One Missed Cal

 

Lot of law firm guys in the bigs these days. Emerson Hancock, Hurston Waldrep, Warming Bernabel. Just put an ampersand in between any of those and you're in business. 

Anyway, the Mariners have overcome a rough start by putting together an extremely even team. In the past it's been either all pitching or all hitting, here both sides are doing their part. There have been well-pitched months from Emerson Hancock, George Kirby, Logan Gilbert and Bryan Woo, in addition to welcome production from Randy Arozarena, Julio Rodriguez and Cole Young, the latter finally cementing himself as a worthy piece of this team. Brendan Donovan just came off the IL and is getting back to his old tricks as a contact bat. And even on a night where Hancock gets rocked a bit, you can't entirely count him out because most of his other starts he can go 6 strong without giving up many runs. After years of faulty appearances, seeing a more composed, confident version of Hancock is a welcome sight, especially alongside a healthier version of George Kirby. 

Now...there's a fundamental flaw in this team, and it's one that could be avoided over time but is worrying people already. This is a 2020s Mariners team, and everyone is performing pretty well...except for Cal Raleigh.

Raleigh is months removed from his coronation, his biggest season yet, and one of the best hitting seasons from a catcher since the 50s. To his credit, he has 7 home runs and 18 RBIs, which isn't terrible. But the multifaceted Raleigh who could also hit for contact and rely on assets other than power hasn't really shown up. He's hitting .175 with twice as many strikeouts as hits. The accuracy and power Raleigh showed frequently in 2025 has been sparse this year, and it's in a year where the team thought they could finally rely on him to lead things. Not that Julio and Randy CAN'T per se, but more is falling on them than previously figured, and it's a bit awkward at times.

Raleigh insists there's a larger issue, and he's sat a bit dealing with that thumb trouble, but hopefully it's as simple as that. Say the thumb heals and the rough patch continues. What then? What needs to be reassessed? 

The M's are good enough now that they can balance the work elsewhere, but they're being kept out of first by the A's. This division was supposed to be theirs, and it's been closer than they'd like. Hopefully they have it in them to pull away again this year, but with Raleigh struggling it's been put into question.

Coming Tonight: The opposite of Superman. He puts on glasses and becomes unstoppable.

Immediate Dividends

 

You know, I think a lot of people, at the end of the dealings the Brewers made pre-season, probably thought the biggest immediate piece they gained was somebody like Jett Williams or Brandon Sproat. But uh...looking like it's Kyle Harrison. Meaning the Giants saw what they had, relegated him to 5th starter, and traded him for Rafael Devers, and then the Red Sox barely used him and traded him for Caleb Durbin before anybody really realized what they had with this guy. 

And considering that he's in a pitching staff that includes Chad Patrick, dealt for both Jace Peterson and Abraham Toro before landing in Milwaukee, Quinn Priester, who was an afterthought in two different deals before landing in Milwaukee, and Coleman Crow, dealt for Eduardo Escobar and Adrian Houser in two different deals both teams currently regret, not even factoring Sproat in...it's very clear the Milwaukee Brewers know something that a lot of other teams don't. 

Think about it. Woodruff, Misiorowski and Henderson were drafted by them, the other guys were scouted and picked up for nothing. And they've all found success there. The rest of the team's full of that mentality. When they were dealt, nobody was thinking anything about Andrew Vaughn, Joey Ortiz, Brandon Lockridge and David Hamilton, and they've become vital pieces of this team. Lockridge is very much a 'use when Chourio is hurt' guy but he's not bad in his own right. Also, William Contreras is only on this team because the Braves wanted a catching upgrade and the A's wanted Manny Pina as a backup. So, you know, if you've lost hope in him, we'll take a chance. The gambles that most other teams take don't pay off as much as the Brewers' do because the Brewers just seem to have the right information most of the time. They do their homework, bet on the right horses and reap the benefits. 

So Kyle Harrison's very impressive debut is a shock to everyone...except the Brewers. 3-1 record, 35 Ks, 2.12 ERA...yeah, they knew. It's not a starring role exactly, as that would be the Miz's distinction, but it's arguably a better statistical start than the balls-to-the-wall flame throwing the Miz is doing. And if it's sustainable, and the Brewers can keep him around, that's a foundational guy. Funny how all these foundational guys keep showing up at the right time for this team. 

So even as this team is still technically a last place team, nobody's really referring to them as one because they're within reach of the nearest two teams and they're about to regain momentum due to the return of Jackson Chourio, already on fire. The Yankees series may make that a little difficult, but this is still a great team looking to surprise a lot of people.

Coming Tomorrow- For years he'd been the outer satellite of one of the most consistent rotations in the bigs. Now, when his team needs him the most, he's finally stepped up.

The Subtle Approach [As Usual]

1 game above .500. Hanging onto 1st place. Trying to contact their way out of a jam. Never a dull moment for these Guardians teams. 

It really is baffling, because this team has made some effort to not be just a young, speedy contact team. This year they got Rhys Hoskins. An actual power hitter who has hit tons of home runs. So far he's only hit 3, but he's a more drastic production idea than the usual approach for the Guardians, which is stacking 12 contact hitters together and hoping one of them gets to third in time. Right now the most important people on this team are guys like Daniel Schneemann, Angel Martinez and Brayan Rocchio, who aren't multi-tool superstars but are good enough to keep the team chugging along. Rocchio's back to his pesky 2024 self, playing great defense, stealing bases and smoking the occasional slap hit. Jose Ramirez currently leads the league in stolen bases and has only 6 home runs, which, while tied with Chase deLauter, is enough for the team lead. 

And it's working because there's a strong enough backbone behind it, and enough people doing their jobs efficiently to not ensure that they NEED a production monolith. Two of the top pitchers in baseball right now are on this team, Parker Messick and Gavin Williams. Williams is 5-2 and leads the league in K's with 60. The fans hoped he'd be this good as he came up, and he sure is. Messick has a 2.40 ERA and a .919 WHIP just by keeping the ball down and away from people. Even Joey Cantillo's no slouch either, he's 2-1 with 37 Ks. That and the bullpen have kept things very steady.

Where I worry is the continued promise of big prospects that go nowhere. Chase de Lauter is working, but he seems to be an anomaly. Kyle Manzardo is hitting .200 right now, with 36 Ks to his 20 hits. Juan Brito did not work in the bigs, and C.J. Kayfus had to go back down as well. Bo Naylor is still looking for that consistent season but can't reach .200. Even Travis Bazzana, an organizational sure thing, is only hitting .174 through his first 7 games. The big rush hasn't hit yet. Maybe it all will soon, but it's somewhat worrying. 

Still, it's a good time to at least have the fundamentals working, because it's enough to keep them ahead of Detroit. I think they're still a favorite for the division, though the Tigers could click once the injuries wear off. The Guardians are really one or two dimensions away from really taking off, and it's within reach.

Coming Tonight: As a return for Rafael Devers, he was seen as a failure. As a return for Caleb Durbin...he's fared much better. 

Complaining Works...Sort Of

 

'Fire the manager' syndrome is such a strange derangement. Because it leads you to believe that the actions of players, executives, opposing schedules and coaches can be excused if the manager gets canned. Forget that he got a team to a World Series, forget the years of equity, no, somebody's gotta pay, and it's that guy, and the turnaround will confirm it was his fault. It's never that simple, regardless of what any Philly sports fan would have you believe.

But so far, two teams have fired their managers, and both have seen some improvement. In one case it's a little more prominent. 

Let's start with the more basic case. The Red Sox. Going into this year it was a possibility that they'd suck, and even if they put money into the team, that wouldn't take away the fact that so many strong pieces have actively left. Alex Bregman did not want to come back, despite the wonderful year he had. Rafael Devers left as soon as he could. Nick Pivetta signed with a west coast team that was arguably headed in a similar direction. That anybody actually wanted to come back, regardless of whether or not it was someone who a lot of teams actively avoided signing [Aroldis Chapman], is surprising. But they built a strong enough team for 2026, and for a while it truly did not work. So out went Alex Cora, and the majority of the coaching staff, and in went Chad Tracy.

The Sox were 10-17 before the firing. They're 6-4 since. Not earth-shattering, not season-saving, but you can see things turning around.

Mainly, a lot of the pieces have evened out after some rough starts. Ranger Suarez and Sonny Gray struggled in early Boston starts, they've rebounded in recent weeks. Suarez now has a 2.77 ERA, and since Crochet landed on the IL has been the closest thing this team has to an ace. Caleb Durbin has also improved a bit since his dismal start, and you can slowly see Jarren Duran and Marcelo Mayer begin to pick things up. The main assets are still veteran guys like Willson Contreras and Trevor Story, which is somewhat concerning. I think Roman Anthony is on his way, but it feels like every time he's about to get going he gets hurt, much like a different New York outfielder.

At the very least, 38-year-old Aroldis Chapman is still a very sure bet in the ninth. I think Chapman wants to retire as a Red Sock, and is fully embracing his villain arc after reaching glory in New York. Good for him. He's still got that unsavory subtext to him, but damn if he's not a scary closing gun still. In 12 appearances he has 7 saves, 14 Ks and a 0.77 ERA. That's vintage Chapman. He doesn't have a particularly great bullpen behind him this year but he's giving his all.

It's still not entirely pretty, but you can see more life in the Sox than there was before, and that's a start I guess. I don't know if it means they're a challenger in this division this year, but who knows.

Now, as for the other team that fired their manager...

Gotta be honest...I didn't think firing Rob Thomson was the answer. He was a steady captain the last few years, got the team to a World Series, wasn't flashy or particular. There's a case to be made about whether or not his managerial style actually had an impact on the team or if he was a George Seifert type who inherited greatness and did what he could to contain it. But I didn't know about firing Thomson in April before things really got going. But, that's what the Phillies did. First Taijuan Walker went, then Thomson followed, and then Don Mattingly took the helm. 

And of course, since Mattingly took over, the Phils have been 8-1. Probably 8-2 by the end of the night, the A's have been hammering the hell out of them [as they tend to at times], but still. Something's clearly different. Bryce Harper's hitting again. Jesus Luzardo's found his control. The bullpen's turned into an impressive ragtag unit of guys that haven't pissed me off yet. Somehow Brandon Marsh is off to the best start of any hitter, hitting .336 with 4 homers and 19 RBIs. The big man has always been a lower tier Phillies weapon, and seeing him finally step up again is a very good thing. Would love to see something similar from Bryson Stott as well.

I think it's also helped that we've gotten Zack Wheeler and J.T. Realmuto back after some injuries, and they're still in pretty good shape. Wheeler's got a 3.12 ERA and 18 Ks in 3 starts, he's definitely his old self. J.T.'s hitting .265 and is still a great catcher. I dunno if he was worth everything we signed him for but he's better than Rafael Marchan, that's for sure. There's still some weak spots in the lineup, and there's still some guys that should be playing better right now [Bohm mostly], but this is an improved version of the team I saw last month right at the beginning of the losing streak. And if people are crediting Mattingly rather than just...the momentum swing that this team usually deals with, then whatever.

I think the Phillies have a better shot going forward than the Red Sox solely because the Phillies are built better right now, though admittedly both teams have an issue with young players not performing as well as intended. Still, we've got 5 months left and a lot of twists and turns, so both teams could be in opposite places weeks from now.

Coming Tomorrow- Infield specialist and occasional impressive bat for the team that is currently leading the AL Central. 

Building a Better Rockies Team, the Unhinged Way

 

Hey fun fact, the Colorado Rockies currently have four players with a WAR higher than 1. The first place Cleveland Guardians have the same amount. The second place Tampa Bay Rays, an actual good team, have only two. But the Colorado Rockies, the punchline of the bigs last year, have four players worth at least a win by themselves. Tomoyuki Sugano, Mickey Moniak, Antonio Senzatela....and Chase Dollander. And a year ago, maybe one of them would make sense.

Dollander has been one of the Rockies' top pitching prospects, he was their 2023 first round pick, Baseball America ranked him the #8 prospect in baseball prior to the 2025 season, and he progressed through the minors in essentially a year and a half. Forgetting for a moment...how crappy his 2025 major league stats were...Dollander still had a high ceiling of potential, and he still felt like an organizational gem. Therefore, him eventually getting his act together and leading the charge? Very likely outcome. Heading into this year it was a large possibility. So far in 8 appearances he's got a 3.38 ERA, 42 Ks and 37.1 innings, all better than any starter.

Which is to say...the Rockies have not been starting him.

So what they've been doing...is using Jimmy Herget or Brennan Bernardino as an opener, giving them an inning, and then letting Dollander go long and essentially carry out a start. I assume this is to ensure he doesn't get chased in the first, and if you give the heart of the order to a specialist then start Dollander off with mid-order guys, that's at least a better way of breaking him in. It's a little psychological, a little strategic. Unlike the 2018 Kevin Cash stuff, by all accounts the Rox COULD start Dollander if they wanted to, but right now they're choosing to do this. And it's working.

So...that's the *reasonable* WAR leader. Now the other three...

Moniak becoming a hit in Colorado isn't surprising. What's surprising is the Angels cut this man to make room for Tim Anderson, and he ends up finding his swing and becoming a hero for a Rockies team that needs a hard-hitting outfield bat. Obviously Moniak isn't the guy the Phillies were looking for at the draft, but he's definitely got his uses. Right now he's got 11 homers and 21 RBIs. Jordan Beck and Brenton Doyle don't have that much combined. Moniak currently leads the NL in OPS with 1.123. Coors Field, man...

Then you have the return of Antonio Senzatela, who's gotten his ERA down to 1.21, and he has done this...by becoming a long relief guy who goes 2 or 3 innings an appearance. Somehow this has worked, and the awfulness of his 2025 has not appeared yet. Perhaps because he's finally recovered from his injuries, or maybe it's the same psychological thing that Dollander worked through? Who knows. And then Tomoyuki Sugano, another guy that shouldn't have been cut, has taken his low-velocity/all-craftsmanship stuff to Denver, and it's working! He's got a 3.41 ERA through 7 starts. As Michael Lorenzen can tell you, you could do a lot worse in Coors Field. 

Is it weird to me that they're lifting the team past the levels of true awfulness? Or is it just weird that it's them and not Tovar, Goodman, Doyle and Beck as much? Little of both. Eventually a consistent young core is gonna form, and clearly it's not this year, but I'll take goofy stuff like this. It's more entertaining than the alternative.

Coming Tonight: A guy whose Hall of Fame case will eventually need to be discussed, which will really puzzle a lot of people I think. 

Trout of Nowhere

 

Only one time during the 2020s thus far have we seen a season from Mike Trout that's in any way comparable to his peak years in the 2010s. In 2022, despite only playing 119 games, Trout hit 40 home runs with a 0.999 OPS. It'd have been a big deal had Ohtani and Judge not been having MVP caliber years themselves. And then Trout kept missing swaths of seasons, then would show up for a month then miss the rest of the year. Last season he was relatively healthy but not 100%, and more strikeout-prone than ever without payoff. And so, of course, you worry the legendary run is over, that there's no real highlights left.

And then...suddenly...it's like he never left. 2026 so far has been peak Mike Trout, and while it felt like a mirage at first, it could not be more welcome. In 36 2026 games, Trout is hitting .262 with 11 home runs, 22 RBIs, a 1.000 OPS and 36 walks. This is Mike Trout. The Trout long balls mean something again, and have heft that they haven't had the last few years. He's as mobile as he used to be, as scary at the plate as he used to be, and...as solely responsible for the rise and fall of the team as he used to be. 

Because let's not kid ourselves...aside from Trout and Jose Soriano, the Angels don't really have much right now. I think Trout's used to it, though. So many Angels teams really just had Trout, and this is just another one. They're in last place right now and they're still trying to find an identity, which has been made even more difficult considering Trout is essentially dragging the team back to 2015 in a sense. This still isn't Zach Neto's team, or Jo Adell's team. No, this is Mike Trout's Angels, and that will continue to be the case for a little while. It was nice to see Neto wake up at the plate, though. He credits his last homer to a Pokemon pack break. Wait til he finds out they make some of those with other baseball players on 'em..

Yet, for the first time in a while, this season also has the suspense of 'is someone gonna try and trade for Trout at some point?' Every so often it happens, and while usually there's the default of Trout saying he'll be an Angel for life, this is a pretty dire point for the Angels. He's got 4 more years left on the contract, he can still play at the elite level, and...it may happen. As usual, signs point to the Phillies above all else, as he's from South Jersey, full Phils country, and back in the day Bryce Harper did a full recruiting mission. The most cynical of Phils fan would tell you we don't need another 30+ year old, and that would justify not wanting one of the best players in the game for them. Mostly I'd prefer this to the Dodgers getting another MVP. But that's if it happens, and I'm still not sure that it will. 

For now, I'm just enjoying seeing Mike Trout rake again. I know he did a bunch against the Yankees but I can't even be too mad about that. He's a future HOFer, a great baseball star, and I'm glad he hasn't completely faded off after 2019. 

Coming Tomorrow- What's this? An actual strong pitching performance in Coors Field??

Get the Balance Right

 

Miraculously, well into their rebuilding period, the Cardinals have managed a 2nd place team and a working, relatively stable lineup schematic with proven young stars and a plan for upward momentum. Just...don't look at the pitching.

It's wild that so many pieces of this team have come together to work now, rather than at any point before. Having Jordan Walker, J.J. Wetherholt, Alec Burleson, Masyn Winn and Ivan Herrera all hitting, and all hitting well, gives this team so much more to say than the last few years of transitional shrugging. Before, getting Burleson or Gorman or Carlson to do anything was asking for a lot. And now this lineup actually feels intimidating. Wetherholt's a genuinely great MLB infield option, with 7 homers and 18 RBIs in his rookie season. Burleson's putting together a strong campaign himself, hitting .269 with 28 RBIs already. Jordan Walker's already hit 10 homers and finally figured out how to fix his swing. The offensive production that was tricky before is coming so much more naturally now because this team is younger and has more urgency. Getting Arenado out of there was honestly the best plan.

But...that doesn't really carry over to the rotation, because getting rid of Sonny Gray, Steven Matz and Miles Mikolas just makes this an anonymous, unreliable group of misfits. At least the Nationals have some young guys they can rely on. What do the Cards have?? Michael McGreevy's got a 2.52 ERA but he's mostly a ground ball pitcher. Same with Andre Pallante. Matthew Liberatore was supposed to be the ace but he's got a 4.50 ERA. The idea is to keep runs down but the Cards are honestly a team just barely outscoring their opponents because the starting squad just isn't much at all. Having a good bullpen helps a little, as O'Brien, Romero and Graceffo have been good, but so many of the guys that were so reliable last year [Kyle Leahy and Matt Svanson mostly] are seriously burned out. So it just seems imbalanced, impractical and unsustainable.

The real question is whether the hitting is good enough, and the depth is strong enough, to build off this. Cause if not, there's a possibility Burleson could be dealt midyear, pushing the rebuild back a tad. The fact that they're enough of a force to be on the brink of competition is scary, especially for NL Central competitors, but the next few weeks will probably show how real they are. Especially as the Brewers and Reds balance themselves out a bit more.

Still...if this team can compete without pitching, it'd be pretty insane. Like I can't even remember the last time the Cardinals didn't have any pitching. The 90s I guess..

Coming Tonight: Oh you know...that guy everyone really likes. Guess he's not past his prime after all.

The Slow Climb Back

 

Even as every team goes through a rough period, the AL Central is beginning to finally right itself. The Twins are in last, the Royals have had a good week and are looking to lap the White Sox. Things are finally straightening out. That doesn't mean the Royals have no cause for alarm after the dismal first month of the season, but...it means things aren't as dire as they looked.

What's helped most recently is the fact that Jac Caglianone can finally hit at the MLB level. He's got a .788 OPS, 4 homers, a heroic moment or two under his belt. He's not looking as lost as he did last year. Same with Carter Jensen, who's actually leading the team in homers with 6. It's a nice spike until you realize that they're really the only first or second year guys actually doing well right now. Noah Cameron's fallen off since his strong 2025, Isaac Collins isn't hitting, Luinder Avila isn't MLB ready yet. The whole point around building a team around Witt and Garcia is for the pieces to fall into place around them, and barring those two lineup pieces it hasn't quite happened. Lugo, Wacha and Bubic are off to great starts, but that's not really foundational.

The antithesis to that statement is that if you don't have to worry about your top 3 guys, that's not a drawback. Michael Wacha is 34, he's been in the league for fourteen years now [!!!!!], and he's somehow gotten better with age. What's great about Wacha is even if he wasn't giving pristine starts, he was still there for the majority of the season and gave you your money's worth innings-wise. Since signing with KC, he's made nearly all his starts, averaged 168 innings and a 3.50 ERA, and kept the ship steady whenever needed. Right now he's got a 3.05 ERA, a 3-2 record and 36 Ks for the Royals. He's not meant to be the ace, but he's meant to be a strong middle option, and that's exactly what he's been. Same with Seth Lugo, who isn't at full 2024 power but still has a 2.68 ERA through 7 starts. Bringing in Stephen Kolek to potentially liven up the rotation is a very good idea as well.

I'm just not seeing the full depth that scared the Yankees a few years ago. Beyond Witt, Garcia, Cags and Pasquatch, what really is there to this team? The back half hasn't woken up yet. Massey, Thomas and Collins haven't proven their worth. Perez is resting on mythology. India's done for the year. I know a lot can develop, and the Royals are hoping it can, but as is I really don't see the story. Luckily, I can't really see much of a story with the rest of the division either.

Coming Tomorrow- The Cardinals have a lot of guys who were supposed to be THE guy on their team right now. Matthew Liberatore, Jordan Walker, Nolan Gorman, Dustin May. Here's the latest and greatest. He's doing alright so far. 

Cyclical Justice

 

It's only fitting that some of these guys that came over around the time the Nationals started mailing things in and trading their stars are now expected to be traded later this year. Like it's not a full Rays strategy thing where no one has a chance, but...the Nationals are still essentially where they were at the beginning of this whole thing. Trying to build something, trying to catch fire, yet still being in the NL East where there's already three competitors. 

I honestly don't see a universe where the Nats don't shop C.J. Abrams this year. You can tell he's at the top of his game still, and he's off to the best start of his career, hitting .297 with 8 homers and 27 RBIs. Typically he finishes around the 60s in regards to RBIs, so seeing that he's around half that, and it's early May...things are looking pretty good. It's not like the Nats are completely starved for infield options, and they probably have a shortstop prospect on the way eventually [Willits isn't gonna be immediate but maybe in a year or so he'll be ready]. Losing Abrams won't kill them if they still have Wood and Hassell around. 

But knowing this team, they're probably not gonna stop there either. Every year the Nats have one guy they picked up for nothing who becomes a major July target. Jeimer Candelario was one, Jesse Winker was one, Mike Soroka was one. This year it might be Joey Wiemer. Dude got dropped by like 3 different teams, becomes a bench guy in Washington and takes off, hitting .318 with 3 homers, 8 RBIs and 3 doubles in 58 at-bats. If the Brewers still had this guy they wouldn't have to go and get Brandon Lockridge as the 'break in case of Chourio emergency' outfielder. Maybe they'll get him back, who knows. 

There's definitely still some building blocks that will remain even if there's a mass exodus in a couple months. Nasim Nunez is leading the league in stolen bases with 14, James Wood has 10 homers and a ton of walks, Daylen Lile hasn't hit a triple yet but can still mash and hit for contact. Foster Griffin, a 30-year-old rookie, has been the team's best starter thus far with a 2.27 ERA. There's still plenty of people coming, and plenty of people to fill roles in the meantime. It just means it's kind of a boring team for a bit. Wood and Abrams will at least make things interesting on occasion, but this still isn't a full team performance, and this still isn't getting anyone anywhere. 

Coming Tomorrow- Wild that he's still pitching. Wild that he's still pitching in Missouri. 

One More Dragon to Slay

 

2025 was a very nice year for me, a year where neither the Astros, the Cardinals or the Rays made the playoffs. Those three organizations infuriate me to no end for different reasons, and the Rays' insistence on not paying their players yet still building great teams make them particularly infuriating. What's the point of constructing a great team yet not having the incentive to cultivate it? George Harrison had a line about the record industry once, 'they don't care much for the music, they want the blood from a clone', and that really sums up the Rays mentality. To them it's more cost-efficient to trade a star for someone who could do the star's work and become big enough in three years to repeat the cycle. 

So this is another year of the Rays' usual approach, and so far, despite the usual lack of offseason effort [to a degree], the Rays are in 2nd place and surging after a strong week. Why should anything make sense?

As discussed, Yandy Diaz is the last 2020 Ray standing on this team. If you want to count McClanahan, I suppose you can, but he was active for the series and not the season so it's fuzzy. Hilariously there are more people on this team who were in the Dodgers' system in 2020 [Lux, Feduccia, Grove, Uceta, Pepiot, DeLuca], than there were people in the Rays system that year. THAT is dedication. You don't wind up with that many ex-Dodgers from that era accidentally, especially in comparison to your own organizational products. That's why it's been refreshing seeing actual Rays products like Caminero, Aranda and Simpson inherit the team in addition to all the traded guys. 

But Diaz is a rare case in that A.) the Rays have kept him around, and B.) he's actually performed consistently well in Tampa. I did not expect former Cleveland also-ran infielder Yandy Diaz to become the beloved power-hitting elder statesman corner infielder he is with the Rays, but it's still great to see. Diaz is 34, and potentially looking at his last season in Tampa [unless they decide to re-sign him [canned laughter]], and still a very crucial part of this lineup. So far he's hitting .333 with 21 RBIs, 5 homers and a .926 OPS. He's on track to even surpass some career highs from last year. Is a 30+ homer year out of the question, even if he just had his first 25 homer year last year? Not at all. Nothing makes sense in Tampa.

But, as it tends to happen, the things not making sense line up in a way that's advantageous for this team. Chandler Simpson's hitting .300 with 11 stolen bases, which is enough to distract you from his defense. Nick Martinez has a 1.70 ERA through his first 6 starts, which is strong enough to distract you from the fact that the 6 man from the Reds is now the top guy for the Rays. Shane McClanahan has a 3.10 ERA and 30 Ks, which is enough to distract you from his two lost seasons. Jonathan Aranda leads the league in RBIs right now with 27, which is enough to distract you from his .230 average. The lineup, while not always pretty, is producing runs, even if the bullpen is still a mess. And the Rays finish the week with a scorching display of wins...against teams like the Twins and Giants.

The Rays could still make something happen this year, but I see a week like this one and I still see the deep flaws and long term issues that prevent them from building this into a long term dynasty. Not that the owners care much, as usual.

Coming Tomorrow- Very weird to me that you could describe this guy as one of the veteran staples of the Nationals now. It doesn't feel like 5 years have gone by, that's for sure.

The Plan Backfires Hilariously [Again]

 

So. Let's go back to 2021. The Giants, for years, have been bogged down by older players and a youth movement that's refusing to happen. This is their last real chance to compete, as Buster Posey's lit a fire under them. Belt, Crawford, Posey, Longoria, Yaz, they develop a strong lineup where nearly no one's under 30. A whole core of veterans, flanked by a 27-year-old centerfielder who'd never have another healthy season, with a bench of 30somethings, a rotation of thirtysomethings, and one rogue young kid named Logan Webb burning it down as well. They win over 100 games and are a monolith heading into the playoffs.

Now...this, and this may shock you, but this was not sustainable.

So, alright. Managers come and go, approaches change, Posey takes over, they develop a new young team, bring up people like Drew Gilbert and Hayden Birdsong and Grant McCray and Carson Whisenhunt. People who can take over. And they also get a ton of great contracted players, they trade for Rafael Devers, they actually build something. And after all of that...we have a last place Giants team where the 30somethings are doing all the work. AFTER ALL OF THAT, nothing's changed.

I'm just mystified by the Rafael Devers factor. Because you get this guy who can hit for power like nobody else, and was even doing so in Boston while feuding with the team, and for whatever reason he can't get it together. He's hitting .211 with 2 homers and 12 RBIs after a month. He had a cold start last year, but by the end of April he was hitting em out with no issue. What's going on here? The only person who's struck out more than Devers is Willy Adames, who's actually playing close to well, at least defensively. But all these young, foundational guys, like Heliot Ramos, Patrick Bailey, Jung Hoo Lee, Drew Gilbert, Landon Roupp...they're doing either very okay or almost good. Roupp is 5-2 with a 3.18 ERA, he gives up a few more runs than necessary, but he's basically good. Ramos is okay, Gilbert still hasn't clicked in the majors, Lee is fine but unspectacular, Bailey still can't hit. Even Logan Webb is struggling this season, which I attribute to the fatigue of carrying the team the last five years. 

And so the team's coming down to guys like Matt Chapman, Luis Arraez, Robbie Ray, guys who are 29 to 30, or more, and verging on leaving their peak. Chapman's doing his thing, he only has to hit so well but he's so good at third that you forget. Quietly he might be one of the best third basemen of his era, but nobody really wants to admit it. Arraez not only is hitting .300 again but he's actually a lot better defensively this year, mostly because he's frequenting 2nd rather than 1st. Ray, despite having 4 losses, has a 2.60 ERA and looks like his old self. It's just frustrating that the younger guys are sort of following in line behind them rather than inheriting the team.

Until that happens, you're gonna get irrelevant, last-place Giants teams like this. There's honestly some good stuff to speak of here, which is more than I can say from some other last place teams, but despite all the forethought we've ended up back where we started, which has to be frustrated. And there's a way out, but it's not gonna happen all at once.

Coming Tonight: The last 2020 Rays member still standing in Tampa. Unsurprisingly he's playing really well right now.

Suddenly Big Amish

 

Is it funny to anyone else that a guy from Amish Country is currently leading the league in walks?

If there was a baseball stat involving a wagon, he'd probably lead the league in that too. Regardless, Lancaster native Nick Kurtz, lovingly referred to as the Big Amish, has continued his run as an offensive powerhouse for the A's. If you walk him, it's very likely one of the A's other power hitters [Rooker, Langeliers, Soderstrom] will get him home. If you don't, there's also a chance he could go yard. The big man currently has 5 home runs and 15 RBIs, and he might have had more if it weren't for that walk streak, which keeps on going. He's had 33 so far this season, which is Soto/Bonds levels. People have caught onto just how volatile this guy can be at the plate, and they're trying to avoid it as much as possible. For a 23 year old with one season under his belt, that speaks volumes.

Also, um...can we talk about the fact that Nick Kurtz and the A's are in first place right now? Seriously. The nomadic Sacramento A's have the best record in the AL West, better than Seattle or Houston. Which is what happens when you build a great young lineup and sign the majority of them to contracts.

And you can just see this team evolving as well, even from 1st. Shea Langeliers is now a .300 hitter in addition to a home run machine. He leads this team in hits! Carlos Cortes has gone from a bench novelty to an everyday outfield hit machine, batting .391 in 69 at-bats. Jacob Wilson's contact stuff, though not as three-dimensional as last year, is still very appreciated. Tyler Soderstrom is leading the team in RBIs without needing to resort to the long ball as much. And even Jeff McNeil can be a positive contributor here, hitting .286. The momentum this team has right now has made McNeil, Aaron Civale and J.T. Ginn pivotal figures in a year where I figured they'd be also-rans.

I mean, the rotation in general is still hard to figure out, because I'm not really confident about any of them. Jeffrey Springs looks good right now but he could get hurt again at any second. Same with Luis Severino, K's be damned. I thought that last year meant homegrown guys like Jacob Lopez and Luis Morales were gonna inherit the rotation and charge forward, but evidently that's not happening yet. It's frustrating, because any time there's an opportunity for someone like Morales or Joey Estes or Gunnar Hoglund to make a name for themselves, it just doesn't happen. And we're back to the veteran contract guys doing all the work. Imagine if the Brewers last year had Jose Quintana and Brandon Woodruff do all the work while Chad Patrick, Miz and Logan Henderson all shirked the responsibility. That's what this is like.

But...they're still in first place, because the rotation's at least durable enough, despite it being made up of mostly replacement level guys. So something's gotta be working.

I want this team to advance and remain a major player in this division, but some of these baby teeth are gonna need to fall out soon. This team needs a rookie pitcher to spice things up, and we need Butler, Rooker and Muncy to start hitting. This is a very nice start, but at any point the Rangers or Mariners could sweep in and make the division theirs. The A's just need to make a statement and fend all those guys off with their own might. I dunno if it can happen yet.

Coming Tonight: A former Athletic, ironically, still manning the corner further towards the water.

More Than Skenes [For Once]

 

The bad news is the Pirates are in last place after losing 5 straight. The good news is that they're a last place team that's at .500, with the same record as the Tigers and Guardians. And the even better news is that they still have Paul Skenes.

The idea that Skenes would someday headline a halfway decent Pirates team was always possible, if unlikely, but this is the best they've looked in years, and Skenes is very much at the forefront. Though the quest for a sub-2 ERA for the third season in a row will be harder than usual thanks to that damn Mets start, he's still got a 3.18 ERA, a 4-2 record and 39 strikeouts. The domination that Skenes has always been capable of has continued, even through a rocky start. I do worry this will be a little closer to normal than usual for Skenes, as he's giving up more homers than expected, and just last night he gave up one to J.J. Wetherholt. But there's no true warning signs, and he's not having much trouble getting through games. 

The most telling part of the improved climate of this team is that it's not on Skenes as much as last year to carry the team. Keller and Ashcraft are strong starting options around him that can also carry the weight. Keller always looks like he's gonna worry people but he's got things worked out at last, and has a 3.18 ERA through 6 starts. Ashcraft has 39 Ks in 6 starts, as many as Skenes in 7, so that's pretty cool. Carmen Mlodzinski's innings-eating has parlayed into a fine starting spot. And the bullpen is better than it's been in a while, with Gregory Soto, Yohan Ramirez, Mason Montgomery, Isaac Mattson and Dennis Santana working on excellent seasons. 

And then suddenly, out of nowhere, we finally have a Pirates team that can hit. Brandon Lowe, Oneil Cruz, Ryan O'Hearn and Bryan Reynolds are all optimally raising the quality of the power hitting game. Cruz's is a lot more lopsided because he's still making mistakes in center, but those 9 homers say a lot. Lowe has been really fantastic in Pittsburgh, that's exactly why they dealt for him. O'Hearn is working as a corner infield/OF/DH bat. And Reynolds is hitting again. After a really weak 2025, Bryan Reynolds is hitting .246 with 19 RBIs and 3 homers, which is an improvement. Konnor Griffin's slowly warming up as well, and hopefully by midyear he's more comfortable in the bigs.

It's a Pirates team that's verging on multifaceted, with a lot of really interesting angles and upsides. I really do think they can outweigh the Cardinals and potentially even compete this year. Remember, we don't know how long they've got left with Skenes, so they've gotta do something soon.

Coming Tomorrow- My fantasy team this year has the very clever name of Big Amish Paradise, which was attained from picking up this guy right when he went on his HR tear last year. 

Borderline Good [for the AL Central]

 

You've probably heard by now how messy the AL Central is in general this year. There are decent teams, but they're so flawed that they can't really ascend to actual good records. The Tigers and Guardians are good but held back by not being great yet. The Royals have decent bones but just aren't playing well at all right now. The Twins got off to a better start than expected but still have little to no depth.

So that means this is the kind of division where the White Sox, while still very much in rebuild mode, can be a third place team. Yes, the very same White Sox.

I dunno, it's weird. Cause technically this is still a bad White Sox team. We're honestly a step back from 2025 because Shane Smith stopped pitching well, Kyle Teel got hurt, the Anthony Kay gaijin plan didn't work as well as year three of the Erick Fedde gaijin plan, and the bulk of the saves has been handled by Seranthony Dominguez, who...like, the Ryan Murphy 911 show wouldn't put him in position to save anybody. And that show has killer bees every few weeks I think.

But like...I can point to several formative, crucial performers on this team that can also be discussed in baseball in general. Davis Martin's off to a sneakily good start, he's 4-1 with a 1.95 ERA and 33 Ks through his first six starts. Sean Burke and Erick Fedde also have ERAs under 3.50, and Noah Schultz has looked very good in his initial starts in the bigs. That they're essentially using an opener to fill that fifth spot due to the fear of letting Anthony Kay getting lit up from the jump is another factor entirely, but that's a decent rotation. Colson Montgomery already has 8 homers and 21 RBIs, and his power perks were not exaggerated by his 2025 come-up. Miguel Vargas also has 6 homers and 15 RBIs. I'm really not sure what to make of Vargas still, whether he's a formative piece or just a placeholder, but he seems to be helping. And then, now that you mention it, there's also that Murakami guy who's already hit 12 home runs and would be doing so even if he was forced to play in the decaying Oakland Coliseum. 

The odd thing about this team is how many of these crucial pieces, or even fun replacement level pieces, originated in other farm systems. Meidroth and Teel obviously came from the Crochet deal, Vargas from the Edman/Fedde deal [funny how that worked out for the ChiSox], but Edgar Quero was traded for Lucas Giolito, Luisangel Acuna was traded for Luis Robert, Shane Smith was a Rule 5 pick, and Bryan Hudson, Derek Hill, Jarred Kelenic, Drew Romo and Jordan Hicks all came over in cheap deals for next to nothing. So while on one hand it does feel like an island of misfit toys for people desperate for playing time...some of these guys have become helpful MLB options again. Hudson went from being absolutely cooked last year to becoming, once again, a viable relief option. Romo hit his first two MLB homers the other day. Even Sean Newcomb has been helpful in long relief. Somehow it's just getting done.

I don't know if this means the White Sox have legs this season, as there's still far too many people not hitting, but they may have a more dignified season than they've had in a while, and I'm all for that. 

Coming Tonight: Oh, just the best pitcher in baseball, no big deal.

One Saving Grace

 

So uh...not sure if y'all have been up on it, but things haven't been going particularly well for the Mets. They had that epic losing streak, lost Lindor to the IL, now will be without Luis Robert for a bit. The mood is generally pessimistic. Even the die-hard Mets fans are worried. Because Steve Cohen did exactly what he said he was gonna do, and loaded this team with grade-A talent, both homegrown and contracted, and put them all in position to succeed, and they're still getting embarrassed. It both makes absolutely no sense and makes all the sense in the world at the same time. 

Here are some facts. There's only one member of the starting lineup with a WAR greater than 0.2, that being Juan Soto. Francisco Alvarez currently leads the team in home runs with a whopping four, and as a reminder we're one month into the season and not one week. The 'Bo Bichette at third base' experiment is going about as well as you might expect, bringing us back to the 90s trend of a Bichette excelling at the game while being dragged backwards by being forced to play the field 162 games. Most of the production in the last two weeks has come from M.J. Melendez, who somehow wasn't able to do this well enough to keep a job in Kansas City. David Peterson, Kodai Senga and Devin Williams all look positively cooked, and a suddenly-healthy Christian Scott isn't looking much better at the moment. 

This team is hitting .227. You get Robert, Semien, Bichette, Soto, Lindor and Alvarez in the same lineup and you still end up hitting .227. At the very least it's not for a lack of trying, but it's just not what you want from these circumstances. 

What is exciting, though, is that the team has unwittingly returned to the deGrom era, in the sense that they're putting out a genuinely terrific starting pitcher every 5 days and getting little to no run support for him. Nolan McLean is undeniably a star, and is pitching like a tenured pro even less than a year into his big league career. So far he's got a 2.55 ERA, an 0.849 WHIP and 45 Ks through 6 starts. Only one win though, which is very reminiscent of deGrom's luck in Queens. I do have a feeling this team will be good again before McLean has to play somewhere else, because if an arm like that gets wasted on teams like these, I don't think Mets fans will be able to take it. At least Doc Gooden got a World Series ring, man. Tom Seaver too. 

At the very least there's been a slight improvement since the losing streak, but the Mets are still blowing games to the Nationals, and that's not a good look. There is still time to build something here, and with a team like this it definitely can be done. But this is not the way you want to start a season like this. I dunno if it'll take a Soto-led sea change or a Mendoza firing for things to get better, but something will need to happen soon.

Coming Tomorrow- Another mid-2025 callup that's playing a major role in his big league club. This team, if you can believe it, might be in more dire shape than the Mets.

Impractical Magic

 

This Orioles team is, frankly, starting out similarly to the last couple. A few surprise smashes, a rise in younger options, but a lot of things not going as planned. 

After a year where the rotation was too injury-plagued to really make an effort, I figured 2026 would be better for everyone that struggled in 2025. Not quite. Zach Eflin, Dean Kremer and now Trevor Rogers are all hurt, and Chris Bassitt, Shane Baz and Kyle Bradish have higher ERAs than they really should. Meaning it's really on guys like Cade Povish and Brandon Young to provide stability. I get that Tyler Wells is really working as a bullpen guy, but he really should be high enough in the depth chart to eventually get plugged back into the fold, right? And again, they were so quick to part with both Grayson Rodriguez and Tomoyuki Sugano that they shouldn't feel unprepared for this moment. 

And that's really what's been stalling the Orioles' forward momentum. The rotation still isn't where it should be, even several years into a dedicated youth build. Shane Baz is gonna be there for ages, and that contract isn't starting out spectacularly. 

Meanwhile, Samuel Basallo, who's also signed for ages, is having a much more promising start to 2026, with 5 homers and 9 RBIs in 22 games. He's mostly getting at-bats at DH while Adley takes catcher more often than not, and seeing as Adley's back to where he was before, that seems like a good move. Also impressing people is Jeremiah Jackson, a 2025 midyear call-up who's a fine option both at 2nd and in the outfield, and in addition he's hitting .272 with 5 homers and 19 RBIs. So far there's an x-factor to him that the team desperately needs more of, as Gunnar Henderson's been hitting for power without much substance behind it. It's also more prominent when Taylor Ward is relying more on his contact game so far, which is extremely well appreciated. Trading for Ward was an outside-the-box move that's paying off so far for this team.

But still, there's too many young guys refusing to move the needle so far. Mayo, Beavers, Cowser, Alexander and O'Neill have been given copious amounts of big moments and haven't capitalized on many yet. Pete Alonso's doing okay, but he's not lighting the place on fire yet. When the most consistent unit on your team is the bullpen, you know some things need to change. And with a division this stacked, the Orioles need to find their full-roster consistency. Cause there will be more Yankees and Rays series', and they're not all gonna be easy.

I'm liking some of the things I'm seeing, especially the nitty gritty details of this team, but the broad strokes need to improve. Luckily there's still time for that to happen.

Coming Tomorrow- The Mets just lowered cheap seats to 6 bucks apiece. I reckon they're about 10 when this guy pitches. 

Before Our Very Eyes

 

The way things were looking last season, the Diamondbacks were likely gonna be sellers, start over a bit and see if Carroll and Burnes could make it long enough to see the next stage of the rebuild. The idea was that Kelly wasn't coming back, Gallen wasn't coming back, Marte was getting traded and the dream would be over soon. And then during the offseason, the D-Backs surprised everybody by not punting. Virtually no big pieces were traded. Merrill Kelly, broken as he may be now, was re-signed. And what's more, the D-Backs even got Nolan Arenado and Michael Soroka to pad the roster. 

And that led to a 3rd place, 15-12 start where you can not only see the Lovullo era still thriving, but the next steps beginning to lock into place.

Now, 1st base is already a wild twist, because logically it should be as simple as getting Pavin Smith to do it, but he's hurt. So Carlos Santana started the season as the primary 1st base option. Then he got hurt. And then...the single strangest 1B platoon of them all came along. Cause Ildemaro Vargas has somehow pulled a Donnie Barrels and reinvented himself as an everyday player, hitting .367 with 6 homers and 20 RBIs. Yes, ILDEMARO VARGAS is doing this. I'm just as shocked. And the other guy playing 1st is rookie Jose Fernandez, who hit 2 home runs in his first game, then didn't hit anymore until this past week. 

I'm...dumbfounded, honestly. Two solutions out of absolutely nowhere that were like Plan C and D. And also throw in Nolan Arenado still being decent at third after Jordan Lawlar was moved to the outfield to make room for him [only to get hurt]. Arenado is hitting .286 with 4 homers and 14 RBIs. It's not as pretty as it used to be, but it's more of a batting exclamation point than, say, Evan Longoria in a similar role. Throw in Carroll, Marte and Perdomo doing their usual stuff and you've got a strong lineup somehow. Only real weak spot is catcher with Moreno injured, but James McCann's doing what he can I suppose.

This team's also lucky they caught Zac Gallen, Eduardo Rodriguez and Mike Soroka on the upswing from their respective injury comebacks, cause they've made for a great starting three. The hope is that Corbin Burnes comes back unharmed in a little while and someone, hopefully Brandon Pfaadt, calms down to provide a steadier fifth choice. 

The D-Backs are surprising people so far, including themselves. We'll see how far they're able to take this, but if the stars, like Carroll especially, can stay hot they definitely have a chance to stay embedded in the NL West picture.

Coming Tonight: I always found it very fitting that right after Manny Machado was traded, the Orioles' next savior, Cedric Mullins, arrived. Well right after Mullins was dealt, they called up this guy, and now he's surprising people.

Astros Update: So It's Come to This Edition

 

I don't know if this feels different than the usual Yankee series wins against the Astros...but this one felt pretty sweet. 

Cause typically, and I don't know if you know this, but...typically the Astros-Yankees series' are pretty evenly matched. Y'know, the Astros pull some shit, then the Yankees come back, it's back and forth. And even if the Yankees have had the better regular season luck the last few meetings, it's never easy. But now, and...let's be clear, I'm aware that Spencer Arrighetti and Christian Walker made the third game tougher for us. But like...

Okay. Listen. I've been waiting for an Astros team to give me absolutely nothing for SO LONG. And I'm genuinely psyched that we're here. 

Here's what the Astros are working with right now. Yordan Alvarez is hitting .355 with 38 hits, 26 RBIs and 11 homers, all of those leading the league. It's a herculean start for Alvarez, trying to reclaim momentum after a down season. In addition, Christian Walker's having a comeback year, hitting .291 with 23 RBIs and 7 homers, finally settling in after a rough first season in Houston. Spencer Arrighetti, since coming off the IL, has been 3-0, with a 2 ERA and 21 Ks. Carlos Correa has been terrific on defense filling in for Jeremy Pena, and is also hitting .280 in his usual, pedestrian manner. 

That's it. That's...really it honestly. They're in last place, 11-18, and struggling mightily. And Joe Espada has been trying to save face by going 'well it's the injuries', but...even with that in mind, there are a lot of major players, like Yainer Diaz, Isaac Paredes, Lance McCullers, Bryan Abreu and Enyel de los Santos who just aren't pulling their weight. You're also dealing with a past-his-prime Jose Altuve with 8 RBIs in 27 games, steps backwards from both Cam Smith and Brice Matthews, and just a messy lineup schematic in general. 

To be fair to Espada, the injuries have been pretty rough for this team. The starting pitching has been hit so hard that they're now on a rotation of McCullers, Arrighetti, Mike Burrows, Peter Lambert (!!!) and an opener. They've already released J.P. France, demoted Colton Gordon and have, for some reason, yet to call on Jason Alexander, who's moonlighting in the Western Union ads Sugar Land. Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, Ronel Blanco, Tatsuya Imai and Hayden Wesneski are all hurt. So cutting France and Luis Garcia now makes even LESS SENSE. Cause there's barely any room on the roster, and any potential call-ups need to be moved on purposefully. In past years, even with an injury-laden rotation, the Astros would have guys ready, in many cases Arrighetti or Gordon or someone. Now, they don't even have much of a bench, which is...why you don't trade Jake Bloss or Ryan Gusto. In addition, the majority of the outfield is hurt, meaning they either need to chance Alvarez's defense or throw a replacement level guy like Daniel Johnson (!!!!!) or Dustin Harris out there. Which is why you don't cut Chas McCormick. 

Every issue with this current iteration of the Astros seems self-inflicted, and the few guys playing well are coming off of rough, injury-plagued years. I don't know where they're headed. They've had worse starts than this and ended up in the playoffs. I kinda hope that random hot streak isn't enough to sink the AL West for them this time. I'd like to think the Mariners, A's and Rangers are good enough to keep that from happening this year, but...with this organization, can you ever be sure?

For now, though, I'll just take my Yanks series win and be happy. 

Coming Tomorrow- It takes a lot of panache to hit 2 home runs in your MLB debut and then insist you're more comfortable hitting for contact.

I Guess I'll Take Credit for That..

 

I went to a Phillies game a couple weeks ago against the Cubs. Nothing really noteworthy happened, so I thought at the time. But from the start of that game, both teams embarked on long streaks. The Phillies, who lost that game, would go on to lose the next 9, eventually squeaking out a win in Atlanta Saturday night. The Cubs, who won, would keep rolling themselves, winning THEIR next 9. It never usually works that well, where one game can be a turning point for two different teams. And now the Cubs are heading towards first while the Phillies, the way it's looking, might be firing some people very soon.

I don't really want to say the Phillies thing was my fault, but I can take being responsible for a Cubs run. Always fun to see. 

I root it back to Ian Happ, who's always been a sort of supporting player for these Cubs teams despite being longest-tenured. He shows up, does something cool, doesn't make it about him, and Hoerner or Suzuki or PCA gets to be the hero. Well right now Happ leads the Cubs in homers with 7. Dansby Swanson has 6. The people you think would be hitting all the homers in Chicago, like Suzuki and Bregman and Busch, aren't doing as much for this team as the fundamental, 'always there' guys. It's honestly odd that the Cubs have sort of taken Dansby Swanson for granted, but he really just shows up, plays great defensive shortstop, hits .244 and drives in a lot of runs. He's had a 4+ WAR every season he's been a Cub. Even Happ, as good as he's been, didn't really lock in til around 2022. By the way, shockingly Happ's never hit more than 25 homers in a season. Could this be the year he goes for 30?

As I figured, even during the Cubs' rough stretch earlier, the plan of putting a bunch of proven run producers in the same lineup has worked extremely well for this team. Suzuki's hitting .300 in his first 15 games, he's 4 homers in. Hoerner's not only leading the team in average but in RBIs and stolen bases. Moises Ballesteros has become an excellent DH option, with 4 homers and 12 RBIs already. Carson Kelly's strong 2025 has carried over to a just-as-strong 2026, still starting and hitting .300. It's really only PCA and Busch who aren't hitting, and they can turn around in an instant. The rotation isn't terrific, with a lot resting on another okay Shota Imanaga season, but the idea is for the lineup to just outhit anybody anyway. Kind of an uphill battle when you're playing the Dodgers but against the majority of the rest of the league they can really score.

It's a tough division, especially considering that everyone's still above .500, but I think the Cubs have proven, since the streak, that they have the hitting to outrun the competition, and they could build on this and have a fruitful postseason. That's only if they can hang onto momentum like they just did though.

Coming Tonight: I was beginning to think 1st base in Houston was cursed, but all it took was a year to figure out the new park and this guy seems to have broken it.

Expressly Ryan

 

For the first 19 games of the season, you could describe the Twins as 'better than anyone thought they could be'. They were 11-8, having big games against tough pitchers like Tarik Skubal and Garrett Crochet, and getting production out of a noticeably slimmer lineup. Since then, however, the Twins have only won once, and that was against the Mets right before they ended their streak. 

So what was it that allowed the Twins to propel past the Tigers and Jays in early April before struggling against the Mets and Rays in late April? No one is quite sure. Some people have theorized there's some sort of Target Field advantage that allows the team to figure out great pitchers, either a tell or a full cheating thing. We may not know about that til they make it back home tomorrow against the Mariners. Yet that doesn't explain why the Reds came to Minneapolis and swept them cleanly, and that's a team that has Andrew Abbott and Brady Singer, two easy-to-exploit starters. 

I think the main truth is that the Twins simply aren't great this year, and as things have evened out it's all been confirmed.

I root this argument back to Josh Bell. Josh Bell is a strange case, because he only seems to succeed when playing for bad teams. The second he's traded to a good team, like the 2022 Padres or the 2023 Marlins, his bat stops working. But when the pressure is off he springs into action. Last year, on a completely meaningless Nationals team, Bell became a viable power DH again, hitting 23 homers and 63 RBIs. The Twins took a gamble, and so far he's hitting .244 with 3 homers and 16 RBIs. Not immaculate, but decent production for a team without a ton of real success. It stands out more when the foundational guys, like Trevor Larnach, Matt Wallner, Luke Keaschall and Royce Lewis, simply aren't producing many runs. Someone like Austin Martin, amazingly hitting .300 with only 6 RBIs, should not be so valuable to a team's success.

At the very least, the Twins, for the time being, still have Joe Ryan, who's a very good starting option. Through 6 starts he's got a 1.021 WHIP, a 3.90 ERA and 33 Ks. He's very much at the mercy of the run support on many occasions, but he's still the staff ace and he's still a great guy to have around. It's very promising, though, that this team also has Taj Bradley, Bailey Ober, Mick Abel and, if his first start is anything to go by, Connor Prielipp, to rest on if anything were to happen around, say, July. Bradley in particular is looking better than he ever has on a mound. Who knew there'd be someone that wouldn't succeed until AFTER they left Tampa. Besides Joe Ryan of course.

The Twins now at least still strive to outdo expectations, and I think, if April is anything to go by, they're still capable of big games. I just don't think it's the norm for this team. I don't really think they have it in them.

Coming Tomorrow- There's a lot of teams that don't have anybody left from 2022, let alone 2018, but this guy has been on the Cubs since before they crumpled-and-tossed. And now he's helping them compete again. Gotta feel amazing for the guy.

Sandy & The Hourglass

 

The Marlins are in second place. Are they in second place because they are honestly kinda good, or are they in second place because their competition is the Nationals, who aren't great, and the Phils and Mets, who had awful losing streaks? It's too soon to say. But it has to help that Sandy Alcantara's finally pitching like his old self again.

The Sandy Alcantara era in Miami has been a strange one, because when they had absolutely nothing they still had him, and then once they were able to build a team and compete, Sandy, well...he got hurt, missed a season and spent 2025 not being too great. And now for 2026 they have a lot more cemented. Xavier Edwards and Otto Lopez make a great DP combo. Kyle Stowers just returned to aid Owen Caissie and Jakob Marsee in the outfield. Liam Hicks is having the contact season of his life. And the bullpen has finally locked in consistently. 

But now...this growing, improving Marlins team has a great Sandy Alcantara performance behind it. Through 5 starts, he's got a 2.80 ERA, 23 Ks, a 1.019 WHIP and a complete game shutout under his belt. This is the guy who won the Cy Young a few years ago. There was a worry that the big season cooked his arm, but that doesn't seem to be the case. He's still dominant, he's still trustworthy, and he can still lead this rotation forward. And just to be clear, he's not exactly doing all the work either. Max Meyer's off to a pretty nice start, and has 28 strikeouts already. Janson Junk and Eury Perez have had some pretty nice starts. I figure Braxton Garrett will be back eventually, there's still room for outside voices, but what they have at the moment is working despite the lack of real exclamation points.

I think what's most relieving about this Marlins team is that the parlance 'well, it won't be pretty' doesn't apply to this team as much as it did to past iterations. There is much better hitting on this team, and more of the contact variety. 5 years ago it was easy to get like 6 guys who hit homers and then only hit .220 and be alright with it, but now that Edwards, Stowers, Hicks, Sanoja and Lopez can just hit for other reasons than just hitting home runs, it gives more of an idea of what the team can accomplish. Last year the Blue Jays contact-hit their way to a World Series, and the Guardians' contact game gets them to the playoffs frequently. The Marlins have enough varied hitting energy to get them far. And if all else fails, they have Deyvison de los Santos, who could probably hit 30 home runs if they can keep him in the majors. 

I feel good about this Marlins team. Granted, if the bottom two disappointments can really turn things around, they'll need to shift into a different gear, so hopefully there's a higher ceiling than usual for the Marlins.

Coming Tomorrow- I still can't believe that this is like the one guy the Rays couldn't wait til he blossomed to trade. They just did it immediately. And now he's one of two ex-Rays leading the Twins rotation.

Bigger, Badder and More Canadian

 

It's the kind of prophecy that feels like it's out of a movie, but imagine being in Montreal in 2003, around when it became clear that Vladimir Guerrero was leading the Expos in free agency. Cause it would feel like all the hope was going away with the loss of one guy. Imagine if you had the knowledge to go 'don't worry...there will be another Vladimir Guerrero in 15 years, and he'll be just as good as the previous one, and what's more...he'll get to spend even more of his career in Canada. Cause that's where he was born'.

It sounds ridiculous, but somehow Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has guaranteed, even just 8 seasons into his career, that even as legendary as his father was in all his years in the league...he will be the most Canadian Vladimir Guerrero to ever play. Canada by way of the DR. It just gets more Arthurian the more you think about it. Born in Montreal, plays in Toronto, gets 'em to their first World Series since before he was born, and signs a contract ensuring he'll stay in Canada for years to come. All that remains is for him to play well, and that's what he's been doing.

Through 8 seasons, Vlad Jr. has 185 home runs [15 away from 200, and that's certainly doable], 603 RBIs, 1107 hits, a career .290 average and 26.8 WAR. By 27, that's a strong resume, even without adding the 5 straight all-star appearances and the 8 homers in one postseason. The expectations were huge for Guerrero, and he's definitely risen to them. I think in 2023 there was a moment where we all kinda rethought things for a second, as he was only hitting .260 and not getting 30 homers, but then he replied with 2 straight top-tier seasons and that postseason campaign. Right now he's hitting .337 with 12 RBIs and 30 hits, proving that the emphasis doesn't have to be on power all the time. Guerrero's just turned into a truly tremendous hitter, and an excellent centerpiece player who, even without Bo Bichette, can still command a lineup. 

The Jays themselves, meanwhile, are under .500 and doing their best to bounce back. The full team effort from 2025 seems to have subsided slightly, as the lineup's a bit more piecemeal. Losing Kirk and Springer hurts, and not even a surprise bench turn from Eloy Jimenez and the latent production of Kazuma Omamoto have patched things tremendously. It's just a comparatively less exciting lineup, and that returns the Jays to being a slightly above average team in a division where you need to be overwhelmingly great to survive. The Rays and Orioles are head of the Jays in the division in a year where the Jays felt like a shoo-in for at least 2nd. The pitching is only marginally better, as the 'break in case of emergency' starters, Eric Lauer and Patrick Corbin, are already several starts into the season, Scherzer's looking really cooked and Jeff Hoffman forgot how to save games.

Of course this team can turn things around, as they've done it before. But it just seems like even more of an uphill battle than last year. In 2025, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. felt like one of many prime, pivotal hitters, and now it feels like more is on his shoulders again. Hopefully the rest begin to step up soon.

Coming Tomorrow- He was elite, he got hurt, he struggled...and now he appears to be back.  

Un-X-pected

 

A Padres team desperate for starting pitching, where Fernando Tatis has 0 home runs and Xander Bogaerts has 3, has won 17 games, with 9 of those wins being saved by Mason Miller, who has yet to allow a run. I knew these post-Seidler teams were gonna be weird, but this is wild, guys.

I always expected these Padres teams to come down to Tatis and Machado, and so far neither has been much of a factor. Tatis is technically hitting, and stealing bases, but the power numbers are way down. Machado's hitting .188, and the fear is that the peak years may have subsided. Jackson Merrill is doing *alright*, but he's not 2024 good yet. And so...having Xander Bogaerts around to ace the contact game again is a very good thing. He's looked a bit aimless the last couple years, but now he's back to leading the team in hits and returning to his old power perks. It's a little weird that a team the Padres now needs guys like Ramon Laureano and Miguel Andujar to do a lot of the run production work, but Bogie running things was always a hope when they signed him, and though he's not completely in world-beating mode like he was in Boston, he's still feeling more like himself than he has in a while.

And that's the ultimate feeling. There's a definite spark that is lifting this team over the competition, and it's led to a start that's put them, at long last, at the top of the division with the Dodgers. Now, last year, if you'll recall, the Padres had so many opportunities to gain a cushion against LA but simply could not, due to constantly losing their divisional matchups together. This year, even if there's still some weak spots in the lineup, they've gained enough momentum early to match up to the Dodgers. It's an unassuming Padres team to do this with, but it's appreciated.

Once again, I do worry about the thin rotation aspect. Musgrove isn't back for a couple more weeks, Pivetta's probably mid-May, Canning's second half. They just went and got Lucas Giolito, like they should have two months ago, and Walker Buehler and German Marquez are beginning to wear out their welcomes. Right now it's just Randy Vasquez and Michael King looking halfway decent up there, and while it may be enough for now, there's gonna be a point in the season where you need 5 strong options. I don't care how good your bullpen is, you can't go on 2 sure things and a prayer. It's kind of the exact opposite of the Dodgers' playoff strategy last year, giving all the relief opportunities to starters and hoping the actual relievers don't need to go in.

I still think the Padres can surprise people this year, and if people like Machado, Merrill and Tatis really take off, the Dodgers could have some serious trouble on their hands this year. 

Coming Tonight: I think there was a moment a few years ago where I was beginning to think the hype around this guy could be overblown. I don't anymore. 

Excessive Gore

 

To be at .500 and in 2nd, and ahead of your two greatest competitors in the standings, has to feel weird. Like you're there, you're accomplishing your goal...but is it earned? Are you beating yourself as much as you're beating them? The Rangers are looking decent right now, but is it because they've gotten off to a less rough start than Seattle or Houston, or are they actually on the precipice of something?

The issue of this team, since having to follow up the championship season, has been the inability for the young, homegrown core to actually inherit the team, still relying on contracted veterans like Corey Seager, Jacob deGrom and now Brandon Nimmo to do the heavy lifting. Wyatt Langford, Josh Jung and Evan Carter have flirted with greatness but injuries have prevented its consistency. Langford is once again hurt, right as he gets going. The good news is that Carter looks good, hitting a homer as I write this and letting his multi-tool ability distract from his comparatively pedestrian average. Jung's hitting .300, that's a nice start. Even Kumar Rocker's beginning to grow accustomed to MLB hitting, and has his ERA below 4. Beyond that, though, this is still a hodgepodge of acquired guns rather than a full youth movement. Which does explain why the team's development has sputtered a bit.

I do credit the Rangers for bringing on MacKenzie Gore, who's still young enough to be on the ground floor of something here. Gore is known for his high-K, high-velocity mentality, which also occasionally leads to a higher ERA. Sure enough, Gore has 35 Ks, a 1.192 WHIP...and a 4.15 ERA. Everything they figured would happen is happening. Still fits into this rotation pretty well though. I don't think Gore is gonna be the full package that the Padres were figuring when they drafted him, but he's still a handy flamethrower to have around. And then you have Jacob deGrom, still very much a viable ace, who's got a 2.29 ERA in 4 starts. I worry a bit about Evo and Leiter, but the season's young. 

Regardless, even if it's not pretty or sustainable, the runs are getting produced. Jake Burger's still an RBI machine, Seager's still the fearless captain of yore, Nimmo's having a comeback year, and Langford and Carter look confident and versatile. The team average is low, and there's a bunch of people still not hitting, but games are getting won. I think any sense of a gameplan went out the window when Bochy left, and now the Skip Schumacher approach just involves winning with what they've got by any means necessary. 

And if that works better than Bochy-ball did...it just proves that you can't really predict anything.

Coming Tomorrow- It's possible he may never live up to his Red Sox numbers, but he's still doing whatever he can to keep his team in the conversation.

The Thrill of the Chase

 

So, we find the Reds rotation in its current incarnation, with Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo injured, Andrew Abbott not injured but looking really rough, Brandon Williamson and Rhett Lowder not injured and doing well, Chase Burns looking even better than he did as a call-up last year, and Brady Singer...just waiting til someone notices he's still here. It's not what everyone expected it to look like, but it seems to be working.

The fundamental issue with these Reds rotations is always going to be that because the four main arms throw as hard as they do, it's very unlikely for them all to be healthy together for a consistent period. It's what doomed the 2010s Mets, and it would have doomed the 2025 Dodgers had they not been unstoppable. I would love to see a version of this team that had Greene, Lodolo, Lowder and Burns all together, healthy and good, but the throwing regimens demand that we only get them for a certain amount of time before they need to sit for a couple months. 

Regardless, the version we've got now seems fine. Chase Burns is the current standout, he's 2-1 with 30 Ks in his first 5 starts, looking very MLB ready. Rhett Lowder's pretty good too, he's the most dominant guy they have, even if he hasn't struck as many guys out as Burns. Williamson looks decent, he's probably a better bet for consistency than the other two, though Abbott may just be having a rough April. And luckily the Reds' bullpen is the best it's been in years, with Graham Ashcraft, Tony Santillan, Pierce Johnson, Sam Moll, Connor Phillips and Brock Burke all in excellent shape. A shame about Emilio Pagan's blown saves, though...he has a tendency to do that. 

And then to back them up you have Sal Stewart and Elly de la Cruz off to terrific starts, both with 8 homers, and Sal with 24 RBIs already. Elly excelling is no surprise, and he may finally be chasing that MVP, but Stewart is not only MLB ready, he's already one of the most intimidating sluggers in the game. Already a slam dunk at first base. The sad detail is that it's really only them who are hitting right now. Lot of guys flirting with .200 or looking for their first homer or trying to match up. Steer, Friedl, Stephenson and McLain represent the backbone of this team and they're all giving absolutely nothing. Suarez is trying but he's only hit 3 homers so far. 

I sincerely hope the Reds can capitalize more on this great pitching year by bringing forth a full lineup effort, because right now it's just 2 guys doing all the work, and that's not sustainable. You can't waste great seasons by Chase Burns and Rhett Lowder, cause who knows how long it'll be until their arms let them have other ones.

Coming Tonight: He got out of Washington right when his new team was about to shock the division.