Category: Sports News

A look back at the first baseball month of the season, with all of April plus five days of March.

March/April stats

20-11 record
167 runs scored (5.39 per game, 4th in MLB)
101 runs allowed (3.26 per game 1st in MLB)
.715 pythagorean win percentage (22-9)

The usual caveat

For most of baseball history, the season ran from April to September, but over time the schedule has expanded on both ends, now regularly starting in March and ending in October. This year’s opening day — regular opening day, not counting any special international trips — of March 25 was the earliest start to a season in major league history.

Those loose ends at both ends of the schedule leads to oddities in splits, such that April numbers will also include March. Same for September, which will also include the few games in October as well. So while we might say “April” here at times, just know it also includes March.

The Dodgers’ first-ever game in March came way back in 1998, and in their history have now played 33 regular season March games. They won four of five March games to open this season, and are 24-9 (.727).

For starters

Even without Blake Snell — who started the season on the injured list with shoulder fatigue and is two minor league starts into a rehab assignment — the Dodgers rotation carried the staff in the first month of the season, and provided a stable base, much like the final two months of 2025 plus the postseason.

Dodgers starters in April averaged 5.85 innings per start, tops in the majors, the the rotation was second in ERA (2.83) and xERA (3.51), and fifth in strikeout-minus-walk rate (15.8 percent). The Dodgers got 20 starts lasting at least six innings, .. 4 (Tigers, Royals, Mariners 16) more than any other team.

Shohei Ohtani, who has lasted six innings in all five of his starts, has a 0.60 ERA and 2.23 xERA, both of which are best in the National League among pitchers with at least 30 innings. He finished the month one inning shy of qualifying for the leaderboard. Same for Justin Wrobleski, who has a 1.50 ERA in his 30 innings, including two runs allowed in 26 innings in his four starts.

Tyler Glasnow is off to an excellent start with a 2.56 ERA and 2.40 xERA in a team-leading 38 2/3 innings, with 47 strikeouts.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto had a 2.87 ERA and 4.02 xERA in his six starts and 37 2/3 innings, but also only has two wins as the Dodgers have scored 11 total runs with him still in the game.

Powering up

Max Muncy was the Dodgers’ best hitter in the first month of the season, hitting .287/.374/.594 and ranking third in the National League in both OPS (.968) and wRC+ (166). Muncy led the team with 23 runs scored, matching May 2019 and May 2021 for his most runs in a month in his career.

In 2025, Muncy famously did not hit a home run until the final day of April, but this year got off to a much hotter start, leading the team with nine home runs so far. The first eight of those home runs were solo shots, and Muncy’s 11 runs batted in are tied for the fewest in any month in baseball history with at least nine home runs, along with Spencer Torkelson in August 2023 with the Detroit Tigers.

Dalton Rushing was off to a blazing start, hitting .348/.423/.848 and second on the team in both home runs (seven) and RBI (17) despite playing in only 15 games. Rushing’s 52 plate appearances are the fewest in any month in Dodgers history with at least seven home runs.

Andy Pages was the only Dodger to play all 31 games in April, including 30 starts. He led the team in hits (36) and runs batted in (25), all while hitting .321/.366/.518 with a 145 wRC+ and holding down the fort in center field.

Ohtani two ways

That guy with the 0.60 ERA in 30 innings on the mound, Shohei Ohtani, had a down month at the plate for him, but relative to the rest of baseball he’s still quite productive on offense, hitting .273/.406/.491 with a 144 wRC+ and six home runs.

He batted 139 times in March/April and faced 119 batters as a pitcher. His 258 combined plate appearances made this the second-busiest month of Ohtani’s career, trailing only the 268 PA in September/October 2022. As a way to get some semblance of rest, in two of Ohtani’s pitching starts so far he did not hit.

Fizzling final week

While the Dodgers are at or near the top of most offensive statistics — their 126 wRC+ is tops in the majors — their end to April left a lot to be desired, following a 15-4 start with a 5-7 finish. In the final nine games of the month, the Dodgers scored three or fewer runs five times. They lost two one-run games to the Marlins to finish off the month, a series in which the Dodgers trailed entering the ninth inning in all three games.

“I don’t think we’re collectively swinging the bats the way we were early,” manager Dave Roberts said after the final game of the month. “The last 10 days it hasn’t been synced up.”

“We’ve kinda been going through it as a group,” said first baseman Freddie Freeman, who hit .259/.328/.414 with a 107 wRC+ in the first month. “As an offense, the last few games haven’t been where we wanted to be.”

Kyle Tucker had a walk-off single to win Monday’s game, but was otherwise underwhelming in his first month with the Dodgers, hitting just .241/.331/.371 with a 100 wRC+.

The month ahead

The Dodgers play 28 games in May, with three Thursdays off, and have a stretch of 13 game days in a row from May 8-20. Thirteen of those games are at Dodger Stadium, with 15 road games. After playing nine interleague games in March/April, the Dodgers in May play six games against American League teams — at Astros from May 4-6 and at Angels from May 15-17.

For all the consternation about the Mariners’ slow start in April, they wound up finishing the month with a .500 record thanks to two straight series wins on the road. Despite sitting a game and a half behind the A’s in the division, FanGraphs gives Seattle coin flip odds to win the AL West (54.4%) and a 78.0% chance of returning to the postseason, the second highest playoff odds in the AL. All that bad luck that was skewing their early season results has started to correct itself. Surely nothing could go wrong during a big weekend series celebrating a franchise legend against a historically pesky team, right?

Note: now that the calendar has flipped to May, I’ll be using 2026 stats where appropriate in these previews.

The Royals came into this season with an eye towards building off their two successful seasons in 2024 and ‘25. They had their one surprise postseason appearance a few years ago but it seemed like they were on the verge of breaking out of their rebuilding cycle if they could get one or two of their youngsters to take the next step forward. Unfortunately, the team has really stumbled out of the gate. A sweep of the Angels was their first series win since the first week of the season and an eight-game losing streak a few weeks ago really hurt their April record. They’re tied with the Red Sox for the second worst record in the AL, but because no one has run away with the AL Central, just 3 ½ games back in their division.

The biggest reason why the Royals have struggled to really break through these past few years is because they haven’t been able to build a complete lineup around Bobby Witt Jr. Maikel Garcia took a huge step forward last year, but Vinnie Pasquantino hasn’t been able to recreate the magic of his rookie campaign. Those two are solid sidekicks to Witt; the bigger problem is the bottom of the lineup has been an absolute black hole. There was some hope that a breakout from Jac Caglianone and average production from Isaac Collins in the outfield would help lengthen the lineup, but neither has impressed this year. I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least mention the heart of the team, Salvador Perez. He’s still chugging along, though it seems like age has really caught up to him this year. His eventual replacement, Carter Jensen, has shown flashes of top-end talent and has been the team’s best hitter so far.

Probable Pitchers 

Updated Stuff+ Explainer 

• Stuff+ scores for Mariners starters

Cole Ragans had a really weird season last year. His peripherals were better than they’ve ever been in his career — his strikeout rate was all the way up at 38.1% — but his ability to actually prevent runs was pretty terrible; his ERA was more than two runs higher than his FIP, xERA, and xFIP. Then, in June, he was sidelined with a shoulder injury, though he was able to make it back onto the mound by late September. The start to this season has been a big mixed bag for Ragans. He’s had three solid starts interspersed with three absolute clunkers, and those blowouts are really weighing heavily on his season statline. Ragans’s best pitch is his four-seam fastball and he has a trio of excellent secondary pitches — a changeup and a pair of devastating breaking balls — to help him earn tons of swings and misses. 

Seth Lugo throws the kitchen sink — and the bathtub too, for good measure. I have eight pitches listed in the table above, but I combined what Statcast calls his curveball and a “slow curve” into one line. And really, his sweeper-slurve is actually one pitch that he varies the speed and shape of based on the situation. That deep repertoire has served him well since making the transition to the starting rotation in 2023. He struggled with his normally excellent command last year, leading to a bunch of additional walks and home runs, but has seemed to have gotten over those issues to start this year. Despite mediocre raw stuff and advancing age, he’s been able to keep batters off balance because they often have no idea what pitch is coming next.

Kris Bubic changed the trajectory of his career back in 2023 by adding a much needed third secondary pitch to his repertoire, a slider in this case. He only lasted three starts that season before succumbing to an elbow injury that wiped out most of that year and the next. After a brief stint as a high-leverage reliever in ‘24, he returned to the starting rotation last year with a brand-new arsenal; gone was his curveball and in its place was a fantastic sweeper alongside the slider that fueled his breakout. His changeup looked a lot different too, and that offspeed pitch has been critical in his efforts to keep right-handed batters at bay. A shoulder injury cut his season short last year but he’s been healthy to start this year.

The Big Picture:

The Athletics just finished a series win over the Royals earlier this week and will host the Guardians over the weekend. The Rangers have only won one series since sweeping the M’s back in early April, but they’ve managed to hover around .500 for the last few weeks. Texas lost its series against the Yankees this week and will travel to Detroit this weekend. The Astros split a double-header with the Orioles yesterday, avoiding a sweep in that series; they travel to Boston next. All the fun of the Angels start to the season has quickly disappeared; they were just swept by the White Sox and have now lost 10 of their last 11 games. Los Angeles will host the miserable Mets this weekend.

Every day, Pinstripe Alley offers updates on what the Yankees’ top American League opponents are up to through the Rivalry Roundup. The AL East is well-trodden ground there, but with the season’s final month upon us, we’re going to take a peek around MLB as a whole and check in with each of the other five divisions. Who’s surprising? Who’s underwhelming? Who’s simply mediocre at the moment? Read on and find out.

First Place: Cleveland Guardians (16-16)

Top Position Player: Daniel Schneemann (1.3 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Parker Messick (1.3 fWAR)

The Guardians sit atop what has to date been the weakest division in baseball with a .500 record and without having strung together more than two consecutive wins throughout the entirety of the month of April. That has been less a testament to the Guardians’ performance, though, and more to the fact that the entire division has, well, grossly underperformed expectations in the early going.

Over the past few years, Cleveland has not exactly been known for their offensive prowess, and this year is no exception. Their 3.84 runs/game sits last in the American League, and their 92 OPS+ ranks better than only the Blue Jays and Red Sox. Steven Kwan (73 wRC+) and Bo Naylor (-1) have been absolutely dreadful, José Ramírez has been stealing bases but hitting for less power (12 SB without being caught, but just a 115 wRC+ and 1.1 fWAR). Should these veterans begin hitting like the back of their baseball cards, though, the emergence of utilityman Daniel Schneemann (167 wRC+), the strong start of rookie Chase DeLauter (130), and the high potential of recently-promoted top prospect Travis Bazzana mean that the Guardians could find their offense in a different place when the summer comes.

What has allowed Cleveland to fight their way to the top of the division so far has been the top of their rotation, as the trio of Gavin Williams, Joey Cantillo, and Parker Messick (who flirted with a no-hitter) have each posted sub-3.00 ERAs, while Tanner Bibee has been a veritable innings eater alongside them. While their pitching staff has been let down by a shaky bullpen, their underlying metrics suggest that they’ve been let down by some bad luck, and will ultimately face some positive regression.

Second Place: Detroit Tigers (16-16)

Top Position Player: Kevin McGonigle (1.6 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Tarik Skubal (1.6 fWAR)

The only team in the AL Central with a positive run differential (+9), the Tigers begin the month of May in a bit of a precarious position. Rookie shortstop Kevin McGonigle (164 wRC+) leads an offense that is tied with the Angels for third in the AL in OPS+ (106) and in the Junior Circuit’s top half in runs/game (4.44), but which has seen injuries to Javier Báez, Zach McKinstry, and Parker Meadows. On the flip side, though, their defense has been absolutely terrible. Their -15 Outs Above Average is even with the Mariners for the worst in the majors, and while Defensive Runs Saved isn’t quite as low on them, their -2 DRS is tied for the AL’s third-worst. To put it bluntly, there’s a real case to be made that Gleyber Torres is their best defender.

Fortunately, Detroit has one of the deepest rotations in baseball. Tarik Skubal is an early contender for his third-straight AL Cy Young, although strong starts by Yankees starters Cam Schlittler and Max Fried and by Angels starter José Soriano, combined with his 1.104 OPS the third time through the order, puts him in a bit of a hole early on. Behind him, Framber Valdez gives the team one of the league’s best 1-2 punches. Injuries to Casey Mize and Justin Verlander, however, have sapped some of the depth, and it’s debatable whether the Tigers have the bullpen arms to engage in the “pitching chaos” that they did back in 2024.

Third Place: Chicago White Sox (14-17)

Top Position Player: Colson Montgomery (1.2 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Davis Martin (1.2 fWAR)

It’s rare for a 14-17 team to be one of the season’s darlings, but here we are. Just two years after losing 121 games, Chicago looks like a fun team again. Much of this has to do with the performance of first baseman Munetaka Murakami, who has exceeded all expectations in his first month in the United States. His dozen homers thus far are tied with Aaron Judge and Yordan Alvarez for the MLB lead.

Between Murakami, shortstop Colson Montgomery, and third baseman Miguel Vargas, Chicago has its most dangerous middle of the order since their 2021 AL Central division winners — i.e., before everything all came crashing down. Atop the rotation, meanwhile, Davis Martin has been dominant, Sean Burke has been effective, and Erick Fedde has been capable. Thanks to the top of their lineup and rotation, Chicago has been able to put together two three-game winning streaks this season (including a sweep over the Blue Jays) and win 8 of their past 12 games.

So why does The Athletic still rank Chicago as the 30th team in this week’s power rankings? Like most bad teams trying to emerge from rock bottom, the White Sox have some solid players, but lack depth. Edgar Quero (35 wRC+) and Luisangel Acuña (28 wRC+) have combined for 164 plate appearances, and Andrew Benintendi has shown that last year’s above-average performance may have been a dead cat bounce, as he now sits at a 72 wRC+. Anthony Kay and his 6.12 ERA is fourth on the team in innings pitched with 25.0.

Chicago is trending in the right direction, but barring divine intervention — hello, Leo — they’re likely to find themselves back in the cellar of the division soon enough.

Fourth Place: Minnesota Twins (14-18)

Top Position Player: Byron Buxton/Trevor Larnach/Ryan Jeffers (0.9 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Joe Ryan (1.1 fWAR)

After their fire sale last season, the Minnesota Twins came into 2026 with absolutely no expectations, even if they themselves refuse to admit it. And so, naturally, they began the season on a tear: after shutting out the Red Sox 6-0 on April 14th, they were 11-7, sitting in first place in the AL Central. Since then, though, they’ve fallen down to Earth, losing 11 out of their last 14 games — including sweeps at the hands of the Reds and Rays — to plummet all the way down to fourth place.

The calling card of this Minnesota team has been their starting rotation. Joe Ryan (3.76 ERA, 3.10 FIP) and Taj Bradley (2.85 ERA, 4.03 FIP) have allowed them to withstand the loss of Pablo López, who underwent Tommy John surgery in February and will miss the season. If Bailey Ober (3.55 ERA, 3.82 FIP) continues to bounce back from a subpar 2025, then the Twins might have just enough rotation depth to compete in what is clearly a lackluster division.

That’s assuming they can patch the holes in their lineup and bullpen, of course. Offensively, Ryan Jeffers (155 wRC+), Austin Martin (163 wRC+), and Trevor Larnach (138 wRC+) have been able to make up for Byron Buxton’s comparatively slow start (106 wRC+ until yesterday’s three-hit day). But if Minnesota truly wants to compete, they need Buxton to both stay healthy and be the five-tool player that has made baseball fans frustrated by his inability to stay healthy for 12 years now, and they need to find some more offense at the hot corner (Royce Lewis currently has an 88 wRC+) and the cold corner (Kody Clemens, the team’s most common first baseman, has an 87 wRC+ and is more known for his defensive versatility than his bat, anyway). In the bullpen, Anthony Banda and Taylor Rogers either need to lock in and play more akin to their career norms, or else drop down in the bullpen pecking order considerably.

Last Place: Kansas City Royals (12-19)

Top Position Player: Bobby Witt Jr. (1.7 fWAR)
Top Pitcher: Seth Lugo (1.2 fWAR)

Just two years ago, the Kansas City Royals won 86 games, gave the eventual AL champion Yankees a run for their money in the ALDS, and looked to all the world a team on the rise. Now, though, they seem to be a team stuck in neutral, clearly scuffling but without any obvious path to improvement beyond hoping that players begin to turn their seasons around.

Offensively, pretty much everyone has been struggling, from first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino and his 63 wRC+ to superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., whose 117 wRC+ is far from bad, but ever further from the 169 he put up in 2024 and a step down from his 130 last season. Captain Salvador Perez is technically on pace for the 10th 20-homer season of his excellent career, but beyond the five dingers, he’s been abysmal as he appraches his 36th birthday with a 54 wRC+. Rookie catcher Carter Jensen (124 wRC+) and second-year outfielder Jac Caglianone (103 wRC+, up from a 46 in his rookie campaign) have been the two big positives so far, as the team struggles to figure itself out. Furthermore, the season-ending injury to Jonathan India opens up a massive hole at second, for while he had been struggling, his replacement Michael Massey isn’t exactly an improvement.

On the mound, Seth Lugo looks much like the pitcher who was the runner-up for the AL Cy Young back in 2024, with a 2.63 ERA across his first six starts, and Michael Wacha has continued to pitch better in his 30s than he did in his 20s (3.13 ERA, 3.96 FIP). Behind them, though, question marks abound. Opening Day starter Cole Ragans is an absolute mess (5.00 ERA, 5.42 FIP), 2025 rookie standout Noah Cameron has been bad (5.40 ERA, 6.32 FIP), and the entire bullpen aside from Daniel Lynch IV (0.79 ERA in 11.1 innings) and Nick Mears (2.45 ERA in 11.0 innings) has been a veritable hit parade.

The trade between the Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays in November 2022 didn’t make a lot of headlines. Part of that is because people – including those who live in Florida – don’t pay all that much attention to the two Florida teams. More importantly, the trade didn’t involve any headline talent. In exchange for two low-minors players, the Rays sent pitcher JT Chargois to the Marlins along with another minor leaguer in infielder Xavier Edwards.

Chargois has already come and gone, but Edwards is emerging as a star player. In 2025, he spent time at both second base and shortstop, mostly playing well at the former but was lacking at the latter. He didn’t show much power but got on base at a .343 clip and stole 27 bases.

This season, he’s been the team’s full-time second baseman and his defense has solidified. He has also stepped up his offensive game. His on-base percentage of .432 leads the National League, and while he’ll likely never be a huge power threat, his slugging percentage is up almost 100 points from 2025.

You know how we’ve talked about the concept of a “cleanup hitter” changing over the years? Despite not hitting a lot of home runs, Edwards has been batting fourth in the Marlins’ lineup, and it’s worked out well so far.

He’s also shown excellent taste in role models:

This being the Marlins, there’s a strong chance that Edwards gets traded in a couple of seasons as he approaches free agency. But for now, the Marlins can enjoy their young star!

Non-Phillies thought

A few comparisons have been made between this year’s Flyers and the 2022 Phillies: After several years missing the playoffs, the team finally qualified for the postseason thanks to a late surge, and in the first round, took down a favored team with multiple older stars on the roster.

Much like the 2022 Phillies, the Flyers will be underdogs in their next series. However, unlike those Phillies who took on the Atlanta Braves, they don’t have the additional motivation of playing a traditional rival. And there’s also the definite possibility that the team is happy just to have gotten this far. But sometimes, the “playing with house money” team can be the most dangerous.

Saturday is setting up to be a massive sports day in Philadelphia with the Phillies in action along with Sixers (game seven!), and Flyers playoff games. And there’s also the Kentucky Derby. While I’m sure this year’s race won’t compare to the 2004 edition, it’s still fun to watch.

I will have to set up multiple TVs to catch all the action, although my last multiple TV night was on October 9th, and that went…poorly.

Trivia

Last week’s answer: The Phillies’ first game at Truist Park was June 5, 2017. In the first inning of that game, a home run was hit by Tommy Joseph. (Nobody answered that one correctly)

This week’s question: In the first series the Phillies played at LoanDepot Park (nee Marlins Park) in June 2012, they lost all three games. Name two of the three losing pitchers from that series.

Additional thought about the series

Under Rob Thomson: Phillies play poorly for eight of nine innings in a game and lose.

Under Don Mattingly: Phillies play poorly for seven of nine innings in a game, but one of those good innings is the ninth and they win.

After how poorly most of the season has gone, we needed a day like Thursday where the team pulled off two ninth inning comebacks. (With Chase Shugart earning both wins, exactly like they drew it up.)

However, LoanDepot Park has often been a place where good Phillies vibes go to die. The Phillies’ worst years at the Marlins’ stadium seem to happen when they’re expected to be good and the Marlins are expected to be bad. The Marlins weren’t expected to be playoff contenders this season, but they are in second place (albeit with a losing record) and are coming off a series win over the Dodgers.

Perhaps the three game lead in the standings will cause the script to flip, and the Phillies will be the underdog team that hurts the Marlins’ chances?

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Philadelphia has turned a corner of late, winning three straight games and four of the last five.

With Zack Wheeler set to take the mound, my Phillies vs. Marlins predictions expect the road team to extend its winning streak in Miami.

Let’s take a closer look at my MLB picks for May 1.

Who will win Phillies vs Marlins today: Phillies moneyline (-120)

Zack Wheeler showed little rust in his season debut, holding a top-tier Atlanta Braves offense to two runs over five innings while striking out six. The velocity was high, indicating he’s already close to 100%.

If Wheeler is on his game, he doesn’t need much support to grind out wins – and he should get it against the Miami Marlins.

Eury Perez has allowed at least three runs in four of six starts and ranks Bottom-5 on the slate at limiting fly balls and hard contact. That’s cause for concern against a powerful Philadelphia Phillies offense that sits sixth in hard hit rate.

COVERS INTEL: Eury Perez has allowed an alarming 14.9% barrel rate, putting him in the seventh percentile league-wide.

Phillies vs Marlins Over/Under pick: Over 8.0 (+100)

The Phillies are heating up at the dish. They have scored 36 runs over their past seven, good for an average of 5.14 per game.

Their hard hit numbers against righties are strong and Perez is giving up a lot of quality contact. This is a good setup for them to build on strong recent production.

Miami should struggle early against Wheeler, but they’re unlikely to run him into the ground in just his second start. With a taxed Phillies bullpen behind him after Thursday’s double-header, there’s a clear path to late offense.

Phillies vs Marlins opening odds

• Moneyline: Philadelphia (-130) | Miami (+110)
• Run line: Philadelphia -1.5 (+135) | Miami +1.5 (-155)
• Over/Under: Over 8.0 (-105) | Under 8.0 (-1.5)

Phillies vs Marlins trend

The Philadelphia Phillies have hit the Game Total Over in 4 of their last 6 away games (+2.90 Units / 44% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Orioles vs. Yankees.

How to watch Phillies vs Marlins and game info

Phillies vs Marlins latest injuries

Phillies vs Marlins weather

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David Stearns has removed any cloud that might have been hanging over Mets manager Carlos Mendoza amid the team's 10-21 start.

"We know our record is not what we want, and we know we are capable of more," Stearns told Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. "We don’t view this as a manager problem, and we don’t intend to make a change."

Regarding Stearns, DiComo notes that owner Seve Cohen has given "at least some assurances" that his job as president of baseball operations is safe.

Mendoza is in the third and final guaranteed year of his contract, with the Mets holding a team option for the 2027 season.

Stearns' above comments on Mendoza echo ones he gave on April 17, when he expressed confidence in the third-year manager while disagreeing with the notion that there should be more scrutiny on Mendoza.

"No. I think Mendy is doing a really good job," Stearns said. "I think he's putting our players in position to succeed. He's enormously consistent. So, no, I don't agree with that."

Asked how Mendoza was putting players in position to succeed, Stearns elaborated.

"I think both in terms of how he's managing in the clubhouse, how he's getting guys to the right pockets -- whether it's matchups out of the bullpen, the right matchups in games," Stearns explained. "I think he's doing a good job."

Mendoza has a 182-173 career record at the helm of the Mets.

In his first season in 2024, Mendoza oversaw a team that finished 89-73 and made a run to Game 6 of the NLCS.

In 2025, with the Mets' pitching staff largely ineffective in the second half of the season, New York tumbled all the way out of a playoff spot while finishing 83-79.

Stearns hired Mendoza in November of 2023, shortly after his stint leading the front office began.