The Atlanta Braves entered the season with high hopes and so far have gotten their teeth kicked in on a pretty regular basis. Yeah, we’ve seen them weather slow starts quite well in recent seasons, but not to this extent.
Remember, in 2021, they were 4-8 through 12 games and then never above .500 until Aug. 6 before winning the NL East and the World Series. In 2022, the Braves were 23-27 and 10.5 games out through May. They’d win the NL East. They started strong in 2023 and last season they were an amazing 18-6 through April 26.
This time around, it is one of the worst starts in Atlanta Braves history. This is just the 12th time in Braves history that they started 4-11 or worse through 15 games, but six of those cases happened back when the Braves were in Boston. The only worse starts in the Atlanta years happened in 1988 and 1990, when they started 2-13. They also started 4-11 in 1973, 1978 and 2016.
There’s still a lot of time left and we’ve seen the Braves in recent memory climb out of holes, just not to this extent.
On the flip side, there’s some brilliant baseball being played in the NL West (excluding, as usual, the Rockies).
I’ve spent some time here in the early going trying my damnedest to remind people that you can’t just crown the Dodgers as the best team ever based on an 8-0 start. Maybe it’s because I’m so old that I remember the 2016 Cubs starting 25-6 and you young whippersnappers surely don’t remember the 1984 Tigers starting 9-0 then 16-1 then 26-4 then 35-5.
But also, it’s because even the best teams go through rough patches. Since that 8-0 start, the Dodgers have gone 3-6. And yet they are still the deepest and most talented team in baseball and, arguably, the best team in baseball.
The Dodgers are, at present, in third place, though. I’m still not willing to drop them very far down the rankings due to their immense talent, but we have to recognize this isn’t quite the runaway that so many people thought we were watching through eight Dodgers wins.
The Giants have their best start since 2003 and it’s only the seventh time since moving to San Francisco that they’ve been 11-4 or better through 15 games. They are a ridiculous 7-2 on the road and that now includes a sweep in Houston and a series win in the Bronx. We can ask questions as to the sustainability here, but there shouldn’t be any questions about how good they’ve been before. These Giants have been outstanding.
The Diamondbacks, by the way, are getting lost in the shuffle here. They are a formidable ballclub and maybe 9-7 doesn’t look like a great record, but that’s a 91-win pace. It puts them in fourth place in this juggernaut division. The rotation is capable of better, too.
The Padres have the best record in baseball at 13-3, matching their best start in franchise history in 1998, a season in which they won the NL pennant after a 98-win regular season. They are now 10-0 at home and overall have a +30 run differential. Their only series loss came in Chicago to a good Cubs team in the cold weather. Fernando Tatis Jr. is playing MVP-caliber baseball while Jackson Merrill isn’t far behind and Manny Machado is just doing Manny Machado things. It’s a strong and confident bunch right now and we know the front office will go all in when it comes to making any trades in July.
For now, the Padres sit at the top of the best division in baseball and that’s more than good enough here for the top spot.
10
Mariners
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Pretty tough stretch coming up for the Padres now after getting the A’s and Rockies last week. It’s the Cubs in San Diego before a road trip that hits Houston and Detroit. | 4 | 13-3 |
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The Mets have now won eight of 10 and, I gotta say, it doesn’t really feel like they’re playing all that great. Several players should — and will — be better. | 5 | 10-5 |
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The Justin Steele loss is huge, but the Cubs have now won series over the Padres, Dodgers and Rangers and have the best run differential in baseball. | 6 | 11-7 |
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Jung Hoo Lee is slashing .352/.426/.704 right now. That’s a Bondsian line, no? I guess the OBP would be higher, but work with me here. | — | 11-4 |
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This early in the season, it’s always a feeling-out process. I just can’t be sure which teams will deal with the immense pressure of No. 1. The Phillies were crowned No. 1 last week and then went 2-4. I’ll make a mental note that they just aren’t ready to deal with it. Not all teams are. | 4 | 9-6 |
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I’m probably at the point where nearly every great pitch in the majors elicits a “that’s not even fair” response from me in my head. But I’m not sure I’d list many as more unfair than Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s splitter when it’s on. The dive on it is just outrageous. | 4 | 11-6 |
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Spencer Torkelson had a terrible 2024 season, but keep in mind the former No. 1 overall pick is still only 25. So far this year, he’s hitting .309/.409/.673 with five homers. He could well prove an X-factor in a Tigers offense that seemed to be lacking a true middle-order basher heading into the year. | 3 | 9-6 |
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That 8-2 start just got mostly washed away. That’s how cruel baseball can be here in the early weeks. They’ll be happy to get home, where the Rangers are 6-1 so far. | 5 | 9-7 |
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The team leader in stolen bases is Josh Naylor. For real. Corbin Carroll just stole his first base of the year on Sunday! | 3 | 9-7 |
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How long until Cody Bellinger gets booed? He’s hitting .196/.245/.304 at a time when Aaron Judge could stand to use some more help in the middle of the order (it should be noted that Paul Goldschmidt is doing his part). | 4 | 8-7 |
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What a nice week for the Mariners. Not only did they go 5-1, but those games were against the Astros and Rangers. All of a sudden, the fans can breathe a bit easier after that putrid 3-7 start. | 10 | 8-8 |
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After four more last week, Jose Altuve is up to 2,251 career hits. That’s more than Edgar Martinez, Mike Schmidt, Willie Stargell, Willie McCovey, Yogi Berra and … Joe DiMaggio. | 1 | 7-8 |
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A 3-3 road trip isn’t bad at all. It’s just that the Brewers had a 4-0 lead heading to the ninth inning on Saturday and coughed up five runs. And then they had a lead into the sixth inning on Sunday. Tough finish to the trip. | — | 8-8 |
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Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. are both hitting for average and getting on base, but where’s the power? Bichette is slugging .386 while Vlad Jr. is only slugging .365. Neither has a home run. | 2 | 9-7 |
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After I said the Red Sox had righted themselves and were ready to be a force, they lost five of six to start last week, including two losses to the White Sox. Yuck. | 7 | 8-9 |
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Last week I mentioned that we shouldn’t judge the Guardians too harshly since they hadn’t yet been home. Then they won five straight at home. I love when things come together like that. | 3 | 8-7 |
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Cole Ragans now has 34 strikeouts against four walks in 23 ⅔ innings. I am certainly not regretting my pick for AL Cy Young and MLB strikeout leader. | 3 | 8-8 |
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Has there been a more fun early season breakout than Kyren Paris? Five homers, five steals, smooth defense, a great batting average and also the walks to prop up that OBP. He’s done it all. | 1 | 9-6 |
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The Reds have won five of six and the only loss was in extra innings to the Giants. | 8 | 8-8 |
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Jonathan Aranda breakout season? Yes. Hello, Jonathan Aranda breakout season! | 2 | 7-8 |
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Yadi who? The Cardinals have gotten remarkable production from behind the plate this season, whether it’s been Iván Herrera, Pedro Pagés or Yohel Pozo. | 3 | 7-8 |
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The O’s haven’t won a series yet this season, going 0-3-2. That’s just not gonna cut it. | 7 | 6-9 |
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An awful lot of things have gone wrong so far. Carlos Correa hitting .164/.233/.255 is chief among those. | 3 | 5-11 |
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Spencer Strider is coming back this week. Ronald Acuña Jr. won’t be much longer. Plus, the Braves have played 10 road games (with a 1-9 record) compared to just five at home (3-2). So, yes, I still believe they’ll get hot. | 1 | 4-11 |
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The Marlins have 11 homers as a team. Matt Mervis has five of them in only 33 at-bats. We might need to dust off the Mash Mervis nickname. | 1 | 8-7 |
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Here’s a funny one. I spent most of the intro here talking about how amazing the NL West is. The Nationals are 4-2 against the division. They are 2-7 against everyone else. You just can’t escape baseball’s propensity to throw weird stuff at us. | 1 | 6-9 |
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All small-sample caveats apply, obviously, but Jacob Wilson appears to be a throwback in a similar ballpark to Luis Arraez. Wilson’s had 61 plate appearances this season and gotten 21 hits (.344 average). He’s only struck out three times and hasn’t taken a single walk. | 1 | 6-10 |
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The Pirates are hitting .184/.273/.290. Yes, as a team. Yes, for the whole season. | — | 5-11 |
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Let’s play with the transitive property just for fun. The White Sox beat the Red Sox in a series. The Red Sox beat the Cardinals in a series. The Cardinals beat the Phillies. Boom. The White Sox are good! Right? Nah. But they are better than the Rockies. | 1 | 4-11 |
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The Rockies are now 1-8 with a -29 run differential on the road. The more things change … | 1 | 3-12 |
