roughshod last year, the first month has been nothing short of a disaster for the Red Sox. Boston failed/declined to improve its pitching this winter, and the team’s staff has been among the worst in baseball across the board. With the Rays thriving and the Yankees staying above water, the Red Sox are in danger of letting their shot at a division title slip away early in the season.
❚ Rookie sensations: We’ve gotten a bit jaded due to the eye-roll-inducing service-time manipulation the past few years, but the teams that took the plunge with their top prospects are seeing the decision pay off in a big way. Fernando Tatis Jr., 20, has been the Padres’ best player (though he just hit the injured list), and Chris Paddack, 23, looks like an ace in the making for San Diego. Mets first baseman Pete Alonso has been one of the most prolific sluggers in the league through his first month in the majors. With Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (finally) on the scene for the Blue Jays, this might be a season we look back on as the dawn of multiple superstars.
❚ Tim Anderson breaking out: One of the top prospects in baseball a few years ago, the White Sox shortstop has taken his game to another level in 2019, leading the AL with a .375 average and 10 steals. His energy has been a breath of fresh air and truly the epitome of MLB’s “Let The Kids Play” ethos, even if some of the grouchier corners of the baseball world aren’t quite embracing it.
❚ Rays rising: Although they were expected to compete for a wild-card berth, Tampa Bay wasn’t without its doubters, even on the heels of a 90-win season. Still, few could have seen the team being this well-rounded. Surely the kitschy methods were going to overstay their usefulness, right? Apparently not. The Rays’ AL East lead is looking like one they can see out through September.
❚ Struggling aces: The top three finishers in last year’s NL Cy Young voting — Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Aaron Nola — have combined to give up 52 runs in 97 innings. For the Red Sox, Chris Sale is 0-5 with a 6.30 ERA through six starts. There’s plenty of time to turn things around, but these contenders have to be concerned about their top pitchers.
❚ Mariners coming in hot: It looked like Seattle was tearing it all down this winter, but the mostly new group has exceeded expectations on offense, leading the majors in home runs. Acquired in offseason trades, Edwin Encarnacion, 36, and Jay Bruce, 32, have been two of the team’s top sluggers, while Domingo Santana seems to have rediscovered himself as a tremendous young talent. This might not last all year, but the Mariners’ power surge was something we certainly didn’t see coming.