We did the negative side, so I thought we should do the positive side. Which player’s great start to the season surprises you the most?
- George Springer: Last year I thought he was finished, but 25 games in, Springer is hitting .333/.420/.536 with 2 home runs (one short of the team lead) and 4 steals.
- Myles Straw: We made fun of the trade for Straw. But, he’s hitting. In 19 games, he’s hitting .282/.333/.410 with 1 home run, 2 steals, 3 walks and 9 strikeouts. Playing time has been limited and likely will be limited more when Daulton Varsho comes off the IL.
- Tyler Heineman: A backup catcher with a career 79 OPS+ is hitting .500/.519/.731 with 1 home run, 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. I’d be ok with him getting some DH time. Again, it is limited playing time, and I don’t expect him to continue to hit like this, but I’m willing to have him play more.
- Kevin Gausman: After a poor start to last season, helped along by a lingering injury, his start this year has been much better. He has a 3.16 ERA in 31.1 innings over five starts. And, after just four strikeouts in his first two starts, he has 22 strikeouts in his last three starts, totalling 20 innings.
- Chris Bassitt: Last year, he had a league-average ERA. This year, after five starts, he has a 1.88 ERA. Not many pitchers suddenly get better at age 36. In 28.2 innings, he’s allowed 27 hits, 6 walks and 34 strikeouts. John Schneider has been pulling him fairly early in his starts. He’s pitched less than six innings in his last three starts. His strikeout rate is 28.6 this year, 22.2% last year. And his walk rate has dropped to 5.0% from 9.2%.
- Jeff Hoffman: He has a 1.46 ERA in 11 games. Batters are hitting .167/.182/.286 against him.
- Yimi Garcia: He has a 0.00 ERA in 11 games, 11.1 innings. Batters are hitting .150/.227/.150 against him.
- Brendon Little: He has a 2.53 ERA in 13 games. Batters are hitting .154/.250/.282 in 10.2 innings.