Enjoyable early season stats to date in 2023

Repeat after us: It’s early. It’s actually early.

We all know that the baseball season is lengthy, and recollections are quick. So a lot of what has occurred over these first 10 days gained’t stand the check of time.

But these early season numbers are nonetheless as enjoyable to consider as they’re eye-popping. And they are often significant, too, foreshadowing actual adjustments in efficiency.

So with that in thoughts, we gathered seven MLB.com writers and requested them to choose their favourite numbers from the season to date. Here are the outcomes:

Jason Heyward’s 112.7 mph HR exit velocity

Yes, it’s only one swing. But think about these information about Heyward’s line-drive homer towards the Rockies on Tuesday:

• It had a better exit velocity than any batted ball hit by a Dodgers participant in all of ‘22, together with the postseason.

• It was Heyward’s highest exit velocity on a house run since Statcast started monitoring in 2015 — by a margin of two mph.

Remember, it is a participant who slugged .326 and hit 9 homers over 152 video games with the Cubs over the previous two seasons, earlier than getting launched with one yr and $22 million left on his contract. The Dodgers gave him a shot on a Minor League deal, and he rapidly impressed with some adjustments to his set-up and swing. After making the roster as an additional outfielder, Heyward has already homered 3 times in 13 at-bats. Whether that is really the beginning of a brand new chapter for the 33-year-old stays to be seen, however driving the ball like that (even as soon as) is definitely a very good signal.

Miguel Vargas’s 7% chase price

You may keep in mind Vargas from such moments as “being told not to swing the bat in Spring Training due to a fractured finger and still drawing nine walks anyway, even though pitchers knew he wasn’t going to be swinging the bat.” While a little bit of an entertaining sideshow — one which perhaps shed extra of a light-weight on the worth of not swinging than anybody was snug with — it was nonetheless simply Spring Training, and subsequently, largely meaningless. Uh, proper?

Well, now the video games have that means. Vargas has stepped to the plate 26 occasions. He’s walked in 9 of them, which is especially spectacular on condition that this wasn’t precisely a famous ability of his within the Minors, the place he had a solid-but-not-elite 10% stroll price in almost 2,000 plate appearances. But, actually, it’s not about strolling. It’s about not swinging at unhealthy pitches. Like, ever.

So far, Vargas has seen 124 pitches. Of these, 71 have come outdoors of the zone. Of these, Vargas has gone after … 5. It’s the bottom chase price in baseball this yr, and whereas everyone knows it’s extremely early, additionally know this: among the many gamers on the high of that checklist are Mike Trout and Juan Soto. Some expertise simply don’t take all that lengthy to search out.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s 2 K’s in first 38 PAs

Guerrero has by no means been an enormous strikeout man, however he’s taken his bat-to-ball expertise to the following degree to date this season. Through his first seven video games, the 24-year-old went down on strikes twice in 38 plate appearances — a 5.3% Okay-rate — whereas whiffing on solely 15.2% of his swings.

Of course, a few of this has to do with the competitors Guerrero has confronted — the Cardinals and Royals aren’t precisely brimming with bat-missing arms. But contemplating how laborious Guerrero hits the ball, even a slight discount in strikeout price — which suggests extra balls in play — might pay big dividends over the course of a season.

Guerrero already owns the two highest totals of hard-hit batted balls (exit velocity of 95+ mph) produced in a single season underneath Statcast monitoring (since 2015), with 274 in 2021 and 265 final yr. In these two seasons mixed, 38.4% of his plate appearances ended with laborious contact. In the early going this yr, it’s 51% — 22 hard-hit balls in 43 PAs.

Kodai Senga’s 8 ghost fork K’s in his MLB debut

Senga’s ghost fork is as ghostly as marketed. It’s the pitch everybody needed to see when the Japanese right-hander took the mound for the primary time in MLB, and Senga delivered with eight strikeouts — all on his forkball — together with getting Yuli Gurriel to lose his bat for his first huge league Okay. Now this is the enjoyable reality: Since pitch monitoring started in 2008, Senga’s eight strikeouts on his ghost fork are essentially the most that any pitcher has ever had on a secondary pitch in his MLB debut. Think about all of the nasty sliders, curveballs, changeups and splitters we have seen come into the league within the final 15 years. None of them stacked as much as Senga’s ghost fork. 

Most K’s on a secondary pitch^ in MLB debut, since 2008
Kodai Senga’s forkball: 8 — April 2, 2023
Anthony Kay’s curveball: 7 — Sept. 7, 2019 
Dillon Peters’ curveball: 7 — Sept. 1, 2017
Reynaldo Lopez’s curveball: 7 — July 19, 2016
Cody Reed’s slider: 7 — June 18, 2016
Tyler Matzek’s slider: 7 — June 11, 2014
Charlie Leesman’s curveball: 7 — Aug. 9, 2013
^Any breaking or offspeed pitch (all non-fastball pitch sorts)

The solely pitchers to beat Senga’s ghost fork with any pitch kind of their MLB debut (together with fastballs) had been Freddy Peralta, who had 12 strikeouts on his four-seamer on May 13, 2018, and Triston McKenzie, who had 9 strikeouts on his four-seamer on Aug. 22, 2020.

The Rays are chasing the Maroons and the remainder of the 1800s

The Rays are the final remaining undefeated staff, at 8-0 getting into Sunday. They’re the primary staff to start out 8-0 or higher because the Royals began 9-0 in 2003. But wait, there’s extra. All eight of the Rays’ wins have been by no less than 4 runs. That’s the second-longest streak of wins, all by four-plus runs, to start out a season, behind solely the 1884 St. Louis Maroons, at 13. The final staff to win no less than eight straight by no less than 4 runs? That could be the 1939 Yankees, with 10 straight. Talk about nice firm.

Don’t fear, there are extra lists comprised of the Rays and pre-1900s baseball. Tampa has a plus-46 run differential. The solely groups with a better mark by way of their first eight video games of a season had been the aforementioned Maroons (+68), the 1884 New York Gothams (+48) and the 1882 Providence Grays (+47). The Rays are tied on the checklist with the 1876 Hartfords of Brooklyn. For context, the mound was moved to its present distance in 1893.

The Giants: MLB’s shock energy staff

The Giants made it well-known that they needed so as to add a headline bat this previous winter, however their efforts largely went for naught. They pushed laborious however got here up quick within the Aaron Judge sweepstakes. Their settlement with Carlos Correa fell by way of because of medical issues. Their most profitable offseason signing, outfielder Mitch Haniger, has but to play this yr due to an indirect pressure.

And but, the Giants have been one among baseball’s greatest power-hitting squads up to now. Their 16 homers path solely these undefeated Rays (21) and the powerhouse Dodgers (18). The harm has been unfold out fairly evenly as 11 Giants have gone deep, tying the Rays for essentially the most gamers with a house run to date.

Instead of a real star hitter main the way in which, San Francisco’s lineup has been buoyed by contributions from J.D. Davis (56.3% hard-hit price), David Villar (23.5% barrel price) and Thairo Estrada (1.038 OPS by way of 31 plate appearances). Michael Conforto, who missed all of final season because of a shoulder harm, has seen the ball leap off his bat within the early going, with two homers and a 95.0 mph common exit velocity.

Brian Anderson’s 35.3% barrel price

Obviously, no one believed Anderson was a .500 hitter. In reality, to claim that his red-hot begin ensures something from right here on out could be foolish.

… But have you ever seen how laborious this man is hitting the ball? Because 9 days into the season, few gamers are crushing it fairly like Anderson is. More particularly, he has a 35.3% barrel price. For context, the single-season report is 26.5% (Aaron Judge, 2022.)

Yes, that is a particularly small pattern dimension (6-for-17, to be exact), and sure, it is totally unsustainable. What makes it price our time is that this is not remotely Anderson’s recreation. He entered this season with a profession 7.8% barrel price, and usually talking, when a participant will get scorching, regardless of how transient the streak, he’s relying on numerous luck, and would not turn out to be another person. Anderson is, for the second, incomes his ridiculous .417/.516/.833 line, and after the long term of accidents he is handled over the previous two years, watching him tear the duvet off the ball early on is additional gratifying.